Whats the difference between toy train operating and model railroading?
Model railroading refers to the entire hobby, one that includes both small-scale model trains and toy trains. Some participants prefer toy-like replicas of real trains or even fanciful representations because they look neat, feature many different colors, and bring back memories of their youth or when railroads helped build the United States. The majority of the people involved with the toy train hobby consider themselves both collectors and operators. Collectors cherish their vintage and recent toy trains as examples of innovative design and manufacture. They usually display their trains on shelves or in showcases and may study the features to learn more about their production and value. Collectors may be generalists, who collect any type of train that suits their fancy. Most likely, though, they specialize and search for only those trains made by a particular company or during a certain era. Some hobbyists, recognizing the value of their trains, sell to other collectors and even spec
