I’m spending a week in Boston on business, and I will have some spare time during the week. Are there any good hobby shops in or around the Boston area? I’m looking for stores with operating layouts and the like. Thanks in advance!
Jeff
In Leominster (50 miles fom Boston) there is Shepaug Railroad Comapny there open Wensday through Saturday. They have a lot of N scale and a lot of Ho scale. There is a swithcing ho layout there and a small N to. Enloy your stay. Tim
That’s probably farther than I will time to drive, but I appreciate the response.
Jeff
I personally like Maine Trains in Chelmsford, about 20 miles NW of the city. It’s a small shop with a small but very nicely detailed operating HO layout. He’s mostly HO, with a small [:D] amount of N, and a few piece of O as well. Tuesday through Saturday, open late Thursday. http://www.mainetrains.com for a bit more info.
I went to school in Boston and there really aren’t any good hobby shops within the city limits.
Although they don’t have the world’s greatest sale prices, try going to the Charles Ro Supply Company in Malden. It’s about a 15 minute drive from downtown Boston. They mostly specialize in O and G scale, but they do have HO and N stuff.
If you are into railfanning, spend some time at South Station or ride the T (subway).
The best hobby shops aren’t in Boston, that’s for sure.
The best store is in Warren, MA, called Tucker’s Hobbies. It’s about 100 miles due west of Boston, but it also has the benefit of being near Palmer (a “Trains” Hot Spot) with a wicked good restaurant, “The Steaming Tender” (which is in the old Palmer station). Tucker’s is wall to wall trains (only HO and N), and while he doesn’t discount much, the point is that he usually has it. Also, one of the only brass dealers around.
The second best shop is AA Hobbies in Warwick, RI. It’s right next to T.F. Green Airport. AA is a general hobby shop (planes and tanks, as well as trains), but by far it’s mostly trains. He’s got every detail part from just about every company hung on a giant pegboard.
There are a couple shops on the South Shore…
South Shore Hobby Supply is in Weymouth, MA, and The Platinum Spike is in Scituate or Cohasset, MA. South Shore is an older shop (with some old stuff), while the Spike is newer (mostly all new stuff).
You could also try visiting a club or two. I belong to the South Shore Model Railway Club, (www.ssmrc.org) which is in Hingham, MA. There’s also the North Shore Model Railroad Club in Wakefield, MA, and the Bay State Society of Model Engineers in Roslindale, MA.
Paul A. Cutler III
Weather Or No Go New Haven
I’ve got to agree with Mister Beasley regarding Maine Trains. It is probably a little far from Boston. However, Gerry always has new products coming in, and he’ll always get you what you need.
I agree that if you want to stay close to Boston, Charles Ro is really the only decent place to visit.
The really good ones are well outside of the city.
There is one hobby shop I know of within Boston - Flying Yankee,
their website:
http://www.flyingyankeehobby.com/
Don’t know if there is much of a layout, haven’t been there; perhaps the others that have said there are none would not call this one a good one.
You might also look into the Bay State Model railroad Museum:
http://www.bsmrm.org/default.asp
Apparently you can go on Wednesday evenings, and there is an open house the first weekend in March.
You might check out this site:
http://www.masshome.com/railroads.html
Not only railroads, but model railroads and model railroad shops in Massachusetts.
This has links for the two I have mentioned and also the NorthShore club mentioned in an earlier post and others.
Have fun,
Scott
I checked the Flying Yankee once, they don’t have much there, at least for the serious or semi-serious model railroader. Outside of enjoying the ride on the T and trying to figure out how to take the bus there, it wasn’t worth the journey.
While in Boston for a few years, I definately did more railfanning than model railroading. Some other easily accessable railfanning places to check out if you have some time (and the weather is nice):
-Amtrak’s Southampton Street Yards (Andrews Station - Red Line)
-CSX Beacon Yard (BU Central - Green Line)
-Ruggles Station (Orange Line and Commuter Line)
If you never taken the Acela Express, you could always take “joy ride” from Boston to Providence and back. It’s 35 minutes each way and you get to travel at 150 mph. The fastest MBTA commuter train takes 65 minutes to cover the same distance.
I’m actually working in a town called Waltham, which is NW of Boston a few miles. The shop a couple of you guys mentioned in Chelmsford sounds like the closest to where I’m at, and I would love to see Charels Ro (I completely forgot about them).
Thanks so much for the leeds!
Jeff
Jeff, if you’re heading to Chelmsford, you might consider traveling a bit further up route 3 north to exit 36 (Tyngsboro). Take a right turn at the set of lights at the end of the exit ramp (Pheasant Lane Mall will be in front of you), and then turn right at the next set of lights into a set of stores. There is a nice hobby shop called “Hobby Emporium” in there. They have a large selection of HO & N scale. Mostly MSRP, but they have a lot to see.
From Waltham, you can easily get to 128 (=I-95) and go a few exits north to Route 3. Maine Trains is a few exits up, just a few miles from 3, and then Hobby Emporium is another 20 minutes or so north from there. Hobby Emporium doesn’t have an in-house layout, but they are well-stocked and have lots of stuff like Evergreen styrene parts, paints and weathering materials. Ian is an experienced and knowledgeable modeller himself, so you’re in good hands at either of these shops.
Hi Jeff, Maine Trains is definetly your best choice close to Boston. I used to work in Waltham many years ago, and from Waltham to Chelmsford, it is a quick drive up the highway as Mr B has pointed out.
I go to Tucker’s in the town of Warren. The quickest way to go there should you decide to do so, gewt on the Massachusetts Turnpike WEST, and get off at the Palmer exit. Then you would take route 32 north to Warren. Tuckers is on Bacon Street, right in the center of the little town. Robert Buck is the owner, and old timer in his 80’s, and has forgotten more about RR’s than you and I will ever know, a great guy. He operates out of his home where he grew up, and uses the entire downstairs for hus business. He has good prices because he has low overhead.
Enjoy your stay Jeff,
Maine Trains is a fantastic place to visit. Gerry Rocks, the owner, is an extremely kind, helpful, and knowledgeable guy. He also discounts 20-25% on his in stock selection.
I also personally thank Gerry for letting the Youth Group I participate in use his space. Thanks!
My LHS is the Acton Model Railroad Center in Acton, MA (25 Mi NW of downtown). I wouldn’t recommend it as much as Gerry’s, but it still is a nice shop.