Reno Rails Newsletter

1229 E 4^th Street

Reno, NV 89512

Special Independence Day Sale!

Sunday July 4^th special hours: 9am-3pm

20% to 50% off MSRP on selected items throughout the store

This is Lilli’s special sale! Let’s get rid of some of the inventory!

News and Comments

As most of you are aware, Bill Moffit passed away on 7 January 2010 suddenly and without warning.  His wife Lilli has taken over ownership of Reno Rails, and plans to keep the store open as long as it remains profitable.

The V&T 3-Car Overton passenger sets have arrived! 

If you requested any items before January 2010, please check with us to make sure we have you on the list, and the items noted.  Bill was known for keeping things like orders in his head, and not in the computer.

New Item Request Policy – Item requests require a minimum down payment of 20%.  This counts towards paying for the item, but is not refundable.

Layaway Policy - Reno Rails offers a 4-month interest free lay away policy with 20% down.  Items can be shipped to you by FedEx.  There is no charge for packing but the actual cost of shipping is added to your purchase price.

As we were cleaning the store, we found several collector items from Lionel:

            6-29919           2004 Toy Fair Boxcar              37.00

            6-29918           2003 Toy Fair Boxcar              25.00

            6-29937           2006 Toy Fair Boxcar              38.00

            6-29955           2008 Dealer’s Boxcar              75.00

            6-29925           2005 Toy Fair Boxcar              250.00

Polar Express  

            6-19996           2001 Toy Fair Boxcar              50.00

            6-29904           2002 Toy Fair Boxcar              25.00

            6-29958           2009 Dealer’s Boxcar              85.00

            6-19989           2000 Toy Fair Boxcar              55.00

A Tribute to Bill Moffit

Bill Moffit had a life long relationship with trains.  As a boy he was thrilled by every new Lionel catalog.  As a young man, he and his new wife, Lilli, toured Europe and often traveled from one place to another over some of the most advanced rail systems anywhere.  On a tight budget, they sometimes even found a place to sleep on trains that ran throughout the night.  Bill found a career in computer programming but he often dreamed of owning his own toy train store, and with the passage of time, he realized that dream in Reno, Nevada, at 1229 East Fourth Street.  He called it Reno Rails.

             Bill and Lilli worked hard to turn a dilapidated Chinese restaurant into a fledgling O Gauge train store.  Kitchen appliances were removed, walls and ceilings were renovated, and a new roof and new flooring were added.  Display cases were purchased and eventually the parking lot was paved.  Reno Rails was on its way to becoming a very well known train store in the local community and beyond.  All this started eleven years ago.

 Early on, Bill developed a special relationship with Mike Wolf, founder of MTH Trains.  He saw in this new start up a reflection of is own desire for innovation and more variety, and he found Mike Wolf's enthusiasm intoxicating.  Although Bill had many manufacturers represented in his inventory, he reserved a prominent place for MTH Trains.

            As time passed, Reno Rails became an authorized MTH service center.  To this day Reno Rails takes pride in featuring a full line of MTH products, and MTH trains are serviced on a limited basis by another MTH enthusiast, Doug Van Pool, an authorized MTH repairperson. Of course, Reno Rails also features Atlas, Lionel, Weaver and products from a host of other O gauge manufacturers, as well as G Gauge products from Aristocraft, MTH, and USA Trains.  While 3-rail O Gauge is our primary focus, Reno Rails also features a limited supply of S-Gauge and MTH HO.

             Through the years Bill was assisted by a number of other toy train enthusiasts, including Bob Haynes, who was a long time player in the Reno toy train scene.  In those early days before Bill introduced us to DCS (MTH's digital control system), he was also often accompanied at the store by another old friend and companion, his basenji, Chester.  Later, Jim Wood and Matt Elems took responsibility for keeping the doors open so Bill could take a day off from time to time.  Bill Anderson started helping in the fall of 2009 and recently Jack McCartney came on board.

            When Bill Moffit passed away in January, suddenly and without warning, he left Reno Rails scrambling to maintain a steady footing.  Bill's enthusiasm and involvement in the train community had made him indispensable in the store's operation and he was seen as impossible to replace.  As the dust settled, it was discovered that Bill had laid the foundation for a lasting legacy, and his life long partner, Lilli, would continue it.

            Bill's last Christmas season was one of his best.  The store was often filled with excited parents and children looking for a way to enter the world of model railroading or grandparents looking for a way to revive memories of a distant past, and Bill was there to give them direction.  Bill was not just a salesman, he was a booster and mentor whose customers became his friends.

Today we remember Bill with a sense of gratitude for the hours he spent making our lives a little brighter and we envy him for the enjoyment he found in his trains, and for realizing the opportunity to share his enthusiasm with so many of us who remain behind.  Reno Rails will always be Bill's Toy Train Store.

             We invite you to share your memories of Bill by bringing in pictures of your train layouts.  We are making plans for a revolving display of pictures and comments in the store.

            Also, we encourage all our friends to join one of the many toy train clubs.  The oldest and most respected is the TCA, or Train Collectors Association.  They are the club which sponsors the famous train meet in York, Pennsylvania, in the fall and spring.  Recently there was an article in the TCA Quarterly that mentioned MTH's participation in the Nuremberg Toy Fair, Europe's largest; and updates the situation with LGB.  The advantages of membership are many: they include a venue where

1.   there is an opportunity to make new acquaintances with similar interests;

2.   there is a forum for  sharing information and/or expressing views;

3.   there is a chance to attend shows or special events;

4.   there is a way to keep in the know about current product development;

5.   there is a market place where you an buy, sell, or trade trains;

            MTH, Lionel, and others also have company-affiliated clubs, which advertise and review new products and update you on how to troubleshoot when problems arise.

            Reno Rails participated in National Train Day on May 8, 2010 with a demonstration and display at the old Southern Pacific (now Amtrak) station in downtown Reno.  It was a big success and attended by many locals and tourists alike. A special thanks to Bill Anderson, Jack, Eugene, and Tim at Amtrak for making our participation possible!

            We have a complete selection of all the latest MTH and Lionel catalogs including the new Lionel Corporation Standard Gauge catalogs by MTH.  We encourage you to take good care of these beautiful catalogs, as they are themselves “collector's items” and valuable sources of reference. 

            Finally, we would like to thank those of you who have requested to purchase new Virginia and Truckee items from MTH.  As many of you may know, Bill used his relationship with Mike Wolf to foster the production of V&T rolling stock.  Please keep in touch with us as we expect this to be a limited offering and to sell out our allotment very quickly.  We realize that some of you may have experienced some frustration as we transition from Bill's unique organizational style and we ask for your patience.

            At Reno Rails, we are committed to being your train store and providing you with the best service possible.  

            In the spirit of Bill Moffit, all of us at Reno Rails wish you a Happy Fourth of July and a year filled with the rewarding experience of being a model railroader.