Shipping equipment bought at Smith Sales Co. Auctioneers overseas
Also searched as Smith Sales, Smith Sales Co., smithsalesco.com, Miles City auction
Smith Sales has run construction, oilfield and farm equipment auctions from Miles City, Montana since 1994. The buyer's premium is 7% for cash, check or wire, and storage runs $20 to $25 per item per day after the removal date.
How Smith Sales Co. Auctioneers works for export buyers
Smith Sales Co. Auctioneers sells from a 38.85-acre auction center at 1108 US Highway 12, Miles City, Montana.
Out-of-state buyers need certified funds, and cards carry an extra 5% and are accepted in person only. Items left after the stated date may be treated as abandoned.
Smith Sales Co. Auctioneers buyer terms
- Buyer's premium
- 7% for cash, check or wire; cards add 5% and are taken in person only. Source
- Payment
- Out-of-state buyers pay with certified funds. Source
- Storage fees
- $20 to $25 per item per day after the removal date; items left past the stated date may be treated as abandoned. Source
Checked October 2026. Terms vary by sale, so confirm them on your invoice.
After you win at Smith Sales Co. Auctioneers
- 1Pay by wire or certified funds.
- 2Send us the paid invoice and the removal date from the sale terms.
- 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 Smith Sales Co. Auctioneers
- Miles City is far from any seaport, so we usually truck to the Denver rail ramp for containers, or to Seattle and Tacoma for flat racks and RoRo.
- We plan the long haul so the lot leaves before storage starts.
Smith Sales Co. Auctioneers 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Smith SalesMiles City, Montana | Port of Seattle970 mi, about 19.5 h | Port of Tacoma979 mi, about 19.5 h |
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
- Sending an uncertified check from out of state.
Smith Sales Co. Auctioneers export questions
How do you ship from Miles City, Montana?
By truck to the Denver rail ramp for containers, or to Seattle or Tacoma for oversized cargo. The road distance is about 500 miles to Denver and about 970 to Seattle.