Question on North Lima Trainworks

I did receive an order from them 2 weeks ago, but they are not the fastest shipper around. Took about 2 1/2 weeks to get.

VaGolfer1950: Yes, North lima trainworks is re-constructing their website. Also they have been very busy several weeks before the Holidays, so they have been behind in filling orders. At this time, I would not be surprised if they were not taking inventory to have the new website up to date and adding new parts that LIONEL in Canfield, Ohio might have sent over to them. Give them a week or so to get caught up, and I'm sure that they will take good care of you when they are back up and running. I've dealt with them many times in the past, and have not been sorry for it. John and his Staff are working very hard to be able to save these older parts that LIONEL does not want to stock anymore and thus make them available to us customers when we need them. Just think of the loss if LIONEL just wrote them off, took a financial credit, and tossed them into the ground fill!!!! Remember the old saying: "Good things come to those who wait". Dennis M.

Thanks for the information, I hadn't dealt with them before and was asking how they were to deal with is all. While I don't mind waiting a week or two for a dealer to ship me a part that I ordered, I do not want to wait a week or two just to see if the part is actually in stock, or just on what may be an outdated stock inventory list.

I've received a couple of emails asking who the seller on the Forum was. I will answer here the same as I did both emails. So don't email me asking. Thanks folks.

I asked this same question on another thread. I have dealt with them in the past and got good results. However, I would think it good business practice and good for customer relations to at least put a disclaimer on the new or old web site explaining what is going on and when they might be back in business. Perhaps Lionel should have done this on their main parts page on a temporary basis.

Well I know that someone read the emails I sent as I received a read receipt for each email sent the past week. Numerous phone calls this morning and it's pushing 11 AM have gone unanswered. I called Lionel Customer Service in hopes that they might still have the part I needed, and got no help. The woman who answered the phone even asked why I was bothering Lionel when their web page clearly shows to contact Lima Trainworks. I did try Brausser's, they at least were very friendly and Dean is checking around to see if he has one even though the inventory shows not. He did say that this type of plug is very hard to locate. Why Lionel didn't just use Fahnestock clips for attaching the wires as Lionel has done for what 50 years? Oh that's right gotta re-invent the wheel nowadays.

Just heard back from NL Trainworks. Very nice fellow who called and they have the part I need and they will be shipping it. They are going through some revamping of web page and promise to be back to the level of service expected shortly.

It is going on 10 months now since this thread started, I wonder if they ever will get their web site up and running!

I googled them and found a new website.  Its www.nltrainworksinc.com.  I just placed an order online and confirmed it on my e-mail.

 

Stuart

I just looked up the website and there's no list of what's available, only a search function. No clue as to what they actually carry, postwar, modern, ???

I like to pick up odds and ends for scratch building.  I got some items from them well over a year ago and was quite satisfied.  However, just how long does it take to redo a web site? Must be something else going on to be 'off the grid' for so many months.  I heard that originally they were hit by a virus and had to go to another vendor to come up with a new site.  Seems to be taking quite a long time, though.

I start by looking up the parts on the Lionel site.  If the indication there is "Available via NLT", you can search on the NLT website for the part number. (put it in the SKU box on the search form)

 

I would have just done an order on the website, but there seems to be a typo on a cotter pin I had on my list.  They were listed at $1000, so I'm hoping that's a typo .  emailed my order instead.  (had done a previous phone tag order with them 2 months ago before the website was ready)

 

-Dave

I've emailed them and usually the next day I get a phone call and the order goes out.  Not the world's best system for sure, but they seem to be the only source for some parts.

 

Jim

Got an email reply regarding my $1000 cotter pins shortly after I sent them the first email.  They apparently are fixing some issues with wrong prices on some items, but the system seems otherwise OK to me. 

 

I placed my order on the website after they fixed the cotter pin price, we'll have to see how long to get the parts.  Seems like a decent system though so far.

 

-Dave

Happy to say I think the new website ordering functionality was a great success for my order.  I placed the order late on a Friday night (probably after business hours) and the parts arrived less than a week later. 

 

There was a minor issue with one item being back-ordered, but there was a note included with my order and indication those parts would follow the next week.  Even those back ordered parts are now in hand within 2 weeks of the order.

 

Very positive experience with the website in my book!

 

-Dave

So how do you go about using the website?

Do you need to know the specific part number? I tried a couple of ways, but no luck.

 Do I need to enter a specific loco or car number?

Thanks, Chuck

I got the part numbers verbatim from the Lionel site.  In my case (as an example), I was looking for parts for the GE Demonstrator Dash-9 from ~ 1996.  I knew the stock number (6-18226), looked up that number on Lionel's site (Customer Service --> Replacement Parts).  From there, the exploded diagram showed me reference numbers for each part, with part numbers in the list below.  Three of the parts I was looking for were available via NLT.  I pasted the Lionel numbers in to the NLT search tool exactly as they were on the Lionel site and that made the NLT site find them.  Ordering was then as easy as add to basket, etc.

 

Maybe your mileage may vary depending on what you are looking for.  The only reason I tried NLT instead of Lionel was because the parts indicated they were only available from  NLT. 

 

Actually, I had also ordered from them a few months back for a different part, but again this was a slightly older item (late 80's-early 90's Burro Crane gear).  For that one, there was a bit of phone tag, but the order was also ultimately a success (got the right parts at what I considered a decent price and also good service once we both got the details ironed out).

 

-Dave

Thank you much Dave.