As I continue to purchase more items to complete my new layout, I have turned more and more to eBay. Now I am experiencing delays in shipment, not only once in route but also in the time it takes sellers to turn purchased items over to shippers.
Overnight, I received two notices from eBay sellers that shipment has been delayed and will continued to be delayed. These two items were purchased on Monday of this week and it is now Friday.
I am not complaining, just notifying forum members that shipment of their purchases will likely be delayed for the immediate future.
Rich
Alton Junction
I just experienced the same thing. I purchased an Athearn Canadian Pacific derrick car and the shipping date is estimated to be April 20th. I'm not really surprised given the impact of Covid-19. If workers at the shipping centers have had their hours reduced and they are following the social distancing precautions then it is no wonder that things are slow, and I doubt that things will get better any time soon.
Oh well, grin and bear it!
Dave
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
Maybe I've been lucky? I had several eBay, Amazon, Model TrainStuff, Overland Hobbies, Factory Direct Trains, Trainz and HobbylinC and they all fulfilled orders, generally faster than usual. An oredr from FDT from North Carolina to Ohio took only two days (ordered Sunday night and I had the package Tuesday evening.)
I even had an item shipped to an alternate address (to CudaKen in Illinois) and the package arrived two days before tracking had anticipated.
Again, maybe it is just me?
Cheers, Ed
Ebay-wise, I've been ordering Ebay stuff regularly and no noticable delays for me.
Maybe it's just the sellers Rich is dealing with. As always YMMV.
Rio Grande. The Action Road - Focus 1977-1983
riogrande5761 Maybe it's just the sellers Rich is dealing with.
Maybe it's just the sellers Rich is dealing with.
Yesterday I ordered some loco detail parts, from CMR Products, through their Ebay store, delivery the week of April 5th.
We have ordered a few things through Amazon, and as long as there is a "fullfilment center" that is relatively close, they still offer delivery in about 2 days. Anything that comes from one of their "partner" sites, took about 7 days.
Mike.
My You Tube
Sellers probably don't want to stand in line at the Post Office. PO UPS employess who might have gone to work with a cold are now staying home.
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley
Hello All,
richhotrainI am not complaining, just notifying forum members that shipment of their purchases will likely be delayed for the immediate future.
Well yes and no...
I ordered 2 items last week from 2 different sellers on eBay at the same time. They were in the same cart and paid for at the same time.
One was 5 pieces of Atlas HO flex track, the other was a #6 right-handed turnout.
Both items were shipped on March 23.
Both were scheduled to arrive on Thursday, March 26.
The track arrived 2 days later on March 25- -early.
I am still waiting for the turnout.
The USPS tracking site still lists the turnout as arriving on March 26, but the most recent tracking information says it left a Pennsylvania distribution center today, March 28.
"Patience is a virtue."
Yes, I have had sellers take their own sweet time on shipping items but I believe this is a case of the postal service being overstressed.
I have to remind myself, this is a past time and not a life-altering event.
There are plenty of other projects on the bench to keep me occupied until the second item arrives.
Hope this helps.
"Uhh...I didn’t know it was 'impossible' I just made it work...sorry"
Just remember to follow the same precautions being suggested for bringing any package, including packaged food, into the house. YouTube has some excellent tutorials on that.
Dave Nelson
BigDaddySellers probably don't want to stand in line at the Post Office.
Our PO has a bin for prepaid packages to be dropped off. I would guess the majority of eBay sellers print their own shipping labels, pay through a second-party and avoid any lines at the PO.
I live on a rural route and the carrier will pick up packages. If I have a larger package to ship I leave a note in my mail box and the carrier will drive to the house and pick up the package from my front porch.
If a substitute carrier is working this doesn't always work
Regards, Ed
I have not had any delays that seem out of the ordinary from eBay sellers.
I just won two auctions tonight... we will see how these turn out.
-Kevin
Living the dream.
I sold 4 items on eBay this week. They were shipped on Monday and Tuesday and all have been received. No delays there!
Chuck - Modeling in HO scale and anything narrow gauge
Not Ebay. I placed my first order ever with Trainstuff on either Sunday or Monday night. Got a shipment confirmation and tracking number today. No idea how this compares with normal time. (proto2000 replacement gears, BTW)
jjdamnit"Patients is a virtue."
Only when you're in the hospital. Otherwise it is patience.
Only delays I have seen are out of china.
I heard that states are closing the post office to stop the spread. There's a list somewhere but in the meantime I would stop buying.
Amtrak America, 1971-Present.
rrebellOnly delays I have seen are out of china.
Oh yeah, that is the one order I am still waiting on. I ordered 8 lamp holders out of China about 10 weeks ago.
Still nothing on those.
Hmmm, maybe I am getting snookered. Here is what the seller in Pennsylvania wrote to me on Friday almost a week after I ordered and paid for my items.
"Thank You for your Order. Your order will ship out on Monday 3-30-2020. We here in Eastern Pa. are in a lock down trying to get ahead of this Health Pandemic".
Let's see if he ships tomorrow.
Rich, I'd look at his feedback score and relax or worry pending that. Things really are changed for the time being.
I did get an order shipped from China, delayed but well ahead of it's latest posted delivery date. Dan
Southgate Rich, I'd look at his feedback score and relax or worry pending that. Things really are changed for the time being.
Rich -
Some counties in PA are under "stay at home" orders. (Mine included.) If you are not going to get food, medicine, or travelling to an essential job (must have permission from county in writing for that) you are not allowed to leave your property.
The seller might live in one of those counties. (Like I do.)
Ricky W.
HO scale Proto-freelancer.
My Railroad rules:
1: It's my railroad, my rules.
2: It's for having fun and enjoyment.
3: Any objections, consult above rules.
You never know what is going on locally in these times. Some little towns have shut down compleatly but others are still open for buisness. Where I am is lockdown but it came county by county. Don't know if post office is open, think they are but they are being avoided like the plague I know, even costco lines are gone at times, people are becoming afraid to shop, period.
richhotrain just notifying forum members that shipment of their purchases will likely be delayed for the immediate future.
just notifying forum members that shipment of their purchases will likely be delayed for the immediate future.
We now consider ourselves duley informed!
riogrande5761 richhotrain just notifying forum members that shipment of their purchases will likely be delayed for the immediate future. We now consider ourselves duley informed!
What the heck, it's only been 13 days.
Duly informed. As before, it appears to be a "it depends" thing. I have a brass caboose paid for morning of Apr 1; normally items ship that day or the next. I messaged seller asking when item would ship; he told me mail didn't come by yesterday so expects to ship today. I guess mail didn't come by on Wed either so not sure why 2 full days delay.
I've had a few days (last Sat and Wed) when I put mail out for the postal worker to pick up, which usually they do, and came out late in the afternoon and still sitting there. I had to drive it in to the post office to get them out that day. I wasn't sure if the reason was they can't be bothered to get out of their truck if a car is too close, or there was no one making rounds that day.
So it may depend on local conditions, USPS status etc. Some may get parcels in relatively good time and others maybe not. So far I've had very good response time from buying on Ebay. But a couple of the last two orders were from England so naturally those always take longer. Only this recent caboose seems to be taking longer to get shipped. But I've had that happen occasionally with shippers in the past.
Anyway, bottom line, these are uncertain times.
I know that you are all sitting on the edge of your chairs waiting for a final update, so here it is.
Sixteen days after I bought it on eBay, it finally arrived in the mail day. I no longer think the delay was due to the pandemic. I am convinced that the seller blamed the pandemic because he was in no hurry to ship it. Recent feedback from other buyers complained about a similar delay by the seller in shipping their items.
]Not Ebay. I placed my first order ever with Trainstuff on either Sunday or Monday night. Got a shipment confirmation and tracking number today. No idea how this compares with normal time. (proto2000 replacement gears, BTW)[/quote]
Tracking shows this leaving Jamamica, NY today. Again no experience to compare with.
Sixteen days is probably the longest domestic eBay transit time I have heard of. Possibly longer than any orders I have made from overseas. But it sounds based on feedback this seller isn't stellar. Maybe something to check when considering a buy.
Update on my caboose order. It arrived today. On my second request for update, quickly after I received a shipping notice. The seller did have 100% positive feedback so I wasn't too worried, bit not the typical fast shipping most vendors give me.
This one was a black painted Rio Grande caboose which were still common into the 80s and I only had one other so this one helped to balance the shop built caboose fleet, now standing at 5 riveted and 3 welded shop built offset cupola cabooses. One of the welded still needs painted.
And btw, some have commented about brass getting cheaper. Not Rio Grande cabooses. I felt fortunate to snag this one for $280. Most are getting bid up above $400 and a couple above $600.
It seems delivery times are varying quite a bit, at random.
I ordered a few extra couplers, and they arrived a day earlier than expected, yet another item came 4 days late...
Oh well. Life goes on another day.