FWIW, I think you're making a mistake trying to sell all at once.  You'll get less than 50 cents on the dollar for what you could get selling individually or even in smaller lots.  Very few people want a whole collection, mostly dealers.  Dealers don't pay anything close to retail, they want to make a profit as well.

I totally agree with john,
It'll take a little more effort on your part but it will more than pay off in the long run.
The buy/sell here will be one of your best bets because of no seller fees
David

I'd say any offers would be way less than $.50 on the dollar.  The potential buyer will figure that you are selling under duress and that in order to sell more quickly, you will take less money.  As others stated, You'd be better served to piece things out.

It can also be hard to take an all or nothing approach.  Maybe you could hold onto enough to have some trains to run.

Is this your layout Daniel?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0N8vBSxg4qE

Its quite nice and the Super O Trackwork is terrific!

Problem is, you have to tear all that up, so all the work that went into laying the track and doing the scenery is of no value to a potential buyer.

In our area, we are accustomed to buyers wanting less than half retail so they can potentially double their money or break even later.

Having said that, I would suggest you break the whole thing down into sections. Engines as a group until finished and move on to another part of your collection.

It takes a long time to properly dispose of a Collection. I have done so twice before on the Bay (Figuring in ten % over ask for fees plus actual shipping) Most of the sales came in round 35 to 45% retail with exception of a few Out of Production items that were fought over creating 5x or greater profit.

It is nice to be able to sell and buy here, I do so both ways on occasion.

The forums have been designed so that you can photo an item and upload it direct without the Youtube or third party hassle.

Good luck!

another one bites the dust we should call this the liquidation forum.. sit back an take a deep breath, an try to come up with a better plan that will be benifical to you and your needs.. good luck

Daniel - We should chat. Please contact me at: hspanier@aol.com

not only all of the above, but this is a terrible time to sell.   bottom of the market, train prices are very low historically.   gosh, if there is any way to find an alternative, i would look for it.  

Daniel,

Sorry you are in a situation to have to liquidate; I have enjoyed your Super O layout on YouTube for some time and you should be proud of what you created. But I also understand the economic realities of life, too.

I agree with others that you need to do this incrementally and not as one entire collection.

Super O track fans (of which i am one) will appreciate your track and switches far more than collectors/operators who do not have the same interst in or passion for Super O. There is a healthy market for Super O on _Bay and you would also find plenty of interested buyers here on the forum's buy and sell. Think carefully before accepting an offer from the first person who makes a bid on the Super O; competition is always the best determinant of real value when you are selling.

Our fellow forum member Mike Spanier is an acknowledged Super O historian, advocate and buyer and seller of all things Super O and he could possibly advise you as to what your Super O track and components are worth. I do hope that you can see the wisdom in keeping some degree of your collection, however, if only a modest loop or two of Super o and several favorite engines, etc.

Best of luck.

Mack

If it were mine. I would break it all down, take tables at train shows. There are a heck of a lot of them in PA. You could also take tables at York in Oct. and sell them there. If you put fair prices on them, they will sell. I took tables at York more than 50 times & cleared my table every meet because I put prices on the trains that I new people would buy them. 

SIR-HOJACK HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD ABOUT SELLING YOUR TRAINS.THEIR IS A FLOOD OF PRODUCT OUT THERE.ARE YOUR TRAINS IN USED CONDITION-YOU WILL GET EVEN LESS.

I'VE BEEN SELLING TRAINS FOR 15 YEARS AND HAVE NEVER SEEN THE SELLING MARKET

THIS LOW-GREAT IF YOU ARE BUYING TRAINS.

TRY BUY/SELL BOARD ON THIS FORUM-YOU HAVE NOTHING TO LOSE.EBAY CHARGES A

LISTING FEE -A 9 PERCENT SELLING FEE AND PAYPAL GETS 3.5 PERCENT.I WILL NOT SELL

ON EBAY ANY MORE-SURE WILL BUY

YOU COULD CONTACT CHARLIE SIEGEL OF TRAINCITY.HE IS ALWAYS LOOKING FOR NICE

COLLECTIONS.

WISH YOU LUCK-ONE DAY MOST OF US WIL BE GOING THRU THIS-JOE

Wow, that would be a Major shame to tear down a layout like that, especially knowing how little you are likely to get, if you really are determined to sell it as a single lot.

 My first advice: FIND ANOTHER WAY TO FIND THE MONEY.

 If that really isn't an option, if you are close enough to York, and can wait until October, getting some tables would likely give you the best return on your collection. You will probably need nearly until October to dismantle, prep and price everything.

Selling as a single lot will most likely surprise, and disappoint you, on the offers you will likely get, You do have a nice collection, BUT how many people are going to be interested in EVERYTHING in your collection? Out of that number of people who might be interested in EVERYTHING in your collection, seriously, how many are going to be able to afford to offer you more than MAYBE 15% of it's value, all in one lump sum?

 It is Sad that you have to sell your collection, but if it must be done, and you hope to put a dent in those wedding bills, you will really need to Man-Up, and put the EFFORT into selling it piece by piece. A large show will give you the best return, in a short time. Price your items to sell, and they will, be unrealistic, or sentimental, and you will be taking them home.

 Prices are really down right now, keep that in mind, I recently bought on the bay, a Brand New in the Box, Lionel Tradtional Union Pacific 4-6-2 with TMCC, for $110.00 plus $16.00 shipping, and was the ONLY bidder.

I am Very Sorry to hear of your predicament, and Wish You Much Luck,

Doug

If you have any more daughters who might be thinking of getting married anytime soon, I would tell them the bank-of-dad is closed.

I finally had to spell that out for my kids. Haha.

Rod

I also marvel at the cost of weddings.  My former business partner spend over $50,000 on his daughter's wedding, it lasted about 5 years.  That's a pretty expensive annual outlay for something like that!

This is a interesting time in the USA. Not good, not bad. Just reminds me of post Bretton Woods era. But we did not have the high wages we enjoyed then. (Or the industry with just about everything automated online these days.)

DOESN'T COSCO OR SAMS SELL COFFINS NOW-IN ANOTHER 20 YEARS THEY MAKE US

INTO SOLVENT GREEN WAFERS.REMEMBER THE MOVIE

EVERYONE IS *****ING ABOUT THE COST OF A WEDDING AND FUNERAL-YET-NOT A

GRIPE ABOUT THE PRICE OF OUR TRAINS.WE DO LOVE OUR TOY TRAINS.

Challenger, they are already half way there. Funeral Parlors now are receiving licenses to dissolve the body into fluid that is suitable to simply send down the drain.

As far as the weddings go, ours was about 100 dollars all done including meals at reception. A real simple one. (Yes, in a church with family, not in front of Judge)

I HOPE WHEN THEY DESOLVE OUR BODIES DOWN THE DRAIN WE DO NOT GO INTO THE DRINKING WATER SUPPLY-HARD WATER.LIFE IS GOOD.

Wafers, Joseph.  Wafers.  Don't worry about the water.

We didn't have a big wedding and spent the money on our honeymoon instead. That was our decision. I think Dan's decision to give his daughter a big wedding was a good one if that's what they wanted. He didn't ask for our opinion about the wedding. He asked how to dispose of his collection. Only on this Forum is it possible to go from disposing of a train collection to dissolved bodies going down a drain.  Don

Don, if Dan did not wish to talk about it he would not of mentioned it.

It is AMAZING how train collectors can stick to a topic on the OGR forum.  And to think, Rich and Allan are archiving everything for future train guys!!!!  Word is bound to spread...

Complete collection on the buy/sell board now at a give away price!

Gunny

  It's cremation for me.  Scatter my ashes around Baltimore's Penn Station--one of my old hangouts.

  On second thought, make it Mt. Royal Station, which is a few blocks away.  I attended and graduated from the Maryland Institute College of Art, which now owns it.  Spent a lot of hours down by the tracks there.

    You didn't mention where you live or the quality / size of your collection, but: as you may know, there are a number of auctioneers in the midwest & northeast (and possibly others around the country) who specialize in liquidating large train collections & store inventories, including:

   Greg Stout, in Indiana & PA; Kathy Maurer, near Reading, PA; Lloyd Ralston in CT & New England Toy Train Exchange, also in CT. If you want e-mail addresses, feel free to e-mail me anytime: dkuehnem@stny.rr.com 

   An advantage to using an auctioneer who KNOWS TRAINS should result in higher prices, & they'd take everything - rather than "cherry-picking" your collection for the best items.

   Ebay remains an option, but selling a large collection one piece at a time, listing, packing & shipping every item can take months; I've seen some large collections posted on Ebay, but few guys can spend tons of $$ at one time to buy a complete collection. 

My parents offered me $5,000 to elope

Seriously though, unless you are not enjoying the hobby anymore, I would try to find another way to pay for the wedding (or at least hang on to your favorite items)

Ask RockyMountaineer (David) how long it takes to sell a bunch of stuff!   He's been working on it for several months, and I just picked up some stuff this morning from him.  Looks like a shipping depot there, it's a lot of work!

Like anything you get out what you put in. If you're willing to do the work, you'll get a better return. If the amount of work isn't worth it to you, you'll get a sub par return.

Good success can be had on the buy sell forum here, if you're willing to work at it and go through some of the ridiculousness of listing a $50.00 item and getting emails asking if you'll take $46.00.

I liked your layout video on YouTube! I hope you will not need to do this-and that you will find another avenue. Regards

Bob Di Stefano