Detroit, Mi area. Very privledged to have 4 shops within a 25 minute drive(Hobby**wn is 45 minute drive lol). 5 minute drive to P&D Hobby Shop…
Family owned business I’ve had the priveldge of going to for 40 of my 51 years over 3 different locations and watching them grow… Trains, planes, automobiles. RC and everything in between LOL
I go there this evening to get a simple set screw for one of my RC’s, windows are plastered with the yellow signs: everything must go etc. WOW, Really?!
I don’t believe many of us are ‘not guilty’ of ordering online but we still enjoy going into the store, correct?
Are you kidding me? Going to the hobby shop is one of my favorite things to do in this hobby. I think every modeler gets a thrill visiting the brick and mortar joints. Whenever I travel I look to see what shops are in town. I have 3 shops all about 60 or so miles away and would be crushed if they went under.
A note to new modelers. Don’t bring non modelers. They get bored after a few minutes and we want to spend hours in these stores.
That’s a bummer and I feel your pain. A few years back we had a store close that had been around for many many years. It’s one that we shopped at from young on and they did an awesome job stocking it. It was a sad day when they announced it was closing. Heck… the store was such a mainstay here that it even made local news. Fortunately, I have a few other stores to fall back on.
Now…if only I could find a suitable substitute for the Shakeys Pizza Parlor that closed years back. We loved the buffet. [:S]
Ya’ll listen ta my boy now! He’s so right. San Antonio is a fairly large metro and we only have two that I know of. That’s Dibble’s on Donaldson and Hill Country Hobbies out on Bandera Road inside loop 1604. B & M Stores cannot be profitable for the most part. Rising Rents, Utilities and Severe requirements from Banks( Parking, Pedestrian Access, Volume of Pedestrian Traffic, and the list goes on) have pretty well stomped them into neverland!
Oh, and None here in New braunfels except H.L. There is a new one in KYLE,Tx.( a forty minute drive from my house) North of N.B. I am somewhat surprised, Because in the Seguin area (Southeast of us ) there is a very formidable Model Flying Club that meets annually in an old aerodrome there. I guess there’s nuttin but “On Line” for us! Oh, There Was, or Is “King’s” in Austin. But most of us avoid that city. The traffic is heart attack inducing, anytime of the day!
My gosh, I haven’t heard that name since I closed my store in 1972.Only Pizza parlor with Family Room and Service, Just like old Pubs and " Sunday Beer"( Little Rock, Arkansas used to be dry, Sundays) “Sunday Beer” was a concoction One of my personnel came up with. It was “Paltry’s Sunday Beer” (Paltry was her name) it was a mix of Root Beer, Seven Up and Vanilla for suds. It went over big! But Pizza Hut and others undersold me on my best day! I still think about our four pound “Shakey’s Supreme” and that was the Medium!
Absolutely- particularly when I run out of paint unexpectedly. Many of us are in the situation now where we are forced to mail-order our paints. Running out of paint may set up a several-day hold on working on that project.
It was always fun to go to a store, even if it was a simple drug store. Now, as far as I know, there is only one store in town. Fortunately it also has photogarphy supplies, does framing for pictures, and trains besides models.
Oh man, I miss the place. Many memories there. I think there is one still open bit it is in California. Maybe we could do a road trip and then stop to the one remaining BlockBuster video.
Hey there were Shakey’s here in Hawaii too! They sadly disappeared by the 1980s though.
There were Shakey’s in Japan as well. I went to the one in Umeda, Osaka. They had 80’s rock music playing on the PA. There were some odd pizzas, like natto (fermented soy beans), squid, and codfish roe. And corn was a pretty common topping. We just had a good old fashioned pepperoni, sausage, mushroom and olive combo.
There is only one LHS around here. They are staffed by clerks/cashiers who only know how to ring you up and take your money. They know nothing about the products they are selling or our hobby. I don’t know where the owner is hiding out, never saw him.
So I don’t mind buying on line. They don’t deserve my business.
Hey Missileman, Do you know if Scale Model Supply in St.Paul is still open. They are on the corner of Lexington and University. I grew up with the manager, His name was Daug. They were great everytime I went there. Now that I am 2 plus hours away its hard to get there very often.
Building a model now takes some pre planning,you try to gather all your stuff before you start.I only have a nice Hobbytown 25 min and a better one 70 min away.
But I have to say,even though I only build one at a time,I never got stopped in my tracks because of paint,there was always something else to do while waiting.
I saw your question on Scale Model Supply. So I thought I would answer it for you. Yes, they are still there. I go in there occasionally since I live in the Minneapolis metro area. The one thing I’ve noticed with them is that their prices seem to be a bit high. Especially on bigger kits. But they are still there.
When I was growing up, and even through college there were numerous hobby stores within a 20 mile radius. Now, there is nothing worth discussing within 75 miles. The Hobby Town nearby is mostly RC with a few dozen cheap kits.
I’m guessing that the economics of stocking model kits and supplies in brick and mortar just isn’t there anymore.
Ask any hobby store owner and they will tell you that the average customer comes in, chews the fat with the counter guy for an hour, and leaves with a bottle of paint.
Exactly this. It contributed to the demise of one of the last local stores. There was always a crowd of neckbeards hanging around the counter, endlessly chatting, and bashing every new release. It’s a wonder anyone else got any attention or a word edgewise, as they occupied all the staff’s attention. And in general, they almost never bought anything! Sure, management needed to do something. But they didn’t, and it became an unwelcoming place to anyone new to the hobby. Who wanted to go there with these jerks monopolizing the counter, and loudly bad mouthing every kit and product? Tell me it doesn’t happen at your store…