Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Recommended Reading for beginning model railroaders...


...any Model Railroader magazine printed before 1980. It just lost its charm after a particular modeler was pushed far beyond his welcome and just went downhill from there. When Gordon Odegard passed away in 1991, the last of the old guard was now gone and the magazine took on a sheen that I've never really warmed up to outside of the very occasional newsstand purchase.

My fondest memories include layout photo spreads that showed...gasp...Atlas turnouts with...more gasps...exposed switch machines. My favorite sport was to look for photos of equipment with derailed wheels, especially in ads and in Trade Topics. My favorite pages were those magnificent PFM ads in back...

Photobucket


...sigh... It is still a very good read for the beginner, especially the layout building series that they'll publish regularly. My modeling tastes have simply gone in another direction. At least I can still add to my growing collection of back issues at train shows and under the counter at the hobby shop.

No comments: