Of gone hobby shops and gone mail order shops.

[ericadeane]

In metro Detroit (if you're passing through town or here for work), there are still some very good B & M hobby shops.

1) Great Lakes Hobby, 43055 Van Dyke Ave, Sterling Heights, MI 48314
Phone586) 254-1600

Huge selection of plastic kits. The most armor in a LHS I've ever seen. Good prices too.

2) Model Cave, 103 W Michigan Ave, Ypsilanti, MI 48197
Phone734) 316-2281

Good selection -- has some unique lines too

3) Michigan Toy Solider, 1400 E 11 Mile Rd, Royal Oak, MI 48067
Phone248) 586-1022

Unique stuff aimed mostly for fig painters & wargamers.

 

[moon puppy]

Hi Roy, thanks for that info. I've been through Detroit airport several times but only for layovers.

 

[phantom II]

Growing up in Plattsburgh we had a Hobbytown and that stayed open until the late 80s...and soon after it closed the local MJ Designs (like a Michaels or AC Moore) had a great hobby section with a whole wall of models- that section was overseen by an ex-Air Force gentleman who ran the local IPMS chapter- Frank Baere I believe his name was. They eventually were replaced by Michaels...and it disappeared.

Locally here near Saratoga, I went down to grab stuff from the Hobbytown in Albany and found it closed. Damn shame- but the woman who ran it really didn't know the first thing about running it. All we have left here is a Hobby Lobby, a railroad/hobby shop/pool store that's really trying to be just a pool store, and a RC track/hobby shop that's not even trying to compete with online...I get my MM paints from him but no longer have a local source for Tamiya paints.

Starting to think that it's the only people that Hobbytown will hire except for the one in Augusta :idonno

Cheers, Christian B)

 

[jknaus]

Still miss my Dads hobby Shops and working in them. Unfortunately I had wanderlust and couldnt see doing that for life. In this little burg there have been 3 or 4 attempts at hobby shops but they never lasted. If I won the lottery I might try opening one of my own just because but I know it would be a money loser.
James

 

[moon puppy]

Still miss my Dads hobby Shops and working in them. Unfortunately I had wanderlust and couldnt see doing that for life. In this little burg there have been 3 or 4 attempts at hobby shops but they never lasted. If I won the lottery I might try opening one of my own just because but I know it would be a money loser.
James

You already have the stock.

 

[Swordsman]

Gerry if he had given me that reason I would have been ok with it. He didn't.

The guy was a idiot for not telling you the truth ... there was a time when Tenax-7R couldn't be bought for about 2 years ... seems the partners were having a divorce ... or some other trouble so it had disappeared off the market ... Right at the time a new customer wanted some ... Very frustrating ... it was the only thing He's every bought but that's where I discovered the amazing Tenax-7R ...

 

[Swordsman]

I think we can all understand what you said about ordering in the Tenax Gerry. It's one thing to be upfront about that and mybe work something out to make the sale. It is a whole other bag of worms for the owner to just flat out lie. I think that is what Bob was mostly distressed about.

Bingo...except I'm not that stressed about it, just done with that store. Now that being said, I'm looking forward to being able to hit the stores up in Fayetteville NC, the one Chris and I found up in Spenser or any other one where the owner doesn't feel like he has to lie.

Even looking forward to the chance to hit your store Gerry. :dude :drinks

Right Now is an exciting time for me as like you guys I started out as a child ... Building and painting out of the box ... the firecrackers (For Dy-no-mite) or the BB gun for use as a Mortar or cannon ... learned that if you used Elmer's glue to assemble your model you didn't play with it in the irrigation ditch (Utah)

That's were I meet Ronny Blue, Ronny & I would save our Quarters to by the Mini-tanks made by Roco, for about a quarter ... We had the panzer divisions on the green blanketed ping-pong table with the hills and canyons made from what ever was under the blanket. I wish I still had those mini-tanks.

So being a jack of all trades master of none ... after computer school (CDC-CTM-17) I got a job as a circuit designer (breadboard wired units) this was before our flow soldered units, there were test boards used for trouble shooting ... if the or'd wire went to the wrong and gate it was just unwrapped and moved to the proper place on the wire wrap board. Now this is were I screwed up royally, some guys from this Company called Intel came by with this 3,000 dollar chip called a 8080, talking about mico-controllers & what not. No I didn't by stock, still kicking myself, to shorten my background, as I got older found myself running a Antique store full of glassware, found old ladies would pay good money for this stuff. I was tired of being and international field service engineer, talk about a man without a country. If you made the customer happy the Company wasn't, and visa-versa. then a man asked me to come list some trains on e-bay for about 200 a week, down at the 'ol Katy Depot in town, that lasted about 3 years, and we started selling models, trains and automobiles, but mostly trains and had a portion of the old Depot as a Lionel train layout, and Railroad Museum. Trouble was that He got the Lionel bug and was spending more on new rolling stock, then He was on Me,soon He lost the Depot, due to non-payment of His bills. So this is the way that Greenville Hobby Depot started, Me growing up in a Hobby shop, thought I knew what the modelers needed, from my experience's as a child. the more supplies I had the less money, I could find to order new stuff, My Crack-head partner, who was a modeler, was stealing the money, the rent didn't get paid, so I started a new place and moved from the 118 year old building, besides I was pretty sure it was haunted by victims of the Katy Railroad. I started off with Steven's International Hobby Distributor's and still use them, but I also have Heartland hobbies, Squadron, Hornby America, SoundTraxx and others I forget too much for Me, what with the rent being high for the size of my shop, I just call myself "The Best Little Hobby shop in Texas" I'm on the web, just my web-man has gone to visit Ed ...

So all that being said Greenville Hobby (in Texas) yes there is another one, in Bob's neck of the woods. is poised to become a on-line biz just as soon as I get the shipping and money taking all straighten out. Go Daddy is hosting my on-line store but it needs lots of work. My cheap RC/Supplier is none existent, I can't figure if they are in business are not. but My DJI Drones need to sell soon.

Long story short, my web site is listed in my profile, and I'll work on the Best little Hobby Shop, soon if I have to go on-line only ... I do believe in customer service ... that's what I did in the electronics business, I just had some train control people contact me Saturday, these people are desperate for an outlet ... I want to build a bigger place on my 3 acres by the Hi-way, but the money eludes me at the current moment. Yes there would be a R/C tank battle ... dirt track for cars and a riding Railroad, and a R/C boat course out back.

www.greenville-hobby.com