03-23-2010, 04:23 PM
Charlie,
Your pretty much on the money from my experiences. I can't say weather or not that in the case of the Great Scale Train show aka Timonium that they cover the expenses of the clubs that bring in the large modular layout as they also have a lot of smaller portable layouts such as switching layouts, small n and z scale portable self contained layouts etc. Some guys are there to hawk their products but some are there just for the sheer enjoyment of sharing their love of the hobby.
In regards to pricing sure there are a great number of dealers who do the show circuits who give you no better pricing then you can find on the internet or in the LHS. There are always the exception to the rule. I have haggled in a friendly way with some of the larger dealers and if they refuse to come down in price or at least add something to sweeten the pot I thank them and walk away. What usually works if you pull out a roll of the green stuff and hold it right there in front of them like a Shark tasting blood in the water they usually can't resist....
In the case of the Timonium show you have a nice mix of both private or small time dealers and the larger vendors or company reps. present so you have a vast pool to shop in. I do much prefer the small local shows where it's the guy like you and me either trying to sell off some of his excess equipment or has decided to switch railroads or eras and is moving out all his equipment to make room for new. Such was the case this past weekend for me. I went to a local show where I have always come home with great deals. A few years back I picked up 100 Proto 1000 100ton coal hoppers for $1 a piece . So what the sequence of numbers repeated it self every three cars. For a dollar I'll remove the numbers some day and put new ones in their place. I made the rounds of the show this past Sunday and was quite disappointed
in the lack of deals and things that were even worth buying. I spotted a sign that said more vendors on the 3rd floor. So when I got there a lot of the same junk that was down stairs was up there EXCEPT!
a guy looking to get rid of his own personal equipment as he was going to build a whole new railroad. He had all good stuff and we did a lot of friendly chop busting back and forth and I came home with a BLI Paragon M1 that is in like brand new condition. For $125.. 
I was so tempted to go to the ATM on the way home and turn around and go back but didn't. When I got home and showed the wife and told her the price. She said wow that was a steal (she knows what these things sell for so no sense in trying to pull the wool over her eyes) She said why don't you go back you have a couple of hours til it ends. I said no I did good enough, next thing I know she is handing me the phone, she looked up the promoters number off their web page and dialed it for me. At least try and find the guys number. Well he knew exactly who I was talking about and he put me on the phone with the guy and I'm going to his house this weeks to pick up four more engines. Your not going to get that kind of personal interaction with the big vendors at the shows or by dealing with any internet store.
For me the hunt for the deal is only half the fun but when you come home with that big score they can't knock the smile off your face for a week.
Your pretty much on the money from my experiences. I can't say weather or not that in the case of the Great Scale Train show aka Timonium that they cover the expenses of the clubs that bring in the large modular layout as they also have a lot of smaller portable layouts such as switching layouts, small n and z scale portable self contained layouts etc. Some guys are there to hawk their products but some are there just for the sheer enjoyment of sharing their love of the hobby.
In regards to pricing sure there are a great number of dealers who do the show circuits who give you no better pricing then you can find on the internet or in the LHS. There are always the exception to the rule. I have haggled in a friendly way with some of the larger dealers and if they refuse to come down in price or at least add something to sweeten the pot I thank them and walk away. What usually works if you pull out a roll of the green stuff and hold it right there in front of them like a Shark tasting blood in the water they usually can't resist....
In the case of the Timonium show you have a nice mix of both private or small time dealers and the larger vendors or company reps. present so you have a vast pool to shop in. I do much prefer the small local shows where it's the guy like you and me either trying to sell off some of his excess equipment or has decided to switch railroads or eras and is moving out all his equipment to make room for new. Such was the case this past weekend for me. I went to a local show where I have always come home with great deals. A few years back I picked up 100 Proto 1000 100ton coal hoppers for $1 a piece . So what the sequence of numbers repeated it self every three cars. For a dollar I'll remove the numbers some day and put new ones in their place. I made the rounds of the show this past Sunday and was quite disappointedin the lack of deals and things that were even worth buying. I spotted a sign that said more vendors on the 3rd floor. So when I got there a lot of the same junk that was down stairs was up there EXCEPT!
a guy looking to get rid of his own personal equipment as he was going to build a whole new railroad. He had all good stuff and we did a lot of friendly chop busting back and forth and I came home with a BLI Paragon M1 that is in like brand new condition. For $125.. I was so tempted to go to the ATM on the way home and turn around and go back but didn't. When I got home and showed the wife and told her the price. She said wow that was a steal (she knows what these things sell for so no sense in trying to pull the wool over her eyes) She said why don't you go back you have a couple of hours til it ends. I said no I did good enough, next thing I know she is handing me the phone, she looked up the promoters number off their web page and dialed it for me. At least try and find the guys number. Well he knew exactly who I was talking about and he put me on the phone with the guy and I'm going to his house this weeks to pick up four more engines. Your not going to get that kind of personal interaction with the big vendors at the shows or by dealing with any internet store.For me the hunt for the deal is only half the fun but when you come home with that big score they can't knock the smile off your face for a week.
I reject your reality and substitute my own