I have often said that model railroading is one of my favorite hobbies that I seldom get to enjoy because I seldom have the room for it. That said, it's a hobby that I weave in and out of from time to time.
When I was a little kid, I used to enjoy playting with my dad's old Marklin electric trains, which were in HO scale but, being AC-powered, had a more or less conspicuous third rail. Later I developed an interest in two-rail, DC-powered model trains, starting with a Bachmann train set and culminating in regular trips to the hobby store with my grandmother to shop for Athearn and Atlas locomotives and rolling stock for a makeshift kitchen-table layout. My grandmother and I were members of the local model railroad club and would occasionally attend model railroad shows where we were able to run our trains on a larger layout than the kitchen table could accommodate.
Nowadays I find myself more attracted to N-scale model railroading due to its lower space requirements—and, frankly, because of the adorableness of railroad models in this smaller scale.
This page was last updated on 11/19/2025.
