Hobbylinc.com stopped selling AT F & G reloads

[rhickok]

Checking on some motors for a couple TARC teams the other night, I noticed Hobbylinc currently no longer sells Aerotech F & G reloads. They'd been my regular source for the past few years.

Does anyone know when they stopped selling 'em?

They had great prices, fast shipping, & didn't charge HAZMAT fees when they weren't needed.

Who else has good prices on F & G reloads?

I started an order at A2Z, but stopped once I saw the shipping was approaching $30 for a few packs of reloads.....I think they were adding HAZMAT fees where they weren't warranted.

Thanks,
Richard Hickok

 

[Nathaniel]

They've been reducing their stocks of rocketry stuff for the last few years. Probably just decided it was profitable enough.

 

[runandgun13]

That Stinks. I am flying my rocket this weekend and I planed on stepping it up to a G deoendin on performance. Guess I need to buy stuf and a normal price somewhere else.

 

[Last Frontier]

I just sent an email asking them to reconsider this decision. If you ordered from Hobbylinc in the past perhaps you will consider doing the same.

 

[bobkrech]

Originally posted by rhickok
Checking on some motors for a couple TARC teams the other night, I noticed Hobbylinc currently no longer sells Aerotech F & G reloads. They'd been my regular source for the past few years.

Does anyone know when they stopped selling 'em?

They had great prices, fast shipping, & didn't charge HAZMAT fees when they weren't needed.

Who else has good prices on F & G reloads?

I started an order at A2Z, but stopped once I saw the shipping was approaching $30 for a few packs of reloads.....I think they were adding HAZMAT fees where they weren't warranted.

Thanks,
Richard Hickok

Richard

If HobbyLinc was shipping certain SU F and SU G motors without declaring them as hazmat they were illegally shipping the motors because:

1.) It is not legal to ship any motor with a fuel grain containing more than 30 grams of propellant without labeling it as hazmat;

2.) It is not legal under current postal regulations to ship any rocket motor containing more than 30 grams of propellant by USPS; and

3.) It is legal for a properly trained shipper to ship rocket motors by common carriers such as UPS and Fedex and they will charge a $20 hazmat fee as permitted by DOT. There's no requirement for the retailer to charge the consumer the Hazmat fee, but the retailer would be loosing money any order below $100 by not charging the customer.

All G SU motors are hazmat, and most single grain F & and all single grain G reloads are as well. See what AT tells their retailers.

https://www.aerotech-rocketry.com/c...toryDocuments/USPS/usps_shippable_8-13-06.pdf

I'm guessing they got caught by USPS and had to stop.

Bob

 

[runandgun13]

Originally posted by bobkrech
Richard

If HobbyLinc was shipping certain SU F and SU G motors without declaring them as hazmat they were illegally shipping the motors because:

1.) It is not legal to ship any motor with a fuel grain containing more than 30 grams of propellant without labeling it as hazmat;

2.) It is not legal under current postal regulations to ship any rocket motor containing more than 30 grams of propellant by USPS; and

3.) It is legal for a properly trained shipper to ship rocket motors by common carriers such as UPS and Fedex and they will charge a $20 hazmat fee as permitted by DOT. There's no requirement for the retailer to charge the consumer the Hazmat fee, but the retailer would be loosing money any order below $100 by not charging the customer.

All G SU motors are hazmat, and most single grain F & and all single grain G reloads are as well. See what AT tells their retailers.

https://www.aerotech-rocketry.com/c...toryDocuments/USPS/usps_shippable_8-13-06.pdf

I'm guessing they got caught by USPS and had to stop.

Bob

Rhicock was talking about the reloads, not SU. That would mean that most of their reloads are fine.

 

[boldav44]

When I wrote to them earlier this month about when they would be getting more F and G reloads, I was told:

We are working on this, but it will probably be several months. Thank you for your interest in Hobbylinc.com. Hobbylinc.com

Hopefully, they will be getting this situation sorted out soon because it was really handy ordering from them. Dave

 

[terryg]

Discount Rocketry, Red Arrow, Al's Hobby.

Inventory varies a lot however. You get great service with all of these.

 

[bobkrech]

I want to correct the misconception stated above concerning hazmat fees.

All rocket motors are considered hazmat for transportation by DOT. If you use any commercial carrier for a hazmat shipment, the shipper can be, and almost always is, charged a $20 hazmat fee by the carrier for a hazmat shipment to cover the extra paperwork and handling costs of the shipment, and 99% of the time it's passed on to customer. (UPS, Fedex, Yellow Freight, etc. are examples of common carriers. Not all common carriers accept rocket motor either.)

The US Postal Service, as a government agency, is exempt from DOT regulations, but they do not accept hazmat shipments of any kind so you will never be charged a hazmat fee by the Post Ofice. By a USPS ruling, rocket motors containing not more than 30 grams of propellant are declared non-hazardous for Parcel Post shipment within the Post Office system provided they are properly labeled and packaged. Many AT mod roc reloads are ok for the manufacturer and their distributors to ship by USPS, but some aren't. The motors that can be legally shipped by USPS without a hazmat charge are listed in the AT document I previously posted. AT is in the process of changing most of their single grain F and G reloads to a two grain design that meet the 30 gram requirement, but there are still a lot of older reloads out there. Their new loadable line is a legal way around shipping single use G-motors by USPS because each of the propellant grains do not weight more than 30 grams.

For the new folks here, I will repeat there are big fines for not declaring and/or improperly shipping rocket motors or any other hazmat. For a company the DOT fine is typically $30,000 for the first time you get caught shipping undeclared hazmat, and for an individual several thousand dollars. Do it a second time, and you're probably looking at jail time. The odds of getting caught are relatively low, but if you are caught, the penalties are severe.

Bob

 

[fred beer]

Spoke to Hobbylink today about ordering rms hardware. The fellow I talked with said the issue is being able to maintain a good inventory of F & G motors. Apparently AT can't keep up with demand. Atleast that's what I was told.

He said he hoped it would be temporary.

 

[rhickok]

When I'd emailed Hobbylinc before starting this thread, their reply was:

"We currently do not sell those particular Aerotech engines. We are not
sure when we will be able to sell those engines again." With their phrasing of "...when we will be able to sell those....", it made me wonder if it was any kind of regulatory thing. To hear that they've been downsizing their rocketry section over the last couple years or that AT can't kep up with their demand, are both more encouraging than the possibility of regulatory (ATF or CPSC) action.

After whining about A2Z Hobbies' shipping/ HAZMAT charges (& checking some of the suggested other vendors), last night, I went ahead & placed a sizable order (over $300) to defray shipping/ HAZMAT fees & to stock up. Shipping/ HAZMAT combined added slightly less than $.75 per reload. With their good prices, I can live with that $.75.

If Hobbylinc really can't get the goods from Aerotech, it's surprising to me, because I'd think AT would be back up to full production by now & have the commonly used items on the shelf & ready to ship to retailers.

Thanks to most of you for your input.

Richard...frequently "the frequent flyer", but less so now that I'm flying those more time-consuming- to-assemble reloads...Hickok

 

[rhickok]

BTW Fred Beer, you mentioned checking Hobbylinc for F & G reload hardware. As I was happy to learn several months ago, right here on TRF, your best source for most reload hardware is:

https://www.whatsuphobbies.com/Merc...en=CTGY&Store_Code=WUH&Category_Code=RT-HOBBY

It's RouseTech hardware, but just like Dr. Rocket, it's made to Aerotech specs & all closures & tubes mate perfectly. They're in brighter colors too & in case you kick a motor, they'd be easier to find out in the field than "Aerotech Black".

I've been using mine for months, with no problems whatsoever.

Richard "I don't know if it's a cold or a sore throat, but I feel like Hell" Hickok

 

[Maagic]

Just got a newsletter from Hobbylinc and they have Fs and Gs available again, although they list as out of stock.

 

[rhickok]

It sounded reassuring that Hobbylinc is putting the F & Gs back on their product selection. I took a look & as you said they are there, but out of stock. All their Aerotech motors have jumped in price.......where they used to be discounted between 20 & 30%, now they are showing a measly 7% discount. Estes motors are still discounted a hefty 35%. If those prices stay, I'm staying with A2Z.

Too windy to go to today's Great Meadow launch.

 

[Balsa Bob]

Originally posted by rhickok
Too windy to go to today's Great Meadow launch.

It was extremely windy and cold at Great Meadow today but some of us showed up even though we didn't fly. I did see plenty of rockets going up - many of which ended in the trees. -BB

 

[Pem Tech]

Now all my motors come from Red Arrow....

Dave is da' Man.

 

[Maagic]

Hobbylinc is selling G71 redlines now!

https://www.hobbylinc.com/prods/tca_2.htm

 

[jj94]

But they too are out of stock.

 

[ben]

so does any one know the "real" story? Are they consuming their last bits and then cancelling AT or are they just out for the time being?

Ben

 

[shreadvector]

What did they say when you telephoned them and asked?

Originally posted by ben
so does any one know the "real" story? Are they consuming their last bits and then cancelling AT or are they just out for the time being?

Ben

 

[ben]

Originally posted by shreadvector
What did they say when you telephoned them and asked?

good idea

Ben

 

[loopy]

Originally posted by shreadvector
What did they say when you telephoned them and asked?

Wow - I haven't seen Fred let one of those fly in awhile!!! lol