03-26-2011, 08:32 PM
I can sort of relate, although it's not a direct comparison. I've often thought the same thing -- that I'm in a niche of the hobby, or that I'm in a specialized part of a specialized hobby. I live in Canada but model British railways from the 1950s & '60s.
Whenever, by chance, I meet another fellow railway modeler, I have to explain that I'm into British model trains. So I've kind of connected but not quite connected with someone ! They also would not relate to my enthusiasm for "Jinties" and "Black Fives"!
I also dabble in North American HO but, most of the time, I'm running British trains on my layout.
I'm definitely in the minority over here. However, there is a club of British modelers in Ontario, but they're spread out over the Greater Toronto Area. I really enjoy visiting model train shows but 90% of the layouts I see at the shows depict Canadian or US trains.
So how do I deal with this? -- through several ways.
• I still enjoy watching a nice North American layout and there are always principles, layout ideas, scenery, wiring, track layout ideas, etc., that I can apply to my layout.
• I've just come to accept that most modelers here are interested in one kind of trains while I'm interested in another. I simply try to compare the two prototypes, as they're all trains and we're all rail-fans.
• I'm so used to being in the minority that I have almost come to like it!
• connecting with other British enthusiasts via the web has helped a LOT. Not only can I connect with other British train fans in North America, I can also link up with those who actually live in Britain. I'm sure you could (and probably do) link up with others that way as well.
• maybe you could "dabble" in another prototype, as I do? I occasionally model Canadian/US trains because I like the variety and I also like to explore my own railway heritage. But my real interest is in British trains so I keep coming back to those.
As a prototype, I also like electric railways such as Streetcars, Interurbans, etc. I even belong to an electric railway heritage line (<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.hcry.org">http://www.hcry.org</a><!-- m -->) and I've even thought about building a layout that would reflect these railways -- who knows what might happen! I also know of a group near Toronto who has modeled such a railway, and they take their electric/interurban/streetcar layout around to train shows.
Hope these ideas help in some way!
Whenever, by chance, I meet another fellow railway modeler, I have to explain that I'm into British model trains. So I've kind of connected but not quite connected with someone ! They also would not relate to my enthusiasm for "Jinties" and "Black Fives"!
I also dabble in North American HO but, most of the time, I'm running British trains on my layout.
I'm definitely in the minority over here. However, there is a club of British modelers in Ontario, but they're spread out over the Greater Toronto Area. I really enjoy visiting model train shows but 90% of the layouts I see at the shows depict Canadian or US trains.
So how do I deal with this? -- through several ways.
• I still enjoy watching a nice North American layout and there are always principles, layout ideas, scenery, wiring, track layout ideas, etc., that I can apply to my layout.
• I've just come to accept that most modelers here are interested in one kind of trains while I'm interested in another. I simply try to compare the two prototypes, as they're all trains and we're all rail-fans.
• I'm so used to being in the minority that I have almost come to like it!
• connecting with other British enthusiasts via the web has helped a LOT. Not only can I connect with other British train fans in North America, I can also link up with those who actually live in Britain. I'm sure you could (and probably do) link up with others that way as well.
• maybe you could "dabble" in another prototype, as I do? I occasionally model Canadian/US trains because I like the variety and I also like to explore my own railway heritage. But my real interest is in British trains so I keep coming back to those.
As a prototype, I also like electric railways such as Streetcars, Interurbans, etc. I even belong to an electric railway heritage line (<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.hcry.org">http://www.hcry.org</a><!-- m -->) and I've even thought about building a layout that would reflect these railways -- who knows what might happen! I also know of a group near Toronto who has modeled such a railway, and they take their electric/interurban/streetcar layout around to train shows.
Hope these ideas help in some way!
Rob
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.robertrobotham.ca/">http://www.robertrobotham.ca/</a><!-- m -->
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