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I am simply gauging interest here - please keep that in mind with your comments !

I have access to a large collection of die-cast semi tractor trailers of various road names - Roadway, etc.  Most are in excellent/mint "display" condition and there are probably around 150 - 175 of them.  Most of them are 1/64th scale.  I was approached by a widow and asked about how to deal with them.  Her husband passed away in April.  I told her I would look into it.  The local auction house is swamped and does not have the time to deal with it.

I did not know if anyone collects these or could use a large quantity for a layout.  She has already been "low-balled" for the collection, so ... .

I do not have pictures at this time but can get some if there is serious interest.  I may or may not be able to answer questions about the collection, but you can try !

Thanks,

Dennis

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Dennis,  The FOR SALE Forum is designed to handle something like this.  Pictures would help, not necessarily of each item, perhaps groups of ten.  Have some sort of measuring device against one of the models and if possible, the width.  From that, both O and S scale modelers may judge for themselves.  Depending on the details and size, the competition for pricing would be Athearn, ERTL, Winross, etc.  I don't know what she considers 'low ball'  How much time and effort does she want to put into photographing, pricing, packing and shipping?  What is she going to do with those that have not sold within one year? Five dollars apiece may be a low ball offer and two dollars apiece may be over pricing them.  Just things to consider. John

Last edited by rattler21

From what you write, the trucks are probably those which were made by Winross for trucking companies as promotional items.  They are about the same size(scale) as the trucks made with the Lionel names.  At one time, they were very collectable  -- some company names still are  -- but most are available for minimal prices.  Probably why the auction house was not interested.

If they are 1/64 die cast trucks they are most likely AHL. Since AHL is long out of business these do have value. While there are some exceptions for rarity most are worth around the original retail price. The tag on the box in the picture is about what I could get selling it at retail. I have what I believe to be a complete list of all the trucks made by AHL, it is a long list. There are multiple cab brands such as Ford, Mack etc., and different trailer styles with many different names plus single chassis trucks. These are the nicest trucks ever made in S scale and there is some demand from S gauge operators.



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Most are Winross, PEM - Precision Engineer Models (very nicely detailed items!), and Ertl.  The Winross are numbered sets and I do not know if they are complete, although my suspicion is that there are complete sets.  The deceased worked for Roadway.  The widow does not wish to do anything such as pricing, etc. as that is outside of her abilities.  Thus, she asked me to help.

@dennish posted:

The lowball was $300 for the entire collection.  She thought, and fairly I think, that they are worth more than $2 apiece.

They may well be.  Who is going to get one hundred fifty shipping cartons for one hundred fifty single unit buyers, packiing material, take them to the post office as the orders are paid for and at the worse case, handle the claims?  And what does she want to do with the twenty-five still on the shelf after one year?  And every time she looks at one she will be reminded of her husband.  Is that a way to grieve? At fifteen dollars(net) per unit that is only $2250.  How much time and grief does she want to expend for $2250?

If you want to get involved, take photos of ten or them and post them in the FOR SALE Forum and see what happens.

John

Last edited by rattler21

As I long time S gauge (1/64) collector and operator I will give you my analysis, which may not worth much. By far the largest pool of buyers of 1/64 scale vehicles are S gauge operators. 80% of those are still running Gilbert trains and only want vehicles from the late 1940's to the early 1960's. That is why the AHL trucks sell quickly at low prices (avg about $14 retail.) The Winross and PEM trucks are mostly the wrong era for S gauge operators plus the PEM price point is too high for the Gilbert operators.

I think $2 per truck is a bit low but I suspect the buyer who made the offer figures these will sit in inventory a while until they resell. I inquired a couple of years ago about wholesaling off around half of my AHL collection. I have about 300 of them. He indicated about $6 each for the 150 because he knew he could sell them quickly at double that.

Since her husband worked for a trucking company, maybe an appropriate tribute would be to donate the collection to a trucking-themed museum or historical society. An internet search turned up a few such candidates:

https://aths.org/

https://iowa80truckingmuseum.com/

https://www.nussgrp.com/the-tr...-doors-in-rochester/

https://www.goldenagetruckmuseum.com/

https://motortransportmuseum.org/

@dennish posted:

Thank you all for the input.  I figured trying to move them on an individual basis would be quite a bit of time and work.  Not sure what I am going to do yet.

Dennis, I started a long winded reply and decided to keep it short; this is my second attempt. 😁  I wouldn’t mess with them. I’d politely excuse myself from the situation. Trust me, voice of experience.
Steve

I went to eBay completed listings and was surprised at the sold prices when you include shipping costs.  Most prices were in the 20 dollar range or higher.   How hard could it be for this woman to get a table at a toy or train show and price them at 10 bucks a piece. Do a couple of shows and then donate anything that doesn’t sell to “Toys for Tots” at Christmas or donate the whole Collection to “Toys for Tots”  and make a lot of underprivileged children very happy.  Her husband would probably be smiling as he looks down, knowing the happiness his trucks will bring to these kids.

Call other auction houses some will even pickup her collection for a price. Try cabin fever auctions. I believe they are a sponsor and do pickup collections from all over the country. An auction house is probably her easiest option and unless she is willing to sell them piece by piece which could take years is her best option

Call other auction houses some will even pickup her collection for a price. Try cabin fever auctions. I believe they are a sponsor and do pickup collections from all over the country. An auction house is probably her easiest option and unless she is willing to sell them piece by piece which could take years is her best option

I second this route. Once a month Cabin Fever does a toy sale.

Look for a model railroad club in your area and see if they have a swap meet.

We have Beat The Heat here in Central Arizona.  It cost me $25.00 for  six foot table ($20.00 each additional table...I got three all together).

I got three tables and put a whole mess of old Marx and Plasticville stuff out and about 150 die cast, tin plate , and plastic cars and trucks, some of it frankly not in very good shape.  After deducting my fee for entering, a couple of box lunches (won't do that again), donating an old 2-4-2 loco and tender to a little kid who didn't have any money, I netted $502.00.



BTW, the boy's momma came back and bought a  little transformer and a caboose from me, some Marx 027 track and a couple of switches from the guy next table over and I threw in a Marx whistling station.

Odds pretty good are he'll be back next year and we can add a new railroader to our roster.

Last edited by Forty Rod

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