How to sell railway memorabillia

[zigzak]

Hi can anyone advise me ..... ive a huge collection of memrobillia , blueprints, drawings, letters, hundreads of drivers books manuals etc from various rail networks in the uk, coaling station original drawings ive been looking at selling them for a while, many original drawings for br , lms , lner any help would ne great
thanks

 

[Stringer]

Gentlemen, a word of. Warning should you be considering the disposal of any railway-related memorabilia.
Please steer well clear of an auction house trading under the name of LONDON TRANSPORT AUCTIONS. Just over two years ago I submitted my collection of London Transport memorabilia to this company, and yes much of it was sold, but I had to wait several weeks before seeing any money. Their next auction saw the disposal of several more items, and again I experienced a long wait before receiving any money. The last auction saw just a few pieces sold, with the same long wait for payment.
However there were several more items which for one reason or another were not submitted, which included a few rare LT posters.
By this time I had had enough of LT auctions and e-mailed Peter Duplock requesting their return. "No problem" was his reply, and he agreed to drop them back to me when in the area.
That was seven months ago and I am still awaiting their return.
Subsequent phone calls and E-mails have not been returned, and further investigations into their trading history have revealed that I am not alone in this, and that it can only be assumed that LTA no longer have my property.
So please be warned, look them up on the Companies House website to see what their 'history' is - not very good!

 

[Stringer]

Yes, but whatever you do please avoid London Transport Auctions like the plague.
Regrettably I, and so it would seem, many others have had very bad dealings with this company. I put a number of 'collectables' up for sale about three years ago, and yes, initially I did get some money, but only after a month or two had passed. They still have several of my items, mostly Underground posters in their possession and on January 6th I asked for these to be returned to me as I had found dealing with them very stressful.
I am still,awaiting their return and they now no longer answer my Emails or 'phone calls.
I have now resorted to sending them a solicitor's letter, but as they have four outstanding County Court Judgments against them, two of which are with London Transport, I have great doubts as to whether I will ever see my property again. So please be warned!
Jim Stringer.

 

[Busaholic]

Yes, but whatever you do please avoid London Transport Auctions like the plague.
Regrettably I, and so it would seem, many others have had very bad dealings with this company. I put a number of 'collectables' up for sale about three years ago, and yes, initially I did get some money, but only after a month or two had passed. They still have several of my items, mostly Underground posters in their possession and on January 6th I asked for these to be returned to me as I had found dealing with them very stressful.
I am still,awaiting their return and they now no longer answer my Emails or 'phone calls.
I have now resorted to sending them a solicitor's letter, but as they have four outstanding County Court Judgments against them, two of which are with London Transport, I have great doubts as to whether I will ever see my property again. So please be warned!
Jim Stringer.

Interesting. I could not get a catalogue out of them, even though I would probably have been a bidder, or any response to e-mails, so my naturally suspicious nature ensured I've ignored them ever since.

 

[Stringer]

As a matter of interest to my post with regard to London Transport Auctions, I sent Mr Duplock a recorded delivery letter yesterday, which had kindly been drafted for me by a retired solicitor friend.
I doubt whether it will make any difference, but I am determined to do all I can to have my property returned by whatever means within the law.

 

[Essan]

http://www.gwra.co.uk/

Auctions have internet bidding so attract a wide audience. They are local to me and I have met/chatted with one of the owners in the past (I run an antique centre) but not recently. I dont have any direct experience of them, but have no reason to suppose they are not worth contacting/considering.

 

[Stringer]

Anything is worth trying. Do you have any contact details please?

 

[John Luxton]

Why not use eBay?

Shortly after eBay started up I cleared out a lot of stuff including a Totem and I wasn't disappointed by what I received. Though I do now wish I had kept that totem!

John

 

[deltic]

I cant vouch for them never having used them but Sheffield Railwayana have fairly regular auctions and their achieved prices are higher than those I see on ebay. Robert Humm and Co that used to be based at Stamford Stn may also be a possibility

 

[Going Loco]

I've still got lots of stuff to sell that was inherited when my dad died 3 years ago I haven't got the time or knowledge to list everything on ebay I know he was selling old photos constantly on ebay for years, anything from a couple of quid up to £20 each. I've got tens of thousands of photos, slides and negatives mainly black and white from the 60s and 70s, all steam engines. There's hundreds of old books, magazines etc plus several copies of the book he published.

As far as I've been advised the best place to go would be an auction house such as Great Northern Railwayana, would that be right? Thanks

 

[Essan]

Yes, with a collection that size, I would think a specialist railwayana auction would be your best bet. Certainly contact them and see what they advise.

 

[Going Loco]

Yes, with a collection that size, I would think a specialist railwayana auction would be your best bet. Certainly contact them and see what they advise.

Thanks, I'm going to contact them tomorrow and see what they say.

 

[Bevan Price]

I've still got lots of stuff to sell that was inherited when my dad died 3 years ago I haven't got the time or knowledge to list everything on ebay I know he was selling old photos constantly on ebay for years, anything from a couple of quid up to £20 each. I've got tens of thousands of photos, slides and negatives mainly black and white from the 60s and 70s, all steam engines. There's hundreds of old books, magazines etc plus several copies of the book he published.

As far as I've been advised the best place to go would be an auction house such as Great Northern Railwayana, would that be right? Thanks

Unless they are very old / rare, magazines fetch only low prices. Many are so common that some heritage railways don't even want them as free donations. Likewise, don't expect to receive a fortune from many railway books, unless they are "classics". .