There are 2 hobby stores in San Jose. One is RC Unlimited near Campbell/San Jose border and the other is Sheldon's Hobbies near Milpitas/San Jose border. Both shops are owned by the same A-hole. They don't understand the words Customer Service, nor do the care about it. Please DO NOT shop at either location. Yesterday I called Sheldon's to see if they had an item before I drove the 30 minutes in traffic to pick up the item. I gave the exact name and manufacture of the item I was looking for, which they said they had plenty instock. I drove down there to find they didn't listen at all on the phone and made me waste an hour plus gas money to go down there for nothing. The other store is no better, bad mouthing other customers in public, swearing in front of my kids and this is the owner!
If you need RC cars parts try online, places like RPPHobby.com if you want your money to stay somewhat local.
I went to RC Unlimited once just to look around, and I've never gone back. I haven't been to D&J Hobby over by San Tomas Aquino and Campbell Ave. for a while, but I seem to remember they had a pretty decent hobby shop with everything.
I'm rather partial to Lionel Model Trains, and there was this huge shop called San Antonio Hobby Shop maybe 20 minutes away, I can't remember exactly where, but they had a couple long aisles dedicated to Lionel and other model train companys. They were an authorized Lionel dealer so they had a ton of Lionel products, I used to save up my money and my dad would bring me there and I'd get a new car or some more track. Ever since they closed I haven't been able to find a hobby shop that carries a good assortment of Lionel Trains. I went to the Train Shoppe but they only had the sets not individual components. Supposedly there's a place in Redwood City that carries Lionel but I'm not sure if it's worth the drive.
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Anybody wanna buy my shirt? I'll trade you my shirt for a grilled cheese!
I always found D&J to be a good vendor. IIRC, I ordered a few items from them over the years and found them to be very helpful and good at calling when the item arrived.
It has also been a while since I've been there, too. It might have changed.
Consider this another vote for D&J. They've been around for ever and have an amazing selection of EVERYTHING. Years, and I do means years ago, this was the place that got me into the whole R/C thing.... Now, my kids shop there, for stuff that I can afford!
Sounds like you guys recommend D&J? I am looking into a RC car for my son. He like monster trucks. Any recommendations on which truck to buy? No more than $200.
That's too bad for wasting your time. Sheldon's has been around since the 70's and had good customer service in the beginning when they were on Alum Rock. The used to have a great inventory and competitive pricing, However, the customer service has been hit and miss. As far as RC Unlimited goes, which is 10 minutes from my house, I have had great experiences and experiences where I have felt that I, the customer, was wasting their, the employees time, which left a sour taste in my mouth.
While D&J Hobbies pricing has always been a bit higher, I have always had good customer service there.