How many are "too many"?

[Chris in Prague]

For me, 'too many' locos would be more than the Working Timetable requires. In which case, despite selling off many, I still have too many! However, as I'm modelling 1961-1969 BR SR and WR steam and diesel, that's still a LOT of locos. required for a Summer Saturday WTT for each period. I also have a few locos., simply because I like them, even though they would never have run in North Cornwall: a Class 46, 52 "Western" and a "Jubilee" to be renumbered and renamed as "Alberta" as it was a very late survivor (1967) and a schoolfriend's favourite loco. AS other's have mentioned the cost of DCC conversion means that it will be a LONG time before every loco. will be able to run under DCC. To start, the aim is to have one of each type (steam and diesel) converted by Wickness and to leave the BR Blue ones (at present one Class 03 and one Class 04, only) to last.

[Ozymandias]

You can never have too many locomotives, power tools, aeroplane kits (balsa or plastic), guitars, t-shirts or shiny things for a classic Mini.

[oreamnos]

Finally this is getting to be really good reading. Come on you 100+ hoarders. We know you are out there. It's not a crime - we just need to hear about it.

You know, as I stated in my response to this thread, I admit I have purchased duplicate examples of certain locos, particluar 1Co-Co1 types, beyond a number I myself think is justified.  Your use of the word "hoarder" therefore actually touches a bit of a raw nerve with me.  "Hoarding" may not be a a "crime" but it can be (and has been) considered an illness and I have wondered if my multiple purchases of the same loco suggests some sort of pathology.

While I appreciate that you were not intentionally trying to "push peoples' buttons" and no offense was ever intended (and I took very little), a more careful choice of words when you goad people to respond to this thread would still be appreciated by me.

Matt

[Chris in Prague]

I wouldn't class myself as being a hoarder but Wadebridge only ever had two ex-GWR pannier tanks allocated to it at a time and I have one Dapol and two Graham Farish ones in BR Black plus a Graham Farish one in GWR Green (Bodmin GWS) . . .

When it comes to non-perishable food items, I AM a bit of a hoarder but I get this from my mother who got it from her mother when my mother was growing up in WW2!

[ParkeNd]

Finally this is getting to be really good reading. Come on you 100+ hoarders. We know you are out there. It's not a crime - we just need to hear about it.

You know, as I stated in my response to this thread, I admit I have purchased duplicate examples of certain locos, particluar 1Co-Co1 types, beyond a number I myself think is justified.  Your use of the word "hoarder" therefore actually touches a bit of a raw nerve with me.  "Hoarding" may not be a a "crime" but it can be (and has been) considered an illness and I have wondered if my multiple purchases of the same loco suggests some sort of pathology.

While I appreciate that you were not intentionally trying to "push peoples' buttons" and no offense was ever intended (and I took very little), a more careful choice of words when you goad people to respond to this thread would still be appreciated by me.

Matt

verb

accumulate (money or valued objects) and hide or store away.


No offense intended. It's just using the English language. If someone has 150 locos, and I guess plenty have, then they won't all fit on the layout at the same time, and must be "stored away"

[joe cassidy]

I suppose that I should nail my colours to the mast and admit that I am "guility" of having too many locos (and coaches). My defence is as follows.

When I started in N in 1996 my plan was to have only LMS locos/stock. However, 2 subsequent events led me to become more flexible (i.e. I discovered "rule 1") :

- Minitrix withdrew from the market
- Graham Farish were taken over by Bachmann

For a long time there were no new LMS locos on the market, but I had cash available to spend on my hobby, so the result was that I went into a "feeding frenzy" and bought stuff out of period and out of location because I was worried that the end of British N gauge was in sight.

Happily I was wrong, but that is why I have a few locos gathering dust that have not seen the light of day for a year or two.

The other confession I would like to make is that  a few years ago (before the Farish Jubilee came out) there was a discussion on another N Gauge form about who had the most Peco Jubilees. I had (still have ) none, and so I felt, at best frustrated, at worst jealous, of those who had 5 or 6.

Sorry if this is boring/off topic but I felt the need to explain my  previous post on this topic a bit.

Best regards,


Joe

[Tank]

Finally this is getting to be really good reading. Come on you 100+ hoarders. We know you are out there. It's not a crime - we just need to hear about it.

I had about 150 loco's that I'd collected from when I started in N back in the 90's.  It was easy to get them cheaply and repair them.  My first repair was a pair of Farish Poole Intercity 125's, with brass geared motor bogies.  £35 for two sets, and they just needed new brushes and the armature cleaned up.  A very happy 13 year old!  I've since been selling them to make some money to get DCC models, as the money I once had now goes to my family and home. 

Everyone has a different lifestyle, are at different stages of their life, varying incomes, varying out goings.....  Whether you have a layout, building a layout, a collector....does it matter?  It's all part of this expensive hobby that we've chosen to have fun with. 

[joe cassidy]

I suppose that if this debate was on a female-dominated forum instead of a male-dominated one we would be talking about shoes 

My wife definitely has more shoes than I have locos, and I can buy 2 locos for the price of one of her pairs of shoes

Best regards,


Joe

[CarriageShed]

I suppose that if this debate was on a female-dominated forum instead of a male-dominated one we would be talking about shoes 

My wife definitely has more shoes than I have locos, and I can buy 2 locos for the price of one of her pairs of shoes

Best regards,


Joe

I got my last pair of shoes for the price of a wagon   Mind you, it was in a sale...

[ParkeNd]

Finally this is getting to be really good reading. Come on you 100+ hoarders. We know you are out there. It's not a crime - we just need to hear about it.

I had about 150 loco's that I'd collected from when I started in N back in the 90's.  It was easy to get them cheaply and repair them.  My first repair was a pair of Farish Poole Intercity 125's, with brass geared motor bogies.  £35 for two sets, and they just needed new brushes and the armature cleaned up.  A very happy 13 year old!  I've since been selling them to make some money to get DCC models, as the money I once had now goes to my family and home. 

Everyone has a different lifestyle, are at different stages of their life, varying incomes, varying out goings.....  Whether you have a layout, building a layout, a collector....does it matter?  It's all part of this expensive hobby that we've chosen to have fun with. 

If the only allowable answer is "I've got the quantity I want to have and thats the right answer for everyone" - then this thread has no point. It's only interesting if there are opposing answers. The question was "How many are too many" - not how many locos have you got. Total accord can be boring sometimes.

[Pete @ EGLM]

If my wife had as many pairs of shoes as I've got locos, I'd be worried about finding room to store the rest of my rolling stock!

Pete @ EGLM

[Sprintex]

I suppose that if this debate was on a female-dominated forum instead of a male-dominated one we would be talking about shoes 

Oh dear! Welcome to Stereotypes 'R' Us. Not every female has countless pairs of shoes and handbags to match, just like not every railway modeller is a NHS-bespectacled trainspotter without a girlfriend

Finally this is getting to be really good reading. Come on you 100+ hoarders. We know you are out there. It's not a crime - we just need to hear about it.

I had about 150 loco's that I'd collected from when I started in N back in the 90's.  It was easy to get them cheaply and repair them.  My first repair was a pair of Farish Poole Intercity 125's, with brass geared motor bogies.  £35 for two sets, and they just needed new brushes and the armature cleaned up.  A very happy 13 year old!  I've since been selling them to make some money to get DCC models, as the money I once had now goes to my family and home. 

Everyone has a different lifestyle, are at different stages of their life, varying incomes, varying out goings.....  Whether you have a layout, building a layout, a collector....does it matter?  It's all part of this expensive hobby that we've chosen to have fun with. 

If the only allowable answer is "I've got the quantity I want to have and thats the right answer for everyone" - then this thread has no point.

The thread has no point anyway since it cannot be quantified due to differing individual requirements.

The question was "How many are too many" - not how many locos have you got.

Come on you 100+ hoarders. We know you are out there. It's not a crime - we just need to hear about it.

Paul

[Agrippa]

This thread is becoming like how long is a piece of string- or should that be thread?

Everyone fell  into the trap of listing their 5 million locos instead of answering the question.
The obvious answer is if you have more locos than you can run realistically on your layout
you have too many.


As for NHS - bespectacled trainspotters I must concede that they are scruffy , unkempt and smelly
and the male ones are even worse..........

[Agrippa]

Yeah, well in the end you pay your money and buy as many or as few locos as you want , whether they are too many
becomes irrelevant if you want them I suppose.

[javlinfaw7]

Using ParkeNd's analysis,which I do believe is  accurate I would say I have far to many locomotives
my only functioning layout is a part built double boxfile layout.
I have been planning a 4' by 3' for 3 years but time and circumstances have conspired against this  . Everything is there and boxed in my loft and it will happen at some point hopefully by the end of summer but this means currently I have about twelve too many as I could only justify four currently .