I’ll throw this out there…
I have been quite hesitant to post a reply, as I don’t want to come across as very knowledgeable in the “Ways of the Wiki” and I hope I’m not stepping on any peoples toes. I have no idea how to host a wiki, but here is a loose scenario of the potential value associating running a Wiki category on the LSC site. I could have provided a pro & con list, but as per usual, I got distracted by the potential fun of a narrative.
So without further ado, apologies for the following trailer…
A long time ago on a forum not so far away…
It is a time of scattered knowledge. Veteran modellers, striking from dusty workbenches and curated backyards, had built empires of experience — wiring systems, battery conversions, and scratch-built water towers that defy age and weather.
The forum buzzes with chatter. Dover recently posted pictures of his new Heckled Mine addition. Bantam argued the case against planting problematic camellia bushes near the Amtrak ROW. Ridge told tales of his long awaited trestle-build. The forum was full of stories, questions, advice, and good-natured banter.
But chaos reigns, and the elders of the forum noticed a disturbance:
- Every spring, someone would ask, “What battery should I use for a 1:20.3 Shay?”
- Every summer, “How do I weatherproof a shingled roof?”
- And every autumn, “What’s the best way to clean track of leaf fall?”
The same brilliant answers lie buried in ancient threads, scattered across years of posts. Photos have vanished. Dead links abound. New modellers arrive with questions long answered — yet the wisdom lies deep, hidden in the archives.
From this confusion in 2007, a New Hope emerged: (O)B-Chand announced A NEW WIKI.
Forged not to replace the forum, but to augment it — the wiki is to be a living guide, a force, drawing from the forum’s greatest webpage hits:
- How to waterproof your buildings for a harsh winter
- Which transmitters play nicely with legacy receivers
- Tricks for hiding speaker grills in a coal load
- Unusual building techniques (plexiglass walls and wedding cakes plinths being a top read)
Unlike the forum, where conversation is king and every post reflects its author’s voice, the wiki is collaborative, concise, and organised. It offers the distilled knowledge, free from thread drift and derailments.
Concerned potential contributors rightly voiced concerns about the Wiki Category — “What if someone edits my post? ”
- But the wiki is not a battleground.
- It keeps a full record of every change. Nothing is lost. Edits are logged. Ideas evolve, just like layouts.
- It is place for concise shared knowledge ; lasting value. A growing not-so secret rebel alliance of modellers contribute quietly to its pages.
The real challenge is recruitment to the Cause. Questions are asked. Could you, would you be able to write a Wiki post and be happy that at some point someone might edit your contribution? At the same time might you get excited envisioning that your document will have a chance evolve, remain relevant in the distant future, knowing you too, can clarify the edit down the line?
Would you be happy to:
- “Treat it like track-work” .
- “Lay down something useful — knowing others may help super-elevate the curves, and add scenery.”
So everybody, I might challenge all of us to think about something of which you are a master that could shared as a Wiki reference page.
It could be:
- How to avoid common pond building mistakes
- Glues, strengths and weaknesses
- Critters, how to discourage them
- What to consider in a choosing a CNC, 3D printer
- Using a lathe to create scale veranda posts and telephone poles.
Returning to our story about the very first LSC wiki edit…
Soon Ridge added a diagram. Bantam contributed a list of safe battery chemistries for summer heat. Someone else corrected a dead link. Instead of concerns about ownership, they treated it like ballasting a shared mainline — collaborative, respectful, and transparent.
The forum remains the Cantina (which also sort of explains why there’s a “talking rooster” in the group🤪)— full of characters, stories, and spirited debate. The wiki is the archives of the BD Temple — curated, resilient, ready to guide future generations.
Together, they are stronger.
So when the next newcomer asks, “What’s the best way to do something?”, you’ll smile, link them to the wiki, and say: “Here are the basics; start here, my build is linked there too, and let’s talk. We’ve been there. You’re not alone.”
