08-19-2009, 08:35 PM
I suspect that rivet counting as long as the individual is counting rivets on his own models is acceptable. It is also acceptable if an individual enters a model in an NMRA contest. The judges may not literally count rivets, but they will judge on some very strict guidelines. On the other hand, if I am visiting another modeler's layout, I think it would be out of place and impolite to start counting rivets or criticising another individuals model railroad. As an example David Barrow likes operation, he doesn't particularly care about scenery as far as I can tell. His latest domino layout is in a recent issue of MR and there is one domino with scenery on it, the rest are pretty much bare "dominoes" with some sidings and structures. I might not want to do it that way, but I really have no business criticising Dave for doing what he enjoys. I hope I'm careful here. When someone posts a picture or a track plan and asks for a critique, I try to be careful not to come across as a rivet counter.