Era Modeling by Age Group?

[High Hood]

Born in 1996 so my interest is primarily diesel and what I find cool. My "eras" are: Virginian 1959, N&W 1959-1963, Southern's Knoxville Division 1957, N&W 1968ish-1971, N&W 1978-NS era, SOU late 70-NS era, modern NS.

I find the late 70's-mid 90's very cool on NS because of the mixing of NS,SOU,N&W equipment, the early 90's coal boom, and presence of early CSX and Seaboard System too.

If I were to do full steam, I'd probably do Virginian early-mid 50's. Of course, that requires the Atlas USRA 2-8-8-2 and Walthers Y3 to pull off.

[Blazeman]

1950 vintage.  Grandfather was an engineer for PRR. Took me for a cab ride while still working then after his retirement, we'd ride the MP54's between 30th Street and Wilmington. From bedrooom window, could view B&O line to Phila. With binoculars, during the winter could see the corridor trains on PRR (house was elevated compared to rest of the city).

Have evolved to modelling the 60's for the lines in hometown: B&O, PRR, RDG. Now live by former RDG main which has helped along that scenario.

While in college, GM&O  ran through campus which awakened me to that line.  Later, work experiences exposed me to CB&Q/BN, RI, TP&W, SP (former narrow gauge line widened) branch line to Mina and the AT&SF Lubbock cluster.  But not enough to make me choose those as modelling subjects.

[jpwisc]

Born in 1977. I like to model the modern day. I model a shortline (St.Croix Valley Ry) because it's my favorite line to railfan.

[VonRyan]

I was born in July of 1995, but most of my modeling is in 1944 and earlier. Mostly because of WWII being in full swing, but also because of the predominance of steam. When it comes to my narrow gauge modeling, most of the Irish narrow gauge lines were closing down in the '40s and some even earlier, so in modeling them I have to stick to their timeframes.

Now my other fringe interests are more varied in era, all depending on what catches my eye, but that's beside the point.

My main modeling interests being the Pennsylvania Railroad and the Great Western Railway (UK), the early 1940s provide some interesting aspects such as wartime traffic, and with deferred maintenance being the order of the day, engines tended to look dirtier and were worked harder than usual.
With the GWR, there's also staging manuvers to be had of US Army Transportation Corps rolling stock both in preparation for the Normandy landings, as well as marshaling additional equipment for future shipments over to Europe.

I'm very much an old soul, so the modern era doesn't interest me. The past is what captivates me, and so I strive to go beyond just capturing the essence of an era, but to create a miniature snapshot of times and places, to bring the past back into the present.

[bnsfdash8]

Born in 1992.

Modeling mainly modern NS with some CR, NYC, and local shortlines thrown in.

[GhengisKong]

My main modeling interests being the Pennsylvania Railroad and the Great Western Railway (UK), the early 1940s provide some interesting aspects such as wartime traffic, and with deferred maintenance being the order of the day, engines tended to look dirtier and were worked harder than usual.

Have you checked out the DJ Models 'King' class? https://djmodels.co.uk/product/gwr-4-6-0-king-6000-class

[robert3985]

Born 1949...I turn 70 this year!

I model a specific prototype road, a specific era, a specific location, with a couple of specific operational days chosen to represent "typical" prototypical days.  Availability of rolling stock and motive power really weren't part of the equation, although I have been lucky to have many of the cars and engines of my chosen era and location being manufactured in excellent quality and acceptable fidelity.

I got into N-scale model railroading in the late '70's when the local Ntrak club set up in a vacant store in a mall in Salt Lake City.  I'd been introduced to model railroading as a kid when my dad and I built and worked on an HO layout in our basement workshop in my hometown of Kennewick WA, but football, wrestling, girls, cars, Vietnam and professional model ship building got in the way of my model railroading until I'd settled in Ogden Utah.

Although my dad and I spent quite a few hours watching trains on the SP&S, Northern Pacific and U.P. tracks near my childhood home, the rich railroad history of the U.P. double-track mainline through Weber and Echo Canyons over the Wasatch Grade really caught my interest as something I wanted to model after spending some time operating on the local Utah Ntrak club's various setups, and the 24" minimum radius was perfect for running U.P.'s giant motive power realistically dragging long trains through Utah scenery.

I finally realized that to get anything done on my portable layout using my Ntrak modules, I was going to have to discipline myself to a specific location and era, so I chose a liberal 10 year era of 1947 thru 1956, which would allow me to run my favorite U.P. steam and classic diesel motive power, long unit trains and lots of passenger trains....and to construct some pretty spectacular scenery depicting Weber and Echo Canyons.

What followed was difficult, but for two years after I made this decision, I sold off much of my brass collection, and a bit more than half of my rolling stock all of which did not fit my road/era specifications.  The good thing was that much of my brass had increased in value, so I used the profits to finally invest in DCC, new wiring, and motive power that appeared around the same time as I had made my decision...Athearn Big Boys, and Challengers...and I sold off my brass Big Boys and Challengers because they didn't pull worth crap.  I also developed new portable, sectional layout standards and built several new portable sections so I could transport my layout to various trains shows throughout the year.

Having the Riverdale/Ogden Yard as part of my layout allows me to also include S.P., D&RGW and WP trains, facilities and motive power as part of what I'm modeling in the 1947 thru 1956 era....which satisfies my youngest son's love of the S.P....and the sectional nature of my layout allows S.P. specific LDE's to be built and run at shows for variety's sake. My sectional layout partner, Gregg Cudworth models the D&RGW during the same era as I do, so his half of the layout represents D&RGW territory at shows.

That's the condensed version of why I model what I do.

Cheerio!
Bob Gilmore

[Specter3]

Born in NY in 72. Model the Southern Railway around 1975. Spent summers at my grandparents in north Alabama where Sheffield yard was A busy hump yard. Became facinated with trains as a toddler( I reacted to them at 3)and my grandparents would take me to see them regularly as we could hear them from their house. As the story goes I would say “I hear it” while playing in the yard and my grandfather would grab me, jump into the car, and take off to chase it. I don’t remember this specifically, but I do remember standing in the front yard at 9-10, listening, and debating with my grandfather weather it was inbound or outbound. There was a significant grade westbound just out of Tuscumbia and you could catch outbounds if you heard them early enough. Let them get the front half over that crest and you would have to chase them “All the way to Cherokee” as my grandfather would say, as in those days they would let it run up to 60 plus and the little roads we were driving on had far lower speed limits. But this time solidified my love of tuxedos and I am planning a layout of that area at this time.

[PAL_Houston]

Born '51, grew up in Chicago.  Rode Burlington commuter trains in late '50s & early '60s with my dad.  Went to HS in Wisconsin, in Prairie du Chien, and that's when I fell in love with what I model in the C&I Sub, namely traveling the western part of Illinois on the Burlington from Flagg Center and Oregon west to Savanna, and then north up to Galena.    That whole stretch along the Mississippi from Savanna to LaCrosse is just beautiful, especially in Fall when leaves turn.

[delamaize]

Well, I'm late to the party, But here we go....

Born in 1980....
For US stuff, I primarily model Northern Pacific's Prairie Line from 1942-ish though 1955-ish, because I like late steam, Early Diesel, WWII, and I grew up, (and currently live) at the southern terminus of the old Prairie Line. As a kid I remember the tracks still being in place, and very rarely a train rolling though. Most of the time the track was either empty, or used for storage. I fondly remember a ton of old 40 foot box cars in the area. This would have been in the late 80's.

Now the ROW is a bike/walking path. Wish the ROW could have been donated to a museum or historic preservation society, The portion that they converted to trail would have made a great line to run a little excursion train, with a ton of history in the area, nice scenery, and an easy interchange with BNSF/UP. Opportunities missed.

For German/european stuff, I model whatever. I have a mix of everything, But I am trying to focus mostly on equipment I would have rode when I was there in summer of 1999, and living in germany 2009 to 2012.

Then of course, being in a N-trak club up here in the PNW, I have some random stuff that doesn't fit in anywhere really, Like NP U25C/U28C, and a Kato SP SD40...

[basementcalling]

Born in 1968, so maybe I need an N scale Saturn V for my layout?

Despite living East Coast all my life, I hanker to model the wide spaces out west, and in the modern era. That used to be circa 1990 with Dash 8s invading the rails roamed by 40-2s all over UP territory. Now I'm more modern, less devoted to Uncle Pete - despite the RR being named for me, or me for it - though I find myself with a large collection of UP big steam and turbines that pull PFE reefer trains from the 50s and 60s more than anything else I run on NTRAK.

[dougnelson]

I was born in 1956.  I model 1948-1952.  The world went downhill after I was born.

[MVW]

The world went downhill after I was born.

It did, but nobody here is blaming you. 

Jim

[SandyEggoJake]

What motivates your layout modeling choices?

Born in 1967 in Rochester NY, I have no legacy overlap with my modeling.  So age had nothing to do with my era. 

But since 2001 have called San Diego my home and since 2012 have been working on a book project about the SD&A.  As a snow bound kid in Western NY, I did model a generic "out west" roundy round in HO with lot of Santa Fe rollingstock. 

Proto Railroad:    San Diego & Arizona RR w/ the overlap to AT&SF and SP. 
Proto Era:           1927
Availability of Locos/Rolling Stock (might change eras/roads if enough became available)
Collectorism, no real favorites? (and maybe no layout?)    Actually as a "small steam of SP common standard, motive is not that bad.  Bachmann Spectrum Connies and Ten Wheelers in N scale for most. 
Other, not fitting in any of these broad categories?

Honestly what REALLY solidified by resolve to model this specific year was a photo on wikipedia, loading a wing for the Spirit of Saint Louis on to a AT&SF boxcar.  Date was 1927.  Charles Lindbergh's famous plane was made in San Diego, in a trackside building right off the line.   Turns out it was just after JD Spreckels - the founder of the line - had passed away.  But before control was sold to and deprioritized by the SP.  Still the height of the roaring 20's before the Great Depression. 

If interested, you can find the image here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boxcar#/media/File:Wing_of_Spirit_being_lifted_by_a_crane_onto_boxcar.jpg

[Rich29]

Born in 1945. Modeling focuses on NJ/PA in 1960's & 1970's (EL, LV, CNJ, Reading etc.)