I'm in San Fran on business(/holiday), and stopped by Chan's Trains today, just 4 blocks off of the Powell-Hyde Cable Car line. A nice shop, good inventory, and good folks. I'd recommend it to anyone traveling to the city.
They had a lot of Lionel, but despite only buying a few things due to luggage, i did find a set of Walther's old time conveyer's - something out of date and something I've been looking for online, and have been unwilling to pay the offered price for.
If you're in San Fran and have an hour, I'd recommend stopping by.
Cheers!
I'm trying to model 1956, not live in it.