Pittsburgher Wrote:
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> Bruce stated that he spent $345.50 over the years
> at Bruce's.
>
> In the Pittsburgh area, AB Charles & Son has been
> the major local hobby shop. When I first moved to
> Pittsburgh 20+ years ago, it had a great selection
> of stuff. However, as I have been more of a fan
> than a modeler, my purchases tended to be
> magazines, books and calendars. Sometimes I
> purchased HO-scale models such as a brass Great
> Northern caboose or an Athearn WP F7/GP7 set in
> the Special Edition series.
>
> I never went over only to stand around talking to
> people, although once or twice I chatted with the
> store staff and/or other patrons.
>
> During my last visit (around May or June), there
> was very little merchandise in stock. There was a
> clearance sale of which I was unaware. I was
> surprised that I could not even purchase a
> transformer - a rather basic piece of model
> railroad equipment.
>
> I don't have the sales receipts for my purchases,
> but I estimate that I've spent $600 - $700 over
> the past twenty years. This discussion leads me
> to wonder, what is an amount that hobbyists should
> spend at their local hobby shops? While I'm sure
> that some will say I've spent too little, again
> keep in mind I'm a Rio Grande/SP/SOO
> Line/Milwaukee Road/WP/Great Northern fan living
> in the East.

That’s interesting. I sold all my brass Tenshodo HO scale Great Northern equipment to the AB Charles & Son shop back in 1978 before I moved to San Francisco. One of the items was a brass Great Northern caboose.