industrial Posted October 19, 2010 Share Posted October 19, 2010 They are listed to be at Taunton this coming weekend so somebody might be able to find out what is happening over the shop etc.. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
YesTor Posted October 19, 2010 Share Posted October 19, 2010 I think a lot of people have over-reacted due to the website clearly not being up to date. If you are aware that the website is inaccurate then why not, as a few people have suggested, simply give them a call and place your order via the telephone? Then you can check there and then as to whether your chosen items are in stock. I have done this on a number of occasions and have always received the items I ordered in a timely fashion. So no reason to complain from me. Problem solved... (if ever there was one in the first instance...) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pilgrim in France Posted December 11, 2010 Share Posted December 11, 2010 Not sure what else I can do. Wanted to order five coaches 6 weeks ago, so tried to confirm availability and cost of postage to France. Have rung frequently since on their old and new numbers, daytime, evening and weekends. Phone never answered so have left messages. Have sent two emails. Have had no response what so ever! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortliner Posted December 11, 2010 Share Posted December 11, 2010 Sorry, Pilgrim - but it appears to be no better than the previous shop/site/nonsense that existed before the closure of the Ross-on-Wye premises Leopards rarely change their spots, I'm afraid. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodenhead Posted December 11, 2010 Share Posted December 11, 2010 Not sure what else I can do. Wanted to order five coaches 6 weeks ago, so tried to confirm availability and cost of postage to France. Have rung frequently since on their old and new numbers, daytime, evening and weekends. Phone never answered so have left messages. Have sent two emails. Have had no response what so ever! It must be one hell of a price if you have made several attempts to contact! If I couldn't make contact with a company after two attempts I would go elsewhere. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium spamcan61 Posted December 11, 2010 RMweb Premium Share Posted December 11, 2010 It must be one hell of a price if you have made several attempts to contact! If I couldn't make contact with a company after two attempts I would go elsewhere. Yep, there are still plenty of efficient companies around so why on earth try and deal with one that can't even be bothered to take an order? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pilgrim in France Posted December 11, 2010 Share Posted December 11, 2010 It's not the price that was attractive, just that three of them were discontinued versions that I haven't been able to find elsewhere. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodenhead Posted December 11, 2010 Share Posted December 11, 2010 It's not the price that was attractive, just that three of them were discontinued versions that I haven't been able to find elsewhere. You're assuming what is listed on the website is actually in stock, for those hard to find items you might find it's just an out of date webpage. I was searching for a particular Lyddle End item and it was listed in a few places on sites that looked out of date. I did actually make an order on one (reputable) site which was accepted but next day I got a note back apologising saying it was actually out of stock but that I had not been charged (and I hadn't). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
oggy1953 Posted December 12, 2010 Share Posted December 12, 2010 Not had any dealings with this company, BUT would it not make sence that if any RMwebber does speak to anyone at this company either on the phone or at an exhibition and inform them that potential shoppers are having problems contacting and is getting bad press on a large model rail forum. Then maybe something will be done before the business goes down the swany. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortliner Posted December 12, 2010 Share Posted December 12, 2010 I think that happened on severasl occasions when the Ross-on-Wye shop was open, and nobody seemed particularly interested then, so I doubt it will have changed Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
panks2 Posted December 27, 2010 Share Posted December 27, 2010 I was manager of Totally Trains from its foundation in 1996 until 2001. My colleague Pete and I prided ourselves on the cheerful, efficient service we gave people and we were rewarded by large numbers of very regular customers. We were both modellers, so we felt we knew what modellers wanted and we did our best to provide it. We were later joined by a colleague who was both a modeller and a leading preservationist. At that time we regularly sent out 30 mail orders every day. However, even at its peak the business was not highly profitable (maybe not at all). I recognise all of the problems discussed here - the absent proprietor, the 'sales from home', items not being in stock despite the high stock levels we kept, etc. The website has never worked because the shop staff have no access to it and couldn't send you an e-mail even if they wanted to ! In defence of the owner - if he did not have a high powered, high status, highly paid job, there never would have been a Totally Trains. He is a modeller himself and he invested an enormous amount of money in the business. The Ross shop has now closed - I believe the lease was up and I don't know if it will emerge somewhere else. [Admin Edit] Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Davies Posted December 28, 2010 Share Posted December 28, 2010 In defence of the owner - if he did not have a high powered, high status, highly paid job, there never would have been a Totally Trains. There are many clearly documented cases across the many iterations of RMWeb, and indeed easily locatable via google, that really wished he'd not bothered - myself included. -Rob Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Barry Ten Posted December 28, 2010 RMweb Gold Share Posted December 28, 2010 There are many clearly documented cases across the many iterations of RMWeb, and indeed easily locatable via google, that really wished he'd not bothered - myself included. -Rob Unnecessarily harsh, IMHO - whatever happened to Totally Trains later on, it was a welcome development when it opened - I certainly appreciated it. Yes, it did go downhill (as I said in an earlier post) but for the first few years there was no comparable shop within easy driving distance of south wales. And I'll reiterate that I never found the staff unfriendly or unhelpful. On one of my last visits (probably around 2004) I remember the shopkeeper patiently allowing me to test several Bachmann prairies until we found the best running pair. I stopped going because the range seemed to be less good than it did in the early years and the changing retail scene in Cardiff meant that I now had a good model shop just down the road - but the notion that the shop was always crap and the staff always rude just doesn't chime with my own experiences. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevelewis Posted December 29, 2010 Share Posted December 29, 2010 I am a recent returnee to 00 modelling after 30 years or so 'doing' Garden Railways so the last few months or so its been like a kid in a sweet shop for me!! Everything seems so inexpensive in comparison to the items I 'had' to purchase for my Garden Lines!! Anyway to get to the point. There are only two retailers whom I have had complete confidence with recently and they are in Liverpool, and Royton Nr Oldham, They have not let me down in the past few months once, everything I ordered online and by phone arrived next day well packed and working. Regretfully others have let me down including the one named in the initial post in this thread . I have actually dealt with both the aboce mentioned for quite a few years now for items in larger scales, But did buy from Hattons a Hornby Dublo "C0-B0" back in the early 70s!! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Chris Chewter Posted December 30, 2010 RMweb Gold Share Posted December 30, 2010 I think a lot of people have over-reacted due to the website clearly not being up to date. If you are aware that the website is inaccurate then why not, as a few people have suggested, simply give them a call and place your order via the telephone? Then you can check there and then as to whether your chosen items are in stock. I have done this on a number of occasions and have always received the items I ordered in a timely fashion. So no reason to complain from me. Problem solved... (if ever there was one in the first instance...) So why do they put stock amounts on their website if people have to call up to check if its actually in stock? Why should unwary purchasers who do not know the website be caught out? The problem with the website is it is designed to prevent the need to call up before placing the order. It fails in this regard. Why hasn't the website been changed to remove inaccurate stock availabilities? Plenty of reasons, costs amongst other things, but it doesn't change the inconvenience of buying something in stock only to find out they sold out months ago which leads to a poor customer experience! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Welly Posted December 31, 2010 RMweb Premium Share Posted December 31, 2010 I think a lot of people have over-reacted due to the website clearly not being up to date. If you are aware that the website is inaccurate then why not, as a few people have suggested, simply give them a call and place your order via the telephone? Then you can check there and then as to whether your chosen items are in stock. I have done this on a number of occasions and have always received the items I ordered in a timely fashion. So no reason to complain from me. Problem solved... (if ever there was one in the first instance...) If you are hearing impaired and unable to use the telephone like quite a few of my friends, you will be relying 100% on the website and email; so any website not updated or emails not answered in a timely manner are very inconvenient indeed and leaves a poor impression of the business concerned. Personally I have not done business with Totally Trains so cannot comment on TT itself. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
hairmann Posted February 5, 2011 Share Posted February 5, 2011 I made an order online nearly 2 weeks ago. I didn't receive an email confirmation so sent an email asking if this was normal. I got no reply to that email or several others I have sent, I have also tried to phone them several times. No one answers the phone or replies to the message left on the answer phone, I can only assume that this company is not trading anymore. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold griffgriff Posted February 5, 2011 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 5, 2011 I made an order online nearly 2 weeks ago. I didn't receive an email confirmation so sent an email asking if this was normal. I got no reply to that email or several others I have sent, I have also tried to phone them several times. No one answers the phone or replies to the message left on the answer phone, I can only assume that this company is not trading anymore. Im not sure you have read the previous 5 pages of this thread... if you do I think you can reach a pretty accurate conclusion Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevelewis Posted February 5, 2011 Share Posted February 5, 2011 Im not sure you have read the previous 5 pages of this thread... if you do I think you can reach a pretty accurate conclusion I f I was in your position I would simply send an eMail cancelling the order ( also advising credit card provider) and place my order elsewhere! When you consider that there are other suppliers whose service is excellent and can deliver next day! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
hairmann Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 I f I was in your position I would simply send an eMail cancelling the order ( also advising credit card provider) and place my order elsewhere! When you consider that there are other suppliers whose service is excellent and can deliver next day! Update on the situation. It was nearly 3 weeks and still heard nothing from this so-called online shop. I have cancelled the order, at least I think I have as I never receive any correspondence from seller. I will not bother with this site again and will stick with Hattons and Rails. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
oreamnos Posted April 10, 2011 Share Posted April 10, 2011 I hope your credit card was never charged! In August 2010 I was just back to work after having been made redundant some months before and so was looking for good prices. TT had a very good price on a Farish 4MT tank loco chassis ("1 in stock"), which I figured I could mate up nicely with a 4MT loco body I'd sourced from elsewhere. Being in California, I read all the fine print on TT's website, but it never occurred to me to check this board! I placed the order on Monday 2 August. Not receiving an email confirmation (which I'd expected to get from reading the fine print on TT's website), I emailed again on Friday 6 August to ask if the reason my card had not been charge was because the item was actually not in stock, and to cancel the order if that was indeed the case. I still received no response. Then out of the blue, two weeks later my card was charged and a few days after that (26 August) I received my order. And VAT had not been subtracted, contrary to statements on their website! That really got me mad, so I emailed them, but this time I received an "unable to deliver email" message back. Only then did I think to see if anything had been posted here about TT. Ugh. Silly me. With hindsight, I realized I was lucky to have gotten my order but it was no bargain. I've seen in this thread (and elsewhere on this board) a post or three sympathetic about giving the benefit of the doubt to small shops who provide spotty service. I do not agree with that at all. Regardless of shop size, IMHO poor service should be called out and made public just as much as good service should be publicly praised. About 80% of my custom goes to Hattons' because their website is fantastic and they provide splendid service for the overseas customer like me. The rest goes to Signal Box (bigger range of Peco N gauge than carried by Hattons), Kernow MRC (their prices are higher which means they carry older items longer), and Rails of Sheffield (on a the odd quirk). I should mention that, good as Hatton's real-time stock information is, it isn't foolproof. Twice I have ordered locos from them for which they had "1 in stock" only to get an email from them within a couple days apologizing that their inventory had been off and they had already run out. Yes, they made a mistake, but my fault, too, for waiting until the last minute. -Matt Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo Posted November 18, 2011 Share Posted November 18, 2011 All stock sold to AC Models of Eastleigh. According to their website. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Oldddudders Posted November 19, 2011 RMweb Gold Share Posted November 19, 2011 All stock sold to AC Models of Eastleigh. According to their website. I have done postal and ebay business with AC Models with no regrets whatever - an honest outfit IMHO. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Hale Posted November 19, 2011 Share Posted November 19, 2011 I have done postal and ebay business with AC Models with no regrets whatever - an honest outfit IMHO. Agreed and another happy customer. Tim Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.