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Post by el3672 on Jun 9, 2016 17:15:14 GMT -8
Ok thought all you guys have started or have collected many RR books. Just stood face to face with my book case and added mine up.....10, 20 ,40,70,..up to 168, that's 30 years plus! 50% Erie/DL&W/EL.... and I'm still adding. Wow kinda thought that's a lot, blew me away, I'm always thumbing thru EL Vol#1 west end thru #9 and Piggyback Vol#2 I thru Z and everything in between, great prototype reference material for my needs. A special two thumbs and thank you Morning Sun Books!!!!!
So whats in your collection!
Cheers Alex |
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Post by oldmuley on Jun 9, 2016 17:24:13 GMT -8
Probably 3...
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Post by jaygee on Jun 9, 2016 17:38:37 GMT -8
Mine is about 6000 lbs. of stuff I could easily do without ! Out side of passenger car books, I ignore just about anything these days. Books are a trap; stay away !
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Post by ambluco on Jun 9, 2016 17:39:05 GMT -8
About 570.
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Post by jbilbrey on Jun 9, 2016 18:51:48 GMT -8
My wife found a heavy-duty wood book shelf in which half is devoted to railroading. The top shelf is all hardbacks [Morning Sun, TLC, etc.]. I have tried to keep my focus on SE railroads, but a few "foreign" railroads (Color Guides for the Anthracite Roads, NYC diesels, and a BN in the Northwest book) may also be found. To round out the collection are a very few "coffee table" books by Ball, Lamb, Link, and others. Half of the next shelf is reserved for soft-cover books. Most of them deal with model railroading topics with a few paperback prototype books. Off topic, but the top of the book shelf is a miniature railroad museum with a lantern, date spikes, patches & pins, collector knives, glasses & bottles, etc. stored. The part that gets my friends laughing is that the book shelf is in the bathroom adjacent to the train-room.
Magazines are [mostly] sorted by by publisher/title and are stored in chronological order in paper boxes.
As if that wasn't enough. I had a friend that went through a divorce a few years ago. During the divorce, I bought some books from him (that explains the EL, CNJ/LV, etc. color guides), my wife sold more online at his request, and the rest [even more color guides, books on B&O and C&O cabooses, etc.] are still kept in my attic so I don't confuse who owns what.
James Bilbrey
LaVergne, TN
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Post by dtinut on Jun 9, 2016 19:23:01 GMT -8
Hmm, good question? I really like color guides, as often some of the more rare stuff is found in them. Pics you won't find online... Mine are all over the house, but if I put them all on a shelf- maybe 30 hardcover, another 20 or so softcover.
Happy browsing!
Brian
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Post by bdhicks on Jun 9, 2016 19:40:24 GMT -8
I'd guess I have a bit over a dozen. Most of them I only really bought as modeling reference rather than for their own sake.
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Post by mlehman on Jun 9, 2016 21:29:07 GMT -8
Most of mine looks like this...  The 4 middle shelves of the right bookcase are the heart of the collection, focused on Colorado narrowgauge. Most of the rest are a mixed bag and some of it is radio monitoring guides, something that I don't do a lot of right now, as well as travel guides and maps, also with a lot of focus on Colorado. |
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Post by fourteen on Jun 9, 2016 22:29:16 GMT -8
Think I have around 10 or so. |
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Post by eh49 on Jun 10, 2016 1:43:11 GMT -8
Too many.
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Post by riogrande on Jun 10, 2016 4:35:52 GMT -8
The kind of RR books I prefer usually are expensive so as a result, I can't show off a big library because of cost. I have managed to assemble a decent library of standard gauge D&RGW books (below most from memory). If I had funds, I'd buy books from other RR's too but alas; I still need some SP books and have mainly relied on other resources to educate myself on my other fav RR.
-Rio Grande Color Guide to Freight & Passenger Equipment (Jim Eager)
-Rio Grande Diesels, A Pictorial History: Vol's 1, 2 & 3
-Rio Grande In Color Vols 1,2,3 & 5
-Rio Grande: Scenic Line of the World (Dale Sanders)
-Zephyrs Thru The Rockies (Edmundson & Goodheart)
-Rio Grande West: A Contemporary Glimpse (Ron C Hill)
-Rio Grande in the Rockies: A Contemprary Glimpse (Ron C Hill)
-Ruler of the Rockies (RC Farewell)
-Rio Grande Secret Places: Ruby Canyon and the Desert (RC Farewell)
-Twilight of the D&RGW and Rio Grande (Wesley Fox)
-Colorful Colorado Railroads in the 1960's (Ron C Hill)
-Rio Grande: Crest of the Continent (Chuck Conway)
-Never on Wednesday: The First Decade of the Rio Grande Zephyr (Loveman & Patrick)
-Rio Grande Railroad (James Griffin)
-Rio Grande Trackside with Jim Ozment (James Sandrin)
-Colorado Railroad Museum Annual: Rio Grande Memories of the Final Years (Ron C Hill)
I have to agree with Alex, Morning Sun books have come out with a lot of excellent RR books which make a great resource for fans and modelers. I wish there was a Piggy Back book for D&RGW but I may have to check out some of those for other RR's to get some good info that would be helpful for the time frames I am interested in, primarily 1970's.
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Post by eldiamond on Jun 10, 2016 4:47:51 GMT -8
I have about 20. I never get tired of e-l pictures. One book I'd like to have is the New York harbor railroads, Volume 1. However, being out of print, the price is sky high. I could get the digital version but to me it's not the same as having the hardcover book.
I, too, would like to thank Morning Sun for their efforts and products.
Gary Blay
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Post by Great-Northern-Willmar Div on Jun 10, 2016 5:42:03 GMT -8
I've got two.
I used to have a library of about 100 books. But, life sometimes throws you some tough pills to swallow, such as job loss and extended unemployment. So the collection was sold to keep the lights on and food on the table.
Do I miss them? A few of the books I'd really like to have kept, but I've found that for many they just took up space on a shelf.
Sometimes life does open your eyes to less is more.
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Post by riogrande on Jun 10, 2016 6:30:28 GMT -8
Jim raises a good point. It's good to reduce for some good reasons; I've been down the same road a number of times myself too. Also, I am starting to re-assess a few of my books that cover time frames that I am less interested in now; as time goes by I find I am less interested in the last days of SP & DRGW and prefer to remember it in better times. I find it's useful to sell off things that are not being used which can raise a few dollars and also reduce the amount of stuff I have to find space for.
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Post by Great-Northern-Willmar Div on Jun 10, 2016 6:45:43 GMT -8
Jim raises a good point. It's good to reduce for some good reasons; I've been down the same road a number of times myself too. Also, I am starting to re-assess a few of my books that cover time frames that I am less interested in now; as time goes by I find I am less interested in the last days of SP & DRGW and prefer to remember it in better times. I find it's useful to sell off things that are not being used which can raise a few dollars and also reduce the amount of stuff I have to find space for. I'm surprised you didn't list in your portfolio of books. Portrait of a Silver Lady by Mac Gregor and Benson CZ The Story of the California Zephyr by Zimmerman |
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Post by nw611 on Jun 10, 2016 8:33:39 GMT -8
Approximately 250 books divided into 6 shelves. Shelf 1 for Italian books, shelf 2 for German and Austrian books, shelf 3 for North American books, shelf 4 for other European countries (Switzerland, France, Benelux, Scandinavia and Eastern Europe), shelves 5 and 6 for general interest miscellaneous books (titles as "Steam Locomotives of the World", "Electric Locomotives of the World", photographic books, The Brown Book, etc.). Ciao. RG
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Post by riogrande on Jun 10, 2016 8:34:17 GMT -8
Jim, There are a lot of books I'd like to have and those are among them, but limited funds, those that weren't central to my modeling focus haven't happened. Lots of books I'd like to have; maybe some day.
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Post by mlehman on Jun 10, 2016 11:06:59 GMT -8
Jim,
There are two books that might be worth considering not yet on your rather comprehensive SG Rio Grande list.
Stephen Rasmussen, "The Rio Grande's La Veta Pass Route: Gateway to the San Luis Valley" (Burlington, VT: 2000)
While there is some NG and steam, there's a lot of modern branchline action that often fits available space better than the mainline. The San Luis Valley has a lot of traffic options, but was generally Geep territory. Six-axle power wasn't absolutely forbidden, IIRC, but was rare. Lots of track diagrams also include, along with various diesel equipment diagrams, that might be of interest to modelers.
Jackson C. Thode, "A Century of Passenger Trains...and Then Some" (Denver: Rocky Mountain RR Club, 2001 mreprint of 1972 original)
Thode's book is about half before 1960 and half after. Lots of pics of equipment and reproduction of Rio Grande materials. Thorough coverage of train-offs leading up to Amtrak, so considerable RG Zephyr coverage.
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Post by JohnJ on Jun 10, 2016 11:51:21 GMT -8
I picked up a bunch of good books for pennies on the dollar when the Great Train Store mall hobby shop chain went belly up. Otherwise, my collection is centered on Penn Central and Pennsy, with healthy representation of other Conrail predecessor roads (EL, Reading, Lehigh Valley). Books are just so expensive that I really have to limit myself, but my mouth waters every time I walk by that big book vendor at the Amherst train show.
I have to give credit to a book for re-kindling my interest in the railroad hobby during a time when I was drifting away (high school). My brother gave me Don Ball, Jr.'s "America's Colorful Railroads," which he apparently got free by joining some book club. I almost wore that book out, I read it so much.
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Post by alcoc430 on Jun 10, 2016 12:50:17 GMT -8
I'm thinking of picking up the color guide for conrail but does it cover the Patch freight equipment or would that be covered in a predecessor color guide?
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Post by fr8kar on Jun 10, 2016 13:29:04 GMT -8
Maybe a dozen. Two of them are Car and Locomotive Cyclopedias.  |
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Post by riogrande on Jun 10, 2016 14:02:45 GMT -8
Jim, There are two books that might be worth considering not yet on your rather comprehensive SG Rio Grande list. Next thing I want to get before anything else is Rio Grande: Heart of the Rockies - Chuck Conway. Expensive but if it's anything like Crest of the Continent, it will be among my top 5 books! Will keep those in mind but funds are not available atm. |
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Post by MONSTERRAILROAD on Jun 10, 2016 14:25:28 GMT -8
I own only 1 book yo!
Locomotives: The Modern Diesel & Electric Reference -2015 Second Edition - Paid $27
Books are simply outdated. There is no no need to buy a ton of books on railroading when there is unlimited access on the Internet and online book options.
I just got this one book last weekend to have on hand as my personal guide but mostly just to show people that I know how to read. The book has a ton of photos for me too!
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Post by Paul Cutler III on Jun 10, 2016 15:24:21 GMT -8
I have just about every book on the New Haven ever published. I keep about 20 of them next to my computer for quick reference. I have more RR books upstairs on the shelf, mostly about equipment like "The American Railroad Freight Car", and so on. I have almost nothing in my collection that is not related somehow to the NH. A book like "More Classic American Railroads" has a chapter on the NH, for example. I also have 37 bound volumes of the NHRHTA's "Shoreliner" magazine, which is fully indexed. I also have map books of the NH, diagram books, freight symbol books, timetables, passenger train consists books, and a three inch 3-ring binder full of all the NHRHTA Data Sheets. If it's NH on paper, I probably have it. Al, For you, a modern modeler, you'd be right. Why buy a picture book on today's UP/BNSF/CSX/NS/CP/CN/KCS/Amtrak, etc., when there are thousands of free pics online? Makes no sense. But what if you want to model an era that ended 5 to 50 years before you were even born? That ended before digital cameras came around? I only wish all my NH pics in all my NH books were online (or at least digital). It would make finding things much, much faster. But until that day comes, I'll be a NH picture book hoarder.  |
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Post by Deleted on Jun 10, 2016 15:57:27 GMT -8
I own only 1 book yo! Locomotives: The Modern Diesel & Electric Reference -2015 Second Edition - Paid $27 Books are simply outdated. There is no no need to buy a ton of books on railroading when there is unlimited access on the Internet and online book options. I just got this one book last weekend to have on hand as my personal guide but mostly just to show people that I know how to read. The book has a ton of photos for me too! Outdated AND wasteful. Every single book ever written is now on the internet or will be in a few years, yet people have to know how to look for them and thats getting better thanks to most folks now having cable. In the near future all paper liberaries will be un-necessary I have a few Santa Fe and PRR books, and TP&W in Color. |
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Post by espeenut on Jun 10, 2016 22:05:27 GMT -8
...taking a quick peek at my book shelf, I probably have around 75 books, I haven't bought any new books for a number of years now, and these were all acquired over a space of the last three decades, many were also used so not a lot of money involved...
...the titles are aimed at the three main roads I model, SP, UP and BN...
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Post by Dewey3 on Jun 11, 2016 3:49:07 GMT -8
Seven books about the Rock Island, three on AMTRAK, one on signaling and a hand full on layout crafting.
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Post by riogrande on Jun 11, 2016 4:18:31 GMT -8
Every single book ever written is now on the internet or will be in a few years, yet people have to know how to look for them and thats getting better thanks to most folks now having cable. In the near future all paper liberaries will be un-necessary So what you are saying is copyright will be done away with? And if every single book will be on the internet, please take a look at my list posted earlier and tell me where I can view them, page for page? |
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Post by 12bridge on Jun 11, 2016 9:51:37 GMT -8
 Far left is "coffee table" RR books, and some Misc. stuff. Next case is Morning Sun (35 or so of the 60$ slide shows..), large format hard covers, marine books, and other industry books, This case has since been outgrown, requiring a larger one that I have yet to figure out.. Next one is oversize books, my cook books and non Railroad stuff. Next one is more specific RR related and industry books. Tall wood one is all of my technical manuals, slide and paper collection, and specific "saved" magazines. There is still another 6' bookcase on the other side of the living room full of non industry stuff (novels). To say books are outdated and everything is online, is insane. I have plenty of stuff that will NEVER be online. Anyone who has ever worked on a book project, as I am doing now for the first time, will realize how much material is not online, and how many people work hard to keep it that way. |
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Post by Paul Cutler III on Jun 11, 2016 10:13:38 GMT -8
Superchief,
I have to laugh at this idea that everything will be available online. Heck, not even every TV and movie is online, and you think all books will be? Let me know when "New Haven Power" by Jack Swanberg is available for download. It's only a 600-page hardcover that routinely sells at $100+.
BTW, did you know that real libraries are busier now than ever? It's true. My sister is a library director, my father is retired Head of Circulation librarian, and my aunt is a Tech. Librarian. They all tell me that with library exchanges, circulation in all forms is up every year.
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