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A-Baum

Good list of online hobby shops?

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On 5/24/2020 at 2:04 PM, Mark_C said:

For UK shops I'd add JK-RC on ebay and his own site (https://www.jk-rc.co.uk/) have bought quite a few spares recently from there, he's very good on prices and doesn't charge for shipping.

Also time tunnel models (https://www.timetunnelmodels.com)  are good for parts prices.

 

Thanks for the Time Tunnel reference! I just made an order from them based on your recommendation :) 

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On 5/19/2020 at 7:21 PM, CakeOrDeath said:

I am UK based. Whilst they are not much cheaper with the exchange rate as it is, they had the Xv-01 long damper in stock, along with plenty of hop-ups, so all told it was a fair bit cheaper for everything. Their dispatch within 24 hours and an approximate delivery date of a week is also quite acceptable at the moment with all the virus malarkey. They had more of the bits I wanted, ready to go, so it was a no brainer for me. I'll use them again. 

I love Tamico. Have bought a couple of their weekly offers which, even with the Euro/GBP exchange rate are still stocking deals. Kits usually arrive within 72 hours, too. Picked up a TA04-S Calsonic Skyline from their Vintage section a while back. ❤️

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Im also ordering from fusion, so i loose the vat but pay a bit more in shipping

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Motorsport RC all the way. Amazing service. :) 

So far, they have never let me down......

Stock is a bit tricky, but that is EVERYWHERE. You can't find a TT02 SR for love nor money!!!!

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3 hours ago, Banana man said:

Motorsport RC all the way. Amazing service. :) 

So far, they have never let me down......

Stock is a bit tricky, but that is EVERYWHERE. You can't find a TT02 SR for love nor money!!!!

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Tamiya-47439-1-10-Scale-RC-4WD-On-Road-Car-TT-02-Type-SR-Chassis-Kit-TT02SR/114158894408?epid=27037591768&hash=item1a94667d48:g:TJkAAOSw1txeezFD

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I'm really not sure, as I don't live in the UK. We have 15% VAT and that's about it where I'm at. 

 

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On 5/23/2020 at 8:52 AM, metalheadDad said:

Thanks for sharing all the great info! I'm just getting into the hobby and was shocked to see the absolute lack of any Tamiya selection at the LHSs and the lack of stock online when I started searching two months ago. 

Fwiw..my experience was:

I realized the industry and the clientele and demo had changed and that was clearly reflected in the brick and mortar experience I was seeing.

As much as I love online convenience I wasn't seeing what I wanted..so I directed my energy towards finding a LHS that didn't focus on Traxxas and the like. (I have nothing against that brand I just wanted something different).

I spent a solid days worth of effort researching local shops, realizing that mom and pops don't always have good SEO and google chops, so I tried multiple ways to find stores within an hour of me. All the top results...only carried Traxxas or Redcat etc. They could order Tamiya but didn't stock.

But then I found the golden ticket. Deep in the search results I found a mom and pop LHS that stocked Tamiya and Kyosho and LOVES the brands. They carry some Traxxas stuff too btw.

So what I found was creating a relationship with them is the way to go. I was able to walk in and pick a Hornet off the shelf. They have a Pumpkin NIB, they have multiple TT-02 kits on shelf (WRX, Porsche GT3, Alfa Romeo bodies), Kyosho Ultima , even Tamiya MAN kit!

They have a good relationship with the distro and were able to snag me Hotshot re-re it arrived on Wednesday... how? Because last month when I bought the Hornet they heard I wanted a Hotshot so they put one on backorder and bam..it's arriving with zero wait.

Anyway...as much as love online convenience I found it was worth my time to hunt down a LHS if one still exists.

Photo of my LHS that I will do everything in my power to keep in business 👍

"* There are Tamiya kits hidden all over this store .under shelves, behind other boxes etc. 

 

IMG_20200522_113550.jpg

Looks like a miniz track in the background.  Where is this shop?

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Question for anyone in the US who has received a kit from Tamico in the last few weeks/months...were you able to track the package after it arrived in the US?  The last thing I have for the DHL tracking number provides is:  "The consignment is transported to the destination country / destination area and handed over to the delivery organization."  Sounds like it's here in the states, but no longer being tracked.   That was over a week ago.  I have no idea how to track it in the US.

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3 hours ago, David Zheng said:

Looks like a miniz track in the background.  Where is this shop?

In Raleigh, North Carolina

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On 5/19/2020 at 7:10 AM, A-Baum said:

Anyone have any experience with Active Powersports out of California?

In other news, my Novafox finally shipped from Tamico, but all the emails are in German so it's been fun using google translation.  Should get it in a week or two perhaps?

 

On 5/19/2020 at 8:48 AM, David Zheng said:

I don't think active powersport is as good as amain and horizon

 

They are apparently hit or miss, in terms of reported stock and shipping times and customer service. I vaguely recall ordering from them ~5 years ago. Everything got to me eventually. See also the rctech thread on them.

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11 minutes ago, Garnt said:

 

 

They are apparently hit or miss, in terms of reported stock and shipping times and customer service. I vaguely recall ordering from them ~5 years ago. Everything got to me eventually. See also the rctech thread on them.

ActivePowersports does not seem to update their stock on the website, so any kit you find appears in stock but probably isn't.  I originally ordered my Top Force from them but 2 days later an email told me it was backordered until June/July.  

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4 hours ago, A-Baum said:

ActivePowersports does not seem to update their stock on the website, so any kit you find appears in stock but probably isn't.  I originally ordered my Top Force from them but 2 days later an email told me it was backordered until June/July.  

Hope they got the lipo I just ordered 

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On 5/19/2020 at 12:21 PM, ChrisRx718 said:

Does anyone remember when Banzai Hobby used to stock Tamiya? Those were the days. Soooo cheap and reasonable shipping charges - I probably went a whole year in the hobby and only ever ordered from Banzai.

Nowadays only really useful for some obscure tools / tape / RC drift car bits. Sad times :( 

Plaza Japan is reflective of what the proper 'retail' prices of Tamiya should be, without all the import duty. They will ship to the UK, but you definitely will get import fees. If you order enough stuff ( > £40) it's still worthwhile as the cost of fees is less than the huge savings you can make on RRP.

 

My last order that was delivered this week was over £40 and I paid nothing which was a result.

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