# Opinions of other forums



## traction fan (Oct 5, 2014)

This forum is great. I'm curious about other model railroad forums. If you have tried other forums, I'd like your opinion of them, good or bad. If a forum appealed to you, why? What did you like about it? :thumbsup:On the other hand if you found a forum you did not like at all, what turned you off about it?:thumbsdown:

Thanks;

Traction Fan:smilie_daumenpos:


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## HeyChris (Jan 23, 2017)

This is the first one I found to my liking. When searching a forum to join, this one was the easiest to identify from a beginner point of view.


Sent from my Non-Zack Morris phone


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## Homeless by Choice (Apr 15, 2016)

This is the first Model Railroading forum that I decided was worth while for my needs. It seemed to be very civil when there were opposing ideas. It seemed to be very family friendly; civil discussions, polite replies, and non-abusive family friendly language. I appreciate and respect these values. The knowledge being shared seemed to be factual based.

After being a member of this forum for almost a year, these values are still true. I thank everyone for their respectful input.

I learned about RailPro from one of the threads on this forum. I joined it and it is a quality forum also.
http://rpug.pdc.ca/index.php

LeRoy


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## mesenteria (Oct 29, 2015)

I have been involved, and still am, in the following, all good places to be (I moderated on the Model Railroader Magazine and Trains.com forums at one time):

Model Railroader (see "Community" at cs.trains.com)

ModelRailroadForums

Trainboard

Big Blue (The Gauge)

Railroad Line Forums (high caliber of modelling there)

Atlas Rescue Forums

I feel strongly you would find yourself welcome at each of these, and find some value. How you fit in over time is anyone's guess....they all have their own flavours or cultures, so all bets are off.


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## dialed in (Jan 20, 2017)

Homeless by Choice said:


> This is the first Model Railroading forum that I decided was worth while for my needs. It seemed to be very civil when there were opposing ideas. It seemed to be very family friendly; civil discussions, polite replies, and non-abusive family friendly language. I appreciate and respect these values. The knowledge being shared seemed to be factual based.
> 
> After being a member of this forum for almost a year, these values are still true. I thank everyone for their respectful input.
> 
> ...


this x2.
I've been a member of other forums for alot of various things and some of them arent quite as welcoming to differing opinions. But it was also the format of this one that got me as well. easy to navigate and use, and it doesnt switch to some stupid mobile view; which is nice as i'm always on my tablet


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## PhillipL (May 5, 2012)

I am member of several forums. I model both DC and AC ho scale trains. For AC trains, marklin-users.net is an excellent forum, all users are welcome and everyone is very civil. For DC trains, this forum is the best for me. Everyone (whether you are a super detailed model fan or just want to run model trains for fun) are welcome and respected.


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## GNfan (Jun 3, 2016)

*Forums*

If you're using a lot of Bachmann products, their "Ask the Bach Man" forum can be useful - and it's where I learned about this one


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## sjm9911 (Dec 20, 2012)

I 've only ever been here! I haven't the need to go elsewhere!


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## gregc (Apr 25, 2015)

traction fan said:


> If a forum appealed to you, why? What did you like about it?


each forum has a personality: level of activity, experience level of members and members with experience/expertise in different areas. Of course, the same people may be on different forums, but they may not participate equally.


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## flyernut (Oct 31, 2010)

This is the only train forum I belong to.


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## raleets (Jan 2, 2011)

flyernut said:


> This is the only train forum I belong to.


Ditto! If it works, why fix it? :dunno:


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## Old_Hobo (Feb 20, 2014)

Another ditto...it's all here! :thumbsup:


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## Genetk44 (Feb 26, 2016)

Big Blue
Model Railroad Forum
The Weathering Shop
Railroad Line.com

All great forums that help increase my knowledge base


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## TJSmith (Nov 16, 2015)

I used to be on the OGR forum but they have too many know it alls there. They have a number of favorites and I challenged one of them and My account got cancelled.


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## 1905dave (Sep 18, 2016)

I belong to about 6 forums.

Model Roader is really general, more oriented towards the beginner.

Model Railroad Hobbyist is very general, a slightly more modern slant, but seems to have a higher level of experience.

Yahoo groups are more focused on specific topics. If you wan to talk about operations, the OpSig Yahoo group is the place to go.

Railroad Line Forums has probably the most craftsman type modelers.

RM Web is a British forum and has a truly world wide coverage, including a sub forum on N America.

This forum is very similar to the Model Railroad Forum and Model Railroader forum, although this forum is more slanted toward tinplate. I'm glad they changed the Union Station, because that forum what know to be pretty political and bordering on racist before.


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## Shadow001 (Dec 15, 2016)

raleets said:


> Ditto! If it works, why fix it? :dunno:


same here.


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## flyboy2610 (Jan 20, 2010)

Just here and ModelRailroadForums.com
There are a lot of great people on both sites, and a few on each site I just don't interact much with. It never hurts to have a diversity of opinions. And you know what they say about opinions...........


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## Neebles (Dec 1, 2015)

I think this forum is the best for me.... Im not embarrassed to ask questions here, and while I'm a beginner, I'm not treated as one. I feel while my layout isn't large, and isnt "realistic", it suits me, and I'm not frowned upon for it here.


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## mesenteria (Oct 29, 2015)

I have no skin in the game, so take my comment for what it is worth. 

Please...

There is a phenomenon in human thinking, and in statistics, called 'restriction of range'. It happens when the analysis, or the data set being analyzed, is not representative and comprehensive in their approach. It's akin to missing both the first and last five minutes of a movie; there's a richness lost, even if you can get the gist of the story from what you saw.

Similarly, by restricting yourself to one forum, you lose what the others offer. For the few minutes it takes to read-in each day, you'd be surprised what you will learn by doing so. I go to each place precisely because I have found that I do NOT get everything in one place.

With that, I would also like to add a plug for Model Railroad Hobbyist...I inadvertently left them off my list earlier. Well worth the trip over there a couple of times each week, and you should sign up for their exceptional e-zine.


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## Spence (Oct 15, 2015)

flyernut said:


> This is the only train forum I belong to.


Same here.


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## bewhole (Dec 31, 2016)

Spence said:


> Same here.


Same here. I have gotten more help here in the short period of time that I have not even thought of a another Train Forum.
:smilie_daumenpos::appl:


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

In addition to this one, I belong to the Model Railroader and Model Railroad Hobbyist forums.

I don't go to the MR forum much anymore, because entirely too many discussions were poisoned by either the "You're not a REAL model railroader unless (or if)..." or "there aren't enough rivets on the side panels of that loco..." attitudes.

As mesenteria said, MRH is a great place, lots of friendly, knowledgeable folks. And i love the magazine.


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## Magic (Jan 28, 2014)

This is the only model train forum I belong to and it's great, Very helpful and supportive.
If you have read my about to give up thread you'll see what I mean.

The only other is Trainorders.com. It's a railfanning board and most on there are railroaders or "rails" as they call themselves. 

Pretty interesting stuff there about railroad operations and tons of great pictures, both modern and older stuff. Some great steam pics and videos. 
Some great stories from some of the old timers as well. 
It's a pay site but for my money well worth it.

Magic

Magic


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## icolectto (Nov 28, 2012)

I have never needed another forum. I have learned a lot here and enjoyed the reading. If you need help, this is the place to go. A GREAT bunch of quality individuals.


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## time warp (Apr 28, 2016)

I am on 3 forums, counting this one. Tyco forum and Tyco Depot are the other two.
While there are good folks on all, information and sharing play out pretty quickly on the other forums, and you really don't see the willingness of many to jump in on a subject like the members do here. Not a criticism as much as an observation.
I started a thread lately describing a photocell issue I was experiencing. I got a tremendous amount of input and advice, which I thought at first went a little overboard until I re read the posts. I was and am thankful for the comments and ideas offered, the support and interest shown, and the increased understanding that I came away with. The people here are the best in my opinion, bar none.


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## highvoltage (Apr 6, 2014)

mesenteria said:


> I have no skin in the game, so take my comment for what it is worth.
> 
> Please...
> 
> ...


I understand and appreciate what you are saying. However, I have been an active participant on only this forum. Personally I don't have the time or energy to dedicate to multiple forums. That's just me, once I find something I like I stick with it.


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## TJSmith (Nov 16, 2015)

mesenteria said:


> I have no skin in the game, so take my comment for what it is worth.
> 
> Please...
> 
> ...


I read some of the other forums I just don't bother posting. OGR is definitely better for selling if you price the items right.


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## gregc (Apr 25, 2015)

another observation is that this forum isn't as active as the Model Railroad forum.

we're likely to get a better answer with more participants. Yes, you may need to filter.


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

gregc said:


> another observation is that this forum isn't as active as the Model Railroad forum.
> 
> we're likely to get a better answer with more participants. Yes, you may need to filter.


Meh. Don't mistake quantity for quality. Unless things have changed significantly, much of that volume is the same old folks pontificating about the "right" way to do things.


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## highvoltage (Apr 6, 2014)

Some board owners like high post counts and high member counts. To them it looks good, "look at all this activity, we must be big!"

Once the number of pages of new posts per day gets into the double digit range saturation occurs. People start glossing over things because there's too much content to sift through.

For example, on an audio forum I read (occasionally), the number of new posts exceeds 17 pages from the night before to the next day. Way too much to sift through in one sitting.


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## MacDaddy55 (Aug 19, 2008)

*There is only One!!*

Just the Forum for me...and some of us have been here for quite some time. Good ideas, great conversation and a lot of laughs!!


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## Shadow001 (Dec 15, 2016)

MacDaddy55 said:


> Good ideas, great conversation and a lot of laughs!!


What else could you ask for?


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## Overkast (Jan 16, 2015)

This is the only model train forum I ever looked into and signed up on. And this place is so fulfilling, I have no desire to investigate any other forums... It's a top-notch, all-around great group of people here, so why bother???


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

highvoltage said:


> Some board owners like high post counts and high member counts. To them it looks good, "look at all this activity, we must be big!"
> 
> QUOTE]
> 
> Not just board owners. We've had members here who thought that a high number of views on their threads meant that they were recognized experts and valued participants. Quantity is no substitute for quality.


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## flyboy2610 (Jan 20, 2010)

CTValleyRR said:


> Quantity is no substitute for quality.


From the movie _"The Wizard of Oz"_:
(Dorothy is talking to the scarecrow)
D: "But how can you talk if you haven't got a brain?"
S: "Well..... I don't know. But some people without brains do an awful lot of talking!"


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

CTValleyRR said:


> We've had members here who thought that a high number of views on their threads meant that they were recognized experts and valued participants. Quantity is no substitute for quality.


*Had *being the operative word.


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## rogruth (Mar 6, 2012)

I am not an expert at anything except having fun with my trains
(3 rail O). I read a lot of forums but post on only two, MTF and
MTJ. Both have an atmosphere that, at least to me, is conducive
to good model railroading. On both forums heated discussion can take place and the participants remain friends. Both forums
have experts in various fields of model railroading and questions
are answered.
I am in an area that has very few 3R O modelers and very few shows with-in a close distance. I am just out of Savannah, GA 
where the last model train store now operates from the owners house. She closed her long operating store front several years ago.
I am one that likes to see what I am buying before putting out the money but I am having to resort to internet and mail buying now.
So far all has been fine.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

I'm a member at MTJ, but I haven't been there for a very long time. They had little to no moderation and there were some really obnoxious people that kinda' made it unpleasant to post there. I didn't sense that we were remaining friends over at MTJ.


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## rogruth (Mar 6, 2012)

I don't know how I do it but I just made a reply to this topic, hit the post button and lost it. The post,that is.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Maybe you have automatic delete turned on?


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## Waddy (Dec 18, 2014)

I've learned a lot on this forum. It has a lot of very nice, knowledgeable people and I always feel welcome. I have noticed that there are some individuals who seem to possess expertise in certain areas of the hobby. A few are very good on command and control, DCS, while a couple of others do some excellent weathering. And a couple of others are good to get feedback from on layouts, or railroad history, or the various lines of model locomotives and/or rolling stock. So this forum kinda has it all, as far as I'm concerned. I visit over at some other forums but this one is my go-to.


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## Guest (Mar 14, 2017)

MTF is my main railroading forum. I belong to O gauge hobbiest which has some good folks but very little activity, Trainboard also has almost no O gauge activity, and Bachmann's forum. I usually check in with these once a day and can read all that's new in 5 minutes or less. I also belong to OGR and also check in once a day but seldom post.

I am a moderator on N-Scale.org. I was into N for many years but changed to O mainly due to shaky hands. It just got too hard to work with the small trains. NSO was a busy site with great people but the owner seems to have lost interest and the site isn't doing well. Only he can approve new members so if you tried to join today it could take a long time for your request to be approved. Many have gotten frustrated with the site and it's maintenance issues and have moved on. I still check in once a day but there's very little activity.

MTF has friendly and helpful members so I'm not looking for new forums. I was a member of the others I belong to when I joined MTF so I still check in but this is where I hang out.


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## Tony35 (Mar 18, 2016)

Being a N scale guy, Nscale.net is my main forum with MTF my second NSO my third 
I met Country Joe over on NSO about 9 years or so ago and made a lot of friends there but as Joe stated there is very little activity these days
Country Joe told me about MTF so I joined up 
Not a ton of N scale here but it is here


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

I used to drop into O Gauge Hobbyist, but there wasn't anything going on.


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## Guest (Mar 14, 2017)

I check it just about every morning but there's very little going on, maybe two or three posts a week, and most of them are in the O Gauge photo chain thread.


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