Hello,

I am selling a portion of my father-in-law's vintage Marklin HO analog loco and car collection in a lot sale and was wondering how accurate the 2017 Koll's guide is in the US? Someone is putting together an offer for it, about 125 locos and 270 assorted passenger and freight cars, and is looking for a hefty discount off the Koll listed prices. Being unclear on where the market is today, I am hoping "the Marklin experts" can give me an idea of what range of discounts from Koll, if any, would be appropriate for this type of sale. Almost the entire collection has been behind glass for most of its life and is in near excellent condition, a rare find for a collector. It also includes some high dollar rare pieces including a DL 800, a T800 and a 3015 crocodile, so it is a quality collection. I am willing to part with it for a discount off its book value because of the time and effort I will save with a lot sale versus individual sales on Ebay.

Hey, is anyone else out there interested? I have a spreadsheet and pictures of the items included in the lot and a large beautiful layout that I would prefer is sold with it. It is located in the Chicago area.

But seriously, if I can get some guidance on where I should be versus the Koll reference guide prices to sell this impressive lot, I would really appreciate it.

Regards,

Jeff

Hi Jeff,

I use the Koll's Katalog as a starting point when reviewing my inventory and assigning values. In so doing, I've also listed which locomotives and rolling stock should be sold together rather than individually to make things easier for my family should I no longer be in the picture, so to speak. Like most price guides, Koll's provides a good idea of what an item in mint condition, with original packaging, papers, etc. might go for. For used, i.e., very good to like-new items, you can adjust accordingly.

But much like Greenberg's Price Guide for Lionel Trains, Koll's listed values are based on reported sales and "guesstimations." Also, as Maerklin items can generally be more pricey here in the US than Europe, that's another factor to consider: I've met some sellers who add an additional 50 - 75% to the Koll's value as a result... even for less than decent condition pieces! (They usually don't sell a lot of trains... at least not to me.)

If you're looking to sell quickly, perhaps your best bet is taking a look at what your items are currently going for on EBay, private auction sites and the listings here on the "I want to sell" thread. As John noted above, you'll probably find a lot of folks here that will be interested in what you have to sell and give you a fair price.

Take care and best wishes,

Hi Jeff,

For what it's worth, and adding on to what the others have said, there are a couple of things to take into account.

Loco's that have been left sitting for some time (several years) are most likely to have an issue with the original lubricant drying out. If bad enough it will almost turn to glue and the Loco will not run. It's easy enough to fix for someone who knows what they are doing and someone willing to lay down a cash offer for the lot 'as is' will most likely have taken this into account. This may be behind the reason for the discount request.

If you are selling the items piece-meal, then the expectation is that each item will be in the condition described and be operational, unless you clearly state that it is being sold 'untested' so that if it does not work, there is no comeback on you. The buyer will take into account that they will ether have to service the unit themselves, or pay to have someone do it.

If your interested buyer intends to on-sell some or all of the items, they will or should have taken this into account. The require service is not difficult, but by the time a loco is opened up, cleaned as required, relubricated, tested and reassembled it could easily run to an hour or more per item, although some will not take as much.

Be aware also that the enthusiasts for the older analogue items are not getting any younger and a newer generation are more inclined to lean towards the latest technology in Digital Loco's.

Personally I feel we may see more and more vintage collections coming onto the market as older enthusiasts and collectors lose interest, downsize, head into retirement homes etc and may have no family interested in retaining their collection.

Koll's of course is an indicative price-guide for a foreign market, for items in near-mint condition. This includes all original packaging, documentation, inspection-tags etc (all in same near-mint condition).

Rare or particularly desirable items that meet this criteria will always find a home via eBay etc and the traditional "bricks and mortar" auction houses.

I have noticed an increase in items available and the general reduction in prices as well.

There may be some members here willing to make an offer also but of course we'd need the details and photos to compare.

Good luck with it any way.