Thrift store find, bit of a story but bear with me...
OK I just got this home, my wife called me at work and said she saw some "train stuff" at the local Salvation Army which has a small "antiques" annex, she also said they were "small trains" meaning not the big G scale stuff I usually work with I thought she ment HO, but I decide to stop by on the way home and got there 15 minutes before closing, and I find the stuff, like she said in a box next to the cashier, well I instantly saw that it in fact a bunch of O 3 rail stuff!
So after a few minutes examing the stash, I find 3 bags each with 3 freight cars, 2 bags with an engine each (FA1 and a SW switcher), 2 bags of what looks like super O track, 4 powerpacks, and 4 other bags of beat up 027 track. I asked how much would they want for the whole batch, the sales guy says that he doesnt know, and that the manager is the only person who can tell me but they will be out until Thursday, but that he'd call them and ask, he comes back and says no, the manager was going to have to review all the items and see if they could come up with a lot price but that they wouldnt likely do that until the weekend, Well stuff flys out of this shop fast, if I didnt act fast it would be piecemealed away, so after some discussion I ask if I buy at the individual prices can have the house discount on all items they were having that day, he says yes, I say OK I'll take what I want and leave the rest, here is what I took:
I left behind the 4 bags of beater 027 track and 2 extra powerpacks, so as he's totalling up the stash he suggests why not see how much more the other stuff would add to the cost but I said no thanks, then he offered to let me take the remainder along with the stuff I was buying but I didnt want the junk 027 track and stuff and he would have gotten in trouble with his manager and I didnt want that. I told him that when he called the manager I was prepared to make the manager a flat offer for the entire stash, but when I was rebuffed on a burecratical matter, I told the sales guy, when someone wants the Whole Enchillada you dont hold back the rice and beans, and I was leaving the manager the rice and beans and just taking the enchilladas. Good luck selling the rest of that stuff, even the sales guy laughed as knew the left over stuff wouldnt sell, oh well thats the managers to deal with. Now I have a reason to expand my tiny O tinplate layout back up to a 3 track setup,
BTW the enchilladas were $170, a little over what I was going to start my lot offer at to the manager, so not too bad considering the price of new stuff these days, looks I'm back in the O business.
