Model Railroading > NYC train stores

I have to go to NYC for work and I was wondering if there are any hobby stores I should visit on my free day.  I am staying by Madison Cubed Garden (Taking Amtrak from DFW to there, flying back).

On a quick search of Manhattan I found one in a basement north of there, it looks packed full of old gems. 

So what are your suggestions?

Jim

Red Caboose on W 45 Street is the place in the basement. I've always enjoyed exploring what's hidden down there. Quite a hoard of stuff.

Trainworld maybe?
 

Stanley Jackowski
Valrico, FL

It depends what you are looking for.

I have been going to NYC once or twice a year for work for several years now. I am slowly finding time to check out the few stores in the area.

I went to Red Caboose once and that was enough. At one time it may have been a basement full of hidden gems, I found it to be a basement full of overpriced junk.

Trainworld has a great selection and good prices but is not a store for browsing. It is a moderate size showroom connected to a good sized warehouse, I browsed for five minutes then to get the item I was looking for I found it on the store website on a provided computer and a staff member went to the warehouse to get it for me. Trainworld is easy to access from the subway and the staff were great to deal with, just not a store for browsing.

I took the LIRR out to Lynbrook to visit Trainland last fall. It’s an all-scales store, I was looking for HO and found their selection to be lacking. Five minutes in and out, I heard somebody working somewhere in the back but never actually saw any staff members. At least the ride on the LIRR was enjoyable.

It’s funny, I am actually heading back to NYC this week and I have a lot of time to kill on the day I arrive. I am going to take NJ Transit out to The Model Railroad Shop in Piscataway NJ. I have read good things so we will see. It’s just over an hour each way on NJ Transit from NY Penn station but I have the time and enjoy a train ride.

Hope this helps.

Andrew C

Take the LIRR (or NICE bus from Jamaica to save a lot on carfare) to Mineola, walk 12 minutes to WIllis Hobbies. 
I went to Trainworld in Brooklyn on the F-Culver line last October. It was a waste of time. It is now mostly Brio and the like toy store, some Lionel, and not much else. I was in and out in 5 minutes.
The store in Piscataway is a bit of a hike from the Dunellen train staion. Be prepared.  
Big Little RR Shop in Somerville is gone.

Is The Red Caboose the old Model RR Equipment Co (Ma Webster's)? I remember going there as a kid in high school. Bought my first brass there, an Alco Models C630 I think.

There used to be a taxi stand at Dunellen NJT. And there is one at Bound Brook.

Posted from Android

CPR_4000 Wrote:
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> Is The Red Caboose the old Model RR Equipment Co
> (Ma Webster's)? I remember going there as a kid in
> high school. Bought my first brass there, an Alco
> Models C630 I think.

There were once 3 hobby shops along 45th Street. MREC (thereafter Train Shop Ltd), Red Caboose, and Roundhouse II. There was also a railroad book publisher Quadrant Press (owner died). 
I spent many a lunch hour in the 1980's roaming through them.

Red Caboose is now on the footprint of the old MREC. Beware that most items do not have prices, and he can be pricey. 

Lackawanna484 Wrote:
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> There used to be a taxi stand at Dunellen NJT. And there is one at Bound Brook.

NJT 114 bus, which runs between PABT and Bridgewater, can take you from near Dunellen station to the Hobby Shop (as it turns the corner).

Joe nailed it,  if you have the time, go take the train out to Willis Hobbies.   

Trainworld/Trainland are a collasol waste of time.   The one in Brooklyn is a brio showroom and warehouse,  and the one in Lynbrook, while it has a bit more inventory,  its not a very big selection, and the employees are some o the rudest I have ever met in a hobby shop.  They could be bothered, especially if its not O scale. 

Its a shame, TW/TL used to be such an amazing store, until the owner died and the daughter took over.. 

Mineola is also great train watching spot. Historical RR photos are inside the station building.
Eat at Station Plaza Coffee Shop and Diner right across from the depot. 
Other than that, in the NY Metro area, there's nothing else anymore. 

LIRR Main Line 3rd track project is ongoing.
http://www.amodernli.com/project/thirdtrack/

Community Information Office in Mineola: http://www.amodernli.com/the-lirr-expansion-projects-community-information-center-in-mineola-is-open/
114 Old Country Road (between Willis Avenue and Roslyn Road)
Walk-In Hours:
Tue: 10am–1pm
Wed: 12–4pm
Thu: 10am–1pm

Historically:
http://mineolaamerican.com/2018/08/preserving-the-nassau-tower/



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/08/19 07:59 by joemvcnj.

joemvcnj Wrote:
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> Red Caboose is now on the footprint of the old
> MREC. Beware that most items do not have prices,
> and he can be pricey. 

​Why doesn't he have prices on the items?  If I go in anywhere - stores,swap meets or garage sales and don't see prices then I don't buy.  They should have a price on the items.  If the price is negotiable then just put up a sign saying that.  No price at all is a great way to screw with people.

My recommendation is go to Mineola. I make a trip there once a year. I go to Manhattan much more often, but never to Red Caboose anymore.

 



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/08/19 11:57 by joemvcnj.

Somewhat OT but go for a walk on the High Line. Entrance on W34th St between 11th and 12th Ave. That section loops around the Hundson rail yards but the whole line is worth a stroll. There's not a lot left of the actual railroad but you get a feel for what it must have been like "back in the day".

wingomann Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> joemvcnj Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Red Caboose is now on the footprint of the old
> > MREC. Beware that most items do not have
> prices,
> > and he can be pricey. 
>
> ​Why doesn't he have prices on the items?  If I
> go in anywhere - stores,swap meets or garage sales
> and don't see prices then I don't buy.  They
> should have a price on the items.  If the price
> is negotiable then just put up a sign saying
> that.  No price at all is a great way to screw
> with people.

Exactly. If you can't haggle you're going to get screwed.

https://www.yelp.com/biz/red-caboose-new-york?utm_campaign=search_listing&utm_medium=partnership&utm_source=yahoo

For a conventional hobby store, Mineola is your best bet, and the LIRR station platform is a decent place to watch 1:1 scale operations.  Cabs are available if the weather isn’t pleasant. 

Trainworld is is mostly a mail order/internet discounter. Good place to go if you check their web site in advance and know exactly what you want.   The one in Brooklyn is almost directly beneath the Ditmas Ave subway station on the F line. 

Red Caboose is just weird. It’s like trying to shop in a hoarder’s garage. But I have found some stuff there that you wouldn’t find anywhere else. 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/12/19 05:01 by march_hare.