Train Show
 

Just finished the biggest train show in the world, had a table set up and sold a little, not as much as I would have liked to, but better than nothing. Last few shows have been a bit slow. I figure I'll do better when I start selling my own product again. Was anyone else there, and did you walk by my table in the Blue Hall?

where?

Train show as in model train? I went when it was in my town. :)

It was the Eastern division TCA show at York Pa. April 24 - 26. I was being deliberately vague, figuring that anyone who was there would know what 'Blue Hall' referred to. And if you did, and were asking where in the hall? it was table E-57 - 55.

Which town? and which show? there are several different organizations that hold shows. This TCA show is the only one I've been attending lately.

Oh, I don't remember what it was called. I went to one in January in Houston. It was huge, held at a convention center. This one has trains for kids to ride on also. Very cool. If I can find pictures, I'll put it up. What do you sell? Train sets or accessories? I have an O-gauge Lionel set at home.

The TCA show has a Kiddie area but my grandchildren were not able to get there this year. Their mom had to work on Thu. so she dropped them off at the show, but I couldn't take them away from the table. I had to ask one of the wives there to take the 4 year old granddaughter to the rest room, I certainly couldn't take her to the ladies room and not into the men's room. At this show the same people have the same tables year after year, so you get to know some of the other table holders. Lately I've been selling cars and a few engines in HO scale, Lionel 'O' gauge, and Flier std. gauge. My goal is to start producing and selling 'O' gauge Tugboats, Towboats, Barges, Car Floats, and possibly a freighter, and an Ore boat. I might build a container ship, but I would not put that on the table. I was reprimanded once for having too many ships and not enough trains, but that was the old Regime and there are new people running the meet now. FYI this train meet uses all the buildings at the York fair grounds and that comes to 5 large halls and one huge hall plus 2 smaller halls. I believe the last count I saw was 13,000 + attending and 1,500 6' table spaces in the member halls, that does not include the dealer halls. This show is attended by all the major 'O' gauge and 'O' scale Mfg's. What makes the attendance even more important is that this is a 'closed meet', members and guests only.

The show I went to was open to pubic. You can buy tickets to enter. So, it's probably not a TCA show. Sadly, I can't seem to find my pictures. I have a fear that I may have lost them. :sniff: Oh yeah, I just remembered that Lego was there with their trains too. I have a few Lego train sets too. :D While I was there, I was looking for the N-gauge table but had to leave before I was able to locate it. Either that or I passed it without realizing it. :p:

Do you have your own collections too or do you just sell?

My guys like train shows. Sadly my real train freak is done with playing with his trains. Once upon a time we had a grand idea about a track all over the basement. Might still happen. probably once he's graduated college and back living at home with no girlfriend and time on his hands......

Some TCA shows are open to the public, at least part of the time, this particular on has remained closed.

At a train show many dealers have trains of several sizes as I do, I'm not sure there would be a specific table for 'N' scale.

My own trains are HO scale focusing on the B&O RR from Cumberland Md. to Connellsville Pa. there will be selected scenes from that section of the B&O, plus a section devoted to a harbor scene. Currently I have one loop of track on a shelf around the outside of the attic. Progress stopped when the boards shrank due to the weather over the winter and the track developed several kinks on the long straight sections. This summer the plan is to seal the wood with Linseed oil and then continue building, sealing the wood as I go.

I have been involved with model trains all my life, and for 11 years I owned a hobby shop that sold trains as well as other hobby materials. But this is the first time I've had a room that I can use for trains, that is really well suited to the purpose. To that end I specified to the builder that there were to be no plumbing vents running straight up through the attic, they were run through the floor and then up through the walls, and that applied to anything else that might be placed in the attic, including the heat pipes, I have a smooth floor with no duct work in the attic.

The cuz that I wrote about over in surprise visit got my train set one year for christmas.
Guess I had changed my mind. So I got a crazy shitland pony that was to be his.
They worked out a trade somehow. Found this out years later. BTW. I still don't like horses.

You got a pony?

Sorry, can't resist...

You guys are lucky to have a big enough space to set out the train set. We were only able to put it on a small table in the living room. Sadly, we had to put it away for a certain event. Afterwards, my mom was so happy to have the living room back that she wouldn't let us set up the train table again.

Monster: The grandkids will love the train set. ;)

I don't remember exactly, but I think someone told me that there was someone who belongs to a club or some sort for 'N' scale trains. He supposedly had an 'N' scale set laid out. Shrug....Anyways.....

Well, 'Big Enough' is a bit of an understatement, I should clarify that my attic is 72' by 26' with a 6' extension in the middle of the one wall. I have a mansard style roof which means that my attic walls are vertical 8' and the ceiling is higher in the center than at the walls. I also included a 4' wide stairway that opens to the outside on the porch, which is under roof. Given that I model in HO scale, means that I have a relatively Huge space, but I don't intend to fill it with track, just using it to make some realistic scenes.

PIX! We demand!!!!

(please?)