Here in my area (Cincinnati) we have Hobbytown and Hobby Lobby. Micheal’s too which is pretty much useless these days. We lost Broadway Hobbies (downtown Cincinnati) and Smitty’s (Kettering / Dayton) a few years ago. I know some dislike Hobbytown, but I’m grateful they’re not too far away. Excellent selection of paints and tools. Not too shabby on plastic kits as well.
Argh - Broadway … Pretty sure that’s the place I used to go to get paint when I was airbrushing my balsa RC aircraft a small lifetime ago. I built an electric P-38 that I had fiberglassed and then painted in captured colors (German) so it was green on top and yellow underneath, made it WAY easier to see orientation. Anyway, I needed some Floquil paints and that was where I found them. Sorry to hear it’s gone.
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The owners wanted to retire and closed up shop. Like Smitty’s, it had that cool old school hobby shop atmosphere.
Comrade_Shmersky, There’s a “Father-Son” hobby shop near my home and when the father was alive he bolt downstairs from the loft area every time I stopped in and he’d follow me around the shop until I either checked out or left the store. Very paranoid about shop lifting.
@WhatIfRebel
I have been to Happy Hobby several times. Yes, the building should be condemned, yes the aisles are packed and probably not up to code. And yes, most prices are not great.
Having said that you can find deals if you look. And they have some great out of production products.
Don’t go out of the way to go there. But if you are in the area anyways, they are worth a look.
Come to Denver where Colpar’s is still one of the best in the US
@ctruss53
I was only at Happy Hobby once probably 15 or so years ago. I only bought one small package of MRC 1/350 scale carrier deck vehicles. The guy charged me something like $12 or $16 for them. Never again will I go back there.
@MR_TOM_SCHRY
If you (or anybody else) does make it to Model Empire in Milwaukee, I forgot to mention the following:
I think this is every November. Usually the first weekend and on a Sunday. The store has a massive sale of clearence and discontinued items, opened or damaged model kits, etc. I went once a few years ago with a friend and the line to get in the door stretched around the block. 
By the time we did get in, every aisle was jam packed shoulder to shoulder with people trying to buy up all sorts of great deals. I kid you not. It was really hard to move around, let along breathe.
Thanks for the tip about Model Empire WhatIfRebel! I’ll definitely try to be there next year.
that sounds just like this one! He almost freaked out because ‘a kid was in his shop!!’ and was worried I would like break stuff just by touching things? These shop owners, man… 