Looks like google predicts the end of model trains

[ngauger]

Funny -- you are all basically saying the same thing that the Amateur Radio world is seeing.... Kids are interested in a hobby - ANY Hobby- that their parents are interested in... At the teenage years they drift away (opposite sex, Cell Phones, Computers etc) and when they "grow up" and have kids, they "return to the hobby" whatever it is and get their kids involved .

Money is definitely a factor!! I had no real money until I got a good job (at 24), so i got right back into trains... until i started dating again and the trains sat stagnant, until I moved and built another layout.

But I was always into cars. Talking with other car enthusiasts, we think the greatest problem with teens now, is that you can't "customize" these cars. you have to get a 70's or older car to "make it your own".... THAT was the fun!!! Flames coming out the tailpipes, running with no mufflers, swapping parts so you made "your car' look different... you can't do that now, not do it and pass inspections at least. And you can't advance the timing cheaply (twist the distributor -- for street racing) and you can't remove the catalytic converter!

So... You either spend a fortune on an old car or you play your computer games until you get a "real Job" to afford what you want....

As far as Ham Radio, They removed the "Morse Code" requirement to make it easier for young bucks to get a License. So far it's worked. I got mine 2 years ago at 52, directly due to the Code requirement being removed (I'm Dyslexic and could never learn code).

There is man I talk to that his whole family has licenses. His wife, and his 10 yr old son and his 12 yr old daughter! Again though... they will most likely drift away as they get older, then come back. Both of them enjoy talking on the radio too....