Stouts auctions

I bought from Stout via online bidding for the first time last month. Everything went well and I can recommend bidding that way. Shipping was reasonable.

You can sign up online via their website, Live Auctioneers or Invaluable Auctions online. You may be able to bid through eBay, but I see that as mainly advertizing and would recommend singing up with Stout directly on their website.

Good luck.

Just remember, final bid, they add 19% to winners total. Plus unknown shipping charges. Also check feedback a lot questionable neutrals, and negatives.

I rather take my chances buying/bidding from a individual seller, then auctions by an auction house. They state no returns.

Wonder if they refund the 19% in case of a dispute?

I have purchased from Stout through their online auctions.  Descriptions of items have been accurate.  Shipping is reasonable and the items are well packed and arrive quickly.  As Josef mentioned, the buyer's premium can be expensive.  My experience has been that items sold through Stout tend to sell for more than you might pay elsewhere.  Know your limit and stay within it.

Jeff Davis

It's like every auction site, if someone wants it bad it goes too high.  I like bidding from Stouts site, I have tried bidding through ebay but it has a delay. You can  watch an item if you join the Stouts site.  I have had things shipped to me and I thought it was reasonable.  Lately I have been picking up (about an hour away) and I have have learned a lot. They love trains and they give me a history lesson and show me interesting items that sold and one's that are coming up in future auctions.   Last time I met Derick from Notch six.  

All in all I think they are worth getting into.  I do agree that it seems their items seem to go a bit higher when compared to E-Bay and especially our Buy/sell forum but they have a lot of stuff and by and large its in great shape.  Their descriptions are accurate and yes it is worth bidding through their site because it cuts delay time.  I have won a couple of things and in each case was pleased with the outcome.  Shipping was reasonable and I had figured in the 19% premium before bidding.  If you like trains and there are no shows/meets available I think its a good way to go. 

I'll agree that Stout prices realized seem to be higher than what happens on eBay or other types of sales. They do get quality entire collections to auction off, which may include some rare pieces that bring in the bidders.

What finally got me to bid at Stout was when they offered something I had spent years searching for, and I had to pay for it... But that's toy train collecting.

FYI: Payment by check or money order is 16%, which saves a little.

For run of the mill stuff, Stout may be too pricey. But for that rare item... ???

My limited experience so far is that unlike some other auction houses, Stouts is VERY well known - therefore, the prices reflect that.  If you sign up for Live Auctioneers, you can research historical auction prices - I've found that while some Stout auctions have been reasonable, they are typically higher attended - good for the seller, not so much for the buyer. 

that 19% surcharge keep me away. there is nothing I need that badly I have to pay a PREMIUM PLUS rate for.

I have bought several items from Stout in the past, at excellent prices, when they were handling it by themselves. Since they started using other sources it seems that their sale prices have been somewhat higher. All that I purchased were as described and rated. 

If your bidding on Stout through ebay, put your absolute highest bid in first. You will NOT be able to get in a second.

If you want to go the personal check route, ( and you can), it is 16%,  this information ( about Stout)  went, thru the gate, here on forum when that huge tin plate auction went across the board 2-3 months ago, & when they started posting on the e--- site.

As the posting mentions above  ( going the ebay route has produced revenue) I think this is whats happening, as I have seen some wild internet winnings, in the past 2- 3 auctions.  I have got a couple on watch list at Stout. 04/11

have done a bunch of reviewing some of the items, previously sold, either by a previous

Stout auction, or again thru the bay.  I' m kinda of thinking that if these go the route of outer space,  I will become a watcher only at some of the auctions, later,   but worry about buying , Nah,  just have to wait until April 11, when it all ends around 15:30.  They go about 55-70, and hour,  the Invaluable site really knows how to sell,  FAIR WARNING,this auction is ending, boom there goes another 25.00 higher.  Remember it is a business, model, that as it proceeds along:  Best can be said, is HATS OFF To GREG,

and the others and ENJOY. 

i purchased a 2 rail o scale from stout and was pleased with the description and the condition of the model. there were several items that i stopped bidding on because of the  additional bidding fee. i have bought 1000's of cars at auctions so i know when to stop and don't get "heated up" in a bidding war. auction fees are common place and should be accepted or else don't get involved. sellers on ebay pay 10% fees and 3% on all money collected including shipping and thats passed on to the buyer in the price .

the shipping charge was 20.00 and i thought that was more than reasonable as it included a new box and a large quantity of packing peanuts.

all i can say is any 2 railers out there don't bother with the Stout auction as i don't need the competition!!!lol 

Thank you all for your input.

I'm going to sign up on Stout's website for the 4/11 auction.

Well, I ended up not being avaialble to bid on anything (my daughter kept me busy!).  

Did any one here bid or bid and win any of the lots?

None of my bids for actual trains held up, but I did manage to win this!!  (Not sure why I bought it...LOL..one of those impulse things)  

- Mike

Hey, thanks for the background on that.  Very interesting....certainly in the future it'll be more fun to be able to tell people where this stool actually came from rather than just say, "I bought it at some auction."  Appreciate it!  

- Mike

Friend won a Mint K-Line 0-8-0 scale, everything including shipping came to under 200.00. He's satisfied and happy.

I had a rather unpleasant experience with Stout Auctions and would not use them again.    I believe I was scammed.    

Just to put this in context: Jim has had an axe to grind with us for over 2.5 years now. Despite repeated emails and attempts to satisfy him, he still takes every opportunity to try and publicly shame us. Every Stout Auctions thread that has been posted since that time period, Jim has seemed to find his way into. 

Good to see you again Jim. Glad you still haven't let it go. 

I was online watching it last week...........  moved pretty fast.   I put in 8 different bids and was un-successful in my bids.   Full disclosure,  I put some pretty low bids in just in case nothing got bids.  Boy was I wrong.    Good for Stout,  like to see that kind of activity for the hobby.

I can't imagine how you would scam,  just too many moving parts in the process from what I saw.   Most of the winning bids came for the "floor" which I imagine means onsite at the actual auction location.

I'll do it again............  I spent so much!  

I've had the opposite experience.  World class service and professional folks.  Conservative grading and in some cases item is better than described.

The quality of trains is one reason I keep returning.  I'll gladly pay a 'buyer's fee' when they have the items I want-saving me the time of searching on my own.  Honestly, some of the items I'd never find anyhow.

Extremely happy with all of my purchases and enjoy meeting new folks, some OGR members and looking at all the beautiful trains each month.

I thank them for their effort.

BTW, the stool from Train Express is awesome.  Would love to have it in my collection because TE wasn't far from me.  I bought trains there when I was 8 yrs old!

This has been my experience as well.  Nothing but good things to say about my Stout purchases.

Jeff Davis

The funny thing about the stool is that there were several train items I was interested in. I participated online in real time bidding on these....lost out on every one.  The stool was one of the last lots in the whole auction.  I didn't feel like sitting around the computer another hour and a half, so I just tossed in a bid amount, logged off and left to go do some errands.  Never expected my bid would hold up.  I was shocked to see later that evening that I had won!  Just goes to show, you never know.  LOL

I missed it as well because my Grandchildren were over.  I'm a little bit richer in a couple of ways due to their visit.

I was watching some lots, but they went early and the night before was a late night in the train room.  I was on a roll and didn't want to go to bed.  Late nights in the train room!!!

This was the first auction in 5 months that I didn't win.  I thought about bidding on the stool, but I have 10 Lionel ones. 

I noticed that TrainExpress had a lot of posters, are you going to be auctioning those?

The large catalog posters found a new home last summer down at TW Trainworx in Texas. 

Mike,

Congrats!  I'm glad I didn't know it was from TE as I did enough 'damage' that day!

That's one of the great things about auctions-you never know how they'll go!  Exciting.

Sometimes you get surprised your bid held.  Or, the opposite happens. 

I also like surprises you don't plan for because the 'price was right'! 

One lot blew me away at the opening bid on the floor-it'd been $140 an hr prior and 'on the block' it opened at $600! I thought the auctioner said sixty and had to ask for verfication. Sure enough $600. And, these weren't rare cars.  Wow.

I've enjoyed myself at Stout's and may add it to my 'must do' events each month.  Even if you don't win anything, it's still a great time.

A few years back thru Liveauctioneers and Stout I won a very nice Williams Cab Forward with TMCC. 

Shipping was a little high.

All was good until I tried running it.  Nothing worked.  It was graded C8 for appearance.  $200+  Later it was fixed by my LHS. 

It's just one of those CHANCES YOU TAKE if you really want it.  It hasn't stopped me from looking and bidding on a few things.  Currently the Stout site seems better and user friendly.

In the end I trust you guys more than them

Despite their protests, Stout auctions did NOTHING to fix a situation they created.    I had a valid complaint and their solution was to tell me if I paid another $50 above the bid I put in that was the highest bid, they could find the guy that they "awarded" the item to and he would sell it to me.   

Yes I have an ax to grind.   They said they are legally required to award to the highest bidder.   I was the Highest bidder by $20 dollars.  

their response was that they apologized and said they "lost my bid".   How do you loose an electronic bid?    

They never offered to replace the product or buy it from their "friend" the seller and award it to me. 

My past purchases from Stouts have always been exactly as described, care taken in

packaging of shipped items.

Bill, Former PRR ET Lineman

Guess I just found out what happened to the Train Express inventory.

I just looked it up one the web, looks like they found a good home.  A little bit of train express is everywhere.

I've found Stout to be the most consistent auctioneer in quality, descriptions and shipping. They do tend to get higher prices, but the above qualities certainly have something to with that.

I often use them to get the tougher pieces in my collection. Back in march they had an auction with 3 different Lionel Blue Streaks. I wound up with what I believe to be the nicest of the three. Very happy, and have already been offered $500 above my cost for the set. So I guess I got a very expensive "bargain". That's the fun.

Tim

I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw what items went for. As we all know, it is easy to get caught up in bidding  if there is something we want.  Easy to forget that 19% also.  The items look nice and I'm sure they are as described, but WOW! once the total is displayed with all the charges after they sold. 

Also, like someone else stated, it seems hard to get bids in and to understand the auction.  Maybe it's just me.   I think my computer is a bit slow as well. I'm sure that doesn't help.  I was furious for awhile while trying to bid, but thanked God after word that I couldn't effectively.  I was blow completely out of the water on what I would have spent for items and didn't want to get caught up in "the frenzy" and keep hitting   SUBMIT, SUBMIT, SUBMIT.   Then go beg the bank to pay for what I just did!

Just my experience, but they must be doing something right!

Matt

IMHO folks should clearly understand how Stout auctions work before bidding. I think they have a fairly good explanation on the site. To me, their operation is not appreciably different than the live auctions I've attended in person.
I've bid a few times, and won one lot. I did not have any problem getting my bids in. I could see where someone with a very old computer or a poor quality internet connection could have a problem

I was interested in one lot in particular in a recent Stout auction. I decided against bidding because I didn't think the pictures / description were sufficient. No different than any other remote (potential) purchase.

As for prices, no matter what the setting: train show, EBay, store, remote auction, live auction,  I know what I am willing to pay, and never go above it.

I participated in last weekend's Prewar auction. This was my first Stout experience.  All went well.  I must say it amazes me that such a breadth of items can sell at healthy prices -- there must be a lot of interest. The quality of the offerings I was interested in was very good and there were items I have been looking for that I hadn't found elsewhere.  Only trouble is having to bid/decide which to go after as i can't satisfy the wish list all at once!

We're just sharing experiences and opinions.  Friendly chatter.  If you are bored with it quit clicking on it.