Model train enthusiasts share passion at Hamilton, Ancaster Model Train Show

It’s a model train lover’s dream at the Ancaster Fairgrounds. The annual Hamilton & Ancaster Model Train Show featured over 150 vendor tables offering the best deals for modelers, collectors, and those looking to start a new hobby.

Keith Robson of Dundas Modular Railway Club has been attending model train shows for the last seven years. It took him six years to complete building a layout for a small train village. “It takes a lot of research to make it right and make it accurate.”

“The satisfaction we have from doing shows like this is how the younger people, particularly really excited. This morning we’ve had a huge number of people spending several minutes, some half an hour watching the trains go by.”

The show’s organizer, Rick Kuta stated, “You come to a train show and you can buy them for half price, could get used ones for $30 to $40 bucks, so it’s a good way to start a hobby and buy economically.”

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Multi-scale clubs featuring trains of all models and sizes, hobbyists, and vendors are here showcasing their collection, demonstrating how it all works, and sharing their stories behind their passion.

Model train hobbyist, Joel Waterman said, “I would have been probably 5 or 6 when my parents bought me a Lionel Train set; I used to run around the Christmas tree, but then we put it on a sheet of plywood, and it grew from there.”

For Terry Flynn, one of the first model trains he remembers taking a liking to was the Canadian National toy train from his father’s big collection. His dad has since moved into a seniors living facility, leaving them with all his model trains.

“As we’re going through his trains, we realized how many thousands of trains, not hundreds, thousands of trains we had,” says Flynn.

Flynn says being part of the model train community in the region has helped him and his family understand more about trains, and is happy to be sharing their dad’s collection in the show. “We’re not here competing, we’re here actually supporting each other because it’s amazing how many of her collectors came over and wanted to buy stuff from us.”

The Hamilton & Ancaster Model Train Show is more than a hobby; it’s also a venue to make new memories together and introduce the younger generation to these railroad wonders.

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