Shipping equipment bought at Iron Horse Auction Company overseas
Also searched as Iron Horse Auction, ironhorseauction.com, Rockingham NC auction
Iron Horse runs construction, farm and truck consignment auctions from 174 Airport Road, Rockingham, North Carolina. Payment is due in full at the end of the auction, and nothing is released without a paid invoice.
How Iron Horse Auction Company works for export buyers
Iron Horse Auction Company holds consignment sales at its Rockingham, North Carolina site and also sells online through its bidding platform.
Invoices over $5,000 must be paid by cash, check or wire, and online bidders need a $100 card pre-authorization.
Iron Horse Auction Company buyer terms
- Buyer's premium
- 10% at the sale shown; some sales use 15%, so check each sale's terms. Source
- Payment
- Due in full at the end of the auction; invoices over $5,000 by cash, check or wire only. Source
- Release
- Items are not released without a paid invoice. Source
- Bidder registration
- $100 card pre-authorization to bid online. Source
Checked October 2026. Terms vary by sale, so confirm them on your invoice.
After you win at Iron Horse Auction Company
- 1Wire the full invoice amount right after the sale.
- 2Send us the paid invoice and the lot numbers.
- 3We collect the machine, load it with our own carrier and take it to the port, or first to our facility if it needs partial disassembly to fit a container.
- 4We file the export declaration (EEI) in the Automated Export System. It is required when any Schedule B line is worth more than $2,500 or needs an export license, and its ITN confirmation goes to the carrier at least 24 hours before the vessel loads.
- 5For titled machines and vehicles, the original title and the EEI go to U.S. Customs at the port at least 72 hours before export. Without them the unit cannot sail.
- 6We send you the bill of lading and the documents your customs broker needs to clear the machine at destination.
How we work with Iron Horse Auction Company
- From Rockingham we truck to Wilmington, Charleston or Savannah, depending on the sailing and the cargo.
Iron Horse Auction Company locations and their best export ports
1 yard, each with the closest port that takes containers and flat racks, and the closest RoRo port, by road miles.
| Yard | Container and flat rack | RoRo |
|---|---|---|
| Iron Horse AuctionRockingham, North Carolina | Port of Wilmington130 mi, about 2.5 h | Port of Charleston190 mi, about 4 hOr Brunswick, the busiest U.S. RoRo gateway: 307 mi |
Road miles from OSRM (OpenStreetMap), calculated October 2026. Truck hours assume a 50 mph average for a loaded lowboy, including stops.
Container is usually the cheapest option, and we do the partial disassembly needed to make the machine fit. How we containerize heavy equipment
Container, flat rack, RoRo or breakbulk?
We quote in this order because it is usually cheapest first. Most machines that look too big for a box fit once our crew takes off the bucket, boom, cab or wheels; larger ones are taken further apart across several containers, and pieces too big or heavy for a flat rack or roll trailer go breakbulk.
01Container
Best fit- Work needed
- We partially disassemble when needed (bucket, boom, cab, wheels), or take larger machines further apart across several high-cubes and open-tops, then crate, block and lash every part.
- Destinations
- Widest: almost every port worldwide, plus inland delivery by rail.
- Typical cost
- Usually the lowest, with no out-of-gauge surcharges.
- Protection
- Sealed steel box; loose parts and attachments travel locked inside.
- Best for
- Most machines: compact ones as they are, others after partial disassembly, and large ones split across several containers.
02Flat rack
- Work needed
- Ships assembled, blocked and lashed. Surcharges apply when wider than 2.4 m or taller than about 1.95 m.
- Destinations
- Most container ports, on the same vessels as containers.
- Typical cost
- Moderate; rises with every centimetre out of gauge.
- Protection
- Open to the weather; we protect cabs, electronics and hydraulics.
- Best for
- Excavators, dozers and loaders too wide for a container door.
03RoRo
- Work needed
- Drives on assembled; non-runners go on a roll trailer.
- Destinations
- Fewer destinations: regular lanes to Europe, West Africa, the Middle East, Oceania and parts of Latin America.
- Typical cost
- Often competitive for large self-propelled machines where a lane exists.
- Protection
- Below deck, but loose items and attachments cannot ride inside the cab.
- Best for
- Running machines going to a port with regular RoRo sailings.
04Breakbulk
- Work needed
- Lifted aboard piece by piece by ship’s or shore cranes, on its own skids or cradle, then stowed and lashed in the hold or on deck.
- Destinations
- Ports with breakbulk berths and heavy-lift cranes; sailings are booked voyage by voyage.
- Typical cost
- Usually the highest for a single small machine; often the only option for the largest pieces.
- Protection
- In the hold or lashed on deck; we crate, wrap and protect exposed parts.
- Best for
- Pieces too large or heavy for a flat rack or roll trailer: transformers, process modules, mining trucks, crane sections.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Trying to pay a large invoice by card. Over $5,000 it must be cash, check or wire.
Iron Horse Auction Company export questions
Which port do you use for Iron Horse purchases?
Usually Wilmington, Charleston or Savannah. Wilmington is the closest by road; Charleston and Savannah are main container gateways with more carriers calling, so the choice depends on the sailing you need.