Squadron is now Kaput ( who next ? )

[Peppylepugh]

@stevethefish Hey there Greg,
I was quite surprised a couple months back when I had a notification that the forum here was back up. I never heard why they had stopped. Scott, is actually on my friends list on what's left of fb, and while we aren't in contact all the time, I don't remember it coming up in conversation. Without getting to far into his business, he lived in an area in N.S. or Labrador
and a gas and oil company had come in and obtained permits to drill and frac and they were trying to organize to stop them. Being in the industry, I advised them not to bother. 'they will run you out of money and still frac'. They have very deep pockets, a team of lawyers that like paperwork and all the time in the world.
I believe he moved. Big old farm and couldn't be happier for them.
While it is a 60-65 year old technology and energy independence is very crucial component to a thriving economy, there are some places we really shouldn't be.

 

[the Baron]

@the Baron
I thought I had read somewhere you were out of the Lehigh Valley. We've probably bumped into each other if you've ever been to MosquitoCon.
Out of Tunkhannock. That's a 90 mile, one way ride for me just to the Valley. We have a couple places in Scranton that are long imbedded, but they could be gone tomorrow. I think the only thing keeping Scranton Hobbies open is the traffic from the nearly bankrupt Steamtown mall. The rest are so over the top retail, it pushes you straight to the internet, evil bay, direct buy and sell on the forums.
I used to bring the truck and trailer over to tTrains and Lanes and spend the better part of a paycheck there. Really sorry to hear they are downsizing. If you looked real hard you find some odder stuff jammed in the back of the shelves. Great days there.
Main Hobby has long since closed and the brick building where Internet Hobbies is located has such odd hours, I haven't been in there in years. Not worth my effort.

We may have indeed! I'm a member of Lehigh Valley Scale Modelers, too. We formed about 6 or 7 years ago, out of an informal group that patronized Jeff Umlauf's HobbyTown store. We went IPMS a couple years after that. We had a table at MosquitoCon in 2019, to promote the club. If you're interested, we use a Facebook group as our online presence and forum.

So you know where the infamous Internet Hobbies is located? I've only looked the address up on a map, and it looked like they're northeeast of Scranton, off the beaten path. From all of the horror stories about their shady business, I've been curious to drive up there and see what it looks like, but haven't yet taken the time.

 

[Peppylepugh]

We may have indeed! I'm a member of Lehigh Valley Scale Modelers, too. We formed about 6 or 7 years ago, out of an informal group that patronized Jeff Umlauf's HobbyTown store. We went IPMS a couple years after that. We had a table at MosquitoCon in 2019, to promote the club. If you're interested, we use a Facebook group as our online presence and forum.

So you know where the infamous Internet Hobbies is located? I've only looked the address up on a map, and it looked like they're northeeast of Scranton, off the beaten path. From all of the horror stories about their shady business, I've been curious to drive up there and see what it looksMake the left, maybe a half mile on the right.

 

[Peppylepugh]

I do apologize for the late response, Baron.

Yeah, he is right there, very easy to get to.
Used to have the shop out in Yonkers NY by the same name.
He, is personable enough, but odd.
Now I haven't been there in a couple years.
Used to have some of the strangest hours he did. You could go there during business hours and he'd be closed. You could see people inside and they wouldn't let you come in. I kid you not.
Used to be the only place around with Humbrol, but he'd get all hosed off, if you just came in for paint.
So, I don't bother anymore. It's stuff like this, that just make me want to order on line.
I'm almost 30 miles from here myself
Sometimes have stuff falling off the shelves, sometimes it would like going out of business.
But, yeah easy enough to get to. You have to look hard or have the Garmin going, you'll drive on by thinking this isn't it.

We have a very informal group, no dues collected. Same guys as President, Vice President, no treasury, maybe a secretary, I can't remember. For years. I think we send a letter into National once a year, to let them know we still have a letterhead. Sent them trophy money for Nationals and that's about it. Very causal.
Lackawanna Valley Scale Modelers.
We don't keep many more than about 10-15 people, that kinda' rotate in and out every couple. Used to hit it hard, flyers, posters here and there. Could never generate enough interest to have people stay, if they would even join.
So we just hang out, every month, travel 100's of miles, sometimes to shows, have a good time.

 

[the Baron]

Ah, OK, I heard of your club, when we were starting ours. We considered where the nearest clubs were, and from Scranton to Philly, there was no one in between. We have a pretty dedicated bunch of about 15 people, and online, about another 10 or so who participate regularly. We're getting ready to start meeting in person again.

 

[the Baron]

To this thread's topic, posted at Squadron.com is a notice that Knot Models, of Peachtree Crossings, GA, has bought the business assets of Squadron back in April, and expects to relaunch the brand in June:

https://www.squadron.com/ (don't let the text mask on the hyperlink fool you-you will see the announcement on that page)

 

[urumomo]

 

[urumomo]

https://forums.kitmaker.net/t/good-news-i-hope/9517

 

[Peppylepugh]

I have gotten one similar to this.
The letter is saying Chris Decker has taken over the Squadron name.
Anybody know the guy?
I do wish him the best of luck with it all

 

[Jim62]

I have gotten one similar to this.
The letter is saying Chris Decker has taken over the Squadron name.
Anybody know the guy?
I do wish him the best of luck with it all

Check this link from finescale it gives info on the new owner. http://cs.finescale.com/fsm/general_discussion/f/50/p/188644/2164394.aspx#2164394

 

[urumomo]

that's the exact same letter . Same info .

 

[Jim62]

Darn then I didn't need to post it. LOL

 

[urumomo]

Hello Fellow Modelers!

We are excited to announce that www.squadron.com 5 IS UP!

Our team has been working tirelessly over the past 6 weeks to be ready for this day, the day we can say, www.squadron.com 5 is back and running!

We have cleaned up the navigation, eliminated a lot of products and categories that were not core to our vision of what Squadron is going to be in the future. We have also sourced thousands of models kits, detail accessories, paint, books and tools for you to order! We are still loading hundreds of new products every week, so if you don't see something you're looking for, check back often or email us and we can prioritize getting it loaded in for you.

The new site does operate a little different from the old site:

• We only allow in stock items to be added to the shipping cart. We do not plan on taking 'backorders'.
• If an item is out of stock, you can sign up to be notified by email when it is available again to be ordered. Be quick on this, we may only have a limited number, and if you can't catch the item in stock, you'll have to sign up on the email list again.
• We are offering FREE SHIPPING on orders over $39.99, for the continental US and we have adjusted shipping costs for all other order.
• One important item you need to keep in mind. Any and ALL orders placed before January 11t, 2021 were cancelled when the original company filed bankruptcy. We will have additional information with regards to the bankruptcy in our FAQ section in the coming weeks.

The relaunch is here! We are excited to share this next chapter of Squadron with you.




Until then, Happy Modeling!



Chris Decker

www.squadron.com