Model train sale offers glimpse into creative hobby

WASHINGTON — A steady stream of visitors went in and out of KC Hall in Washington over the weekend, traveling from miles around to peruse the massive spread of model trains, train cars, and train set pieces up for sale by local hobbyist Gerald Franzen.

Hundreds upon hundreds of the collectible items, all built to scale, lined tables set up for the show where they were carefully sorted by price, size and certain fine details.

Franzen and his wife hold several such sales around the Midwest every year, two of them always in Washington, where they live.

“I buy collections, from people that die or want to get out of the hobby … Tuesday I’m looking to buy a collection that has 400 cars, buildings, engines and all that,” he said. “They want to sell the stuff, and that’s how we buy, word-of-mouth. People come up to us and say, ‘Hey, I want to sell.’”

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The events attract a wide variety of prospective buyers.

Some seek out engines and pieces replicating specific railroad companies or time periods, while others are simply interested in setting up their own unique displays, running a mix of different engines and cars.

Many are in the hobby for historical accuracy, known to other collectors as “rivet counters” for their tendency to meticulously scrutinize every element of their models down to the most minute details.

“There’s some guys that are into it, and they just want trains to run, and then there’s some that are so hard core, everything, when they build it, has to be exact,” Franzen said. “We get both kinds, I don’t take it that seriously.”

Franzen was once a collector himself, but pivoted to sales in 2004 as he realized his next of kin weren’t interested in hanging onto his collection. He remains involved in the model train club on the Washington County Fairgrounds.

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There are plenty of larger retailers across the country with their own healthy supply of model trains. Franzen, however, deals in items already out-of-the box, which means they come with a smaller price tag. His shows also offer older models that have long been out of production at any toy company.

With many model sale events fading during the COVID-19 pandemic, Franzen said his biggest competitor was eBay, although many collectors don’t trust the online platform like they do in-person retailers whose product they can personally inspect before buying.

“When eBay came out, it actually brought the value of the old stuff down, because you could find it,” he said. “When I first started collecting back in the ‘80s, it was hard to find stuff because you had to go to auctions or flea markets, antique stores and stuff, and it was hard to find. Then all of a sudden it was like, ‘Man, this stuff’s everywhere.’”

For those still in the hobby, it offers a creative outlet like no other.

Glen Plewa, a man from Douds who helped run the sale last weekend, said he’d been working on one display of his own on-and-off for about eight years.

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“It’s creative outlet, you’re making something out of it,” he said. “I’ve built everything in there … hooked up the computers, painted the backdrops, made the trees. You can pick up garbage and make something out of it.”

Plewa said he walked through displays like Franzen’s “with an open mind,” looking for anything that might fit into his current project. Every trip through the tables reveals new train cars or set pieces one may have missed before.

Glen Cocherell, a collector from Mt. Pleasant, said he wasn’t hunting for anything specific at the sale on Saturday, but was on the lookout to “grab whatever,” as long as it was an HO model, meaning it matched the modeled train and tracks on a 1:87 scale.

“There’s some that make their own railroads up, that’s what I like to get going,” he said. “You make up your own railroad, your own road name.”

Comments: Kalen.McCain@southeastiowaunion.com