Mike Wolf Visits the Little Choo Choo Shop in Spencer today

 The guy makes a great product. His enthusiasm matches his smile. Hope the people got to see the train side of him. It's cool that you can talk to the owners of these companies in person nowadays. I don't know if it was always that way. Hope it keeps going. Joe

I like all the Lionel stock behind him. Probably not the best spot to be photographed.

I believe the shop has a display layout built with Fastrack as well. They have a nice selection of Lionel; Atlas and MTH. Also nice selection of Books and parts and details needed to build layouts. Nice place to go if you ar a model railroader.

Dave, much of the Lionel in the pictures is the owner's personal old collection that he has decided to liquidate.

Ironically there was a Dave Allen in the shop today!

Dave Allen is everywhere

I have purchased quite a few trains from that shop.

Scott Smith

It really is nice of Mike to mix with us 'regular folk' as much as he does. He's a credit to hobby in so many ways!

Just think of the boon this whole event will be to the hobby in general with all of these 'fantasy schemes' that will be available to the various manufacturers now. How many of us will be acquiring some (several!) for our own layouts?

For those of us who are bereft of ESP, where is Spencer?

Spencer is located in NC, about 49 miles south of Winston Salem. It was the home of Spencer rail road shops and round house for many years. Now has a nice little rail road museum.

Rob

Mark

Spencer shops is in Saalisbury NC along the original Southern Main Line. It was once the main shops for the Southern between Atlanta and Washington DC.  Its a bit east of Charlotte. Here is a link  www.nctrans.org/

Twenty minutes up I-85 North from Charlotte 35 minutes South of Greensboro and shares Town limits with the City of Salisbury. Spencer was a village built specifically as a railroad town because it was located central between Atlanta and Washington, an important geographical factor in the days of servicing steam engines. It was named for Southern Railway's first President Samuel Spencer who was killed in a train wreck when his private railcar was rear-ended,even as the Town was still under construction.

Several books published about Spencer Shops and the Town, the latest by former Museum Employee and O-gauger Larry Neal.

Salisbury, among other things included a Yankee POW Camp,and a National Cemetery, the home of Salisbury Cotton Mills which wove exclusively the famous "Pioneer Stripe" material favored by railroaders nationally for overalls and headgear. The Smithsonian used Salisbury Mill's fabric and videos of the City's restored Depot in one of its Transportation Wing displays.

First let us get a little factual.  The Spencer Shops is NOT, I repeat Not located in Salisbury, NC.  It is located in the incorporated town of Spencer.

At the turn of the Twentieth Century the relatively new (July 1.1894) Southern Railway Company was looking for a location about half way between D.C. and Atlanta for a major shop.  And yes Salisbury really wanted it.  But Southern's president one Samuel Spencer decided to locate just north of Salisbury.  So Southern built the shops and a town called Spencer named for who else but Samuel Spencer.

The shops eventually became the North Carolina Transportation Museum.  The Roundhouse was rebuilt etc. etc.

So yesterday and today this is the site of the "Family Portraits" of the NS Heritage Units.

Steve and Ann Surratt owners of the Lil Choo Choo, have over the years been excellent people to do business with. Unfortunately both have experienced health issues in recent years and have not been as active in their Store. Steve served on the Transportation Museum Board as Treasurer for many years and is very knowledgeable regarding the organizations fund raising events and restoration history. 

Lol.   Is there a train shop that isn't true of?

A while back when Wolf was in Chicago I was impressed with this guy. He casts and continues to cast a much larger shadow(positive influence)on this hobby.

Great to see him involved in the hobby this way!  Nothing like meeting the folks to learn what the market is really like.  I remember being at Ready to Roll at Christmas a couple of years ago and Mike was busy repairing a post-war Lionel steamer someone had brought in.  People visiting the store had no idea who he was.

Yes, it is wonderful that Mike visits local shops.  I loved it when he came to Jim's Train Shop in Homer City.  Fortunately back then the lights were still on!!   It is amazing how he continues his enthusiasm and hard work year after year.  Does he ever take a vacation?   

PS:  They should have had at least some MTH stock behind him in the photos!! 

I'm sure Mike could care less, he is there for the Heritage unit celebration not just to promote MTH which needs none anyway.If he was concerned he could have moved a few steps to the rear wall where MTH boxes adorn the shelves.  

Mike Wolf's MTH Electric Trains so impressed me in CY 2000, I went back into this great hobby, and my roster of 25+ locomotives is exclusively MTH Rail King. Mike's company, his employees, and his accessibility to hobbyists never cease to amaze me. Mike Wolf and his team have advanced toy trains since the mid 1990s more than any company has done in a century!

Keep it up Mike. We love it!

Bobby O

I resisted going to MTH from LNL for a long while. Wolf took a big gamble that he could produce reasonably priced engines with the detail of the really expensive ones.

And his risk worked and was then copied or under some legal opinions taken!

I heard Mike mention in a TCA Video that his Fireplace Chimney has a large
"Cirlce L" on it; and that he`s always loved LIONEL Trains, so I suspect He doesn`t mind the backdrop.