Re: hobbysurplus.com

[Edgar]

Folks, are any of you familiar with www.hobbysurplus.com? I just got their catalog and they have some very good prices on stuff, but I would like to know how reliable this joint is. I'm looking for example to this HO train set, 1 loco and five cars, nicely priced, but they don't say who the manufacturer is. If anybody can give me a hint, throw it right away!

 

[KCS]

What is the price and does it state what all comes with it? Maybe a link to it on the web?

 

[hooknlad]

Hiya - To me it appears to be a lifelike set for $80 . Personally, my verdict is in question for this product. I have seen lifelike sets before from the now defunct lifelike website for about $80. I guess if you bought the set piecemeal, you may have a deal - complete ball of wax in a set. I haven't ventured to see what the S&H is on this site. I know that the lifelike set that I have seen, people were buying them like mad and attempting to scam others on EBAY for roughly $150. You may be able to find a set like the one you are looking for in a LHS ( mom and pop type) , for this price w/o having to add S&H. I personnally dont care for the older lifelike quality of their train sets. Noise, Noise, stuttering, Noise. Just my $0.02 . If its going to be for a kid, id so go for it for the price. If it is for you and you wanna get into Model RR, Id wait and buy it piece meal.

 

[Russ Bellinis]

If it is an older style Life Like set, it may have the "toy" locomotive with only one powered truck on the loco instead of the newer Proto 1000 models with 8 wheel drive. It may also have steel track. You might be much better off to start with a good Athearn, Atlas, Kato, or even Bachmann or P1k Life Like locomotive, a set of Athearn cars, and Atlas, or Walthers (Shinohara track). I just checked the web site, I didn't see the link because it is printed in blue on blue on my screen. The locomotive is identified as a Fa2. I think it is Life Like since the rest of the set is Life Like, but the only Fa2 I know of on the market is the Walthers Trainline model. Did Walthers buy Life Like or was it Model Power? Is it possible that Walthers is putting out a Life Like set with a Trainline locomotive? If Walthers has upgraded a setwith a Trainline locomotive, they may have upgraded everything in the set including the track.