RE: HobbyKing US Warehouse
I order (when I have to) from the Chinese warehouse but the shipping time is so LONG!
Some US vendors such as valuehobby.com provide competitive prices and much better shipping cost/timeframes.
Granted valuehobby doesn't have the kind of inventory in stock that hobbyking does, but they are a good local alternative.
The success of the HK US warehouse will depend entirely on it's ability to keep products in stock.