Do Model Railroaders Have Other Hobbies?

I enjoy repairing desktop and laptop computers for friends and family. If you have old laptops that you don't want I'll take them, fix 'em and give them away free to someone who doesn't have one.

I taught my son and daughter to fly model RC planes.  Now we are inseparable... trains in the winter and planes in the summer.

My son is a better pilot than me now.  My daughter is just getting the hang of it.  I included a video... This was one of the top ten days of my life.

Ron

Used to do Ham radio.  Not anymore.  KC6NNL  Matt

My hobby?  Girls half my age.   

Now that I'm over 36 it's completely legal.

Lotsa Vette fans on here.  My brother would have enjoyed it.  When we were out

joyriding in my mother's new '54 Chevy, we saw one of those first white Vettes

in a tiny dealer showroom in Mt. Washington, Ky.  My brother was hooked.  He

got at least one, that he ordered and picked up in Bowling Green.  I gave him

membership in a Corvette club for Christmas that year.  The closest I came to getting one was in 1960, when I could have gotten one for , I think, $500 more than a Superstock 348 Impala.  I went with the Impala.  The price spread now is a lot wider, and deserves to be, between Vettes and current Impalas.

Oh, yes, Bad Order, very aware of Studebaker building Conestogas.  I think they got their start in autos in electrics.  I built the requisite model of the Highway Pioneers 1910 Studebaker electric coupe, and have been to a LOT of vintage car shows, but don't think I have seen a Studebaker electric, although I've seen Detroits and others.

that r/c Plane video was cool that corsair looks to be a very nice flying plane. your daughters flight looked like the first time I flew but mine didn't fair that well. it was a cadet senior if I remember correctly. about 15-20 feet from the ground I lost lift and nose dived into the ground prop broke and front gear came off. last time I flew. it was a buddy's plane

From May through October, I bike outside.

I read history..........I have been concentrating on the centennial of WWI.

i enjoy reading and studying the Civil War. I have visited most of the major battlefields of the Eastern & Western theaters.

i enjoy naval history from the Greeks through the present, especially the evolution of dreadnoughts.

i am interested in and read about evolutionary biology, especially the interplay of climate and disease on human evolution. The effects of climate and disease on the the history of civilization since about 400BC is a hot topic for me. Areas of interest include the plague of Athens and it's effect on the war between Athens and Sparta; the plague of Justinian and the subsequent spread of Islam;  the Little Ice Age and Black Death and lastly, the Spanish Influenza.

Peter

When I'm not puttering with trains I'm out paddling my stand-up paddleboard (SUP) which I built a couple of years ago. I also bicycle though I haven't had as much time for that now that I have a 2 and 7 year old. At night I usually end up playing World of Tanks on the Xbox (I worked in the game industry until recently). I also enjoy making things. My current project is a set of wTrak wooden train tables for my kids. I saw them at the Seattle train show a few weeks ago and they were hands down the neatest thing I saw. If you have small kids or grandkids check out the plans at http://www.wTrak.org 

I consider my trains to be my midlife crisis and some of you guys are validating what I keep telling my wife: "Honey just be thankful I'm into trains. Other guys midlife crisis require wearing a helmet, paying moorage fees or a building second garage!"  

Gaming,Golf,Freediving.

Sorry guys ,I forgot to post this video.. spring till fall we run the boats and winter is trains..Here is one of our R/C boats..its my wifes ..me doing a test run on a nitro rigger...

The RC plane video brought back many good memories for me as well.  I started with a Sig Cadet, got into aileron control with an A-Ray, and then built an 8 foot double dihedral wingspan sailplane with a high start bungee type launcher. It was a lot of fun until we lost our flying field. 

Do you want me to believe that there ARE other hobbies?

Jerry

Gee, Erie Lackawanna,

you remind me of someone I know who models the DL&W, and collects Pontiac "Goats".

Artie

Oops, I guess I should mention my other hobbies:

fly fishing, and fishing in general (salt and freshwater), kayak fishing, canoeing, boating, camping, astronomy (10" Meade reflector with clock drive), skiing, and sci-fi movies.

Take care,

Artie

Well, as long as you're talkin' RC, my favorite Radio Controlled vehicle is this 36-year-old Army Fast Attack Vehicle.

I've dabbled in RC Electric Airplanes and Helicopters, RC Electric Scale Boats (I built a 112-pound Scale Tugboat (powered by a car battery which also served as ballast), but my favorite is this FAV!

The Cats love to scamper around the house with it, and the Dogs try to avoid it in the back yard.

This is the only RC ground vehice that has a True Automotive Gear-Type Differential...the newer ones have a stupid slip-clutch on each axle.

BAD ORDER

Wow...dogs usually chase, cats usually hide and avoid...just my limited observation..

some of each sometimes ignore...interesting how these different critters have

individual personalities....my midlife crises apparently started at the age of

7 and have continued to this day

I Brew too

lots and lots of delicious beer!

Yes  Can't wait until spring to get flying again although  our club flies indoors at the high school gym once a week.. It's not as  easy as it looks.  I do have a Cub on skies and another on floats (electric) both handle well in the snow. It' just been too darn cold to fly and retrieval might be a problem with so much snow in case of a crash.  Thanks for the video.

Howdy, Colorado Hi-Railer

Two of our 3 dogs avoid the vehicle: to them it's because it's unpredictable in its movements. (Even though it's ME that makes it so wildly maneuverable).

The third dog is young and feisty. She will chase, but will never get within touching distance of the FAV.

The Fast Attack Vehicle is boss of the yard!

The cats hide, then leap out at it, but they too never touch it!

When I leave it sitting on the floor, their curiosity causes them to come over and sniff and examine it, but when I move the throttle just a little, they scamper!

Here's a picture that destroys the myth that Canines and Felines are natural enemies:  The Cairn Terrier is Trixie, and the Calico is Annie.

BAD ORDER

HEY IBREWTOO,

I'm a lifelong fan of the Suds also!

Last night we went out to a steak house and I had a 32 ounce mug of Bud REGULAR.

The steak wasn't that good...too tough.  (The shrimp were fine though).

BAD ORDER (burp) HAL

My wife and I and another couple that model the Western Maryland in HO scale are tech and track officials for a production company that promotes truck and tractor pulling.

Starting Memorial Day weekend it is Pulling Season, end of September it is Train Layout season.

My wife and I make hand turned pens from wood and acrylics.

With all the previous posts about Corvettes, I'd like to hear some commentary about that 10-Piston Dodge Viper, renowned for its frightening speed and power!

BAD ORDER

Im not much of a vette fan,only the 63 split  window i like..the rest are rolling bath tubs..that what all of US autobody men call them..I love my 68 charger.the rear quarters and tail light design was from the marko shark vette..

I play jazz and big band trumpet

My current stable of Bb trumpets top to bottom:

1953 Olds Super (great horn for big band lead trumpet playing0

1978 Benge 3X+ (the best commercial/recording trumpets ever. Period. Just ask Earth Wind & Fire, Tower of Power, Chicago, Blood Sweat and Tears etc. )

1971 Schilke B1 (my primary horn, all around player)

Not pictured are my flugelhorns, cornets, C and piccolo trumpets etc.

My Hobbies/Toys

Cars

Boating

Trains

Music

Movies

My other "major" hobby is cartooning. This is a character I created back in 1986-ish that I still draw today, along with about ten others I dreamed up between '83 and today. I drew up this particular pic for a similar OGR thread four years ago:



I've dabbled in R/C when a local R/C shop sponsored weekly races at a local park, but I drifted away after the shop closed. Races are still held there, organized by some other entity, but my trucks (a Tamiya ClodBuster and an Isuzu MU (Amigo)) became "show" vehicles rather than competition ones. Lately I've been dabbling with some unusual toy-grade R/C--a pair of buses: I'm collecting parts to upgrade these to digital proportional steering and throttle. Mostly by yanking the guts out of RadioShack XMods cars, since they're the about the cheapest way to acquire the requisite radio-receiver/speed-controller combo that doesn't also require replacing the motor with a brushless one (and having to piece together a whole new gear train in the process). The current crop of Xmods aren't based upon any real-life vehicles (an attraction of the previous series) so I have no qualms about buying one just to scrap the body/chassis.

---PCJ

(5/1/14: edited to place image sources on the forum instead of services that may be blocked by some webfilters)

RobRoy and BadOrder:  I reached my cousin and found that her uncle with all the Studes (House in Kentucky was built to accomodate them) had passed away, but

the remainder were divided up among three girls.  One got two Avantis and there

were seven others, but she, my cousin, didn't know what they were.  I never met

the man, unfortunately.  Too bad...I can relate to pack rats.  ((I knew the grandson

of the last president of St. Louis's Moon Motor Company (built Moon, Diana, Windsor,

and was involved with the Ruxton debacle) and he spent years collecting ever piece of

a Moon product he could find...at least one of them is displayed at the St. Louis

Transportation Museum, which is known for trains))  He did not have them all, though,

for I stood in a Pennsylvania garage sheltering a beautifully restored 1928 Moon 8

roadster, a Diana (unrestored) and a super rare Windsor coupe that I drooled all over,

unrestored, but not for sale.  Even before Corvettes were made there, (before Bowling Green) they made good cars in St. Louis.

HEY COLORADO HIRAILER, 

The following makes were still being manufactured in my lifetime:

Studebaker 

Nash

Packard

Hudson

De Soto

La Salle

Kaiser

Fraser

Terraplane

Cord

Duesenberg  (it's true!)

Lincoln Zephyr

Austin

Willys

Tucker

(There may be a few more.....)

BAD ORDER HAL, the most SENIOR MAN on the FORUM

In this order

Girls

Making money

Hunting

Dogs

Trains

Slot cars

taken

Problem was the early "vettes" had a suspension design taken from a pickup truck

Oh my goodness.....

The 53-54 models are an extremely acquired taste. Otherwise they were terribly under-powered and odd looking. The convertible top especially piled on the homely look. Hardly a sports car, it wouldn't be until the late 50s that they really figured out a winning design and earned that title. And if you want sports cars in the European tradition, then get European sports cars. Corvette is the quintessential AMERICAN sports car 

As for all of them looking like rolling bathtubs. Just...no 

Since the first of the year, I've taken up a new "Hobby".....Snow Removal!  I bought a new snow blower after Christmas and have almost worn it out already.  Woke up to 4" of snow this morning.  Were only supposed to get 1".  Oh well!!!

Can't wait until I can mow the yard again!

Tom

Haven't we all

Trains,model planes,or is planes & model trains and crabbing falls in there somewhere

at 82 I enjoy it all---fun is the name of the game

We saw the new 2014 Viper on the highway yesterday. Needless to say he wasn't too enthused about a Mazda minivan staying on his tail and eventually skipping in front of him 

Looks like Tom Densel lives in Atlanta!

My other hobbies:  hikinh, '68 e-Type Jag Roadster - came back home in mid December after full restoration was completed.  Looks and runs better than when new.  Almost all the Lucas junk has been replaced.

Published author on paranormal subjects, magazine articles, our horses, my Jeep Wrangler ( currently being rehabbed) gardening and pen and ink drawing, water colors. 

I wish I lived in Atlanta! At least there the snow goes away after a few days.  In Northwest Ohio it just keeps piling up.  We are running out of places to put it.  I wonder if we could ship it to Russia so they could use it for the Olympics.

Tom

HEY TOM,

Our High Desert country didn't get any snow this winter.

Some times we'll get a 2" or 3" snowfall which will stay around for a few days .  

BAD ORDER

Ooooh, what motor?...and there goes all your non-runablility-I mean authenticity!{lucas junk}

I'm happy to send you some of ours!{snow and cold}

Hmmmhmm, and while I do like vettes as much as the next guy, we both know he wasn't trying{unless he had a blueflame 6 in it- which he didn't}

Since many auto letters have been posted, let me include a list of all the cars I've owned since 1952, when I turned sixteen and got my license:

1934 Plymouth six  (First Car, paid $35. Ran great!)

1941 Dodge six

1936 Ford V8  (Only car that was the same age as me)

1942 Chevrolet six

!946 Pontiac straignt eight

1942 Mercury V8 Club Coupe  (My favorite car on the entire list!)

1940 Chevrolet six pickup truck

1949 Oldsmobile OHV V8  (First car with automatic transmision)

1941 Chevrolet six

1946 Plymouth six

1952 Oldsmobile OHV V8

1952 Ford V8

1957 Plymouth OHV V8

1963 Chevrolet OHV V8  (My first new car, $2388)

1968 Pontiac Firebird OHV V8  (My most powerful car. Bought new)

1978 Toyota Four  (My first foreign car, bought new. Drove over $112,000 miles, trouble-free.)

1985 Mitsubishi Starion Turbo four  (Fast!)

1991 Honda Accord Four  (Bought new)

1994 Dodge Minivan V6

1997 GMC Pickup Truck V6

1997 Plymouth Minivan V6

2005 Mazda Four  (Bought new)

2005 Mercury SUV V6

2008 Toyota Four  (Bought New)

2010 Hyundai SUV V6  (Bought new)

2005 Mercury SUV Four

2012 MAZDA 3 Four  (Bought new) 

27 cars since 1952.

Thanks for your attention,

BAD ORDER HAL

VIDEOGAMES AND RUNNING!!!!!!

Let me try again.

I have been playing these things since I was in High School. I actually make a few bucks doing it so technically it is not a hobby, but who cares!!

J

HEY JOHN,

I'm Impressed!

That's a 4-manual draw-stop Pipe Organ. (Not a Theatre Organ), and it looks like someone can read the Grand Staff!  (Treble Clef, Bass Clef, and Pedal Clef)

I don't see how anyone can be that coordinated!

I once built a single manual one-rank (61 pipes, 4' flute) pipe organ, blown by a vacuum cleaner into a home-made regulator chest.  It sounded "different", sort of like a "refined" Calliope. 

My favorite Theatre Organist was George Wright, and my favorite Classical Organist is E. Power Biggs. (Bach Tocatta & Fugue in D Minor)

BAD ORDER

Tom,

I live in Watertown, New York. Two days ago we had 22" of snow in 24 hours. Snow fall for just January was 112". Two weeks ago we set the nations coldest temp.at 37 below zero. 

John,

I've been working on those things since high school.  Nice looking E.M. Skinner.  How many ranks?

Tom

Bob,

With snow like that, snow removal is not a "hobby" but a full time job.  I can't imagine -37.  We've had some -20 with a -45 windchill, but -37 is just plain COLD.  Lets hope this winter ends soon.

Tom

==================================

It actually is an early hybrid: ~30 ranks of Moller +60 pseudo-ranks of electronic (soft stuff plus pedal) with a Harris Console. It looks like a Skinner though. I don't want to reveal its location.

J

Trains are top of the list.

I belong to a Drum and Bugel Corp and March during the summer.

I play on the snare line.

I like to fish.

I like to do car repairs.

This is mine......a little on the costly side.

Besides scratchbuilding model trains and structures, my primary hobbies tend to center on poking authority figures in the eye with a pointed stick, breeding fruit bats and slugs for fun and profit, and other activities that totally appall the authorities here,

The occasional scale model airplane

54mm figures

Reading history

well, um... I don't usually like... to talk about... my other interests. You see, they're always watching... what I do, and if I say something, this post... may get... picked up by... the NSA, or those other guys... who say they're not, but I know they are... the voice inside... my head... says so.

but I always... carry a shovel.

Yes, and while friends help you move, good friends will help you move the body,

I get free items, mostly antique, from Craigslist, fix them up (or restore), and then resell.  Helps fund my main hobby...lol.

Guns & shooting and NHRA Nitro Fueled professional racing.

HOWDY!

Since starting this thread back in Feb. 5 of this year, (see my original post for pictures),  I have added the following interests:

Home-brewing Beer.

Restoring old treadle-type Singer Sewing Machines.

Raising Young Barn Owls.

You know...the typical extra hobbies the model Railroader indulges in.

BAD ORDER HAL

So...Hal...what do you do with the young barn owls when they get old?  Also...maybe there's a market for barn owl eggs.

Actually, I have never raised a young Barn Owl, but when I acquire one, I will turn it over to my Wife, who is a Bird and Desert Tortoise fancier. 

She takes care of all the Avian species that frequent our High Desert homestead, including Turkey Vultures (some with 7-foot wing spans), Ravens (3-foot wing spans), Cooper's Hawks (a femele lives in the tall pine next door),  a Woodpecker (who is a frequent noisemaker), Goldfinches, Wrens, Hummingbirds, and even the common Sparrows, who are frequent prey to our Cooper's Hawk.

Bad Order

I had a woodpecker as a neighbor, and it started working on the house. I wanted to take up gun collecting, specifically shotguns. But my wife talked me out of it and instead we had new siding installed. Never heard from the woodpecker again! Little *******!!

J

Well let's see...

1) Shooting

2) Backpacking

3) Camping

4) Boating

5) ASE Certified Master Tech

6) Playing Guitar & Bass

7) Golf

8) Scale Modeling (Air & Space)

9) Classic Mopars

7-9 are as time permits.  

Then I got this hankering for that Lionel Train I never got for Christmas as a kid...

HEY JOHN,

Our home has stucco siding and a tile roof, so the Woodpecker has no wood to peck!

We hear him on weekends machine-gunning the utility pole out in the easement. 

He pecks as fast as an M-16  on full auto!

BAD ORDER

Trolley restoration.

1) Trains

2) 1/32 Slot Cars

3) 54mm WWII

4) Italian Sports Cars

5) Football

6) Auto Racing

7) Travel

8) Reading

ncng

those trolleys are sweet, nice work!

OK, for real:

racing large sailboats

racing small catamarans

skiing big mountains

home improvement

digging in the garden

my daughter's dance performances

collecting and rebuilding antique outboard motors and boats,  restoring a 1948 john deere farm tractor antique tractor pulling

Guys, guys.... I envy the **** out of you... cars, boats, campers, tractors, airplanes.... so jealous.

But between my full time job of executive producing the longest-running cooking show in America: Ciao Italia with Mary Ann Esposito on PBS...(okay, okay, I'm bragging)....

...and being hopelessly in love with this beautiful person....

 ...my hands are full, except for my little Youngstown & Southern Rwy.

Hangin out with my best friend of 47 yrs and wife of 44 yrs. And driving my Z06 as fast as road and track permits

Veddy nice!

bad order hal

Paul

Im impressed. Beautiful lady!!!!!!

AND Im jealous. I like watching cooking shows on PBS. I watch most of them.

Popi