Model car shops Australia

[TimFMX]

hey guys..

i stay in Brisbane for the next 3 month...and want to build a model car...
but i don't know where i can buy the kit and all the stuff i need to build....
is there anybody can help me........?

thanks tim

[chola]

G'day Tim,

I live on the gGold Coast but every now and then go up to Brissy to have a look around.

The first 2 shops that come to mind are Hobby One (I think they call the suburb Holland Park - just do a web search - their site is crap - outdated - but will probably give you their address), and the other is Mr Toys at Springwood, just on the western side of the highway, corner of Moss St.

Hobby 1 is more of a 'boutique' type of hobby shop, nice shop, nice shelves, very corporate, slightly higher prices on most kits, have a pretty good range of cars (Tamiya, Revell, AMT etc), but depends what you are after, have a lot of the Tamiya race / rally cars.

Mr Toys at Springwood is dark, dingy, and looks like a bomb has hit it, but has a very large range of cars, not badly priced, I've picked up some very good bargains there from time to time. It's always a bit like Christmas going in there co's you never really know what you are going to find!

As for accessories, neither shop has a great range, Hobby 1 has a lot of aftermarket wheels / tyres, raw materials like styrene sheet, rod, and metals (alloy and brass), the selection for bits and pieces at Mr Toys is not as good...or maybe just harder to find! For memory they had some aftermarket engine kits (hemi's etc).

Hobby 1 has a better range of paints.....I have a funny opinion on this...namely that a lot of the paints at Mr Toys look like they've been there 100 years, so I am a bit dubious about buying them in case I get them home and they are all solidified...I know, probably unfounded fears, but Hobby 1 seems to have a much higher turnover of consumables.

I would recommend checking out both anyway, only about 15 minutes drive between them.

Good luck.

Colin

[viperofoz]

They are both OK shops... both can be a little expensive though.

Another shop I would recomend is Hobbyrama at Stafford on the nothside of Brisbane.
A good range of kits and accessories that are regulally updated, prices are generally a little better than the other two shops too...

Unfortuantely there are not a lot of model shops in Brisbane, The three mentioned in this thread so far are about the only ones I regulally visit.

Regards, Dan

[chola]

Hey Viperofoz

Agreed, sometimes the prices are high.

Whats the one like at Stafford? Do they have a better range of cars than the other 2?

Unfortunately it's hard enough for me to find time to get to the 2 on the southside, but if it's worth the extra drive from the coast I may have to pay Hobbyrama a visit!

Colin

[viperofoz]

Originally Posted by chola

Hey Viperofoz

Agreed, sometimes the prices are high.

Whats the one like at Stafford? Do they have a better range of cars than the other 2?

Unfortunately it's hard enough for me to find time to get to the 2 on the southside, but if it's worth the extra drive from the coast I may have to pay Hobbyrama a visit!

Colin

Hi Colin,

Yeah, I would definitely check out Hobbyrama if you get the chance.

They have a much larger range of cars than Hobby One at Mt Gravatt and they seem to have a lot of Aoshima kits recently at $25-$30.

(not my usual building style, but I seem to have amassed a large collection of D-1 drift cars, VIP Vans, Skylines, Silvias and other JDM stuff... most with very cool wheels and rubber included.... all from Hobbyrama)

Whilst I do shop at Mr Toys Springwood often, I find that 90% of there car kits are multiples of older Revell stuff at $40 a pop.......... but they do have some good sales once a year or so, some of the smaller Mr Toys store's have had a small selection of Recent issue Revell cars at $12.99.

I work as a mobile Technician all over S.E. Queensland and Northern NSW, with a bit of flexible time, a company car and fuel card so I always take the opportunity to check out new hobby shops wherever I go.... unfortunately there dont seem to be many around.... let me know if there are any worth checking next time im in the area.



Regards, Dan

[chola]

Hi Tim & Dan,

Dan (and Tim if you are driving past it), drop in to North Coast Hobbies in Lismore.....last time I was there they had a very good selection of model cars, bits and pieces...been a little while since I was there though so may have changed, but I remember it was pretty good.

Dan, not much worth checking on the coast. Half your luck being about to get out and about...I'm stuck in an office all week, then catch up on domestic duties on weekends! Sounds like I will have to make a trip to Stafford though!

A little off the track....I was in Newcastle a few years back and remember going to a huge hobby shop there, they simply had lots of everything, can't remember the name of it.

Colin

[DVST8R]

Chola - I'm guessing Frontline Hobbies, I'm in Sydney but I order a lot of stuff from them oneline. www.frontlinehobbies.com.au