George In Midcoast Maine, 'bout halfway up the Rockland branch
You did hijack the thread but here is a link to a search.
http://search.yahoo.com/search?p=hobby+shop+easton+pa&fr=yfp-t-501&toggle=1&cop=mss&ei=UTF-8
Rich
If you ever fall over in public, pick yourself up and say “sorry it’s been a while since I inhabited a body.” And just walk away.
Thanks Klicky.
-G .
Just my thoughts, ideas, opinions and experiences. Others may vary.
HO and N Scale.
After long and careful thought, they have convinced me. I have come to the conclusion that they are right. The aliens did it.
galaxy wrote: Thanks, Klickymobster, good to know.We will be making a trip to Scranton this week now!We are looking for some european trains, especially in N scale. So we will definitely check out the N Scranton LHS. Beats going all the way down to Allentown.Q: do they have a good selection of euro stuff, or is it just token euro stuff???TIA
Thanks, Klickymobster, good to know.
We will be making a trip to Scranton this week now!
We are looking for some european trains, especially in N scale. So we will definitely check out the N Scranton LHS. Beats going all the way down to Allentown.
Q: do they have a good selection of euro stuff, or is it just token euro stuff???
TIA
Last time I was there, they had a pretty decent selection of Euro stuff. They had a ton of Z an HO marklin and trix, and a lot of other european rolling stock and a few structures. It is definetly worth checking out, and the two owners are real nice guys.
Btw, you mentioned Allentown. There is a really large hobby shop in Easton, PA called Trains and Lanes. It is about an hour and half's drive from scranton, but it is the biggest hobby shop I've ever been in. They have about a dozen display cases of locomotives alone. If you have a few spare hours, definetly check them out.
Grampys Trains wrote:Hi Mike: While you're at Steamtown, you might want to visit Tunkhannock Viaduct. It's just North of Scranton at the intersection of Rt 11N and Rt 92. We just passed it on Sunday on our way home from Canada.
Utube vids of last year's Steamtown steam excursion to the viaduct:
YouTube - Steamtown rides again
YouTube - Steamtown: To the Viaduct!
The Lionel Hobby shop has moved to Moosic, but there is a LHS across the street and down a block called Scranton Hobby Center at 517 Lackawanna Ave. It is my main LHS, and they deal in both O and HO. There is also a LHS in Northern Scranton that deals primarily with European and Marklin HO, N and Z trains, but they have a good selection of scenery supplies. They're at 1506 North Main Ave. Finally, internethobbies.com is located in Mayfield, PA which is about a half hour's drive from scranton. I think their address is on their website. If I had to choose one, your best bet is Scranton Hobby Center, because it is only a block from the museum.
HTH
mjk wrote: Wow!Great responses, and fast. Lots of good tips. The cab ride with the engineer is a top priority now! The mall is great, my wife puts up with my interest in trains but she might need an escape at some point.Thanks one and all for the tips!Mike
Wow!
Great responses, and fast. Lots of good tips. The cab ride with the engineer is a top priority now! The mall is great, my wife puts up with my interest in trains but she might need an escape at some point.
Thanks one and all for the tips!
Mike
For the cab ride, make sure that you are there at opening, first in line to pick a time for your cab ride. It IS first come first served. Pick maybethe first one (i think 11:00 am) or the last one (I think 2 pm), so you can catch the shop tour in between (I think its about noon-ish).
If you are there at opening, go into the roundhouse part where the train is kept and walk up the ramp. You will see them prepare the steamer for the day, and at 9:30 is the turntable demo when they bring the loco out and fire her up, dump ashes, coal and water her, get her cars for the day.
Have close-toed shoes on, no loose clothing (shorts are ok as long as not loose and baggy) they will give you gloves and ear plugs and safety goggles to wear.
You have to be at the train cab 1/2 hour before it leaves. The conductor will take your hold harmless waiver, and let you up to the cab. Its about a 1/2 hour ride, forwards and backwards, and switching, and slow and fastish (30-35 MPH) through the Scranton yard.
It was $50.00 and at that is was worth it at that, but it appears they have reduced it to $30.00.
The electric trolley runs near there too. ANd nearby is the coal mine tour. Take a jacket its 50* in the mine year round. LINK Attractions
And yes, the mall is right there across the yard for the wife and to grab a bite to eat.YOu can EASILY spend a whole day there. They do close the parking lot and park around 4 or 5 so if you go to the mall after riding and shop touring etc, make sure you move your car over to the mall parking garage, or it will be locked in. REad the signs.
Have a fun trip!
Here is the brochure I received at the entrance.
Up close
http://s98.photobucket.com/albums/l267/richg1998/?action=view¤t=mvi_0458.flv
http://s98.photobucket.com/albums/l267/richg1998/?action=view¤t=mvi_0481.flv
A couple of folks mentioned the walkway to the mall. It's built on the site, and to the profile, of the long-gone coaling trestle that once fed the steamers based there.
(And I bet you thought that easy grade was meant to make it wheelchair accessible...)
Chuck (modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)
Here is a link to Steamtown:
About.com: http://www.nps.gov/stea/
Steamtown has several general options per day:
1) The shop tour. Free. worth a peak to see what they are servicing, and what they are restoring/repairing there
2) A short ride behind a steam loco (on certain days a diesel) in the Scranton yard (small fee)
3) for added thrill, take the steam loco cab ride. For an extra fee ($30.00) you can ride in the cab with the fireman and engineer through the Scranton yard. You sign a waiver, wear closed toed shoes and have no loose clothing to ride, and have to be "first come first served"...they only offer this 4 times per day...1 person for each of the 4 runs of the "scranton Express" through the yard. Be there EARLY at Opening to get a seat. Click the link in the Steamtown site for info, hunt and poke it's there.
4) Certain days they have excursions behind the steam loco, check out the pdf file through a link at the site.
5) there are lots of things, locos, cars etc to see around the yard, including a 4-8-8-4 Bigboy- you are free to roam the yard, and can enter some cars, locos.
6) The roundhouse museum has lots of displays etc in every area of it, you can even enter the stalls and walk up ramps in the stalls where they keep the operating steamers as they get tehm ready for the day. There is NO FOOD available, (but the steamtown mall is there and has typical mall type food)
7) At the entrance to Steamtown is the Electric Trolley Museum and ride there here's a link:
Electric City Trolley Museum Association
8) there is a LHS there next to the steamtown mall (across from Steamtown) but it is only Lionel stuff exclusively.
9) the entrance is tricky to find,,, it is past the steamtown mall and parking lot, a little road kinda hidden look carefully,and follow the (small) brown park signs
Hope this helps
We love steamtown and go at least once a year, we live 1.25 hours away.
If you have any interest in electric traction (streetcars, etc.), you may want to budget an additional hour or two to visit the Electric City Trolley Museum, which is adjacent to Steamtown.... Here's a link to their web site:
http://www.ectma.org/
Paul F.
A half day ABSOLUTE minimum; full day preferable. There's also a anthricite mine museum nearby that would be worth visiting, too.
Tom
https://tstage9.wixsite.com/nyc-modeling
Time...It marches on...without ever turning around to see if anyone is even keeping in step.
To me, Steamtown was an all-day affair, including the Trolley Museum across the parking lot (which is a quick look compared to Steamtown). The reason for that is that I went on the backshop tour, and rode one of fan trips. We also stayed at the Lackawanna Station Hotel (which is really nice).
For those with you that might not be as "train orientated", there is a connecting ramp from Steamtown to the Mall at Steamtown...which is a pretty good sized, multi level shopping mall (complete with a food court near the ramp exit). The large ramp also offers some nice views of their "awaiting restoration" yard of rusty pieces of equipment.
The store in Steamtown offers some good RR books and other railroadania, but most of it is geared towards Thomas and Friends.There's also some railfanning in the area as there's a shortline running by called the "Delaware-Lackawanna".Paul A. Cutler III************Weather Or No Go New Haven************
I was at Steamtown Dec, 27, 2007 and three hours was not enough. I was able to walk all through the yard. At the time a 2-8-2 with a couple passenger cars was running back and forth through the yard. Time is fun when your having flies or something like that.
There is an adjoining trolley museum at the entrance. Big plus, and walkway connects to a Mall for your wife. Bring plenty of film or media if you have a digital camera. A cam corder would be nice also.
Here is a link to Steamtown discussions in the forum if you have not seen them
http://cs.trains.com/search/SearchResults.aspx?q=steamtown&f=ODg=&u=
Also go to the Steamtown web site and check the schedules. Search Google for Steamtown. You will get a lot of hits, with others experiences, and good info for the area. Have fun
I've been to Steamtown several times and would recommend you budget at least 3 hours there (you can easily spend the entire day). There is a large collection of steam locomotives as well as quite a large museum covering railroad history and technology. I've been to pretty much all of the major railroad museums in the US and this is one of the largest and best.
If you have time and are interested in other aspects of industrial history, there is a very good museum on coal mining in Scranton as well as a mine that you can do a tour of. It is within 20 minutes of Steamtown.
In terms of LHS, I know there is at least one on main street in Scranton but I have not been there. It looks to be Lionel oriented from what they have in their display window (you'll drive past it as you go to the museum).
Hello All:
My wife suggested a little get away and I said how about "steamtown?" To my surprise (she indulges me way to much!) she said sure, sounds good. My questions are: How much time is needed to visit the park. Secondly is there a good LHS near the park, we will be staying in Scranton.
Thanks,