Saturday Only?

Sat closing time is 4pm in the orange hall & purple halls. 2pm everywhere else.  Sat is pretty much dead by noon. Are you a TCA member?

Are you a TCA member or going for the public showing? As a public member, you can only attend the dealer halls. The dealers will have lots of inventory, but not much different than you can find online. I find the real benefit of York to be the member halls where there is all kinds of stuff that you wouldn't find otherwise. A lot of that gets picked over by Saturday, but if you have never been, you will probably still find lots of things to interest you.

What would you like to get out of York? Are you planning to buy a lot of stuff or just browse? Is there a particular interest you have in model railroading? These questions will help narrow down what type of experience you will have. Half a day on Saturday is certainly not enough time to see everything, but it may be worthwhile depending on what you want to get out of it.

Also, remember that Saturday will be extra crowded with the public opening.

George

skroencke posted:

Hello,

I have never been to York but have an opportunity to go Saturday since I will be in the area - probably couldn't get there until 10 or 11. I didn't see a closing time on the website, does anyone know? Is it worth stopping for a short day?

Thanks

Scott

IMO and observation, the "worth" of such a day can only be attached by you. However, I would offer the perspective that you used the right term for what you may be planning, "a short day," considering the times you have suggested and the "feel" of business on Saturday. If you arrive at those approximate times, you will find a general atmosphere of exodus, with people tired and getting very ready to depart. Some may even have their tables/booths partially deconstructed. However, there is the legend, among some, that such is the perfect time to "get deals." Most vendors that I know of would rather sell something at the last minutes than have to pack it up again and move it to their vehicles.

FrankM, of Layout Refinements, and Moon Township, USA

The "official" closing time for the Orange Hall may be 4pm, but most of the dealers in the Orange Hall will start packing up around 1pm and gone by 3. The TCA doesn't like that, but when there are no people in the hall, it doesn't make much sense to stand around an empty booth for several hours. The last 4 or 5 York meets I have been pulling on to I-83 north and on the way home by 3:30.

It will be a very short day...

If you have never been to a York show I would definitely go.  After seeing what is potentially available, you may decide it would be worth planning a trip next October to be there on Thursday for the whole show. 

I'm not sure whether you are a TCA member or just attending as the "general public" so I will break some stuff down for you to get the best experience on Saturday.

If you are a TCA member, and you want to try and get everywhere on Saturday, bring your running shoes. I would highly suggest getting there at 9:00, right when they open. Go to the member halls first (silver, blue, red, and white). A lot of the vendors in these halls will slowly start packing up by 10 or 11 and will be out the door by noon. Then go to the dealer halls (Orange, and Purple). They're usually the last ones to start packing up. Keep in mind that the hours for the dealer halls are now 9am-3pm, probably because a lot of the guys in these halls start packing up at 1 and leave by 3 since there are not a lot of people there Saturday afternoon. I would forget about going to the black hall where the modular layout is if you're just looking to buy trains.

If you're attending as the "general public" I was just stick to the dealer halls because if you register to get into the member halls on Saturday, chances are you'll only be able to see a fraction of what's there since most of the vendors will be gone.

Regardless, if Saturday is the only day you can attend, go for it. There are still plenty of trains for sale and you may not get everywhere since there's so much to see, but it's still a fun time.

Yes go for it! I did a Saturday already, and covered the whole show in 4 or 5 hours. Granted, that was at a brisk walk pace without breaks. 

I love people that start threads like this and never come back on to say thank you for your help & comments. 

Despite leaving in the middle of the night to get there I am going for it!  Sounds like it will be worth it.  Will bring my sneakers for all the running!  Thanks for all the help, sorry if I offended anyone by not responding sooner.

Scott