Bobe's Hobby House Blog

A visit to the Mississippi Armed Forces Museum (Roadtrip anyone?)

2011-10-17T11:39:00.001-07:00

I'm back, and finally bringing you my visit to Hubcon and the Mississippi Armed Forces Museum back in September. Hope you enjoy it!

In my travels to shows around the country, I like to promote Pensacola and the surrounding areas. I believe if I can give you a good enough excuse to come to our area, maybe you'll visit the store while you're in town. There are quite a number of great reasons to visit Pensacola, including the beautiful beaches, the Naval Aviation Museum, and far more. But the opportunities for a tour of Military Museums in our region is fantastic. From the Army Aviation Museum at Ft. Rucker in Alabama to the Eglin Armament Museum to the Battleship Alabama to the National WWII Museum in New Orleans. Last year I added to this list the Mississippi Armed Forces Museum in Hattiesburg, MS at Camp Shelby.

I had learned about the museum through the efforts of Glenn Husted and Tim Broome. They have traveled to gaming conventions representing the museum and running some of the best educational historical wargames I have ever encountered. They run games based on actual historical battles, and give you a fantastic after action discussion where you learn the facts of the actual battle and what you did differently. I loved these games they put on, and it made me really want to check out the museum. Well, this year when I went to Hubcon, I made the trip. And it was far more than I expected!

The museum is a little tricky to find. It is located on Camp Shelby, an active Army base, just south of Hattiesburg on Highway 49. The first thing you see is the field full of armored vehicles, helicopters, and aircraft. But I'll start my tour on the inside.

The museum is a winding walk through history, starting with the Spanish American War, and traveling up to current times. The emphasis is on Mississippi units and people, but there is a wealth of information, dioramas, models, displays, weapons, equipment, and more!

One of the really cool things was the motion activated aspects. As I walked into the WWI Trenches, the sounds of shelling began. A number of these motion activated features are located throughout the museum.

The use of mannequins and actual gear in lifesize dioramas was very nice. And for things you just can't capture in such a small area, there was good use of scale models and dioramas.

One of the really unique items that caught my eye was the M2. This was the first tank produced in the US, and is not one you ever see much info on. And they actually have one! It's a fascinating story on how it was found, the restoration efforts, and history. All to be released in a new book from Glenn Husted, so keep an eye out for it!

Other really interesting artifacts to me were an Italian 47/32 Anti tank gun, displayed in a Normandy Bunker dio, a Japanese infantry gun in another diorama, and a Night Sniper rifle.

Once you finish the inside displays, make sure and tour the field of armored vehicles outside! Again, a nice variety of equipment, mostly US, with a few items brought back from Iraq as well. Take a look at all the pictures, and make your way there when you get a chance! (For more pictures, check out our facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/bobeshobby !

Introducing Instant Mold!

2011-03-22T12:18:00.000-07:00

Hi everybody!

This time I want to tell you about one of the coolest new products I have found in a while. It's called Instant Mold. Basically, it is a plastic material that melts in hot water. It does not stick to anything, and can be used to make molds for duplicating small items.

In my first experiment with the product, I decided to duplicate an alligator head from a gaming miniature. I am working on a Florida Gator team for the game Blood Bowl. Blood Bowl is a "Fantasy" Football game in which the normal teams are elves, orcs, goblins, etc. I'm making mine Gator-men. But to do this, I needed some more gator heads, and now I have an easy way to do it.

I used a tupperware type container to microwave some water for 3-4 minutes. Then I dropped in a couple of sticks of Instant Mold. Once the Instant Mold has melted, use a tool to pull it out of the hot water, after all you don't want to burn your fingers. Once you get it out of the water, you can handle it immediately, as the plastic does not hold the heat. Wrap the plastic carefully around your original piece so as not to create any air pockets. My original for this project was one of the beautifully done alligator heads from a figure by Crocodile Games. Then let the plastic cool down.

I decided that my piece would be best served by a 2 part mold, making it easier to preserve the detail, and remove the casting. So, I simply used a sharp #11 blade to slice into the plastic, down to my original piece. I made this a straight cut, but learned later a better way to do this. If you make your cuts somewhat random, and not all as a straight line, still connecting the cuts, this gives you an interlocking piece which will hold better registration, and is less likely to cause you bodily harm slicing your fingertips!

After removing the original, I now have my mold. For this experiment I used a 2 part epoxy putty. This could be Green Stuff, Milliput, Apoxie Sculpt, or any 2 part epoxy putty. I simply mixed up a small amount of the putty, kneaded it all together, and pressed it into the mold. Press hard to make sure you get putty into all the details. You can even take the extra step to press some putty into questionable or hard to get to areas before you add the rest. Next, let the putty dry and set up some, so there is no distortion when you remove your copy.

The results were really quite remarkable. The detail level was fantastic, and the ease of the process was great. What an easy way to make a mold without the hassle and expense of RTV rubber!

And it gets even better! If your mold didn't turn out, or you are just done with that mold, then just throw it back in the hot water, and remelt it! You can use it again and again!

Apparently you can use anything that does not generate heat to make your castings from. Anything that gets over 150 degrees or so will simply melt your mold. Even superglue does not stick to this plastic. Although I found it a royal pain trying to make a casting out of superglue! Epoxy putty works really well, but I look forward to trying other materials as well.

Instant Mold is now in stock, and is only $12.99 for 6 sticks of the plastic. Try some out for yourself, and let me know what you think!

Here is a video from the makers of Instant Mold to show you what I'm talking about:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ub70AU5RfmI

And yes, we can ship this almost anywhere!

The Battle of Mobile Bay - March 5, 2011

2011-03-09T18:16:00.000-08:00

On March 5, we welcomed Gavin Tovrea from the PIGG's (Panhandle Inter-Genre Gamers)group down in Ft Walton. I had seen Gavin's "Battle of Mobile Bay" game at Hurricon in Orlando last year, and invited him to come run a game for us at the store. He came over and ran a great game! We look forward to having him back again for more fun as well. So, for today's blog, I thought I would try my hand at an after action report on the game.

The actual battle took place on August 5, 1864. This is the battle where Admiral Farragut is famous for saying "Damn the Torpedoes, Full Speed Ahead!". Farragut led the Union fleet into Mobile Bay against the 3 Confederate forts, a line of mines (Torpedoes), and elements of the Confederate Navy. As in most wargames, things don't necessarily happen the same way they did in real life, at least in the particulars. For more on how the actual battle went, check out http://www.nps.gov/nr/twhp/wwwlps/lessons/73morgan/73morgan.htm. For how our battle went, read on...

Gavin ran the Confederate forces, and each of our players played a pair of Union wood ships, and four of us also commanded an ironclad. Gavin started the game by clearly explaining to us that we were going to win. No question, just we were going to win. Got to love a game demo like that! He made clear that our goal was to move into the bay to sink the Confederate ironclad Tennessee. He told us "DO NOT get bogged down with Fort Morgan. That is not your goal." And we mostly listened...

Knowing that the line of mines between Fort Morgan and the shallows was a danger, the Union wood ships were lashed in pairs, so that if one ship suffered damage, the other could help drag it onward, not blocking the channel. The ironclads operated in their own column.

1st turn: The CSS Baltic drew first blood as it was patrolling the line of torpedoes. It hit the USS Octorora which lost a gun. The Octorora fired at the Baltic, but the shots bounced off. The USS Manhattan fires on Fort Morgan, but hits nothing but sand.

2nd turn: The USS Brooklyn beats up on the sand around the fort a little more. Octorora bounces a shot off the gun deck of the Baltic. The gunners of Fort Morgan hit the USS Brooklyn which loses a stack, a gun, and suffers some hull damage. The CSS Baltic hits the Octorora again, taking out another gun.

3rd turn: The USS Brooklyn was using an experimental minesweeper, pushing a brage in front of the ship. This tactic actually works, as the ship hits a mine, but only suffers some minor crew losses. Meanwhile the Brooklyn shoots at the fort, getting a hit on the Sand Battery, and damaging the fortifications. he Tecumseh fires at one of the Barbettes, damaging the walls. Manhattan hits the same Barbette, further damaging the wall. Baltic this time bounces a shot off the Octorora. The Sand Battery and the fort score major hits on the Brooklyn, which is forced to strike her flag.

4th turn: USS Richmond does further damage to the walls of the Sand Battery. USS Port Royal bounces a shot off the Baltic. Tecumseh damages the walls of the Fort further. The Chickasaw totally misses their shots on the Barbette. The Baltic fires back, damaging the hull of the Octorora. The Fort pings a shot off the armor of the Tecumseh, and damages the hull of the Richmond.

5th turn: In a rather questionable move, the USS Octorora tows the Brooklyn (which has already struck her flag) into ramming the Baltic! This drags the Baltic, damaging the hull, the paddlewheel, and setting the ship on fire. The Brooklyn runs aground, and the Octoroa cuts loose. Another pair of ships pass the minefield with no damage, then the Hartford hits another mine. The Richmond knocks out a gun in the Sand Battery. The Tecumseh misses the Fort. The Manhattan hits the wall of the Barbette. The USS Winnebago misses it's first shots. The Chickasaw hits the Barbette wall.The Fort gunners ping off the armor of Tecumseh again, and damage the hull and crew of the Richmond.

6th turn: The Chickasaw blows the Magazine on the Sand Battery, knocking out these dangerous guns. The Lackawanna and Seminole fire their first shots, missing the fort. Octorora damages the armor of the Baltic. Port Royal pings a shot off the newly arrived CSS Gaines. The Tecumseh misses the fort. The USS Metacomet damages a gun on the CSS Baltic. The Baltic fires back on the Octorora, damaging the hull and paddlewheel. The newly arrived CSS Morgan, and CSS Gaines fire on the USS Richmond, destroying a stack, severely damaging the crew. The morale of the ship fails, and the Richmond strikes her flag. The Fort finally damages the hull of the Tecumseh.

7th turn: It worked so well the first time, so the Union forces repeat their tricks. The Port Royal drags the Richmond into ramming the Baltic. The Baltic sinks (finally extinguishing her fire!). The Winnebago hits a Barbette at the Fort, injuring the crew, and damaging the wall. The Chickasaw gets another lucky shot, and blows the magazine on the Fort's front Casement. This damaged much of the fort, and knocks it out for a few turns.

8th turn: The Tecumseh damages the hull and screw of the CSS Selma. The Octorora knocks out 2 guns, and causes an ammo explosion on the CSS Morgan. The USS Seminole hits the CSS Selma, damaging the paddlewheel, boiler, and a gun. The Lackawanna joins in on the Selma, causing further damage to the paddlewheel, crew, and stack. The Metacomet damages the hull of the CSS Gaines. The Hartford also piles in on the Gaines. The Winnebago takes another shot at the fort, knocking out a gun. The USS Monongahela also fires on the fort, damaging a wall. The Selma fights back against the Lackawanna, causing an ammo explosion, crew damage, and a fire. Other guns fro the Selma fire on the Seminole with no luck. The CSS Morgan causes some gun damage on the Octorora. The Gaines fires on the Hartford with no success.

9th turn: The CSS Morgan rams the Octorora, damaging the crew and paddlewheel, but the damage to the Morgan's hull causes her to strike her flag. The CSS Gaines and the USS Metacomet in the confusion both ram the USS Monongahela (The Metacomet and Monongahela were both under Jonathan's command! He rammed himself!). The Gaines suffers paddlewheel and hull damage. The Hartford is hit in the hull and boiler. The Chickasaw damages the hull on the Selma.

10th turn: The USS Monongahela (flooding from it's collision the previous turn) barely misses the USS Tecumseh, and manages to ram the Selma, damaging her hull. The USS Octorora and USS Kennebec collide, causing only minor damage. The USS Monongahela fires on the Selma, knocking out 2 guns, damaging the armor and the hull. Selma is now dead in the water. The USS Metacomet fires on the CSS Gaines, killing the pilot, knocking out a gun, and damaging the hull and paddlewheel. The USS Port Royal gets the first shot on the Union objective, the CSS Tennessee, but the shot pings off the armor.

11th turn: The USS Seminole , USS Tecumseh, and USS Chickasaw fire on the Tennessee. damaging the hull. Port Royal, Manhattan, and Winnebago fire on the Selma, further damaging the hull. The Octorora blows the magazine on the Selma causing further hull damage. Octorora also fires on the CSS Gaines, damaging the paddlewheel. The Metacomet fires on the Gaines, knocking out a gun. Gaines causes enough damage to the Metacomet that she strikes her colors. The Gaines also causes some gun damage on the Port Royal. The Tennessee fires on the Seminole, damaging the crew and hull. After suffering so much damage, and being so outnumbered, the Gaines, Morgan, and Selma all strike their colors.

12th turn: The Port Royal rams the Tennessee, damaging the hull and armor. The Kennebec fires on TN, damaging crew. Winnebago misses the TN. Tennessee fires on Tecumseh, damaging armor and hull. She also damages the crew on the Kennebec, and the paddle and boiler on the Octorora.

13th turn: The Octorora rams the Tennessee. This damages the crew, the armor, and the morale. The pilot is stunned, and the Tennessee sinks!

Gavin's group can be found at http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/PiGGs/ . The rules are available on this group. Keep an eye on our coming events page for more upcoming games!

New Year, New Game, New Post!

2011-01-10T18:05:00.000-08:00

OK, I know I said in my last post a few months ago that I would be posting more often. Obviously that did not happen. But that is one of my New Year's resolutions, so here goes!

Lots of fun stuff is happening at Bobe's these days, and we invite you to come join us! The Gulf Coast Tabletop Gamers Society is picking back up again after a bit of a break through the fall and holidays. The first meeting of the New Year was a big success, and made for some changes to our plans. The meetings will now be held on the second weekend of the month at Noon. This will be in conjunction with a Game Day at Bobe's every second Saturday!

This Saturday (1/15/11) will be another Game Day and Game Night at Bobe's. We'll start off the day with a demo of the hot new game Firestorm Armada from Spartan Games. This is an exciting space combat game with some beautiful miniatures that is catching a lot of attention with the group right now. Sounds like we will also have some modern ground war going on at another table. Later in the day, expect to see some Micro Armor Flames of War, another popular trend in the group. At 6PM we close the doors, but keep on gaming! I believe we're going to run a game of Descent from Fantasy Flight. This is a massive board game that is truly impressive and fun. Show up by 6 to get your pizza order in!

Transport trick for Flames of War

2010-09-05T18:45:00.000-07:00

Every once in a while in this business, a customer comes in with a great idea that is both simple and brilliant. It makes us think "I should have thought of that!" Well, we get to look smart by passing that info on to other modelers. This happened for me recently with our customer Tom Lewis, who has been painting Flames of War miniatures.

Anyone who is a wargamer understands the issues involved with transport and storage of painted miniatures. There are quite a number of solutions to this problem, and I will cover a variety of options in the next couple of weeks. But today I'll start with this great idea from Tom Lewis. He wanted to keep the units together, and be able to identify what they were. When working with 15mm figures, it can be hard to keep track sometimes! So Tom came up with this simple idea using balsa wood sheets and Plastruct Styrene Channel. The same method could be done with a variety of options, including wood, metal, styrene, cardboard, etc, etc. He simply cuts the wood to the width of the bases he is working with, and glues the channel stock to the sides. Thus providing a groove to slide the bases into. It's almost like how a drawer works. He's come up with a variety of stoppers for the ends. Rubber bands, pins, or blocks could all be used. He also takes the codes from the Flames of War packaging, and glues them on, or rewrites the info on the tray. This helps keep which units go where straight! He also had the forethought to mark the bottom of each stand to show what unit they belong to. I also like his use of tactical symbols for each type of unit. See the photos for a variety of examples of types of units using this method.

Like I said, simple, but brilliant! Over the next few weeks, I will show some other options for figure transport and storage, both commercial and home built.

If you have ideas you would like to share, please send them to me! You''ll get full credit for your ideas!

Announcing the new Bobe's Discount Card!

2010-08-05T09:21:00.000-07:00

Hello again!
I have a great new announcement for Bobe's Hobby House I want to tell you about. After a few years of debate and planning, we have launched our new Discount Card Program. A number o customers had been talking to me about providing some kind of customer loyalty program to give back to our most regular customers. We had looked at a number of options, debated back and forth, but we finally came to a decision and have launched our program!

This card is modeled after the cards at Book stores like Barnes & Nobles, or Books-a-Million. How it works is this:

You buy your Bobe's Hobby House Discount Card for $25.00.

It gives you 10% off all your purchases for one calendar year from date of purchase. Yes, that's your entire purchase!

There a couple of exceptions. It does not apply to Sale Items or Magazines. Those items are just too short of a margin to offer an extra 10%.

See! It's simple! If you spend $250.00 or more in our store over the course of a year, you will save money!

And Yes, we will apply this to mail orders, special orders, etc. If you have any doubts what it will affect, just talk to us, we'll let you know.

I do realize in my last post I said I would blog more often. I do have that intention, I guess I'll just have to try harder!

Thanks,
Mike

New trends in local gaming!

2010-04-22T15:27:00.000-07:00

Hi everybody!

I'm back again. It's been too long, I know. I've been up to a few projects that have taken more time, but I hope to start blogging again more regularly now.

What brings me here today is to update you on some fun new trends in the local gaming community. Some old stuff is new, and some stuff I thought we'd never see!

First up is the English Civil War! Not a subject everybody knows about, for sure. Think Oliver Cromwell and King Charles I. This is one of those interesting Pike & Shot time periods that are rather fun for wargaming, but have not generally held too much interest locally. Sure there's always been one or two people interested, but not a whole bunch. Then comes Warlord Games. They started producing a line of 28mm Plastic figures in the ECW (English Civil War) range. They filled in special figures and artillery with combinations of resin and metal. All of a sudden, there's a more regularly available line, that's also affordable. We actually now have 6-8 or more people working on 28mm ECW armies! And they look great!

The guys will be running an ECW game demo at the Pensacola Modeleers Model Contest over at Washington High School on May 1. And they'll be running a game at Bayou Wars in New Orleans in June! Watch our coming events page for more upcoming battles as well. Or join the GCTGS (Gulf Coast Tabletop Gamers Society) newsgroup on the front page of our website as well.

Next up is another Civil War. No, still not the American Civil War. This time it's the Spanish Civil War in the 1930's. This is basically a precursor to the Second World War. Many countries poured equipment into this war as a testing ground before WWII. This time the gamers are fighting the Air War. Allan Robinson has been running a WWI Canvas Eagles Airwar campaign for some time. Now he and several others are planning to move up a few years to cover the Spanish Civil War. They're doing it in 1/72 scale, and building kits to use. Dave Brizzard here at the shop has found some great references on aircraft, markings, etc. So, if you're interested, come on down and start building!

Finally to the one that has me most intrigued, and digging in my closet. We have several people who are interested in playing Flames of War in 1/285 scale! I have collected Micro Armor for more than 30 years off and on, but had never gotten to really do anything with any of it. Now I'm finally finishing some of these old projects! Come by and see my Panzer Grenadier Army in the case at the store. We have many players already playing Flames of War in the traditional 15mm scale. We even have some playing in 1/72 scale. It's a good basic rule set, and can be a lot of fun! Micro Armor lets you build bigger armies more quickly, for less money, and they don't take up as much room!

So come on down and join in the fun of any of these games, or see if you can stir up some interest in something you like! That's the great thing about a good gaming community, is you never know what people might be interested in next!

Game Auction, Charity and More!

2009-12-04T13:02:00.000-08:00

Hello again!

Well, here we go, into the Christmas Season again. Once again, there is a lot going on here at Bobe's. Tomorrow, Saturday 12/5 is another Game Auction. The idea behind this is that you can clean out your closets, find the old games, gaming supplies, miniatures, or whatever that you don't want any more. Bring them to the shop with your name, and the minimum bid you will accept for them. Whatever the item sells for, you get full store credit! It's a great way to turn your old goodies into new goodies! Or even Christmas gifts! The auction itself starts at 2PM. I do realize that there is a rather important football game about the same time. For that reason, we will offer to keep any items that do not sell on display for a week following the auction. We will also have the game on in the back room as well.
In the holiday spirit, I will be offering another option for this auction. Your auction proceeds, or any portion can go to a charitable cause. One of our gamers, Erick Dillard has passed on the information on his son Daniel. Daniel suffers from a rare disorder called Dravet's Syndrome. This is a form of epilepsy that causes him to have seizures since he was 2 1/2 months old. They are trying to raise money for Daniel to receive a specially trained dog that can warn them before a seizure starts. You can find more information on Daniel at the following locations: http://www.danielsdog.com/ , twitter.com/danielsdog , or on Facebook look for Daniel E. Dillard. There is also info at adogfordaniel.blogspot.com, or e-mail sunshinest@cox.net. You can even call (850)516-9665. You can also send checks payable to "4 Paws for Ability" and send to 4 Paws for Ability Inc., 253 Dayton Ave., Xenia, OH 45385. Please note on the check that the donation is for Daniel Dillard. Or you can go to www.4pawsforability.org to make an online donation using Paypal. Again, please note in the special instruction box that the donation is for Daniel Dillard. This is the holiday season, and what better time to help others!

Game Night and the Holidays

2009-11-11T10:16:00.000-08:00

Well, it's been a busy few weeks here at Bobe's. We celebrated our 55th anniversary on Oct 24th. Last weekend we participated again in the Great Gulfcoast Arts Festival, where we handed out around 2500 balsa wood gliders free to kids in the kids area. Now it's time to settle in and get ready for the holidays!
But we still have more events coming up as well. This Friday (Nov 13) we have another Friday Night Game Night! Alan will bringing Canvas Eagles, a WWI Air Combat game. He has plenty of planes, so come join in! We'll be likely to have a few other games going as well. You just never know...
On Saturday Nov 21 we are planning a Bobe's Garage Sale! I have amassed a huge collection of defective and partial kits over the years, and will once again be trying to sell these off cheap! This is great for scratchbuilders, kitbashers, sci-fi modelers, or anybody with a real interest in modelling. You never know what other goodies I might bring out from the deep dark recesses of the back room as well...
On Thanksgiving weekend (Nov 28) we will once again celebrate with Flames of War in a Tanksgiving game. The goal is to get as many tanks on the board across the country as possible. We will be running a mid war game. And there will be plenty of forces available if you want to come try your hand at Flames of War.
And of course, Thanksgiving starts the official start of the retail holiday season. Please think of us when planning gifts for your family and friends. Remember that if you want to give a gift of fun, we are the place to go!
And a final note, today is Veterans Day. We would like to thank all those who serve, past present and future. Thank You.

World's Smallest Working Model RR Layout!

2009-10-27T13:44:00.000-07:00

A friend sent me this link, and I just had to share it! This is the World's Smallest Working Model Railroad Layout. It is a Z Scale model of an N Scale model railroad to go in the window of a Z Scale Hobby Shop. Check it out!

http://www.urlesque.com/2009/10/27/worlds-smallest-working-model-train/

Upcoming special events at Bobe's!!!

2009-10-14T11:28:00.000-07:00

Hey everybody!
Things are getting a little crazy around here with lots of upcoming fun events. The most important is our 55th anniversary! Yes, that's right, we've been doing this for 55 years. Saturday October 24th is the anniversary date, and the date of our party. We will have game demos, door prizes, sale items, food, and who knows what else! Come and join us for the celebration!

There are other events coming up as well. If you don't check our coming events page on our website often, you really should! Let's start in order and move on down the calendar...

This Friday (Oct 16) is the next Friday Night Game Night! The Gulf Coast Tabletop Gamers Society sponsors at least one game night each month. There are always a wide variety of games played at these events. This month we have scheduled Canvas Eagles, a WWI airplane game, and Ambush Alley, a modern miniatures wargame. There will also be other board and card games as well.

The Pensacola Modeleers are hosting a series of snap together make and take model classes for the kids at the local libraries. They will be at the Westside location on Cervantes on Oct 20 @ 3:30. Then at the Southwest Branch on Gulf Beach Highway at 3:30 on Oct 21. On Nov 10 at 4:00pm, they will be at the NEW Tryon branch library on Langley. Then the final one will be at the Main Library downtown on Nov 24 at 3:30pm.

As mentioned above October 24th is our 55th Anniversary! So don't forget to come join the fun!

October 31st we will have a Halloween themed Game Day. So far we have plans for a Necromunda game featuring all comers against the Zombies & Wyrds. We'll have other games going as well!

On November 7-8th I will be downtown at the Great Gulfcoast Arts Festival in the Kids Area again. This is THE best FREE event you can take your kids to! Lots of free make and take activities for the kids, and a great Art Festival for the adults.

November 7th is the next meeting of the Gulf Coast Tabletop Gamers Society as well. The meeting is at 2:00pm, but we'll have an English Civil War miniatures game in 28mm starting at Noon.

November 13th will be another Friday Night Game Night! Check back to see what we're going to play!

November 21st is the tentative date for our next garage sale! Tons of defective kits, perfect for conversions and scratchbuilding! Weather dependent.

Saturday December 5th is not only another Gulf Coast Tabletop Gamers Society meeting, it is also the next Game Auction! Clean out your closet, and bring in those old games and gaming supplies you don't want anymore. Just put your name and the minimum price you'll accept on each item, and we'll sell it for as much as we can. Whatever it sells for, you get the FULL amount in store credit. That way you can buy some NEW games, or even Christmas Presents!

There will be more to come as well, but I guess that's enough for now. Keep checking the coming events page for more, and we'll see you at the Anniversary party!

This is a test! And a discount!

2009-09-15T09:24:00.000-07:00

Well, the gang here is giving me a hard time this week, because I ordered too many new puzzles! We don't have room for them on the shelf, so I have to do something about it! So, as a test to see if anyone out there is paying attention, come in before 9/26/09 and receive a 25% discount on any regular priced puzzles, just for mentioning this blog! And if you're not into puzzles, at least let us know you read this, and maybe we'll try some different discounts down the line!

RC plane at Dodger's Stadium!

2009-09-05T07:36:00.000-07:00

Another video was sent to me yesterday that I just had to share. How many RC flyers have thought how great it would be to fly in a sports arena. Well, it may be a great space, but I'm not so sure that during a game is the best time to do it! But it is pretty entertaining.... Check out this Parkzone Sukhoi Su-26 flying at Dodgers Stadium during a game with the Diamondbacks.!

Have a great holiday weekend!

Coming Soon, the Blade Msr RC Helicopter!

2009-08-29T07:52:00.001-07:00

I just saw this video this morning, and thought I would talk RC Helicopters for a moment. The newest RC helicopter in the E-Flite Blade series is coming soon, and here is a sneak peek!

Not too many years ago we did not sell RC helicopters, because they were just too expensive and too hard to fly. They have always been really cool and interesting, but it's only in the last few years with the release of electric helicopters that they have become affordable and accessible to the public at large. Now things have gone a whole new direction, and we have to fight the perception that the helicopters we have are just like the toy store helos!

Let me tell you for a moment about the differences between toy helicopters and true hobby RC helicopters. Yes, there are a variety of cheap RC helicopters available. You can find them at Toys R Us, Walmart, hardware stores, mall kiosks, and the internet. The videos or demos always make these look good. But of course if you're producing a video you would not make it look bad! The simplest difference is the availability of parts. You simply CAN NOT GET PARTS for the toys. Last Christmas lots of people bought RC Helos from a kiosk in the mall. The day after Christmas when they had crashed and needed parts, the mall kiosk was gone! The next big difference is contollability. This is major as well. The toy store and cheap helos just are not very controllable. And if you cannot control them, you are more likely to crash and need parts. Which of course, you cannot get.

With a true Hobby quality RC Helicopter you get much more. We carry the E-Flite blade series of helicopters. We have found this to be the best supported line as far as parts, and the easiest to fly. The E-Flite Blade Mcx is the absolute easiest to fly helo I have seen. It weighs under 1 ounce! It is a dual rotor coaxial helo with no tail rotor. This makes it very stable and easy to control. It is very durable in part because of the light weight. It is an indoor or no wind day kind of helo because of the weight, but it is a joy to fly. Come ask Ken or myself for a demo!

Now E-Flite is about to release the latest in the line. The Blade Msr is the same size as the Mcx, but is a single rotor design with a tail rotor. It looks to be much more powerful and faster than the Mcx. We are looking forward to getting them in and trying them out! So come check out the whole line of E-Flate Blade helos!

Heat of Battle III and Game Night!

2009-08-05T11:11:00.000-07:00

Well, another month is upon us, and that means MORE GAMING!!! The August Friday Night Game Night is this Friday, August 7th at 6PM. This time it's Ladies Night! Bring the girls out to play games too! Scheduled games include the Tannhauser Board Game with Greg Genung, Star Wars Minis, and a variety of board and or card games for the whole family! As always this is sponsored by the Gulf Coast Tabletop Gamers Society.

Also this month is another great game convention in New Orleans. This time it's the Heat of Battle III convention. This is held each year at the National World War II Museum, also known as the D-Day museum. This is the third year of the event, and it's been growing every year. The dates for this year are August 21-23. This is a unique event in that it is held in the museum, right in the middle of real tanks, guns, and airplanes! The games in the museum are all WWII related. There will also be after hours gaming in the host hotel. And there, anything goes! Your entry fee for the convention also covers your entry into the museum exhibits. And if you haven't been there yet, it's well worth the trip. As an added bonus, the game industry is showing their support by sending lots of door prizes for the event. Your goody bag at registration has all kinds of neat surprises. This show also hosts the largest Flames of War tournament in our area. And you can check out our gallery for pictures of last year's event. So get out there and play some games!!!

Books! Rare Books! and Out of Print Books!

2009-07-29T11:09:00.000-07:00

Well, it finally happened. I finally managed to get some more inventory up on the website. Hopefully the first of many more updates to come soon. David Brizzard, our book specialist, has been working hard on compiling lists of our book inventory for me to put online. It's an ongoing process, but we're getting there. Check out the listings, and if you want prices or more information, give Dave a call here at the shop. He is a great resource on military books, and can likely help with whatever you might be looking for!

Bayou Wars 2009 (Recap)

2009-07-08T11:00:00.001-07:00

Well, once again we had a great time at Bayou Wars over in New Orleans. Bayou Wars was my first gaming convention, and still one of my favorites. In spite of the economic woes, somewhat short advance planning time and other factors, the show turned out fantastic again! I heard there were something over 185 people in attendance this year, and some great games were run! This year for a change, I actually got to play a little bit myself.

The two previous years I only got to game late on Saturday night, and got to learn a classic board game I had always heard about, but never played before. Two years ago it was Settlers of Cataan. Last year it was Ticket to Ride . This year a number of traditions were broken, and I did not get to play a board game Saturday night. However, thanks to some wonderful help from our Gulf Coast Tabletop Gamers, I was able to play in two of the regular miniatures games that took place.

On Saturday I got to play in Dwaine Balius' Victory at Sea game. This is a rule set from Mongoose Publishing that we have been selling quite a bit, but I had not seen in action yet. Dwaine did an excellent job of coaching us through the game, and providing all the information we needed. It's really an easy game, and we quickly got the hang of it. This was a confrontation between US and Japanese forces in WWII. I was on the Japanese side in this game, and the dice were just with us! It was really quite a lot of fun!

On Sunday morning, Ken Hafer always has the "Brain Dead" game. This year it was Two Hour Wargames All Things Zombie. This time he ran a scenario from Two Hour Wargames in which we were French Foreign Legion, in charge of an outpost well into the Zombie infestation. We had to defend the fort from wave upon wave of Zombies. I got to run a French VBL armored car, and had fun running over Zombies all over the board! The Zombies did finally break into the fort, but we managed to pack up and make our escape with surprisingly few casualties!

Very soon I will have pictures from Bayou Wars 2009 up on the website in our Gallery. And watch the coming events page for other upcoming events! Like Heat of Battle 3 coming in August at the D-Day museum!

One Week to Bayou Wars!

2009-06-20T10:34:00.001-07:00

Hi again everybody!

It's hot outside, summer is here, and it's time once again for Bayou Wars! Bayou Wars is one of the best gaming conventions in our part of the country. It's held in New Orleans each June. This was the first game convention I have gone to as a vendor, and it's still one of my absolute favorites! It's a weekend of fairly nonstop gaming! This year's show returns to the Radisson Hotel in Kenner, out on Veterans Blvd. The show starts Friday at 9:00 am, and continues into Sunday afternoon. And there are games of all kinds going throughout the weekend!

Bayou Wars definitely has a historical emphasis, but many areas of gaming are represented. There is a Fields of Glory tournament (15mm ancients), D&D Miniatures tournaments, and Warmachine & Hordes tournaments. Individual games range from ancients through medieval, Napoleonic, and World War II. There's Western games, and Zombie games, Naval games, and space games. On Sunday there is even a flea market event where you can sell off or trade your old gaming stuff for someone else's old gaming stuff! It's really a lot of fun! For details, check out the Bayou Wars website. Or for fun photos of past Bayou Wars, check out my pictures in our gallery, Bayou Wars 2007. And maybe soon I can find what I did with my pictures from last year!

D-Day is coming...

2009-05-25T11:09:00.000-07:00

The Gulf Coast Tabletop Gamers Society (GCTGS) holds it's monthly meeting at our store on the first Saturday of each month. Our president's husband, Brian Simmons, had the foresight to notice that our June meeting is June 6, 2009. That's the 65th anniversary of the D-Day landings in Normandy. He put the word out to the group, and we all agreed this was an opportunity we could not miss! Therefore we would like to announce that we will be celebrating by holding D-Day themed wargames all day long!

A couple of weeks ago the group came in on a Saturday and we had a Styrofoam cutting party. We have been carrying the Hot Wire Foam Factory cutting tools at Bobe's Hobby House for some time now. This was our first opportunity to get out our store tools out and play! And we had a blast! We got to try out the Hot Knife, Pro Hot Knife, and the Freehand Sculpting Tool as our favorites for this project. We tried out a few other tools that we'll have to play with more later as well. These things are really fun! It's quite amazing what you can make out of Styrofoam, and how easy it is with the right tools.

The games we have set up so far will all be in 1/72 scale. Dave Tanner and Greg Genung will be running a game behind the beaches of Sword Beach, with the British facing a German counterattack on the afternoon of D-Day. This will use the Disposable Heroes rule set. Brian Simmons is setting up another Disposable Heroes game, this one on Omaha Beach. Also on Omaha Beach is Steve Borona's game using the Flames of War rules, but using 1/72 scale miniatures. We also plan to have some other games set up, like Memoir 44 using a D-Day scenario.

So come on out and see us on the first Saturday in June, June 6, 2009. The 65th anniversary of D-Day.

Road Trip Time!

2009-05-12T11:39:00.000-07:00

Well, summer is pretty much upon us, and that means "It's Road Trip Time!". This is when the show season starts picking up for us, and we make trips to a variety of shows. This weekend I'll be in Orlando for the IPMS Orlando Modelpalooza 2009. This will be held at the Central Florida Fairgrounds Saturday and Sunday May 16-17. This will be the Regional meet for IPMS Region 11. I've never been to this show, but have heard good things about it. I'm looking forward to seeing what kind of show they put on! For more information on this show, go to http://www.ipmsorlando.com/ .

At the end of the month, I'll be making the trek to Dallas, TX for the Scalefest 2009 show. This is held at the Grapevine Convention Center on Saturday May 30th. This is the largest model contest in the DFW area, and is always a great show. I'm really looking forward to seeing all my old friends from my days in Dallas. For more info on this one, go to http://www.ipmsnct.net/ .

In June we have a much shorter trip! The NMRA Regional Model Railroad Convention will be held here in Pensacola! This will be held at the Pensacola Civic Center Friday through Sunday June 12-14th. In conjunction with this will be the local PMRC Model Railroad Show at the Hadji Shrine on Nine Mile Road. My understanding is the layouts and vendors will be at the Hadji Shrine, while the NMRA events will be at the Civic Center. This is a GREAT opportunity for anyone with an interest in Model Railroading. For more info go to http://www.trainweb.org/pmrc/Convention/home.htm .

Then at the end of June we will once again head to New Orleans for Bayou Wars XVII. This is to me the premier historical gaming convention in our area. It will be held at the Radisson Hotel in Kenner, LA June 26-28th. This is always a great show and a great time. A chance to try new games, play old favorites, and see some impressive game setups! For more info, check out http://www.bayouwars.org/ .

You can always find out what's coming up at the store and in the region by going to our events page at http://bobeshobbyhouse.com/events.html . That's all for the moment, more later!

It's time for the Battleship Alabama Contest!

2009-04-19T13:50:00.000-07:00

Hi everybody!
It's time once again for the annual model contest held at the USS Alabama. This Saturday, April 25th. This contest is run by the Mobile Area Modelers Association (Mama's boys). They put on an excellent show every year. Plenty of vendors, lots of entries, and a venue that can't be beat. The contest is held in the Aircraft Pavilion right next to the battleship USS Alabama. Right in amongst the real planes that we model. And show entry gets you admission to the Battleship and the rest of the park as well. If you've never been, this is reason enough to go!
Also, it's one of only a very few really close model contests in our area. So take advantage of this opportunity! To help whet your appetite for the trip, I've finally gotten my coverage of the 2008 USS Alabama Model Contest up on the Bobe's Hobby House website. Last year I actually got to get out and take some pictures of the rest of the park, so you get a better feel for what you can see.
And one more thing. All proceeds from the contest go to help support the Battleship Park. As you can see from my pictures, they suffered a lot of damage over the past several hurricane seasons. They could use our support. So come on out and join us this Saturday, April 25th for the USS Alabama Model Contest. And watch our coming events page for more upcoming events!

Welcome to a new blogger at Bobe's!

2009-04-01T14:49:00.000-07:00

Hi everybody!
I've finally gotten our second Bobe's Blogger in action now. David Brizzard is our Book Department manager. He will be writing a blog about Military Books, primarily focused on aviation but covering all the subjects we carry. The plan is that he will be able to talk about new releases, reissues, and other book related subjects. David has many years experience, and an extensive personal collection. If you are ever in need of a book on some military subject, he's the one to check with. So check out his blog, military aviation books. And since he's new at this, I think he could use some encouragement. So if you read his blog and want to see more, mention it to him when you come by the store or call in.

I have some more things in the works, so I'll post more updates soon!

"Green" comes to the hobby & gaming world!

2009-02-25T07:28:00.000-08:00

In this day and age of political correctness, everybody wants to be "Green". Recycling is taking off, and it has finally come to the hobby & gaming world! OK, actually it has been with us for some time, but there are some really interesting new things happening!

One of the great ideas that has been going for a while now is the gaming company "War Torn Worlds". These guys make some great gaming terrain that looks fantastic. And it's made from recycled tires! We try to keep a variety of their products in stock, so come on by and check them out!

A new program I just heard about this morning offers a way to recycle your left over hard plastic sprues! Why not? We recycle plastic bottles and containers, so why not plastic from your models? Wargames Factory is offering a recycling program where you send in your plastic sprues, and you get a chance to win sets of figures from them! This is a really great idea! They're going to melt them down and reuse them to make more figures! There is a form on their website to fill out to send in with your sprues. Or if you like the idea, but don't want to go to the effort, bring us your sprues and we'll send them in!

Now for our own version of recycling! Saturday March 7 is the next meeting of the Gulf Coast Tabletop Gamers Society! And we're having another game auction! Here's the plan: Clean out your closet, your garage, whatever, and find the old games, miniatures, terrain, accessories, or whatever you don't want any more. Then bring those in for the auction. You'll need to have your name and the minimum price you'll accept on each item. Saturday morning at 11:00 we'll start previewing items. Everyone can wander through, and if they like an item, move it to the auction table. At 2:00 we'll have a very brief meeting of the club, then it's time for live auction! Anything on the auction table will be put up for live bidding. WHATEVER your item sells for, you'll get the full amount in store credit! Sound good? Can't make it that Saturday? Drop off your items early, and we'll take care of it for you! And if you're looking to buy, check back the week after the auction, and those items that did not sell will be available for purchase. Again with full store credit going to the buyer!

Not a gamer? Watch for similar auctions to be upcoming in the Aircraft Modelers club and the Armor modelers clubs soon!

If you have other recycling ideas, let me know!

Clubs at Bobe's Hobby House

2009-02-04T11:39:00.001-08:00

How many of you know about all the clubs and events at Bobe's Hobby House? The first place you should check is our events page. This lists all the upcoming classes, meetings, demonstrations, games, contests and events at Bobe's and in the area. But now we have come up with some new ways to keep up with what's going on. We have set up four Yahoo News Groups to help promote these clubs and to keep the members in contact. Keep reading for more info on the groups and the yahoo newsgroups.

Click to join Gulf Coast Tabletop Gaming Society

The Gulf Coast Tabletop Gaming Society meets the first Saturday of every month at 2:00PM at Bobe's Hobby House. This group was formed with the intention to get all the various gamers out there a way to meet other gamers, and to try new games. The first Saturday is our games day when we try to have a variety of games going on for people to come play. We have miniature games, board games, card games, and more! This group is also working towards the idea of hosting a game convention in the Pensacola area. The group is trying to host a Friday Night game night once a month as well, but the weekend varies. A great reason to join the newsgroup to keep up! Also you can post to the newsgroup to find players for whatever you are interested in. Many pick up games happen this way.

Click to join Gulf Coast Flames of War

The Gulf Coast Flames of War group meets the second Saturday of each month at 12:00 Noon. Flames of War is a great WWII miniatures game. There is an extensive line of 15mm miniatures available and a variety of rule books and accessories. We have quite a number of FOW players in the area, but there has always been a problem of getting people together. This regular meeting date, and the newsgroup help to combat this. Each month we have been running games, introducing new players, and generally having a great time. Again the newsgroup provides a way to set up pickup games at times other than the scheduled meeting. We're trying to set up the next tournament too!

Click to join Panhandle Armor Modelers Society

The Panhandle Armor Modelers Society (PAMS) is our armor modelers club. They meet on the 3rd Saturday of each month at 2:00PM. This group covers military ground subjects from WWI on. The meetings have product reviews and previews, modelling technique demonstrations, guest lectures and other shared information. The group also has been holding quarterly club contests. The newsgroup has been set up to let them share more information, and to be able to provide more update and timely info.

Click to join Southern Air Craftsmen

The Southern Air Craftsmen (SAC) is our Model Aircraft club. This group is made up of military aviation enthusiasts of all eras. They meet the 4th Saturday of each month at 2:00PM. Like the armor club they meet to see product reviews and previews, share modelling techniques and demos, guest lecturers, and quarterly model contests. The newsgroup will again be used to provide better communications to the club of special events, and better communication among members.

Heroclix Players" src="http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/yg/img/i/us/ui/join.gif" border=0>
Click to join Pensacola Heroclix Players

A 5th newsgroup, that is not really directly related to a club as such is the Pensacola Heroclix Players. Heroclix is a miniature game based on comic book characters produced by Wizkids Games. We hold regular heroclix tournaments in the store, typically on Saturday afternoons. The times, themes, and types of tournament vary widely. We try to post the tournaments on our events page. Wizkids Games recently was shut down, but we're still going strong with the game. These days with no direction from Wizkids on what our tournaments have to be, we are being even more creative with our tournaments. Whoever wins the tournament picks the next event. This keeps things changing VERY regularly. That's another benefit of the newsgroup in that we can send out updates more regularly.

So, this keeps you up to date on all the new newsgroups. We have buttons to join these groups in this blog and on the front page of our website. Come and check out the clubs, and sign up for our newsgroups!

Bobe's in the modern technological age!

2009-01-28T09:19:00.000-08:00

Here at Bobe's Hobby House, we are attempting to reach out to the world with as many of today's technologies as we can. This blog is one part of that. Since i am doing this in my (ha ha) spare time, along with updating the website and working on my hobbies, it is sometimes a slow process. Today I just wanted to update you on a few of the things we have in the works.

For instance, did you know that Bobe's now has a page on Facebook? Check it out here! You do have to have a Facebook account to view this page. And you may have to log in and come back here to make this link work! Technology certainly has its moments!

This is still pretty new, and I will be trying to expand on this in the near future. But if you have a Facebook account, please consider becoming a fan of Bobe's Hobby House!

Another of my spare time projects is an ebay store! This makes it easy to purchase EZ Line and other products from us for people all over the world! Check out our ebay store here!

Visit My eBay Store: bobeshobbyhouse

We are working on more projects, but if there is something you think we really need to do as well, please let me know!

Heat of Battle II

2009-01-16T11:08:00.001-08:00

Happy New Year everybody!
I'm of course still trying to catch up with last year. Maybe even the year before, or the one before that. But at least I'm trying to catch up and that should count for something at least.

My latest update is on the Heat of Battle II gaming convention from August of 2008. This is the gaming convention held in the National World War II Museum in New Orleans, LA. What a place to have a gaming convention! Right in the middle of real landing craft, artillery pieces and a Sherman tank. With a C-47 & Spitfire as air cover!

This was the second year for this event, and it was MUCH better than the first time. (Heat of Battle I pics are here) The first year the museum wasn't entirely sure what to make of the event and had us tucked in to various rooms throughout the building. The museum visitors did not think they were allowed in the rooms, so public exposure was somewhat lacking. This year they put us right out on the main museum floor, so everyone coming into the museum could see us. This is what the event is meant to do! Increase the public awareness of Historical gaming as a great hobby!

And there were some great games to be seen and to play in. There was Flames of War, Command Decision, Memoir 44, Nuts!, and more. One of the most impressive games visually was the giant Stalingrad game. The fellow who put this on really enjoyed a Stalingrad board game that he owned, but thought it would be better with miniatures. So, he scaled up the maps from the game and made a terrain board that was HUGE! I can't remember the exact dimensions, but it was something like 6' by 18' or more. The game was in 1/285 scale, complete with bombed out buildings and factories, rivers & bluffs. It was really something to see. It was transported in 2 carts on wheels which he had to rent a U-Haul truck to transport.

Ken Hafer ran a neat game using the Two Hour Wargames Nuts! rules. His was also a Stalingrad scenario. Each player randomly drew a unit from a preselected group. Each unit had a different objective in the game. And those objectives did not always mesh with the others on your side! One group of infantry had to escort an officer from one side of the board to another. Another group had to take a certain building. Another might have to defend a spot on the map. It was really quite interesting, as you did not disclose what your mission was, even to your "team". Ken also got my vote for most dedicated game master when he bought a new JR miniatures building from me on Friday, and had it built and painted and in the game on Saturday.

Our own Steve Borona also ran a game at the convention. He used the Flames of War rules to recreate an episode from the TV show Band of Brothers. Steve did a great job of making simple reference charts for each player with all the stats for their particular unit. He had a bunch of kids who played in his game, and they did great!

And in addition to the games you get to see the museum itself! What started out as the D-Day museum has now grown into the National Museum of WWII. It's a unique museum with some great displays and information. And they are in the process of expanding!

Overall it was a really fun event (In spite of the hurricane bearing down on us!). It's coming up again August 21-23, 2009! So make your plans early and come join the fun!

Last Minute Christmas Ideas & Stocking Stuffers

2008-12-21T16:11:00.000-08:00

Well, Christmas is almost upon us again. Against family tradition, I actually finished shopping early this year. But I know a lot of you out there are last minute folks, just like I usually am! So I thought I would throw a few ideas your way to highlight some gift options we have. I'll try to run through by department to give a variety of thoughts.

First let's start in the RC department. The hottest gift this year is the E-Flite Blade MCX. This little helicopter is the easiest to fly and most stable RC Helo I've ever seen. It's got very good control, durability, and is very easy to learn on. For stocking stuffer ideas in this area, how about some Superglue, or epoxy! Everybody can use basics like those!

Now to the Model Railroad department. For the beginner we still have some great train starter sets in stock in both HO scale, and Lionel O gauge. It's a great hobby to get someone started in. For stocking stuffers, there are lots of fun scenery items like people, cars, or even freight car loads. And of course they can always use glue and tools as well.

The plastic modeller can be a little tougher, as they can be into many different areas of interest. Tools, paints, and glues are always useful, but how about some how-to books, or reference books in their subject area?

In the Art department, there are many great ideas. We currently have some great specials on Canvas and Easels. Brushes, pens, pencils, erasers, sponges and many other items can make great stocking stuffers too!

The Craft department is another area where interests can be wide ranging, but many items are small enough to put in stockings. General purpose craft glues like Tacky, Bond 527, or E6000 are useful for almost anyone! There are also some great holiday themed buttons and beads to make your packages or projects special.

Now we get to the two departments with probably the widest general appeal. Puzzles, and Games!

We'll start with puzzles. We have some REALLY interesting puzzles to choose from. The newest are the Pieceless Puzzles. They are actually all one piece! It's double sided, and the material reminds me of a mouse pad, so it's durable. The puzzle is cut up so that the piece wanders all over the place, but will all fit together eventually. There are different sizes and target age groups. You have to see these to believe them! Or for the mystery fan, how about the CSI NY mystery puzzle? There is no picture of the puzzle. The booklet inside gives you a description of the crime scene. From that description, you build the puzzle. Then you use the UV light included with the puzzle to look for clues. Fingerprints, etc. Then based on the story line, the crime scene in your puzzle, and the clues you found with the flashlight, you try to solve the crime. Who did it, how, and why? Then you shine your light on the last pages of the book to read how the story turned out!

Now for games! There are a lot of games to choose from at the store right now, but a few lend themselves to general gifts and stocking stuffers. For the comic book fan, we have a sale on Heroclix boosters through the end of the month, and heroclix boosters make great stocking stuffers. Monty Python Fluxx is probably my personal favorite of the new games this year. Fluxx is a great card game where the rules constantly change. The humor of Monty Python fits this perfectly! "And now for something completely different" in deed! The basic Fluxx, Eco Fluxx, or Family Fluxx are great choices as well. Other small games like Kung Fu Fighting, Set, Five Crowns, or Marriage Material are great too! Then there's our best selling Christmas Gift of all, the game of Redneck Life!

And now to some other great stocking stuffers to finish today's blog. We have some great collectibles from Japan that cover a wide variety of subjects. There are comic book characters, anime and video game characters, historical landmarks and subjects, fish, insects, crabs, airplanes, ships, tanks, robots, motorcycles, Coca-Cola Vehicles, and much much more. But some of my personal favorites are the chocolate egg series. These are small boxes with a chocolate egg wrapped in foil inside. Inside the chocolate egg is a plastic capsule. Inside the capsule is a prepainted snap together model of an airplane, or a dinosaur depending on the series. You don't know which airplane or dinosaur you'll get, but there all really neat!

Basically I guess the idea of this post is "We have a LOT of stuff" So come see us, and we'll try to help you find that perfect gift or stocking stuffer!

Foam Werks is here!

2008-12-18T18:40:00.000-08:00

OK, time for another new product update and highlight! We just got in a new line of tools that I'm pretty excited about, Foam Werks! This is a line of tools from the makers of Logan Mat Cutters. This line is designed for use with foam-core board. They have developed an extensive series of tools and accessories for working with foam-core. Check out the Foam Werks website for flash animation of how the tools work.
Foam-core has long been used for a variety of projects. We sell foam-core project boards for presentations and school projects. Architects have often used it for architectural models. Gamers have used it to create buildings and terrain. Well, all that just got much easier with these tools. And there are so many more projects that can be done! Just look at their idea book for a few suggestions.
A couple of my favorite tools in the line are the V-groove cutter, the rabbet cutter, and the circle cutter. One of the most impressive projects in the book to me was a Greek Column, entirely made from foam-core! It's not shown on their website, so you'll have to come by the store and look at the project book! Come check out the whole line!

Done at last! IPMS Nationals coverage!

2008-12-16T13:58:00.000-08:00

Well, I haven't blogged for a while now. Partly that's because of the Christmas season being upon us. Partly that's because I took a break the week of my birthday and played too much Lego Indiana Jones on the Wii! But mostly it's because I've been trying to finish up our coverage of the IPMS Nationals. There are a LOT of pictures to look at, but not too much text. It was a huge show and I bought a brand new memory card for the camera so I could cover it all. Have a look and see some of the amazing work that was on display. If you ever get a chance to go to a nationals, it's well worth the trip. And the 2009 show will be in Columbus, Ohio, a short trip from the US Air Force Museum! Definitely worth the trip!

Meanwhile, I'll try to start keeping up with this more regularly again!

Gulf Coast Tabletop Game Club!

2008-11-30T19:33:00.000-08:00

We've started a few groups here at Bobe's recently. This coming Saturday, December 6th is the next meeting of the Gulf Coast Tabletop Gamers. Games will be played throughout the day, but the business portion of the meeting is held at 2:00 on the 1st Saturday each month. This group is getting organized with the hope of running a Game Convention in the fall of 2009. This will be quite an undertaking, and we can use all the help we can get!
For those who have not attended a game convention yet, you're missing out on some fun! I have been attending a few conventions along the Gulf Coast as a vendor for the past couple of years. My first was Bayou Wars in New Orleans. This is the convention we are trying to model ours after. It is primarily Historical Wargaming, but does include some fantasy, sci-fi and other games as well. We've also attended Coastcon in Biloxi, Mobicon in Mobile, and Hubcon in Hattiesburg. A more specialized event we have been attending is the Heat of Battle WWII gaming convention held each August at the National WWII Museum in New Orleans.
One thing all these conventions have in common is that there are a wide variety of games being played from start to finish of the convention. You get to see some truly massive games played, and some very interesting smaller games as well. You can try out a variety of genres, time periods, scales and rule sets.There are some that have gone all out and have amazing scenery, and there are simpler games that leave much to the imagination. There are miniature games, board games, card games and more!
Take a look through the pictures in our gallery and see if you don't find some inspiration! Then come and join us for the Game club this weekend and meet the local gamers!
One special event this weekend is the Calling All Clix! Heroclix tournament at 4:00PM. This is part of a nationwide event to show interest in the Save Heroclix movement. Heroclix was produced by Wizkids Games which was shut down by their parent company Topps a few weeks ago. Jake Theis, former brand manager of Heroclix has formed a new company, Pinata Games, and is trying to buy the Heroclix line and keep it in production. If you have ever played Heroclix, or want to give it a try, come on out and see us!
These and many other events are shown on our coming events section of our website, so keep an eye on it!

The Art of War II - a Must Have!

2008-11-26T19:10:00.000-08:00

This week Battlefront Miniatures (Producers of the Flames of War line) released their second volume of "The Art of War". You might think this is just for gamers. That's where you would be wrong. I think this is the best single source of information on WWII German Armor & Figures that I have seen yet. It starts out with some inspirational gaming miniatures, much like the original "Art of War". Then it gets into the reference material. There is a great reference article on German uniforms including samples of all the basic camo patterns and how to paint them. Also references on the different basic uniform types throughout the war. And color references with Vallejo Acrylic stock numbers for all the colors. Then there is section on the basics of German aircraft markings. Also included is reference on German armor colors throughout the war, again with Vallejo Acrylic stock numbers. Then there is info on German tank numbers, and how the numbers apply within units. If that's not enough, they also show you how to paint shoulder boards and other small insignia on your infantry. Then they show you which figures on which stand are what rank, and a chart of rank insignia. All this and more is in the book.
But wait! There's more! You also get a free poster with the book. The poster is of German armor, with nicely painted Flames of War vehicles. Below each vehicle are the basic stats (horsepower, armament, etc.) and info for that particular vehicle. All this for only $14.00. Now that's what I consider a good value!

First Post! Woohoo!

2008-11-25T15:29:00.001-08:00

Hello everybody (or at this point, nobody yet!)!

The plan for this blog is to give me a place to talk about things going on at Bobe's Hobby House. We are a family run hobby shop in Pensacola, Florida. I'll start this blog out with a little basic history and information. I'll flesh out the details more later.

Bobe's Hobby House was started in October of 1954 by my grandparents, T.C. & Wendy Bobe. We just celebrated our 54th year in business. The store was originally in Brownsville (a suburb of Pensacola) on Mobile Highway. We moved the store in 1982 to it's current location on North "W" Street. We currently have a 6,000 sq ft freestanding building, and we pack it pretty well! We carry Plastic Models & accessories, Military Books, Model Railroads, Radio Control, Art Supplies, Craft Supplies, Games, Puzzles, Kites, & much, much more.

In the coming days I hope to expand on this information, and actually make this blog useful and entertaining. Let me know if you have suggestions or questions!

Thanks,
Mike Bobe
Bobe's Hobby House
www.bobeshobbyhouse.com