Purchased numerous times from Trainz over the years on ebay and never had a problem.

...just received a Menards o gauge building, purchased from trainz. I was curious if it would make all the way to Germany without any damage. Condition was excellent as described („used“) and really safely packed! 
Can‘t speak for their engines but I was satisfied with shipping time & order ;-)

No problems with Trainz on EBay either.  I always appreciate how well the pack the items.

-Brian

No problems or issues with Trainz or ebay

Always have experienced nice, fast transactions.  Purchases well packed and shipping costs appropriate.

I have had great experiences with them, They have shipped the wrong item or broken, and there fast to rectify the problem. ( by the way that is rare it happens )  

All positive for me!

Used a couple of times; excellent eBay seller.

Have made nultiple purchases. They were well described items and shipped  fast. A good Ebay seller.

Just to make a distinction, one can purchase from Trainz directly or from their postings on eBay - I've done both, though mostly from Trainz directly.  The transactions are always straightforward and quick and, at least from the direct site, they are good about giving you the 'volume discount' on shipping (i.e., the cost of shipping additional items is significantly lower).  I've had one or two cases where the item that I received wasn't 'complete' - one where the controller button was missing for a 'like new in box' accessory and one where the horn on a used diesel wasn't in the shipment but appeared in the photo on the website.  In both cases, they gave me a small (but suitable) rebate on the price with absolutely no quarrel.  So I have no hesitation about purchasing from them (unlike some sellers on eBay or directly on the web).

I sometimes grumble (to myself) about their 18% "buyers premium" charge on their direct site (I think its too high or at least should be discounted for multiple purchases) -- but they are very upfront about it, so I know ahead of time that its gonna be baked into the transaction cost. 

Purchased many items from Trainz, the one and only time I did have an issue with a part, they sent a replacement out the same day I contacted them with the issue, 

just revived a set of 20th Century Limited cars from them this morning, packed well, shipped quickly, as advertised.....heck, I just paid for them Thursday afternoon....they rank up there in my book......Pat

Always had good luck with them - and their eBay shipping/handling seems to be below average. Never bought from them directly.

No problems:  Trainz/e-Bay.

Positive for me buying from Trainz. Both through Ebay and their own auction site.

I purchased from them both on their site as well as the bay and have had nothing but excellent results.

Don't care much about the buyer premium on their personal auction site , but have made some great purchases nether the less .  

I purchased a 671 Turbine from Trainz on eBay.  I paid $54.00 plus shipping.  It was stated that the loco was in VG condition.  When I received the loco, I was pleased to find that it was in better condition than stated, packed well for the trip, and ran like a top.  

Purchased one item from them on eBay, a Lionel Large Scale Caboose.  The caboose arrived without one window (which I expected from the pics) but a completely shattered truck, which I didn't expect and which they refused to deal with.  They replied to my query saying they had no parts and I was on my own.  I managed to find a replacement truck and so was not out much extra, but I was not impressed by their stance behind the item.

I have not bought again, largely because nothing I wanted has come up in my price range.  I'm willing to try a second time.  But not a third.

[Edited to fix egregious errors.]

I've bought maybe 100's of items from Trainz over the past 12-13 years. I've had only a couple of issues which were promptly and professionally handled. They tend to grade conservatively so most of the items have been better than described. The eBay listings tend to sell high but the listings on the Trainz auction site - even with the added 18% buyer's premium tend to sell at much more realistic prices much of the time.

I have many purchases from Trainz on eBay and have been pleased with most transactions. I do have two gripes about them, inconsistent shipping fees where the cost for shipping identical items from Atlanta to Birmingham can be as much as 50% different.  Second, the poor quality of the photos in their ads. Often underexposed with no shadow detail or in the case of a black locomotive it just becomes a black blob and only one or two shots not telling much of a story about overall condition.  Seems that several people are making photos and some don't have a clue other than someone once showed them what button to press. No telling how much the poor photos have cost them in bids I know it does affect what I bid if I can't judge the condition of an item from the photos.  I'm sure that on occasion the poorly presented items have led to some good buys.       j

I bought a Williams engine from Trainz. Arrived and the e-unit was shot. They replaced the e-unit and paid shipping both ways. I was surprised and quite happy.

Anyone can sell.  I judge a seller from how they handle a problem.  I've purchased from Trainz and Trainz on eBay many times. 

One time I had BIG PROBLEM.  And they were 100% great to deal with.  The engine I purchased from them didn't run correctly.  They tried to fix it (they paid for return shipping).  Ultimately, their repair guys were unsuccessful.  I asked for a full refund and they did so promptly. 

If only every seller handled problems like Trainz did!  If only.  Regrettably, in the two years I've been in this hobby, I've had to return a handful of new items to the leading Internet retailers of Lionel & MTH products.  Most experiences were poor.  Most consider this a one way street.  They get to charge you retail prices and if there is a problem: talk to Lionel or MTH.  Ridiculous.

Trainz stands out as an exception.  Nicholas Smith was good too.  The others, not so much.

My experiences with them have been great. No issues and prompt shipping. Everything packaged well and as described. 

I have purchased a few items from Trainz on eBay and have never had a problem.

Pat

One thing to remember is they only have a 30 day warrantee on items even when advertised as new in the box. They say that you need to verify your purchase as soon as received to make sure it is as advertised. I learned the hard way. So don't place that new loco on the shelf unless you have tested it. Other wise I have had a good experience buying from them. 

Trains is a Forum Sponsor and I appreciate their support. I made numerous purchases (spent thousands) with Trainz when I first started in the hobby. They have a very nice website. With their purchases of estate collections, they offer desirable items from years past. Some items that had never been used before. Most transactions were satisfactory.

Several years ago, three separate and significant issues resulted in my deciding to spend my money elsewhere. Nothing to be gained by my regurgitating the issues here.

Thanks for raising this thread O-Gauger.

As an MTH fan I have often been tempted to bid or out-right purchase some of their offerings on "the bay", but I wasn't too sure about them.....especially as I live in Queensland, Australia.

It isn't all that easy to send something back if it was not as described. The lack of the "zoom" feature on their photos also puts me off a little, as I can't always see details I'm looking for in the photos.

The answers submitted above by the various forum members has eased my mind, and I may be tempted to buy from them in the future.

Peter (Buco tragic) on the fabulous Gold Coast in sunny Queensland, Australia.   

Never had a problem with Trainz on eBay.

I've bought little things from them before then bought a prewar switcher not too long ago.

Never had any problems, it always went well.

I would recommend buying from them.  

Tom

Very good, no comp!aunts in over 50 purchases. The very few issues were addressed quickly. 

PS, why does this question keep coming up? This is a good company and a forum sponsor. Why no questions on the other  excellent forum sponsors? (That last sentence is a bit sarcastic, sorry!)

hokie71 posted:

Very good, no comp!aunts in over 50 purchases. The very few issues were addressed quickly. 

PS, why does this question keep coming up? This is a good company and a forum sponsor. Why no questions on the other  excellent forum sponsors? (That last sentence is a bit sarcastic, sorry!)

I asked because I have never purchased from them before and the picture posted is not the actual item they are selling. I appreciate all the responses, most of which have been positive. 

irish rifle posted:

I have purchased a few items from Trainz on eBay and have never had a problem.

Pat

Same here

Received a mth passenger set that had half of the frames broken, so the trucks were just dangling by the wires. Worst eBay experience yet

I can only tell you have had poor success on ebay with person selling you the item does not always package securely. but on Trains Never had a problem there the best shipping company I have ever used really pack  great!!!!!!! 

TRANZ, where you must buy a listing and have it shipped to you to find out if it works.If it does not, you have to contact them and they will send a FEDEX return label to you. Then, you repackage it and arrange for pick-up at your address. When FEDEX picks it up and TRANZ receives it back, they have someone who fixes it, or they send a refund. They will not test it, even after you buy it. I was told last week that they only have a very small test track, so they can't test any trains even after you buy them: If you call them, they will tell you what I have posted here. You can't make this stuff up.

For the most part, I've had a decent experience with Trainz. I too have noticed they've reused previous photos for their new listings, so I can understand why the question was asked. Aside from the 18% "premium" (from their site), my only beef from previous transactions was the fact they've listed the same item, at times, on both eBay and Trainz Marketplace. I've been burned a few times when I thought a won an auction only to find out it suddenly  was "out of stock".  I've commented to them directly about this. Aside from that, they do package their shipments very well and give a deep cut on shipping for multiple items.  I have grabbed a few great deals from them, even when factoring the premium.

Rob

I can't remember having any problems buying from them on Ebay, but don't think I've purchased there much. I have had some problems over the years at their auction site, like items listed as LN and actually being well used, one time having a truck/motor assembly literally fall out of the engine when removed from the box, and other problems. Sometimes it's seemed like whomever graded the item must have been asleep. Overall, though, I will use them, because the experiences have been mostly satisfactory. 

They have been good to me. Fixed any problems. Shipped fast.

Ordered twice from Trainz on E-bay and both times they had to refund my money because the order was never filled.  

I would not use then again.

Purchased numerous times from Trainz over the years on eBay and their Auction site, and never had a problem. Bought High End & Smalls. The few probs I did have, they corrected ASAP.

Good People!!!

I live in West Australia and would not take a chance on a firm if I thought there was going to be a problem so far Trainz comes out on top, no problems, and I have bought locomotives from them. I will keep buying from them if they have something I like. 5 Stars. Roo.

Some good, some bad. They did work with me to get things resolved when there were issues. Like many eBay sellers these days, they are selling some used items and aren't really checking everything that comes in and occasionally sell items that are not in the condition as listed.

Only thing I bought from them was a WilliamsBB F3 B unit.  When it arrived the Willams box was covered in drips of what I think was candle wax.  It was weird, but not really anything worth demanding a refund over or anything like that.

The annoying part was that the paint color/finish is off from the AA units I have even though I made sure to specifically by WBB to make sure they were the same.  The B unit had the old Williams glossy finish with a darker green (CP units) than the matte forest green on the WBB AA units.  Perhaps it was a different production run or something.  I suppose a better photo might have helped.

Three purchases from Trainz went as expected.  Two items arrived in perfect shape. A motorized truck, assembly that I bought later arrived broken. The full purchase price was quickly refunded and they didn't ask for the item back.  Can't speak for others but I'll give them 4 stars on my experience

I only bought one thing from them and will never use them again  I purchased an advertised as NEW Lionel Long Island Alco C420.  When I removed it from the box it had a large #34 sticker on the cab roof  Thought it odd but tried running the NEW loco using TMCC address 1   No good  Tried number 34 as that was the sticker and it powered up no problem  When I called to tell them that the engine was not new and sent them pictures of the 34 sticker they accused me of lieing  I purchased many engines in my life and had no reason to lie about this one   They regrettably refunded $75.00 but I will never deal with them again

I try to avoid Trainz on Ebay.  Trainz is will sell used items as new, some item they say work don't run.  I have purchased parts from Trainz on Ebay with no problems.  General I try to avoid their listing on Ebay. 

I thought it might be a good idea to add some hard data into the discussion. In the past 12 months on eBay, Trainz received positive feedback 45,192 times, negative feedback 69 times and neutral feedback 120 times. Their positive review percentage was 99.8%. 

Pat

The problem I have with Trainz is, They don't don't take enough pictures. I sometimes have to email them and say, You need to take a picture of the botton of it, or I want to see pictures of the ends of it, and so on.  69 negative feedbacks is 69 too many.

I have used them a couple of times. Lots of issues with shipping, things arrived damaged. Showed them

pictures of the items as listed and as received. Finally received a negligible refund on one item

based on their "research". Did not leave negative feedback because they are a forum sponsor.

Will simply avoid them in the future.

No problems with Trainz(via eBay), Brasstrains or Stout Auctions.  Minor gripe - In my opinion, other than Brasstrains, the photo resolution could be a bit higher on the other two.   No shipping, packing or service issues with any of the three.

I bought my LC+ Hudson from Trainz. They are an exemplary seller, as many have previously stated.

No problems. I'm currently working with them on a defective item I just purchased. They have been great. Got a prepaid return label and they are checking to see if they have another in stock. If not, have offered to refund my money.

With all of these comments about Trainz, I'd like to point out some of the good information provided to operators on their website.

check out:

www.trainz.com/pages/track-plans-and-ideas

and

www.trainz.com/pages/beginners-guide

I am probably more careful than most when I buy off ebay because of the problems of distance and high cost of shipping.

If I am not 99% sure of an item on ebay I won't buy it. If you find a seller on ebay that seems to do the right thing by you I tend to favour them over other sellers that I have not bought from. There are hobby shops around that have great web sites and make it very easy to buy from.. to easy! and you know what the shipping  is, or they have a facility to calculate it, this is important for me if I commit myself to buying something anywhere I must know the shipping cost straight away now this applies to things that I don't care if I buy or not.  If I want something desperately I will pay anything to get it all bets are off I put myself in the sellers hands and hope for the best whether it be ebay or a hobby shop but this is rare for me nowadays to be reckless I did that sometimes when I was building up my rolling stock and locos for the Steel Mill and I never got caught with extra high shipping charges I found that almost everyone I have dealt with have been very honest with me some have even returned part of the shipping money to me. 

I wish I could write down a list of sellers and hobby shops I have dealt with over the years but the rules here won't allow it because of sponsors that support the site I understand that. Nassau and Beth are good to deal with.  Roo.

I always am leery about sellers who do not enter Feedback until the buyer enters Feedback.  If a buyer pays immediately, Positive Feedback should be immediately entered.  Trainz does not do so.  John

To me, a seller should enter feedback once the seller has received payment.

rattler21 posted:

I always an leery about sellers who do not enter Feedback until the buyer enters Feedback.  If a buyer pays immediately, Positive Feedback should be immediately entered.  Trainz does not do so.  John

I've never thought about that John.

I have noticed that most sellers give instant feedback and often wondered why.  I thought when the buyer recieves the goods that's when everyone should give feedback sometimes I can't give feedback for a month because I haven't received the item but I can tell you I always give feedback.

One bloke in America had a gondola for sale I bought it paid for it and the next day he gave my money back and cancelled the sale ! I still don't know why because it was reissued on ebay a couple of days later I just moved on and found another one I would have been upset if it was something rare that I really wanted in this case it was just a common MTH covered gondola. maybe he thought, Blimey ! I'm not sending that half way round the world it might end up anywhere if he thought like that he is stupid or uneducated, sending items through Pitney Bowes is very safe for everyone maybe his charges were not what he thought who knows ! I did not give any feedback on that one because I never received anything. Aussies use real money like everyone else true we don't pay with toy money or gumnuts.  Ha, Ha. Roo.

paulp575 posted:

No problems. I'm currently working with them on a defective item I just purchased. They have been great. Got a prepaid return label and they are checking to see if they have another in stock. If not, have offered to refund my money.

Received the replacement item on Thurs. They didn't receive the item I returned until Friday.  Awesome service. I was concerned they would wait until the returned item was received and then find out they had no more in stock.

rattler21 posted:

I always am leery about sellers who do not enter Feedback until the buyer enters Feedback.  If a buyer pays immediately, Positive Feedback should be immediately entered.  Trainz does not do so.  John

paulp575 posted:

To me, a seller should enter feedback once the seller has received payment.

I buy and sell on eBay from time to time.  As a seller, I always wait until the buyer leaves positive feedback for me.  My delay in leaving feedback for a buyer is concern that the buyer may be an unreasonable or malicious person.  Fact is I don't know what recourse I would have if I gave positive feedback for the buyer upon receipt of payment and then experienced problems with the buyer if something goes wrong or if the buyer wrongly leaves negative feedback on me.

Also, holding back positive feedback for the buyer may stimulate the buyer to leave positive feedback for me.  I am surprised how many frequent users of eBay don't leave feedback as a buyer; but, do so regularly as a seller.

I have bought from Trainz many times.  I had a few (small percentage) problems but they were handled professionally by Trainz!  One was a Lionel Madison car with a bad truck and they replaced the trucks for me.  Two other occasions they very poorly packed items that got damaged in shipping.  They corrected the problem and profusely apologized.  All other shipments were well protected in shipping.

I had a similar lousy packing issue from a well known OGR advertiser who upon my constructive criticism banned me from buying from him ever again saying any future orders would be cancelled.  They had squeezed a Lionel box into an MTH shipper so tightly that it damaged the fragile Lionel box upon extracting the train car from the squeezing that bowed the box rediculously. Trainz is far superior to that type service!!! Trainz is customer oriented and I would buy from them without reservation.   

I have about 1500 transactions on eBay roughly half and half as a buyer and seller. I agree with Carl. eBay will quickly ban a dishonest seller but as long as a buyer pays will let them get away with murder.  There are far more predatory buyers on eBay than dishonest sellers. Buyers who will buy your new item complain and return a used POS or buy your item and swap parts then send the hacked up version of what you sold them back. There are sellers with zero knowledge of what they are selling I weed them out by the poor description of what they are selling. If I need it I will ask questions till I am satisfied I have a good idea of what they are selling. These sellers are not dishonest but if you are not careful the resulting transaction can turn out similar to dealing with a dishonest seller.  What it boils down to is the transaction is not truly over till the buyer says it's over, by leaving feedback.   I for one have no problem as a buyer leaving feedback first, which I am about to do for a Century Club ABA PRR Shark nose delivered yesterday.                            j

Roo posted:

I've never thought about that John.

 

One bloke in America had a gondola for sale I bought it paid for it and the next day he gave my money back and cancelled the sale ! I still don't know why because it was reissued on ebay a couple of days later I just moved on and found another one I would have been upset if it was something rare that I really wanted in this case it was just a common MTH covered gondola. maybe he thought, Blimey ! I'm not sending that half way round the world it might end up anywhere if he thought like that he is stupid or uneducated, sending items through Pitney Bowes is very safe for everyone maybe his charges were not what he thought who knows ! I did not give any feedback on that one because I never received anything. Aussies use real money like everyone else true we don't pay with toy money or gumnuts.  Ha, Ha. Roo.

Could it be they state in shipping info they only ship to the US? I tried shipping out of the US for about a year then decided it was not worth the extra trouble. I had to go the the post office for the customs declaration and felt I had to package with a sturdier box and more padding. While Australia has a very good postal system every bit as good as the US perhaps better many countries cannot claim the same and it simply is not worth the effort. In addition to all that I always worry while I have an item in transit to a buyer and when the package is going half way around the world it's just too long to worry.               j 

rattler21 posted:

I always am leery about sellers who do not enter Feedback until the buyer enters Feedback.  If a buyer pays immediately, Positive Feedback should be immediately entered.  Trainz does not do so.  John

John:

I recently ordered an item from Trainz on eBay. As soon as I paid, Trainz posted positive feedback. I cannot speak to what Trainz' past policy or practice may have been in this regard, as I do not recall what they did when I ordered items in the past. My point is simply that their current practice appears to be to post feedback immediately after payment is received from the buyer.

Pat

ebay store 

great train deals and have been repaired by asc tech so you know you'll get a working trains! they stand behind there products!

The buyer's ONLY obligation is to pay promptly:  if he does so, he gets immediate feedback from me when I sell. 

The seller does bear a heavier burden:  to deliver promptly the item sold in good condition AND to acknowledge my immediate payment.  As a buyer, I leave feedback for a seller ONLY when that obligation is fulfilled.

Chicanery on either side needs to be taken up with the Powers That Be--and I have done so both as a seller and as a buyer.  But I won't withhold feedback from a buyer who has paid me, and I won't leave it for a seller who has not left me feedback first.

Only problem I have is the shipping choice.   

Like my work, it's probably a good bulk discount for them but not for the buyer.

FedEx is slow and pricey.  A USPS P-Mail 8 dollar car is over 13 bucks using FedEx.

In some cases - I am in the next State and it has taken 7 to 10 days to get the items. With FedEx, you never know what time of day they will show up. FedEx also hands off the box to USPS ground and the box travels all over the place before you get it.

As for ebay, I generally only buy cars not engines on there.

I did not know there was a protocol on who leaves feedback first .  Is that a real thing?  Does ebay indicate that it's a seller's duty to leave feedback immediately following payment?  I've bought and sold on ebay since 2001.  While I always leave feedback, I never placed a priority on timing.  I guess I need to wake up.

MikeH posted:

I did not know there was a protocol on who leaves feedback first .  Is that a real thing?  Does ebay indicate that it's a seller's duty to leave feedback immediately following payment?  I've bought and sold on ebay since 2001.  While I always leave feedback, I never placed a priority on timing.  I guess I need to wake up.

No, there is not protocol or requirement.  People need to get back to the essence of trade as in it has to be good for both sides.  Both buyer and seller or vendor and customer have a responsibility to each other.  Uber and Lyft both have ratings on drivers and passengers, this is fair as all trade is a mutual exchange.

As a seller on ebay I had to deal with scam buyers which proliferated when ebay got rid of negative buyer feedback.  Luckily in both cases I had good documentation in the form of pictures and communication and I came out okay.  I then promptly blocked both buyers on ebay and filed complaints.  I offered returns on both items pending pictures from the buyer, neither would provide and only wanted partial (and significant) refunds.  I had one other issue where some track as damaged in transit due to USPS handling, the buyer provided good communication and pictures and I gave a refund for the damaged pieces.  We both left each other positive feedback.

I also have cancelled bids from bidders when they message me with odd requests or other things which look like red flags.  I deal with enough difficult people in business, I don't wish for this to spill over into my personal life.

I have purchased items from ebay that arrived damaged or not as described, I worked with the sellers on 3 occasions like this and everything came out amicably.  Respect as kept by each side every time.  I would buy from any of them again.

I have bought and sold on forums this one included, never had an issues but I also watch for red flags.

As for Trainz, I don't expect them with the volume they move to fully test every item.  I do expect if there is an issue they stand behind it.  No one is perfect, mistakes happen, it's all about how they're handled by both parties.  Seems to me like they do based on the ratings they receive overall.  Anything above 99% on ebay is cream of the crop.

TexasSP posted:

As for Trainz, I don't expect them with the volume they move to fully test every item.  I do expect if there is an issue they stand behind it.  No one is perfect, mistakes happen, it's all about how they're handled by both parties.  Seems to me like they do based on the ratings they receive overall.  Anything above 99% on ebay is cream of the crop.

But if it says untested they will accept it back, but you have to pay return shipping and they will only give you the purchase price, as they do not guarantee items they have marked untested.  

rtraincollector posted:

TexasSP posted:

As for Trainz, I don't expect them with the volume they move to fully test every item.  I do expect if there is an issue they stand behind it.  No one is perfect, mistakes happen, it's all about how they're handled by both parties.  Seems to me like they do based on the ratings they receive overall.  Anything above 99% on ebay is cream of the crop.

But if it says untested they will accept it back, but you have to pay return shipping and they will only give you the purchase price, as they do not guarantee items they have marked untested.  

So bid and buy accordingly. 

TexasSP,

Your nuanced take about this situation will not stand, sir!  I need heroes and villians.  Good and evil.  There is no compromise. 

 sarcasm! 

I bought a Z4000 from them and when it arrived it was faulty; useful as a rowboat anchor maybe. TRANZ  could have saved me a lot of trouble, had they simply plugged it in, but no, they won't even do that. Requested a return FEDEX label, repackaged it, waited at my home for FEDEX to pick it up, and then waited for TRANZ to issue a refund. I'm 73 years old and I won't ever set myself up for that kind of aggravation from them again; it's not right to do business like that. 

OK...too much of this discussion has gone down to talking about ebay, etc.....  I think enough info has been shared for the OP to have an answer to the original question....