fliers1

For the life of me, I cannot remember the name of AMA's public demonstration they put on back in 1998 or before in Muncie, IN.

fliers1

I remember it was called Grand Event. Old age is catching up with me. lol

combatpigg

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1998...?
That was before the AMA was infiltrated with self serving traitors who sold out our best interests to an emerging "Drone Market"...instead of doing everything that patriotic leadership would naturally do to distance OUR HOBBY from any sort of association with "drones".

speedracerntrixie

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CP, when are you going to stop sugar coating things?

combatpigg

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Well yeah, you're right...as you know I always try too hard to be cheerful and "up beat"...!

speedracerntrixie

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LOL. Glow engines making ya cranky?

combatpigg

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How have you been..?
Looks like the hobby is going strong in your area.
Everywhere I look [in my part of the USA] my hobby [building and flying] has become much more difficult...in so many ways.
My local fuel distributor can't even order a 5 gallon can of nitro.
Not having a local store where I can walk in and hand select balsa is another major gripe. Believe it or not the last major order I did of balsa sheet had wood that was TOO LIGHT AND CRUMBLY to build with.
Many of my old GO TO SUPPLIERS have more items out of stock than visa versa.
I can say with all honesty that during all the years that have passed since the AMA decided it was in our best interest to "embrace drones".....I have yet to see anyone out flying any sort of a drone...anywhere.
This area where I've lived for 40 years used to be a major area for model plane activity and it is safe to say that over 90% of that activity is gone and has been gone for a number of years by now.

speedracerntrixie

My Feedback: (29)

CP, I can’t say that you are wrong about the status of the hobby. I’m fortunate enough to still have one good hobby shop left in my area. That said, for the past 5 years I have gotten most of what I need/want from swap meets and club inventories. A couple of clubs here buy up estates and auction stuff off. My last purchase was a NIB Aeromaster for $100.

Flying on the other hand is very much alive and well in the PNW. Most weekends I have a choice of up to 3 events I can attend inside of 4 hour travel window. So far this year I attended pattern, soaring, fun fly, nitro/glow, vintage and giant scale events.

combatpigg

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If most of the hobby [and events] was being kept alive with scratch built models...then I only ask for links to the suppliers who have all of the essential materials and hardware in stock today.
Tower Hobbies used to be able to do that...unless I needed a highly specialized item to compete in some highly specialized special interest group with.

speedracerntrixie

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Sadly my friend those days are long gone. Any given Sunday at the 4 clubs I frequent it is 90% electric ARFs. Even the sailplane and pattern competitions are almost entirely ARFs. Since I know that you are a fan of speed planes, even the warbird racing I used to participate in was mainly World Models ARFs. When they went under there was a bit of a panic. Thankfully the new owners of JR stepped in and started supplying race ARFs.

This may sound like bad news for us old guys who grew up on building but I think the hobby would be even worse off without the plethora of electric powered foamies available.

combatpigg

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Thanks for the reality report..
I knew things weren't looking good when SIG sent me some epoxy a couple years ago that had gone bad and Brodak sent some dope that was unusable too. SIG back ordered some building supplies that I forgot about and a couple years later they sent me a message asking if I still wanted that stuff....[double face palm].

speedracerntrixie

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Yea, building supplies for balsa/ply scratch builders are getting almost impossible to find. Good thing for me that fiberglass supplies and styrofoam are readily available. I do find enough old school kits to suit my needs.

Hydro Junkie

I was at the local Everett Hobbytown USA a few days ago and, sadly, the shelves were far from full. According to the one clerk working when I was there, the owner has had enough of the theft and such due to lack of effective law enforcement. The store's lease expires next month and, due to the financial losses, the owner didn't even try to negotiate a new lease. So, in short, when the lease expires, so does the shop. What makes it even worse is that the only other so called "hobby shops" in the area aren't worth the time to go to. For me to get anything, it's either going to be a drive to Redmond(30+ miles and not worth going to for less than a $15 purchase) or internet ordering. Either way, it means I'll have to make it worth it, requiring a fairly large purchase.

speedracerntrixie

My Feedback: (29)

Hydro, I agree with your plight. Luckily I have Tammie’s Hobbies close enough for something I absolutely have to have today. I also have available 4 clubs worth of guys that are just a couple posts on FB away that usually will come through in a pinch. I have volunteered items that club members were in need of as well. This barter system between friends has proven very valuable.