# Good friend's late father left behind a huge collection: Bachman, LGB, Magnus, etc.



## alheim (Dec 11, 2015)

First post, thank you for having me.

My good friend's father passed about 6 years ago, and he left his family with his huge collection of trains. He was quite the enthusiast. The photos that I am about to share hardly scratch the surface.

Most of the trains are brand-new, in their original boxes, never used. Some makes that I see in the photos are Bachman, LGB, Magnus (Handworks).

I think these are G Scale, mostly?

Many appear to be from limited-edition releases, and come with certificates of authenticity, serial number cards, etc.

We are trying to get a vague idea of the value of these items, and we'd like to gauge interest in the collection overall.

His wife would like to see the collection go away, and we'd like to see the trains go to somebody who cares. The collection is in New Jersey.

The full album of photos that we took last November 2014 is here: http://imgur.com/a/MWX6s

Any thoughts?


----------



## thedoc (Oct 15, 2015)

alheim said:


> First post, thank you for having me.
> 
> My good friend's father passed about 6 years ago, and he left his family with his huge collection of trains. He was quite the enthusiast. The photos that I am about to share hardly scratch the surface.
> 
> ...


If you are a member of EBay you could check and see what items like this are selling for, if you're not a member, I'm not sure if you can get that information. This would give you the lower end of the price range for individual pieces as people are buying from an internet auction and usually can't directly examine the items before hand. Also a collector buying the whole collection will make a low offer as they might intend to sell off some of the items to pay for the items they keep. Only a collector who wants everything will pay a higher price for everything.


----------



## alheim (Dec 11, 2015)

The rest: http://imgur.com/a/MWX6s


----------



## DonR (Oct 18, 2012)

Yes, it is G scale and an interesting collection. While it's not possible
in most cases to get anywhere near as much as these items originally cost,
since they are brand new and you have the original boxes you could
do better than if used.

I would suggest first making an inventory of what you have, using
the Make and model numbers from the boxes.

Take that list to as many local hobby shops as you can and discuss
the equipment with them. Pictures would help there also.
Some may want to buy the whole thing
to sell in Train Shows, or they may know individuals or clubs running
a G Scale layout who could be interested in indivual items. 

If, however, you don't find a buyer for the entire collection,
after you have checked prices on Ebay and
Amazon, you could list your inventory with a price per item or set, free here on
the Forum. You would want to state your policies on payment
and shipping.

But are your prepared to sell, wrap and ship individual
items? That may enter in any negotiations with dealers.

Don


----------



## alheim (Dec 11, 2015)

Thank you Doc and Don.

I am a relatively experienced eBay seller, but I don't think we are going to list & sell each one. It's not my collection, and the family won't want the hassle. They might even toss the set before they do that - hence my coming here - I don't want to see it trashed.

Possibly I could provide a more detailed listing of the trains on here per your suggestion.

What are we looking at, maybe $50 per train, for New Old Stock? More, less? Geeze, I think he paid $3k+ for a few of the limited-edition German sets.

I'm thinking those were a bad investment.


----------



## sjm9911 (Dec 20, 2012)

First, sorry for you loss. 
Now that is a lot of nice stuff, I know that usually large lots get 40 cents on the dollar. People have to resell them and it takes a large sum of money up front. To get the most money, eBay. I looked up some of that stuff , it is high end. A k 27 was listed on e bay in July for 3100, no buyers ( that I can tell) . Maybe sub it out to a listing agent? So, after e bays cut and the agents its less money but stress free. And you'll have the comfort of knowing that if it was really rare and desired it will bid up.


----------



## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Some nice stuff there, looks like my chance to get into G-scale!


----------



## mtoney (Oct 6, 2012)

There is a G scale shop in Zionsville, Indiana that will consign the collection and will get the family the best possible prices for the items. They are well versed in all G scale, including the very high end stuff like Magnus and LGB/Aster items. Give Rick Whitt a call at Zionsville Train Depot, (317) 733-8445. They have clients from all over the world, a recent LGB collection sold to a large Hotel overseas that is putting a large layout in thier atrium. Mike


----------



## Mister Bill (Jan 30, 2014)

I have settled a few estates, none involving railroads. The idea is to wind it up in a professional manner. If it was me, I would go to WalMart and buy a Model Railroader magazine. In the back there are classified ads. Some specialize in estate liquidations. You may get only 25 cents on the dollar. It is a problem and this is one way to solve the problem efficiently and without a lot of drama. There more people you talk to, the more confused you might become.

Shipping could be a beast, and the seller often pays.
Bill


----------



## Lemonhawk (Sep 24, 2013)

I use to live in Zionsville and the train store was a side business of his Christmas Tree selling during the holidays. It grew and grew over the years and now it's a premier garden railway shop!


----------



## alheim (Dec 11, 2015)

Thank you to all for the input so far.

This weekend I will try to get photos of the whole entire collection on the shelves, and maybe catalog the pieces a but more carefully.


----------



## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

alheim said:


> I'm thinking those were a bad investment.


If he bought them as an investment -- that is, as a place to store value and expect it to appreciate -- then yes, it was a poor choice.

If, as I suspect, he bought them to enjoy, and to enhance his collection and perhaps run them on a layout, then they probably more than repaid him.


----------



## alheim (Dec 11, 2015)

Agreed. I was (partially) joking with that statement. But ... y'all are addicts!


----------



## alheim (Dec 11, 2015)

Or, Locoholics?


----------



## DonR (Oct 18, 2012)

You don't know the half of it.

We're total train nuts.

But it keeps us out of trouble.

Don


----------



## thedoc (Oct 15, 2015)

DonR said:


> You don't know the half of it.
> 
> We're total train nuts.
> 
> ...



Not always.


----------



## niknak (Nov 3, 2015)

Any updates on your collection? Would love to see a list of what is in this collection. Is there an email where I can reach you?

Thanks for your time,

-Anthony


----------



## alheim (Dec 11, 2015)

Anthony & others,

I do not have a list and I doubt anybody will be able to make one any time soon.

I added 9 new images to the album, which shows most of the collection. If you view the images closely you can read most of the model names etc.

The album: http://imgur.com/a/MWX6s

If you view the images full-size you can make out the names. (Right click an image and select "View Image", or "Open Image in New Tab", or similar, depending on your browser.)

Hope that helps. Anthony, I will send you a PM. You are far from NJ! Anyone else interested, post here or send me a PM.

Cheers, Alex.


----------



## alheim (Dec 11, 2015)

Here are direct links to the full-size images:

http://i.imgur.com/ey7u6yM.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/otjyhUH.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/1ZUznIm.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/nULDWO0.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/UScwwD9.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/y8JxJRZ.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/WSnjQnK.jpg


----------

