The following quote by NEMO from the Hornby wish list thread, prompts me to ask this question

QuoteYesterday on this forum you just stated you only bought 2 locos new across the last 10 years. That's probably your answer right there why Hornby isn't listening to you. Why should they? The hobbyists they care about are the ones who buy a new loco every month or two.

Maybe I should clarify that statement, I've only bought 2 new locos with a view to hacking them, apart from those I have bought about a dozen others, So maybe not in the loco every month or two, especially not on a pension and still with a mortgage.

At your suggested rate of a new loco every month or two over ten years one would accumulate between 60 and 120 new locos, I wonder how many locos the average Forum member has?

I have 26 plus about 5 kits under construction. And I've been modelling N since 1974, at times I've had over 50 locos when I had a large loft layout, many were sold when I was made redundant in the 90's, a few have gone to the big MPD in the sky.

Surely the number of locos is at least partly governed by the size of your layout, 60 locos would probably take up about 20' to 30' of track (assuming between 4" & 6"per loco) on many home layouts that wouldn't leave much room for coaches and wagons.

I have 20 - accumulated over the last 2 years and 7 on preorder. My layout is 3 baseboards each around 8ft x 2ft

About 87, this does not include HSTs, DMUs or Voyagers.........these have been purchased over about 15 years.

Maybe it would help put things in context if we also gave the size of layout; I'm planning on a max of 8'x3' after I move into a retirement flat (soon I hope!)

Quote from: Dorsetmike on February 21, 2015, 02:07:58 PM
Surely the number of locos is at least partly governed by the size of your layout, 60 locos would probably take up about 20' to 30' of track (assuming between 4" & 6"per loco) on many home layouts that wouldn't leave much room for coaches and wagons.

You're right. But most of my locos live in their boxes when not being run. In any case, I think my current roster of locos stands at:

2 Dapol 'Westerns'
2 Farish 'Warships'
2 Dapol 9Fs
2 Dapol Class 86
2 Farish D9500
2 Dapol Class 73
1 Dapol 'Hymek'
1 Dapol D6300
1 Farish Class 08
1 Farish Class 37
1 Farish Class 46
1 Farish Class 47
1 Farish Class 50
1 Dapol Class 58
1 Dapol 'Prairie' tank
1 Union Mills Adams 0395
1 Farish Class 350 EMU
1 Dapol Class 122 DMU
1 Kato SD45 (UP)
1 Roco V200 (DB)

So that's 26 in total, not counting a Class 66 I sold on this forum a couple months ago plus a couple dummy locomotives and body kits. I returned to the hobby mid 2009, so maybe 5-6 years ago. By my reckoning that's a new model locomotive about every 2.5 months.

At around £80 for each loco on average (some are small engines, and others picked up as bargains) that's an outlay of about £30 a month. I don't think that's an unreasonable spend. For me, it's an hour or two's worth of freelance writing, which I can do during the weekend. So al else being equal, buying toy trains doesn't affect my household budget at all. Might as well be drinking beer down the pub, where £30 a month probably wouldn't go very far anyway... and certainly a lot less money than smoking!

Cheers, NeMo

In answer to Mike's question, I really don't honestly know but there is no correlation whatsoever between the number of locos and my layout size that's for sure!

Roy

According to my "railway records" which I keep fairly up-to-date for insurance reasons, and talking strictly of powered vehicles as presumably that's what you're interested in, I have 33 N gauge locos collected in the space of about a year since I properly started out. Total rolling stock count in N is 170, and including H0/OO collector stuff is 247...

To put that into the context of a layout, I have 665 sq. ft. at my disposal for the future railway room and I don't think I'll be needing many more trains to make it look busy.

Thanks for bringing these numbers to my attention, I shall now go and seek help for my addiction 

JB

depends on whether or not SWMBO is around when the question is asked 

Including some pre-orders, over 100 locos/DMUs for an 8' x 4' and 9' x 18" layouts, but then again I run 2 eras and different locations on them both so never will/could all my stock appear at one time.
These have been collected over approx. 40 years.

Quote from: class37025 on February 21, 2015, 03:07:19 PM
depends on whether or not SWMBO is around when the question is asked 

On the layout at any given time, half-a-dozen (not including the ones hidden in sheds etc.). Luckily SWMBO can only distinguish between trains by colour.

Erm, in total I reckon I have about 55 powered units, however the majority are Japanese, mainly multiple units, railcars, trams, etc. and mainly acquired as bargains or 2nd hand at prices way lower than an equivalent collection would cost in Europe. Of that 55, about a dozen British locos from the Houses of Farish and Dapol, with the exception of a BR 4MT 4-6-0 kettle, all diesel/electric. Two were Dapol monthly specials, three acquired 2nd-hand in Japan, the rest new in the UK.

The above has been acquired over the last 8 or so months, yes I do appear to have gone a bit wild but spread over the 25 years I haven't been buying stuff it's quite reasonable. Or so I like to tell my addiction counsellor.

Currently I'd pay reasonable money to acquire following new stock new, in BR blue (classic or large logo) or blue/grey

BR class 87
BR class 50
BR class 33
BR class 31
small rake of Mk2a/b/c coaches
small rake of Mk2 d/e/f coaches
Class 116/117/118 DMU.
HST in blue/grey

none of which are available new from the manufacture, though I hear rumours of a BachFar 31.

If I were in the UK I'd probably buy more UK stuff on a regular basis. It's hard to put figures on exactly how that would work out, but I suspect I'd be up for a new locomotive or rake of coaches or EMU/DMU every couple of months.

You should ask the number of locks with DCC. So often you hear ' I would go to DCC but with so many locos the cost is too much'. So if you have x number of locos does this put the potential of DCC off. I have 7 diesel units all with chips as I have bought them to go in the locos when run, keeping up chips to locos is not easy as I have 8 chips, so always need a new loco!

My main enjoyment of the hobby is loco building. I started of many years ago modifying RTR locos moving on to white metal kits, etched brass and scratch building. I've covered all of the big four and BR steam and diesel and from recent posts you may guess I now model pre grouping LBSCR, LSWR and SECR but this has spread to GER.
I have a number of examples of certain classes, some with reasons long forgotten: King Arthurs (all the variants), A4s, Merchant Navys and numerous 3rd rail EMUs.
Anyway it probably totals between 250 and 300 but many have not been out their boxes for up to 20 years whilst other have been cannibalised. With projects planned this figure continues to grow!
Gareth

More than I need, not as many as I want. 

Just a round dozen at the moment, but I doubt I will go over 20.

You made me count them up! I have 25 in running order at the moment, 5 awaiting decisions on whether they are economical to repair and a kit awaiting a suitable chassis...