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Prof Bond's Emporium

5.0 (1 review)
ModerateHobby Shops

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12 years ago

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Milepost Hobbies

Milepost Hobbies

5.0(3 reviews)
5.2 mi

This is an excellent hobby store. It is primarily focused on model trains, though there is a decent…read moreselection of model plane and car kits too. The owner has extensive knowledge of the hobby and is doing it because he loves it, not to make money. As an example, several items I noticed were priced lower than Ebay or online and when I asked him about that he agreed. However, he was still able to make his margins and wanted to better help local modelers. His section of new and used HO trains is pretty diverse. There are lots of great deals on vintage kits and older stock, but he has modern cars too with all the great details (and higher prices). His O gauge tinplate selection seemed a bit more limited but I don't really focus on that. He had a great selection of books and magazines, and a cute display layout. Behind the counter is his collection of his personal models in display cases. He has (along with his custom painter) assembled what is probably the best collection of locomotives and cars that are unique to the upstate New York area. If local shortlines use (or used) these engines, he has one. It was like looking at a museum. And, if the price is right, he will sell them. My prices weren't right though! It is quite a drive from Albany (about an hour each way) so if I need something I first call ahead to see if he has it. However, if you need advice or want to see what the new trends are in the hobby stop by. And, make sure to check him out at the local trains shows too.

Huge selection of trains. The best in the area. The owner is knowledgeable about all facets of…read morethe hobby and has years of experience. Highest recommendation.

Hobby Lobby

Hobby Lobby

3.0(28 reviews)
25.4 mi
•$

Great place !! All of it friendly people! We have stores with no more help on the floor takes to…read morelong so I avoid those stores or not speaking English! Hate seeing a lot of stores closing! Rose

I'm not going to get into the religious views of this company...let just talk fabric cutting…read morecounter. Not a great selection of fabric to begin with, but whatever, I've found some cool stuff. Rarely is there a staff member in the department...I usually have to ring the bell. Okay, great, they finally show up. Now for those of us here in 2019, we are used to decent technology, including scanners that can read bar codes. Not only does HL not have scanners, they HAND WRITE every single fabric price and amount on a slip. Then calculate each price. So let's go through the process shall we? Employee slowwwwwwly unrolls fabric from bolt, then places it against the ruler repeatedly to make sure not to give even an eighth of an inch more than we asked for! Slowwwwwwly cuts said fabric. Slowwwwwly folds fabric and places into a pile. Slowwwwwwly hand writes amount on slip. Slowwwwwwly folds up bolt and sets aside. Repeat. And don't get me started on when there's a mistake and they have to rewrite the entire slip. I don't know if the employees are not properly trained or just seriously lack customer service skills. They should just stand there and watch while I cut my own fabric; I'd sure as heck get out of there faster! Bottom line - if you have a lot of time to kill, or just really want to torture yourself, grab a few bolts of fabric and have them cut various sizes. You can thank me later.

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Hobby Lobby - Storefront for Hobby Lobby Latham

Storefront for Hobby Lobby Latham

Hobby Lobby
Hobby Lobby

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Hobby Lobby

Hobby Lobby

2.5(4 reviews)
24.5 mi

Good selection, comparable to other hobby lobby's I visited…read more I wish, just once, that checking out wasn't a nightmare. It feels like once you're in line they don't care. They had me go to a shorter line, which was for returns, when I had no return. I must have watched 20 customers behind me leave before me. A 15 minute wait for 2 customers ahead of me. I'll admit this seems to be an issue at most locations. I don't think this corporation will ever figure it out, and because of that I generally avoid these stores.

This new Hobby Lobby opened in Aug 2019 and took over the old Toys 'R Us / Babies 'R Us building…read moreafter they had been closed for a while. I wondered at why they opened another one only 5 miles down the road from the one in Latham. The sales associate said it's also smaller by about 10,000 sq ft, but I couldn't tell because it had the same amount of shelf space for the hobbies that I like, so it's no big difference to me. I can't believe that a Hobby Lobby would require more square footage than a Toys 'R Us! If you're a bargain hunter like me, you'll find some gems at steal prices in the clearance section, but since this is a new store, there aren't a lot of marked down stuff yet, as expected. One of my favorite hobbies is model rocketry and HL has a dedicated section stocked with a variety of kits, launchers and engines to outfit your own (scaled down) Cape Canaveral launch site. But alas, they worked out a deal with the manufacturer (Estes) to discount their line and the 40% off coupon can no longer be used on those products ("Your Price," yellow tag). I took home a rocket kit anyway and applied the weekly 40% off coupon to an electric slot car. I'll have to stop in here again in the future, when we're in this area again.

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Hobby Lobby
Hobby Lobby
Hobby Lobby - Estes Model Rockets (actually fly)

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Estes Model Rockets (actually fly)

Prof Bond's Emporium - hobbyshops - Updated May 2026

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