Model Railroading > Finding out about model train shows.

As a visitor from the UK how can I find out where there are model train shows in the USA?   Some magazines carry listings but by the time they have arrived in the UK the dates have sometimes, often even, passed.

In recent years a couple of websites here in the UK have begun to list shows - for example Model railway exhibtions.   The guy who runs that has started a companion site for the USA US model train shows but it has yet to attract "critical mass" as far as I can see,

So where do I look?

The National Model Railroad Association has (or at least had last time I looked) a spot on their website that listed calendar items.  

Spring Creek Model trains and other vendors list the show s they will be attending and that can guide you to regional or national shows.

A number of shows get mentioned on this fine site, you just have to watch for them.

You can also put a query out on this page when you know where and when you will be visiting.

Gary B.
Waverly, NE

A start:


http://www.railserve.com/events/train_shows.html

http://trainshow.com/

https://nrmrc.org/events/shows

http://trc.trains.com/events.aspx



Victor A. Baird

http://www.erstwhilepublications.com



 



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 05/20/16 11:27 by wabash2800.

www.MRHmag.com has a monthly listing of the bigger events toward the back of the magazine, in the News & Events section. Access is free.

While not huge, worth going to if you aren't far away from one of them:

http://greenbergshows.com/

If you are near Baltimore Maryland, check out Timonium train show - it comes about every 3 months:

http://www.gsmts.com/newdatesplaces.html



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/20/16 14:13 by SPDRGWfan.

http://www.pcrnmra.org/pcr/calendar/calendar.shtml

This website lists events in Northern California, specifically draw a circle 300 miles or 488 km around San Francisco, CA.  

Now since America is a big place, ya'll are gonna have to be a little more specific about where you all are planning to travel to. 

ʎɹɹɐl 

 

Most shows stick to a particular weekend (first weekend in March; weekend before Memorial Day; etc.) so if you see a show announcement that you want to attend, but the timing is too tight, it will probably be on a similar weekend next year.  A lot of shows (or the groups that put them on) have a presence on Facebook, though that doesn't help the original question.

Nathan Beauheim
Cheyenne, WY

If you're in the Midwest, Caboose Stop Hobbies in Cedar Falls, IA attends many train show in the area and lists them on their website caboosestoptrains.com.  They always have a lot of good stuff for sale.  Good luck in your search!

I left the "where and when" deliberately open.   To say I visit the USA frequently is an exageration but when I do I can plan things to fit around events, IF I can find out about them.   So, this year I'm flying into San Francisco and then going to Reno for the Air Races (ending 18th September) then back to San Francisco for the Muni heritage weekend (because I found out about them) the following weekend.   For the next 3 weeks we'll be wandering around Nevada and California before flying back from San Francisco mid October so there are 3 more weekends when I might be able to find a show to attend.

Next February/March (avoiding Mardi Gras in New Orleans) we're thinking about using Atlanta as a jumping off point for Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi.   Then in the summer I'm planning to head to Oshkosh for the EAA annual fly in and Orlando for the NMRA convention (they butt up against one another).   My thinking at the moment is to fly to Chicago the Tuesday before Oshkosh but if I found a show in Chicagoland the weekend before I might be tempted;in fact it there was something in northen Indiana/Southern Michigan I could be tempted to go east from Chicago anti clockwise around the lake to get to Oshkosh!

So I'm looking for generic resources rather that necessarily specific dates/places - I'm flexible!

You've all given me food for thoughts but any more ideas would be gratefully receive.   Thank you.

As Gary has mentioned Spring Creeks web site is a very good resource for shows in the Midwest and beyond. They are at a show almost every weekend and some time two shows with two knowledgeable crews the same weekend.
Steve

binder001 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The National Model Railroad Association has (or at
> least had last time I looked) a spot on their
> website that listed calendar items.  
>
> Spring Creek Model trains and other vendors list
> the show s they will be attending and that can
> guide you to regional or national shows.
>
> A number of shows get mentioned on this fine site,
> you just have to watch for them.
>
> You can also put a query out on this page when you
> know where and when you will be visiting.
>
> Gary B.
> Waverly, NE