Train Sets for Christmas

As a kid growing up in the 1950's and '60's, trains still seemed pretty common. I remember standing in awe of them as they roared by just a few feet from where I was standing at the crossing gate when walking to and from school. Waiting for trains at railroad crossings was a frequent happening everywhere we went. I saw steam engines as a kid, but not very many.

Toy trains were always on my 'most wanted' list of Christmas presents. My brother and sister and I used to grab all the Christmas catalogs and spend hours huddled on the floor pouring over them page by delicious page, taking exhaustive notes about what we absolutely had to have and what we'd really, really like. We didn't always get what we wanted the most at Christmas, but we always got something we had on our lists.

In 1963, when I was 10 years old, we moved from the city to the suburbs. Our new home had an open basement that was large enough for us three kids to roller skate around in a large oval or do a figure 8 around the furnace and water heater. We had a ping pong table setup in one corner and Mom had her laundry area in another. It felt like the wide open spaces and the smooth concrete floor was great to skate on.

Wheels in Motion

Every day after school we'd ride the bus home and get our homework done quick so we could go out and ride our bikes if it was nice, or go skating in the basement if it was not so nice outside. Life was idyllic for a time. My brother and sister and I got along well enough as we competed to be the best at everything we did. Pushing and shoving was tolerated to a degree but we were typical siblings with a lot of good natured rivalry.

As we headed into winter that year, my brother injured himself and was unable to get up and down the basement stairs for some time. It just tore him up to hear my sister and I skating around in the basement while he was stuck upstairs by himself. We were merciless in thought and deed as any normal sibling would be at that age. We made fun of him. He cried. Dad lowered the boom and said there would be no more skating by anyone until everyone could skate.

My sister and I immediately burst into tears while my 8 year old brother wiped his eyes and smirked at us.  Life was never quite the same again.

No Train Sets for Girls

But kids are resilient and adaptable, and my sister and I were pretty good natured about having to stay upstairs with my brother and keep him occupied while Mom got dinner ready. He had some cool toys we didn't usually play with since girls were expected to play with different toys than boys back in those dark politically incorrect ages.

Dad brought up the 4'x 8' plywood base for the HO scale train layout and set it up on the dining room table. There was enough room for us all to move around the train table safely, even with the electrical cords hanging down. Dad taped them to the floor and covered them over with a rug to help keep us from tripping over them.

There was only one electric train set but we took turns at the control and busied ourselves with scenery or other toys when it wasn't our turn. Dad really appreciated the way my sister and I helped our brother stay upbeat while recovering from his injury and he told us we would have a special present for Christmas as a result. For some reason, anticipation is a delicious thing when you are a kid. Just imagining all the possible special presents our Dad would choose for my sister and I was thrilling in itself.

When the magic day finally arrived and we had our special presents, they were our very own electric train sets! Imagine! Girls with train sets for Christmas! Now our Dad surprised us even more when he picked up my brother and carried him downstairs into the basement with the rest of us following behind. Somehow Dad had built an entire train room in the time we had been requested to stay out of the basement! We were astonished, delighted and amazed all at the same time. I remember I cried from sheer happiness.

The Glorious Train Room

Looking back on the train sets for Christmas that year, I know the train room wasn't finished yet, but the train table was sturdy and strong and was laid out for three trains to be running at the same time. It was just a magnificent gift for all of us. Shortly after Christmas my brother was able to negotiate the stairs by himself again and we were able to spend many glorious hours in the train room that winter with our new train sets. For Christmas, there just isn't any better memory for me as a kid.

Some Thoughts About the HO Train Sets

From a simple oval or figure eight track layout on the kitchen table or under the a Christmas tree, to a room full of elaborate track plans, the way we play with our train sets can greatly vary.  The most common scale of train sets is HO because, it's easily available, and inexpensive.  It’s also a good size to work with, allowing model railroaders to get a good amount of track into a reasonable sized space but without making everything so small it’s difficult to work with.

If you want to set up a semi-permanent toy train setup, it’s a good idea to start with a 4’ x 8’ sheet of plywood, either on the floor or elevated on a tabletop, to give yourself a base on which to mount everything else.  Then, before laying any track, plan out where you want your train tracks to go and what, if any, landscaping needs to be done.  But train sets for Christmas can be up and running in just minutes out of the box for instant gratification, long before you start thinking about a more permanent model railroad layout.  

With wire mesh, paper mache, and/or Styrofoam you can make all sorts of mountains, hills, and valleys. Resins are available to make lakes, rivers, streams, pools, and add a sense of realism to water scenes. Twigs can become trees with hair spray and crushed florist foam. There are many ways to create great scenes with your train sets for Christmas without spending a lot of money.

Toy Train Model Railroad

Serious toy train modelers frequently model their favorite memories about trains. Often they often model real railroads in real places with recognizable landscaping.  See Modeler Chuck Pomazal to get an idea of what can be done when you have the time, talent, tools, equipment, supplies, and determination to make it happen.

Chuck is incredibly detail oriented and is an engineer by profession, but he would be the first to tell you that you don't have to be a perfectionist to have a good time with train sets for Christmas. The models on his pages are in G scale as used for garden railroading.

Of course, to enjoy toy trains you don’t need to get too fussy. Some people take great enjoyment in setting up the tracks and moving engines and cars around on the tracks, switching cars and playing railroad.  Toy trains are very tactile, aromatic, and the sounds produce memories of the good old days when we were kids. Toy trains offer a connection to the past and a way to recreate some wonderful aspects of the outside world in moving miniature.

Author Credit: 
Pauline and Chuck Trabert are serious railfans living in southeastern Wisconsin. Their articles include topics of interest to railfans such as train sets for Christmas.

Copyright 2006 © Pauline Trabert Railfan Train Schedules