60103 said:
I'll put in a word for buying from a shop that you can go back to when you have a problem. A good hobby shop can either repair or replace your loco. A bad hobby shop should at least give you your money back.
Bravo!
I would echo that comment! Buying from eBay or from an online retailer is anonymous. If you can locate a Local Hobby Shop (= LHS) and establish a relationship with them, by far and away that's the best way to go. I am lucky to live where I do (Calgary, Alberta). My LHS (Trains 'n' Such) have knowledgeable people who can answer my questions, who will haggle over the sticker price and give me a deal, who can recommend the best way to go about building something and point me to the aftermarket parts I need, who will take special orders and actually deliver the goods. When I walk through the door, they say "Hello Scott, what's up these days", not because I spend a ton of money there, because I don't, but because I have talked to them all, learned
their names, and they have all become my aquaintances, if not my friends. If I have a problem, they will do their best to help me solve it. They know lots more about the hobby than I do. If I need a part, they will do as much as they can to help find it. They now know my interests, and when something comes in at a good price that I might be interested in, they phone me.
I buy things from eBay once or twice a year, but for the most part I am happy to support my LHS. Sometimes I may pay a bit more, but they have earned it and I don't resent it a bit. They work for it, and believe me, running a brick-and-mortar hobby shop these days is tough. If you are lucky enough to have a shop like Trains 'n' Such in your city, support them. You will pay a few more dollars, but you will help them stay alive, and as long as they live, you have somewhere to go to buy your stuff, get answers to your questions, order your parts, browse your magazines, and network with other model train buffs in your area. The few dollars more that it costs to deal with your LHS are an investment, and well worth it. You will help them stay alive in an increasingly competitive world where the cards are stacked against the brick-and-mortar retailers. They will help you make the right decisions in choosing what you purchase, and if it doesn't work out for you, they will give you an avenue to recover something from your mistake.
Hug your local retailer. If they are good, they can save you much grief. Channel your business through them, and help them survive. Don't resent the fact that you might pay a few dollars more to go through them. Pay it. If the sticker price is $5 more than what you might get from eBay, so what? What is $5 if it means that your store can continue to survive, and they can continue to answer your questions, order your stuff, bring in your magazines, stock your decals, paint, and Plastruct, hook you up with other modellers in your area, and meet your other modelling needs? In the long run you will be further ahead.