Donations & FAQ

The Flagstaff Model Railroad Club is an IRS 501(c)3 non-profit organization.

We accept donations of model trains, model train accessories, railroad documents, and railroad photos.  We DO NOT BUY model trains or any other railroad items.  Donated items may be used in a number of ways.  Items that can be used on our model railroad layout are refurbished and put into operation.  Complete small train sets in new or excellent condition are donated to other charities or raffled off at public events.  We also put together starter train sets and sell them as a fundraiser at our public events.   Items that we cannot use are sold at model railroad swap meets to raise funds for our club.

Donations can be dropped off after 7pm on Thursday evenings, during one of our open houses (2nd Saturday of the month, except August, 10am-12pm), during the Coconino County Fair, or contact us on Facebook.

Frequently asked questions…..

WILL YOU BUY MY MODEL TRAINS? – No.  We do not offer to buy model railroad items. We are very specific about items we buy for our model railroad layout, and we budget for various projects that have specific requirements.  We do not have excess funds that would allow us to buy items that are randomly offered for sale.

CAN YOU CONNECT ME TO SOMEONE WHO WILL BUY MY TRAINS?  No.  We can point you to our Events page that lists upcoming model railroad swap meets.  We can also recommend trying an online auction site.  However, we caution you that just because you have “old” trains, they are probably not worth what you hope they are worth.

CAN YOU APPRAISE MY TRAINS OR TRAIN COLLECTION?  No.  We are not model train appraisers.  But to repeat from above, in most cases folks seem to have trains that they have inherited from relatives who have passed on, or given up the hobby, and everyone thinks model trains must be worth a lot, especially when discovered in an attic inside a dusty old box.  In truth, you probably are not going to get much when trying to sell.

WILL YOU ACCEPT A MODEL RAILROAD LAYOUT AS A DONATION?  It depends on the size.  We can accept small layouts that are portable….we refurbish these and offer them for sale, raffle, or donation.  For large, fixed layouts, we will accept anything removable, but we cannot offer to dismantle the layout and remove the materials.