ORIGINAL: PilotFighter
There is simply no hobby shop in the world with the technical support and parts support for their products, combined with a liberal return and exchange policy that Tower Hobbies provides. They are the bench mark for excellence in this hobby for customer support, they are second to none. What is that worth ? Its Priceless. Its worth my business. Its worth my loyalty and its worth stepping in and defending them.
And Tower can't compare to a well run hobby shop which has a knowledgable staff and understands customer service. The owner of one of the hobby shops I used to frequent taught me how to build, setup and race boats. The owner of another one taught me how to build, cover, and fly airplanes. You're not going to get that from Tower or any other online source. Don't get me wrong, I buy lots of stuff from Tower and other online sources, but it's important to remember that a good local hobby shop DESERVES people's support even if their prices are a bit higher.