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Hobby Shops Closing Down... :/

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Hobby shops get criticized a lot and with good reason. However, if they all closed down I think there would be quite a few I would miss.

(In fact, even a bad hobby shop is nice to visit occasionally, and it's a different kind of experience to simply staring at a screen and buying things).

I recently spoke to a hobby shop owner who runs a shop that has been in business for over 20 years, and who is considering closing down in the next few months.

Apparently last Christmas wasn't very good for business, and he is getting older now and thinking about retirement.

He also told me that in the past 18 months, 3 other stores (in the broad vicinity of his store) have closed down. I was shocked to hear this.

When I look through old hobby magazines from the 1980s, it's quite amazing to see the number of stores that once existed but are now gone. Only a fraction remain - and I wonder what that fraction is? 60%? 50%?

So which hobby stores do you miss and why?

For me, it's Yennora Hobbies in western Sydney. I only discovered it in the early 1990s, but caught the tail end of it's glory - a large shop with long aisles of goodies, and even second hand goods for sale (meaning you could get vintage Tamiya stuff there). I've posted about it on these forums before, but I have such happy memories of going there - it was truly a hidden gem. I was particularly saddened to hear that it finally closed it's doors sometime around 2002, due to a series of robberies, culminating (from memory) in a full on ram-raid using a vehicle. People suck :rolleyes: It was a wonderful store, and I spent hundreds of dollars there in the early 90s. I got my first Hotshot from there (second hand), and it was actually the first place where I saw many vintage Tamiya cars in the flesh.

Yennora wasn't the safest suburb, but back in the 1980s it was something of a hotspot for R/C car fans - a nearby woolshed used to host R/C racing as well as 1:1 classic car exhibitions, while there were two R/C oriented hobby shops within 5 mins drive of each other.

I attended one of the 1:1 car shows there in 1987 and witnessed two things:

- Touring Car legend Peter Brock (RIP) was there in person, selling his mythical 'Energy Polariser' gadget (remember that?)

- One of the displays of 1:1 VW Baja Bugs had a Monster Beetle and 2 Sand Scorchers as part of the display.

(My Dad even had his camcorder, and captured a few seconds of both of the above on video)

So yeah, which hobby stores do you miss and why?

(If there are any Aussies reading it would be particularly good to hear your stories, but all are welcome)

cheers,

H.

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The 'Model Shop' in Woden Plaza in Canberra. I used to go there all the time to see the latest Tamiya models, would always visit it everytime I went to the Plaza. That place was just the highlight of going shopping, they had heaps of Tamiya kits all stacked in rows. Also bought my first RC kit there, the venerable Tamiy Frog :rolleyes: Great memories of a great place.

Also used to go to a place in Fyshwick (cant remeber the name) thats were I bought my Toyota Toms 84C. I remember walking in there and just seeng tht kit and just saying to myself I" I have to have that kit". Actually I wanted the Porsche 956 first but thought it was a little too expensive (about $100 more). Anyway I bought the Toms and really enjoyed bulding/ running it and even managed to get myself a NIB shrink wrapped one only 6 months ago.

I dont think either place is there anymore but I couldnt say for sure as I havent been back in ages (moved away). On the plus side I've just found a new Hobby Shop which has a bargain bin, looking forward to seeing if theres any Tamiya gold in there :unsure:

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An OTT expensive one in the lowest level of Wisma Atria in Orchard Road, but it always had fantastic stock of all the best Kyohso and Tamiya cars and it was long so you could 'walk' and perve at lots of stuff. And I got my Beloved KO PROPO EX-II radio set and half size servo there.

And Ricky's in Scerene Center on Andam-Farrah Rd corner. Jam packed with lots of stuff and close enough to cycle to from home! I always remember US navy sailors coming in on their shore leave buying up loads of expensive stuff and relating stories of driving r/c cars on the the carrier decks! B):rolleyes:

Even though the bigger hobby retailers / toy shops don't have alot of Tamiya stuff these days, I can still say that I greatly enjoy walking through their aisles and perving at all the models and planes and what nots. It's fun!

I am SOOOOO tempted at my local tesco hypermrkt at the moment - they have these LARGE complicated lego sets at half price. Still not cheap but a bargain and so deliciously complex looking. the combine harvester, that can be made into a drag racer instead :unsure:

Nice thread.

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Beatties. If you loved Tamiya, and lived in the UK you had to love Beatties. :unsure:

I thought of that straight away before I scrolled down - and see I'm not the only one!

There was a big one in Bristol selling mostly Tamiya and Scalextric, with a model shop round the corner that sold Kyosho. Heaven B) I bought my first Kyosho and Tamiya Minis from those 2 shops. I still love my Beatties r/c bags. :rolleyes:

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I moved away from my favorite-ever hobby shop, Hub Hobby Center in Maplewood, Minnesota. They were certainly in no danger of going away; they tripled their store size in the ten years I lived in the area. The RC section is huge, basically the whole back half of the store. Friendly and knowledgeable folks, good prices (usually the same price as Tower-plus-shipping), and just about everything you can think of. Tons of scratch-building materials and tools, which are hard to find anywhere except at a good hobby shop. And what they didn't have, they would happily order for you.

I didn't have a good local hobby shop in Los Angeles, but now Tammie's Hobbies in Portland is looking like it might be a good one.

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yeah beattles in meadowhall was wicked, all the built models in the top lighted cabinets, all looked so cool. then there was also Evans model centre in Doncaster Town centre which originally moved down the road and then moved onto pastures new, it was a cool place where they did models as well as R/C, it was an alladins cave for the hobbyist, so what do we have left, a high street model zone who over charges for everything and doesnt know nothing about what he has got. and another model store whi doesnt want to sell you anything unless its pre-build or nitro.

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The local Beatties to me in the eighties was two shops knocked into one.The first part was toys and static models and the second part at the back was all radio control Tamiya.It was always busy with people watching the videos and you could pick the built cars up to look at.I spent hours in there,wanting everything i looked at! :rolleyes:

By the early nineties it was half radio control and half Scalextric.There were three shops that sold RC cars,with one still remaining.They mainly stock HPI and nitro cars now,but its a mix of boats,cars,scalextric and static models.I still shop there for small stuff like body pins,grease and stuff.I needed eight bearings for the steering on a TA03 the other week,and went there instead of waiting to have them delivered.1.50 each!

edit:

Forgot to mention SRM racing in Fareham! Used to want absolutely everything in there!

It was a one room shop above a pet shop...literally like someones front room stocked full of everything RC...all mainly full blown race stuff like RC10`s and every hop up you could imagine.They made their own parts(or labelled them).I think its still going as RW racing,as the header cards are the same design.

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Anyone remember GoldenGains in Derby? its a noodle bar now!

They dealt with all things tamiya and had a huge scalextric and hornby section upstairs.

I remember walking round the rc section drooling at the bearhawk and blitzer beetle amongst others.... never dreamt i would ever have the cash to actually by one.

ahhh.........memories......

KingPin

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Beatties. If you loved Tamiya, and lived in the UK you had to love Beatties. :rolleyes:

Not only for the Tamiya though (although the Tamiya dude in my local one had a Manta Ray with a Technigold in it), but some had the Virtual Reality consoles as well?

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For me it has to be my long lost and beloved childhood haunt, 'The Hobby Shop (Southport) Ltd.', and was at 17/19 Bold Street, Southport, (North West England), PR9 0DB, 'phone # was (0704) 532337 (!), they sold 'Model Aircraft, Railways, Boats, & Cars, Hobbies and Handicrafts'. They used to be very big into R/C Tamiya, during the 1980's there were Frog's, Grasshoppers, Hornets and Brats stacked literally from floor to what seemed like the ceiling, in the window, I used to spend ages and ages outside the shop looking through the window at the Tamiya RC cars like Subaru Brat, staring at the mechanisms (gearboxes) on the box art, it used to fascinate me, but I knew I could at time not have even a single model from that shop as I was from a relatively poor family. In later times they sold mostly just RC model boats, this was 22 miles away from me (I live in St.Helens, 12 miles from Liverpool) on the coast, south of Blackpool, but unfortunately this shop is now long gone and is instead now called Queenscourt Hospice, a charity shop. I was first introduced to Tamiya RC's in the flesh there, and the 1987 Tamiya catalogue! Happy memories of when I was 13, now I'm 33!

It was the combination of the sunshine, sea and sand, being at the coast, and the RC models, it was intoxicating :D Goodness I miss that shop very much indeed. That's a weakness of mine, I'm always living in the past...

I also miss Stan Catchpole's Model World (88 Bold Street, Liverpool), I can't find any trace of it nowadays, despite searching. I was recently told it had moved to Canal Street? But that's Bootle? It's now a gent's fancy hairdresser's at the former address at Bold Street :P

And yes all there is now locally is a Model Zone in Liverpool which to it's credit stocks Tamiya RC models (at huge prices, like 2.5 times the cost of Stellamodels!) like re-re Frog, and there is a really great guy who works in there with dark hair, a short-ish chap (appologies to him for the description!), he is a real enthusiast and has a vintage Hilux, he knows me quite well now. He said that the other week someone came in from Germany who mentioned my name who had noticed from my long-disused showroom that I had mentioned something about there being Grasshoppers and Hornets once more in a Liverpool model shop! I wonder who it was? LOL

I'd love to think of it as my local hobby shop, but at 80 GBP for a Hornet?!!!!! I think not. My real LHS Vulcan Hobbies (80 Market Street, Earlestown, Newton-Le-Willows) 5 miles away ABSOLUTELY REFUSES to stock Tamiya despite my years of pleading, WHICH REALLY ANNOYS THE badword OUT OF ME!

It nearly kills me to think that Beatties once had Sand Scorcher body box sets NIB at 15 GBP... ;) Model Zone took over Beatties shop when Beatties went bankrupt (along with RiKo, the importer)...

Cheers,

Alistair G.

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Oh and while I think on, when I past my driving test in July 2006, the first thing that I did was to go back to Bold Street, Southport, that's how I discovered (after not really being able to go to Southport for like 17 years) that the shop had gone, I was heartbroken to be honest... and then I noticed a vacant shop, about 2 doors up, on the same side, moving away from Lord Street, and I could see through the glass that on one of the shop pillars that there was... to my great shock and intrigue... a Tamiya sticker in plain view! Can someone PLEASE tell me what this shop was, I am curious to know?

Cheers,

A.G.

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allied1.jpg

allied2.jpg

allied3.jpg

Here's some pics of the remains of my favorite hobby shop, Allied Hobbies. Located in a strip mall, the space has remained vacant since the shop left it in 1989. Allied moved to an inside mall (and a much smaller space) where it struggled on for another 3 years or so before closing down for good. The old shop pictured had one of nearly every buggy or truck Tamiya offered at any given time. They were mounted high on the wall behind where the glass counter stood. This is where I took my hard earned money to purchase my first new Tamiya, a Lunch Box. It was an awesome, unforgettable experiance for me. The staff was pleasant and knowledgable and eager to help out if needed. Of course it was a full line hobby shop as well featuring a large assortment of plastic models, Mini 4wds (the first Tamiyas I could collect), trains and all the other stuff that made hobby shops neat to be in. Its the first place I ever laid eyes on the unbelievablely huge Clod Buster and the exotic new Avante. Surprisingly no one ever rented out that one store since Allied, so I go back and visit every once and a while. Sigh.

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So nice to hear that others reminisce as much as I do, and that some of you have even visited the empty remains of where these great shops once existed!

Where I live (out in the country a bit, away from the city) the nearest proper hobby shop has always been about 50 minutes drive away.

However back in the early 1990s when I was still in high school, a small hobby shop opened right in the same town where I attended school. It was truly tiny, but as I was so excited to finally have a hobby shop nearby (and in an otherwise boring town), I used to go there often, and spend what little pocket money I had on parts for my Hornet. Two particular R/C memories of this shop stand out in my mind:

1. The shopowner had a Wild Willy, and it was the first time I had ever seen one of these anywhere but the pages of my tatty old Tamiya catalogue. It wasn't for sale - it was just his own model on display on the back shelf, behind the counter. I must have asked him to take it off the shelf so I could have a look at it, about 10 times during various visits (how annoying for him). All he ever really said about it was that he would never sell it, and that it was a collectible. This was back in 1990, so he had pretty good foresight.

2. Being such a tiny shop, there was only a tiny selection of everything, so that meant only 3 or 4 R/C kits at any time. In the window of the store was a Grasshopper II kit, and I used to wish I could afford it's AU$165 asking price. My school bus went right past the store every day, and I would always see the Grasshopper II there in the window. It literally sat there for about 2 years, until it's box lid became faded from the afternoon sun each day.

Then the store closed down. I never knew what happened to the Grasshopper II. Looking back, $165 was cheap now that everything is becoming collectible.

Since it closed down, the shop space was filled for many years by a spice shop (the badword?). It baffled me how a hobby shop could be superceded by something as boring as a shop selling spices - who cares about spices? Last year the spice shop finally closed it's doors, which (despite now being 30 years old and married) I found oddly satisfying :D

cheers,

H.

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As some of you know, I am originally from Gettysburg Pennsylvania. I now live in Washington State due tobeing stationed here in the NAVY.

One of my favorite hobby shops growing up when I was younger, was "Gilberts Hobby Shop"

I started out doing business with "N" Scale trains. I then moved to RC cars. This is the same shop I purchased my first real RC......a Tamiya Striker.

The old store has shut down and opened another acrossed town.

The have less RC's now and mostly Trains.

I had the pleasure of being able to visit Mr. Gilbert's Son...now the owner after his Dad passed away, back 2 years ago when I was last home.

I would be very sad if they were to close, as I have so many memories with that store growing up.

2 of my other favorite stores back home have longed closed, but my favorite is still alive.

Out here in Washington, I do support 2 stores when I can, but with eBay and internet shops, it is hard to justify spending $30 - $50 more on a kit when that is barely a tank of gas for me! :D

So I do get little odds and ends when I can to support them. I buy all my Fuel through them as well.

Here is hoping local stores stay alive!

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there are 2 for me:

The Clyde Model Dockyard, as the name might imply had a fair amount of boats, but it had slot car and rc stuff too, but the best thing was as a little kid this place seemed HUGE !

And Dunns. Anyone else who shopped in Glasgow, Scotland in the early 80s will surely remember Dunns. Funny layout for a store, (bottom of West Nile Street I believe) It was a long narrow store with a really high ceiling, and was piled HIGH with Tamiya stuff. I loved going in there just to see the videos, look at the boxes, and think about how I could get a 'real' car ! Bought my first ever car there, the Sand Scorcher and all the gear after saving for over 6 months.....

Long gone now though.

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I have yet to have a good hobby store in my area. There is one about 20km away from me, but those people are a bunch I asked them to order stuff and they just never did, even after a few calls and asking them about it in the store itself... The sellers don't know a thing about the cars. They are only interested in the big moneymakers, like cars and parts from FG marders and such... And evertything they sell is at least twice as cheap by internet!

Theres another one also about 20km away, but they have nothing in stock. If you want something they'l have to get it from the importer first. This hobby store is also expensive, but at least their service is is good and they really know quite a lot of things about r/c and they are enthuasts themselves :D

So if I want a good local hobby store, I will probably have to start one myself.

Edited by stulec52
Edited as per Forum Rule Number 2, : no swearing or implied swearing please.

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As some of you know, I am originally from Gettysburg Pennsylvania.

Out of curiosity, I have aquired 10 Tamiya Hump Packs NIB all from a guy in Allentown, PA, from a place called "Trains 'N' Lanes", I wondered if you have ever been there?

A quick Google gives the address as ;-

3825 Northwood Ave

Easton, PA 18045

...but I can find no website for the shop?

I would be grateful if someone could give me the web address for the shop. :D

I can only imagine what other vintage Tamiya stock the guy has!!

Cheers,

Alistair G.

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I actually miss seeing Tamiyas in the bigger department stores like Myer, and the smaller toy shops like Toyworld. Myer doesn't sell Tamiya any more, and smaller toy shops don't seem to stock anything, preferring to concentrate on fifty buck 1/6 cars to wow the punters.

I remember buying my Lancia Rally in 1985 from Myer in Melbourne, returning in 1990 to buy my Vanquish. I went again recently, but no Tamiyas.

I also liked Orchards Hobbies in Niddrie. He's still there, but sells only plane stuff now. IN 1985 I bought my Sand Scorcher body from there (he actually took it out of a complete kit!!!) and went back a month later for my Futaba wheel and trigger controller, which I still use to this day!!

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I actually miss seeing Tamiyas in the bigger department stores like Myer, and the smaller toy shops like Toyworld. Myer doesn't sell Tamiya any more, and smaller toy shops don't seem to stock anything, preferring to concentrate on fifty buck 1/6 cars to wow the punters.

I remember buying my Lancia Rally in 1985 from Myer in Melbourne, returning in 1990 to buy my Vanquish. I went again recently, but no Tamiyas.

Everything is so diluted these days, isn't it? Myer is little more than a glorified fashion store now, but I remember when they used to have a whole Computer department (bought my first PC there), and even a motoring (1:1) and hardware department. These days department stores are more geared toward girls.

I once knew of someone who, back in the day, bought a Fox kit from Woolworths (supermarket) for like AU$60 when they were on sale. I remember Woolies also selling Hornby model train stuff too, because my Dad bought some. Those were the days! Now there are plenty of hobby stores that refuse to even stock Tamiya.

As for smaller toy shops - are there even any left? Not in the urban and surrounding areas of Sydney. Toy stores in Australia were ruined by the arrival of Toys R Us in the early 90s.

Toyworld used to be awesome. There was also Zig Zag - anyone remember them? I have an old Zig Zag magazine ad here from about 1989, and in the photo there's a stack of toys including a Hotshot kit, and a Metro Jet Hopper.

Or what about Uncle Pete's Toys? I always lived too far from them, and I totally missed out on going there *sob* but I know they stocked tons of Tamiya stuff. I saw an ad in the Trading Post back in 1994 for an Uncle Pete's in Sydney somewhere that was closing down, and literally clearing out their remaining stock of spares for Tamiya cars the following weekend. The ad said "Frog, Scorcher, Fox, etc". Alas I wasn't driving yet, had no money, and Dad was too "busy" to drive us down :ph34r: I can only hope someone else bought up good :D

Remember the TV ads and the helicopter? Here's an Uncle Pete's Ad from 1984 (only a Nikko in it, no Tamiyas, but the ad itself might bring back memories)...

Initially Toys R Us at least had an aisle full of cabinets of built R/C cars including Tamiyas. But they got rid of that, and now they only stock junk R/C. And because they've helped kill off most other toy/hobby stores, all we're left with are these boring toy supermarkets full of junk and staffed by the same mindless teen droids you find in all mega franchises.

cheers,

H.

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Hello, I miss Ashton Models in Ashton-under-Lyne, it had been going for years, I used to love going in there, lots of lovely Tamiya kits. I think the row that it occupied has now been demolished to make way for a brand new shopping presinct.

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Its good to sit back and remember (and share) the "good old Days".

Back in 1984, I remember saving my heart out so i could buy my first RC car, "The Frog".. The complete Kit (car, radio battery and charge leads) cost like $300, and it took me forever to save this doing odd Jobs etc.. anyways, back to the topic....

I bought my Frog from the Local Toyworld in my home town.. It wasnt a big shop, and half of it was stationary and (birthday) cards, but the bloke standing behind the counter was the owner, and that gave it a personal touch.. They only ever had 10 or so Tamiya's in stock at any one time, and most parts had to be ordered in.

A short time later, a mate and I got to know the owner a little better through going to the store, and through our local RC racing Club.. At Christmas of 85', the owner asked us if we would be interested in building some RC kits (also Bikes and Toys etc), as he just didnt have time.. By the end of 86', My mate and I would be going into the shop every Thursday night doing builds and repairs on various RC cars.. I suppose you could say that this was our first Job..

In early 87', the owner decided that running a hobby shop wasnt for him, and went back to working his trade. We had left school, and had jobs ourselves, but we would still go into the store on Thursday nights and help his wife and the other staff, but because we were not seeing our friend the owner each week, and not doing as many RC builds and repairs, it just wasnt the same, and we drifted apart, and in the end, stopped going to the store altogether.

The store was sold a year or 2 later, and the new owners just stopped selling RC full stop.. About 5 years ago, the shop was quite badly damaged by fire, and I regret to say it just never re-opened..

It saddens me a little as I sit here thinking and writing about what will always be my favorite hobbyshop. The things that I learned and the friendships that we formed in the time that I spent there. I remember feeling somewhat gutted when I was told that it had burnt down, even though I hadnt been in there for years, I still felt that it was a part of my home town, and a part of me..

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The 'Model Shop' in Woden Plaza in Canberra. I used to go there all the time to see the latest Tamiya models, would always visit it everytime I went to the Plaza. That place was just the highlight of going shopping, they had heaps of Tamiya kits all stacked in rows. Also bought my first RC kit there, the venerable Tamiy Frog :lol: Great memories of a great place.

Also used to go to a place in Fyshwick (cant remeber the name) thats were I bought my Toyota Toms 84C. I remember walking in there and just seeng tht kit and just saying to myself I" I have to have that kit". Actually I wanted the Porsche 956 first but thought it was a little too expensive (about $100 more). Anyway I bought the Toms and really enjoyed bulding/ running it and even managed to get myself a NIB shrink wrapped one only 6 months ago.

I dont think either place is there anymore but I couldnt say for sure as I havent been back in ages (moved away). On the plus side I've just found a new Hobby Shop which has a bargain bin, looking forward to seeing if theres any Tamiya gold in there ;)

I got the Opel Ascona and the Hilux from "the Model Shop" in Woden ACT, I went there a lot, and made a friend of Andy. I took the (then) 15 year old Hilux with my brand new scratch built Caravan to show Andy, just before he shut down the shop in '98.. he was so impresssed with the van, he gave me a set of bearings for the wheels(i had used old ones i had, bit worn). It was agreat shop, and i miss it and miss Andy.

the shop in Fyshwick closed down well before "The model shop"...some time in the late 80's i think...

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bath model center has been in the same place since the end of ww2.i got my 1st car there back in about 1987 a hornet i still get all my new cars there now the last 1 was the hotshot re re as i work around the corner from it i go in a few times a week to have a look round .

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Robin Thwaites in Arundel Street Portsmouth, Guildford Dolls Hospital Guildford, Russell Hillsdon in South Street Chichester and there was a fantastic one in Jewry Street in Winchester which I can no-longer remember the name of. All now gone. Having said that, the owners must be in their eighties now!

Mud.

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