02-28-2015, 12:18 PM
I have gotten some good buys at tran shows. I don't use ebay and try to support my local hobby shops. One that I have used has had a "deal table" for many years. The owner buys train collections from estate sales, and sell the items for a fraction of the price of new. He does some test running of Locomotives in the store before they go to the "deal table".
I've also noticed at train shows if you wait until an hour or two before closing on the last day, you can often get a deal from a seller who would rather knock the price down a little and sell an item than have to load it up and take it back home again.
Finally here in California there is a hobby shop in a relatively small town in central California that buys new releases in far larger quantities than he could possibly sell in his store. He buys in large enough quantities to get a good discount from the manufacturer, then sell the items at a discount at the train shows. I've never been to the store since it is @ 200 miles from my home, so I don't know if the store pricing is similar to show prices.
I've also noticed at train shows if you wait until an hour or two before closing on the last day, you can often get a deal from a seller who would rather knock the price down a little and sell an item than have to load it up and take it back home again.
Finally here in California there is a hobby shop in a relatively small town in central California that buys new releases in far larger quantities than he could possibly sell in his store. He buys in large enough quantities to get a good discount from the manufacturer, then sell the items at a discount at the train shows. I've never been to the store since it is @ 200 miles from my home, so I don't know if the store pricing is similar to show prices.