Hi Doug, Boanno. Or happy New year. I have been looking at HK and Cornwall models for Boats but had to go to SLEC for aircraft bits. it cost in postage but good quality.

Modellbau König is also a fast reliable source here in Germany.👍
😎

Bom dia Wingcoax,
If I want something pronto I go online to Conrad or Krick here in Germany and usually get the 'stuff' in one or two days.
If I order from Turnigy/Hobbyking I make sure the stuff comes from the EU warehouse. Then it's usually here within the week.
Most of the stuff has reasonably understandable instructions, or I can find it on the web.
Learned that the hard way with a delivery from China that took several weeks and and then cost me a small fortune in German customs duty 😡
Model shops around Munich are basically model railway, aircraft or toys🤔 Such is life today! Cheers, Doug 😎

Hi All, Although i come from an aircraft background i am also into boating. I used to have a total of five model shops within a half hour drive to source my parts, before emigrating i had 1 who was mainly into cars so i had to go online. Now in Portugal I have no shops within 4 hours so have to rely on internet purchases.

Totally agree with all points mentioned👍, another way is to make a note of the things you need, now and in the future i.e. glue, fittings,paint etc, and then visit the model boat shows advertised around the UK, some are close, others not, for me I like Doncaster show, Haydock and Blackpool, going to shows allows you to choose from various traders and cherry pick the bits you want, it works for me along with the internet for items wanted NOW!

cheers Peter😊

We are living through a technological change brought on by the Web.

During any technological change some things will be gained and others lost. We saw this with the development of factories during the industrial Revolution, the railways and later the automobile. Each new technology brought both extensive benefits and disadvantages, and in each case they resulted in the demise of the earlier service provision. in each case people tried to stop the development, and found that they could not.

I cannot see much of a future for shops in the long term - let alone model shops. There may be a market for display facilities - places where you can inspect the items before you buy - but I suggest that most goods will end up being delivered direct from the manufacturer via sophisticated logistics services. This is happening already. Advice is readily available on the Net via forums - too much advice in many cases!

I would much prefer to purchase the items I want in a local shop, be able to gain some expert advice and look before I buy, sadly the nearest shop only has a very limited stock and the owner admits he knows little about model boats, railways being his thing. To find a specialist shop entails a round trip of 126 miles which makes buying on line far more attractive, but this has frequently meant that when the item has arrived (often after weeks of delay as it has come direct from China) it is the wrong size, not as described or there are no understandable instructions. Not sure what the answer is, perhaps moving near to a big city would help.

"I just wonder what will happen to all these cheap bits when Brexit rears it's ugly head..."

That will depend on what YOU want. At the moment our external tariffs are determined by the EU and we effectively have no say in what they are. When we leave, our tariffs will be set solely by Parliament, and if you don't like them you can vote your MP out. This is called sovereignty.....

Hi Dave,
Kann uns Wurst sein nicht wahr?
You in Landsberg, me in München!!😉
Just wonder what other problems Brexit might bring us Ex Pats🤔
Cheers, Doug 😎

Keith, not sure I agree, I have a local model shop and the difference between online and in shop as a total experience is not that different. On line, although I do use it can have problems when a purchase goes wrong and has to be returned or is not as described, whereas in shop you can try out things discuss with experts and return things if they go wrong. I have found prices when compared, are sometimes not that different when you factor in postage plus time delay.
I do appreciate I have the facility of a fantastic shop - The Leeds Model Shop
PS I have no commercial connection to this company. other than spending a lot of money there.

I just wonder what will happen to all these cheap bits when Brexit rears it's ugly head