What Do You Do For Christmas?


S

southern154

Member
As railroaders, of course, we put a train under the tree, but what else do you do? Is there that special thing that you do, from running a holiday excursion to coating your layout in fake snow? What do you do, and what trains are under your tree? Merry Christmas!!!
 
At xmas I generally make sure the layout is up and running for the curious to be.
 
Southern,

What do I do for christmas .... hmm, oh yeah - RUN AND HIDE until it's over! Then I, with trembling intrepidation, consult my bank account or whats left of it :)

As for trains, this will be the first year in a long time that I will have a train up and running for christmas. Ironically, my wife and I were at Home Depot this afternoon and saw what looked to be around an O Scale oval christmas train layout for only $29!!!! I was half tempted to buy it but realised the size of it would be an embuggerance to us. As such, I am going to put together a small HO Scale Oval, from left over Peco Flex Track and buy a christmasy type train with a couple of passenger cars for it to pull around the tree.

I knew I'd get to build another layout :)
 
I pull out my old Lionel O Scale and set it up under the tree. Pretty bloody die hard equipment if the"kids" come over and want to play with it... granted, with that said, they found a way to cross thread the power wire on the cab for me last year (which I still have to fix).

That and I've got a little HO scale Christmas Trolley that I can run around the layout. :)
 
Well start by adding extra sections of the El Capitan, California Limited, and Chief to handle folks traveling home for the holidays. Then from time to time I've run a Christmas Special. Some little steamer with flat cars that have Christmas displays on them, a couple coaches and an open platform observation.
 
Oh now this is my kind of thread, but I don't have time just now to give you a complete answer but I will soon!

One thing I would ask if you can please post pictures!!!

Here is one of mine form last year.

Lionel Silver Bells set and the Polar Express set, both are the new LionChief sets.

Living room Christmas trains (2).jpg

Now I am off to keep working on Christmas! I don't have a big elaborate set up, but I am very slow!
 
I have an HO Pennsylvania 4 car passneger train with a GG1 loco that I bring out for under the tree at Christmas.

Nothing fancy. Just an EZ Track triangle layout sitting on the carpet that goes around the tree so the presents form mountains and tunnels the train can go through.
 
I think I'm with Tony. Our kids are grown and out on their own. We don't even bother putting up a Christmas tree any more. Just a big mess to clean up after the holidays.

Run and hide. I'll have a pint with Tony.
 
I wish I could reduce the amount of clutter that goes up for Christmas. I've managed to get the village moved out from under the tree and placed on the top of the book cases. It meant eliminating the Lionel under the tree, but without a reliable transformer, and only being used at Christmas, it's not a loss. The spousal unit has other things to say about the clutter, so she can put it up and take it down!
 
marriedshades said:
I realy can't put a train under the tree. I have enough problem making sure the cat stays out of the tree.
Click to expand...
Our cats actually destroyed one of our trees last year. It was on its last leg anyway, but also the first tree in 15 years of our Christmas forest that bit the dust.
 
PC261556.jpgWhen Our cat, Noel was a kitten she would climb up inside the tree and perch on a branch. I only noticed her when the twinkling lights would reflect off of her eyes. She has since learned not to climb up the tree. She loves Christmas as much as I do and if you know me you know that is A LOT! Noel loves Christmas from the boxes everywhere during set up, sitting under the tree as the trains circle her, to the boxes again when it's time to put it all away.

I think what she loves best is sitting under the tree with the trains running because our beagles won't cross the tracks and Noel loves to do anything they can not.

My oldest daughter named Noel when she first arrived in September 2001 after Noel's mother stopped feeding her. She was only 6 weeks old, a little fur ball full of fleas. I never liked cats, but we began to bond minutes after she arrived during her first bath. After 13 years and a stroke last year she is still doing well and loves Christmas as much as ever and I love her. When company comes she normally hides, but not on Christmas day. She will sit with my wife and or myself, watching all the commotion that 2 grandsons can generate. As it turned out my daughter gave her the perfect name. She is truly a Christmas cat. She is as much apart of our Christmas as are the trees and trains.
 
We open the layouts at the History Center here in Anderson for exhibits. And I make a railroad Christmas Card and send it out. That's about it.
 
DSC_0842.jpg
Don't think I've ever had a Christmas without a train under the tree. Currently running a 4x4 layout with an MTH Christmas train. All the businesses are named after family members. This shot is before snow has fallen. I used to detail the layout alot more but with a 1 and 4 yr old running around most of the small stuff stays off. They love blowing the horn tho!!!

-Larry
 
Louis,
Our cat likes to eat the tree, so we can't put one up anymore but your right, they do become part of the family. I might put up the Lionel train set that my son has, it has not been run for awhile but I am sure it will fire up ok. I guess we will see how it goes.

Scott
 
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