RMweb Premium 47137 Posted June 3, 2015 RMweb Premium Share Posted June 3, 2015 Relax, take it easy...it's not a race.... My plank looks like taking two years in total and that's abou the length of concentration I have. I think it helps that it's not a vast project and I can stop building buildings and do some stock to ring the changes often Yes. It can help to achieve a reasonably consistent standard across a model. This is where something like S gauge scores very highly - because you will make everything yourself - while the current RTR 00 gauge models are "too good" in that it can be really difficult to build something to match them. Peter Denny managed to make consistent results over many years. He seemed to have very clear idea of the railway and period he wanted to model, and stuck to it. If you can do this (and find the self-discipline to ignore most or all of the incredibly attractive RTR models on offer) this should help the mojo along too. - Richard. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Dava Posted June 3, 2015 RMweb Premium Share Posted June 3, 2015 Being out of the UK this year has not helped me as I model British light railways and Canada feels remote from that. Lack of shows to visit or exhibit at. But some projects have a long gestation period, I will get to them in a year or two. Avoid impulse buying kits or RTR. 2016 will be different.... Dava Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
runs as required Posted June 3, 2015 Share Posted June 3, 2015 Strangely its just the opposite for me: i hide away and retreat into my cosy parallel world modelling of trains and buses when I'm out of sorts with the big wide real world. My kids realised that a few years back. When I was down in the dumps they organised a Railway Christmas for the grandchildren which triggered me into a whole load of action. I taught the older ones soldering and we broke through into DCC. For me it was a return to my childhood of the late 1940s and all the great ex-service mates of my dad's who'd enthused me. Its reassuring to have the kit around me to burrow back into - I've got a load of recent locos bought or given as presents sitting on the shelves in front of me as I type, waiting to be chipped . (I do enjoy weathering them in impulsive short bursts.) But outside there is some great weather coming up apparently, the daughter-in-law in Oxford wants to teach me to throw pots on the wheel we rejuvenated and my Newcastle son asked me to help yet again rework the interior of his/our camper van before they set off with their kids to Portugal... then there's always SWMBO's 'to do list'......so the mojo still gathers dust Lastly there's this b&%^$£ RMweb. I do enjoy clicking in - so I can offer others 'help' in their modelling dhig Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bgman Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 Strangely its just the opposite for me: i hide away and retreat into my cosy parallel world modelling of trains and buses when I'm out of sorts with the big wide real world. My kids realised that a few years back. When I was down in the dumps they organised a Railway Christmas for the grandchildren which triggered me into a whole load of action. I taught the older ones soldering and we broke through into DCC. For me it was a return to my childhood of the late 1940s and all the great ex-service mates of my dad's who'd enthused me. Its reassuring to have the kit around me to burrow back into - I've got a load of recent locos bought or given as presents sitting on the shelves in front of me as I type, waiting to be chipped . (I do enjoy weathering them in impulsive short bursts.) But outside there is some great weather coming up apparently, the daughter-in-law in Oxford wants to teach me to throw pots on the wheel we rejuvenated and my Newcastle son asked me to help yet again rework the interior of his/our camper van before they set off with their kids to Portugal... then there's always SWMBO's 'to do list'......so the mojo still gathers dust Lastly there's this b&%^$£ RMweb. I do enjoy clicking in - so I can offer others 'help' in their modelling dhig Could be worse, try modelling a South Devon Atmospheric windmill ! Even if they didn't exist ( not that Mr.Brunel may not have thought about it?) Joking apart, impulse modelling works for me too ! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrkirtley800 Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 Andy, I started modelling in the 1950's and decided on pre group (Midland) in EM gauge. In those far off distant days, if you wanted anything other than Hornby Dublo, Triang or Trix you had to make it yourself. I was lucky, my father was a real craftsman and a wiz with soldering iron, so I got good training from a young age. Years passed and I found I was getting my 'kicks' from scratch building, track pointwork, locos etc and eventually ended up with a large roundy layout of a mixture of Midland and North Eastern Railways. Sadly after many years of abuse, my knees gave up, requiring three operations, which were not entirely satisfactory, and a whole year when I did nothing except watch endless repeats of Midsomer Murders, in complete depression. I got back into the hobby when I went into the garage to get something to eat out of the freezer and saw a half completed wagon. That gave me the kick, but I had to seriously think about the future of my pride and joy, Embsay (Canal Road), I just could not manage it with my joints as they now are. So last year scrapped most of it, and for a year have been building a new layout, working on it most days -- just stopped doing some trackwork. If you look on my thread - Demise and rebirth of a model railway, you will see what I am about. Certainly my mojo is intact and thank heaven for that. Derek Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady_Ava_Hay Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 I lost my mojo about two years ago. My health declined badly and at the same time I realised that I had bitten off more than I could chew building a permanent layout in the second bedroom of a flat. I came to dread it. Every time I tried to run a train, I couldn't or it fell off the track or something went wrong. It was less than therapeutic and I was already very ill. Nevertheless I got seriously involved in card modelling and the layout looked a picture. I realised that I was going to have to spend some time under the layout installing more wiring and I just knew that I wouldn't be able to do that. So as my recovery commenced but still no all clear and that probably years away, I bit the bullet and dismantled the whole lot and sold it all on EBay except for some Hornby track from a set and three locos and a DMU. Of recent I have felt the stirrings of interest again but it is quite mild and the idea of building a permanent layout is out of the question plus a portable or dismantalable one has no place now for storage. But I suspect it might come back with a wagon kit or two....... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodenhead Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 I've lost my mojo too - finally get a room in the house I can build a layout in and bang goes my confidence and eyesight. Confidence - I seem to have lost the ability to wire something up - where did that go? Lay some track and put in some points - not exactly difficult but it seems to be for me at the moment. Eyesight - has gone terrible - a combination of getting a bit older and a brain problem which can leave me seeing double at times and unable to focus. So right when a nice railway might offer some relief from life I find it is the most stressful thing for me, how ironic. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest eddie reffin Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 I've suffered from the loss of mojo on a few occasions over the years. I'm currently starting to get it back at present and have plans for a new N Gauge layout as I have negotiated with the domestic authorities some space in the spare room. Various things have contributed to the losses including lack of time, space and money along with a divorce! But the most recent one was down to the fact I drive 1:1 scale trains for a living and this meant I was looking at so much of the infrastructure that I was going to tie myself in knots trying to recreate every last detail. I have decided to take a more pragmatic view of things now and build a layout that just lets me watch trains go round and round with an acceptable level of detail. Hope all you who are not feeling the "love" for the hobby rediscover what it is you are looking for Eddie Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
runs as required Posted June 4, 2015 Share Posted June 4, 2015 have decided to take a more pragmatic view of things now and build a layout that just lets me watch trains go round and round with an acceptable level of detail. That's a really sensible objective. I can't think of a more therapeutic backdrop to life than a roundy-round circulating at scale speed. I've a "super D" fitted with a Howe's "wheeze" sound chip that plods around at about 10 mph with a long rake of empties and brake van. It gives me no end of pleasure to break off concentrating hard at some knotty prob and swing round to peer at it really close-up at rail level as it inches slowly past. I also used to like those big trains that circulated around Beatties shops at high level a few years back. dhig Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyram Posted June 6, 2015 Author Share Posted June 6, 2015 I have finally got a room to begin work in, I have plans for a new layout and also a small extension to an existing one. I have even played around a bit with ideas for the new layout on its baseboard, but nothing actually done yet. I suppose there is a chance the school summer holiday may bring the mojo back once the hectic end of term period is out of the way. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Reorte Posted June 9, 2015 RMweb Premium Share Posted June 9, 2015 It's very intermittent, which partially explains my very slow progress (but that's true of everything I do). Visiting a good exhibition can certainly prompt a bit of action. As a distraction from the outside world it varies depending upon what's annoying me - it's either great or the last thing I want to do. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold tractionman Posted June 9, 2015 RMweb Gold Share Posted June 9, 2015 I take quite a broad view of what constitutes 'modelling', sometimes it's a sesh in the loft giving the stock a run about, other times it's making something, or painting it, or buying it, and then in between all that it's also reading modelling mags, RM Web, other books on prototype, visiting preserved lines, or an exhibition, a museum, etc etc, it's all rolled into a general and ongoing interest in railways, for me anyway. That way I never seem to lose interest, but it does mean I never get much actual layout work done! It's a long term project... cheers, Keith Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyram Posted June 13, 2015 Author Share Posted June 13, 2015 Well a wet summer Saturday has started to trickle the mojo back on. Small baseboard built for layout extension. Hurrah. Project off the blocks. See my Skaleby West blog in the layout topics. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
glo41f Posted June 14, 2015 Share Posted June 14, 2015 I find that it comes and goes. I get very frustrated when a planned exercise does not pan out as I exected (the current one being a small tank engine which obstinately refuses to work as I want) or, an outside influence takes effect. My loops in the garden are an example where the effects of weather and movement of the wooden sub base has made relaying the track a necessity. I do get angry with myself and thence teeter on the verge of the big black hole. It takes a while to get through this. I do find that my ambitions often exceed my abilities. Then there is the sheer bloody problem like yesterday when a planned spraying session was lost due to a small part from my airbrush "vanishing" when I was cleaning it! ( Subsequently found in a place a long way from where I was. How did that happen?) Anyway it is good to learn that I am not alone in this area. Thank you all for mutual support! Martin Long Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium James Makin Posted June 19, 2015 RMweb Premium Share Posted June 19, 2015 As many have said, I've found mojo comes and goes depending on life, and although I don't model the current scene, it's always inspirational taking a trip out, gets you fired up! It's definitely challenging fitting in modelling after a busy weekday and you're feeling tired, I find myself tackling small projects in hour-long bursts to get things done over a longer period of time instead. When I'm feeling tired I also find it much more tempting to tackle familiar and easy projects like wagon weathering as opposed to tucking into a bigger project where there's lots of unknowns and guestimates to be had in 'will-this-won't-this-work' etc requiring brainpower, just seems like too much hard work at that time of night!! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium MJI Posted June 19, 2015 RMweb Premium Share Posted June 19, 2015 ------------------------------------------ / \ | | +--------------------------------------------+ ooooooooooooo === oooooooooo here's your mojo Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ross34 Posted June 20, 2015 Share Posted June 20, 2015 Quite honestly I got bored to tears with modelling UK stuff (of all eras) ..and seeing, essentially, the same things at exhibitions. The standard of modelling is as high as its ever been but the subject matter just didn't interest me at all. So I sold up and went "continental" - Australian in fact - knew next to nowt about Aussie trains but they appealed to me and I enjoyed the fresh learning curve. Worked for me. As an aside - its only now I'm noticing how little overseas appears at exhibitions - a lot smaller to choose from I guess. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
LNER4479 Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 Late. Sorry. Been away (see thread). I can't ever recall a time of serious mojo loss - but clearly this is an issue for a considerable number of RMWebbers, judging by not only by comments in this thread but just trawling round the site in general. Maybe I'm just lucky (if that's the right term? Some might call it geeky / nerdy...?) but I'm like a bear with a sore head if I can't get to do some modelling for any length of time. I can only think of two 'mantras' (for what it's worth) that might describe my approach: 1) Stick to plan. Sounds easy and clearly many wrestle with this but continuous ripping up and starting again has got to be a killer? Only corollary is if 'the plan' clearly isn't working out but if none of the plans are any good then perhaps Plan A wasn't so bad afterall...? 2) Do something. Despite generally strong mojo, some days I feel like I can't be bothered. Fine for the odd day but on other days I 'force myself' to do something. Usually not much but just something such that you can say 'well at least I did X'. The next day, when I'm more in the mood, that little 'X' has just nudged the overall project on a tiny bit further giving a springboard for a more productive session. I once read this described as 'the inevitability of gradual-ness'. Great expression. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horsetan Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 ------------------------------------------ / \ | | +--------------------------------------------+ ooooooooooooo === oooooooooo here's your mojo I thought it looked more like these: Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DougN Posted June 27, 2015 Share Posted June 27, 2015 Horse I like that they say may contain traces of nuts Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horsetan Posted June 27, 2015 Share Posted June 27, 2015 Horse I like that they say may contain traces of nuts I think that goes without saying. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allegheny1600 Posted June 27, 2015 Share Posted June 27, 2015 Quite honestly I got bored to tears with modelling UK stuff (of all eras) ..and seeing, essentially, the same things at exhibitions. The standard of modelling is as high as its ever been but the subject matter just didn't interest me at all. So I sold up and went "continental" - Australian in fact - knew next to nowt about Aussie trains but they appealed to me and I enjoyed the fresh learning curve. Worked for me. As an aside - its only now I'm noticing how little overseas appears at exhibitions - a lot smaller to choose from I guess. Hello mate, Good for you! I got to that state some 30 years ago and have modelled US and European outline for much of that time. I do try and keep my hand in with British outline but it's hard work, trying to accept the various compromises - wrong track gauge, poor couplings, poor quality control. I even do a bit of P4 to try and overcome these things but when I see how my 'foreign' stuff just works, well that doesn't last long! So! Enjoy your Aussie stuff and stuff anyone who criticises you! Cheers, John E. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Dava Posted June 28, 2015 RMweb Premium Share Posted June 28, 2015 As Mrs Dava is now on this site, we'll have to see any effects there may be on my modelling or indeed other mojo's. She did rescue the backscene on Coney Hill and provides lots of other tolerant support for the hobby and occasional companionship on rail visits. For which thanks. Dava Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poggy1165 Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 I think I have accepted that unless I live to be 150 (and retain my faculties) nothing will ever be finished. A case in point is a certain brake van I have. I bought the kit at least 5 years ago, possibly more. I built it up, bar the roof and final detailing and then found that for some reason the wheels at one end were notably higher than the other. Much cussing. Anyway, I put it away, and several years later got around to fixing it. It was very simple. I took an existing brake van of the same type, made a comparison, and saw where I screwed up. So, with much further cussing, and some abuse of tools, I unsoldered the error and put it back together. The compensation arrangements were ruined in the process, but it sits level on the proverbial piece of plate glass, and in common or garden 7mm finescale (as opposed to S7) this suffices. About six months on I have finally got around to cutting out a brass roof for it. (The first modelling of any significance I have done for a month.) Having done this, I couldn't muster the patience to spray it (excuse it's raining!) so I have laid it aside. It needs painting and three holes drilled in it, and then it will be ready for assembly. In the interim I appear to have lost the flipping casting for the flipping chimney. Tomorrow I might search for it. If it doesn't show, I'll have to fabricate it. Then all that will be need will be final lettering and weathering, and maybe the provision of a guard to stand on the verandah. In short, it will have taken me longer to complete this simple wagon than many guys on RMweb would need to build a Gauge I Beyer Garratt from scratch. I do sometimes think I would be more suited to opening boxes (some of the new 4mm stuff is really appealing) and just playing trains. But that would be too simple, wouldn't it? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
APOLLO Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 I've plenty to do - but I am now past building new layouts, I am happy with what I've got. Having said that I've DONE very little modelling the last 6 months however done a lot of tidying up, throwing out tat, making the layouts rooms (shed & loft) more tidy, accessible, uncluttered. Whilst doing this I run a few trains. Perhaps my MOJO has morphed from layout construction to running trains, anyhow, wife is pleased I have tidied up. Like a lot of folks here I have too much stuff, a lot will never be built / run. I've got un built stuff I bought in 1975 !!. I need to get rid, but sentiment says otherwise. I will have a think, and run a few trains in the meantime !! Brit15 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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