I am new to model railroading. It seems like there are SO many sites online where you can learn about and trade model trains… ebay, Trainz, Stout Auctions, OGR, AmbroseBauer Trains, New England Toy & Train Exchange, TCA X-change, plus local hobby shops.
What do you like and dislike about these options? Which do you recommend? I’m not sure where to start, so I’m trying to learn about what’s out there. Your opinion would be really helpful!
I’d say a good brick an mortar LHS (local hobby shop) or better yet a store that specializes in model railroading exclusively is your best source of overall knowledge. Local clubs and their members run a very close second in most cases.
As for buying on the web I’d also suggest HO Yardsale. if HO is your chosen scale. They are a Yahoo group that you will need to join in order to participate. There are no fees to join and the prices people post are set, no bidding.
Welcome to the forum
For questions that come up, use the search function on this site and if you dont find it, ask. For getting trains, building, rolling stock, I have had good service from modeltrainstuff.com. I am sure you can find deals in Ebay but I would not buy anything other than a new locomotive online, but that is just me, been burned in the past on Ebay.
You are right. There are plenty of places online that you can buy used stuff cheaply. SOmetimes even “new in box” from those sources. But you don’t always know what you are getting. I even get skeptical at train shows unless I can test it first. I hate E-bay, by the way and anything remotely like it. too many get burned. {I haven;t even heard of those you mention.}
I prefer to buy brand new online, or at the brick and mortar store. I am fortunate that wholesaletrains.com has its brick and mortar store 45 minutes from me. It’s a wash whether I order online and pay shipping, or spend gas money to drive there, but I do tend to spend more if I visit the store!! I like to be able to returns something that is defective right away, or have a warrantee to send it in to to get fixed.
I really only pay attention to those hobby shops that advertise in Model Railroader or other respected MRR magazines, or are refered by trusted members here on the forums. There are several in half a days travel in the NY/PA area near where I live if I want to go visit. I often am “tactile” when it comes to stuf…I want to see, touch, smell, taste, feel an item before I buy it. I can only do that at a brick and mortar LHS. or of course a train show. But that is just me.
Good luck in your search and remember you are new…you will want at least two of everything you see and you will want them yesterday and you will want them all for $2.00 a piece!!! SO many things… my oh my!
Trains shows are excellent, you get to see and touch the product, and the prices can be very good. There are a lot of them. For most places in the US, there is a train show within driving distance about once a month. Then your friendly local hobby shop(LHS) is the place to learn the going prices for stuff and to see them and touch them. If you are truly lucky the counterman at your friendly LHS will actually know something about the product.
Nother thing worth having, the Walther’s big book. Nearly everything made is in the Walthers book and everything has a price. Likewise you want to read Model Railroader magazine
Once you have a feel for what things ought to cost, and what fits what, then you can try buying on line. Ebay is good, I have gotten some interesting stuff off Ebay. Remember that the $5 and up shipping charges can be more than a simple Athearn box car is worth. It’s buyers beware, look really hard at the pictures. If you can see a flaw in the picture, it’s a rather bad flaw. If you cannot see a picture, that’s a red flag warning. There are some crooks on Ebay, so don’t spend more than you can afford to loose. Most of the sellers are wonderful people, but a few of them are not. Ebay is the only place I have bought on line. I expect the others work about the same as Ebay.
Gotta agree with what’s been said so far. If your a long time train guy, new modeller, then you MAY have your interests set. Or, not.
The Walther’s book is definately fun, besides being a catalog, they have a number of pictures from various layouts. Always a plus to include your customers.
For my tastes, I prefer to support my LHS if I can. Buty he does not have everything, nor does he have it all at the best price. The trade-off, I feel better about layawaying something that’s right close, and if the prices aren’t too far from each other, then that’s what I’ll do.
My advise, find your LHS, talk to them, and go back and read any and all of the books in the back that scream “read me” to you. Some will be guide books, some will be “X railroad in pictures”. Don’t buy them yet, but you’ll see what does and does not grab you.
Some people will reccomend tutuorial websites, books, and videos that they put together. Don’t get me wrong, they all did a beautiful job putting them together, but YOU have to be willing to sit and read through them, If nothing else, bookmark the site, and if you get an itch to look through someone’s website for dummies, then you know you’ll bew ready to learn from them. I can throw a million sites and such at you, but if you read them because I told you to, then yu won’t digest much if any of the information at all.