WORTHINGTON'S WORKSHOP

DB class 85 2-10-2 Tank Loco

SBB class Ae6/8 1'C+C1'

Several attempts have proven fruitless at obtaining special Marklin models, due to lack of suitable local stock and/or excessive prices. I decided to investigate purchasing from overseas. A Google search for "Marklin Trains" immediately revealed several American and European shops. I ruled out the Europeans due to language difficulties, although some are in English with prices in Euros and $US.

Micro Macro Mundo Inc (is this "Little Big World" in pig Latin?) in Miami, Florida turned out to have good stock and reasonable prices. A search of the 'Electric Locomotive' listings revealed a rare NSB class EL18 (Marklin #34635) for $169.00 US. This was too good to refuse as the loco is unavaible in Australia, so I bought the loco under their secure credit card purchase system.

Four days later I received a notification to pick up a parcel at my local Post Office. The loco arrived securely packaged and undamaged. Apart from a requirement for lubrication, it performed beautifully.
Here is a breakdown of the costs:

The shop applied a $4.50 Handling Fee, noted in the fine print on the web site, to take the American cost to $173.50.
Note the exchange rate varied between the time of purchase and the time of postage.
Four discrete charges were applied to my credit card by the bank. They were:
1. The cost of the article ex America
2. A foreign currency conversion fee for the article - St George bank charges 2.5%
3. Postage of the article from America to Australia - note ALL postal charges are expensive.
4. A foreign currency conversion fee for the postage.

Here is worked example for an early Marklin Swiss class Re460 with CIBA logos. The unique Australian example was located interstate, so I have added postage. The American example is from MMM Inc.

This is quite interesting when comparing the normal stock prices - the saving alone would be enough to buy a couple of carriages.
Also note that M.M.M.Inc. currently have the loco on special at $199.99 US. Do the maths yourself. Note that since these calculations were done, the $AUS exchange rate sat over $US parity for six months, and made for a bonanza in overseas purchases.

The local shops have good reputations, give access to warranty, service and parts plus the occasional bargain - keep your eyes peeled to the shop web sites. Prices are on a par with European catalog prices converted from Euros. You can also test any article before you buy, so if possible support your local shop.

For anything slightly exotic (say a Swiss model) you may need to buy overseas, where you might still find high prices due to the exchange rate - rework the equations for the present exchange rate. Extortionate postage costs and the occasional fictitious stock level may add problems. Bear this in mind should you consider buying overseas, and do your homework by contacting the shop before purchase. Note the overseas shops still have the same warranty conditions; merely pay for post back to the shop.

	DECODER - CONVERT MARKLIN AC LOCOS TO DIGITAL Convert Marklin AC Locomotives to Digital using a reasonably priced four function decoder sourced from Argentina.
	SR2 - MODEL A FINNISH RAILWAYS Sr2 ELECTRIC LOCO Marklin produce models of the Swiss Re460 and the Norwegian EL18, but not the similar broad gauge Finnish Sr2. This project details the conversion of a Swiss Re460 model into an Sr2.
	ELECTRONIC - CONVERT AC LOCO TO AN ELECTRONIC REVERSER Convert standard Marklin locomotives using a reversing relay to operation with an Electronic Reverser. The modification allows crisp reversing without over run and much improved low speed running.
	CONVERT - 2 RAIL DC LOCOS TO 3 RAIL AC LOCOS Convert two rail locos to the Marklin system to enable Australian or English prototypes to run on Marklin track. Modifications to the loco are the addition of an AC reversing circuit and mounting a pickup shoe to the leading bogie.
	CONTROLLER - BUILD A DC CONTROLLER This controller is cheap, easily built from Dick Smith/Jaycar components, is fully regulated to 1.2amps and short circuit proof.
	KADEE - FITTING KADEE COUPLERS TO BRITISH ROLLING STOCK This is sometimes a bit of a problem due to the height of the coupler mounting surfaces and the proximity of the bogies to the end of the carriages. Here are two solutions, one for a van, the other for the bogie of a carriage.