Q: Does The Original Whistle Stop have a printed catalog?
A: Sorry, we do not have a printed catalog. Our online catalog of unique brass equipment, railroadiana and books, etc. is updated weekly. By the time we would get it printed and out to you, it would already be very out of date. While we do not list all of the items we have available in the store, we do have available all of the items from the Walthers catalog and can special order items from manufacturers all over the world.

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Q: What is the fastest way to get an answer to a question I might have about products at the Original Whistle Stop?
A: The fastest way to get an answer is to call the store during our business hours at (626) 796-7791. Electronic mail takes longer as it is answered offsite and faxes will be answered quickly but not as quickly as a phone call. Note: As of June 1997 our area code changed to 626.

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Q: Can I get specific info on an item from your online catalog?
A: YES! We would be happy to tell you anything from the length of the model, the color scheme or even the number of rivets on the tender or other questions you might have about other items like books or memorabilia. Just call us during our business hours at (626) 796-7791 or you can email your questions to Trainmaster@TheWhistleStop.com. Finally, you can send us a fax at (626) 796-7566. (Electronic mail and faxes do take a little longer though) Note: As of June 1997 our area code changed to 626.

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Q: Can I save the catalog and view it on my computer "offline"?
A: While we don't recommend this because we update our catalog frequently, almost all browsers contain a menu item to "Save Page as..." you can then select "Source" to be able to reopen the file in your browser or "Text" to be able to open the file in your word processor. We recommend that you select "Whole Catalog" option if you wish to save the catalog offline. (See below for reasons to do each) (We are sorry, but we are not setup to handle more specific questions about using your browser, please check with your internet service provider or browser software developer)

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Q: Can I search for a specific item in the catalog?
A: We do not currently support online catalog searches but there are several other options. It is best if you open the "Whole Catalog" option to make sure you are searching the complete catalog and do not miss part of the catalog or need to go back and search each section separately. Most browser software includes a menu option "Find" which will allow you to enter a word or phrase and the currently open page will then be searched for that phrase. You can also save the catalog as text as discussed above and search the text using your favorite word processing program. (Again, we are sorry, but we are not setup to handle more specific questions about using your browser, please check with your internet service provider or browser software developer)

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Q: Does the Whistle Stop offer repairs and custom model work?
A: Yes! WE have a complete repair and paint shop as well as customer model work available. We deal with ALL scales and ALL types of models. We can even restore older tinplate trains. If you have questions about our entensive custom services, please call us. Every model is different. The more deatil you provide in your description of a custom project, the more complete we can be in telling you how we can make it happen.

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Q: What do all the codes in the catalog mean?
A: Here you go, here is the glossary of abbreviations in the catalog files: b/u - built up
b/w - black and white
c/b - custom built
c/f - custom finished (plated car)
colr - color
c/p - custom paint
f/f - factory finished (plated car)
f/p - factory paint
n/a - not applicable
nob - no original box
nojk - no jacket
n/p - no paint
o/b - outside braced
r/s - red and silver
s/b - scratch built
sgnd - signed
w/o - without

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