Sheldon's Hobbies
 

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Where I live we try to support the LHS at all times but sometimes there're reasons to order on line - I recommend against ordering anything from Sheldon's Hobbies in San Jose, CA. Why? Their notion of customer service and respect is a bit lacking: (I've been an out of state customer of theirs for several years.) I called to inquire about not getting any word/updates about an order placed a couple of weeks ago. The clerk came back on line to tell me the item had been back ordered and would be available in the next day or so. I thanked him for the information and advised (due to lack of updates from them) that I'd found an equivalent item elsewhere and would like to cancel the back order. His reply? "Sure, thanks for wasting our time" and summarily hung up. So, I'm thinking I won't be going back there any time soon. [:@]

Mike

RE: Don't Order from Sheldon's Hobbies
 

Don't Order from Sheldon's Hobbies



ha ha ha ha !!!!are you serious ???,,,,,,,,or ?? Maybe Are you too are having a bad day ??, c"mon he is just an employe!!
,Sheldon hobbies ,,,,
is not !!
that guy period!!

RE: Don't Order from Sheldon's Hobbies
 

Mike,
I always like to write peoples names down when I talk to them. That way, when they are rude, I call back and ask to talk to a supervisor. Or I ask to talk to their supervisor while there on the phone (if you can). See how quickly they change their tune when you ask to talk to someone that can affect their paycheck. :D

RE: Don't Order from Sheldon's Hobbies
 

Name? No name was given at the beginning of the coversation and I certainly didn't get it at the end either. [:o] Their "customer service/ordering line" was kaput all of last week - oh well. Your comments are appreciated, Shane. I'm not going back; I just wanted to let others know they might want to think twice before dealing with them.

Semper Gumby

Mike

RE: Don't Order from Sheldon's Hobbies
 

Shane,

Yes, that is a good idea and usually try to follow it also. Unfortunately, in this case, it actually sounds like something the owner would do and say. Have no problems with the staff though.


Frank

RE: Don't Order from Sheldon's Hobbies
 

I quit using them years ago..... if there is such a thing as the most RUDE hobby shop these guys win it hands down. Sad when you consider these shops are a rareity these days. There profitability must be outstanding to treat people the way they do. Oh well...... the internet allows us to make other decissions and move on. My two cents.

RE: Don't Order from Sheldon's Hobbies
 

sheldons is awesome!! I love the support of the "car guys". They provide execellent service to everyone that walks in. The airplane side is also quite nice, they are very welcoming, and I'm proud to go there everyday.

RE: Don't Order from Sheldon's Hobbies
 

Yup I've had the same complete lack of respect and customer service at Sheldon’s Hobbies in San Jose. First off a few specific employees (notably the incredible short guy) really must dislike their job as he is incredibly unhelpful, slow and lazy. Half-*****ed answers and just a complete disregard for customers that don't know nearly as much as him in the RC field. Trying to call them and get information is joke, the phone will ring and ring on weekends, I must have called 40-50x a few weeks back just to check if they had some parts in-stock and to see what time they are open (and I never did get anyone on the other end). Then today I called to see how much a product was and this is what I get:

How much is this product?
Sheldons: We don't quote over the phone.
But you have prices on your website?
Sheldons: We don't quote over the phone! Have a nice day, click.

My next question would have been if they even had that product in stock! Guess I'll be going to the 'franchised' LHS for now on.

Never again will my friends or I be spending any money at Sheldons hobbies.

RE: Don't Order from Sheldon's Hobbies
 

When TDY to that area I used to make it a point to stop by and buy some stuff that's not normally stocked in my LHS. But if I'm in the area in the future I will make it a special point to stop by and tell them how their customer relations suck. Maybe we'll even go out to the parking lot to discuss my views further if they're in the mood for it. [>:]

Mike

RE: Don't Order from Sheldon's Hobbies
 

Well, I cant say yes or no that i like them. The pros on my end: I have ocntatced the manager there at the store (in San Jose) and was treated with respect numerous times. The Cons: Their cars are a bit expensive, and theyre not a well known vehicle (propietary). Its pretty bad when you need tuneups and if you cant do them yourself, then youre pretty much screwed unless a friend who is also an entusiast can work on it. No, I will not get another vehicle from them. I dont feel like diving for 8hrs north just to talk to them in person.

RE: Don't Order from Sheldon's Hobbies
 

I like Sheldon Hobbies. They have always been good to me.

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I just had a terrible experience at Sheldon's. I ordered a P47 arf and it arrived by UPS. When I opened the box the wing was missing. I call the next day and talked to the owner, Mr. Sheldon. I have been a customer for years and I am known by all of the staff. Mr. Sheldon told me he prepared my order himself and the wing was in the box. He told to pay for UPS to send the box back and he would get to it next week. He also laughed at me, and made me feel that I was trying to rip him and his store off. I asked if I could bring the box back on Saturday, and he left me with the feeling that he could care less, and to top it off he cut off the conversation. Well, I went to the store and asked to see him. He was told I was there, but he would not come out of the back to see me. One of his counter workers explained that a friend of Mr. Sheldon had needed the wing and the box was marked with a note that the wing was missing. The question that begs to be asked is if Mr. Sheldon is willing to lie about checking the box, what else is he willing to do? Mr. Sheldon was rude and discourteous to me, and I believe that unless I went to the store I would not have gotten this matter resolved. His employees told me that this is the way he treats all of his customers. Since this error was completely the store's error, and since I had to drive two hours, most store owners would have apologized. To be honest, all I wanted was to get this problem resolve, and when I chose a slightly more expensive aircraft I paid the difference. All I wanted was a simple apology, but that was not going to happen. It is apparent to me that Mr. Sheldon feels that he can abuse us and get away with it. I can tell you that I and most of the guys in our club will not do business with him again. There is an old saying that fits this situation "The fish stinks from the head", with the head being the owner Mr. Sheldon. Buyers beware when it comes to Sheldon's Hobbies.

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The owner of Sheldon's is half ass - has always been half ass and will alwasy be half ass. Anyone who has been in the industry of any length of time knows this. He has been trying to Off-Load the store for quite some time and I think he gets more and more disillusioned with his business with every failed attempt to ditch it.

RE: Don't Order from Sheldon's Hobbies
 

I too have received poor service and rude behavior from Sheldon's Hobbies in San Jose. When they shipped the wrong item, I called them to get the correct item shipped.

I was told that I was a liar and had received the correct order. I was promptly treated to the click of the phone hanging up.

Stay away from these guys!

Plenty of better merchants out there!

RE: Don't Order from Sheldon's Hobbies
 

We should print these posts out and go post them on their door. LOL.

RE: Don't Order from Sheldon's Hobbies
 

I'm from Switzerland and I bought via eBay a Spektrum DX6. The delivery was fast like hell, also the following order of additional receivers was a pleasure since the price was good and the shipping cost very fair.

Also here - immediately after ordering (this time via eMail) a short confirmation and the invoice via paypal dropped in. Very uncomplicated everything compared to many, many other sellers in the US who do not even know about the existence of other countries not to mention to ask them to do complicated things like SENDING something to such suspect countries (which all are outside the US *g*)...

The only thing I was wondering was the communication with Ron via eMail. The communication is very fast and clear, but here's never a "regards" or "thanks" or whatever. First I thought it was a bad day, but it looks as this is just his style.

I'm mean, I get all I need, easy, for a good price and very fast, so I can live without been treated as a friend, so for me the business with him is still a pleasure (but until now I had the luck to have no missing, wrong or broken parts in the box).

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Hmmmm, I just found on my visa bill a deduction of 300 dollars from sheldons.....I haven't purchased anything from them in 12 months, and they won't answer the phone. This could be sorted out normally but all I can do is treat them as thieves cos they won't answer.

Time to call my credit card people methinks.

RE: Don't Order from Sheldon's Hobbies
 

i always try to support my LHS... but i dont have one :(

its a shame some of you guys got bummed like that... if you ask me someone who treats their customers like that or employs staff like that and pays them is not fit to do buisness...

ya know what? put me in charge of that shop, i'll soon turn it around, all will be greated with "hello, Foamy's hobbies Foamy speaking how can i help? ^_^" and all orders/stock will be personally checked by foamy and sent with a note enclosed with phone number and a bit of info about what is enclosed e.t.c

anyway, im rambling... by all means support your LHS, but if they are rude and obnoxious (spelling?) then i say to hell with 'em!

Foamy takes care of his customers! ^_^

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Posts like this are great because they get the word out. I have never ordered from Sheldon's and thanks to you guys I never will. OBTW......I'll make it a point to let my fellow club members know as well. As I always say when I come across a business such as Sheldon's..............vote with your wallet!!! [sm=punching.gif]

Thanks for the "heads up" guys!

Ed

RE: Don't Order from Sheldon's Hobbies
 

No more worries i guess check this out :)
http://www.sheldonshobbies.com/index.shtml

RE: Don't Order from Sheldon's Hobbies
 

They are not going out of business, simply moving. My experiences at Sheldon's have generally been good, but I have mostly gone there in person knowing exactly what I wanted. I have seen and spoken with the owner and I concur that he is not the friendliest guy in the world, but I don't walk in his shoes, so who knows what's going on in his life. I have also heard that their return policy can be very strict, so buyers should buy carefully. There used to be a salesperson named Jason who I always thought was very knowledgable and helpful.

Another alternative in the bay area is Hobby Town in Concord. It's in the East Bay and may be a hike for those on the Penninsula, but I have so far found the sales staff to be friendly and knowledgable in the airplane area. There's also a Hobby Town in Fremont, I think, that I have not been to but apparently has a small airplane section, but they apparently have plans to expand it.

-Ed

RE: Don't Order from Sheldon's Hobbies
 

I am very sorry, but I have to agree that some of Sheldon's personnel are quite surly and their phone order service is poor.
I go there because they are a good local resource with good inventory, and there are precious few good LHS's these days.
This 40% moving sale is a shame. They don't say so, but it sure looks like they're moving to the past. Why don't they say where they're moving to?
If they were planning to stay open, they'd want us to know where to find them.
Where, oh where, is a hobby shop where courteous, knowledgeable salespeople provide quality service at good prices?
Are we going to be stuck buying everything online?

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12-24

The rest of the building that they are in is vacant and someone is building homes just to the south of the building. This may be nothing more than a relocation.

As of 2 PM yesterday (12-24), they still had a considerable amount of stock on the shelf, all at 40% off.

RE: Don't Order from Sheldon's Hobbies
 

It's 50% off today, 12/29.

I go to Sheldon's because they normally have what I want, and they're on the way home from work. But I agree with every statement in this thread. I'm sure Sheldon gets ripped off from time to time, and the guy probably thinks every customer is out to get him, but it's not a friendly place. I'd never take a chance ordering anything from him, but if you walk in, select your merchandise, pay (and get your $20s checked for counterfeit), and walk out, it's a useful resource.

A few weeks ago I overheard Sheldon talking to an acquaintance about the move. He was being forced to relocate, but hadn't selected a spot yet. Everyone wanted too much rent.

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Well it's a week later and Sheldon's prices are now 60% OFF!! Don't know that I have ever had any problems at Sheldon's BUT if ya' think it gets better at Hobbytown, Concord, THINK AGAIN! Every person in that store thinks their poop smells like perfume. Must be something about this hobby store business that has given em' all the brain farts. Sure glad we have the internet.