The worst in my book are actually several - going back to button un-couplers rather then the hidden ones. No standard in command control, rather 2 different ones, MTH and Lionel. Long wait, sometimes never-built cataloged items. Lack of especially scenery items as in other scales, figures, vehicles, etc.
The Best- The highly detailed engines and rolling stock coming out.
THE BEST -- The OGRR Forum
THE WORST -- No OGRR Forum
I want to see if the moderators will flag this one.
The best - is not every one has to like the same thing. Track choice, # of rails, gauge, road names, # of rivets, size of coupler, duplicate car numbers, authenticity, type of electronics, engine speed, era correctness, shades of color, wiring scheme, just to name a few.
The worst is - many people are prone to complain about what others enjoy.
The best by far is how this hobby releases stress by taking your mind off of other issues. I enjoy the troubleshooting and fixing associated with trains. Just powering up and letting them rip makes the worries fade away.
The worst thing is trying to get the darn cattle loader working correctly.
Dear Geysergazer,
I linked to your prior thread and it was a great read. Thanks for such a great idea.
Seeing a lot of hate on the Scouts here, in my experience, they are excellent engines for what they are, some of mine have even proven to be more reliable than my hudsons and 2-6-4's. True, they aren't very powerful, but they are great little engines for shorter trains, and you can pick three of them up for the price of a bigger engine!
The best:
Thirteen plus pound bridge-bender, eight-wheel drive, relatively low-speed gearing; it will pull the plumbing right out of the station.
The worst: I need to two-rail it! 
Best: The variety of items available, the fact that tinplate can run on the same track as Legacy, and the support available in this hobby.
Worst: Lack of a common operating command system, the amount of room a layout takes up with O-72 (or larger) curves, and how everything I am interested seems to be for sale at the same time!
The Best: O gauge, O scale, 1:48, 1/4", whatever you want to call it.
The Worst: Watching the manufacturers die off one by one and the market continue to segment further.
When the nation was young, railroads down south used Five Foot Gauge, which is commonly referred to as "Southern Gauge", right? So isn't O gauge track correct to operate The General on?
The worst: Early MPC plastic wheels, non-working couplers and DC engines.
The best: Magne-traction, Engines with dual Pullmor motors and smoke rings from steam engine stacks
If you start with a 671 when you are 10, it is always the best. I don't care how many MTH Premier, Weaver Brass and Williams Brass engines you have. The worst, PW 44 Tonner.
Best: most every thing already stated above, diversity, and great folks who enjoy our hobby
Worst: #1 on-going loss of manufacturers... Weaver, the original Williams, McCoy, and now MTH +++
#2 $1500 +++ items, they are great but out of reach for most [as a kid the $5.00 Lionel box car was a lot and a 49.99 GG1 was over the top! Oh, to be a kid again!
#3 QC issues, unavailable repair parts for relatively new (made in Asia) stuff, and electronics that die [ pre-war and post war stuff keeps chugging along ]
#4 fewer and fewer Local Hobby/Train Stores, mail order and train shows just aren't the same.... LHS had/have that wonderful musty odor with orange and blue boxes on their shelves..... [ a little bit of heaven for us baby boomers back then and now.. if one is still open nearby] .
#5 Santa Clause doesn't leave Christmas trains under the tree or on the hearth during his annual sojourn any more!
#6 That's all for now, folks... stay well !
The best: (by far) the people you meet and interact; with my second being the impressive size and weight of O scale! I got sick and tired of the HO stuff come off the tracks way too many times.
Worst: Lack of a "common" command system--however the future is "dead" rail and that will solve it for future O scalers.
The WORST: A friend asking if you can help get his childhood train running once again and then finding a dead Ray-O-Vac that leaked.
The BEST: Seeing old friends at York!
The best: All of them
The worst: When your dad scrapes the number boards off your number boards on your pair of 2032's, damages the paint on a prewar engine and warps a 1065 shell roof.
The BEST: The fellowship and sense of community that comes from this Forum and the big meets like York and Allentown. The Lionel 773 and 2343. No matter what comes after, they will always be "the original greats" and they're still fun to play with today. And Plasticville, that gave it all a sense of purpose.
The WORST: The amount of space this hobby takes up! The fact that hardly anyone in the Land of No Basements knows about Lionel, which forces me to go it alone. And the pandemic that pretty much canceled everything I love in 2020.
The Worst: Cancellation of a cataloged Rock Island loco by Lionel that I wanted to buy, but apparently there weren't enough other hobbyists/buyers to make a production run financially feasible for Lionel.
The Best #1: The MTH initial release of my favorite RI train: the GM Aerotrain ultimately rendered in RI decor. I rode that train as a teenager when it was assigned as the PEORIA ROCKET. I bought it for my collection but unfortunately, I sold it and all my other RI trains, accessories, and control gear via Stout Auctions after facing some scary medical issues in my mid-70s.
The Best #2: The Rock Island TA diesel train set by Sunset 3rd Rail. Pricey, but worth it as a memory-maker. I rode that train when a version of it was the PEORIA ROCKET. I bought it knowing upfront that I couldn't run it on my L-shaped layout -- which has O42 curves and switches. That train is now on display on the wall of my train room. Photo attached.
Mike Mottler LCCA 12394
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