Michael's selection getting bigger

I always find something useful in Michael's. I buy my paint brushes there, oil paints, etc. In fact I'm about to invest in getting an airbrush from there sometime this year.

jetmodeler

I always find something useful in Michael's. I buy my paint brushes there, oil paints, etc. In fact I'm about to invest in getting an airbrush from there sometime this year.

Yeah, I can't argue that there are other useful items in Michael's, i.e foam, material for foliage, water effects, brushes, etc. In fact, the other day I found some kind of bean that would make nice cobblestones should the circumstances arise. I bought an airbrush from them a while back before I got my Paasche VL. Don't remember which one exactly, but it was cheap, around $50 and made mostly out of plastic. I don't recommend that one. It gummed up rather quickly and the trigger would stick. I see they sell Badgers, or at least something similar. That would make a fine investment.

oddmanrush

jetmodeler:

I always find something useful in Michael's. I buy my paint brushes there, oil paints, etc. In fact I'm about to invest in getting an airbrush from there sometime this year.

 

Yeah, I can't argue that there are other useful items in Michael's, i.e foam, material for foliage, water effects, brushes, etc. In fact, the other day I found some kind of bean that would make nice cobblestones should the circumstances arise. I bought an airbrush from them a while back before I got my Paasche VL. Don't remember which one exactly, but it was cheap, around $50 and made mostly out of plastic. I don't recommend that one. It gummed up rather quickly and the trigger would stick. I see they sell Badgers, or at least something similar. That would make a fine investment.

I think my local Michael's has the Badgers. I think they are somewhere around $140-$150. Is that a good price?

That seems about normal to me assuming it comes with all the needed accessories, though I'm not really familiar with the Badger family of AB's. I should think you'd be able to find a better deal online though if you're looking to spend a little less money, depending on where you look.

Be sure to use the 40% off coupon... it will bring Badger AB down to $100 or so.  That's what I did when I bought my Iwata AB at Hobby Lobby.  In that case, it is a great deal!  Best thing is that you get to buy accessories on same day in case it breaks if it is being sold at your Michael store.

Yes true! Can't over state the value of the 40% off coupon!

I went to my local Michaels this afternoon for some DULLCOTE and found the SIKORSKY CH-54A Skycrane 1/72. Lucky I had an extra coupon and my daughter was with me so she purchased it. It ran at $12.99 after tax. My local HT has it for $21.99 + tax.

deafpanzer

Be sure to use the 40% off coupon... it will bring Badger AB down to $100 or so.  That's what I did when I bought my Iwata AB at Hobby Lobby.  In that case, it is a great deal!  Best thing is that you get to buy accessories on same day in case it breaks if it is being sold at your Michael store.

Thats why I was planning on getting my AB at Michael's.

~El Taino~ That was a pretty good deal. Considering Hobby Towns prices are jacked sky high on kits that shouldn't be registered at a high price.

Has there been any more word on this topic? Have we been recognized by Michaels?

So I went to my local Hobby Lobby (right across the street within walking distance) because I had heard that they were making the model area smaller and lo and behold.....they haven't!! YEA!!! Same amount of models, paints, and tools. What they got rid of is the whole isle of train stuff. Got some sanding paper and tools and of course I used the 40% off coupon. Score!!

Ah, figured with the model railroad stuff.

Well, that just leaves Hobby Town USA (which also sends model train prices through the roof) my LHS, and mail-order.

I have never found anything worth buying at Michaels- just kid stuff kits and beginner's supplies.  Hobby Lobby is not much better, at least the little store we have locally.  I buy most of my stuff at Sprue Brothers or Squadron on line.  It seems not to be a profitable business for local stores, not much demand for advanced modeler's things.

Medicman71

So I went to my local Hobby Lobby (right across the street within walking distance) because I had heard that they were making the model area smaller and lo and behold.....they haven't!! YEA!!! Same amount of models, paints, and tools. What they got rid of is the whole isle of train stuff. Got some sanding paper and tools and of course I used the 40% off coupon. Score!!

Well all I have to say is buy up what they have, because the party is coming to an end nation wide with HL. Your time will come, alas.

Railfan 233

Have we been recognized by Michaels?

Probably not.

Cadet Chuck

I have never found anything worth buying at Michaels- just kid stuff kits and beginner's supplies.  Hobby Lobby is not much better, at least the little store we have locally.  I buy most of my stuff at Sprue Brothers or Squadron on line.  It seems not to be a profitable business for local stores, not much demand for advanced modeler's things.

Cadet Chuck: I agree with you on the beginners stuff at Michales. Like I mentioned before, I'd love to see a Model Master line of paints but I have to see it from their POV. Most in not all models at Michaels are level 2, yes, we can make nice models out of level 2 Revells. But for their customer base, that's what probably Revell sell them and the same with RPM's Testors. They are for the medium to advance modelers ''just good kits''. With a 40% coupon, they make the perfect less than $20 bucks last minute gift, (praise the snap-on kits too, LOL).

When I started modeling back in the 80's, there were no stores of this nature in Puerto Rico. If you were lucky, you could find a few Monogram and Revell kits in local pharmacies. Only this pharmacy in my local town had a few Testors armor models. I developed the skills for nice builds with ye olde tube of glue, but I lacked the supplies to paint and finish and ended up quitting the hobby.

In short, I wish I had a store then with today's Michaels inventory. If they just add a Model Master line, this would be great for beginners and more advanced modelers alike.

My 2 humble cents.

Railfan 233

Has there been any more word on this topic? Have we been recognized by Michaels?

I would presume the standard formula is :

number of posts ( or old style snail mail to management )  =  amount of recognition.

El Taino

 

 (praise the snap-on kits too, LOL).

Would it be possible for a store to carry just  a large selection of "snap" kits to entice beginnners?

Does enough variety exist to stock a full  HL or Michaels shelf ?

I'm not real sure about variety avalable today, but I know that a lot of new snap-tite kits are getting more and more interesting (like Revell's new MACK semi truck, with an included tank trailer)

Mabe I can get one or two of those, and use them with a MACK CF cab fire engine kit, mabe swap out cabs with one, and get a unique fire engine.

Railfan 233

 a lot of new snap-tite kits are getting more and more interesting (like Revell's new MACK semi truck, with an included tank trailer)

Mabe I can get one or two of those, and use them with a MACK CF cab fire engine kit, mabe swap out cabs with one, and get a unique fire engine.

Very good idea for custom builds- you might pioneer some Show Rods in that scale !

I wasn't  aware Revell released the MACK truck kit.

Sprue-ce Goose

 

El Taino:

 

 

 (praise the snap-on kits too, LOL).

 

 

Would it be possible for a store to carry just  a large selection of "snap" kits to entice beginnners?

Does enough variety exist to stock a full  HL or Michaels shelf ?

For what I've seen, there is plenty of Snap-On kits around from different manufactures. Don't know if enough for a full stock. The thing is that we are seeing as modelers, (nothing wrong with that) but barely as a business. The paint guide on most Revell kits is very vague. A novice will grab a kit, look on the side panel and either get the colors on the chart or buy a ''whole'' Aircraft, Camouflage or Car paint set. Plus on the spray shelf we can find Olive Drab, Flat Light and Dark Aircraft Gray and they (Micahels) think that ought to do it. My 12 years old son can do well with 1/72 Academy kits, his latest build was a Curtis P-40B Tomahawk. Not a snap-on kit, but easy enough for a novice; the thing is that we go back to square 1, no color selection at Michaels and looking at it as a business, they have a lot of potential if they do include a Model Master Line. The supplier (Testos) is already there ;o)

Sprue-ce Goose

Very good idea for custom builds- you might pioneer some Show Rods in that scale !

I wasn't  aware Revell released the MACK truck kit.

 

Yes, Revell has released a MACK semi-truck and trailer kit. My local hobby shop has some in stock, but the parts count and size of the box rivals other kits.

Here's the link. It is 1/32 scale, which is what all of Revell's truck models seem to be. It acually seems to rival 1/25 scale tanker trailer kits in detail I think.

http://www.revell.com/model-kits/snaptite/85-1961.html

Sprue-ce Goose

Railfan 233:

Has there been any more word on this topic? Have we been recognized by Michaels?

 

I would presume the standard formula is :

number of posts ( or old style snail mail to management )  =  amount of recognition.

 

Absolutely. We need more participation with both this, and the Hobby Lobby campaign.

The saying "the squeaky wheel gets the grease" is as true now as it has ever been.

I agree with you Mike, but it is also the wheel that squeeks the loudest that gets the grease first.

 If we can get a majorety of the users here to join us on the Michaels forum for the topic, then we may make enough noise to get Michael's corprateoffitial's attention.

I completely agree.

But how are we going to get a majorety of the users here to join us on the Michael's forum?

That's a good question. Mabe if we place a post here on the forums, asking for support, we may get more help.

Or, we could do a wild idea, where we have a group build, where the kit must come from Michaels. Mabe that'll help get some attention to it.

Then again, I'm kind of like Hannibal Smith from the A-Team in my thinking with this, so it could work or it couldn't

I was just in mine today.....I was not impressed.  You could tell that models take a back seat at this store very few aircraft, a few ship (boxes were beat to deatlh - shrink wrap gone.  Mostly car kits and all that they had were Revelle.....I did not even see model cement.  Hobby Lobby in my area is much better.

Did you check the rack for the Testors paint? I know the Michaels I've visited have had the Testors liquid cement (in the little round glass bottle) in the rack with the bottles of paint. It's easy to miss them, since they seem to blend in almost perfectly with the paint bottles.

The local Michaels has the older line of Testors paint, however all of the paint and supplies are locked up behind a mesh gate, and one must hunt down an employee (usually in the silk flowers or framing department) to unlock it.

Quite the hassle for so little selection.

The local Michael's here has the cement in the tube, bottle, clear parts cement, and the superglue. All from Testors. None of it is locked behind anything either.

Mike S.

 

 

Absolutely. We need more participation with both this, and the Hobby Lobby campaign.

The saying "the squeaky wheel gets the grease" is as true now as it has ever been.

I hate to be the wet blanket, but the cynical, jaded marketing professional in me thinks it'd have to be a much larger, much squeakier wheel for anything to change, and even then it'd be doubtful.

Large retailers like Michael's analyze every inch of shelf space for profitability, and attempt to manage a product mix that will maximize said profitability. I doubt that the Michael's or Hobby Lobbies of the world have it down to the frightening science that say, Wal-Mart does, but they do it just the same.

The cold, hard fact is that it isn't very profitable for Michael's to maintain a well-stocked modeling section. It takes up shelf space from, I don't know, scrapbook paper or beads or something else that sells better with their major demographic groups. Without access to historical sales data, it'd be tough to mine exact reasons for this, but I'm willing to bet the rise of the internet in supporting niche hobbies like modeling had a ton to do with it. Heck, as long as I'm ordering like five or more paints, its cheaper to order from Sprue Brothers or similar than to buy from any local source. Not to mention the self-fulfilling cycle of cutting back the modeling section, seeing a decline in sales as modelers find somewhere else that services their needs, then cutting it back more, seeing more sales declines, etc. And now they've cut back so far that the modeling section resembles the toy section at a Walgreens. It's there, but nobody who's shopping for toys goes there except in a pinch.

Could they expand the section? Certainly. But then they'd have to accompany it with marketing to spread the word that they've expanded, since the vast majority of their modeling customers have either gone elsewhere, with no assurances that the marketing would actually work.