Dealers: Your Marks Out Of 10

poliss · Dealers: Your Marks Out Of 10

Dealers, good-bad? What score do you give them?

Mine so far.

Model Junction:10/10. Fast service, problems dealt with in a day. Great discount scheme.

Ontracks: 0/10. Has items marked as in stock which aren't.

Hattons: 0/10 for advice on products. Gave me completely wrong information on a suitable decoder for my loco.

Even older tom

It depends on your criteria of a 'good-bad' dealer, Pol.

For service, I'd give Hattons 10/10. All the stuff I've ordered has been with me the next day and well packed.

The same with Gaugemaster.

However, I don't know what they'd be like if I actually asked them a question!

poliss

It's all about how many marks you think a dealer deserves Tom. I've got an idea of what Dave thinks of a certain dealer.
Hattons giving me the wrong answer to my question shows to me that they are not totally familiar with all the products they sell.

upnick

GAUGEMASTER
DCC advice is hopeless after purchasing a prodigy2 as my entry into DCC thinking ''oh go with a British company for backup'' although the Prodigy is a rebadged MRC control advice was very vague and the attitude i suold know more background about DCC or answers 'i dont know' which wasnt acceptable ... thanks goodness i changed to NCE. 0/10

HATTONS
Although easier to find items by number no deviance is allowed seems if you dont have or cant find the part number then hard luck from the attitude i recieved on placing an order. [/b]1/10

MG SHARP MODELS
Good sound advice on DCC control and products ... if you are in the area and drop in to the shop DCC control set up for a demo ... some harsh things have been said about this dealer including postage rates, things to remember about postage rates.

1. The rates are clearly laid out on their site as part of terms of business of course.
2. Work out how much it would cost to go and buy the item locally in time and fuel.
Brings it into perspective.
The owner is helpful and his common sense approach to things sometime taken wrongly as arrogance are not true and i have always had good quick and efficient service from them.
[b]10/10

DIGITRAINS.
Very highly reccomended dealer polite very informative quick service if Jeremy is there you can talk about an install of a decoder in detail on your particular loco.
Regular supply of items from the States and excellent communications on the status of your order should an item be out of stock.
This retailer i would rate as the #1 in the U.K. for all DCC needs having had several locos fitted with decoders where i havnt fancied doing myself ... and been supplied with lots of decoders.
11/10

upnick

ANTICS.

I ordered more HO Woodland Scenics trackbed online for Antics on the 28th Juneand havnt recieved it yet i rang them and was told it hadnt come back to them, seems ifv you oreder online it comes from one of their branches to a central depot i presume and is then dispatched.

First time i have ordered online with them .... usually i ring the branch showing in stock on their site the items i require and have always had good service from them, young lady on the phone told me it should go out today.

I would have thought it better for the online dept to send instruction to the branch to dispatch it better for them and the customer ?

9/10

Only this score because of the delay.

poliss

One month since I ordered from Ontracks. Still no sign of my pantographs. The 'In stock at supplier, allow 7-14 days for delivery' is just plain fantasy on their part. They will never see another order from me!

Joe

Urm
Gaugemaster
10 out of 10, fast and well described.
Hattons
3 out of 10, after ordering some items my Mams credit card details were stolen and used to but Itunes music, but customer service is good, I asked about some ballast and recieved an email within hours showing me the correct product.

poliss

Run a full anti-virus scan in 'Safe Mode' Joe. You could have a keylogger virus on your computer.

ba4472

i'll order over the phone to hattons then....

anyway The Signal Box (the one in Leicestershire)
5/10
not bad not good, the service is great for buying new engines and goods, but servicing of N Gauge Products is Flagging now, last time the engines came back no different to how they went.... Also new Stock prices are high for what they are, some places, Hattons, Shrewsbury model centre and others have lower pirces and are still cheaper even with postage costs...

the signal box also has a poor range of Secondhand goods, even though it boasts in the adverts 'comprehensive stocks of secondhand.

Ravenstone Models

The person who runs this attends steam rallies and the like to sell his goods, likewise on the internet too.
i give 10/10 because, even though he may be slightly limited on the trains side of things, he is a good bloke, and if you have any problems with any items he'll sort it out for you! very reliable, reasonable prices, and he has a good stock of Secondhand OO Gauge for beginners and collectors alike.

Acme Models of Sileby, Leicestershire,
10/10
he has a good stock of new and secondhand, he does all commercial gauges from Z to Gauge 1 and collectables.

his secondhand stock is brilliant, if you need a past catlouge item he normally has one in stock and if he doesn't he arranges to source one. servicing is good, and that is said on behalf of various friends who have used this service (i now service my own engines). he is a good laugh, because sometimes you have to haggle hard with him, lol, and he is friendly, returns problems are always resolved well, if any, and he is just starting to get used to DCC and stocking it.

poliss

Ontracks, 45 Days and counting. Still nothing.

ba4472

sounds like 'On tracks' are off the rails with delivery...

dave`s dangerous

ba4472

i will say though when i asked hattons a product question i got an answer the next day.... best day to ask a question is sunday, because then you get an answer the next day.

dave`s dangerous

ba4472

pol, get onto trading standards.

poliss

They haven't charged me anything yet Bruce. They say deep in their terms and conditions that if they can't supply anything in 60 days you can either cancel or let them charge your card and hope they get the item in. I'm just waiting to see which comes first. They still list the item I want as available in 7-14 days btw.
One things for certain. I'll never order from them again.

The item No. is KATK11-404 DC Pantograph (2 Pcs.)

poliss

Contacted Ontracks this week as I'd heard nothing from them. Their reply wasn't to my satisfaction so I cancelled the order. I won't be using them again.

dave`s dangerous

poliss

At least they didn't charge me before they didn't send out my items Dave.