harcosparky

So I am a veteran who goes back over 30 years ago ..... flew everything and anything.

Decided to look into getting back into flying, and boy was I shocked.

Hobby store are nothing like they used to be, staff have little knowledge about the hobby but sure know how to look stuff up and order it for you .... assuming you KNOW what it is you want. Product questions? Well it's not like it used to be, hobby shops were owned by active hobbyists who had an interest in the hobby and made an effort to hire others with interests as well.

One of the 'managers', the " old guy " at our local Hobby Shop knows little or nothing about RC .... you have to " come back and see Kevin " he says.

Build an airplane??? Does anyone even do that any more. It seems like everything is ARF, RTF, PNF, PNP and so on.

Now mind you, my inquires were simple ..........

I wanted information on 1/4 Scale Gas powered airplanes ..... 9 channel radios ..... and information on various receivers and their technologies.

I was given the phone numbers to manufacturers and told " call them , they are the experts then come back and tell us what to order for you? "

My response was " fat chance on that, you won't even talk price and the lowest priced package I am looking at will be around $2,000.00. Why should I come back here to tell you what to order, then I have to pay for it and wait for it to come on. Oh and yeah I gotta pay you sales tax. I think I'll stay home, order it myself and avoid those pesky taxes. If I have any problems, I'll just call one of the numbers you gave me, remember they have the experts. "

It pained me to have that attitude after all I am big on supporting local businesses in my community as opposed to ordering online. My reason for this is the SUPPORT you get from a local business. But now it seems as if the local businesses are nothing more than catalog fronts for a couple of major suppliers.


So I am going to orders one of Hanger 9 Super Cub models with the 108" wingspan, it comes with a gasoline motor and should make a great flying platform for what I have in mind.

Sorry but I just felt the need to rant about the condition of what was once an amazing hobby for almost anyone.

J330

My Feedback: (3)

http://shop.balsausa.com/product_p/438.htm Here is a kit and 108" wingspan.

You might want to freshen up your flying skills before putting all that money in the air and finding out you're not up to date on your reflexes, tuning, and remembering all you forgot.
What radio did you decide on? These forums are where the answers are.
Why 9 channels on a 5 channel plane, provided you add flaps?

harcosparky

Skills are fine ...... recently been flying camera drones, but I guess they are not really my thing.

My son has been flying a lot and I help him when I can.

Why 9 channels on a 5 channel plane? We the plane being as large as it will be, is going to be used as a flying platform of sorts for some other gear.

Cameras .... video ( ATV ) transmitters ..... glider tow/release mechanisms and other things as well. The additional channels will be used to control those on-board, non-aircraft systems.

Radio is still up in the air ..... we have a few Spektrum units here DX5, DX6i, DX6e and they seem well built enough but I want to look at all my options.

FirstCavArmyVet

Noticed that myself down here in FL recently. I just got my hands on a big lot of aircraft so I wanted to get back into flying. All but 2 of the old stores I used to go to, are gone. Thankfully George in the shop in Palmetto is an old hand and is basically in the bracket you were looking for. Sadly, his is the ONLY shop in a 3 county area, that is even R/C related now. I think the saving grace here is the fact that Sarasota is as we all know, a "retirement" city. So alot of the old school R/C flyers are still alive and kicking. So the demand for one or two shops is still high here. However, not sure how long that will last.

rcmiket

The hobby is fine and you get out of it just what you put into it. As far as hobby shops mail order and the internet killed them. There's just no margin anymore ( margin is what keeps the doors open). Hobbyist's can thank themselves for that the old " I can get it cheaper on-line" . If you have a LHS I suggest supporting it before they are gone.
One more thing as far as contacting manufactures you get good information if and only if you get someone that actually cares which is hit or miss lately.. I will say the BUSA is tops as far as customer service.


Mike

GSXR1000

My Feedback: (7)

Exactly, it is all driven by economics, only the cookie cutter chain hobby stores are able to stay open. It's hard to find a good ole mom/pop owned ole school fully stocked hobby shop anymore. The one that served Dallas, was actually in the suburb I live, Carrollton closed due to immenint domain for highway expansion. It never opened back up, I have to drive a another suburb closer to Ft. Worth now for a decent mom/pop hobby shop.

J330

My Feedback: (3)

I like your point where hobby shops like Hobbytown have zero framed up or glow engine knowledge because of the shrinking segment of the hobby we're stubbornly hanging onto. We're not typical. We're builders and tinker as well as want to be instant model pilots. 10 years ago it was kit vs arf, now it's neither kit, arf, or glow, it's RTF out of the box with transmitter, camera, and even batteries, getting the attention of FAA having no AMA field guidance in their RC discipline. Eventually you'll find nothing but people letting go of their hoarded closet treasures at premium prices. Only a few kit and glow engine manufacturers are left.

Mail order is how America shops. Amazon, Ebay, Bangood, etc. Why not Tower or HK? My LHS closed years ago, closest one is 30 miles away, the next one that I'd call a hobby shop is gravesrc.com, fuel is still $15/gal there, but that's more like 78 miles for me, monthly a guy who draws the short straw makes the fuel run for many. Your local mall similarly has many empty stores in it losing to mail order convenience.

As far as radios, you might find quality in some new radios that have more features for the buck than name brands that suffer a grey market of fake receivers that plague many Spektrum radios in the past. Taranis has a great write up and many swear by it, $180ish. Check out youtube videos giving overviews and instructional support. FrSky is one of the most common radios I see at the field. I still use a 72 Mhz 7CAP, but recently bought a used Tactic 650. The Tactic 850 was just discontinued this week showing new radios are obsolete in just a couple of years. Keep your radio investment under $200 is my recommendation.

rcmiket

We have a full line Hobby Shop here that I work for 3 days a week since I retired and pricing is the biggest issue we face on a daily basis. People are unrealistic as far as just what we can and can't do. While we do MAP ( maybe a 17 or 18% margin which is next to nothing) they complain about the tax ( 8.25%). So they buy on-line than expect us to carry every part ( along with solving all the issues with their purchase) for every off the wall manufacturer and can't believe that we can't get them these parts.. We win some of them over but it takes time ( which is money). I would hate to try and make a living at it.
Don't get me wrong I enjoy working with these people but I can be very trying at times.
Mike

scale only 4 me

My Feedback: (158)

At some point you just need to accept that what's on the shelves at your LHS is what's selling, ready to fly foamies, rc cars and drones are selling,, balsa kits, glow motors and nicads aren't.

LHS are dying because they are no longer necessary,, unless you need to buy glow fuel,, and that is a dying segment,, that not the LHS's fault, it's just the way it is.

What you would call my LHS is primarly car stuff, he's about 15 miles from me, when he moved there I told him there were 4 rc clubs within 15 miles of his location,, if he stocked a few RC airplane things guys would come buy stuff,, especially glow fuel,, 7 years later he still has practically nothing, no Airplane fuel, no props, no wheels, not even a decent Dubro display,, it's waste of time and gas $$ to drive over there to hear " can order it for you"

I have to drive 60 miles to a shop that stocks fuel,, when my last gallon of 20/20 runs out, I'm pulling the ys120 and installing a dle20,, things change, we must change too.

good luck

J330

My Feedback: (3)

http://www.towerhobbies.com/products/pmm/pmma1695.html $78 off that with free shipping using a club member discount. I had a good luck with Phoenix in the past for less money than "H9" 107"

Jennifer Curtis

Harcosparky,

Go to Extreme RC at Mussers Market, Buck PA.
(at the intersection of 272 and 372). It is a hobby
shop to make your mouth water, and it is well
worth the drive.

Also visit Swan Harbor RC club ( 39°31'18.6"N 76°07'08.8"W )
Not so busy this time of year so call one of the officers.
Phone numbers are here: http://www.swanharborrc.com/about-us.html

Jenny

edgeman55

My Feedback: (25)

You want to know how to turn 200 grand into 100 grand -buy a Hobby Shop.Here in Northern Nevada the only real Hobby type shop was Hobbytown in Carson City.After 12 years they closed ther doors this summer.As said here the internet killed them and working two people 70+ hrs a week for 30-35 grand is nuts as the owners a husband and wife team found out.Now they get to E bay there left over inventory so I guess the internet will help them in the end!Black Friday at Xmas time is smoked in terms of dollars to cyber monday-It's a new world as Quad/drone sales have shown.We fixed wing modelers are a dying breed.Happy New Year and safe flying to all.

J330

My Feedback: (3)

Business is survival of the fittest. Put your hobbyshop online.

rcmiket

Yea there's no competition on the net............................................... .......you'll be the first..................................

Mike

on_your_six

My Feedback: (11)

What about another aspect... some of old characters flying won't spend a nickle to upgrade their equipment and fly trash planes found at garage sales. It is a point of pride for them to not spend a nickle.

rcmiket

According to the AMA the "old characters" are declining fast and the young kids getting the free memberships is the fastest growing but not sticking around to become paying members . So I'm not sure what the deal is. I will say this "traditional modelers" are getting few and far between. Now we have a bunch who can't solve the simplest set up issue or even understand how a radio works.
It is fun to watch though.

Mike

harcosparky

I've been up there a time or two ..... some time ago.

Clubs? Was a member of HCRCM many years ago ...... when true builders were at the top of the group.

One of their members was also in Swan Harbor and I have visited them a few times .... but he passed away long ago.

Cantankerous old man ...... but if you listened to him, you learned to fly. He was actually a corporate test pilot for Martins and the models he BUILT were meticulous in detail and build quality.

When you have mentors like that ....... you tend to strive for excellent.

At least HANGAR-9 is still around and offering all wood built up planes that you can actually REPAIR.

That FOAM stuff .......well my son has a few foams, and they are OK until you put one in the ground then they never seem to fly the same. No problem, throw it in the trash and buy another one! ( I had a kid tell me ' we are millennial, we just toss stuff aside and get new ones. ' ). Wow, what a horrible attitude.

Well I have decided on the Hanger 9, 1/4 scale Cub with the Gasoline engine ......... gas & oil is easily available. Probably go with the PNP version and pick up a cheap Spectrum TX. Get it up in the air, flight tested and any kinks worked out. Then look into a better radio for when I start flying add-on systems in the plane.

harcosparky

When you learn to do a lot, by spending very little ...... you have truly learned something.

Anyone can walk in, throw money on the counter and walk out with an RTF appliance.

Only an accomplished builder/hobbyist can take a vintage model from a garage sale, spend very little and get it into the air again.

Given the choice I will sit next to the old accomplished guy before I sit next to the guy with the hole in his pocket.

But that's just me!

Dealspeed

My Feedback: (17)

My local hobby store sells mostly electric cars and very few electric planes, of which they know nothing about, they used to sell nitro for both cars and planes but now all they have is car fuel.
i have over 20 birds in my building shed, all but one are Nitro and I'll keep it that way for as long as I can.

BelAirBob

Harcosparky,

You are referring to Bill Compton. Unfortunately, there are just not a lot of builders around anymore. People would rather fly than build and some of the E-Flite foamies are truly amazing. I try to buy most of my foam planes from Hobby Works, which is the local hobby shop you are eluding to. That is where their money is, along with cars, trucks, drones and plastics. They do have a program which they mail you a credit back, but they don't seem to advertise it

Extreme RC in Quarryville has a lot more and is 35 miles from Bel Air. Go up on one side of the river and come back the other. Stop at the Delta Family restaurant on the trip. Some of the people there are only into cars and trucks too

if you do get the gas cub, there are a number of people at Swan Harbor who will help, especially Gary Gunter. We have one of the best fields anywhere. If you go back to HCRCM ask for Danny and he will help you

i try to build a plane a year, and always get asked if my built planes are ARFs

regards
belairbob

thanks Jennifer for mentioning our field

Dealspeed

My Feedback: (17)

I would love to be able to build Kits but I just don't have the time, in fact I'm about to take on my first kit and it's just a tiny balsa electric 3D aerobat, very simple little plane but it's a start.
Ive only bought one plane that was basically ready right out of the box, it was a Hangar 9 Twist PNP, all I did was install a JR 700 receiver and battery pack, tighten the tail down and put fuel in the tank for the Evolution 46 that came with it, which was broken in at the factory.
Its the only maiden flight I can remember that I wasn't nervous because I had nothing in to it, it sort of makes you not appreciate it.

J330

My Feedback: (3)

.....

jester_s1

I don't see it as bad as some. One of the very best pilots in my club is 16. He's been flying since he was 13 and picks up new skills very quickly. Sure, he flies ARF planes, but so do most of the old guys too. He's a great kid, exceptional really, and earns a lot of the money he spends on the hobby.
The lack of builders doesn't bother me. They would have flown ARFs back in the 70's if they'd had them. Most guys only built because they had to if they wanted to fly. I agree there is a certain satisfaction to it, but building doesn't make you a real RC hobbyist any more than using a single stick radio would. If you are safe and skilled and having a good time, you are a good hobbyist. Some of these foam planes fly very well, so I don't see the problem.

The dearth of hobby shops with knowledgeable staff is definitely an issue though, even here in DFW where we have Roy's, Bobby Jacks, and JT's. I admit to shopping sometimes at Hobbytown even though the guy with the beard once told me to go to Fry's electronics when I told him I wanted to buy a good quality switch. The manager knows his stuff though, and their selection of hardware and props is pretty good. But with my age (40) and younger, service doesn't help make sales anymore. Most Gen X and Millennials don't want to be told what to buy or what to do with it, even if we don't know. We just want the best price and a simple shopping experience. In every type of retail, the guru behind the counter is a dying breed, replaced by 21 year olds that can be hired cheap and fired easily. The market has dictated that, so that's how it will be.

Dealspeed

My Feedback: (17)

[QUOTE=J330;12290437]My favorite phrase. I hear this excuse in many situations.
I don't have time to join a gym, read a book, or post excuses.

Not having much spare time is the norm when you work nearly 60 hours a week and have 2 young children and a wife, despite these things I'm still using what little bit of personal time I have to build my very first kit.
And yes I love ARF's they allow me to enjoy the best part of this great hobby, being able to fly is more important to me than building, I do enjoy the building and tinkering as well, but I do not agree with some people's view that your not a true RC plane enthusiast if you don't scratch/kit build.

One of the RC fields in my area is full of older guys that think people who don't build from scratch don't deserve to be in there presence or fly off there tarmac, guys like that ruin the hobby for others, last I heard they were about too lose there field because of a lack of members and funds, nobody wanted to join there club

harcosparky

Yeah I know his name ..... just thought I'd throw enough clues out there to see if others remembered him.

I remember when he passed he had just finished up an amazing blue Stearman ..... and I think I last saw it hanging on the ceiling at Hunt Valley Hobbies ...... one of the last real Hobby Shops in the area.

Another great shop was Doug's Hobbies down in Waldorf ......... a bit of a drive but damn well worth it. They were like a Department Store for hobbies ...... each facet had its own department. Helps, planes, boats, cars ...... all pretty much had their own area ...... among all the other hobbies that Doug's supported.

GPA Hobbies in Crofton was a fairly good shop and we'd stop in to buy something from them on the way to Doug's.

You see I am one of the remaining few who understand the real value in brick and mortar shops and go out of my way to support them when I can, hence I would make it a point to buy from both places on the same trip.

Bill Compton was the 'instructor' who 'trained' me .... although I had some experience with RC flying in the 1970's ...... a refresher never hurts.

I had the fortune of visiting Bills home and shop on several occasions ...... he was a perfectionist and I will never forget him.

Other members of that club I might recognize, but Bill was truly memorable!