Local is Letham Craft Shop---17miles away---not a lot of kits but well stacked paint and Evergreen /Plastruct--nice cafe (black-pudding toasties
Invergowrie Railways --7miles -not a ot of kits (railways are the norm) but handy for paint --plastic sheet --ground work and tools--Gus is a great guy
Scoonie Models Kirkcauldy--40miles -lots of bits
Wonderland -Edinburgh---80miles---alladins cave --
Jamiesons -:-)--< - Glasgow--90 miles ---so much in so small a place --and even a seat for the Mrs--while I drooled --and a coffee to boot ----exelent is an understatement
Did have one here in Dundee --but he got over-loaded with high rent --seems he now to be found at Errol "car-boot"on a Sunday --
Still searching ----will stock up at Telford as usual :-) :-) --there goes my pocket money for 2007
aye
BARV
(GOSG)

Bill Plunk:

Do you live in Houston, perhaps? We have 8.25% sales tax, I think the highest in the state, but I could be wrong.

Anyway, yes, I support my LHS and will even buy the occasional kit there (esp. new releases) since they offer a 10% IPMS discount. But they also stock a great range of paints, accessories, and even Friul tracks at realistic prices. And anything I need they're more than happy to order.

Yeah, the kits are MSRP plus but I always get great service and they put up with my kids nose-printing the glass cabinets. As a former small-business owner, I know what a hassle it is to keep the doors open, the customers happy, and your sanity all at the same time.

I try to visit the LHS once a week. The guys there are great and I've gotten some great deals over the years. Also, the conversation is great. I buy everything I can there.

I've got a LHS near my place but like you, his prices are a little high but his range is pretty bad. He only has a shelf full of kits and its shared between Dragon, Revell and Tamiya.

I usually end up driving into the city to get it which is 30mins drive away, which isnt too bad.

Im slowly moving to the online option as its reasonably priced and i get better range.

I have two LHS's now within a 20 minute drive, one a chain hobby shop and the other a dedicated model shop run by Keith here from Armorama. The "chain store" is good for having a large selection of paints and tools, have a good selection of kits but they're overrun by RC and Warhammer kids. I've also not found them to go out of their way to know their customers and I've been in there numerous times buying things, not many kits though as I get better deals online or at Hobby Lobby. That's a bad move on their part, IMO. Part of the fun and desire to visit the hobby shop is to hang out as well as buy, to "talk shop" if you will.

Keith's store is the latter style, it's a hangout place along with being a modeler's store. It's also a place to go and become known, the prices are good and Keith offers deals to local club members so you get a good deal. Plus he can order in stuff that you need and we can all sit around and "talk shop", which is great.

I have a small lhs ten minutes from me,he used to stock only Airfix but now he has trumpeter and Academy.he only stocks Humbrol paints and fillers and Im wondering what will happen when they dry up(excuse the pun)In Romford another ten minutes travelling I have hobby craft some kits airfix, revell ,tamyia, badger airbrushes and Humbrol paints, also I have a small model zone tamyia, revell, trumpeter, Italieri,academy,and now Dragon and Tamyia paints and revell paints.two things they have in common is astromonical prices and staff who know nothing about the goods they sell.I only use them now for paintsand maybe the odd revell kit that model zone put on discount ,other than that its online for me.adapt or sink simple aint it.

I try and support Avenue Hobbies in Chatswood, Sydney. This is my local (it's near work) They have a pretty good range and really try hard to match the Hong Kong online shops price point. I don't really like seeing my dollars going offshore so I do try and buy from them - but sometimes the price difference is simply too much.
My workmate (Wizard79) and I pop in usually once a week to browse and mainly pick up materials. (I have frozen my spending as my stash has reached the official "ridiculous" stage)
That and he has a very limited figure range. And no resin armour kits to speak of.
I also buy regularly from Ebay, 1 or 2 sellers that I have a number of wonderful (not to mention cost effective) transactions with.
For example from a seller in the US I can buy a Warriors 120mm for approx $45 AUD including shipping. Over here the figure would cost me around $70 if
I can find it.

As Andy said, we go to Avenue about once a week. He generally doesn't carry a lot of stock in store but always has any major new releases and will order just about anything for you. His prices are good when compared to other local internet stores, usually about 10% below RRP. He is good for advice, for aircraft anyway; I can't vouch for armour.

I buy 99% of my kits locally, including eBay or Internet. As I don't buy bulk, I find that a lot of the savings to be made from buying O/S is eaten by the shipping costs. O/S I buy from Hannants, especially flatpack items like decals and PE.

Cheers
Wiz

While I buy the vast majority of my kits online, I still drop a fair amount of coin at my LHS, Venture Hobbies. Their selection is top notch, and their prices are fair...lets face it, overhead has to be met. They give you a card they punch, one punch for every $10 of regularly priced items. Ten punches = $20 off your next purchase. I have three in my wallet right now. I would hate to have to rely solely on the internet for my hobby needs, and while a fair drive away, Venture is worth the trip, every time...just can't walk outta there with nothin'.

Mike

no local Hobby Store to support here. By Hobby Store I assume you mean a place that has it all under 1 roof. I'm not saying they have to have everything, but something more than a few bottles of Testor's paint, cement, and the same old, tired Tamiya kits would be nice.
We have a HobbyTown USA , a Hobby Lobby ... , and a toy store that carries models called Phillip's Toy Mart... . If there were one I would support it, sure, but there just isn't.

A decade ago I can remember ther being some 10 really good hobby shops in my metro area, and a couple of little hole-in-the-wall places to boot.

Today there are 3.

At least 3 of the 4 best/biggest survive, and they appear to be healthy because they don't over-specialize on models but...

Yes things are a lot cheaper on the internet, which makes it very tempting to do all ones business there. But there are times when you run out of something or need something in a hurry and only the LHS will do. For smaller things yes, I like to hit the LHS because they are good to have around. But on a $50 kit if I can save $10-15 by ordering on the net, its tough not too.

I buy all of my paint and supplies from him.There is nothing like knocking a bottle over or finding out your out of something you thought you had and being able to run out less then five miles away and get what I need.
His kits though are more pricier then the internet,However I still by smaller kits from him when the diffrence is a few dollars.He even woked with me once when I pre-ordered a Trumpy 1/350 Hornet ,he gave me a good price.
I hope he is doing Ok I would hate to loose a store so close by.

Absolutely. I have one just down the street that's good for paint, glue etc. The mostly do RC cars and not much in the way of 'good' kits so they're handy for supplies. My main man in Calgary is good for my project stuff and supplies me with most everything else I need. I've occassionally ordered online from Friul, Accurate Armour and Air Connection but I support my LHS wherever and whenever I can (thanks Rick Chin at Uncle Bills...)

It can be more convenient to shop and order online sometimes, but let's not forget that the LHS is the lifeblood of the hobby. These hard working souls are usually the first ones to volunteer their time with clubs, workshops and shows as well and being connected with the personal side of the hobby. That is to say, they're the ones that know people, they know who is who and bring hobbyists together, and they know how to get things done.

"There's nothing like the smell of a hobby shop in the morning. It smells like.....Humbrol..."

Bob

I am pretty lucky to have nine hobby shops within a ten to 45 minute drive of my home. I end up supporting just about every hobby shop I set foot in (some how I just can't seem to come out of one empty handed). Even when I travel on business (mainly to the Washington, DC area) I try to stop into at least one of the two shops near my hotel.

Hi Dave,
Do you live in northern NJ,Do you go to Maplewood Hobby,they are pretty good,I miss Hobby Heaven in Cranford.If you are in north NJ where do you go ?

Thanks

I really try on principle but HOLO and the availibility of stock on the net is changing my mind. LHS are becoming dinosaurs.

True story: I call the LHS to see if they have a Zimm set I want. I talk to a guy who plays the "I don't know" and then get left on the phone for about two min waiting while I hear the clerks smoking and joking in the background. I hung up and promptly ordered the exact set I wanted off the net for about the same price.

I am also getting tired of the LHS "I can't get, don't carry, don't know routine.

I'll give my money to the place that gives me what I want, and acts like they want my money!

Nearest for me is around a four/five hour drive away so... So effectively my nearest HS is right here on the 'web. Great place actually, it's got loads of different prices, brilliant (and terrible) service, it's always open and I get coffee and can smoke while i'm browsing. It is a bit short on human contact but....




You have indeed. I've known Ian (the owner) for 30+ years from Wargaming in Glasgow. Whenever i'm in Scotland it's definitely one of the first places I go to (apart from the Horshoe Bar ) and is exactly what a LHS should be. As for Wonderland in Edinburgh, good for plastic kits and paint, a little short on AM...Jim

I used to work just up the road from San Antonio Hobbies (named for the road it's on) but they closed up (owner retired). They had a might fine selection of kits and reference material. I'd usually stop in once a week to buy stuff on the way to work. Don't work out that way anymore.

Not too far is another great store (kits, not so much references) called D&J Hobby. I hadn't gone there in quite a while since I was more interested in selling my huge stash (now it's only large) than buying more kits but with all these new great kits coming out, I'll be growing my stash once more. References I tend to buy via the Internet (just bought some books on French submarines -just gotta translate them now).

I like D&J as one of the main guys there, Al, is a fountain of knowledge about modelling - kits, painting, decals. I think it's worth it to buy kits at D&J to keep them around.

Well, until I moved to Germany, I bought all my kits online, or if I was on hols in Europe, in a store. Now I have two decent LHSs half an hour away in Koblenz. Kratz Modellbau, in the Bahnhoffstrasse's, pretty good for figs, and I love browsing through a shop like that, since I never had it back home in Colombo. But I can't say I would support an LHS. My modelling's strictly price-controlled, so if I can get it cheaper online, I won't give it a second thought.

If I told you I had 7-8 LHS's within an hour's drive (75-100km) you'd probably think a) I was lying or b) I sure was lucky.

In fact the answer is none of the above.

These LHS's all have pretty much the same stuff... mostly A/C, mostly Tamiya paint, mostly Italeri, Revell and Tamiya models, mostly a poor variety, and mostly high prices! And then of course not to mention that for them plastic models are normally a sideline to model railroading, wargaming (warhammer), R/C, "arts and crafts", and in the latest betrayal... knitting!! (I kid you not!!!!)

If I put on my "business hat" I guess I can understand and rationalise the various factors that play into the high pricing and the "diversity" that each store keeps.

I use my LHS's for paints, and the odd bit of terrain stuff. And even that I am now sourcing online. It just requires better planning on my part.

I prefer to shop online for various reasons. You'll note that I didn't mention if any of my LHS's keep figures - that's because they don't! Sure, they keep Tamiya, GWS and the odd bit of DML figures (not Gen2), but no historical miniatures. So, apart from the deduced fact that I can't buy decent historical miniatures over the counter here in SA, the other biggie is the cost of kits in SA. I can buy the same thing for a minimum of 50% less from HK (including postage) than I can from my LHS.

Rudi

It's funny that this is brought up because my wife and I were just talking about this.

Our closest LHS is about an hour away. Believe it or not, Chicago (if you live in the city) doesn't have that much in the way of LHS. Anyway, it is always a trek to get out there but, honestly, a visit has never not been worth it. Granted things may cost more and they may not have a lot of what I want, they still have something that online retailers don't... expertise.

I do buy most of my stuff online, but once every couple of months I'll head to the LHS and drop a load of cash on some much needed supplies. Over the course of my visit, I'll learn about 100 things I wouldn't have known otherwise. The guy who runs the plastics part of the shop knows everything. I can ask him about any kit and he can tell me how it goes together, what is accurate/inaccurate and what detail sets work and don't work with it. He is a guru to say the least. If have have any more questions, he is always more than willing to pop the box open and let me sniff around the kit. What a great experience those trips are.

Needless to say, I need both the online retailer and the LHS. It's like food... If I need something cheap and fast, I'll pick it up at the local fast food joint, but that doesn't mean I'm not willing to take the time and pay the price for a good fillet mignon every once in a while.

~ Garth

Yannis Hobbies is across the street from San Antonio and is run by Yannis, a former employee of San Antonio Hobbies. He really knows his stuff and has outstanding customer service, not to mention he opens late too all weekdays.

Just look for the large yellow and red "HOBBY SHOP" banner next to the new Whole Foods supermarket. Yannis carries many of the newest and most popular magazines, books, AFV kits, sci-fi kits, planes, tools, pigments, etc...things D&J doesn't. It's worth checking out. He just opened recently. Also, most of his popular and new kits sell out mighty fast, so fast that you couldn't even tell that they were in the store. But the man can get them again (and lots too)...much better and faster than some online shops IMO.

With Tower Records closing soon, and San Antonio Hobby closed, those are two less places to go down there . It'll be nice to see the former SA Hobby Shop employees consolidate and move back into SA Hobby Shop, now an empty shell. I heard that the former SA Hobby shop R/C employee started his own R/C shop somewhere in San Jose.