Oh yeah, I did my usual Friday visit and saw those prices.   Wow.

So, is Mai Ming Lam's factory really, honestly closing?  Anyone know why?

thanks for the alert.

They are probably going to put all their efforts on their 1:18 line. Why fool around with $7.99 cars when you can sell cars for $38.99?

I just grabbed five models I didn't have before!  I gotta open a used car lot!  

Thanks so much Jerry for sharing this information.  May I add a little more....these are the same vehicles that I get locally for 2.00 and 3.00 each as I have referenced in earlier threads.  They are also available at the major auction site for less than the stated sales prices even when including shipping....so....you still may want to shop a little to see what others are selling them for as well.

Alan

Thanks for the heads up Jerry.  I'll stop by tomorrow on my way to Home Depot.

Alan wrote - "Thanks so much Jerry for sharing this information.  May I add a little more....these are the same vehicles that I get locally for 2.00 and 3.00 each as I have referenced in earlier threads.  They are also available at the major auction site for less than the stated sales prices even when including shipping....so....you still may want to shop a little to see what others are selling them for as well."

Yes Alan we know you get them cheaper but you've yet to share your source with us. 

Thanks for the heads up. Ordered a few cars on-line.

I heard the Yat Ming is outsourcing to some company that makes NASCAR models. They're called "Lionel" or something like that. 

Wild Mary....If you followed the last thread I had on these cars I did in fact offer to help folks on acquiring them.  The local store was contacted by several forum members and were told that he was not interested in packing and shipping the cars.  If you don't believe it, then look it up...the name of the store is D&T Bargain Center.  It is a flea market arrangement with individual booths owned by various vendors.  Anyway....I then posted I would make them available to those that would at least help me out in paying for packing and shipping costs.  I had one person from this forum that contacted me and then decided to buy from e-bay...??  That was fine with me....So please don't imply that I was not willing to share the info on the source.  All I am saying here is the prices in the sale above are available for less on the big auction site from several sellers.  Just trying to help you guys save even more money.....

Alan

By the way...I just went to the Yat Ming website and it appears they are only closing the domestic facility in the Atlanta area and transferring U.S. sales to O.K. Toys in Los Angeles.   So...it appears that Yat Ming itself is not closing and will continue to produce their product.  What is changing is the U.S. source for the product.  How this effects prices and availability is just a guess.....

Alan

Well, when all was said, and done, I thought the prices were pretty good at $5.99 for basic cars and trucks.  Plus Model Trains does not have very high shipping charges.  I ended up ordering eight cars and trucks from them, and three more from eBay.  I will use these to replace duplicates currently residing atop my two auto-carrier trains.  

So, if there is any interest out there, I will be offering my duplicates on the forum in the near future.  I think I'll price them at about $5.00 each (plus shipping)  

CORRECT!! Yat Ming is alive and well.....expanding recently in fact. But they are leaving US distribution to OK. It may affect mom-and-pop stores but may increase the availability overall and price will be the same or less with wider dist. Kinda a good news bad news thing. 

Alan, Where are you finding them so cheap and what vehicles?...the bay has them all over the $ range plus s/h, but none that cheap. 

I need an Edsal{never thought I'd ever say that}, Cobra coupe and maybe a few others depending on what your source has..I will pay for the shipping too...PM or contact me here if your offer is still valid and you have the time... 

BR....e-mail me from my profile e-mail and we will discuss...

Alan

THANKS JERRY, I also filled my garages.  "55 Crown Vic, "57 Turnpike Cruiser, "57 Bel Air and a "49 Coupe DeVille. 

I thought I knew everything Yat Ming made, but no . . . I was surprised when last Friday I came across a Yat Ming '54 Bentley Continental R coupe for sale.  It certainly was Yat Ming priced - around ten bucks, so I ordered it. 

So, is there anyway of changing the title of this thread in order to minimize a 'bad' rumor and avoid buy/sell hysteria???

This is the same sort of misinformation that (for a time) put one the OGR sponsors on the 'hot seat' for a rumored sudden change of policy in not selling through dealers...for which a simple phone call proved the rumor false...except for dealers who were not paying their bills (the rumor mill's 'fine print', apparently.)

Our (LHS) source of Yat Ming products (we sell them like popcorn through the Trains Dept.) sez what Alan (Leavingtracks) sez.  All's well in 'Threerailville'.

Pax nobiscum. 

Man I just figured to give you guys a heads up on the possibility of getting a few cars you might not have cheap. Didn't think it could possibly start a "bad rumor" or causing a "buy/sell hysteria" (for cheapy Yat Ming cars of all things). I don't see it as misinformation, it is MB Kleins  and they are calling it a Yat Ming Factory Closing Sale:

"Yat Ming has made scale model vehicles for over 30 years, sadly no run last for ever and they are going out of business.  These High Quality, detailed model vehicles are the last of our inventory of Yat Ming. This is your last chance to get it while it lasts, when it's gone it's gone."

Jerry

Jerry....Again, thanks for the heads up on the sale.  The fact is, according to the Yat Ming site, they are not going out of business.  What they are doing is closing the Atlanta location and turning over U.S. distribution to O.K. Toys.  M.B. Klein's info is not in agreement with what Yat Ming is saying....simple as that.

While 5.99 is not a bad price for their cars, there are plenty available at prices both above and below that price.

Still....it was very nice of you to let us know about the sale

Alan

It's kinda a POV thing......MB Kline's point of view is they may not be willing to conform to Yat Ming's new dist OK Dist. Thus for them Yat Ming is 'closing'. A better way to say it for MB may have been 'we are closing out Yat Ming' rather than Yat Ming is closing.......which seems to be incorrect. Just a POV.....

I agree with AMCDave that this is a legitimate "factory closing" and worthy of note.  I appreciate the alert he posted. 

Among Diecast brands, names and pricing strategies come and go but the tooling and even the factories often survive and resurface (e.g., White-Rose--> American Heritage).  I have every confidence we will see all of Yat Ming's offerings in the future - even the far future.  But I am not nearly so sure that we will Yat Ming or see them such things as that deliciously bashable and attractive '53 Mack B tractor-trailer at only $12, as offered now or with pricing that has made them, let's say, the K-Mart of diecast.

And apparently we won't see them at Klein for a while.

OK...last time.  THIS IS NOT A FACTORY CLOSING!!  It is a distribution center relocation.  Lee...if you looked it up, you would see that this is "Crossroads Distribution Center" in Duluth Georgia.  No one posting here is saying they are closing...only MB Klein is doing so.  I suspect because it may help in selling their inventory but it is not an accurate statement based on what the manufacturer is saying on their website.  Yatming is still in business and we will be able to continue to get their product at prices most likely close to what you can get currently....  Proof below....

Alan

Yat Ming Usa Inc

2625 N Berkeley Lake Rd Nw Duluth GA, 30096(770)495-6367

2625 N Berkeley Lake Road, Duluth, GA 30096

• <label>Rental Rate:</label>
  N/A
• <label>Property Type:</label>
  Industrial
• <label>Property Sub-type:</label>
  Warehouse
• <label>Building Size:</label>
  132,400 SF
• <label>Features:</label>
  • Electricity/Power

Last Updated  94 days ago Listing ID  16712678

Alan

     Thank you for the clarification. Once again the value of the truth is outweighed by the absurdity of interpetation. It looks like I will have another stop on my next trip to St Louis.

Ray Marion

Phew, for a while there I thought we were about to grant Yat Ming sainthood status along with Super-O track, K-Line, and Bandit Meets on Thursdays (did I forget anything?).