I got a good deal on old Garden railway magazines (1991-1999) all in binders and in perfect condition. I started reading through the earlier ones and all I can say is what a difference. I enjoy the older issues alot more. There are a few sections I like such as Just for kids. What a great idea. The stuff is so simple yet perfect for even an adult to do and use on the RR. I cant believe how many great ideas I already have from the older issues. I like that its more old school. (less things on electronics etc… and more kitbashing stuff)
It would be great if GR would go back to those days again. Pictures seem better both color and b&w. They even have more smaller RR’s.
All the train mags seem to embrace the big layouts. They are nice, but for the common man a bit unrealistic. Then again if all we saw were ‘common’ railroads why would you want to achieve more?
I guess a nice combination of the two is what I like…
What I really miss are the old pull out prints to build stuff.
Terry
Shawn, speaking as one who’s been in the magazine biz, the situation with print quality has a lot to do with paper quality. Over the years, as ad revenue dropped and publishers were looking for ways to cut costs, cheaper paper was one way out. I’ve seen the change in our magazine (Road & Track) and in MR and GR. Gazette still uses the good stuff and ships its magazine in a plastic envelope that protects the cover (I appreciate this because I save all my issues). The Kalmbach books as well as everything else out there, ships unwrapped with either a label stuck on with gummy stuff (preferable, as you can peel it off) or with your name and address printed in a white box on the cover (crappy, because you never have a nice looking cover). Oh, one more magazine that has not sacrificed quality: Finescale. Of course it now comes out only three (or is it four?) times a year. And costs about $20 a pop.
Joe Rusz said:[b]Interesting because the only two RR mags I still subscribe to are the Gazette and Timber Times, both of which are printed on quality paper and maintain quality content. I lamented the changes to GR when Kalmbach took them over. First the cover became the usual mundane "grab your attention on the newstand" type that blends in with all the others there. Then the mags mailed out without envelopes resulting in the labeling you mention and finally eliminating the large pull out drawings put the nail in the coffin for me.
Shawn, speaking as one who's been in the magazine biz, the situation with print quality has a lot to do with paper quality. Over the years, as ad revenue dropped and publishers were looking for ways to cut costs, cheaper paper was one way out. I've seen the change in our magazine (Road & Track) and in MR and GR. Gazette still uses the good stuff and ships its magazine in a plastic envelope that protects the cover (I appreciate this because I save all my issues). The Kalmbach books as well as everything else out there, ships unwrapped with either a label stuck on with gummy stuff (preferable, as you can peel it off) or with your name and address printed in a white box on the cover (crappy, because you never have a nice looking cover). Oh, one more magazine that has not sacrificed quality: Finescale. Of course it now comes out only three (or is it four?) times a year. And costs about $20 a pop.
I guess it’s a sort of death spiral for publishers. Ad revenue goes down, quality goes down, circulation goes down which leads to ad revenue going down…![/b]
I still have most of my GRs going back to about 2001, for a time between 2001 and 2005 they did several small layout stories that really helped me get the bug, then starting about 2006 on they started showcasing the “wider is better” crowd and layouts got bigger and bigger, until the recession hit, now since about 2010 they have begun re-examining smaller layouts, last years “small layout contest” being proof of that.
Victor Smith said:That was one thing I noticed was they had both small and large railroads. They also had a section on building small rolling stock. Stuff that would be great on your layouts. Seems like there was more of a focus on the gardening aspect as well.
I still have most of my GRs going back to about 2001, for a time between 2001 and 2005 they did several small layout stories that really helped me get the bug, then starting about 2006 on they started showcasing the "wider is better" crowd and layouts got bigger and bigger, until the recession hit, now since about 2010 they have begun re-examining smaller layouts, last years "small layout contest" being proof of that.
The latest mag Garden/Model Railroading are curling were I never had that problem before!
Oddly, I enjoy GR but cant stand MR.
Sean McGillicuddy said:Musta been all that heavy breathing while you were reading :D Ralph
The latest mag Garden/Model Railroading are curling were I never had that problem before!
I have many (not all) issues of Garden Railways going back to the black and white “Sidestreet” days of the early/mid 1980s.
What gets me is one of the old magazines pulled off the shelf can get me through about 2-3 bathroom uses.
The LAST issue of GR I bought from Kalmbach did not get me through one.
So it goes?
Back in 2001, GR had 168 pages. Now it run in the low 90s.
Sad.
And of those 90… about 50 are ads!
There’s only so much you can write about LS, and then you start repeating.
I cancelled my subscription years ago. I got tired of spending money for re-runs.
If they had more technical and educational articles, I might still be reading it.
Now all I subscribe to is the Narrow Gauge and Shortline Gazette.
I cancelled three years ago. Cost was the main deal for me here in yUK. I kept most all of Mr Strong’s stuff and all the how-to-build as well, in case we ever get anything bigger than a postage stamp backyard, but the rest went into the dumpster.
tac
Ottawa Valley GRS
Some of the old ones had some good tech info. Valuable stuff of the golden age of Mamodifications and Stopmer Conversions!
I gave up all the US stuff and joined the 16mm society. Membership has increased greatly in the past few months, and with some of the good publications they are cranking out, I can see why. Surprisingly, I am one of about three pages of US members, so I am not the only nut here I guess.
http://www.16mm.org.uk/newsite/default.html
Might renew Steam in the Garden again, but it was becoming a multi page Aristocraft advert when we quit getting it in the mid 2000s.
Yup, I agree the older Magazines were better… Nick
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