Re: Posting Only On Facebook
Just one (long winded) comment I'd like to make from right field on this topic ...
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The IO Group's format represents a BACKWARD step in technology instead of a forward step that Facebook (and similar platforms) represents. The IO platform is, as was the old Yahoo Groups, loosely based on what was once called a "BBS" back in my younger days (the early to late 1980s)... BBS being the acronym for Bulletin Board Service.? Even back then, one could upload photos and other files to certain "SUBS" of a BBS, and then other users could download those files from the subs of the BBS... BUT... those files could NOT be VIEWED on the BBS.? There was not visual representation ("thumbnail") image... just a TEXT name of the file to be downloaded, saved on a floppy disk, then "loaded" (later) for viewing at home once the user was offline.? This is essentially what we have in the IO platform... just slightly more modernized, and a hell of a lot faster!
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On the other hand... Facebook, and similar platforms CAN display images and files instantaneously, on screen, without the need of downloading (or "SAVING") the file to our PCs. So, essentially... by sticking with the IO and old Yahoo type platforms, we're actually keeping with archaic technology instead of keeping up with MODERNity.
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Is that what we want for S scale?? To always be a step (or two, or more) behind... even in the new forms of MEDIA that we use to expose our scale to the masses?? I'm not saying there is anything wrong with IO's tried-and-true platform... hell, I still to this day have my old Commodore 64 computer system on which I ran my very own BBS... and it all still works!? But it is no longer my link to the world, and it has not been since about 1989.
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But to tie all that in with our topic - I suppose a similar connection could be made between how the continuation of American Flyer's archaic products (until just recently) hasn't helped much (if any) to promote S scale to today's modelers... but I won't flog that dead horse topic again.? I'll just end by saying the same thing I've been saying for many years - S scale MUST mature!? It cannot DRIVE into the future or THRIVE in that future by being stuck in the past.? And like it or not... platforms like Facebook are FAR superior to IO... and they are FAR more popular with today's newer generations.? That is an undeniable reality.
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John D
Scaler164
Ex-Sys-Op of "The Orient" BBS (1987-1989)
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Re: FS: South Wind NYC Combine
My thoughts,? come from our benefits in
getting so many new models.? At one time I owned a Super Scale 65'
combine--this model f? copper sides
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Show quoted text
That puzzles me, as I'd have thought the combine was the most
versatile of all passenger equipment, although perhaps that is
just me, with my interest?
in?branch and short?line
railroading where mixed service was so common.? The first (and
until very recently) my only Kinsman passenger car kit was the
combine.
And the NYC prototype is so generic-seeming as to suit almost
any road that didn't use their own distinctive pattern.
I have a wonderful book from the ATSF historical society, titled
something like
Passenger, Coach, and Cabbage?about Santa Fe branch line
passenger service, often with just a steel combine.
That's quite a discovery Jace!?
Seems that the lonely combine has often been a step child.?
When they first were imported, I obtained one.? I then had the
opportunity to buy an entire train of the newly painted?
models.? As expected, the coaches went in a heartbeat, then
the baggage.? The RPO, obs and combine took awhile. My
personal roster was 'good' until I decided I needed a change
which left me without a combine--I was after a short train
with just a RPO, baggage and combine.? At one of the
conventions, Jettie put me together with one that was lettered
on one side!? So again I'm happy with my little train.? I've
operated on a ATSF HO layout where a combine was standard for
a mixed train, so it's an ideal situation fairly often.? And
just a few years earlier, I'd be jumping on it!?
Also those trucks have some of
the best rolling qualities I've experienced!?
Bob Werre
PhotoTraxx
I discovered I'd accumulated three of these, which is at
least one more than I need.? Mint condition, never run.
Great for mixed trains.
Asking $175 and shipping
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Re: Unique Southern Pacific AC-5 Cab Forward 4-8-8-2 for sale
Looks like a procedure for using one of the great?Hartoy bodies?on an M2 chassis. ?Take a body from one of the 1930s Hartoy trucks that would be rare in the 50s? Sent from my Tardis -- Ted Larson trainweb.org/mhrr/??????? --------??????? NASG.org??????? --------??????? GN in 1965
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Re: S scale comments........
Take a look at 3D Central Trains table at Amherst or its website. ?There is a lot of niche modeling going on in HO. ?
Ben Trousdale?
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Re: Posting Only On Facebook
Regarding?
?(managed by Chris Burger on behalf of the NASG; ~1,300 members)
? ? What is NASGs purpose for this? ??
-- Ted Larson trainweb.org/mhrr/??????? --------??????? NASG.org??????? --------??????? GN in 1965
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Re: It's Official: No More Flyer
On Sat, Feb 1, 2025 at 03:12 PM, Andrew Parker wrote:
Ed,? I kid you.? ?I'm really an S scale lifer.
OK..........the joke is on me.? I took you too literally.? Welcome back !!? Now, what can I sell you next?? I need deeds, not words.? I will admit to being rather saddened to hear about an S scale guy moving to a smaller scale.? That makes no sense at all to me.? Moving to a larger scale makes a lot of sense to me.? But maybe that is just me.? Who knows......?? ?SSSSmiling Ed L.
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Ed Loizeaux
Los Altos, CA
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Re: It's Official: No More Flyer
Ed,? I kid you.? ?I'm really an S scale lifer.? ?However I did recently visit an N scale layout.? ?It was interesting.? ? Very small but interesting.
Alway S,?
Andrew
On Mon, Jan 27, 2025 at 06:30 PM, Andrew Parker wrote:
Sorry Ed,? as much as I love all the stuff I have bought from you I'm now switching to Z guage.
Andrew.........I, for one, will miss you and all the future purchases we might have transacted.? I have operated on only one Z scale layout, but I must admit it is a totally new perspective on things.? Z scale does offer a "big picture" opportunity missing in the larger scales.? Have fun.........Ed L.
--
Ed Loizeaux
Los Altos, CA
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Re: Posting Only On Facebook
I want to echo Mark Charles Peter.? I get stuck doing a repair today as I could not find the correct wiring diagram in any of my personal references.? I went to the NASG website and found just what I needed!? Fantastic resource!? Thank you. Austin Birkey
On Sat, Feb 1, 2025 at 8:25?AM Mark Charles via <mark_h_charles= [email protected]> wrote: Peter, you do a fabulous job of updating the NASG.org web site for all things S!? It's a wonderful portal for all who are interested in trains, farm modeling, diecast vehicles, etc. Your "news" and "product gallery" are especially comprehensive, capturing part-time makers, 3D-printed models, and many obscure niches with our hobby.
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Guys, I recommend checking this great information resource from time to time. You'll find something of interest.
--
Mark Charles
Ann Arbor, Mich. USA
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Re: S scale comments........
Part of the answer, Jace, might be that as SHS was on the way up, hobby shops were on the way out. While only a relative handful of hobby shops carried S, shops were one of the few ways potential converts could be exposed to S before the Internet.?
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Brian Jackson
Springfield, IL?
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Re: It's Official: No More Flyer
Well with Lionel dropping the American Flyer line, this may benefit American Models and Scale Trains. That's been my first thought since these discussions have been posted here. I hope that this will happen.?
Bill
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Re: S scale comments........
I think Don Thompson and his partner came as close to a sugar uncle as we are ever likely to see.? They developed a complete line of full-scale (but operable on AF track) line of cars, locomotives, and track system at affordable prices.? ?Why it didn't take
off even more than it did before the Chinese production was pulled out from under them, I cannot quite understand.
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On Sat, Feb 1, 2025 at 05:30 AM, Pieter Roos wrote:
I would bet that the molds/tooling for the pieces under discussion reside in China.
(after 50 years I expect the idea of ¡°growing¡± S into a major scale is one to forget).
Lionel has several factories in China which produce products for them.? At one time, the number was at least 10+ different factories.? Lionel obtained competitive bids for production from various factories in their attempts to keep the numbers reasonable.?
I do not know how many factories Lionel uses these days.? I am quite sure Lionel did not own these factories but had exclusive use of their capabilities.
?
I really appreciate Pieter's thinking outside the box regarding S scale not becoming a major scale.? As two old-tymers in S, we have both worked hard in our individual ways to accomplish that goal.? I, for one, feel it is impossible unless a big Sugar
Daddy steps up to the task.? So far, I have not seen a Sugar Daddy on the horizon heading our way.?
?
Perhaps S scale marketing should emphasize that S is the best niche scale to enjoy.? Creatively making things might be an appeal to many rather than simply buying things.? (Note:? "might" is not the same as "will".)? Promoting all the different ways folks
could make things in S scale for themselves would be a new approach.? Perhaps it would be better to be known as the
BEST NICHE SCALE rather than the long-lost? formerly-major scale?? No matter how much S advertises, the lack of products remains the biggest single obstacle to attracting those from other scales to S.?
?
Just my thoughts.? Worth what you paid for them.? Enjoy.........
?
Cheers..........Ed Loizeaux?
--
Ed Loizeaux
Los Altos, CA
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Re: FS: South Wind NYC Combine
That puzzles me, as I'd have thought the combine was the most versatile of all passenger equipment, although perhaps that is just me, with my interest?
in?branch and short?line railroading where mixed service was so common.? The first (and until very recently) my only Kinsman passenger car kit was the combine.
And the NYC prototype is so generic-seeming as to suit almost any road that didn't use their own distinctive pattern.
I have a wonderful book from the ATSF historical society, titled something like
Passenger, Coach, and Cabbage?about Santa Fe branch line passenger service, often with just a steel combine.
toggle quoted message
Show quoted text
That's quite a discovery Jace!? Seems that the lonely combine has often been a step child.? When they first were imported, I obtained one.? I then had the opportunity to buy an entire train of the newly painted? models.? As expected,
the coaches went in a heartbeat, then the baggage.? The RPO, obs and combine took awhile. My personal roster was 'good' until I decided I needed a change which left me without a combine--I was after a short train with just a RPO, baggage and combine.? At one
of the conventions, Jettie put me together with one that was lettered on one side!? So again I'm happy with my little train.? I've operated on a ATSF HO layout where a combine was standard for a mixed train, so it's an ideal situation fairly often.? And just
a few years earlier, I'd be jumping on it!?
Also those trucks have some of the best rolling qualities I've experienced!?
Bob Werre
PhotoTraxx
I discovered I'd accumulated three of these, which is at least one more than I need.? Mint condition, never run.
Great for mixed trains.
Asking $175 and shipping
|
Re: S scale comments........
Ed,
?
I like your thinking!? We need to share a realistic picture of the challenges and opportunities in S through our 'promotional' efforts, and I think generally we have.? We're not HO or O or N...'never have been and we never will be.? We shouldn't pretend otherwise.? In the November 2024 issue of Model Railroader (the infamous "Explore S Scale" issue), I ended my article entitled "S Scale Today" with the following paragraph...complete with a quote from you!??
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"To summarize, while there might not be as much RTR equipment available in S as in the more popular scales, those of us who model in S find its advantages more than outweigh the challenges. Roger Nulton¡¯s beautiful Monon layout and the photos accompanying this article demonstrate what can be done in 1:64.? The models created by Paul Washburn show that techniques for modeling in other scales are applicable in S.? Modeling in 1:64 isn¡¯t for everyone but it might be for you if you want to have something a bit different in an ideal size and you¡¯re willing to do the extra work to achieve it.? As veteran S modeler Ed Loizeaux says, ¡°The joy of accomplishment is hard to beat.¡±? Involvement in today¡¯s world of S scale model railroading is very rewarding!"
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And in an article which will appear in an upcoming issue of one of the multi-scale magazines I included the following:
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"Modeling in S (1:64 scale) is not for the faint of heart.? The amount of equipment available new is limited compared to more popular scales, although there is a very active secondary market.? But those of us in S are passionate about it.? An S model is just 36% larger in any dimension than an HO model but this results in a volume 250% that of an equivalent HO model.? The larger size gives S models a visual presence not matched in smaller scales.? It also means more durable details and more room for electronics and speakers.? The mass of the larger models also means better electrical reliability and stability while rolling along the track.? Finally, for those of us getting up there in age, it¡¯s just easier to see and work on the larger S models.? For more information on scale modeling in S, go to the website of the National Association of S Gaugers ()."
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I'm with you, Ed.? Let's enjoy what we are and not bemoan what we're not.? Onward!
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?Brooks Stover
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Re: S scale comments........
On Sat, Feb 1, 2025 at 10:50 AM, Ed Loizeaux wrote:
Perhaps S scale marketing should emphasize that S is the best niche scale to enjoy.? Creatively making things might be an appeal to many rather than simply buying things.
The thing is: People also creatively make things in the other scales.? There still has to be a baseline of available support infrastructure.? Remaining a curiosity and sticking to the "builders scale" will eventually lead to S's demise.
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Rich G(ajnak)
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Re: FS: South Wind NYC Combine
That's quite a discovery Jace!? Seems
that the lonely combine has often been a step child.? When they
first were imported, I obtained one.? I then had the opportunity
to buy an entire train of the newly painted? models.? As expected,
the coaches went in a heartbeat, then the baggage.? The RPO, obs
and combine took awhile. My personal roster was 'good' until I
decided I needed a change which left me without a combine--I was
after a short train with just a RPO, baggage and combine.? At one
of the conventions, Jettie put me together with one that was
lettered on one side!? So again I'm happy with my little train.?
I've operated on a ATSF HO layout where a combine was standard for
a mixed train, so it's an ideal situation fairly often.? And just
a few years earlier, I'd be jumping on it!?
Also those trucks have some of the best
rolling qualities I've experienced!?
Bob Werre
PhotoTraxx
toggle quoted message
Show quoted text
I discovered I'd accumulated three of these, which is at least
one more than I need.? Mint condition, never run.
Great for mixed trains.
Asking $175 and shipping
|
On Sat, Feb 1, 2025 at 05:30 AM, Pieter Roos wrote:
I would bet that the molds/tooling for the pieces under discussion reside in China.
(after 50 years I expect the idea of ¡°growing¡± S into a major scale is one to forget).
Lionel has several factories in China which produce products for them.? At one time, the number was at least 10+ different factories.? Lionel obtained competitive bids for production from various factories in their attempts to keep the numbers reasonable.? I do not know how many factories Lionel uses these days.? I am quite sure Lionel did not own these factories but had exclusive use of their capabilities.
?
I really appreciate Pieter's thinking outside the box regarding S scale not becoming a major scale.? As two old-tymers in S, we have both worked hard in our individual ways to accomplish that goal.? I, for one, feel it is impossible unless a big Sugar Daddy steps up to the task.? So far, I have not seen a Sugar Daddy on the horizon heading our way.?
?
Perhaps S scale marketing should emphasize that S is the best niche scale to enjoy.? Creatively making things might be an appeal to many rather than simply buying things.? (Note:? "might" is not the same as "will".)? Promoting all the different ways folks could make things in S scale for themselves would be a new approach.? Perhaps it would be better to be known as the BEST NICHE SCALE rather than the long-lost? formerly-major scale?? No matter how much S advertises, the lack of products remains the biggest single obstacle to attracting those from other scales to S.?
?
Just my thoughts.? Worth what you paid for them.? Enjoy.........
?
Cheers..........Ed Loizeaux?
--
Ed Loizeaux
Los Altos, CA
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I don't know about Lionel, but I've read much of model railroading makers in China are owned by J.P. Morgan Bank.? So reusing them in China shouldn't be anything but a raising Capital problem.? Please, this is not a political statement, but a comment on bringing back wanted AF.? Please do not go to a political reply.? But if I'm wrong, I gladly accept correction.
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George Courtney
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True Bill, but both far exceed anything that AC Gilbert tooled.?
Don Thompson¡
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Re: The Monon Thoroughbred
Roger,
Higher vantage point images are now referred to as "drone shots"...and they're all the rage!
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Real railroads now look like layouts on YouTube!
Brooks
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Re: "Purchasing" the AF tooling
Thanks for the example.
And imagine losing your job over it !
Bill in Ft Worth
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John Degnan
Bob Werre
Ted Larson
Ben
Don Thompson