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As many of you, I was sad to hear that Roadside America is closed, Mercer Junction is closing. Toms Trains is a good sized locally owned train store and the owner is a great guy. I got his Christmas email and he is having his Christmas kickoff this weekend. If you live in Westchester, Bronx, etc. go visit him, he has all the latest Lionel and a great Postwar selection. I buy everything from him. I just want the small train store to stay around especially in these very trying times, as he is my train store.. Happy Thanksgiving

Disclaimer: I have no financial interest in Toms Trains other than I want him to stay open and thrive as my local store.

Last edited by Cincytrains
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Now more than ever, PLEASE support your local (or even distant) brick and motar train shop.

While online shops may save you a buck or two, at a b&m shop you always get to see what you buy.  If it isn't to your liking you might still find something else that does.  If you don't, your dealer will be more than happy to place a special order for you.  Not a shop near you?  Let your fingers do the walking and order from the b&m's by phone.  Talking to a real honest to goodness human being is still more fun than doing bizz with some stupid machine any day, if you ask me, or even if you don't!

My shop in Germany: www.modellbahnritzer.de  Owner, Rainer Knoch, speaks English as well as German.  He stocks new, used, and out of production older trains and vehicles.  Looking for something?  Drop him an email.  He might have just the gem you've been looking for.

That is exactly why I posted this, Tom is local, brick and motor and old school. Which, is the way I like things!! Since there is no Citibank Station, no Santa Land at Macy's or the Lionel Layout at Grand Central, this is all we have!

Just want to add about Tom’s Trains. At one time, he used to set up at every Edison,NJ Greenberg show and we used to be the TMCC demo group showing off command control there.
Tom was the only dealer there with TMCC components and we would send prospective customers to him who wanted to buy command control products. Very fair in pricing and super nice guy to know and to deal with.

Last edited by Ted Bertiger

Cincytrains, I greatly appreciate you having started this thread.

I wholeheartedly agree with the above compliments about Tom's very fair pricing and honesty in doing business and dealing with his customers.

Fortunately for the model railroading hobby, Tom's Trains is not the only outstanding LHS in existence; there are many others, and they all deserve our support during these challenging times. Tom's Trains in Ardsley, NY just happens to be my most local of the local hobby shops in my geographic area, making it very convenient for me, and it has satisfied most of my O Gauge train and scenery needs for many years.

My latest purchase from Tom's Trains is the best locomotive in my collection IMO.

A couple of years ago I asked Tom if he ever acquires top of the line Postwar locomotives like the Lionel 773. He said that he does occasionally. Then, I asked him to let me know if he gets a 773 because I would be interested.

Tom did not forget my interest in the 773.

When I called him a few weeks ago to ask if he knew when he expected to receive delivery of  the Lionel LC 2.0 Brooklyn tank engine that I ordered through his shop, he assured me he would call me as soon as it came in, and then mentioned he recently acquired a 773. I made a bee line for his store. Here it is on my layout:

20201031_122958

It is a terrific locomotive.

I highly recommend being a loyal customer to a brick and mortar LHS like Tom's Trains. I always give Tom first crack at whatever I'm interested in purchasing because I know he is always honest, fair and reasonable.

I also recommend not being overly aggressive in negotiating prices with your LHS, especially when the offering price of the particular item is already reasonable. We want the LHS to make a reasonable profit so it can stay in business. Also, by being generous with your LHS, you can improve your chances of getting your favorite items. I got this idea from a video in the McComas Tuoy 6 video set about the Standard Gauge train collection of the late Frank Petruzzi: by being generous in your negotiations, especially for top quality Postwar and Prewar, you can increase the chances of getting the best items. Arnold

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I agree with those above, Tom’s trains is a great shop and definitely worth a visit. Just note that the first time you go there it’s a little bit tucked away under the hardware store. There is an entrance to the right of the store that leads down to a storage area for hardware, the train shop is to the left when you get down there. It makes a cool kind of secret underground speak easy to get to a really good store. I’m exaggerating a bit, but once you’ve been there you will definitely go back.

Cincytrains, I greatly appreciate you having started this thread.

I wholeheartedly agree with the above compliments about Tom's very fair pricing and honesty in doing business and dealing with his customers.

Fortunately for the model railroading hobby, Tom's Trains is not the only outstanding LHS in existence; there are many others, and they all deserve our support during these challenging times. Tom's Trains in Ardsley, NY just happens to be my most local of the local hobby shops in my geographic area, making it very convenient for me, and it has satisfied most of my O Gauge train and scenery needs for many years.

My latest purchase from Tom's Trains is the best locomotive in my collection IMO.

A couple of years ago I asked Tom if he ever acquires top of the line Postwar locomotives like the Lionel 773. He said that he does occasionally. Then, I asked him to let me know if he gets a 773 because I would be interested.

Tom did not forget my interest in the 773.

When I called him a few weeks ago to ask if he knew when he expected to receive delivery of  the Lionel LC 2.0 Brooklyn tank engine that I ordered through his shop, he assured me he would call me as soon as it came in, and then mentioned he recently acquired a 773. I made a bee line for his store. Here it is on my layout:

20201031_122958

It is a terrific locomotive.

I highly recommend being a loyal customer to a brick and mortar LHS like Tom's Trains. I always give Tom first crack at whatever I'm interested in purchasing because I know he is always honest, fair and reasonable.

I also recommend not being overly aggressive in negotiating prices with your LHS, especially when the offering price of the particular item is already reasonable. We want the LHS to make a reasonable profit so it can stay in business. Also, by being generous with your LHS, you can improve your chances of getting your favorite items. I got this idea from a video in the McComas Tuoy 6 video set about the Standard Gauge train collection of the late Frank Petruzzi: by being generous in your negotiations, especially for top quality Postwar and Prewar, you can increase the chances of getting the best items. Arnold

That was my whole point, we have to help these guys out, with everything going on, every small business is skating on thin ice.  Help the small train store and it will pay of in the long run..And I wanted that 773, it was in the front window.....Ill get you for that--LOL

@Spectac posted:

I agree with those above, Tom’s trains is a great shop and definitely worth a visit. Just note that the first time you go there it’s a little bit tucked away under the hardware store. There is an entrance to the right of the store that leads down to a storage area for hardware, the train shop is to the left when you get down there. It makes a cool kind of secret underground speak easy to get to a really good store. I’m exaggerating a bit, but once you’ve been there you will definitely go back.

the hardware store is gone....Tom has the whole basement....worth a see.....

Unfortunately my experience wasn’t as pleasant as some of you. I went to the Train show in Westchester last November and purchased a set of R36 Subway cars marked as “new”, upon arriving home and connecting them to my DCS setup the Odometer reading was 197 miles!!! Far from new (especially for the price I paid). I let it go and chalked it up to a learning experience.....but yeah.

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Great store.  When I was backfilling Lionel Christmas boxcars missing from my collection I hated the artwork of the regular 2015 boxcar but loved the musical boxcar of that same year.  Everyone had the ugly regular boxcar but only Tom had the musical one in stock, and it's my favorite Christmas design of the 2010's.  Thanks Tom.

Hi:

I recently received 2 of the Lionel B6 0-6-0 Pennsylvania locomotives from Tom. Even though it was one of the "built to order" items and I didn't order it until August several months past the pre-order date Tom was able to get both of them for me. Wow what a great engine it is. I have only been running one of them for now. The other remains sealed in it's shipping carton. I had thought that I would need two to pull a train of 12 18" passenger cars but one engine pull them with ease. It has many features such as multiple marker lights on the front of the engine and the rear of the tender, light in the engine cab, 4 chugs per drive wheel turn, lots of exhaust smoke, great sound and other engine sounds and talking sounds although back when steam engines were operating there wasn't any communication to and from the engine cab either between the conductor in the cabin car or the towers along the right-of-way.

By the way Tom is a very special person in our train hobby now in his 23rd year in business.

Ed New Haven Line.

Now this is a Great thread, and one day, this Tennessee modeler is going on a long trip to visit many of the cool hobby shops up East, Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey, New York, Washington DC area, and hopefully visit a few great home layouts. We have a nice train store here in Nashville Tennessee, Phillips Toy Mart, a great big toy store, like no other, and great folks to deal with. I’ve been a customer at this store since 1967, a few years. Also, I purchase 90 percent of my trains at ABC Hobby Craft in the city of Evansville Indiana, Scott’s my hero. Yes BTO items keep rolling in, never ending fun, no surprises.  Toms Trains sounds like a great place to visit. (I missed Madison Hardware in NY., Roadside America)  Now, hopefully we can keep our favorite stores in business for  many more years. Going into the older hobby shops allows one to find a bargain on a back shelf, overlooked by others, a gem worth the drive. It may be an older accessory, a neat box car, a scale caboose, something special. It just keeps the hobby exciting and lots of fun. Happy Railroading Everyone

Last edited by leapinlarry

Hello everyone,

Hope all is well. Do you know if they stock any MTH Premier engines? I was there briefly last year, and recall seeing mostly older Lionel engines, and a good amount of rolling stock / accessories from both manufacturers, but can't seem to remember their engine offerings.

Best,

Tom's Trains is an excellent model train shop with a nice layout in the store, but I don't think they stock much, if any, MTH. Arnold

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