Hi,

I'm a little fed up with my experiences with ETS and am looking for a German dealer that does mail order besides the ones listed in the links section (Lokshop etc) with really good prices? They also need to speak english.

Thanks

I use the Lokshop with low price, great service.

Hi

I can recommend MBS-Fischer http://mbs-fischer.de/shop.aspx

Rgds,
Thomas

Here's the link to the other shop I have used: http://www.modellbahn-te...e/shop/catalog/index.php

Modellbahn Kramm are at:
http://www.modellbahn-kr....com/index.cfm?sprache=E


Other dealers are at:

http://www.modellcentrum.de/html/deutsch.htm
http://www.spielwaren-stucki.ch/shop06/start.php

I haven't had very many problems with Schweickhardt. I wish that they would sometimes use stronger boxes and better packing materials, but I have yet to receive a box where the goods were damaged. When I did have a defective lok, they exchanged it. When that one had the same problem, they returned it to Roco. When it came back still not entirely fixed, they exchanged it against the purchase of another item.

I have had at least one shipping nightmare with a package from Lokshop. They replaced the item at no charge.

I think that it is important to remember that every shop has it's good and bad points. I guess that people stick with places where they have had good experiences and avoid those where they had problems.

I think that the best thing to do is to shop around. Find out whether you can get a VAT rebate (19%). I tend to order Swiss items from Switzerland, German items from Germany and other items from those countries, as they tend to have a better selection of special editions and such models.

Here are some of the dealers where I have had good experiences:

Germany
Schweickhardt (ETS) (Waiblingen)
Kramm
Huenerbein (Aachen) aka Huenerbein321 eBay
NeedfullToys eBay (BS Computer)
John Van Damme eBay
Station 500 eBay

Switzerland
Bercher und Sternlicht (Basel)
Barp-Tech (Modellbahn-Shop Winterthur)
Suter-Meggen (No English) (Meggen)
Buehler (Interlaken)
Zueri-Tech (Zuerich)
Roundhouse (Zuerich)

Belgium
Jocadis (Enghien)

Austria
Hagen (Vienna)
Memoba (Vienna)

Italy
Trenogheno
Tecnomodel-treni
Trenietreni

It is easy to order from German only or other stores if you use Yahoo Babelfish and keep the language simple

I would like to order: (Ich moechte bestellen)

QTY Manufacturer Item # Price
1-Brand XXXXX EUR 299,00

Please charge the articles to my credit card (Belasten Sie bitte diese Artikeln auf meinem Kreditkarte) (Acct #) Expiry Date (Verfalldatum mm/yy)

Please send the package to: (Bitte senden Sie das Paket an)

Your Address

Thank you (Besten Dank)

and you are good to go

Regards

Mike C

Hi,
this one is one of the Jim Knopf Stores (http://modellbahn-west.de)
That's where I place nearly 90% of my orders. Just ordered my Le Capitole set with them

Some of the others I placed orders as well, even when I was living in Ireland. MBS Fischer is pretty good and JohnVandamme is also very reliable and recommandable.

Hi,

I have used most of the German dealers mentioned such as ETS, Kramm, Lokshop, Modellzentrum Hildesheim & Matschke and never experienced any real unsolvable problems. Some are more expensive than others. I now mostly buy from one dealer and have build up a good two way relationship.

Lately I have started using EuroModeTrains (www.euromodeltrains.com) for most of my orders, however when I do order from Germany I use either the LokShop or ETS, depending on who has what in stock and the delivered cost. I have had very few problems with either and those problem were solved quickly and efficiently. I like the LokShop's order update emails and also their new web site with order status.

This is a very interesting topic. I browsed through some of the dealers mentioned above, and I noticed that their prices (even in Euros) are much cheaper that what you see here in the US or Canada. What exactly has your experience been when they ship items from Europe to the US? What kind of service do you select (premium, economy)? Are the items usually well-packed? How about customs inspection on arrival? Are there any customs levied on these items?

And most important: if one item turns out to be defective, I understand it would be necessary to ship it back to Europe for repairs/replacement, as the warranty will not be valid in the US.

Thanks,

Station500 lists some items on eBay.de (VAT included) and other items on eBay.com (VAT Removed). For buyers within the EEC, on items listed
on eBay.com, the applicable taxes must be added.

Regards

Mike C

I have to say Matthias (Station500) has consistently been the best to me, purchasing on and off ebay. I have never has a screw up, and I feel alot of this has to do with his knowledge of the english language and understanding. It may be a few bucks more and he may not carry some other brands, but if I buy overseas its him 90% of the time now.

I have bought a few items from Station500 on eBay, but never in a direct transaction. Matthias also gives good service, quick shipment, and good packaging. I have never had a problem so I don't have experience with him on returns.

I have bought one loc from ms-toys off of ebay and had a good transaction. it took about 19 days to arrive

Like many in the US all my shopping is done sight unseen. I have bought from the US and from Germany...depends on many factors.

In the US I have bought from AJCkids, euromodeltrains and RJFtrains. I can recommend them all. I also bought from SunbirdTrainMart...not as good but they do have a big selection.

Germany, I have bought from Kramm, Walter Licht (www.modellbahnen-licht.de), Lokshop, ETS, scheufele-modellbau (www.scheufele-modellbau.de) and Station500 (got my croc from him...you always remember your croc). Language issues become more of a problem sometimes, but I would buy from all of them again.

Now that is a mix of dealers but that reflects that I have not typically pre-ordered and have bought models from a few (3-5 or so) years ago and try to minimize shipping.

I am buying sight unseen so I take all that into account as part of doing business. And that includes warranty issues too. I imagine buying Lionel in Germany the roles are reversed.

John