Whats a good website to buy stuctures from that are pretty decent with a good selection without spending a fortune on them. Or that they dont look as plastic as they are. Other than walthers.
Look for the IHC website on the internet. They have a good selection of structures and are on sale at different times of the year. The only bad thing about the site is you have to use Internet Explorer to view it. They have a lot of older structures and a good varity.
RMax1
Your best bet is to look on Ebay for all your building needs. I have a friend that bought a complete blst furnace and came completed and it looked great on his railroad after he had painted and weathered the model. I understand that you don’t like walthers stuff. I got a walthers round house and nothing would go together like it should.
James
Look for the IHC website on the internet. They have a good selection of structures and are on sale at different times of the year. The only bad thing about the site is you have to use Internet Explorer to view it. They have a lot of older structures and a good varity.
RMax1
DPM structures are good. They need some painting, filing, and detailing first, but they are still a good deal at around 15 bucks each. I filled most of my town with them.
Nick
It’s kinda fun to buy them Atlas, IHC and Bachman structures and kitba***hem. They’re fairly inexpensive and easy to work with. I like the older Atlas stuff, kind of nostalgic. I recommend Ebay, IHC and HobbyLinc. You can get some good buys at all of those places.
Go to M.B. Klein’s website, http://www.modeltrainstuff.com and look for DPM (it’s Design Preservation Miniatures - they spelled it out.) They are having a sale, and those $15 kits are going for $8.99. Blowout prices on some out-of-production locomotives, too.
Now I am as cheap as they come so you might want to consider how I find and buy the buildings for my layout. Look on Walther’s site (look, not buy) to find the exact building you want. Note their price, that is the MOST you should pay for the building or kit including shipping. Search the major on-line hobby shops and any minor ones that you like and check eBay for the kit you want. Just because something is on eBay does not mean it is a good deal. The last 2 kits I bought listed o Walther’s site for just under $30.00. I got them for about $22.00 including shipping and the sold on eBay (poorly pre-assembled) for just over $50.00 before shipping the same week.
Forgot to mention I found KB Toys selling a bunch of Plasticville structures for $1. Yep they look pretty cheesy in the pictures and really bad when you first build them. After adding some landscaping and a few details they look really good. Little paint a window unit airconditioner and a tv antenna and you will have some major improvements.
RMax1
As already mentioned “cheap” kits are everywhere…if you look for them.
And…Even if the Walthers kits don’t fit together well and or others look the “plastic/cheese” part to the extreme, all is not lost!
I had opportunity to visit with the late, great, Art Curren a few times and learned there is always hope for a kit if you just spend some time making then fit together and doing some detailing (a little sand paper and a set of files can work wonders, not to mention some paints, washes and chalks).
Art was “the master”, at least in my eyes, at taking that $2.89 kit, or kits bashed together and making them into a true structure of beauty!
I’m not sure, but think that I have either seen or heard about a book done by Art regarding his scenery and bashing techniques??
You don’t have to spend a lot of money on structures, just a bit more time!
I have had a really good experience with the Walthers Cornerstone structure kits. They are my favorites. I found several on e-Bay at really good prices [but some also sell way over MSRP, so watch out]. I’ve never had problems with pieces fitting together. Some of the Model Power kits are good, too, but others can be really bad. I’ve also built a couple of Bachmann Plus/Spectrum kits [such as the light coaling tower] that turned out well.
I belong to a RR Club and we have two huge (270 tables) swap-meets a year and you would not believe the bargains on kits (in the box &/or built up) of buildings, rolling stock, also track, back issues of magazines (as cheap as 4 for a $1.00) videos, books ect… allot of the tables are just regular guys (note not dealers) selling their extra stuff (you know changing n to ho or steam to diesel or just getting out of the hobby)…so check out your local clubs and see if they have a swap meet …also as an added bonus our club sets up our ho or n scale layout and we have a test track for all scales! At the door you can get flyers to other shows and sales…and once inside you just might run into some one you know and find out they like to “play with trains too!”…
trainshows,are a good spot, usually someone has a box on the floor or on table,sometimes they put together poorly,sometimes not, but they;re usually cheap and with some work they can be made to look as good as an expensive kit. All plastic kits need to be painted, with colors and some washes to tone down the brightness, every kit is a jewel in the rough.
Don’t forget Trainworld. Good prices. Also they may have kits that are no longer in production.
MB Klein and Trainworld are the two I use most that I also think have some of the lowest prices and best variety. The Walthers kits aren’t that bad, I have had problems, but you work them out like anything else in this hobby. I’ve really started using the modulars in Walthers and DPM. If you see a building you like just build it with modular pieces and Plastruct shapes and siding materials. Its fun and pretty easy once you have done a few.
Trainworld.com, 1stPlaceHobbies.com, DiscountTrainsOnline.com… I have had good luck with ALL of them. As well, as Walthers.