Selling massive estate collection


Davidervin89

New Member
Hello, I’ve been posting on a few message boards my interest to sell a massive collection I recently inherited. The collection is mostly O gauge with some exceptions. It has American flyer, mth, Lionel, pride lines, lgb, McCoy, Ives, and more I’m sure. The collection spans a 2 story home and fills 3 20 foot shipping containers. There is some mold damage to some boxes in the containers, the extent of which I’m not sure. The collection is so massive I have no time to go through and catalogue anything properly. I’ll be trying to get as many prospective buyers to set up viewings and hearing any reasonable offers. If you are local to Petersburg Virginia please contact me for personal viewings. If not feel free to contact me and maybe we can schedule something. Thank you for your time.

David Ervin 804-926-9747
 
No it quite literally fills a 2 story house and basement, nothing displayed all boxed up and stacked, and also fills 3, 20 foot shipping containers all boxed up and stacked. I’m sure people think they have a lot, but this is lunacy.
 
My suggestion would be to dispose of it the same way you’d eat an elephant—one bite at a time.
Sell the stuff in the best shape first, then move on to the less desirable stuff, until you’ve sold all you can.
I wouldn’t worry about an exact inventory, just grab a box, see what’s in it, and list and sell it. When that one is sold, grab the next one, and do the same. You can spend a year inventorying everything, or you can spend a year selling it. If you need an accounting of everything, do it the same, one box at a time.
 
Unless you have all the time in the world, i.e. selling it all yourself, and not have it take over your life, you might be better off contacting buyers of large estate lots. You'll find them advertising in the back pages of model railroading books e.g Model Railroader Magazine and others. Get more than one to have a look though. Sounds as though you've been left the "Motherload" of collections.
 
I’m thinking I’m going to go that way as far as a buyer, there is just too much stuff. When I was younger my father had me run his eBay store so I know what it would take to piece it off, but not living in the area where it’s all housed, combined with just not having the time or space to work with it, I figure a person/company who deals with large estates like this would be the best bet. Besides that my father had the metal dies to make Ives parts (couplers, chassis, wheels, more I’m sure) and a ton of back stock of parts. I wasn’t sure if eBay was the best bet with that stuff or not.
 
This is one Auction house that I know of who also sell on ebay. https://www.trainz.com/collections/auction-items , I am in Australia, so this is in no way a recommendation of them, just an example. By your description of the amount of stock involved, the logistics of just removing it is going to be big. Not being close to it doesn't help either. I don't envy you, your job in deciding.
 
Have you thought of contacting the folks on American Pickers from the History Channel or other such people? Sometimes they buy large quantities of something.
 



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