:format(webp)/www.thestar.com/content/dam/thestar/life/together/people/2021/09/05/model-railroading-was-an-underground-hobby-for-years-heres-why-its-picking-up-steam-now/ptw_railroader_collection_25.jpg "Model railroading was an ‘underground’ hobby for years. Collectors explain why it’s been picking up steam (2)")
Model railroading — dubbed “the greatest hobby in the world” by its practitioners — may seem like a Cold War-era relic, but it remained steadily popular for years. Now the hobby is ‘exploding’ thanks to the pandemic.
TT
By Tracey TongSpecial to the Star
Sun., Sept. 5, 2021timer3 min. read
updateArticle was updated Sep. 07, 2021
When Robin Claxton was seven years old, his father built him and his little brother a model train layout with a 4’ by 8’ sheet of plywood and some old tracks and engines at the family’s home in Sharon, Ont.
That simple setup cost lifelong model railroader Phil Claxton next to nothing and took only a few hours to construct, but it sparked young Robin’s imagination.
“From that moment on, I was hooked,” says Robin, whose interest was solidified after a visit to a local model railroad club. “This opened my eyes to the scale and extent I could dive into this hobby.”
:format(webp)/www.thestar.com/content/dam/thestar/life/together/people/2021/09/05/model-railroading-was-an-underground-hobby-for-years-heres-why-its-picking-up-steam-now/ptw_railroader_collection_05.jpg "Model railroading was an ‘underground’ hobby for years. Collectors explain why it’s been picking up steam (3)")
Over the years, that original layout has been rebuilt four times and continues to live in his parents’ basem*nt. “Ever since I can remember, I’ve always been obsessed with railways,” says Robin.
Now 33, the international touring and session musician is no less enchanted by the simultaneous magic and technicality of this hobby. Robin has a room in his Port Credit home for his own layout, but his main project is a collaboration with his dad — a 20-by-20-foot, three-level continuous layout joined by a large helix and a peninsula — that consumes the entire basem*nt of Robin’s childhood house.
Set in the summer of 1975 in central/northern Ontario, the layout predates Robin, who enjoys modeling scenery (“terrain, foliage, trackwork and railway lineside equipment”), while Phil, 63, loves tinkering with electrical components and building structures.
Model railroading — dubbed “the greatest hobby in the world” by its practitioners — may seem like a Cold War-era relic, but its enthusiasts abound.
:format(webp)/www.thestar.com/content/dam/thestar/life/together/people/2021/09/05/model-railroading-was-an-underground-hobby-for-years-heres-why-its-picking-up-steam-now/ptw_railroader_collection_11.jpg "Model railroading was an ‘underground’ hobby for years. Collectors explain why it’s been picking up steam (4)")
“Model railroading exploded in popularity in the 1950s as North Americans moved en masse to the suburbs, where there was more space,” says Jason Shron, president of Markham-based Rapido Trains, Inc., one of North America’s leading model train manufacturers. “(Many) model railroaders first get into the hobby when they are children, often receiving a starter set that runs around the Christmas tree.”
Robin, who parlayed his hobby into a full-time job at Rapido early in the pandemic, suspects that model railroading is more popular in the GTA than one might expect.
“A lot of our hobby is underground, and many are embarrassed to admit they are modelers or train enthusiasts,” says Robin. The pandemic has also grown model railroading exponentially. “Serious modelers who had been collecting for years but never had time to build a model railroad now had that time,” says Shron, “and sales of scenic supplies, buildings, track and other related items exploded.”
Some layouts can be astoundingly detailed. For example, Shron’s model railroad, a multi-deck layout in his Vaughan basem*nt and garage — “I had to smash through to the garage to get a room large enough to build the model railroad I always wanted,” Shron says — depicts the rail line from Toronto to Montreal in the 1980s, features mostly handmade buildings that match photos and drawings of the real structures. “I’ve had two different people tell me they saw their grandparents’ house in my basem*nt,” he says.
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:format(webp)/www.thestar.com/content/dam/thestar/life/together/people/2021/09/05/model-railroading-was-an-underground-hobby-for-years-heres-why-its-picking-up-steam-now/ptw_railroader_collection_12.jpg "Model railroading was an ‘underground’ hobby for years. Collectors explain why it’s been picking up steam (5)")
Those without space to devote to the hobby can join not-for-profit clubs like Markham’s Railview Historical Society, which allows members to work collectively on a layout. The Scarborough Model Railroaders Club offers its members 24/7 access to run HO (1:87 scale, or the ratio of the model to the real thing) and N (1:160 scale) of model trains, along with the opportunity to build additions. “The club also serves as a place to socialize, learn and exchange ideas,” says club president Mohan George, who has been involved in the hobby since 1965. Many modellers may be approaching retirement age but, Shron says, the internet has introduced younger people to model trains: “We see more and more serious modellers in their 20s, 30s and 40s.”
This hobby may have just gotten its newest devotee. Robin, who appreciates his dad’s support of his love for trains (“he’s always listened, taken interest, encouraged, and yes, financed — until I was making money — aspects I love about the hobby”) recently became a father himself. “I’m hoping I can do the same for my son,” he says, “if he becomes a train fan.”
Correction — Sept. 7, 2021: This article was edited to correct that a train layout was constructed on 4’ by 8’ sheet of plywood, not 4” by 8”.
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