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#1
12-02-2011
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National model shop support
Does anybody know the official situation with model shop attendance at Nationals this coming season?
Last year i personally thought that there was a major lack of support at almost every national with a shop. Whats the deal with Nationals? Is there supposed to be a nominated shop supporting each National or is a free for all for shops just to turn up and trade? I have just been speaking about this to someone and they suggested that each National could be supported by 1 nominated model shop maybe local to that said track so that at least we as racers know that who to look for and maybe pre-order bits a week in advance if need be. The only down side would be that the model shop would have to make sure that they were carrying a huge range of spares etc for all cars as their reputation may be on the line if they didnt deliver etc. I have since stopped using certain shops that were in my eyes one of the best online after one of the Nationals as they couldnt be bothered with my business and i was stuck scratching around for bits miles from home!! Any thoughts?? 
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#2
12-02-2011
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 Surely its your responsibility to make sure you carry a wide selection of spares. A shop would be there to supply tyres, glue, wheels and any other common consumable a racer may need.
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#3
12-02-2011
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Agree.
I think if you are racing Regionals and Nationals level then you should have a pretty good supply of kit. Shops are great at tracks and they cant carry everythnig for every car, amazes me how ill prepared people are!. If I'm travelling 60 miels+ to a meeting I want to have every conceivable spare part that might 'go' during the day - otherwise its a day wasted with frustration and disapointment. Knowing my luck though, the ONE item I dont have will break 
__________________
 Vega RB6 - Orion - Apex Models - JE Models - Cable ties
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#4
12-02-2011
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May be on the line i said, i have met great shops at meetings that i still use to this day, however sometimes when people representing shops at meetings/Nationals cant be bothered then i will stop using them in the future.
Everybody should have glue, etc however parts from a newish car shouldnt be a huge thing to ask for should it??
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#5
12-02-2011
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mmmm totally agree chris seem to recall tally, southport, robin hood ,could have been others but cant rememeber them all , dms did do eden park and stsofold too .last year had some supporting shops but as you said not fully equiped but were still there ,, would be good to see a shop at every national this year but also would be nice to see a main shop known at all the nationals too ,,, im venturing into a few little project this year for the nationals so hope it will help but as for parts i wont be in that postition
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#6
12-02-2011
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mmmm tamiya could be an issue dude but there are more shops stocking in the uk now
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#7
12-02-2011
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I know this from experience when running my own shop, and keeping up with latest cars and stocking their corresponding spares is no easy feat. Im currently stocking up on TRF parts for my new venture in the coming weeks, and stocking parts for just 4 cars is a lot of work, i wouldnt like to attempt all the leading brands and their respective models.
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#8
12-02-2011
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The newish car I was looking for was a B4!! I didn't want to name the meeting or the shop so that's why I said newish car. I understand that if I have a brand new car I need to have bits. Did you do nationals last year Jamie?
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#9
12-02-2011
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Personally when I've done nationals I've not wanted to travel miles only to become a spectator after practice has finished due to me stuffing the car into the track markers!
The trouble is, as most people are doing that, it means not much business for the shops. I know of one shop who in order to support a national properly stocked up on a lot of extra parts and he's still carrying a lot of them as no one needed them. Repeat that experience everywhere and would you want to spend the weekend chasing a few sales? What we don't know is would everyone stop carrying their own spares if they knew they could buy replacements instantly (obviously apart from people running Tamiyas!  )
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#10
12-02-2011
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Hmm, maybe some of the teams could step in as backup? Just as an example, could the Schu team/Associated team/pred (tho I guess inside line will be at nats anyway) teams take parts, or just the odd emergency kit as a backup, but only to sell those parts at full rrp, so at least if shops do turn up people will likely go to the shops first as they're cheaper?
Then a nominated shop to at minimum have consumables such as the right tyres, glues, screws, shock oils, plus then whichever cars they usually support? Anyone think that might work?
__________________
Dave "Amish FJ" Gibson RB Products ~ Yokomo Nuclear RC ~ Xpert ~ Hacker
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#11
12-02-2011
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Having supported Dom at DC RAcing (sadly now gone) I can asure you that no matter what you try and do it'll never be good enough.
The issue is a lot of people have deals, even if just with their local shop, as it means definite business for the shop/team in question. Never going to be able to match those prices and make a profit after travelling 100+ miles. Just my 2p worth
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#12
12-02-2011
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My usual experience is that the hosting club organises the shop. At the BTCC at West London in september, there wasn't an official shop, but I had my shop stuff with me, essentially just for me, and people starting coming to me. When I realised there was no official shop, I went to see the west london people, and I was one of the shops on the day.
There doesn't seem to be any hard and fast rule where shops are concerned, but if one shop was the official shop for the series, and promised to be at every round, they know they going to make sales and can invest in more stock. This of course gives an advantage to that one shop, but we should all benefit as a result.
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#13
11-05-2011
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Most drivers carry good supply of spares for their cars and get tyres etc in advance, which is a wise move. If there are regular GOOD shops in attendance, then drivers would probably carry less spares or at least worry less about breaking things. Of course there are now a few variations of a model eg; the B4 or B44 available, so stocking spares for those cars isn't really a problem, as its only going to be the more specialist conversion parts that pose an issue and they are the bits the drivers need to make sure they have. Most shops (myself included) only have good stocks of the mainstream stuff, because otherwise it'll be stuck on the shelf. Yokomo,Tamiya,losi (except the 22) seem to rarely be asked for in my area so are only ordered in specially. The new CML conversion for the B4 will have to be catered for now, because it's possibly going to be the next big thing since the X6 conversion, but your average shop isn't aware of these things unless they are on the circuit. I ordered the schumacher spares for Talywain for the 2009 National without realising that practically all Schuey drivers are team drivers and have ALL the spares. I'm just assuming here, but i imagine spares for the RB5 and Durango would be available from their team drivers too. I sold a lot of Associated and X6 spares, but most of the bits asked for were the more obscure items that break once in a blue moon,which i had most of. Consumables were quite handy to have, such as glue,sensor leads, balance conectors and pinions etc. There's no real answer,but having shops where they have a driver and racing experience, so they know what breaks and what drivers are likely to need is bound to help.The potential is, that they will probably stock what your after. It also means that the cost of travelling to an event is not an issue because they were going anyway. I put £115 worth of diesel in my transit to go to Stotfold, but i had 2 of my mates with me and i was going to race anyway so it didn't matter.If i had just been going to do shop, then i would have had to sell £500 worth of stock just to cover the fuel and toll bridge cost. As it happened I sold a bit of stuff and learnt that there were other items that i should stock (cut stagger ribs) and had a great weekends racing Local shops to the track are a good idea too because the cost of travelling is nothing. A travelling shop just isn't going to make enough money to justify the costs or effort. Believe me, there is a lot of effort that goes into taking a successful shop to a meeting especially when you have to get your quantity orders right. If drivers need items prior to an event, then contact a shop thats going and ask them to take the parts etc and pick them up there, or find out what stuff they stock, just in case the track jumps up and batters your car 
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