Are They Toys? Are Model Trains Toys: YES or NO?
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- čas přidán 29. 06. 2024
- In this video, we discuss whether model trains should be classified as toys or not. Join the debate and let us know your thoughts in the comments!
Some people argue that model trains are simply toys, while others believe they serve a greater purpose. Watch this video to find out our take on the matter and weigh in on the discussion. Don't forget to subscribe for more videos on model trains and the hobby as a whole. Let's settle this once and for all: are model trains toys or not?
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Not a toy but I love running them with my granddaughter. It is a hobby that should be shared.
I think that they're toys, and also that toys are not just for children. Adults need "play" time, too. It's not going to be the same kind of play as when you're a child, but it's still using your imagination and being creative while having fun. To me, that's playing. And I love it. So I'm going to keep right on "playing" with my trains until I physically can't do it anymore.
Absolutely they are toys. I have lots of toys, trains, RC cars and trucks and planes a boat motorcycle. These are all things for fun toys. My wife even has a toy and that vibrates again all things for Fun and not an necessity, great channel. Thanks.
I say yes, anything that you play with and makes you smile is a toy, from trains, guns, cars, rc car and list the goes. If your a super prototype modeler your not having fun with trains, you turned your hobby into a job. So live and do what makes you happy. Like you said, it's your railroad have fun with the toys you buy, can't just pay bill all your life
Both, but the stuff available at 'pocket money' prices excludes kids these days. Play is important for child development and for adult mental health (that is still being investigated, we don't understand it but we do know it is important). When I was a youngster it was about making things, look at John Allen's Gorre and Daphetid Railroad, or Pendon Museum (especially the Madder Valley Railway, virtually everything is scratch-built). That adds a lot of satisfaction and exercises the mind somewhat, the first N Gauge layout (that I am aware of) was built in a violin case, it separated into two halves and joined at the narrow ends to make a point-to-point layout, he had to wind his own motor for that. Describing that as a toy would I think raise eyebrows but it is a toy, it facilitates 'play', as does a classic muscle car. There is also 'collecting' but that is a really weird topic when you look at the psychology behind it. I have been researching 'play' and one thing is clear; there is a dearth of descent toys on the market these days, most of the stuff out there is 'merchandising', it's only available for a short window to increase interest in the 'collectors', it tends to be poorly designed and often poorly made (for a good toy you need a consistency of scale, which is one reason why model railroads make good toys, you can build an entire world and add to it over time). I work for a charity helping disabled people with IT, one client was a racing driver (with a cabinet full of trophies) who developed a series of medical conditions leaving him housebound. We had a hunt around and put together a 'train set' for him, somewhat eclectic but it provided a lot of pleasure (do a search for "Outline history of the Great Grand Fenwick Railway (and Sons) " for a description of what was supplied and how it all fitted together, Grand Fenwick is the little country in the films The Mouse that Roared and The Mouse that went to the Moon).
I LOVE Model railroading. I've been at it since age 5, now entering my 50's. For me ,it helped me to learn many things. How to design and build, i always had thoughts on "How to" and in my later years, having been so constructive , i am now discovering that it helps me with hand/eye coordination . As well i developed an issue, where i have "shakey hands" (nerve issues) now and then. Working on building scale models and train related projects actually helps me to calm that issue. It is also a good way to relieve stress, by concentrating on what needs done and not on what worries me on the daily. There are so many things the hobby can actually do as a way to curb various issues, but also to have fun and enjoy a hobby with others as well. I see it as a form of therapy besides being just a fun hobby.
Howdy! Wow what an awesome idea for a video! We have 2 universities in my little town and I had thought about doing some generational questions (no politics) with students.
As to your question... I think the answer can be yes and no. There are train sets for kids, but then there are trains for hobbyists. Kinda like comparing your family truckster to a NASCAR race car. Yes, both are 'cars'... but you aren't going to confuse one for the other. The 'toy trains' usually come in a set that has all the basics - engine, cars, track, and the power source. You can expand it with more track and more cars, but it is still just the basic set. The 'hobbyist trains' tend to be a highly customized, carefully planned out, and very detailed layouts that encompasses a wide variety of options and skill sets. Man I'm doing a terrible job of articulating this... but I think you get the gist. Nice job and thanks for sharing 🤠
It’s A Thereaputic Work Of Art with Pride,Passion put Into it and An Awsome Hobby. Treat them With Love And Respect.
They are toys like remote controlled planes and drones that fire Hellfire missiles are toys. Seriously, a child could not operate these nor build/wire a layout without some serious adult supervision. So no, they not toys, they are miniature trains.
I think the answer is in the description as “models” distinct from “toy” trains. As models they are canvases to simulate prototype train cars and locomotives. They can be set to operate with a purpose, just like the prototype.
I like the way you switch up things with your videos ….good interviews
I think they can be a lot of things. A lot of more jaded hobbyists are quick to criticize when someone considers them toys, but they can be. Some simpler models are marketed and built for children to play with. But models can also be works of art, decoration, or part of a respectable and valuable hobby. And as stated, adults can play too, and anything you play with can be called a toy, at least in my perspective. Thanks!
I fo believe they are toys. Not in a dictionary defined sense, but for the joy they bring to us older kids. I also see the model building aspect of the hobby as art. From what inspires the composition to the sculpting and painting of our layouts, how else could it be viewed? And then, of course, you have the technical aspect, what with all the electrical wiring and programming of dcc and other components. Model trains are a multifaceted hobby, but if you had to define them as one thing, I'd have to say that they are just plain ol' fun!
I think Webster's definition is incomplete, as any adult racer or flyer will say they are just playing with toys. So in that sense, yes they can be toys, for both children and grown-ups. And an operating session could be considered playing, even if stressful. Definitions can categorize actions and items into boxes they don't necessarily fit. Cool vid.
I see them as a form of toy for play. We think of just children playing but adults need play as well. Many hobbies that adults do are a form of play weather it is D&D, going skiing, volleyball, RC planes/ helicopters, or even just building a model car or ship. Model trains are not designed for children but they can enjoy them just as much as adults, just differently.
Toys are manually-operated/pushed around/propelled. A toy plane is held by the hand and moved through the air while being held. A model plane is either stationary or propelled via radio control. Similarly, a Brio wooden-track set is a toy. Model trains are electricallly-propelled and move around without being held.
The Toy Train title is how people outside the Hobby see us. These are mechanical copies of the actual things. The correct term is Model Trains and we are Model Railroaders. I never heard anyone called a Toy Railroader. The Hobby takes experience, research, art , Engineering , planning. And etc. To play with a Toy doesn't require all that.
While there are kids trains out there, where we have evolved is model trains as a hobby and artform. I certainly consider it art, much like plastic models.
Toys yes and I am a 74 year old child.
I think they are. They bring out the inner child inside of us with our sense of wonder and creativity.
They are models of the real deal.
I havve been in this hobby for 58 years.
To others they are toys, to us they are a hobby. Thanks for sharing.
Landking: They’re definitely not toys. I’d classify them as high end replicas.
I dont consider them "toys" in the traditional sense, but I definitely think they are for all ages. When it comes to Toy Trains vs Model Trains, I feel model trains are all trains that follow traditional scales and are electrically powered(with some exceptions). Toy trains have two meanings to me, first being the train toys meant for young kids, such as wooden trains, but also I think toy trains can refer to early non-scale model trains, such as pre war lionel
No, they're models. That's why they're called model trains.
It's also a hobby.
Yeah, theyre toys. But there's no age limit to being a kid.
CS Lewis(narnia/lion witch and the wardrobe) spoke about on his characters manifesting immaturity by rejecting childish things, i agree with that
I never treat them as toys when I shell out thousands of dollars for a locomotive. I do call them toys when people question 3 rail and not being realistic 😂 Great hobby with great people!!!!
Versatile hobby of creation and representation requiring various skill, knowledge and craftsmanship.
To me model railroading is an interactive art
I Highly Agree👍👍👍👍.
Fair statement
as a kid there toys but if it is still in your life at an older age it becomes your hobby and some thing to do if you have a boy .
I remember as a kid having a plastic UZI BB gun (it was a shitty toy) to fire at small paper targets and point at random people and car and get told off. Then there are air rifles and real weapons deactivated etc. Same can be said for knives. Then the same for trains plastic push around then a cheap battery to full analouge then DCC.
Are they toys? They can be if you want them to be, and there's absolutely nothing wrong if you treat them as such or not. The way I see it is are Legos toys? Then ask the question is the big $850 set that has over 10000 piece a toy too? Is it going to be played with by a child? If my kid "plays" with my trains are they only a toy if he does it and not if he doesn't? Not so sure I'd use the dictionary definition of "... that a child plays with" if an adult plays with it is it no longer a toy?
There's trains that are toys, and trains that are models. And every level in-between. Thomas wood trains are def toys, and a good way to introduce the hobby to kids. Pre-War Lionel are "Toy Trains" but are not kid toys. But no one would mistake a Scale Trains or Rapido Locomotive for a toy. I have model trains, and I do model them,. yet I would say I still "play with trains." Cool video, thanks!
I think the train hobby can be enjoyed by children. We get them started with a tyco train set with horn couplers. But it as a an adult we take these trains and attempt to create a world for them to live in (a layout). We switch out the plastic wheels with metal ones. We change the horn couplers with Kay-dee couplers. We begin to weather the cars and they become models. They become tools to help us understand the world around us, from electrical, civil (city construction). They become the steeping stones for research projects. Like the history of a particular line or area of the country or even the world. Before long some of us become rivet counters and start buying Scaletrains or Athens Genesis. We have elaborate control systems and do real operations using JMRI computer software. And through trains we make friends with people who have similar interests. One of my friends is a civil engineer and his insight helped me understand the placement of streets on a train layout. And for us adults it is fun and play but in a different way then children. For children play is their way o& learning to become adults. For adults play is to see the world as a child again.
Great Video...good questions...Thoughtful....
I think when they first came about in the late 40's they where for kids but it slowly became an adult thing, it slowly changed from kids to an adult hobby.
No, they're not toys. Children do have toy trains - cheap 'toy train' version bought for them, but that's not really what hobby shops sell. fully-built model railroads with prototype attributes, models painted and detailed, wiring, bench work, and DCC programming really take this tiny little machines from toys into something more complicated. while it could be said we "play with our trains", it's more like we "operate" them - trying to model as realistically as possible the actual operation of the real machine. it's a hobby, an expensive one at that, but it's a misnomer to call them 'toys'.
It's all in the eye of the beholder
Toys on a higher level!
Heck No!
Having started as a child, they are not toys depending on what you do with them. Putting track in a circle, and plugging in one wire is more of a toy. Running a chip tuned layout with bus wires and 150 feeders and scenery is not. A child most likely wouldn't even be able to think of the level of details a "model railroad" possesses. Example... As a child, my trains ran very basic, and my attempt at scenery was sneaking into the kitchen and stealing the big container of parsley to use for grass. (Got in trouble for that one lol)
They are my toys and I plays with them when I want!
I’m just now getting back into the hobby. The Price point is totally different from 28 years ago. I go to that hobby town in Kennesaw probably once a week. & Blue Ox. I don’t consider them toys. Especially once you add the word hobby. $$$
Blue ox , Train Master , and Riverdale station have the Model Train stuff in the Atlanta area. Also you probably need to go to the local shows to build up inventory on all your stuff. Ebay and other markets are way over priced from years ago . Also you can pre order or order from the local hobby shops or big online Stores.
@@adriengadson3544 riverdale station is awesome. I met him when I was about 14 years old when I was a part of the Eastpointe train museum. I’m 41 now. He’s been open for over 40 years. I still stop by from time to time.👍🏾👍🏾
So model trains by definition only are NOT toys... the term "playing" is the part that the folk get trip up by along with the association of trains and ones childhood. Model trains is a "hobby," and the term "toy" would be a mischaracterization of what model trains are...in fact there really isn't an antonym for the word "Toys" 🤔. By definition, model trains would consider a hobby.
Definitely not toys, they are a means of relaxation and imagination to enjoy and build upon as we escape realities stressors
I have fun operating my trains and creating detailed structures, but with the overall expense involved, along with the continuous maintenance and upkeep of the engines and track, model trains are definitely not toys.
I know people who have guitars as toys, others who have them as their job, and many in between. Depends what you do with them. I'm happy for my kids to 'play trains' (but not on my 'proper' layouts!).
Great share they are models not toys. I share what I've done up to this point with my grandchildren the only that really untrussed so far is the granddaughter. Toys for young adults or grown kids maybe 🤣😂
trains are a thing that i enjoy. model, real, either. if somebody wants to judge me, they have the wrong idea.
Everything's a toy...unless you can make good practical use of the Item as such...my 2 cents...PS. I am a 45 YO child...lol
not a toy per say,, i have my layout, for mature adults or people in there teens and i have set for the grandkids
No
no
They are definitely not toys.
Not a toy! Way too much work goes into building the whole set up to run the trains. You have to maintain the trains and equipment to run them, build a miniature world, know how to deal with electricity (puff) and also be a team player and good friend if you are involve with a club. This is not for kids, but it is great to show them. They will learn a lot from it.
I'm glad to see people of color are playing with model trains and that's a good thing, And, I don't give a damn what people think, I too like model trains myself.
My husband subscribes to your channel and he wanted me to watch this video. He's disabled from a stroke, so he doesn't make comments on videos, so I'm commenting on his behalf. (he does N-scale model trains, started out in one of our kids' bedrooms after they moved out, he has since moved to the basement for more room).
He asked me what I thought. So I told him I'd comment on your video with my answer. Model trains CAN be toys, but NOT ALL model trains are toys. The amount of work that goes into building and creating- it isn't even just model trains, it's artwork. Y'all are creating an entire environment from nothing (or even if you do something from real life, you're still building it from nothing). My husband doesn't think of it as an art, but it is- it's just a different medium from "traditional" art.
Absolutely a toy but it has levels where it is definitely not for children. I think of it like cars...kids can play with hot wheels but a person owning their own "hot wheel" like car is their toy and they treat it as such. Shoot I would buy a real locomotive if I could afford it and treat it like a toy lol
Yes and no.
Toys for big kids......
Definitely toys. “Playing” is not just for children. Professional athletes get paid millions to play the same game we teach 5 year olds to play. It’s just a different level. Scale model trains are no different - they’re just sophisticated toys. No shame in that. To paraphrase Kirk, the higher the intelligence, the greater the need for play.
No