Well, it's free and low effort so it's for them to decide if they want to try it, even thirty active users is enough for a really enjoyable niche server. That's the only end it needs in my own view. It's never going to be a massive recruitment tool for the scale.

It's crazy that I've never heard of two of those YouTube channels. So much for the algorithm! James's channel is superb and I really enjoy it. I'll check out Chandwell and Elvenholme.

Quote from: kusojiji on May 09, 2026, 12:30:25 PMLooking Glass


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVx8L7a3MuE

An absolute classic I can agree with. 

But does it? To what end? Why does a Discord server need to be for the N Gauge Society? I find Discord clumsy, not least the fact that you need servers to be catalogued elsewhere is a pain! How do you publicise it? Etc etc.

To come back to the original point, Peachy has 3K subscribers. Here are some N gauge specific channels and sub numbers:

Chandwell: 20100
Great Deltan N gauge: 4540
James Hilton: 4560
Elvenholme: 3650

They were the first 4 I landed on. The content creators are out there. Maybe they're not 'lobbying' like Peachy does, but TT is in a unique position, and again, I'm not sure he's really influencing anything, just talking about it. That can be valuable of course, but what do people think would be accomplished if he switched to N tomorrow? New N gauge models? Cheaper prices? More production runs? It's a very insular audience. How many people on the street have heard of Peachy? Virtually no one. Of those who subscribe how many are aware of the existence of N gauge? Nearly all I suspect.

Perhaps someone like Revolution have a view; I do know the Class B tanker was as a result of the campaign by a couple of people on here, but neither (to my knowledge) have YouTube channels.

It's free and there are lots of scale modelling servers that are very active, and have pockets of railway people. It's not any kind of an answer to a problem, just an easy place to set up a space on a platform that many people use. DCC-EX for example has a very active discord channel.

Anyway I've put it to them. I'm quite happy to sort it out, I already run my own server for the company and it's no sweat. No problem if they aren't keen.

But the central point of this thread is valid; at the moment N gauge deserves more presence and visibility on the larger platforms. Hornby has put a lot of effort into the TT120 brand in this way, and it's certainly drawing some crowds.

Looking Glass


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVx8L7a3MuE

More like mildly annoyed:

Finally pulled the trigger on an order at TMC which included this beauty:







Only to get an email saying it was then out of stock! It was just in stock moments before.

Sadness. 

It needs a strategy, rather than a piecemeal approach. It seems at the moment they're not fussed by having a meaningful digital footprint, not an inherent problem, but it does perpetuate some of the stereotypes. Creating a Discord server to appeal to 'the youth' isn't the answer IMO, unless you have a committee and a membership base pushing/supporting that. What proportion of the membership base are under 30? Single figures I'll wager. 

I know you're hugely motivated by encouraging younger members, personally I don't think that's as much of a challenge or a threat; the hobby will always attract those with disposable income and time and, as we've discussed before, whilst it's a bit 'chicken and egg' I don't want to see the market cannibalised in pursuit of the cheaper 'toy' market.

I'm also a lot more curmudgeonly than my 39 years may suggest, mind!

This popped up as a suggestion on Spotify this morning and rather caught my eye, or should it be ear.

It's pretty certain not to appeal to everyone - a sort of Middle Eastern/African jazz fusion ensemble.

Quote from: njee20 on May 08, 2026, 04:45:36 PMI'm perhaps being unkind, but the NGS doesn't seem the most forward thinking on such matters. That the 'official' forum is hosted on groups.io speaks volumes!

That's a good point. I might talk to Robin and Arthur about perhaps setting up an NGS discord server, as especially for the younger members that would be perfect as we all already use it for gaming and hobbies.

Will.

In 2025 I drove up to and onto the Isle of Skye, using the ferry to reach Skye and the bridge to leave. The road from Kyle of Lochalsh to Spean Bridge was glorious scenery all the way.
Sadly I'd bought a cheap USB stick which corrupted and 3 days of dashcam footage was lost.
So, this year I retraced my steps with much more success and better weather, too
I drove straight to KoL, stayed overnight and then came back to Spean Bridge before turning east for Dunfermline. I took some pics of Kyle of Lochalsh station but the stupid system turned them all on their sides so I'm not going to post them.
Instead, here's a couple of pics of the Commando Memorial just outside Spean Bridge