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Pretty hard on employees. Only found out on the 4th of Jan that the warehouse will be shut on the 28th of Jan.

Furthermore it looks like JR has finally filed for bankruptcy

http://www.jramericas.com/news_feed.php?#newsid66

DaveM wrote: ↑Sun Jan 07, 2018 7:21 pm How do I find that post on spy book?
Cheers, Dave.

Go to STRC page, should be there.

Yikes!

Thank you for that!
Cheers, Dave.

That's sad... TH was my first contact with US-based mail ordering in the mid-90's. They had stuff we couldn't easily get in Europe, and their own brands carried interesting gear.

I've ordered through them till the mid-00's, until I realized amainhobbies shipping fees were a lot more reasonable - I also felt TH were becoming a bit complacent with their pricing and customer service performance...

Lately as amainhobbies was becoming less price-competitive than in the past, I've ordered back from TH and found out their CS was absolutely second-to-none.

I'm now torn between ordering more from TH as I want to keep supporting them (they're employee-owned, they're a good counterpower to amain, their CS is great) and being worried my next order will happen just before they belly up and I don't get my stuff...

In any case, it's just bad news for everyone, TH, their customers, their suppliers, employees...

I was always a big fan of TH. A big company stiffing a small company on that much money? Nope, nada, can't bring myself to support them any longer.

NomadRacer wrote: ↑Mon Jan 08, 2018 7:58 am I was always a big fan of TH. A big company stiffing a small company on that much money? Nope, nada, can't bring myself to support them any longer.

I can't disagree... still it appears they're stiffing the small company not with malevolent intentions, but rather because they're in trouble. And once we (the customers) stop supporting TH for good, they''ll have to do the very same with their other suppliers as well as the bigger ones. And then they'll go Chapter 11. It truly is a lose-lose situation, really... very sad because to me TH is more than just a business, they've been the partner of my RC adventures for two decades

I as well have ordered for TH my entire RC 'life'. I know MIP pulled out in a similar fashion a while back, had an email from MIP about it. they werent as 'public' as STRC about it, but probably the same thing.

Its really sad.

The Nevada warehouse has had a "for rent" sign on it since the middle of November 2017

http://www.loopnet.com/Listing/1190-Trademark-Dr-Reno-NV/9996032/

I have mixed emotions about Tower Hobbies, and their current situation. I hate to see anyone go belly up due to poor management or not adapting to the times, especially a company that is employee owned.

However, there was a time when Tower Hobbies was considered to be "the enemy" to the local hobby store, in fact, all mail order was considered to be such in our hobby for a long long long time. I enjoyed getting the catalog and browsing as a kid, but every purchase I made was at my local hobby shop.

Fast forward to the Internet age, the landscape has changed quite a bit and Tower arguably has put themselves in the position they are in by not adapting. They essentially are "The Sears" of RC, which is not a good thing. Add to that their behavior towards the little guys, makes me want to say good riddance.

Who I do not envy the most is the local hobby shop. I try to frequent them as much as I can for modern parts and kits, but the convenience, availability, and speed of the big places like amain and the manufacturers direct, such as Associated is hard to pass up some times. And, not to plug amain, but I can also attest to their customer service, it is second to none, hand's down.

What pains me the most is that I feel the hobby as a whole is dying out, like many things we loved as kids and adults.

How do you change it? That, to me, is the $1M question...

->Mark

duckhead wrote: ↑Mon Jan 08, 2018 8:33 pm ... What pains me the most is that I feel the hobby as a whole is dying out, like many things we loved as kids and adults. ...

->Mark

Sad but true.

But I'm sure that Oprah will make our lives whole again.

.

But I'm sure that Oprah will make our lives whole again.

How's that whole living on Mars thing looking

.

Looks like they just filed for bankruptcy protection

http://www.news-gazette.com/news/local/2018-01-10/hobbico-files-bankruptcy-layoffs-next.html