Where to shop for N scale

[Update from the future (October 14, 2010): CharlestonDigitalTrains web site is now showing very low inventory, missing most of the items they used to carry. I'm now using Wig-Wag Trains for DCC stuff. Also, note that Wholesaletrains.com has great prices on Atlas flex track.]

One of the standard first questions that new N scalers ask is "where are the best places to shop". This post is my view as of today. There are a number of really good shops out there, so this list is certainly not complete. But every one of these shops have worked out well for me.

Wig-Wag Trains is a 99% N scale shop located in Albuquerque, NM. I buy the large majority of my N-scale-specific goods from them. Wig-Wag has some unique practices that can take getting used to, but once you are familiar with them you’ll find that they can both save you a lot of money and keep you on top of the latest N scale products well in advance of their release.

Wig-Wag posts their discount policy on a page linked to their main page, and for nearly everything their prices are at least equal to the best anywhere. One special part of their discount policy is that if you reserve a new product in advance – such as a future release of an engine or rolling stock – you get an additional discount that usually results in the best price available anywhere. And, to make planning easier, their News page is continually updated with the latest product announcements giving you plenty of time to send in reservations. I visit the News page at least once per day.

On the quirky side, though, is that Wig-Wag doesn’t have an automated on-line order system. You have to first call them to give your credit card info, then use email to send orders. This also means that if you have a lot of reservations you’ll probably find it helpful to keep track of them in a list somewhere. Wig-Wag is very good about sending the new product to you shortly after it arrives, and on the rare occasion when they make mistakes they are quick to correct them without argument. But still I find it helpful to know what's in the queue and to compare deliveries with what I expected.

The disadvantage of Wig-Wag is that they are so popular and have such a high volume of business that they are sometimes overwhelmed. Their email can get backed up – something that they’ll note on their News page – and responses can get slow. If I need something to be delivered right away I won’t use Wig-Wag because the turnaround time can be unpredictable.

Charleston Digital Trains is run by Mike Gleaton in South Carolina. He specializes in DCC and related products, such as switch machines, and I buy virtually all of my DCC/related stuff from him. There are three reasons for going to Mike: his prices are great (equal to the best on the web), his service is superb, and he’s extremely knowledgeable and helpful about his product area. He often posts answers to questions on various news groups. Sure, this helps advertise for his business, but his answers are free and correct.

Brooklyn Locomotive Works is, like Wig-Wag, an N-scale only (almost) dealer and apparently is the highest volume one in the U.S. I say this because Micro-Trains, an N- and Z-scale only manufacturer, lists BLW as their top dealer for 2008. I like Wig-Wag for the reasons given above but BLW is also extremely price competitive and offers great service. I’ve used them for a few things when Wig-Wag was out of stock, or when I needed an item immediately. They also have occasional sales on older items that beat anyone's prices anywhere. And for some reason they have significantly better prices than anyone on Atlas switches (but they have a large handling fee for track).

Tony’s Trains in Vermont may well be the original DCC-specialist vendor. Their web site is full of useful DCC information and they’ve even produced a few of their own products to meet special DCC needs. I ordered from them a few times before I discovered Charleston, and they seem excellent. I just prefer the personal, knowledgeable service I get from Mike Gleaton.

Those are the web sites I buy from these days. In addition, I occasionally make the trek to Denver for business or personal reasons, and if time allows I stop at Caboose Hobbies. Until recently their reputation was a “very big store with very big prices”. Recently they’ve dropped prices and are now more competitive, though still not on par with the best. They have an active web site, but I only buy from them in person.

This really is a huge store, with at least a dozen aisles at least 60-80’ long (I’m probably understating) and at least a half a dozen model railroads on exhibit. I swear they have at least 8, and probably a dozen, employees there at all times, even midweek, and I’ve never seen less than ten customers in the store at any time.

Their HO stock is massive. They also do a great job with large scale and O, and although their Z area is relatively small I think they have the whole Micro-Trains line. Their N scale area for locos, track, and rolling stock is on the small side. However their N scale modeling supply aisle is incredible.

In addition they have a tremendous selection of non-scale specific items, such as scenery and electrical tools, digital stuff, and especially books and magazines.

Caboose is the place I go when I want to see something before I buy it.

So, those are the current retailers I buy from. Below are a few I've bought from in the past, but don't anymore.

First, eBay. Yes, when you first get into N scale eBay seems like a great place to get stuff, and it is a good way to learn about what products have been released in the past few years. But, in practice it’s not much of a cost saver, if at all, when you consider the time you spend. Also, while at first eBay seems like a good way to get out of stock items, after you’ve been at this for a while you learn that any in-demand out-of-stock item will soon get re-released in a version that’s probably improved.

One example is the Proto 2000 2-8-8-2, which I bought from eBay in 2005. The early versions were not DCC Ready, so my DCC decoder install was especially challenging. I’ve run it only occasionally, so it would have been better if I’d waited for the 2007 version with decoder built in.

The other "shop" I’ll mention is Ye Olde Local Hobby Shop (LHS). Within the hobby there are many people who’ll assert it is your patriotic duty to buy from your LHS to keep them in business. And I can see that, within reason. For example, when we lived in the Kansas City area temporarily in 2005 I discovered Show Me Lines, one of America’s great LHSes. Sure, their discounts weren’t quite what you could get on the internet (20% was their standard), but the owner went out of his way: to help you; to make his shop a friendly place for your kids; and especially to promote the hobby locally. On that last point the owner was incredibly active with local clubs in all scales, and he was quick to tell any visitor about those clubs and welcome the visitor to join. I can see taking a slight price hit to support a shop like that.

Alas, there are 2 train shops within 30 minutes of our home, and neither is worth a second visit. (I’m not counting those "hobby" shops that include a tiny, overpriced, dusty train section apparently just for decoration.) Both of these local shops sell trains at list price, neither has much N or large scale, and on top of that the owner of the one closest to me is rude to his customers. No, that’s not the type of LHS I will support.