Hattons Spring bargains, are they really bargains?

[sorabain]

5 hours ago, woodenhead said:

I don't think Bachmann or the other retailers are concerned that Hattons aren't able to stock their products any more.

 

There are plenty of other retailers stocking Bachmann and Hattons are now in competition with a lot of alternative types of retailer when it comes to Hornby as toy shops/model shops are more likely to stock Hornby alongside Airfix and Scalextric than Bachmann.

 

Now if Hattons could made something of the other gap in the UK market - continental models and US models then perhaps they could gouge a new market for themselves, I reckon people would flock to them over imports.

 

Bachmann should (and would) care. Hatton's was (still mostly is except for Bachmann) my first port of call when browsing. People get used to a website and how to get to what they expect, so whilst some may prefer Rails or <some other> website, I preferred Hattons by far and haven't had the time or inclination to learn another's website so well.

 

Why does this matter? I may be browsing for a specific item, but with good search software/website you end up seeing "related products" and may buy more than you thought you wanted.

 

As an example. If i go to Hattons I can select oo scale, then pick what "type" i'm after, e.g. DMU, EMU, electric loco, diesel loco then filter down by manufacturer and get a "clean" list of products.

 

I try to have a "fair go" with Rails and hunt through "categoies" which itself comes across as a random assortment in multiple dimensions, and try "Diesel/electric loco". The first products are all DMU/EMU and non-UK (for me not what i'm after, not sure if the site "learns" what you're interested in or if it'd remain foreign). So i try to filter down to what i'd do with hattons, and select Bachmann+oo gauge, and am still presented with a first page dominated by DMU/EMU, not locomotives. It just doesn't feel clean or well categorised.  With hattons even just browsing down the "long list" of OO gauge stuff with item counts you quickly spot if some new manufacturer has popped up in your "favourite categories". 

 

Those who are faithful to Rails may have learned their way around the above perceived shortcomings, but for me Bachmann not being on Hattons has almost certainly meant purchases unmade as I don't get as much info for my time from other's sites. 

Edited March 8, 2020 by sorabain

[sorabain]

16 minutes ago, sorabain said:

 

Bachmann should (and would) care. Hatton's was (still mostly is except for Bachmann) my first port of call when browsing. People get used to a website and how to get to what they expect, so whilst some may prefer Rails or <some other> website, I preferred Hattons by far and haven't had the time or inclination to learn another's website so well.

 

Why does this matter? I may be browsing for a specific item, but with good search software/website you end up seeing "related products" and may buy more than you thought you wanted.

 

As an example. If i go to Hattons I can select oo scale, then pick what "type" i'm after, e.g. DMU, EMU, electric loco, diesel loco then filter down by manufacturer and get a "clean" list of products.

 

I try to have a "fair go" with Rails and hunt through "categoies" which itself comes across as a random assortment in multiple dimensions, and try "Diesel/electric loco". The first products are all DMU/EMU and non-UK (for me not what i'm after, not sure if the site "learns" what you're interested in or if it'd remain foreign). So i try to filter down to what i'd do with hattons, and select Bachmann+oo gauge, and am still presented with a first page dominated by DMU/EMU, not locomotives. It just doesn't feel clean or well categorised.  With hattons even just browsing down the "long list" of OO gauge stuff with item counts you quickly spot if some new manufacturer has popped up in your "favourite categories". 

 

Those who are faithful to Rails may have learned their way around the above perceived shortcomings, but for me Bachmann not being on Hattons has almost certainly meant purchases unmade as I don't get as much info for my time from other's sites. 

 

and trying another way with rails, by using search term "EMU" and selecting "OO gauge", I get some Bachmann EMUs, but they seem to be in a random order:

 

411; 450; 411; 416; 411; 410; 416

 

ugh, even for a modest number of results it's an effort to mentally group what classes/liveries are available. Not sure how Hattons sort things (whether it's by product code or something else), but they generally have the same classes in a contiguous block.

 

Edited March 8, 2020 by sorabain
missed detail

[truffy]

25 minutes ago, sorabain said:

Why does this matter? I may be browsing for a specific item, but with good search software/website you end up seeing "related products" and may buy more than you thought you wanted.

 

True enough, but I tend to start from the point of searching for a specific item(s). And if any of it's Bachmann, I don't start at Hattons.

[Cor-onGRT4]

Hattons is for over 12 years now, my first shop to buy, last monday i orderred a Hornby Princess Royal loco they offer different possibilities for shipping.

Could choose for Royal Mail air for 6,80 or DPD for 7,- pound, did go for DPD, was shipped monday , received yesterday, only 2 days from the UK to the Netherlands, never so fast in the last 12 years, and i could follow it by tracking all the way, mostly 5-10 days taking by Royal Mail air.

So with this option, I will go often for DPD, have done this for a few times now and will choose every time i place a big order. 

A year ago i bought a Hornby Castle loco from Rails it was about 12 pound cheaper than Hattons, but they did not send it by Royal Mail but with GLS,

cost 15 pound shipping, but could not see it by ordering, because they ad it on the moment by shipping, after the order is placed.

After 2 weeks it was not arrived , so mailed them where it was, they got it back from GLS, it was not deliverrable they said, i got a mail from Rails with the delivery times from GLS but on those times i was at home, but they didn't ring on the door neither even a card for noting they were at the door, nothing at all.

Others here in the Netherlands did had the same problem with GLS send by Rails.

So i had to pay another 15,- pound for re shipping, this time i order to sent especcialy by Royal mail, it arrived a week later, but it sufferd from all those travel , a few parts were broken of.

In total it cost me 30,- pounds for shipping, so no other orders from Rails anymore unless they have a special item i cannot buy anywhere else.  

It cost me a lot more money than if i did order it from Hattons, never trouble with shipping from them over the last 12 years.

And for the bargains, some times Hattons, some time, as mentioned here before Modelrailways Direct offerd many items for much lesser than both Rails and Hattons in the last 2 great sales, on a Princess Coronation loco 30,- pound less than the 2 famous one mentioned above.

And several Scenecraft Bachmann for a realy bairgain others could not compete.

Modelrailways Direct shipping cost is calculated on the end by the weight of items, a little bit more than Hattons, but with pricing very competing it will still be cheaper.

And since Hattons do not have any new Bachmann in the collection , all these are now ordered from Modelrailways Direct.

And i have very good experience with them for over a year now.

The pre-owned item from Hattons are sometime having very interesting items, but their pricing is very strange, on the same item more than a few in stock the difference can be up to 10 pounds, while they all in the same condition.

But if you surfing on the net you can find some items for a lesser price from small shops, it take some time, but it will spare you some money. 

Edited March 12, 2020 by Cor-onGRT4

[GWR-fan]

While the store may not be as competitive as other stores on price,  they do make up for it on service.  I know exactly how much an item is going to cost me when I place my order and make a payment.  I know that the item will be quickly picked and posted by my chosen service, mostly Royal Mail.   If there is an issue and over the years I can count on a couple of fingers over hundreds of purchases,  I know that the staff will go out of their way to help solve it.  I recently purchased three new locomotives from Rails, a store I have not dealt with in years.  When I placed the order I had to pre-authorise an unknown amount of money to be withdrawn from my bank account as VAT still had to be deducted and postage calculated.    Several days later I received an email telling me how much my purchase has cost me.  There is nothing untoward about this it is simply a matter of their website not knowing immediately the cost of shipping and so it has to be manually calculated.  Maybe it might cost a little more but the convenience and reliability of online shopping with Hattons has seen me return time and again even though bargains may not be such a bargain.  I have had experiences with other stores,  mostly positive,  but found that Hattons service for international customers is way better for me.

[Butler Henderson]

12 hours ago, GWR-fan said:

While the store may not be as competitive as other stores on price,  they do make up for it on service. 

Afraid my experience is usually the exact opposite; ordered items typically take 4-5 days to get picked and the parcel if lucky turns up before a fortnight has expired in complete contrast to the standard fast service from the likes of Kernow, MRD and Trackshack 

Edited March 13, 2020 by Butler Henderson

[GWR-fan]

57 minutes ago, Butler Henderson said:

Afraid my experience is usually the exact opposite; ordered items typically take 4-5 days to get picked and the parcel if lucky turns up before a fortnight has expired in complete contrast to the standard fast service from the likes of Kernow, MRD and Trackshack 

 

That is indeed odd.  My experience living in Australia is if purchased during the week the item is picked that day or the next and shipped immediately,  usually arriving downunder within five working days.  If purchased on a weekend the item is picked on the Monday UK time and shipped that day or the next.  There has been the odd occasion when no picking list email has been received and I have questioned the store to find the item already shipped days previously.  Rails on the other hand takes days to process an order and then several days before it is shipped with shipping time around two weeks minimum.    

[Butler Henderson]

50 minutes ago, GWR-fan said:

 

That is indeed odd.  My experience living in Australia.    

Aus is probably more favoured by a Lancashire based retailer over anyone the other side of the Pennines!

[bingley hall]

15 hours ago, Butler Henderson said:

Afraid my experience is usually the exact opposite; ordered items typically take 4-5 days to get picked and the parcel if lucky turns up before a fortnight has expired in complete contrast to the standard fast service from the likes of Kernow, MRD and Trackshack 

 

Yet this forum is littered with tales of positive service and almost overnight delivery from Hattons.

 

I wouldn't buy any lottery tickets if I were you 

[GWR-fan]

Even in the few weeks up to last Christmas Royal Mail had the items to my door in five days from placing an order with the store for multiple transactions.  I will offer one exception though in that for my latest order while the store had it picked and shipped within 24 hours,  Royal Mail over two weeks later has not delivered the item,  most likely a delay caused by Covid-19.   Perhaps items have gone into quarantine.    I have had this in the past with small packages transiting through New York where due the possibilities of explosive substances being posted,  packages are quarantined in a facility for two weeks minimum and then forwarded on.    If there is a delay due a virus quarantine then I appreciate that but this is not a reflection on the store.

[dpgibbons]

Hatton's bargains are harder to find than they need to be, as the Bargains tab yields only a sub-filter by manufacturer and not by gauge, product type etc as the Rails site allows you to do. And a search for "n gauge bargains" gets no hits, even using the advanced filter.

 

EDIT - the new website has corrected this 

 

 

Edited March 14, 2020 by dpgibbons

[atom3624]

A bargain will relate to what something is worth, how much you find it for and how much you are prepared to pay for it.

 

If you don't like it, move on - they're like buses - there's always another one - perhaps in 3-6 months' time, but you'll always find one.

 

I would frequent some better stores but never the same one every time.

 

Al.

[Butler Henderson]

12 hours ago, bingley hall said:

 

Yet this forum is littered with tales of positive service and almost overnight delivery from Hattons

If people pay the extra for a fast service fine but  I was referring to the standard £4 one. Order from Kernow or MRD on a Wednesday and 95% of the time it turns up on or before the Saturday without paying anything extra.

[GWR-fan]

3 hours ago, Butler Henderson said:

If people pay the extra for a fast service fine but  I was referring to the standard £4 one. Order from Kernow or MRD on a Wednesday and 95% of the time it turns up on or before the Saturday without paying anything extra.

 

Hattons will send an item downunder less than 300 gms for GBP3.50 (around $8.00 Aud at current exchange rate) and it will arrive mostly in five working days. I pay for their normal international service and only pay for a courier if the package exceeds Royal Mail package limitations.  For me to send the same item within Australia just to my next suburb barely one or two kilometres away will cost me $8.95 Aud.   To send the same item most UK eBay sellers would charge around GBP10.00 plus many will add around GBP5.00 for a signature. 

[Guest Half-full]

18 hours ago, Butler Henderson said:

If people pay the extra for a fast service fine but  I was referring to the standard £4 one. Order from Kernow or MRD on a Wednesday and 95% of the time it turns up on or before the Saturday without paying anything extra.

I always use the standard service and never have to wait more than 3 days for the delivery.

 

I've found MRD can be quite slow but at the end of the day model supplies aren't urgent items

[caradoc]

On 08/03/2020 at 19:49, sorabain said:

 

Bachmann should (and would) care. Hatton's was (still mostly is except for Bachmann) my first port of call when browsing. People get used to a website and how to get to what they expect, so whilst some may prefer Rails or <some other> website, I preferred Hattons by far and haven't had the time or inclination to learn another's website so well.

 

Agree; Hattons 'New Stock' section is by far the easiest way of checking what new items are available, and although I have never had a problem with any of the other big retailers mentioned here, they are my first port of call for buying on-line too - Except now of course for Bachmann products, which is no benefit to either organisation.

 

[atom3624]

I purchased a 'faulty' EWS Super Detail Class 56 a year ago.

 

All was perfect with perhaps a few little problems with the lighting.

A little research on the contacts between body and chassis and it's been totally faultless ever since - including the lights.

 

Price was very reasonable.

Standard postage always selected by me - 2-3 days maximum.

 

A used item is simply that - never know just how the previous owner has handled and treated it - don't expect it to be new.

Choice is yours.

Not certain then don't push the button - look elsewhere - simples.

 

This thread is more about 'new items on sale'.

 

Same concept applies.

If you don't like it, check out other sites.

 

Al.

Edited March 15, 2020 by atom3624