Hi all,
After almost twenty years of being out of the hobby it looks like I’ll be jumping back in head first[:)].
I knew of a couple of places one that was in Trexlertown Pa which is not far from me that has gone out of business. A couple are still here but have limited stock and I know of another called train and lanes in Easton but have no idea what they are like.
I was wondering if anyone has any ideas of shops that sell engines and rolling stock in a 50 mile radius of Allentown Pa.
Cal.
A great little shop in Allentown closed last fall. It was called Victoria’s Crossing. The proprietor was having health problems. Shop was doing well.
I’m not a native of the area and visit it infrequently. But since you mentioned a 50 mile radius, that can get you into Lansdale where there are two very good businesses within a mile of each other along the main drag (PA 63). Penn Valley is at the west end of downtown and then crossing the tracks that bisect Lansdale (SEPTA/CSX) and going east to Line St (at the ball park) is Linn’s Jct (a block down Line).
Also, just remembered in Quakertown…309 then into town…by the RR station there. J&D Whistlestop.
The only Lehigh Valley area shop (left) that I know of that has a full line of (serious) MR hobbyist items is Trains & Lanes near Nazareth, PA. Unfortunately, the store is very large but cluttered/disorganized, poorly lighted and with very skinny aisles. Items are hard to find. For instance, I recently needed WS plaster cloth and needed to locate three separately located WS displays in the store before I found what I needed! I do buy there since it’s the “only game in town” and they do have a huge amount of stock, but I do not enjoy the experience at all. Lin’s Junction in Lansdale on the other hand is excellent and highly recommended.
I get to Trains 'N Lanes regularly and the clutter/disorganization is easy to figure out. The best thing to do is find someone that works there (easy to do) and ask. Also, take along some pictures of your layout (or layout in progress, or model project in progress) and start talking to some of the guys there. Establish a “friend in the business.” It can work out for you in the future. I’ve had them order things and set things as
Trains 'n Lanes is pretty much the only game in town. I know the owner and most of the people that work there, I’ve been going there pretty much since they opened more than 20 years ago, back then they were all about slot cars and RC and there wasn’t much train stuff. The shop in Trexlertown you remember was probably their other store int eh Trexler mall before the morons that run it got the not so brilliant idea to turn it into a health center and kicked out all the stores. That naturally failed and now it’s a Kohl’s. The Trains 'n Lanes store there had a great selection of RR stuff, and had plenty of aisle space. Upon moving all the inventory to the original location is when it got all packed in and crowded.
Iron Horse in Reading is just a few blocks from me, but their train selection is not so good anymore. I might stop in once in a while for a few small items.
Don’t forget this weekend is the Spring Thaw show at Ag Hall. Bad thing about the consolidation in the hobby is that many of the dealers whom I’d gladly buy everything from, like Skeet Kemmerer, can no longer get certain brands like Proto2000. However, I’ll be there and I’m sure I will find a few things I need, I always do.
–Randy
Hello. I’m in Bristol, PA. I have frequented Lin’s Junction on many occasion! They have a web site:
They will order pretty much anything you need… and ship it to you if you need, or hold it for you to pick up! Very knowledgeable people! I try to get there at least once every couple months in person… Don’t let the website “Inventory” fool you, they have quite a lot of items for the size store they have! Fairly reasonably priced as well!
I’m not familiar with the other hobby shop in Lansdale, will have to check it out next time I get up that way! (hopefully soon!)
The other hobby shop in Lansdale is Penn Valley. Call to check their hours. I believe that they don’t open until 3 or 4 PM.
Penn Valley’s a neat shop - been a while since I was there, but they cover just about every facet of model building and used to have a sort of flea market set up in the basement (watch your head) of used stuff.
I live in Doylestown and go to Herb’s Hobbies. More ready-to-run stuff anymore than kits, and half the store is crafts, but like the Lansdale stores they’re happy to order.
Eric