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Post by Traindiesel! on Feb 16, 2022 4:45:45 GMT
Have you checked the D56 prices on " A Christmas Story " and " the Grinch " series prices on those are through the roof.
Except for the buildings I bought.
where other than E bay is a good source for D56 ?
Bruce..
Department 56 Dealer Locator
And here is a list of their Platinum Dealers. From the website: These retailers provide the ultimate in selection including current and hard to find retired products. Consider visiting one of these retailers or shop one of their websites with honored reputations. Platinum Key retailers will have early or exclusive access to new Department 56 product.
Department 56 Platinum Dealers
And here's the website for the National Council of 56 Clubs:
National Council of 56 Clubs
And the Department 56 website where you can find replacement parts and retired items.
Department 56 Website
Hope this helps!!
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Post by stoshu on Feb 16, 2022 22:28:17 GMT
Have you checked the D56 prices on " A Christmas Story " and " the Grinch " series prices on those are through the roof.
Except for the buildings I bought.
where other than E bay is a good source for D56 ?
Bruce..
And here's the website for the National Council of 56 Clubs:
National Council of 56 Clubs
I went to the National Council site and the 3rd picture down showed a big display with " A TRAIN SET ! "They get it... Now comes the debate. Was was the first to do it. A train guy , or a Dept. 56 collector ?Let the screaming begin...
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Post by ptc on Feb 17, 2022 0:42:07 GMT
Tough question, Bruce, Most likely it was a train guy as they pre-date Department 56. I know as was one of the early intergraters, but waited until Christmas in the City was released in 1987. I dp not collect the first Village, the Original Snow Village as no doubt this is where it first happened.
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Post by david1 on Feb 17, 2022 1:07:35 GMT
When buying on ebay, lots of dept 56 items for sale but do your homework and you can get some good stuff at reasonable prices.
Here's how I do it:
Look for the item you want
Find 3 or more and save them in your watch list
Look for the best price and shipping cost
Make sure item has no issues like cracks or pieces missing
Buy the item that fits your likes and price range.
For instance there was a CIC Building I really wanted, most were in the $79-$89 range in like new condition, there were also 3 priced at $149.00 in new condition. Buy the one you can afford. Buying a new item is not important to me but condition and being complete is very important.
Other places to look for village pieces is shops, garage sales, thrift shops and many other places.
Dave
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Post by enon49 on Feb 17, 2022 16:21:03 GMT
I like “david 1” have a permanent year-round Christmas Layout – including 33 Dept 56 – Snow Village – North Pole Village – Christmas in the City – New England Village – Alpine Village Lemax – Menards (PTC’s recommendation) Cracker Barrell – CVS – 10 Tin houses, Christmas Cookies containers Included are seven Churches – I like video posted here of only churches - Christmas music - beautiful - I forget the name of the one who posted - The layout is eclectic - and that is an understatement - Trains are all O gauge - but after that - if I like it - I add it  |
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Post by Country Joe on Feb 17, 2022 22:18:58 GMT
I think that people who are Dept 56 and similar (like Lemax, etc) collectors/villagers are all potential O gauge hobbyists. Some may just want a Christmas themed train to bring action to their village but others might get bitten by the O gauge bug after seeing their first train running through their village.
The 2020 TCA annual convention that was to be held in Jacksonville, FL was a joint train/dept 56 affair but was cancelled due to the china virus.
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Post by dennym57 on Feb 18, 2022 15:00:46 GMT
Turns out I have three, but I think two are Lemax.
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Post by ptc on Feb 19, 2022 14:32:16 GMT
Almost every day., I hear from a Department 56 enthusiast that has recently added a train to their display or plan on doing it for Christmas 2022.
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Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Feb 19, 2022 19:44:22 GMT
  I think the two go together quite well and it is how we got started. 15 years ago we bought for Christmas a Polar Express set, 2 extra 10" straights, and a Dept 56 log cabin and church and set it up on a dining table for the grandkids. Had no idea what we were getting into. Through the years we've built bigger layouts including setting up a North Pole scene with Dept 56 items and most recently a loop we have in a bay window for Christmas season using Dept 56 Pine Isles buildings and Mill Creek river/ponds. Definitely a great fit for Christmas and winter scenes. Probably going to put up an around the wall layout in the basement this year, but moving away from Christmas and winter scene so likely go with o scale kits and the false front buildings.
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Post by ptc on Feb 19, 2022 20:30:44 GMT
This image is magazine quality, Bob. What a terrific display. Please send this photo to Roger Carp at CTT.  |
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Post by Adam on Feb 19, 2022 21:58:59 GMT
Enon49 and Bobm, fantastic photos! This beauty of D56 buildings is just so clearly obvious in your images.
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Post by Adam on Feb 19, 2022 22:28:31 GMT
Simple scene with a D56 cottage style shop that I added to the corner of my layout recently. I need to tone down the lighting a bit but I like the way it is coming together.  |
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Post by ptc on Feb 20, 2022 0:05:21 GMT
One of the original seven Dickens Village buildings, Adam.
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Post by Adam on Feb 20, 2022 0:09:07 GMT
One of the original seven Dickens Village buildings, Adam. Ahh, good to know. I would never have known that. Just something I found last year at a flea market for a good price.
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Post by stoshu on Feb 21, 2022 23:04:08 GMT
I went to a train show and picked up this water tower (it's lighted ). IT was made by Hawthorne Valley. I never really heard of them but the web site shows some pretty nice buildings. Seems they also have rights to Thomas Kinkade . It's worth looking at if there is something specific you are looking for.
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