Engine House Hobbies - Maryland

 

Engine House Hobbies
1-A East Diamond Ave
Gaithersburg, MD 20877  
Phone: 301-590-0816
http://enginehousehobbies.net

While back visiting here in Maryland, I made the rounds doing some light trainspotting and hobby shop exploring. Today's stop took me to ENGINE HOUSE HOBBIES and I was glad it did.



When I planned the trip, I didn't see that the shop was primarily O scale. I walked in hoping to pick up a little something in N scale and was a little disappointed to see 90% O scale and a lot of it. But, after the initial disappointment, I took the inventory in and had a lot of fun.

The shop is small, but packed with merch to sell. A huge selection of O scale buildings, engines and accessories to choose from. I was on my way out when (sorry, never asked his name) the guy behind the counter asked if there was anything he could help me with.

I told him that I was an N scaler was just enjoying the browse. Next thing you know, he was asking me about my setup and how I liked it in San Francisco. We talked SF hobby shops, my N scale Japan module and then talked about the shop. He was great to talk to - super friendly and positive. A fellow shopper suggested that he hook me up with an O scale starter set to take home with me. We had a good laugh about it.

The store is right next to the tracks, so every time the CSX trail rolled by, the whole shop stopped to stare out the window. I asked about the trains that went by and the guy behind the counter new all about them, their time frames and where they were headed off to. Super helpful.





The shop also has a large, O scale layout in the center of it which was a lot of fun to explore. While the layout takes up potential floor merchandise space, it also fuels ideas and desire to buy.

Super friendly staff - this guy was great to talk to!

The wall behind the counter is filled with mounted track packed with engines and rolling stock. If you're looking to buy some O scale in this area, this is the place to visit. It was a friendly shop PACKED with O scale goodness! I would love to get some O scale going later in life.

Check out ENGINE HOUSE HOBBIES. It has a fantastic feel and a friendly staff with a GREAT view of the tracks! :)