Good HO scale hobby shops in both Dallas and Houston, TX?

Model Railroader General Discussion (Model Railroader)
1

Greetings,

I will be traveling to both the Dallas and Houston, TX areas next month and will have a bit of time on my hands. What good hobby shops would you recommend for HO scale rolling stock?

Thanks in advance,

Mark

2

I concentrate on N scale myself, but I would recommend 2 in Houston:

Papa Ben’s Train Place, Bellaire Blvd and Stella Link,

and G&G Model Shop, in the Village near Rice University.

3

Discount Model Trains in Addison, TX (right by Dallas). Pretty large, and a great place to shop. I try to hit it up every few months.

4

I agree with leighant. Larry’s Hobbies and M & M Hobbies both have cut back on their HO offerings in favor of their other hobby sales. PaPa Bens and G & G are strictly trains but have limited selection of rolling stock for the fourth largest city in US.

5

I’m not sure where Dallas falls on that list, but there is only ONE train store which has already been mentioned. Pretty sad. Wasn’t too long ago when there were 4 or 5.

6

You may also want to try spring crossing trains. It is off of I-45 and spring cypress road in Houston. Be aware that the store is pretty unorganized and not necessarily the nicest lookingbut he has a good selection of HO stuff at decent prices. Also be aware he does cash or check only no plastic.

7

Yes, I forgot Spring Crossing but it is best to call first. He has had health issues in his family and is prone to close without warning at times. His selection of rolling stock is probably the best in Houston area but the store is definitely a mess. Store is actually about 30 miles north of Houston on I-45.

8

Hi,

Even though its extremely close, I quit going to Spring Crossing years ago. The selection is as good as it gets - especially if you are looking for older stuff. But the store is mostly a major mess, and check out can be a very long affair. The owner and sole employee definitely has issues, and that truly is a shame.