Ebay Advice...

[trainwhiz20]

Hey, guys...

Need some advice on HO trains value on ebay.com... I'm new to buying stuff over the web. Those LHSs just got to expensive for what I can afford on a $10 a week allowance.

I've done some pretty good research, and came across what I thought were steals on ebay for their retail price. What do you guys think? Are they worth it?

Here's each one with a comment:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=484&item=5924319950&rd=1

Couplers are a little messed up, but that's an easy fix (I use Kadee, and some of the cars have those horrible horn-hooks.)

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=38272&item=5924177608&rd=1

Nice superliners. Considering one sells for $20, I can get four for $25. Using them on my 24" curves will be tight, but they will look awesome on a club layout. Now all I need is that P42...

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=5923974399&ssPageName=STRK:MEBI:IT

These two GP30's are a tad bit beat up, but nothing a little TLC can't fix. For $40, I get two powered locomotives for my ATSF freight fleet. (I model 1950's era Santa Fe). I have an Atlas Master DCC system I haven't hooked up yet, so I'm wondering if I should ask Dan to put in a decoder in engine 3208 (looks less beat up than 3200).

And yes, I'm the current high bidder on all three of them. What do you guys think? I mean, for a kid my age, I think these are great deals, considering that I don't have that much money!

Thanks guys! I value your thoughts... :D

[BoxcabE50]

I sell regularly on eBay. Have done so for over seven years. Railroad, albeit, mostly non-model items.

Before bidding, always read the entire page carefully. Check photo(s), description, payment, shipping, and insurance terms. Look at the sellers Feedback rating.

Surf eBay to see at what prices other similar items usually sell. Then set an absolute maximum to bid. Stick to it. If not the winner, chances are that on eBay, another similar deal will come along.

If you have any questions, contact the seller. If unclear, re-contact for clarification. If not satisfied with the response, or none is received, do not bid. If you have any doubts, do not bid.

It's always nice to get a great deal. Many of us must also stretch our hobby dollars! You are not alone in having a tight budget!

As long as you are happy with what you receive, little else matters!

:D

Boxcab E50

[Alan]

Excellent advice above. I do a lot of business on ebay, both buying and selling, and have never had problems.

As is said above, if you have any doubts whatever on the item or seller - do not bid, another one will come along ;)

[trainwhiz20]

Thanks guys. Appreciate it.

What do you think of the actual equipment I'm bidding on?

[Alan]

I don't have any experience with the first two items, but the GP30's are a snip at the current price :D

[2slim]

Whiz,
If you can hold out on your bids, I'd say you'll make out fine. The critical time to watch a auction is in the last few minutes, don't let yourself get sucked into a bidding war. Like Boxcab said know the absolute most you would pay for each item(s) and if the bidding goes past that then just wait around, another will pop-up sooner or later. Good luck and let us know how you do!

2slim :D

[disisme]

indeed whiz...as 2slim says, do NOT bid until the last day. If you see something you want, "watch" it until the last hour or so. if its still under your maximum, then bid through the range up to your max (just to knock off the guy who counter bids...and they will). If you still dont win it, dont cry....another one is just around the corner.

[Mike Sheridan]

I bought a couple of items on ebay.co.uk recently and found that you can put your maximum bid in but ebay itself will automatically bid just enough to keep you as high bid up to that maximum (like external services such as Auction Stealer work). No need to keep checking - and less temptation to get carried away in a bidding war graemlins/nono.gif .

I don't know if this system exists on ebay.com, but may be worth checking out.

[BoxcabE50]

Originally posted by Mike Sheridan:
I don't know if this system exists on ebay.com, but may be worth checking out. It does. Has actually been there all along. When you enter a bid, IF you are thereafter high bidder, should another member bid, their system will proxy bid for you up to the maximum amount you've entered. If outbid, you'll receive a notice. And if there's time remaining, if you so desire, you can try rebidding.

:D

Boxcab E50

[Derek]

Same advice from me.

I don't generally bid until the last hour or so either, but proxy bidding, if you don't want the excitement lol, allows you to just stick your max bid in there anytime.

I don't know about the Budd cars but the superliners look like a good deal. I have a bunch of those same ConCors and they've served me fairly well. The GP30s look like a good deal too.

And one thing I always try to remember, just as disisme says, there is never a 'best' deal on ebay. Sometimes I think I've found something I've got to have, but I know if I wait a few days, or weeks, there will ALWAYS be another deal...

[trainwhiz20]

Yeah, I know there will always be another deal. Thanks for all the advice. I forgot to post this, but I just won a bid:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=5923656608&ssPageName=STRK:MEWN:IT

Set of 7 nice Athearn cars, $12.99 each/retail. Not to shabby. They'll look great behind my ATSF Bachmann 2-8-0! Not to mention they'll be here in a few days!

My next goal is an Amtrak superliner train. (They are soooo cool...) So far, I'm doing pretty well on those Con-Cor cars, but I have a squirmy feeling that someone will outbid me cause that price is too good to be true. Now I just need to find a nice engine for the cars, assuming I can pull of a win on those 4 babies...

(Maybe one of the nifty lookin' Dash 8-32BW's for a loco? Does Athearn make that? DCC? Too bad none are on ebay... :( )

Thanks guys! Keep it comin!

EDIT: BTW, lost the GP30's. Someone bidded over 50 dollars one day before the auction was over. I'm not to disappointed about it, actually. I didn't want to spend a ton of money on them (however, it was a good deal...) I decided to turn in a different direction and use that money for an Amtrak Superliner train...

[jasonboche]

More times than not, I've seen that if a deal looks too good to be true, it probably is and you can almost count on someone driving up the bid. That's the way auctions work. Sometimes you can really do well for yourself if you catch people sleepin, but it's not very often and it's out of your control.

The GP30's are nice. I have 5 or 6 of them myself in ATSF paint. They are LifeLike P2K locos and IMO they are good runners. However, they run a bit slow. Don't expect them to break any speed records.

Each decoder will cost you 2 weeks allowance.

Jas