Office of Steam Forum for Model & Toy Steam Gas & Hot Air Engines

I don't think all is lost Gary, I go to 2 main shows a year & see plenty of children, especially at the local model toy steam show I just had a few weeks ago, I let kids operate my sawmill & steam engine pencil sharpener, I can tell you about twice as many kids ran my sawmill vs. the pencil sharpener (by the time I got the kids through the sawmill line, many had wondered off before they knew about the pencil sharpener) I had nearly 100 pencils sharpened with my steam engine pencil sharpener.

I actually have some insights and experience on this issue in a range of different hobbies, and generally speaking the news isn't any too good for the most part. Those who know of situations that are seeing generational involvement, I most certainly congratulate them, but they are bucking the general trend. Steam may, or may not, be an exception to the general trend of "old time" hobbies, but many of the traditional pastimes that us older folks grew up with as kids, are rapidly becoming extinct. The reasons for this may be many and varied, but the trend is pretty irrefutable in the venues I'll refer to here.

Let us take stamp collecting, Philately if you will, as an example. I have a 1991 Scott catalog that I am still using to this day as it serves its purpose adequately for my needs. However, because it is so out of date I must of course adjust the values listed in it to bring it up to the current market. To make that correction I generally apply a factor of from 30 to 70% DOWN on the prices listed in that nearly thirty year old catalog, to bring its prices in line with today's market. The reason for this is that the great collections amassed back in the 50's - 90's, by the folks who became parents and then grandparents, are now coming onto the market through estate sales that sell a whole volume for less than the original value of just a few of the stamps held within, and the reason this happens is because none of the heirs care! Thus the market is now glutted with what were once desirable collectibles, that ever fewer people now want nor care about.

True, some of the most desirable and collectible rarities do still bring new record prices, but that isn't the real hobby of stamp collecting, it is the offshoot of rarity investing, and that will still go on, among a very small and mostly exclusive part of the population, and reflects not at all on the original hobby level pursuit.

As another example let me offer HO scale brass import locomotives, the most highly sought after and desirable models of the 1950's thru 1980's. They have actually held their original values pretty well, and for some special and less common models have actually posted fair gains. But, and this is a big but, the actual value of the dollar in the same time period has eaten those numbers back down to substantial actual losses in value. The reasons are much the same as with stamp collecting, with a few added twists. The folks of an age that collected these works of mechanical art are leaving them for the most part to uncaring heirs who have no intention of building a layout and making any use of them, nor of holding and displaying them as a collection. Brass engines are actually still being built and imported, but to a wholly different standard of operation and detail, but even these are being offered to a rapidly diminishing market, as the commitment and craftsmanship needed to build an operational layout are mostly outside of the interests of those who are young enough to take up the challenge. Thus another hobby that was robust and thriving in the not too distant past, is now passé.

I could list several reasons why I believe this to be happening to "physical" hobbies en mass, but I'll leave that to another time and post. For now I'll just say that I truly believe this to be a general trend in most of the traditional hobby activities, with some individual exceptions no doubt!

Sorry for the doom and gloom .... I'll just ignore the trends I see, and enjoy those activities that continue to make me happy!!!

I have wondered about this topic before. For that reason I am trying to limit the size of my collection. I have never been an investment collector, I never even saw myself as a collector anyway. I just like to play with the stuff! At least most things are worth something when we decide to let them go, as opposed to the RC helicopter items which are virtually junk. Servos radios chargers-all almost no value. The only upshot is a LOT of the tools are good for other small hobbies and modeling.

I think there will always be a small number of people that are fascinated by physics and mechanical movements. I came into steam engines a little late and  just in the last several years I can see the hobby dwindling. It all ebbs and flows but demographics play a big part in current trends.

I wasn't listing loss in values in various hobbies as an investment lament, but rather only as an indicator of the fall off in interest by the population as a whole. Both stamp collecting and model railroading have long histories of well over a century, showing continual increase in interest through several generations .... until now. Values were just used here because they are perhaps the best bellwether to show trends in activity and interest through time.

Yes, I agree, for investment purposes you can't beat dirt, as they aren't making any more of it, but it is difficult to take with you if circumstances force relocation. Precious metals and gems have historically always retained some value and are generally fairly portable. But ammo may well be the currency of the new millennium!

Perhaps I should add that I have no intention of selling any of my collections within my own lifetime, and really have no direct heirs so a niece and nephew will be the likely inheritors. I didn't buy anything in any of my numerous collections with any kind of profit motive in mind, but I did tend to gravitate toward things of at least some intrinsic value. These things were bought solely on the basis of expected personal enjoyment, and so far nearly all purchases met that standard, and continue to meet it, so it is most likely I'll die happily with it all still in my possession, and won't ever realize the profit or loss on any of it!

I might look at this a bit differently

I've lived my life the way I have wanted to, bought and sold what I wanted and got into (or out of) any hobby or pastime I wanted to partake in.

We brought our children up to do the same thing, live their life and enjoy their life as they want to. They have very little interest in steam toys beyond asking me questions and admiring what I have been up to with them, but that's out of their love for me. If I was to fall of the twig all of sudden, I don't want them to feel that they have to be burdened as life long care takers of old steam engines and maybe they'll keep one or two as mementos (or maybe not) and sell them all and spend the money on a hobby that they like and enjoy.
 
Same as our house that's filled with expensive century old furniture, antiques and curios that my very well to do grandparents bought in the 1920's and went from my parents to myself. Stunningly beautiful and it all goes well with our home, but my children have built beautiful modern homes and they have furnished them with modern contemporary furnishings, our family heirloom furniture will not go in their homes or suit their modern decor and they probably don't want to be burdened with the duty of having to apply furniture oil and polish regularly.

Our hobby to most people is pleasantly eccentric, nice to have a casual glance in and admire, but not for them.

Just think.....if you're old eccentric uncle has collected typewriters from all of the world at great expense and had an expansive and very costly collection and had amassed 300+ of them, if he left them to you and you weren't into typewriters, would you seriously want 300+ typewriters?

Are they steam driven typewriters??

Terrific retort Chris

Ancestor 1 collects stuff

Ancestor 2 collects stuff and inherits ancestors 1 stuff

Ancestor 3 collects stuff and inherits ancestor 1 and ancestor 2’s stuff

Ancestor 4 collects stuff and inherits ancestor 1 and ancestor 2 and ancestor 3’s stuff

Ancestor 5 collects stuff and inherits ancestor 1 and ancestor 2 and ancestor 3’s and ancestor 4’s stuff

Where does it all end, it’s starting to build up now? Especially if you don’t want any of this stuff and/or it doesn’t suit your lifestyle.

Also, what about when Ancestor 6 collects stuff and inherits ancestor 1 and ancestor 2 and ancestor 3’s and ancestor 4 and ancestors 5’s stuff, gets married and has some kids and gets divorced and ancestor 6’s wife gets 90% of everything?

Our family lawyer told me many years ago “You can’t direct your estate from the grave, enjoy life now”.