Pre-Order.

Model Railroader General Discussion (Model Railroader)
1

I know I had this topic awhile back. But I forgot. When a Hobby store says:Pre-Order. What does that mean? Thanks.

2

Order before it is available. Once it is in they ship it to you.

3

I pre ordered something in October that will be available in April at the soonest (hasen’t even gone into production yet). With items that will be extremely limited run, it is a good idea to pre order. If you pre order, just be sure that you really want that particular widget.

4

I’ve got 3 ONR loco’s on preorder that were suppose to be shipped in August, a set of ONR hoppers that are due this April and the second run of ONR Gondolas sometime this summer. Personally I really hate preordering but if you don’t do it on limited run items you will either miss out or end up paying double down the road.

5

And that you can still afford it when they debit your card for the amount, just before they ship it to you!

Ian

6

I don’t pre-order because there is a chance i won’t have the money for it when it comes in.

7

Great point! On this one I will just give them the cash up front. The Coach Yard hasn’t officially announced the price yet (estimate was $450), but I do have my name on one of those cars!!

8

If you pay 50% up front in order to secure the order, they will hang on to the item with good will until you can pay. Some places only need 10% to secure you and themselves, others want more. But, what I am suggesting is, ask them if you pony up half the cost now, would they be willing to wait for the other half and then send you the loco when you can scrape the cash. Clearly, they are not going to want to wait 18 months, but if you know the loco is within reach, you are not likely to spend the money on other things, but to save quickly and get it in your hands. The notice of arrival is a strong incentive.

Just a thought.

9

Thanks to all.

10

Not a bad idea, but i don’t know if my LHS pre-orders- I know they’re ordering the new SD40-2 anyway so if I’m there the first week of May I should be able to get them.

11

You need to call them and find out,I would! If you realy want them ,then you need to act now before it is too tate. Good luck.

12

Well i’m not worried- they had the H3 AC4400 “well stocked” this November when i got one. But i do love the BNSF “geometric triangle” I wish Athearn , Atlas, or KATO would make an ES44DC BNSF/ H3 the Tower55 is nice but $259 w/o DCC is a little steep for me.

13

I am now a little leary of pre-ordering items. Often, a LHS will tell you it’s a “limited run”. Later, you may find out that it is not so limited after all. I personally preordered an engine that I thought was going to be a limited run because the roadname was obscure. Today I can buy that same engine for $100 less than I paid for it. [banghead]

Remember, manufacturers create runs to account for what they think the market size is for a particular car/engine and roadname. Therefore, it’s logical to assume that there will not be any greater demand for one particular item over any other. So, my assumption going forward is that I will not purchase first run items if possible. I’ll always try to wait until I can purchase them through an internet vendor or on eBay.

[2c]