Cobden's John Wiggins got his first train set when he was six and now, at the age of 90, his is still tinkering with them, albeit on a much larger scale.
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As one of the co-founders of the Cobden Miniature Railway, he will take to the tracks again on Sunday to celebrate 25 years since the park first opened.
"There's just a nostalgia about trains," Mr Wiggins said.
"I've been interested in trains since I was a kid.
"The first train I had I was about six years old. I pulled it a part to see how it worked and I couldn't put it back together and I thought: 'that's the end of that'."
But about 10 years ago when he had a hip replacement and had to give up work he decided to build a train of his own.
Using just a photo of an American-style Amtrack engine, he built the train from scratch, spending "enough hours" over 18 months to finish it.
"You just start off with bits and pieces and buy engines," he said.
Mr Wiggins said the train had recently been valued at $30,000.
It is one of 14 engines in the engine shed at the track which are all privately owned and most built buy their owners.
One of his biggest regrets, Mr Wiggins said, was selling his beloved miniature steam train called Chloe.
The idea for the Cobden train park came from former policeman and Rotary club member Alan Hart, and Sunday will mark 25 years to the day since the first miniature train ran on the tracks at Cobden.
While it started out as a small circular track, over the years it has expanded to include tunnels, a signal box BBQ facilities and tea rooms.
Cobden Rotary Club treasurer Frank Martin said that over the years the park had probably given rides to almost 300,000 people.
"That's not counting the private bookings which get very intense from October through to March," Mr Martin
"These guys can be running trains almost every day of the week."
To celebrate the occasion, train rides for the day will be sold at the 1994 price of $1, rather than the usual $2.50.
Mr Wiggins said he had been on most tourist railways throughout Australia, and even had his own five-inch train track around his house back in the day.
"We had a private club, 12 of us, and we all have a little five-inch track around our houses," he said.
Mr Wiggins is one of three train enthusiast over the age of 90 who are regulars at the track.
"It's a long time when you start something when you're 65 or 70," he said.
The park is open every third Sunday of the month, and all Sundays in school holidays from 11am to 4pm.
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