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I thought what better way to spend a Saturday afternoon than take a ride over to my LHS. But first I had to find one since I have not been in many years after being out of the hobby. Check the internet, found a place that kept coming up in searches. Called ahead to make sure they had HO scale unitrack because I wanted to see it up close and in person. They have it, great, jump in the truck and drive the half hour drive to the store. Enter the store in great anticipation and walk straight to the track (which was mostly Kato N scale and bachmann EZ-track HO scale). But then I do see the Kato HO scale track: a few switches and a few curved tracks. My eyes rapidly scan the wall of track and the floor where boxes of starter track sit. I look for a Kato HO scale Unitrack Starter Kit. No luck. I ask the store proprietor if he carries the Starter Kit. "No, is his reply. Kato has a HO scale Unitrack Starter Kit?" He inquisitively asks me. "Yes" I disappointingly inform him. "They even have a small layout set too" I add. Before my trip is a total loss I figure maybe I can finally get my DCC system. I ask the proprietor if he carries the Digitrax Zephyr DCC system. "Yeah, he replies, I believe I have it in N scale over there" and he points down the aisle. In N scale I think , what's he talking about? Immediately I reiterate to the store owner that I am talking about the DCC control system. He was talking about a train. Oh boy, I thought, this can't be real. I do not think he even knows what DCC is. I immediately drop the subject. OK, don't panic. Maybe I can at least take a look at some of the new locos I only see in MR. "Where are your HO scale locomotives?" I ask the owner. "I only have a few, he replies. What I have is in the counter over there." Then he adds, "I guess HO scale is sort of coming back." To which I astonishingly remarked, "I never knew it left." and he laughed. I didn't even bother to look at the paltry selection. There was a wide variety of O scale engines. Just my luck. Now I ask the owner if he has any track cleaning erasers. "No", he replies "I've been meaning to order them, you're the second to ask." Then I ask him if he has engine lube. He tells me to use 3 in 1 oil. I thank him for his time and promptly leave. Wondering for the 30 minute drive home why I even bothered. This was not a real small shop nor was it mainly an RC or plastic models shop. In fact, the name of the store has "Trains" in it. I do not want to reveal the name because it is the man's livelihood I'm sure and that's not right. However, I cannot believe that I live within 40 miles of the largest city in the country and cannot find a real top notch HO scale train store. I hear all you guys talk about these great LHS and get jealous. I have lived almost my whole life in this area and there hasn't been a decent train store since the old Lionel store when I was a kid. It was a big store right on the main strip. Does anybody else have the Hobby Shop Blues? [:(]
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