RMweb Premium Gwiwer Posted December 2, 2015 RMweb Premium Share Posted December 2, 2015 The co.uk version seems to only list what's in stock. eHattons includes forthcoming and announced items as well with the opportunity to pre-order. I can't see that on co.uk unless it's geoblocked to overseas users. It's sometimes handy to have both if one goes down as a stocked item can be ordered from the other at the same price. Which suggests they are also hosted differently so there's a side-benefit to both business and customers. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve1 Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 Another thumbs up from me to Hattons. Bargain Lilliput set ordered by phone on Tuesday evening arrived yesterday. Perfectly packed and safe. steve Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GWR8700 Posted December 14, 2015 Share Posted December 14, 2015 (edited) I live near Hattons and have always found the staff very polite and welcoming. I bought a 4P compound which was DCC fitted at a bargain price. It was acting a little funny on my DC controller at low speed so I went back and they let me run it on their track in DCC and it ran perfectly. They also oiled it to reduce the squeakiness which was coming from the tender. Top marks for Hattons! Edited December 14, 2015 by GWR8700 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
robmcg Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 I too have always found Hattons staff helpful and polite but a serious black mark against their supply system, a complete fiasco last week-this week I bought via web R3306 Silver Link 2509 3 in stock as per purchase confirmation and picking list number supplied, but after a week they have 'discovered' that they have 'none on the shelf'. 'Sorry' and 'Would you like to buy R3307' Quicksilver instead?' (I had bought this off them just over a week ago.... sigh) So I'll go for a refund, but there are foreign transaction costs, and exchange rate has changed against my interests. I also invited them to supply via another retailer who has stock, at their cost, to retain good faith Not hopeful. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold JCL Posted December 18, 2015 RMweb Gold Share Posted December 18, 2015 (edited) My understanding (for probably more than a year ago now when I inquired) is that the NEW one www.ehattons.com was a disappointment to some old codgers folks who longed for the old one to stay, so they kept both. That's exactly what I was told by a manager there. I mentioned that it was unnecessarily confusing. I've never had any problems with them at all. One thing did make me smile though. I was once quoted £3 for postage of a package to western Canada, and if I wanted the same package sent to my in laws in the Wirral where my wife was at the time, it would cost £4 - I had it shipped over to Canada directly Edited December 18, 2015 by JCL 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin Brasher Posted December 21, 2015 Share Posted December 21, 2015 Over a year since the Hattons pe-order saga started. On 4th September 2014 I ordered a LBSR E4 at a guaranteed price of £76.46. In June 2015 it arrived and Hattons debited my credit card with £97:46 (£93.46 + £4.00 postage). Now they have over 10 left and are selling them at the bargain price of £80. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Dunsignalling Posted December 21, 2015 RMweb Gold Share Posted December 21, 2015 Over a year since the Hattons pe-order saga started. On 4th September 2014 I ordered a LBSR E4 at a guaranteed price of £76.46. In June 2015 it arrived and Hattons debited my credit card with £97:46 (£93.46 + £4.00 postage). Now they have over 10 left and are selling them at the bargain price of £80. You can (or recently could) get them for £69-95 from a number of other suppliers. So, where's that massive pent-up demand for pre-grouping models we've been hearing about............ John Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin Brasher Posted December 21, 2015 Share Posted December 21, 2015 I was surprised at the poor sales of the E4 as the Rocket and the pre-grouping version of the C class have been very popular. Hattons are also offering the BR and Southern versions of the E4 for £80 each so perhaps it is just the E4 which is unpopular. Other models in the pre-order saga were the Graham-Farish blue Merchant Navy and the Bachmann BR green PMV. There are six Merchant Navies left at £135.96 which is what Hattons were selling them for after the price increase and the BR green PMV has sold out. I cancelled my order for the PMV as £24.61 represented a huge increase on the original price of £16.11 and I thought they would end up as Hattons bargains. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forester Posted December 23, 2015 Share Posted December 23, 2015 I was surprised at the poor sales of the E4 as the Rocket and the pre-grouping version of the C class have been very popular. Hattons are also offering the BR and Southern versions of the E4 for £80 each so perhaps it is just the E4 which is unpopular. Other models in the pre-order saga were the Graham-Farish blue Merchant Navy and the Bachmann BR green PMV. There are six Merchant Navies left at £135.96 which is what Hattons were selling them for after the price increase and the BR green PMV has sold out. I cancelled my order for the PMV as £24.61 represented a huge increase on the original price of £16.11 and I thought they would end up as Hattons bargains. I'm afraid I have come to the end of pre-ordering. I think both the RRPs and the limited initial discounts allowed by the main manufacturers are unsustainable across the railway ranges. They sell what they can at these prices and then as soon as they are allowed, the retailers drop the prices massively to shift not just the remainders, but in my view the bulk of the products. I've made massive losses on every pre-ordered item I bought this year at the initial discounted price, only to see the prices plunge later. Not just talking about Hattons (I have always purchased from a range of suppliers). I suspect they are as frustrated by the policy of the manufacturers as much as I am. There are a number of newly-released Bulleids I would like. Apart from the Hornby Club Manston, I've passed on them all and will wait until they drop to sensible prices, as every other item I wanted this year has done. No way to treat customers (if you want them to remain customers), in my view. It could destabilise the whole production process if pre-ordering dies out. The retailers will have no idea how popular an item will be, and no idea how many to order. The manufacturer then will get no feedback on how many to produce. Not getting at Hattons, they are as much victims of the latest manufacturers' policies as everyone else. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold TheSignalEngineer Posted December 23, 2015 RMweb Gold Share Posted December 23, 2015 (edited) Likewise i have given up on pre-orders due to the length of time they take and pricing uncertainty. Meanwhile, another tick for Hatton's service. The order I placed on Saturday evening thinking at least I'll have all I need for the January 2016 Engineering Works was here at 8.30 this morning. Wonder if I can sneek in a possession for next week? I know my new soldering iron is waiting under the Christmas tree. Edited December 23, 2015 by TheSignalEngineer Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Removed a/c Posted December 23, 2015 Share Posted December 23, 2015 I use Hattons solely for my orders. Their website is the easiest to use, and I don't have to email asking for postage quotes to Canada. I never pre-order but the downside is items have sold out before I could order............. the Hornby 56 is one of them. No biggie there will be other 56 releases. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyman7 Posted December 27, 2015 Share Posted December 27, 2015 I was surprised at the poor sales of the E4 as the Rocket and the pre-grouping version of the C class have been very popular. Hattons are also offering the BR and Southern versions of the E4 for £80 each so perhaps it is just the E4 which is unpopular. Other models in the pre-order saga were the Graham-Farish blue Merchant Navy and the Bachmann BR green PMV. There are six Merchant Navies left at £135.96 which is what Hattons were selling them for after the price increase and the BR green PMV has sold out. I cancelled my order for the PMV as £24.61 represented a huge increase on the original price of £16.11 and I thought they would end up as Hattons bargains. We don't if sales are 'poor' - all we know is that the size of the original production order has exceeded the ability of the market to absorb the entire run at first release price. In fact, I suspect that because the C class sold well the orders for the E4 were increased. Inevitably with batch production from China, the likelihood is either that a model sells out to cries of 'not enough were made'; or lingers and is marked down to cries of 'but I paid full price'. The most unlikely outcome is getting the demand exactly right..... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Legend Posted December 27, 2015 RMweb Premium Share Posted December 27, 2015 Surprised the LB&SCR umber version has not sold better. Perhaps there is a contributory factor in that Bachmanns massive price hikes have put people off collecting pre grouping models as a side line. I had the intention of collecting pre grouping locos but it ended with the L&Y tank ( Locomotion models)as I felt that continuing the collection would be prohibitive and I wasn't really likely to run them. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SD45T-2 Posted January 1, 2016 Share Posted January 1, 2016 On the question of two separate web-sites, IIRC the "ehattons" one was intended for and better suited to broadband users while the "hattons" one, being less graphics-intense, was better for those people struggling with dial-up or slow broadband connections. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevelewis Posted January 1, 2016 Share Posted January 1, 2016 (edited) Re the E4 and the poor sales reports, I dont recall seeing many posts regarding quality issues with the E4 ( I wondered that if there had been it may suppress sales) However I had an E4 delivered yesterday and I found that there were a couple of issues which i found annoying, the pickups on some wheel were very poorly adjusted so on analogue test running was very poor and Stuttery! I rectiied that problem by removing the keeper plate and adjusting the pickups so they actually made contact with the wheel backs at the same time correcting the position of the sand pipes which were pointing in many different directions!! When I fitted a decoder running was very erratic, an alternative decoder brand was tried with smilar results, so I removed the 3 capacitors and running is now perfect. Sorry to wander off the topic, but I do use Hattons very frequently, the service is good, The order containing the |E4 was placed latish PM on Dec 30 and delivered 08-15 on 31st. Last week I returned a faulty Oxford Adams radial to them posted Christmas Eve, recvd email notification of refund+post cost on 29th Dec which I consider to be excellent customer service Edited January 1, 2016 by Stevelewis Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cromptonnut Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 Big announcement on their page this morning https://www.ehattons.com/store Essentially Smithdown Road will be closing and they're moving everything to their site in Widnes. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
luckymucklebackit Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 Looks good if you have a car, but it doesn't look very accessible from public transport. Jim Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cromptonnut Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 Looks good if you have a car, but it doesn't look very accessible from public transport. Jim Looks like a taxi ride is the only option if you're coming by public transport. I can understand why they'd want a nondescript industrial estate as a location as it's cheaper but in this modern day where "alternatives to the car" are a necessary consideration, perhaps a little short sighted. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
amdaley Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 Most major retailers are or have moved from the centre of cities all over. I would think with time public transport will follow. As to the suddenness of the move ? It seems they don't have much choice. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Gwiwer Posted January 20, 2016 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 20, 2016 (edited) The official statement makes it clear that something in their planning has changed. The condition of the building at Smithdown Road is given as the reason for this apparently rather sudden exit. It may indeed be the case that it has had increasingly weak knees for some time and is no longer fit for their purpose though with its historical location (in terms of our hobby) it would have been a big decision to pull out. The Widnes location isn't ideal from a public transport aspect but being realistic how many retail visitors would have gone to Smithdown Road by bus or train? Most, probably, in this day and age would have shopped by car. You could argue that Gaugemaster also trade from a modern warehouse a long way off most beaten tracks though at least some Sussex coastal trains stop within a few yards. It's been a while since Ford had any sort of bus service and the most recent was two Tuesday & Friday only trips to and from Arundel. Hattons aren't the only ones to be "off the bus map" in that context. Today is the final day at Smithdown Road. The announcement gave no prior notice so I suspect something has either gone badly wrong with their plans or with their building and it could not be rectified within reasonable means. Farewell Hattons, Liverpool. Welcome Hattons Hub, Widnes Edited January 20, 2016 by Gwiwer 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium melmerby Posted January 20, 2016 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 20, 2016 At least they are still alongside the A562! Keith 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium melmerby Posted January 20, 2016 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 20, 2016 As regard public transport: DCC supplies are in a back of beyond part of Worcestershire in a small development on a farm and originally mail order only but opened a retail shop which has since expanded so must be doing OK. There is an infrequent bus service that stops at the end of the lane. So poor public transport maybe not to much of a problem https://goo.gl/maps/uoG7SdC6ytQ2 Keith 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GWR8700 Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 Sorry if this is a stupid question, but will they be moving back to the Smithdown Road store afterwards? Is this just a temporary move? I really hope they go back, it was just up the road from me, I'll be gutted if they don't return there. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Y Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 Sorry if this is a stupid question, but will they be moving back to the Smithdown Road store afterwards? Is this just a temporary move? I really hope they go back, it was just up the road from me, I'll be gutted if they don't return there. No - see http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/107307-hattons-to-close-smithdown-road-store-and-move-counter-sales-to-hattons-hub/ Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Dunsignalling Posted January 20, 2016 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 20, 2016 (edited) Surprised the LB&SCR umber version has not sold better. Perhaps there is a contributory factor in that Bachmanns massive price hikes have put people off collecting pre grouping models as a side line. I had the intention of collecting pre grouping locos but it ended with the L&Y tank ( Locomotion models)as I felt that continuing the collection would be prohibitive and I wasn't really likely to run them. These have been available for £69.95 from various on-line suppliers since before Christmas and not sold out yet so it looks more like lack of interest than lack of funds. I generally stopped buying anything I didn't anticipate using a couple of years ago and have only weakened a couple of times. Prices are a factor but, over the past 10-15 years, excellent new models that do fit my primary interests have been so numerous that I just don't have the space to collect much that falls outside of them. J. Edited January 20, 2016 by Dunsignalling Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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