Does *Anyone* Buy thier Engines from the LHS?

[Anonymous]

I'll buy from mine when I can - the problem is one of getting there. To do a round trip to the LHS will cost me about £12 in fuel at our outrageous diesel prices, and takes around an hour each way. Compare this to the £4 S&H from an online retailer and the LHS has a minor problem. I'll buy from them when they have something I want, but I've also bought a few locos online, mainly types that my LHS doesn't have.

[Anonymous]

I have gotten all my engines from trainshows, e-tailers or e-bay

DRew

[Anonymous]

My wife bought my GP-7 (Atlas Master Series - DCC equipped) in old green & yellow Canadian National livery at George's Trains here in Toronto. Not only did they show us a lot of engines, but they had good advice, and time to chat about trains (during which my wife daydreamed about what colour she'd have me paint the hallway). The best part was that the price was "better" than anything I have seen online!

The LHS may be taking a beating from online "Meg-a-lo" mart's, but you can't beat them for quality and added value. IMHO. You may be able to get a bigger selection online, and locate hard-to-find specific items, but you can't get a warm fuzzy by clicking on the "Order Now" button.

Trevor[8D]

[LuthierTom]

Yup, sure do. In addition to good advice, my LHS generally gives 20% off on purchases over ~$25, which is very competetive with mail order places. However, I'm not above jumping on a good deal on ebay or online if it is something I want and I have confidence in the product and the source, or can afford to gamble (like a $5 piece of rolling stock).

[cwclark]

I used to purchase my locomotives from a LHS but like you, want to save, so I now purchase from mail order or the internet...I haven't completely blown off the LHS because they do have some things I use frequently and usually make a list and get down to the store at least once a month for speciality items such as detail parts, buildings, styrene plastic, and air brush paints and it seems i'm always walking out of there with a new piece of rolling stock that i didn't intend to buy in the first place...chuck

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by csmith9474
... I really don't mind paying a little extra to support local small business anyhow.

Many times the money I might otherwise 'save' [with online sellers] is eaten up by a shipping charge.

[aloco]

I used to, but that was when I could still buy good locos for under $100.

[Anonymous]

I try to buy as much as possible from my LHS. He's given me great, helped me out and given me a job. If he finds out I go to another LHS I would be lookoing for another job. Though no need to because he takes good care of me. The only thing that I will purchase from anyone else is Athearn. Since they got bought out we are unable to get their products anymore. So i guess I get 99% of my stuff from my LHS and then the other 1% is from trarin shows and whenever there is a must have Athearn item.
Andrew

[twhite]

Out of my 50-odd steamers, I'd say 85% of them were bought at my two local hobby shops, two from mail-order hobby shops (Caboose Hobbies and Peach Creek Shops) and a couple at model railroad shows. My second-hand brass has always been reasonably priced at either Bruce's Train Shop or Railroad Hobbies in Roseville, and I've usually gotten a pre-order discount for anything I've ordered new. The reason? Well, if I end up with a lemon (which I haven't, yet), I can always take it back and see if there's anything that can be done about it. For instance, I got a Spectrum SP Heavy Mountain from Railroad Hobbies, some months ago. Found out it had been wired backwards. Took it back. They re-wired it for me. Runs like a champ. End of story. What if I'd bought it through the mail at Joe's Discount Mega-Mart Hobbies? Send it back and pray? Nah. I'll stick with my local retailers, or out of town dealers like Caboose or Peach Creek, who have really NATIONWIDE reputations.
Tom [:D][:D]

[Anonymous]

I have gotten most of my motive power off ebay at about 40 bucks cheper than the lhs .but i do spend money at the lhs i get all my buldeings and track and other things there. my buddy is a truck driver. he stops at any hoppy shop that sells train stuff that he passes. he gets stuff and i get that phone call from him and i also buy things. i just got a sandeing and fuelling plat forms from a hobby shop in IND that he stoped at

[claycts]

I will give Jack some business when I am in New Market in 2005.

[dinwitty]

my recent purchases have been thru ebay. But I visited a hobbyshop today, bought some HOn3 couples half price off the sale table.

I will continue visiting the LHS's, I just added ebay to the list however.

[Jetrock]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Kenny2005

Hello Jetrock

I'm curious .......what sort of folks *do* pre-order limited run engines?

Ken

Probably folks who run steam, especially big articulateds. Those seem to be the ones people coo the most about--I imagine they do pre-ordered limited-run diesels too, but the diesels I look for are pretty vanilla (Geeps, GE 44 and 70 tonners, S1's, etc.) so I have never had need or reason to go that route.

Of course, if someone released a limited-run, ready-to-run plastic GE or Baldwin-Westinghouse steeplecab electric for under $200, I'd suddenly find myself transformed into one of those pre-order limited run people...

[ckape]

I prefer to do my purchasing in person at stores. Generally I'll only order something online if I can't find it locally.

Unfortunately, when I moved a few months back quality of the LHSes dropped significantly from my old stomping grounds.

[Anonymous]

I buy all my locos, rolling stock, and accs. from the LHS. After dealing with them for a year, they give me an automatic 10 - 20% discount. When I figure in not having to pay frieght, dealing with the aggravation of not being able to see, touch, and run it before I buy it, I figure it's cheaper than mail order. I'm lucky in that money is not a problem for me, but even if it was, I still would buy at the LHS, if for nothing else than the fact that if I have a problem, I walk in with it in my hand, hand it to them, and they fix it, replace it, or give me my money back. That makes the purchase cheap at whatever the price. If I can't figure something out on my own, I go in and ask. They've never failed to help, whether they could answer the question, call someone for me, or send me to someone that could.
You might get something mailorder for a few bucks less to start with, but the help and service that goes with the LHS is "PRICELESS"!
Remember the old adage " You get what you pay for."

[AggroJones]

I can't. MSRP is too much for me.

[tstage]

My very first locomotive - the Athearn 2-8-2 Mike pictured below - was purchased through my LHS. My other locomotive - a P2K S1 - was purchased from Trainworld on blowout. (Couldn't get that good of a deal from my LHS.) I do, however, prefer to buy my rolling stock locally because I can check the BLT date to make sure it fits in my era.

I probably give my LHS about 80% of my business. One of the sales guys (Jim) is an encyclopaedia of information on both railroading and MRRing. It's worth it to me to spend that extra few dollars to glean from guys like that.

Tom

[cnw4001]

I buy from a train shop and occasionally at a train show.

Reason is simple, I want to see and touch what I buy before I make the purchase and those are the places which make it possible.

They also give me advice and other information which I can't get from a mail order site.

Dale

[Berk-fan284]

You bet I do!! The mail order places and ebay auctions and online stores can be just dandy for low prices, but if you have a problem with your item... You could be waiting a fair while if you have to ship it somewhere across country or the border ( I'm Canadian), plus exchange rates taxes,etc. The LHS isn't that bad when you add all that in.

[tjsmrinfo]

i live in a mid sized town that doesnt have a LTS so like trainluvr i have to drive to the city (Dallas) to go to a good decent train shop/hobby shop. the 1 i frequent also offers 20% off msrp on anything in stock and does custom orders or special orders.

tom

[mustanggt]

QUOTE: I am not a shopper. My "purchasing trips" are carefully planned forays, even to the point of a shopping list ordered by aisle at the discount warehouse. But, that all breaks down at Maine Trains, my LHS, (or LTS to be more precise.) There's always something on the shelves I've never looked at carefully before, and fortunately I'm making enough progress that another challenge is right around the corner. When my Bowser PCC (special order) arrived at the shop, I was like a little kid. I couldn't wait for Thursday that week.

Where exactly is Maine Trains? I live in Arlington and I alway go to Charles Ro in Malden. They have a great selection of everything and a cool multi-scale layout upstairs from the store.
BTW, I buy many of my engines at the LHS- except for Higher end ones that the store doesn't always have. I use Ebay for that. Sometimes trainworld.

[Anonymous]

Some of you guys are sooo lucky. My LHS closed 3 years ago and the nearest one is now an hours drive away, but like so many, he's into RC boats and planes. My solution? Once or twice a year I drive to Toronto and visit Credit VAlley RR in Streetsville. It's like a candy store. All trains, all the time. THese guys love to talk trains and the advice is priceless! So I lay down a wad and walk out with a smile on my face. [^]It's important to have a good detailed list of all the things you need before going.
For the record...I haven't bought anything hobby related off the internet.
Andy

[MisterBeasley]

I am not a shopper. My "purchasing trips" are carefully planned forays, even to the point of a shopping list ordered by aisle at the discount warehouse. But, that all breaks down at Maine Trains, my LHS, (or LTS to be more precise.) There's always something on the shelves I've never looked at carefully before, and fortunately I'm making enough progress that another challenge is right around the corner. When my Bowser PCC (special order) arrived at the shop, I was like a little kid. I couldn't wait for Thursday that week.

[Anonymous]

The truth is, I very rarely buy engines or rolling stock from hobby shops anymore because it's so much easier for me to buy things off the web. Once in a great while I'll drive into the city just to get out of the house and tour all of my favorite hobby shops to see the new stock they've got. If I encounter something rare that I just have to have while there, I might buy it.

trainluver1

[BMRR]

I have bought all my engines from the LHS, except one, I bought it on-line.

Stan.

[railroadyoshi]

20%!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My shop wouldnt dream of that
Really trying to squezze some extra money, dont ya say?

Siddharth

[Anonymous]

Haven't purchased a locomotive from my LHS in awhile mostly e-bay but been getting some god deals lately still I support my LHS just sometimes they don't have what i want in stock or been discontinued from the manufracture.

[Anonymous]

Hello Jetrock

I'm curious .......what sort of folks *do* pre-order limited run engines?

Ken

[cacole]

Our "Local" hobby shop charges up to 20 percent above MSRP on some items. Fortunately, there's a hobby shop in Tucson, 70 miles away, that charges the same prices as the cheapest of the mail order houses, so for expensive items such as locomotives I drive to Tucson.