HORRIBLE customer service. That's all you guys need to know. Hope this review is useful for you guys. If looking for a reliable hobby shop this one is not it. read more

Great staff, great selection of items. Insane NEW drift course! Super detailed, with elevation changes, and banked corner. Has multiple lay-outs available. Ability to rent rc cars to use on indoor drift course. In general a great place to go to! read more

Sheldon's Hobbies - Picture of the new RC Drift track. - Hobby Shops Near Me - San Jose, California

See all

Had a great time there on the indoor track. I'm a newbie to this and the regulars on the drift track were extremely friendly. One of the guys was a pro who's won a lot of completions there and he gladly gave me some tips and helped me get up and going with my drifting skills! They have a pretty good selection of drift wheels with plenty of offsets, and drift tires as well. The prices are ok, but they match so do your homework, or just check on TowerHobbies.com before going to the register. I was looking for some lights for my R8 body, and they were very helpful. Of course they first showed me the all out pricey light kit that does everything, but I just wanted something simple with headlights and taillights. So I bought a simple kit and I was very happy about it. read more

See all

This was my first time ever using a rock crawler! I had ordered one and it arrived and the same day I went to this place to use it in there rock trail and it's soo much fun! And the best part is that it's free to use their track ! I'm definitely going to be buying my parts for my Redcat Gen 8 here! read more

Sheldon's Hobbies - Hobby Shops Near Me - San Jose, California

See all

Yo shout out to tony he's the man, he helped me out on my slash 4x4 I broke my spur gear and he took it apart and hooked me up in less than 10 min he also gave me some pointers since I'm new to the rc game, I will be returning to this establishment because of the customer service he provided. Give this man a raise! read more

I build my own RC aircraft from scratch and need a local place that sells material and components - not JUST ready-to-fly craft and kits. Some place to go where I can reliably find whatever random component I need, so I don't have to order it online yet again. Sheldon's Hobbies is exactly that hobby store. Balsa wood sticks, sheets, and blocks. Rods and tubing of all shapes in aluminum, brass, steel, plastic, etc. Wide selections of lipo batteries. Bare connectors (JST etc) and wire. Servo control horns, linkages, hinges. Glue. Soldering stations. The list goes on. They don't have a great selection of electrical components (FC boards, motors), or metric-sized components (most/all of the tubing is imperial). But no one store can compete with the entire internet. Five stars. read more

If i could give 0 stars i would but i can't lol . These guys prioritize regulars first and you will never be helped if you aren't a regular . And if you do get helped sit tight because once a regular comes in they'll leave you to help them first . Also if you do get helped they won't even fix what you went in to get help for . Sucks read more

I came by to get a replacement servo. The guy sitting and texting at the register is was no help and wasn't wearing a mask but did remember to wear his stupid hat cocked sideways. Poor customer attention in my opinion. Someone else finally helped me and let me know they didn't have the servo size in stock but because of the first employee not wearing a mask I won't go back here anytime soon. Other customers and employees were also not wearing masks in the store so obviously management doesn't care enough. read more

Stopped by here with my 7 year old son, who just got a Traxxis for his birthday. He needed some new parts for his RC vehicle, we checked them out online and decided to drive out here. The 2 guys that helped us out were super friendly and helpful, my 7 year old is a picky kid and very particular about what he wants. They got us all the parts my son had in mind. They were also nice enough to fix something on the RC toy that was slightly damaged. read more

A Dishonest business with terrible business acumen and poor customer service starts at the top, with the store manager / owner. Yes Sheldon Hobbies has been around for a while, I remember them as a child when I lived in Northern California. I had completely forgotten about them until they showed up in a search for a Team Associated part that is out of stock elsewhere. Since the site had no picture of the part and looked somewhat new, I decided to email them to see if they in fact had the part and how many they had, as I needed 2. I should state that at the point the price of the item was $5.99. While at work, I received an email that they had 5 in stock. I clicked on the link and took me to the site, and noticed that the price was now $9.99. I went to associated's site and the part was $5.99 there. So I picked up the phone and call the store. I told the person that answered that I had sent an email inquiry over the web regarding and associated part and wanted to speak to the person that responded. He informed me that it was him. I then asked him why the price was increased after I inquired on the quantities you had in stock. He said he was not aware of a price increase. I reiterated that this morning the price was $5.99, the same as associated site. He said well do you want to buy from us or associated (condescendingly). I told him, I'm simply trying to understand why a price suddenly increased by 65% after a client inquires on the quantity. He said I don't know what to tell you sir, I don't know if any price increase. I asked to speak with the manager, he said he was not here. I asked for his email and he gave it to me. I asked for his name, he said it was Eric. I sent and email to AJ Douglas explaining what I have written above. His response was: "Thank you for being a long time customer of ours for many many years . I am happy to hear your still in the hobby.. unfortunately our web site is down we our in the rebuilding process connecting our physical inventory to our online store." Amazing response right? Nothing about speaking to Eric about being condescending to a client, nothing about doing research on the price increase. So I responded as follows: Thank you for your prompt reply. Your website maybe down, yet it still shows up in google search. When I arrived home yesterday, the browser was still open to the link for the part I sent the inquiry. It was still showing $5.99. Now when I refreshed it, it changed to $9.99. The price was changed after I sent an inquiry and when I called the store they confirmed that you have 5 of these. Im attaching both screen shots for you. After which.. complete radio silence!! Truth be told, yes they can charge whatever they want for a part.. but when you increase it just because a client is interested is poor service. That is not how you build a loyal client base. Clearly that is not these guys intent. To those that have given positive reviews to Sheldon.. just wait till you have an issue... then you will see their true colours. p.s. Enjoy the screen shots read more

Sheldon's Hobbies - Hobby Shops Near Me - San Jose, California

See all

I bought a SCX24 from them, I plugged it in and it started smoking. I replaced the motor then it would not turn. I called them and they try to blame you for whatever happened so they wont give you a return. It seems they are trained to make it seem like "that's they way she goes" vibe. I went in yesterday to be offered parts but no mention of swapping out or return!!! Along with the guy kinda moping around and giving you the run around for 30 minutes. The most un-professional garbage people I have dealt with in my life. Never going back.. I highly un recommend this place.. read more

Edit: I was sold incorrect parts with incorrect advice that resulted in the premature destruction of my RC plane. But after I contacted the store and explained what happened, they've offered to make it right. read more

Great place to shop or just look around. Friendly staff would highly recommend sheldons Hobby to anyone that is into RC cars planes or boats. I live 1 hour away but drive there because it's worth it I bought many RC cars and trucks there and highly recommended it to anybody who is looking to get into the RCs will definitely continue to go there read more

See all

once I walked in I had a question about a airplane I wanted to get. He obviously saw i was waiting. And decided to ingnore me for 30 mins and once I asked my question it took 20 more mins for checkout read more

The worst thing Ron ever did was sell this shop to Andy ~_~ Andy let his son ruin it pretty much and destroy its former rep. I've tried a few times now to get parts or bodies and I get really confused and blank stares. Or when I called put on hold for almost 10 minutes. Nobody I've talked to seems to know what anything is, where anything is, or how to keep things stocked. When I ask a question I feel like I just walked up to a McDonalds cashier and asked them to explain Astro Physics. I even asked if they even kept an inventory and was met with total confusion on what that was...a very bad sign. The staff doesn't seem to know what they're doing anymore, or what they're talking about. It's like they just hired random people off the street. The guys who used to work the counters before the shop was sold could tell you everything about everything and knew a thousand different ways to fix/mod your setup or just help you. I really miss the old place. So far I've only found one decent shop in town, its like RC hobby dying off or something. I might have to start making the drive out to Nor Cal Hobbies. read more

I should have checked all these 1-star reviews before I drove to sheldon's to get myself fucked by their attitude. I bought about $15 worth of parts. Then I asked if they have something to replace the broken lead on my brushless motor. The guy on the counter came back with one that was old and obviously used. Barely functional but hey, better than a broken one. Since I'm also getting about $15 worth of parts from them, I assume they'd give me the used lead, or $1 top for the sake of inconvenience I caused them. But when I checked the receipt, boy they charged me $3.99 for this little old used lead!!! With $3.99 I can buy probably 10 brand new leads online! So I went back to ask the guy, hoping it was just a mistake. Guess what he said? "This is how much we charge!!! Look at the receipt! it says sales of all electrical items are final!!! This (piece of old junky lead) is electrical item!!! I stand by my no-return policy!!!" Even if they decided to rip me off, they could have shown a bit of politeness - we are all civilized people. Nope, just pure rudeness. They weren't helpful at all in finding the parts for me either. But I looked pass that since I knew what I needed to buy. The only reason why I gave them 2 star was that they have the largest selection of parts in Bay Area. I love seeing all these parts in front of my eyes because it gives me much better instinct on what I can use. But I figure I'm better off shopping online given how Sheldon's treats their customers... it's pretty sad that we don't have solid hobby stores in Bay Area. read more

I knew this moment would come, my first 1 star review. This place has gone to hell. Back when Sheldon's Hobbies was located on Old Oakland Road, It was the biggest, best, and knowledge hobby shop I have been to. I have happily spent thousands of dollars at the Oakland road location I went to the new sheldon's location on Trade Zone to look for parts for my RC car today, and asked the staff if they knew what part I needed for my repair. I brought in my car and pointed out the broken part I needed replaced. The staff was friendly and pointed out the section where I can look around myself. The parts were all hanging about 6 feet up on the shelf and goes up to 10 feet high. I grabbed the ladder to search for the parts myself, as the staff directed me to do. Minutes later, the other staff told me the manager said I can't be on the ladder. I just don't understand how they expect me to search for the part myself on a shelf that goes up to 10 feet high. And they were not knowledge to just find the part for me. No sale was made. The inventory on Tamiya cars were non-existent, as well as other brands. For new cars, there was less than 7 on the shelf. The old Sheldon's hobbies use to have like 50+ Im just so dissapointed in the new sheldon's. I guess from reading other reviews they had an ownership change. Staff is friendly, but just not knowledged in products and far from helpful. I just don't know how this place can make money with unknowledged staff and no inventory. I'm sorry new Sheldon Hobbies owners, this has taken a major dive since Old Oakland Road days. This will be my last visit ever to Sheldon's Hobbies. read more

Place is a joke. Do not put any money into the business itself, the owner does not treat its customers or employees with any respect unless it's in his own best interest to make money off it. The current staff is great, but the back-end is a joke. No hobby store owner should run the place with money as its ONLY focus, and that's definitely the vibe you get the minute you start talking to the owner. Long story short, come here to look and drive, but never buy. This small business puts no value in its local frequenting customers and as a result we should put no value in their service. To add insult to injury, this is a direct quote from their FB page: "As always, we are deeply appreciative of our customers, new and regulars. We would like to offer you a 10% discount just for entering a positive review on Yelp.com about Sheldon's Hobbies Just give us a good review, snap a pic and show it at the time of check out and receive an easy 10% discount." aka bribing for good reviews read more

Sheldons return policy is behind the times. So 1980's... I went there to purchase some tires for my R/C truck. They looked up my truck and told me these tires and rims would work. Asked the sales person if I had any problems I could return items and he said 'of course' Got the items home, and they didn't fit properly on the R/C. Brought them back few days later, only one package open, and was told store credit only That was over 80 bucks I was out!!! Wasn't happy especially when the sales person selected the items and told me they would work. Secondly, they charge full retail for their parts, and sometimes above the mfg suggested price. I noticed this on some Proline items I purchased on a prior visit. Their LiPO batteries are overpriced where you can buy online $20 bucks less. Only buy something you know will fit your R/C item and you don't need to return back. Make them open the item up in the store and test on your vehicle BEFORE you purchase Otherwise you will be stuck with store credit and out the cash in your pocket. Yes, some of you will say well their store receipt says no returns. However, they don't tell you this at checkout. Not to mention, 99% of all other retail stores in California allow customer returns and refunds on their items. Not like this was a special order item. I could understand if the item was opened or if it was an electronic item. I will take my business elsewhere ant NOT returning. Plenty of other hobby shops in the area who have more competitive prices and allow you to return. read more

Geez, new location, new ownership...and then... what happened? The service has taken a real dive since the above happened. I've been a Sheldon's customer since I was in elementary school but no more. Plus my favorite Sheldon's staff member moved to my other, favorite local e-flight focused hobby shop, so no reason to come here any more. read more

We had a broken drone, and with all the research we did on our own, finally through up my hands and walked into Sheldon's. The guys were really helpful and finally found the replacement part we needed. It wasn't very expensive, and they helped figure out what I could do to get it working again. Shop is full of hobbyist goodies, new and a used bin of stuff you might need. Also, there was a race track inside for people to race or run cars they were building. Not many places like this left in SJ, so was happy to hang out in here to check out the interesting stuff. read more

This place is owned by the son of RC Unlimited. I remember the old Sheldons, a lot of folks thought the flight section was nearly on par with Aeromicro. Sadly, the new owners seemed more focused on cars, just like they are over at RC Unlimited. Sad because I fly planes :( Would have been neat if they had built an indoor micro RC course. Their new building had the ceiling for it. read more

I paid this "newer" location a visit a couple of times last year - as a side trip. Like other reviewers - I used to shop quite often at the old location at Old Oakland Road, etc. It was a long trip as I came south from the East Bay just to get my supplies, and fly a little R/C where the Sandisk building is now. It was a little nostalgia visit for me now. The former location/ownership was like being a kid in a candy store with his parents Mastercard. The selection of cars, R/C plane kits, Glow Engines, Heli's, plastic scale cars was pretty nice. The staff - pretty sharp too! OK - to the present. I'm not into cars - but the new location seems oriented to R/C 4 wheelers. They do have a few R/C airplanes, paints, monokote, glues, fuel -- but I am guessing that cars are what sell. (When was the last time you had to go looking for your car in some tree - ha-ha...) The staff is helpful, informative, etc. There's an indoor track for model r/c cars. No real selection for Aircraft Electric R/C or Glow (like motors or radio gear, books.) It's worth it to just go and check them out. It seems in this Internet age - Hobby Stores are going the way of Record and Book Stores in terms of acquiring stuff. read more

parking lot was full , managed to find a spot , a good sign i guess , walls where a little cluttered but full of inventory , the employees should have uniforms like hobby -xc,, the overall experience well i rather not say ... O YES ILL BE BACK THE PLACE IS THE BEST I'VE SEEN THE REST. read more

Some of the worst customer service I have ever had. Been here several times and the customer service isn't usually the best but today it was unacceptable. I know they were busy, but.... I will try my best to go somewhere else read more

Getting back into RC after 10 years or so. They had everything I needed to get my nitro RC10-GT back on the dirt as well as some electronics for an old tamiya. I recently got a crawler and they've had all the replacement parts I've needed. They seem to specialize in Axial crawlers, carpet drift cars and have a good selection of losi truggy parts. The selection is definitely car centric but there are some plane and boat parts. I'll be back to try out the indoor crawler track. read more

I once was into RC Airplanes that spanned out to about 4 feet wide and Sheldon's Hobby had everything and anything you need for RC Airplanes. They also have RTF planes, drones, train stuff, and most importantly RC car parts. It's a Costco Wonderland of all DIY car, plane, train kinda thing. The staff are very knowledgeable and can really work out a great conversation. All the staff have one common ground there: the love of building stuff and sharing ideas. RC cars are their kind of thing. They have a ginormous track just for cars and have decent prices for the time spent racing. There's not too many hobby stores around and that really is unfortunate. I've lost my interest in rebuilding planes and what not, but who knows, maybe I'll hope right back into it again. read more

Wow wow Alex very friendly and helpful . Thank you , always support your local business !!!

I was first hesitant to come here because of the yelp reviews but I've been coming here for the last month since I got myself an RC drifter. Eric has helped me upgrade my Sprint 2 to a somewhat more manageable drifter. Contrary to the last few bad reviews, The staff has been very helpful. They are really helpful if you are reasonable and have realistic needs. If you educate yourself with the basics and don't demand for the ideal thing without thinking of investing in the hobby, then this place is great. Like any other business, they have to make money. However, their prices are actually comparative to online North American counterparts and brands; you get what you pay for from the Chinese designed parts and online stores (let's be real though, they are mostly made from China). You also get good service if you treat everyone with respect. If you come in here thinking you've got everything figured out, then you're probably wrong. I've made dumb assumptions from what I've read on forums or watched on YouTube, they shown me how to maintain my car and properly install parts. Protip: they have a website with what they sell. Save yourself some time and look it up. read more

Great selection. Good pricing and people who know their stuff. This is the only hobby shop that has what you need in the bay area. Anyone looking to get into a new hobby should stop by!!?! read more

Sheldon's Hobbies - Body and paint purchased at Sheldons - Hobby Shops Near Me - San Jose, California

Service wasn't the best as soon as I walked in the guy at the register snapped his fingers and gave signs to other 2 workers to watch me as if I'm going to steal something, then I walked around the store and stood infront of the main counter waiting to get help after 15 minutes 1 of the workers popped out of the back and asked me if I needed help and told him what I need and he send some one else to help me. First time and last time going in there that's rude and makes me not want to buy anything from them don't judge a book over it's cover. read more

Helpful...always willing to work with what you need. Drift track is a must try if your into the drift scene. read more

Sheldon's Hobbies - Picked up the new Axial RR10 Bomber. Got it for a good deal. Like I said, always willing to work with you to meet your needs. - Hobby Shops Near Me - San Jose, California

I read some bad reviews on them so here's my 2 cents. First of all, most hobby shops have the same return policy and that's no refunds, store credit. So if you're buying something here, make sure it's what you want. As far as customer service, I didn't have a problem. I bought a lipo charger, lipo batt, some hop ups, a body, and transmitter, and the staff was really helpful in answering my questions. For those looking for Tamiya parts, it's hit or miss. I went to 4 diff shops before I found a one-way diff here. Also, it's one of the few places where I saw Yokomo bodies for sale, and that's rare. So all in all, it was a good experience for me. Sad to say, there's just not that many great hobby stores in Norcal (I'm from SoCal, and that's where Hobby People are...it's HUGE). Best to call in advance to check to see if they have what you need. read more

Poor Customer Service. Brought in item to be updated.... Had to call multiple times to check status....almost 2 months later, they finally started working on it...only to not have right parts.... Was told by AJ, I don't want this here, come get it. Picked up item only to not get everything brought in back, they lost it. Well item is now in worse shape. read more

Amazing hobby shop! I want to thank AJ @ Sheldon hobbies for the Christmas donations made to The Women's Lotus Garden. We had a few kids who asked Santa for something from Sheldon's and he made this Christmas wish a reality! Thank you so very much! read more

Sheldon's Hobbies - Thank you AJ - Hobby Shops Near Me - San Jose, California

Sheldons is the best store for all your RC needs/ Their staff has really good customer service. The guys there know everything about RC's no matter what problem you have they have the answer. My son Jace who is 15 loves this store we have been going there a few years now and would not go anywhere else for our RC needs. They have a good selection of well made cars from good brands. The owner is always there to greet you and make you feel at home. They have a race track there and its fun to watch the kids race their cars. If you are interested in getting into RC racing or are an experienced RC person this is the place to go. Hope you all find the same experience that we have..... read more

I had a really old 1/10 rc drift car that survived a garage fire 8 years ago and it hasn't been running ever since, so I decided to get it fixed. I walked into the store and told them my situation and at first I was offered a $50 an hour fee to find the problem, then the owner came by and he really just wanted to help me get it fixed and started testing parts after parts. Within a few mins, he found the problem and replaced the parts for me, did not charge me for any labor and now my rc car is up and running again! I couldn't be happier! read more

Honesly this place has no selection. Why does it get 5 Stars? Intense in-door carpet drift track, which is free to use. Intense in-door Rock Crawling course, which is also free to use. Helicopter pads all over the store. Reuben is dope! He can fly anything. They have electriciy outlets which are 3 bucks a person, sounds like a rip off. But if you are in these hobbies...3 bux is nothing. read more

My wife, 6 year old son and I are new to the RC hobby in general and more specifically to quadcopters. The guys at the shop are always so helpful...that is why we've bought more stuff here than any of the other hobby shop in the Bay Area. To top it all off, they said I can fly my micro quads over the race track for free! Well, as long as I don't hit the racers:) Never felt prejudged as a newbie in the hobby. read more

Calling for info is worthless. Got put on hold for ten minutes and hung up to call again and nobody would pick up the phone. The actual shop is great but it would be nice to know if they have what I need before I drive across town to get it. read more