CNR Bachmann GP9

[sailormatlac]

That's a really nice looking job Matt. Where do you buy your supplies? Locally or do you have to mail order?

Gene, every single decent hobby shops in Quebec City closed down one after the other during the late 90s and 00s... Only the worst one survived with puzzles, R/C and other ready-to-use stuff. The kind of place that doesn't do refund, won't allow to test a new loco on a track, every item is sold well beyond the MSRP, parts selection inexistant, only casual ready-to-run stuff and built-up buildings, etc. I only buy some paint, styrene shapes, glue and overpriced Dullcote there. When I was a kid, there was about 6 shops and a few department stores with a sizeable selection.

I miss the days I could walk down the shop, explain my project to the store clerk and look through piles of parts and catalogs. I could spent hours and didn't see it goes by. But I must admit, order delays were getting ridiculous, about something like 6 months or more to get brass parts. I'm not a patient guy! But I'm happy to have known this era where shops were like candy stores (Wow, those rows of unbuilt Athearn and Roundhouse shells displayed with taste in glass cabinets were probably was impacted the most my child brain). If was a good way to be exposed to the many aspect of the hobby (and exotic roadnames like Amtrak, UP, Great Northern, etc. for a kid who only knew the wet noodle!). Nowadays, when you do a web searches, everything is related to the entry. Harder to discover things you didn't know before if you don't take extra steps to find more.

Thus, I've been ordering almost 100% of everything on the web since 2007, mostly from USA, Canada and UK. Happily, Internet is no more the faceless thing everybody used to fear (Big Blue is a good example) . I got to know other people and dealers who are pleasant to deal with as it was with the old folks in my town. For decoder, I subcontract to a friend's store in Drummondville. And it's been about 5 years since I walked into a store in Montreal. Though VIA Rail's prices are getting quite interesting now and competitive with autobus and cars to some extend. There's always a good reason to take a ride on a train! ;-) I feel pressure from railfans to visit clubs in Montreal area. Would be nice. It's a shame I never had the chance to see AMFM in its glorious days.

Matt