One of my pet hates about model shops.

[GWR-Kris]

Shops that cannot be bothered to put prices on products. This also applies to stands at model shows. It just really annoys me.

[longbridge]

I find that annoying as well but not as much as a hobby shop that has a Gaugemaster roller loco tester on the counter but refuse to test new locos when asked, the excuse, "we cant test new locos because once tested they are second hand", it gets worse. then they tell you, "if you buy the loco they will test it and if its not working we will send it away for repair", and all this while you are still in the shop, go figure 
To make a bad situation worse their N Gauge locos are $100 or 65 quid each more expensive than anywhere else  and they are stupid enough to put the prices on the locos.

[Stevie DC]

I find that annoying as well but not as much as a hobby shop that has a Gaugemaster roller loco tester on the counter but refuse to test new locos when asked, the excuse, "we cant test new locos because once tested they are second hand", it gets worse. then they tell you, "if you buy the loco they will test it and if its not working we will send it away for repair", and all this while you are still in the shop, go figure 

That is annoying! Surely if they are worried about the loco becoming second hand then they could charge a small fee for testing locos - say the difference between the now second hand loco and a brand new untested one!

Personally if I buy a loco from a shop then I like to be safe(ish) in the knowledge that the loco works as it should before I walk out the shop. It is partly because if this mentality that I now buy cheaper models online - I know that isn't supporting my local shop but then I don't believe that they offer good service for the prices. Whenever I find a good shop with good service I'll usually buy something while I'm in there!

[GWR-Kris]

Well that is stupid. You wouldnt go to a car dealer and they do the same, they would not sell anything.

[longbridge]

It is absolutely stupid and when this happened I got into a bit of an argument with the manager, since 2006 I had spent in access of $9000 in this shop and I told him that but he could not have cared less,  these days I just buy paint, glue, scatter or other small items from them, I don't like buying anything there but sadly model train shops are very few and far between in Brisbane's South Side.

[scotsoft]

I can see both sides of this and like you I would not consider taking a loco out of its box to test would make it second hand, however there are many people who would argue the case it is second hand since it has been out of the box and run.  You know the type I mean  , they linger everywhere. 

I don't know what the legal definition is for something to become second hand since the loco has been sold by the manufacturer to the shop before it gets onto the shelves in the hobby shop.

I feel it all falls under this politically correct world we all have to endure 

cheers John.

[longbridge]

I guess looked at things that way John the 100 odd locos on display at that shop could be considered second hand including the loco I wanted to buy,  I mentioned that to the manager when we had a debate on why he wouldn't test the loco but he said the wheels of the display stock hadn't been rotated, I seem to recall telling him he could stick his finger where the sun don't shine and rotate just before he asked me to leave the shop.

[scotsoft]

I seem to recall telling him he could stick his finger where the sun don't shine and rotate just before he asked me to leave the shop.

   

[guest373]

From my barrack room lawyer view, if you said I want to buy this loco, please test it.  Then if it tests okay you are contracted to buy the loco, if the loco does not run then the loco is not merchantable quality so you would not be contracted to buy it. 

[Dock Shunter]

I find that annoying as well but not as much as a hobby shop that has a Gaugemaster roller loco tester on the counter but refuse to test new locos when asked, the excuse, "we cant test new locos because once tested they are second hand", it gets worse. then they tell you, "if you buy the loco they will test it and if its not working we will send it away for repair", and all this while you are still in the shop, go figure 
To make a bad situation worse their N Gauge locos are $100 or 65 quid each more expensive than anywhere else  and they are stupid enough to put the prices on the locos.

That is not annoying.........it's frikkin outrageous....
What planet does this shop owner come from Dave.....?
So...the scenario exists were you could walk into his shop,spend say $200 and walk out with nothing,then wait however long for your purchase to come back to you......
How is this guy still in business.......? 

[GWR-Kris]

I can understand the shop owners point of view but i would not say a loco going up and down on a small section of track is second hand. and in all honesty most brand new cars appear with some milage on it,

And who would want to buy a loco drive all the way home to have to drive all way back becasue its faulty, or even have to send the damm thing off for repairs. seeing as model shops are few and far between it can be some drive to your nearest shop.

[martink]

Many new cars actually make some allowance for initial mileage - there is generally a software parameter to subtract a small number of miles/km from the true odometer value to allow the dealer to zero the displayed value before delivery.  This is typically limited to 255km or so.

For model locos, I would hope that the manufacturer has given the model at least a minimal test run before packaging it.  Though I must admit I have had a few failures straight out of the box: a Farish 52 that stopped on the first curve (misaligned pickups), a Farish 37 that just sat there and growled (fixed by teardown and reassembly) and a Dapol semaphore that jammed on the fifth test cycle (fixed by modifying the internal stop switch positions).

[thomasash]

I recently stopped working in a model shop (part of a large chain) after around 9 months and it was, quite honestly, the worst 9 months of my life... the amount of (dare I say) "brainwashing" of staff and the way that we were told to advocate product failures as "hobby opportunities"  was shameful. If you spend £50+ on something, actually, whatever you spend on something, you should get what is advertised.

Anyways, we weren't allowed to put prices on the front of boxes (and in some cases on them at all) as it was believed that prices deterred customers viewing products and that if they picked them up they were more likely to "bond" with the product.

The long and short of it is that although many model shops put "customer service" first, their idea of customer service is how to use the right questions and statements to build a sale and add extra on (I still have some of my staff booklets on it) and at no point is the notion of ensuring the product is faultless mentioned!

[longbridge]

My problem with the shop was the fact that they always used to test locos when you bought one but changed managers, the new manager had is own ideas and even though the Gaugemaster test roller thingo was on the counter he refused to test locos.

I buy all my locos second hand from my mates shop, he gives me the keys to the display cases, I test any loco I am interested in buying on the test track myself, he has 4 Rs as a sales policy, repair, replace, refund or rack off and even having locos for several weeks I have seen him replace them for people, IMO that is how all model railway shops should be run.

[1936ace]

I can add to this, last week I rang hobbyco in Sydney and asked if they could check on a certain graham farish product and was told that they do not open the boxes.
It was not as if my gritty hands were going to touch it!
As the item was about three times the price as opposed to say Hattons I really wanted to make sure, plus they are 3 1/2 hours each way by train from my home,guess what shop did not sell anything to me that day.
And then they have a whinge when people buy off the net
Bart