Another one bites the dust

[Son of a gun-ner]

Long before I joined this forum, I went to my local RC shop for a pair of crystals, they wanted just over £15 for a pair. But I could get 5 pairs from Howes Models (which is still a walk in shop) for £15, and get them online. Sadly the shops that won't change with the times like Howes Models are doomed.

[General Jumbo01]

Good point. As a relevant aside, Amazon or EBay?

With EBay, the buyer is protected by PayPal and, to a degree, by EBay. With Amazon, you cannot pay by PayPal (though maybe with a PayPal credit card?) and if a Amazon 'shop' is used and the shop then leaves Amazon, Amazon doesn't want to know.

I've experienced a few Amazon losses yet in all the thousands of EBay purchases, while some issues were experienced, never any losses.

I hope this wasn't to far off topic.

[RenoirLV]

Well you had history. Here in Latvia we never had any shops that I could use for my tank hobby. Not that I know at least. Everything always was on order from anywhere but Latvia. Nothing was obtainable without waiting and all info was always coming from the internet.
I guess that makes it easier to accept what you have now. Still I'd like to have a local shop around the corner with some RC tanks.

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[Son of a gun-ner]

Yes, it's easy for us in the West to forget how lucky we've been with hobby supplies etc.

[General Jumbo01]

All the more ironic that what's dominating the retailers stock, wherever they are based, is coming from the far East!

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[43rdRecceReg]

All the more ironic that what's dominating the retailers stock, wherever they are based, is coming from the far East!

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Yep, there was a time when 'Made in Hong Kong' began to appear on models in 1950s. It was the thin edge of the wedge, maybe. You could be scoffed at for owning one, as they acquired a bad reputation for breaking easily. After all, with Lesney models (Matchbox etc.,); Mettoy (Dinky toys., etc); Meccano, Hornby trains, Airfix, Frog scale aircraft (remember them?), Scalextric, and many more British products, who needed these suspicious looking imports? I guess we got complacent, or stronger unions..maybe.
Still, it's easy to forget that Hong Kong was still British then, and businesses there were largely British owned. Somebody clearly had the smart idea there of using even cheaper labour, to undercut model makers in the UK....., with their not-so-cheap labour.
Yeah, the writing was on the wall: but it was in Chinese characters we couldn't read (still can't ).

[Son of a gun-ner]

And don't forget made in Japan and Taiwan.

It's funny you should mention made in Hong Kong, I have some toys from the 60's that are more collectable/valuable/sought after because they have "made in Hong Kong" stamped on them, who would have guessed that happening.

[43rdRecceReg]

And don't forget made in Japan and Taiwan.

It's funny you should mention made in Hong Kong, I have some toys from the 60's that are more collectable/valuable/sought after because they have "made in Hong Kong" stamped on them, who would have guessed that happening.

An interesting wee article about 'Made in Hong Kong' figures here...
https://collectablefigures.wordpress.co ... kong-kong/

and a quote from it:
".....The only difference being the lack of the makers mark and the once dreaded “Made in HK” on the base of the figure. Some figures are fairly nasty it has to be said and to enjoy them you need to have a deep-rooted need for plastic and the culture of the time period !..."

I recall the dread. Nobody wanted a birthday, or Christmas, gift with that embossed on the base

[Son of a gun-ner]

Yeah, I've heard about some of their figures. They are collectable because of nostalgia.
Although a lot of mine are toy car related, especially chassis, I was lucky to pick up a box of 80 Aurora chassis many years ago. Apparently the ones made in Hong Kong of this type work better for racing and the Americans need them as they still race them

[General Jumbo01]

AFX tiny scale? I still have a range of those, most with lexan shells too! Superb scale though. Pity the plastic track has lost all those fixing tabs through age (brittle) but they are compatible with other makers tracks, same as Scalextric Micro. All great for a six lane bedroom grand prix

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