I’m looking to find some out of production modern rolling stock models. Does anyone know of places to find na dbuy a variety cool out-of-production stuff besides E-Bay auctions?
Thanks for the input!
You never know what you’ll find at a train show. Google “train show virginia” to find one around you. It may be a few months before the next one, but they’re worth going to. Look carefully at the schedule - I’ve found old sites this way with announcements for shows that happened years ago.
Are you looking for something specific, or just generally older models? For an exact match, you may find that e-bay is the best way to go.
Train shows, large, old, dusty hobby shops, Jay’s Trains, and estate auctions.
Sometimes large internet discounters, like Discount Trains Online and Trainworld. Careful, all those quality control problems have to end up somewhere.
Remember, we all do not live in cities, and do not have access to train shows or LHS, so the internet is about the only source, we do need a site that sells used train stuff (not an auction)
For items that have been OOP for only a year or two, Trainworld (www.trainworld.com) and M.B. Klein (www.modeltrainstuff.com) have a lot of closeouts they buy from manufacturers at the end of a run.
From Virginia you are within range of visiting the Great Scale Model Train show in Timonium, MD (MD State Fairgrounds). The October 11-12 show will likely be somewhere around 600 tables of scale model train items.-
There are also some shows in the Norfolk, VA area, but for breadth of selection, the Timonium show is hard to beat.
Bill
Shawnee,
I have just found what I think is a better place for finding that hard-to-find stuff than Ebay. It’s a Yahoo Group called “HOYardsale”. People there post what they want to sell or what they are looking for. You email the buyer or seller and deal with him directly, no bids, no one outbidding you at the last second, no hassle.
Just join the group and post a message stating “WTB (want to buy) whatever” and see if someone doesn’t answer. It’s free and it’s been working for me.
jcopilot
Google: Golf Manor Hobbies
Well,try the classified ads in the back of MR and RMC.Drive to a nearby train show-be sure to look under the front of the dealers table.
If possible check around for use equipment at your local club or local hobby shop.
Wonder why eBay wouldn’t be the best choice? It is a worldwide marketplace, and there will be more items there than any other site. Plus you have the protection of eBay and PayPal, while maybe not the best, would be better than nothing. Imagine finding something you want on a Yahoo Group site, then sending the money. If you don’t get your item you have no recourse.
eBay has a “want list” where you can list items you are interested in, and they will notify you when they become available. Also with the search feature you can see what items have sold for in the past while, to gauge the prices.
Too many bidders with too much money driving prices up beyond a reasonable level+some ridiculous shipping charges.(just saw a place selling Floquil paint. $4/bottle. $8.95 S&H!!)
Bob A lot of the so called “e-Bay deals” can be beaten by buying use or at train shows if one is willing to haggle…
I seen to many items go far above what they could be bought for from on line shops or from a private seller.Of course these high prices are good for the sellers and a poor choice for the buyer that may have paid more then the going street price.
And that e-bay “want list”…A guaranteed way to set yourself up for a higher starting bid and end price.Again good for the seller bad for the bidder who now has to bid against other bidders that is looking for the same item.
For sure local train shows are probably the best way for everyday things, but the original poster asked about hard to find, out of production items. One would have to visit a whole lot of shows to be able to find some stuff, and attending shows isn’t without costs - transportation, gas, food, etc., all to save a few bucks. And this assumes there are shows near where one lives.
You can search eBay in the comfort of your home and pick and choose what to bid on. Not everything is overpriced, and even if it might be, if you want something bad enough what it is the problem? If things are going for more than you want to spend, just keep on looking; most everything comes around again. I watched auctions for a camera lens for several months, finally got a like new one for half the price I would have paid for it locally. Most auctions up to that time closed at or above retail prices, so I passed until I made my score.
I haven’t used eBay’s want list, but assume they just send you e-mails letting you know that your item is up for auction. You can follow the auction and bid if you want.
if you want to name your own price & buy sight unseen - Ebay auctions.(but know what you’re buying.
If you want to ‘haggle’ - garage sales/ Flea markets/ Swap meets.
New ‘in-box’ merchandise - Mail ORDER
CASH & CARRY - LHS
(in the desending order of risk, and cheap).
As stated - train shows are good as well as the 'bay.
However - when I returned after a long hiatus from the hobby. I soon found that I had unknowingly missed Kato’s release of the CN C44-9 's (my favourite loco type)
I merely started buying up a half dozen undecorated units over the next year or so and solicited a couple of great painters to paint some up for me. Different numbers than what the factory releases were. I met these individuals by seeing their work in the various RR forums. Costly …not really… as these are beautiful custom painted units. My reward was twofold. I made some very good friends within the Model Railroad community who still do painting for me and still use their services - and have these one of a kind locomotives.
As for the releases from Kato - I ended up getting all the factory release #'s in the CN herald in some sweet deals on the auction site.
There is a shop in Lafayette, Indiana, Hawkins Rail Supply or something like that… they have tons of older stuff. Because of your location, you would have to go the mail order route, but if there are some “gotta have” things that you are looking for, I’d try Jack. He’s friendly enough will help you out if he can.
You can look him up on the web… just do a web search for Hawkins rail supply.
dlm
Thanks for the heads up about the Timonium show. I’m going to go to it. Actually never been to a train show before, should be interesting for me and the kids.
The problem I have with E-bay is, I always get sniped. If there is anything really cool, just get tired of either the price being driven through the roof to the point of ridiculousless, or being sniped after a few days of honest bidding by a last second bid that is like a a few cents more. Very frustrating, and unless you have time to track the buys, well E-Bay is a rough place to buy out-of-production stuff. Getting tired of E-Bay. Going to go to a show, yeah that’s a good idea…
Ebay comes with risk. Deal with it - or shop elsewhere.
- It’s a ‘dumping ground’ - good and bad.
2.Know what you’re buying.
3.Sellers want as much as they can get, You want cheap as you can get. If so, greed is alive & well - on both sides.
It’s ‘Pot Luck’. (Caveat Emptor). Deal with your fellow man.
Shawnee,
What type of OOP kits are we talking about? Are we talking Lytler and Lytler, Yorke and Columbia Valley? Or are we talking about more common production stuff that is more recently out of production?
As Bob B. points out, it can be hard to find real rare stuff at shows. It does happen, but you have to go to lots of shows to find stuff. I have seen high prices at shows as well, when the item is available.
Simple solution to your aversion to Ebay snipers: Become one. Go to auction stealer or any of the other free sites and sign up. I used to get sniped at the last minute myself, since using these sites, I am able to get stuff at a fair price by playing the game. If the item is real rare, you will still pay top dollar, but sometimes you get lucky…As Bob points out, stuff does tend to come around again and again over time.
Guy
It’s Hawkins Rail Services. Web site is: http://www.hawkinsrailservices.com/.
The website contains contact information. However there is no “e-commerce”. Looks like you’d have to call him and ask if he has what you’re looking for.