An Exciting Announcement for N-Scalers

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GHQ
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An Exciting Announcement for N-Scalers

Post by GHQ »

GHQ has an exciting announcement for N-Scalers. We will regularly be posting fully illustrated step-by-step articles on our N-Scale forum. These articles will expand your choices and enhance your opportunity to create the kinds of models and scenes you desire. They will prove that N-Scale is a great modeling scale, and show that any model railroading project is possible in N-Scale. Many of them will feature a set of specifically designed parts at the end of the article that you can purchase to complete your model. While selling product is an objective, not all postings will be directed to selling GHQ products. Many will be kit-bashing ideas for products made by other companies. The main purpose will be to enhance the modeling experience, and options, for all N-Scalers. Our goal is to turn model railroad collectors into modelers, and existing modelers into master-model builders.

The last 10 years have brought profound changes to N-Scale model railroading, some good and some bad. Obviously the increase in high quality, ready-to-run prototype specific motive power and rolling stock has been gratifying. However, apparently now we are embarking on a new era of ready built “everything else. This is not so encouraging. The more ready built that is available, the more everyone’s layout looks like all the others. It encourages settling for what comes out of the box, and discourages prototype modeling. People are buying fewer, and fewer kits. They are kit-bashing less, and less. As model building becomes less necessary, the market for quality kits disappears. The true modeler winds up with a shrinking number of products available that caters to his needs. When you see the same boxcars with different paint jobs, buildings, bridges, etc. on everyone’s layout, the hobby becomes much more uninteresting. We already have had this problem with DPM buildings. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great line of buildings. In fact, because its such a great line, every layout in the country has the same town on it, the same block of buildings, always with the same corner turret on the same end of the block: Pleasantville, USA, posing as Minot, North Dakota, Ogden, Utah, and Birmingham, Alabama. We are in grave danger of this hobby becoming boring, uninspiring, and unfulfilling.

Fortunately there is hope. There is a core of true modelers in N-Scale that soldier on, willing to take what’s available and modify it, or scratch-build, to create their own favorite prototype scene, and period. Most of these guys are frustrated steam or transition era devotees who have been unable to effectively cater to their main area of interest, and prototypes. These people have a vision, and make it come true. These are the same people who amaze you in the magazines. You can probably tell that GHQ products have always been targeted at those modelers. You can be one of those people.

With the advent of the internet, new ways of reaching and sharing information with these modelers is now available to all of us. But it goes beyond that. In a very real sense, sad but true, stores and even magazines are becoming obsolete. GHQ will be enhancing our website to better serve and inform model railroad customers, to keep ahead of the curve, just as we do for our military customers.

Most of you are probably familiar with the Zen Master series of articles that appeared in N-Scale Magazine a few years ago. The Zen Master philosophy on modeling will prevail here as well. As we tried to get across to the readers of those articles, maintaining the Zen philosophy, and attitude, towards a project or task enhances your success. Zen is not a religion, it is a philosophy of life. No one is trying to convert anyone to any religion.

Here are a few of the Zen Master’s principles:

1. Every part of a model is a model and should be approached as such
2. Everything you buy is just a bag of parts and should be studied for it’s component uses
3. Nothing on a layout should be recognizable as a commercial kit
4. No matter how good you think your model is, the next one will be better
5. Its only impossible to model something in your mind
6. The first models made by the best modelers in the world looked like crap
7. Approach your modeling with humility, because, no matter how good you are, there are better models in your future
8. You are not in competition with anyone but yourself. Share your knowledge. This is a fraternity
9. You don’t have to know everything before starting a project. Often times, the model shows you the way as you make it

With that spirit in mind, we will offer articles on locomotives, rolling stock, buildings, right of way, or anything else that strikes our fancy. The articles will generally be prototype specific, but the techniques illustrated in the articles can all be applied to whatever era, or railroad, that you choose.

Remember this hobby is called Model Railroading, it’s not called Railroad Model Collecting.. Leave the collecting to those brave souls who continue to hold on to their Beanie Babies. Hopefully, this website will inspire model railroaders to become railroad modelers.
Last edited by GHQ on Wed Jun 03, 2009 9:57 am, edited 1 time in total.

tstockton
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Post by tstockton »

Let me start with a disclaimer -- I'm an HO scale modeler (and a Micro Armor modeler as well). But I will be following this thread with great interest. I really enjoyed the "Zen Master" tips, as they apply to ALL modeling, not just N scale. And anything that might improve my modeling techniques will be perused with great interest.

Thanks again, GHQ -- I look forward to future posts!

Regards,
Tom Stockton
"Well, I've been to one World's Fair, a picnic, and a rodeo, and that's the stupidest thing I ever heard come over a set of earphones. You sure you got today's codes?"

-- Major T. J. "King" Kong in "Dr. Strangelove"

captain03
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Late as usual

Post by captain03 »

I've been out of touch for a while and had the chance to look over the forum now. I'm really glad to see all the new articles. Especially the how to ones. These are great insperations. Being unemployed has curtailed my modeling but these articles have given me new direction with what I have on hand. Please keep up the good work.

nmanica
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Post by nmanica »

Moved to White Metal kits
Last edited by nmanica on Sun Jun 13, 2010 12:38 pm, edited 1 time in total.

nmanica
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Post by nmanica »

moved to white metal kits
Last edited by nmanica on Sun Jun 13, 2010 12:36 pm, edited 1 time in total.

GHQ
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Post by GHQ »

Great job on the kitbashing! Kitbashing can take many different forms. Basically kitbashing is doing something outside of the box, and putting your own spin on it. Adding things to the models, subtracting things, putting them together in a different way, etc. Our main goal with these articles is to get people to think outside of the box. A kit, or a ready to run model, is a box of parts. You don't have to put things on your layout as they look when they come out of the box, or when they are assembled by following step 1, step 2, step 3, etc. in the instructions. Use your imagination, be bold, create the models that YOU want, not just the models that the manufacturers have put out on the market. Does that mean that GHQ makes models that can benefit from some creative minds, and procedures? Absolutely! We take great pride in the quality of our products, but we realize that some people want to put their own ideas to work on them. By all means go for it!

Once again, great job! We love to see the results of kitbashing GHQ models, and those from other manufacturers.

GHQ

nmanica
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Post by nmanica »

Thank you GHQ,I do have "other's" but was not sure if I could post them here also,I have done a few GHQ & C&C kitbashs will post them this weekend if that is ok with you guys ??

StarCruiser
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Post by StarCruiser »

If you are registered (and you are), you can post a new topic. The more the merrier! :D
"It is by caffeine alone I set my mind in motion. It is by the beans of java that the thoughts acquire speed. The hands acquire the shakes, the shakes become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my mind in motion." - Programmer's Mantra

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