Am I the only one who doesn't receiving shipping or tracking info from Charles Ro until I have to email or call them?? It seems like my items have always been shipped and I never get notified. Also, I never receive their email advertisements. Other than that, their prices and shipping times are great.
Jason's Train Shop has made me happy. 
mth- jasons train shop.
weaver models- weaver models
Originally Posted by CarGuyZM10:
Thanks guys. I just want to make sure I get one (it's the new Pennsylvania Limited 4-4-0 starter set 6-30224). This seems to be a popular item, and I know sometimes popular items are hard to get sometimes.
A search on Ro's site shows the set you want isn't even listed on their site yet. It is however currently on Trainworld's site.
I order from Catoctin Mountain Trains.
I do all of my pre orders with Nassau Hobby in Freeport, NY. Charlie and Chris are great to deal with.
Andy
Originally Posted by Blue_liner:
Am I the only one who doesn't receiving shipping or tracking info from Charles Ro until I have to email or call them?? It seems like my items have always been shipped and I never get notified. Also, I never receive their email advertisements. Other than that, their prices and shipping times are great.
I have always received tracking info from Charles Ro since about 2006 and almost all have been shipped through FedEx and I only had a couple that were shipped by UPS. I have been receiving their advertisements the past few years and since last year I have seen an increase in the amount of their ads. I have been preordering from since I got back into trains about 10 years ago.
You may want to call them and inquire about not receiving emails.
Originally Posted by Blue_liner:
Am I the only one who doesn't receiving shipping or tracking info from Charles Ro until I have to email or call them?? It seems like my items have always been shipped and I never get notified. Also, I never receive their email advertisements. Other than that, their prices and shipping times are great.
Definitely worth calling them to ensure they have the correct email address for you, and have them review your customer profile for receiving email sales flyers. There was a time when Charlie hardly EVER sent emails touting their super-special sales. But times have changed... and there are TONS more sellers out there competing for our train dollars nowadays. So they've definitely jumped on board the email band-wagon, and their emails are more frequent these days -- not only alerting folks to their super-specials but also alerting folks when new Lionel "feature products" have arrived.
Back to the tracking though... As I recall, Ro does NOT issue the tracking info directly... rather the email is generated by either Fed-Ex or UPS. They use Fed-Ex quite frequently, but Fed-Ex email notification is not nearly as reliable and consistent as UPS (in my experience).
And oh yes... as far as pre-ordering goes (for Lionel products)... Charles Ro is the best!
David
Wild Bill's Trains in Clinton Township, MI
Jasons Train Shop, never had an issue, very pleased all the time, and a pleasant person.
In the past, I have had very great experiences pre-ordering with (not in any kind of order preference):
Justrains
Charlesro
AM Hobbies
LegacyStation
Most recently, for expensive locomotives, it's been my local dealer (LegacyStation). I really like this hobby shop and they give great customer service. This is the kind of store you want to stick around forever. When my order comes in, Brian (the owner) calls me, and I make an appointment for an unboxing and full testing on their test track.
There's something special supporing your LHS and going home with a fully tested and functional locomotive that you were there to witness, rather than dealing with unpacking, sometimes getting disappointing, calling for an RMA, waiting a few days for a replacement loco to arrive, then sending back the defective one all to save a few bucks.
When I pre-order, it's from Catoctin Mountain Trains in Thurmont, MD. I've never been disappointed.
Bob
