Remembering the Squadron "rebranding" that occured a few years ago when they decided to make the mailer a subscription item and started bumping prices on everything, including the lines they distribute. At the time it seemed to me that marketing had hit it's head on a rock, and since then they have choosen to bombard us with "sales" at prices that are more than other online retailers normally charge.

Result for me is that I have dropped Squadron from my email list, and don't care to buy enough to continue to receive the quarterly mailer with it's bogus bargains. Too bad; they have been a huge resource in the hobby and their customer service has always been top notch. So sad to see them going away.

Hi,

This thread reminds me of a similar but different issue that I have had before ordering off the internet, where a company claimed to have something in stock only to wait a few days and then send me an email that they couldn't get the item for me.  Had they just indicated that the item was "out of stock" I could have ordered from someone else and gotten my item sooner, so I guess I'd prefer that a company tell you up front that an item is not currently available rather than stringing you along

Pat

I've ordered from Squadron since the mid '80s and too have drifted away from them due to several of the complaints already stated. Their prices seem to be about 33% or more than Sprue Brothers or other retailers and yes, when I look at sales flyers half the sale items seem to be out-of-stock even on the first few days of the sale. 

I will say though in their defense that I too have found their customer service to be top notch. A set of decals were somehow left out of an order I placed a few years ago. I sent them an email and they mailed the sheet the next day, no questions asked, paying for shipping and handling themselvies. 

It also seems to me that their best bargains are the items most likely to be out of stock.  Is this bait-and-switch?

I like Squadron but I agree they seem to have changed their inventory model, probably in an effort to cut costs.  In my experience though patience pays off - keep checking and know that special order items will take few weeks to fill.  If I want something really fast (which is rare) I will head over to SprueBrothers and if it is something rare I am seeking, I go to Hannants.  

I have been buying off and on from Squadron since about 1972 as one of the shipping boxes I have has the USPS date stamp on it.

Yes I have noticed the items I want are "out of stock" most of the time but I did manage to grab a 1/48 Trumpeter Hun for under $30 ish with shipping included during a recent sale.

I'm waiting for them to post those ridiculous sales where decal sheets are a buck or two and resin parts are a couple of bucks. Last one like that was about 2-3 years ago where I got a bunch of Microscale sheets for $1 and resin seats for $2, and a couple of resin pits for about $3 each.

Their customer service is great and will replace any damaged or missing parts from your order really quick.

I pretty much only do one order a year with Squadron in order to keep the mailer.  Not only  the stock outs are getting annoying, their website is a buggar to navigate.  I look forward to ordering from Squadron about ads much as seeing the dentist.  Its sad, they used to be the premier supplier for the modeler on a budget and seemed to have had everything, then got bought by a investement group that seems to keep them in a JIT system with some of the highest prices on the net.

"plastics..." 

Nice Mr. Feeney ref.

I like Scale Hobbyist.

And look, I'll admit it. I check Amazon too. With free shipping on some items, it can be a good deal.

It seems like everything you wanted is always "out of stock" these days with Squadron. Did business once on paint but never on kits. Their prices aren't all that great IMO.

I ordered two Academy ships off a flyer a few months ago, with a couple of other items, weren't on the invoice and they said ship when they got them......never heard anything more.  Kind of soured me on them.

I have had this problem for a month or so.  I have given up ordering from them and just get new items I see in their flyer from others.

Either they are going out of business, or have financial trouble buying inventory, or they have forgotten what good customer service is all about.  Very strange.

I ordered (and was super excited about) the Eduard F-8 crusader only to have my money refunded the next day.  Bummer. In fact, they had a super sale for the recent holiday and I could not even get an order together. Everything I really wanted was out of stock, including my F-8 apparantly.

Chris

As far as I know their not going out of buisness. They were at Scalefest and are hosting EagleQuest in 2 weeks.

If anything is in stock, it's special order. I ordered an "in stock" special order Tigremoth civil version a month ago and received a call last week saying that the manufacturer (Airfix) wasn't making them anymore. Squadron refunded my money.