groo12 Posted August 30, 2011 Posted August 30, 2011 I will be visiting the USA in September/October and want to grab an airbrush, Dr. Cranky's book and some models as they seem so much cheaper there. I have decided on a double action, external mix, with the cup on top. Haven't worked out a brand yet! Can anyone recommend good hobby shop/s in either San Francisco, Chicago, Denver or Las Vegas. (Yes we are travelling quite a bit, can't wait, loved it last time!) Also how much might it cost to post a kit back to Australia? I can't seem to work it out from the US postal website. Thanks in advance.
Tonioseven Posted August 30, 2011 Posted August 30, 2011 It'll cost roughly $8 U.S. to ship one kit. Not sure about hobby shops in those areas. Enjoy your trip!!
slantasaurus Posted August 30, 2011 Posted August 30, 2011 There are several good hobby shops around Chicago, the question becomes where will you be staying and how will you be getting around. If you are staying in downtown Chicago you will have to do a good bit of traveling to get to the hobby shops. If you are staying near O'Hare airport I know several hobby shops in that area as I live only minutes away. If you are renting a car you could probably hit most of them in 1 day, if you are using public transportation it's going to be difficult to get to them. As for the hobby shops themselves there are 4 that come to mind that would be worth the trip. The first that most people in this area seem to like (but I don't) is Al's Hobby in Elmhurst, IL a little west of Chicago they will have airbrushes and some kits but I think its more of an R/C and train store. Second is Venture Hobbies in Buffalo Grove, IL its a little bit of a drive north of Chicago but they have a better selection of kits and will also have airbrushes. The other 2 won't have airbrushes but will have a kit selection (including out of production kits) that will blow your mind, Ram Hobby and train in Chicago on the north-west side and Forever Timeless also on the north-west side of Chicago. The last 2 places aren't too far from each other and the prices there are the best you'll find in the area. Feel free to PM me if you want more info or directions to any of these places. Enjoy your trip to the USA.
Dr. Cranky Posted August 30, 2011 Posted August 30, 2011 Thanks for the support, my friend. Wishing you a great trip.
Danno Posted August 30, 2011 Posted August 30, 2011 Best car model hobby shop in the Denver metro area is Colpar on Havana Street, 804 S. Havana, Aurora. Check their website, http://colpar.com BEST hobby experience in the world ~ if you're even slightly into trains ~ and an awesome resource for scratchbuilding supplies is The Caboose Hobbies, 500 S. Broadway, Denver. Check their website, http://caboosehobbies.com Enjoy your visit!!
Guest Gramps-xrds Posted August 30, 2011 Posted August 30, 2011 (edited) I will be visiting the USA in September/October and want to grab an airbrush, Dr. Cranky's book and some models as they seem so much cheaper there. I have decided on a double action, external mix, with the cup on top. Haven't worked out a brand yet! Can anyone recommend good hobby shop/s in either San Francisco, Chicago, Denver or Las Vegas. (Yes we are travelling quite a bit, can't wait, loved it last time!) Also how much might it cost to post a kit back to Australia? I can't seem to work it out from the US postal website. Thanks in advance. Have you really thought about the airbrush with a cup on top ? I've used them and wasn't impressed with the cleaning process and you're limited to a given amount of paint you have ta work with. I prefer the screw on bottles. All ya have ta do is screw on a bottle of thinner and flush it out. Edited August 30, 2011 by Gramps-xrds
Agent G Posted August 30, 2011 Posted August 30, 2011 There are some good places in the Las Vegas area besides Hobby Town USA (Sahara/Decatur). Henderson Hobbies on Water St. in Old Town Henderson is a must just to meet the cranky old guy who owns the place. Dansey's (E Charleston/Lamb) Is a good old fashioned LHS. For the airbrush I'd go with Desert Art Supply, two locations in the valley, and they have everything as far as supplies. G
Pete J. Posted August 30, 2011 Posted August 30, 2011 It is really to bad that you are not going to the Los Angeles/Orange county area. The best airbursh shop in the world IMHO is located about 10 minutes from Disneyland. That would be Coast airbrush. They litterally have everything airbush and very good prices. If it is an airbrush you want, you can try them out with experts. Worth a side trip just for the education. http://www.coastairbrush.com/
Draggon Posted August 30, 2011 Posted August 30, 2011 I dont knw about San Francisco, but across the bay, there is Hobbies Unlimited 937 Manor Blvd, San Leandro 510-351-7112. They've been around for decades and are really good guys!
LAone Posted August 30, 2011 Posted August 30, 2011 gooogle my friend. where ever you're staying, just google "hobby stores in ____" and it should give you a list of whats around.
XJ6 Posted August 30, 2011 Posted August 30, 2011 Have fun in the States next to SF is a place called Berkley...just 20min's from SF go to ACE Hardware...Down stairs is wall to wall MODEL KITS it is a Great Place...They have it all...most Model Kits i have ever seen in just one Store....Hope this helps....Cheers
groo12 Posted August 31, 2011 Author Posted August 31, 2011 Thank you for all the great replies. I had done some googling, but I wanted actual peoples takes on places. I hadn't thought about the transport bit, so It looks like Denver and Las Vegas as we will have a car because we are driving from Denver and along Route 66, which should be awesome. I am looking forward to taking lots of pics. My other hobby is photography. As a side note if you like hot rods, have a look at my galleries www.raytookthis.com. Again thank you all and thanks for the good wishes, we had a ball last time we visited, but it was short only 3 weeks. This trip is double that. I think some more airbrush research is in order!
Alyn Posted August 31, 2011 Posted August 31, 2011 (edited) For some good subject matter pictures, don't forget to check out the scheduling for full size car shows. Add this to your Google list. As an example, The Good Guys schedule has a show in Joliet Illinois: September 17, 18 & 19 - Joliet, IL★ 4th PEAK CHICAGOLAND NATIONALSChicagoland Speedway. Rods, Customs, Classics, Muscle Cars& Trucks thru ‘72. Friday Nite Drags, AutoCross, Vendors, Swap Meet & Car Corral. If this is anything like the show in Kansas City, it will be huge. The one here easily has 1,000 hot rods and customs. I understand that you plan on driving across Route 66, but for a fantastic alternative, consider the scenic trip from Denver to Las Vegas. Drive across the Rocky Mountains via I-70 into central Utah. This section of I-70 through the Colorado Rockies is spectacular. The highway follows the Colorado river most of the way, winding through beautiful mountain canyons. Then drop down through the Canyon Lands area of south central Utah including Arches, Capital Reef, Bryce and Zion national parks. Moab Utah is also in this area and is the meca of off-road rock crawling. Rent a Jeep or run the Colorado river rapids and have a day of fun and thrills. From St George, Utah to Las Vegas, you will drive through one of the most expensive sections of interstate highway in the country. This is a very, very highly recommended route to Vegas. Between the Good Guys show and the scenic trip from Denver to Vegas, you'll have enough picture taking oportunities to wear out your camera. Edited August 31, 2011 by Alyn
slantasaurus Posted August 31, 2011 Posted August 31, 2011 For some good subject matter pictures, don't forget to check out the scheduling for full size car shows. Add this to your Google list. As an example, The Good Guys schedule has a show in Joliet Illinois: September 17, 18 & 19 - Joliet, IL★ 4th PEAK CHICAGOLAND NATIONALSChicagoland Speedway. Rods, Customs, Classics, Muscle Cars& Trucks thru ‘72. Friday Nite Drags, AutoCross, Vendors, Swap Meet & Car Corral. If this is anything like the show in Kansas City, it will be huge. The one here easily has 1,000 hot rods and customs. I'm not sure where you got your info but those are last year's dates for the show in Joliet. This year the show was Aug 12-14. http://www.good-guys.com/events/eventsList.aspx?year=2011
Alyn Posted August 31, 2011 Posted August 31, 2011 Thanks for catching that! I googled Good Guys schedule. Didn't notice the year was wrong. None the less, there should be a lot of opportunities to check out some full size car shows while in the locations mentioned.
High octane Posted August 31, 2011 Posted August 31, 2011 My favorite hobbyshop is not in the Chicagoland area but about an hour and a half north of Chicago in southern Wisconsin and it is Model Empire. They have new car kits, old car kits, photo-etched and aftermarket parts, die-cast, supplies, tools, air brushes, slot cars, and even a slot car track. Fifteen minutes away is Greenfield News & Hobby which has 12,000 square feet and a great hobby shop also. In my book it is worth the drive, as I have been to all the hobby shops that SLANT has mentioned, and while they are good they don't compare with the Model Empire.
charlie8575 Posted September 1, 2011 Posted September 1, 2011 gooogle my friend. where ever you're staying, just google "hobby stores in ____" and it should give you a list of whats around. While an Internet search will yield locations, the best source of actual information is to ask the modelers themselves. Charlie Larkin
MicroNitro Posted September 1, 2011 Posted September 1, 2011 If you get to Indy make sure you check out the 500 museum.
groo12 Posted October 8, 2011 Author Posted October 8, 2011 Ok. Today I picked up a Iwata HPCS air brush kit from Hobby Lobby. list price 189, rung up as 109, then they took the 40% discount off. Spool a $au250 airbrush has cost me $70. Whoo hoo! I also picked up 3 models thanks to my Hellers, armed with 40% off coupons. Great shopping!
groo12 Posted October 17, 2011 Author Posted October 17, 2011 Just ordering the Dr Cranky book. All going well it will be at the hotel when we arrive next week.
CAL Posted October 17, 2011 Posted October 17, 2011 yeah, they are kind of morons over at HL. When you are in Denver, Colpar Hobbies, is one of the best hobby stores in the country.
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