Fun video to view:
James May’s Toy Stories - Hornby
I wish I could find that series in a Region 1 DVD. I wish I could find the earlier model train short where he buys a model train at auction:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZ8IjZ3tUas
The other parts of that series was very funny. What he does to his little sisters toy treehouse is so funny. “Little sister,turn away …” :lol:
Hi Victor:
There is another one hour covering AirFix plastic kits in which it is stated that the sales of plastic hobby kits plummeted in the 1980’s as computer gaming became popular with the youth of the 80’s generation.
Really interesting as to how the host of the show is making a genuine effort to promote the old hobbies again with the youth of the next generations.
Neat how he had a 1:1 full size plastic kit built of the Supermarine Spitfire for the Fathers of the youth to assemble. Now that’s an airplane kit !
The Mecanno show was very interesting. A collector explained that in its day Mecanno replicated the Victorian World of structural steel and mechanical manufacturing. That world has been replaced with compound curves and electronics thereby no longer making Mecanno a toy to replicate the real world around us. A toy of yesteryear.
I believe that the same is occuring with model trains.
Mike’s Train House seems to have the correct idea in an attempt to salvage the model train industry and interest current day youth. Pack the locomotives with realistic electronics and control systems such that the youth can operate a model train layout as they do a computer game with exciting responses from the model locomotives.
One gentleman on this forum or the other forum said it correctly in the live steam section:
" Your trains are depreciating as we speak. Run the wheels off of them. "
In other words do not be afriad that you are depreciating your live steam locomotives by boiling water in them and deteriorating the paint finish. It makes no differerence as to whether you boil water in your live steam locos or not as they still depreciate as the next generation of youth will have little or no interest in purchasing these locos. So enjoy them. Kind of liberating.
Norman
Norm, I’ve seen all those episodes on youtube, even the Brits vs za Germans train race. 
This one on train collecting really touched a nerve with me as we all know someone somewhere with a closet full of NIB never run LGB stuff terrified to run it least it loose value. Shamefull waste of a model train IMHO.
Vic, no worse than the guy with a hemi car that just polishes the fenders and trailers it everywhere.
If I can’t use it, I don’t want it. I’m here to enjoy life, not to impress others
Ralph
Good attitude, Ralph. I’m impressed. 
If you did not watch the video, you should, it is very interesting. Now what say we try that with LGB Brass rail (.332) and a Barry’s loco and say batteries. I have a shay that will run for about 4 hours! It could be fun!!!
Paul
Hi Victor and others:
As to the LGB train collector not wanting to run his trains:
The cure for that is for the LGB train collector to take his most valueable locomotive and see just how little he will be offered for it by as many dealers as he can possibly contact. That will cure him !
It only makes any sense for a manufacturer or a museum to collect and maintain items in unused mint condition. Otherwise, it is simply a way to depreciate your personal funds!
Also, a Victorian locomotive owned by a now deceast famous person, showing visible signs of wear, is a far more interesting artifact than MINT as it links the present day viewer with the childhood of the now deceast famous person.
Anyhow, ebay has now placed all of the “collectable” items in one bucket such that it is no longer a difficult matter to find “scarce” items and this lowers resale value.
The most glaring example to my mind is the Royal Dalton and Hummel figurines. Once worth big dollars, now a pittance, as the next generation of females have little or no interest in these figurines.
The same deal is in store for our model trains. Do not be afraid to wear them out as they are depreciating any how as they sit in their pristine boxes.
Of course the model train dealers have in the past promoted these trains as “collectables” to boost sales and encourage multiple purchases of one item by one consumer ( one loco to run and one loco to preserve in the collection ). LGB’s demise blows that theory.
Norman
Norman I agree with you 100%, the trouble with the collectors mind isn’t the real world value of an item, its their own perceived value of it, despite what buyers in the real world are willing to pay.
3 examples:
1.The guy who rigidly insists that the Greenburg Guide says THIS is the dollar amount that his item is worth and that’s what he wants for it.
2.The guy who sees the over-inflated BIN price on Ebay and gets it in their mind that’s the real value of it.
3.The guy who payed full MSRP for an item 20 years ago, runs the wheels off if then wants the same MSRP back for it on resale despite the wear and tear.
Sad to say I was at a train show this past weekend and it was surprising to see that the rising price creep that seams to infect every aspect of large scale these last few years has been hitting the show sellers as well, used LGB stuff was 25%-50% higher that in shows past. Same for used beaten up Bachmann stuff. Some guys had good deals on new stuff but the resale guys are getting harder to hagel with.
Sometimes I really wonder which way things are going.
Hi Victor:
It is the old story, greed.
Here in Ottawa, gasoline is now 1.307 Cdn / litre . You won’t drive very far with 20.00 CDN at 1.307 Cdn / litre . In Toronto, car dealers are feeling the response as the under 30 age group are not as interested in purchasing automobiles as we were.
Personally, I am waiting for the lower priced electric autos hopefully within five years or so. But then again, electricity rates have doubled in just a few years so I do not know where all this is heading.
The regulars on this and the other internet discussion board keep repeating that we have all that we need which is of course correct. I think that the largescale product increased pricing is reducing the large scale customer base in the same fashion as has the increased gasoline pricing turned off a large segment of an entire generation of future market automobile buyers. Who could predict such a thing could be possible way back in the 1950’s ?
I can only see contraction for the large scale market place.
Norman