The model train store was very nice. I went to the train shop during the 4014 Big Boy event and bought the diesel locomotives. I chose the Kato engine BNSF. I asked the staff to get the model train locomotive, and they tested it for me. The train shop staff were really nice. The train engine cost $109, and I had a $100 gift card. I brought it home and played with it. The train engines work fine and still run. I love trains. Thank you to Railroad Hobbies. read more

Good selection of N-scale products. I found what I was looking for but they didn't have other Road names. I may have bought 2 but will be back when new locomotives come out. read more

Sometimes bad guys win... As a fellow local business owner, I don't know why anyone with a small business want to make enemies with their community. My wife went there with my son to take senior portraits today and lo and behold, their car was towed when they were done with their session. Was there a sign in the parking lot? Yes. But my wife assumed that the parking lot was a common area (yes, I pay triple net for my store) since this place was in the same building as the photography studio. Again, I'm a business owner myself and our parking lot gets overrun by customers from the next strip mall, but I would never in a million years to tow their cars because word spreads and it's not good for business. And to be clear, their parking lot was only being occupied by the workers and my wife's car at the time of the "offense". Downtown Roseville has been dying for the past decade and no one was exactly fighting for parking space when I pulled up to pick up my wife to drive her to the tow yard. Why five stars? Because I know how tough is for stores like this where retail is dying and everyone's running to Amazon. I can't imagine more than 10 people walked into this store today to make a purchase, and I feel bad for business owners like him. However, screwing over locals is no way to grow their business, especially when their last review was a year ago with where they towed their own customers car. Good luck and stop being mad at the world. read more

First let me say that every time i had a DCC question they have been very helpful. The older gentlemen name Mike, If i had and question on sound decoders speakers and hard wiring he was always helpful. I have not had bad experience. read more

Pretty expensive, bought a DCC and a SP model train which came to 506$, so a few days later I returned the train and DCC, but I could only return the train because I "didn't have the plastic for the DCC" but shouldn't they have plastic in the back? SMH. read more

Good store, very diverse selection of locos, and a decent size spot, questions were answered and my purchase was tested in front of me to make sure everything ran well. Value wise, it's pretty well priced compared to the storm that eBay has become and I was happy to get a very hard to find rapido model for a value that was even under MSRP. Would come again if I was in the area again read more

Horrible business- extremely rude owner. Surprised he can remain in business. Has cars towed when closed even.

Best model train store in Placer county; store is right next downtown Roseville and parking was perfect. Store was incredibly fantastic with a unique selection of model trains and accessories, but very pricey. Owner and staff were very nice, helpful, and knowledgable; professional on model trains: Fast and efficient service. I hope this store remains in business permanently because it's really rare to find a model train store like this. This shop is certainly worth visiting if you're on the way to Reno-Tahoe-Truckee Interstate 80. Would return here eventually. read more

As far as hobby store, it is a good one. My husband bought a good amount of train supplies $$$. We walked down to another store for about 20 minutes and came back to find our car was towed. Too many elderly bored men inside with nothing better to do than to be the parking lot A$$. Beware We did get our car back, but REALLY!!!! Will not be back. read more

Nice train hobby store, except they were out of covered bridges. But, I opted for my first little establishment called Miss Miley's Diner! Looks nice under our tree too! read more

Railroad Hobbies - More of a zoomed in shot ! - Hobby Shops Near Me - Roseville, California

See all

A train lovers dream! Lots of trains in all scales G, O, HO, N, and even Z scale! Lionel, LGB, Bachmann and more! I visited on a Sunday afternoon and the place was rather busy for a hobby shop. I will definitely be returning to this place to buy more models. They also carry lots of train books, timetables, maps, and merchandise many of which are not in print anymore. Definitely some great value to be had for the prices as they are comparable to online retailers including shipping and even better, they are a small business! The gentleman at the counter was helping other customers with their purchases and spent a good few moments making sure he was good with his purchases. A true full service place. Be sure to budget at least an hour to take in everything! read more

See all

Ideal train hobby store over the decades. Always great products at very reasonable c osts.

Went to an event and noticed them on maps. Stopped in to see if they had any American Flyer stuff and was met by a couple grouchy old dudes. Looked around the store a little bit and asked if they had any S gauge things kicking around and was met with confusion from one gentleman and the other told me I should have "f***ing called in to check first". Needless to say, not going back. The store is very impressive with a large selection of HO (barely any other gauge stuff tho), tho slightly overpriced, but the staff completely ruin it. read more

Amazing. Just amazing. Great value trains, train cars, lots of variety, chances are you will find what you are looking for when you go here. They have all sorts of scales and has everything you need. Very helpful people there as well and is overall a 5 star place read more

I had some time to kill after work before picking up my son from school so I was curious about this place. I drove over to take a look around. I was inside the store and I walked out for a phone call as not to be rude to others inside then walked in again after to look around. During the time I was inside the second time they towed my car. Again I was inside the store as a customer and they towed me for absolutely no reason at all. These people are a bunch of old guys with nothing better to do than to power trip on people and beat off in the back over toy trains. Thanks for costing a customer loads of money for no reason and causing my son to be left alone at school until I could get him. You guys are just the best. You guys really look out for your community. I don't recommend supporting such miserable people. read more

Came in looking for something specific and the gentlemen gave me great advice plus showed me what I needed. All items are costly but so are groceries and what hobby is cheap? When in the store a family was in upgrading their train system and I overheard some good informative advice. Let's keep this store in business read more

Beware Beware had Mike repair my Athearn switcher, he repair it and give it to another person!! He said he would replace it with a new switcher. He did and he want me to pay $125 for decorder in switcher he give to someone else. We came to a lower price. I have spend Alot of money over the years there!! I will never buy from him again!! Beware read more

Employees do not wear masks and if you ask them to wear one they will tell you covid is fake. I shopped there for 10 years and I will no longer be going back read more

Our overall experience was solid. They have good stock of G Scale, O, HO, N and some Z. Experience with the employees was good, though one seemed a little full of himself. We enjoyed the store though and our only issue was pricing. Everything here is MSRP priced. No deals to be found here. But with friendly staff and a good selection; if you need it they have it. We'll be back for more. Thanks read more

All working here are *still* not wearing masks in the middle of a spiking pandemic, and act like you are casing to rob the joint with barely any helpful information (so be prepared to do your own research on model train stuff they should know about since they seem to sit around all day doing...something) It's unfortunate this is the only store in this area, there is one train store in San Jose and they take the Covid pandemic seriously so guess I'm traveling there and ordering online versus this place (seriously older folks with riskier immune systems SHOULD NOT COME HERE) read more

Staff are very rude and unhelpful. They don't update their website so the hours are wrong. When I told them about it they said they don't update their website (WTH?). read more

No help from the staff except to point to where things are. I agree with other reviewers about zero customer service. In addition, while most business try to keep customers safe, all four staff and two of four customers not masked. Not a safe place. read more

Helpful honest guys, nice inventory of several train scales, buildings, scenery, kits, periodicals, books, scratch building supplies! Found them couple years ago, bought a nice Genesis locomotive to replace my cheap Bachman. Unfortunately it let out the magic smoke after about a week, took it back to them and they troubleshot and fixed it. However it had some kinda burnt wiring, they took it back and I picked out another Genesis locomotive to replace it, excellent customer service! Just bought more rolling stock from them and again good helpful service, also answered my track and layout questions, thanks! read more

Fun place to visit with my son. Good selection of trains and books. We like to come here just to browse.

Love this store. N, HO, O, G, and, gasp, even S gauge for my old American Flyer set. In fact, headed over there now to buy a couple of pieces of S FasTrak. Will use the American Flyer around the Christmas tree this year. Anyway, parts, services, track, cars, buildings, scenic supplies. read more

Came to old roseville for lunch and some shopping. Was going to have lunch first then shop and planned to park in the railroad business lot. For we were going to check it out as well. However, as we got out of the car after parking an elder man with a white beard came chasing after us yelling at us we couldn't park there, threatening to tow our vehicle for $250. He also said if we really wanted to stay parked we can pay for it. Super rude man. How did he know we weren't potential customers? Not a way to run a business. There's always a way to be nice. I'm sure if he had better parking signage and actually wanted to charge he could make more money in parking then running the dying business. Good luck to him and I hope he finds happiness and peace. read more

Lousy experience overall. Everything there is very pricey. I called first and was told they had what I needed was in stock. When I drove up 18 miles from the center city it was not in stock and denied that anyone had even spoken to me. No one in the store seemed the least bit interested in answering any of my newby questions, even though they were at least 4 older gentlemen behind the counter, who seemed much more into their own chat with each other. Online hobby stores are a little bit slower, but the prices are much better and the online retailers seem much more willing to explain stuff over the phone or by email exchange. Very sad that this store is not representing the hobby very well, and there is no other in Sacramento. Kinda like the local Sacramento newspaper - no competition breeds lousy service. read more

Ive been going there for years and spend a good chunk of $$ to help keep the local hobby shops alive. But i went in recently and bought a new dcc loksound v5 decoder and i had been waitinv for these to come out and they only had one. I bought it and installed it and the decoder was bad. Mike said bring it in so he could test it out. He inspected the decoder then threw it on the test track and nothing. I expected a refund but he just looked at me ...i said ok so what now. He says you gotta deal w loksound...it was awkward. I spent three weeks trying to get ahold of loksound cause they just moved ...finally i had to pay shipping to send it back. In my opinion this was very bad cust service by rr hobbies and im not spending anymore money there. At least amazon or ebay would have refunded me read more

Nice place not far from my house staff is nice large range a bit pricey compared to R/C country hobbies so I get my track from them but I get my rolling stock from here due to them having a bigger selection to choose from. P.s. Hugo was very helpful and nice read more

Just your typical model train store... but the nice thing about the place is that they are right near Roseville Yard. Railroad Hobbies also does offer a bit of a discount off list price. The one downside is that they don't seem to carry as extensive of a selection of new items as other places I have been. Otherwise, a very good selection of N, HO, O and some toy trains... good magazine rack... pretty everything you'd expect a good model train store to have. The staff here is very helpful and friendly. read more

I have shopped at Railroad Hobbies for over 20 years spending thousand of dollars. The last two times I shopped there one of the clerks was carrying a loaded gun on his hip. I asked the clerk why he carried a gun. He began yelling that it was his right to carry. I found it to be very intimidating. I said to him that it was my right not to shop their. He replied that ok we don't want you business anyway. I will not return. My wife made the best comment: "I can't believe you confronted him, you might have been shot. read more

They 3 guys behind the counter have no idea what customer service is. Being local and starting to build a train with my 8 year old, I was figuring this would be my "go to" shop. No, not the case. I will not spend a dime here. No acknowledgement when I walked in, no offer to help, nothing. Just one guy coming down the isle I was on where the building kits are and looking to see if I was shoplifting? He went right down past me circled up the next isle and went back to doing nothing at the counter. Now mind you I am in my 50's and wearing a business suit at the time....It sucks this is the last real brick and mortar shop in the Sacramento area but I will mail order everything we need or buy it on trips out of town before I spend one penny here. Not going to shed a tear when they go out of business.....bottom line...GO ELSEWHERE read more

I purchased an engine here last year and my grandson lost a part to keep the wheels on it. First they told me that they were unable to fix it, but Hugo was fantastic and persisted with the owner to try and find a solution. The owner finally found the missing part and Hugo went out of his way to repair my engine. Thanks again Hugo ! read more

Rudest S.O.B.s I have ever come across in a store. You are on your own at this place. Don't even try interacting with the staff they won't even acknowledge you. Yes, the place is loaded with train supplies but it is impossible to find what your looking for. There is a sign posted saying, "They have a right to refuse service." It seems to be the store's motto. You're better off buying online !! read more

My son and I wanted to see if we could get his train cleaned and serviced and were also looking to purchase a new set. Drove the ~30 miles there since we discovered a couple of years ago they were basically the only game in the area. Upon asking if they could help with the service needs, I was told they no longer do that and when I probed further to ask for advice as to where I might go for help, was basically informed there is a place called the internet and that I should check it out. Not sure if I was more surprised at the lack of interest in the guy helping out or the fact that he knew what the internet was. In any event, I don't know what we we will end up doing to fix the original train, but I did take his advice on checking out that whole internet thing and went to Amazon to buy the new one today. Thanks buddy... read more

Was in Roseville Feb. 2012 to do some rail fanning and my camera batteries died. We didn't want to search around for a camera or drug store so we stopped at Railroad Hobbies on Vernon St. Yes, I have been there before while in Roseville and it was always a pleasant shopping experience! Anyway, this time I just wanted to compliment sales associate Marissa for her excellent customer service skills. She was very polite, knowledgeable, especially friendly, and a very professional young lady. I worked retail for 33 years and you just don't see that many caring sales associates anymore. I ended up buying new batteries for the camera and a train magazine to read on the trip back home to Millbrae! Good job Marissa! Steve Robinson (TheMillbraeCount) read more

Walked in, 3 old grouchy guys behind the counter, they talked politics and war stories. Never said hello, can I help you or kiss my butt. Fortunately I was there for two items. I went straight to the Lionel train section (minimal selection). Well, they only had one of the two I wanted. Went to the counter to pay. They didn't ask, "Did you find what you needed". Nor did they say much else but what I owed. I mentioned that I was disappointed because I had emailed a few weeks before, told them I'd be thru town and what I was looking for, they told me via email dont worry thats alwys in stock. I lived near Redding and was hoping to pick up everything I needed. What was the old geezers comment? "Oh!" No sorry, or let me double check stock or we can mail you one. Nothing just back to their stories. Had good supply of "N" & "HO" a little slim on "O" & "G". If they don't find some guys who know something about customer relations they won't be around long. read more

My family and I are avid model railroaders and have been active in the community in the greater bay area for many years. We have visited this store a few times before, but we are out of the area residence wise so I would not call us frequent customers. After a day trip involving trains and a group that we belong to, we stopped in the store. My oldest son (12) brought a N scale caboose to me, I was in HO scale track aisle, and asked if I would purchase it for him. At the time I said we'll see. He then took it to his Mom and asked her, who said to ask me. He then placed the item back in the N scale car aisle. We gathered a few items and browsed the store for a bit longer before heading to the register. The cashier rudely asked my son what was in his pockets. We were both shocked and my son replied, nothing. He was then told to empty his pockets, and he did so without questions, argument, or disrespect. Only to reveal a napkin and a receipt. Outraged at the accusation, his mom then squeezed and twisted his pockets before he put anything back in them and said they're empty. As a prior business owner I am all for businesses protecting their inventory. This should have been the end of it. At most they should have thanked him for his cooperation and proceeded with our transaction, and at least they should have dropped it and processed our purchase. Sadly, this was not the case. My son was then demanded to show an unidentified person where he put the item because it is not where it belonged. This is after my son proved his innocence. Still being respectful my son humbled himself and showed this person where he put it. This unidentified guy then raised it in the air and yelled to the register, it's here on the shelf, for the whole store to hear. My son was humiliated by the conduct of the staff and owner of this store. They went well beyond what was reasonable and called for. My son was devastated by the accusations made against him and he said, "it feels like I was shot in the chest and instead of the bullet going through me, it's bouncing inside of my chest." I will never allow my son to be treated like this by this store again, and will never return. This store had a perfect opportunity to gain a regular customer, and a long term customer. Instead, they bullied him and humiliated him. Bullied? Not once did anyone address any of the 3 adults who walked in with him, even after we addressed them. A bunch of adults ganging up on a child who did the right thing and asked his parents if he could purchase something without presuming, and who respectfully proved MORE than ONCE his innocence. I would give no stars, however Yelp makes me give at least one. read more

I've been going to this business since its humble beginnings in 1991. Other model train shops have come and gone in the internet era, but Mike's shop is a survivor, and I'm rooting for him. Guys are always helpful here, and they get to know their regulars. It reminds me of the old TV show Cheers, you walk in there and it's an enjoyable experience whether you buy something or not. The owner Mike is profoundly introverted but don't mistake his quiet ways for unfriendliness. He has a vast wealth of knowledge and experience and has a passion for trains and for his customers if you get to know him. read more

Lots of modeling supplies. Not much in 2 rail O scale, but it's not too prevalent in this area so that makes sense. I'm just glad there is a local shop for supplies -- they are few and far between these days. read more