The Secret Of The White Font

"Aii, Dunnoo........~~."

-Russel Peters-

Breaking in much?

Canned Ravioli doesn't make it all good.

Richard was being Richard.


The proposition was a flop. It wasn't there to begin with.


Proof?


Here


Social disregard my ass.

Time Machine against The World

Disclaimer note: The following post contains essences of a flaming post, emotionally charged statements, crude jokes, bashing, banging, bludgeoning, cutting, adult humor, Matt Damon, sarcasm, cold hard facts, English essay techniques, sugar, spice, and everything nice.

Oh, there also might a review somewhere in there........




As a consumer, I wanna know that I’m paying for a product that is of good, reasonable quality, and that I’m paying the same price as the bloke next to me. In this case, both statements hold true. That is until you start looking at the bigger picture. And when you do, you’ll notice something. You’ll notice that a burger in the city costs 5 bucks, whereas when you go closer to the city edge, it only costs 2.50. “Damn, I’m never paying 5 bucks for a burger again” is what you would say. That’s one less customer for the 5-buck-burger stall.




Bear with me, I’m getting there.

For obvious reasons, a business person would love for you to be as CLUELESS as possible when you walk into his store. All the better he can sell his products. You would have nothing to compare to, he would have nothing go against. Saves everybody a lot of brainpower right?



True, but it sure as hell doesn’t give you much leverage. For all you know, he could triple the price of his……..Hot Dogs and you wouldn’t even notice. You’d be leaking money faster than you can say Dido's full name. Why? Simple. You don’t know another place that sells cheaper hot dogs. You are unaware of the true state of abundance or scarcity of Hot Dogs. You don’t know that you are more likely to step on a half-eaten hot dog than see another Proton car drive past you.(A common, made-cheap-by-the-government, Malaysian car).



I dunno you but my dough doesn’t exactly grow on trees so I gotta spread the love as thinly as I possibly can, if you know what I mean. And it is this attitude that drives business people to do weird, unconventional things like ………..I dunno…..........NOT having an online website/product inventory. In reality, it could be that the owner is just not up to date with the latest marketing tools, but there are some things …………that you can just…………….sense……………….something fishy……….



So enough with the symbolism, metaphors, burgers, and hot dogs. I’m talking about good ol’ kit building.Be it an airplane, a warship or a giant robot, kit building, or model building, realizes the dream of having a scale replica of a XX ton aircraft carrier right on your desk. Such pure unadulterated joy that comes in a little cardboard box, like a vibrator. Kidding. Vibrators come in sturdier packaging, duh.



And in order to reach that state of one-ness, and at the same time keep your wallet intact, you must brave the treacherous waters of………

OVERPRICED GOODS *echoes throughout the realm*.

Lucky for you, I have done the dirty work.












You lazy bastards.













The Review

Today, I will be reviewing and comparing, not two, but three hobby retail stores located here, in “Can” land, where everything is possible. If you haven’t caught on, I’m talking Malaysia, specifically Kuala Lumpur where 2 of these hobby stores are conveniently located and Selangor. But I do want to emphasize the proximity between Hobby HQ and Time Machine in Kuala Lumpur. A stone’s throw away from each other. No, really.

All of this happened in ONE day.



Hobby HQ

My first visit brings me to the “Outer Rim” of Kuala Lumpur. Ok, maybe not exactly on the edges of K.L., but it sure felt like it. In contrast with the hectic streets of K.L., this place felt like the hidden part of the forest where no one ever goes. I felt like a kid in Never Never Land. So off I went to discover this hidden hideout where a Scale Modeler’s dreams come true. A treasure chest filled with paint brands from all over the world; Humbrol, Alclad, Mr.Color, and rows of boxes filled with airplanes, ships, tanks, waiting to be opened from its cardboard tomb. All I need now is pixie dust to get there :(



Ok, so you have to walk a little, where’s the harm in that? It’s not even that far. Heck, its right beside the LRT. Unless you expect it to be on the LRT station doorstep, trust me, it cannot get any better than this. 5, maybe 10, minute walk from the station. Lost? Ask the nice lady behind the ticket counter for directions. Shy? Well, can’t really help you there :P

Oh, I forgot to mention, if you don't already know, the LRT, or Light Rail Transit, is one of the public transportation systems here in Malaysia. Colloquially referred to as LRT, this is one of the best (only) cheap way of getting around K.L. Use a cab if you feel like picking a fight, the cabbie will most likely make you wanna sock 'em.

Hobby HQ, the place where dreams come true. Granted, this picture shows the old location of Hobby HQ (Reminder: ALL pictures pertaining to Hobby HQ in this post was taken from this website and was taken in the old store). It has then since relocated to a new location. However the old Hobby HQ sign is still put to use, so you can’t miss it. Hobby HQ doesn’t have its own website but you can go here where you’ll find another review and the address for its new location.

So from the LRT station, I walked through a pedestrian sidewalk which was, like, hung over a steep ledge where you can see the traffic below. It was actually kinda creepy cuz I felt like I was in a horror movie scene where you’re walking through an underground bridge in the dead of night when you see a person at the far end of the tunnel, coming slowly towards you………….well, according to me anyways. At the end of the walkway, you’ll see a makeshift car park underneath a flyover. Keep walking till you get to the centre, do a 180, and you’ll see a huge shop complex, brand new, you can’t miss it.



Inside Hobby HQ, there were rows of kits on the shelves and one corner full of Mr.Color paints. After admiring the beautiful scenery I whipped out my trusty 1998 Kuala Lumpur Commonwealth Games notepad and my Papermate A1 Black 0.7 pen. Available at local stores Today!

I’m just messin’ with ya’. Since I didn’t put any Google Ads on my blog, I figured I’d do a little advertising on my own. Just to show you that I’m playin’ with the big boys now, LOL. As I was saying, I proceeded to write down the prices for certain products that I want to, or am thinking of, buying in the near future.

Now, I know that shop owners despise this kinda thing, especially when you’re not gonna buy anything. I get it, I understand. It’s like a when guy walks into a carpet store and starts snapping pictures of the carpets, he’s stealing your carpet designs. Basically, he’s stealing from you, and you lose money cuz now, he can make those designs as well.

Alright, so hobby paint cannot be stolen by simply taking pictures but what I’m trying to say here is that it’s natural instinct for a shop owner to feel threatened when some stranger walks into his store and starts recording data with devices other than his own noggin’. On the other hand, it also depends on what device you use. A camera? It’ll record EVERYTHING that you can see with your two eyeballs. A notepad? Only specific stuff, like, prices, or,……….. I dunno……. paint chemical composition?

Either way, I knew the owner was gonna get somewhat annoyed/pissed even if I told him my whole logic of it being like an online store but I was gonna manually compile the prices, bla bla bla.............. So I had to imply, before he throws me out, that I was simply here to research which stores have the best prices available, nothing more. And that instead of memorizing prices, like housewives in different supermarkets, I’m using a notepad :)

In between asking the prices of different products in the store, I subtly told him that I was comparing prices between other stores and that it was purely for good intentions, which, by the way, is STILL TRUE.

Let me remind you again that this whole going-out-to-stores-writing-down-prices expedition and blog writing serves one purpose and one purpose only; to share with everybody the best places to buy their hobby materials at reasonable prices. Of course, this only applies to Malaysians….. I think.

Surprisingly, it turns out quite well. While I was talking my time admiring the humongous selection of paint, me and the owner, Mr.Low, have a nice little chat. As time passes by, I notice something at the bottom of the Mr.Color paint rack…………….OMGSTRZZZIHFHFJF, ALCLAD METAL PAINTS?!!!??

This was TOTALLY unexpected. Never in a million years did I expect to find Alclad paints here in good ol’ Malaysia. In fact, I didn’t even bother looking for it. I gave up hope so fast, I was already looking in the forum on tips for using Mr.Color Metal paint. Before I move on, I would like to say that I was looking for people with previous experiences with Mr.Color Metal. You can’t just put it in an airbrush, thin it and spray away. Certain metal paints have different ways of accentuating its metal effect. Some require polishing, some don’t. Some require different thinning ratios to achieve a certain effect. I’d be risking ruining a clear part if I don’t get it right the first time. I’m not rich, and I don’t live in Japan where you can order single parts from Bandai if you lose any. So yeah, I do my homework first.

As I was saying, I found Alclad metal paint in Hobby HQ. Not only was it sold there, they had a whole line of Alclad paints, not sure if it was the full range but you definitely had choices. From what I remember there was aluminum, copper, jet exhaust rust or somethin’, and a whole range of metal surfaces, all in one nifty bottle at 33 Malaysian Ringgit a piece. Yea, kinda pricey, but come on, it's ALCLAD. I’m definitely buying a piece on my next trip.

Mr.Low was a nice guy, very knowledgeable from what I can tell. He not only sells hobby material, he knows a thing or two how to actually use the stuff. I do not know whether he himself built those model airplanes in the glass cabinet, I forgot to ask. As we were talking, I mentioned to him that I bought a can of Mr.Super Clear gloss for RM55, whereas he was selling it for RM38. Later on, I would find that this was in fact a PLAUSIBLE genuine mistake by Time Machine, but more of that later on. I told him that since then I have been more careful, thus, resulting in this little expedition.

Another plus side is that while I was scanning through the paint rack, with or without notepad in hand, I was not pressured by anybody to hurry up and make a decision. This is a VERY good thing. It means that you can walk into the store, bring your model kit colour manual and take your time picking out your colour scheme, no pressure. You could stand there a whole 30 minutes and he won’t bug you. Of course, you still have to make way for other guys who have the same idea as you.

Walking out of the store, I felt that Hobby HQ was the most likely candidate on my permanent list of Hobby shops to re-supply from. There was no doubt about it. And this was based on my previous experience at Time Machine which I will talk about next.






Time Machine

The distance between Hobby HQ and Time Machine is relatively close. Simply put, find an LRT station and you can go ANYWHERE. Here, I’ll show you:



I’m emphasizing the relative proximity between Hobby HQ and Time Machine for a reason, which I will touch upon later.

From Hobby HQ, you walk to the LRT Station situated right beside it, and board the train. From there, you keep on going till you reach the Hang Tuah LRT interchange station. Get off, walk to the station beside it, the Hang Tuah KL Monorail station, which is right outside the doorstep, hence the name “interchange station” cuz the two are so darn close. Hop onto this train, which would most probably be jammed packed with people because the next station is built beside Berjaya Times Square which is where you get off.


See? 1 station away.


By the way, this station is called Imbi Monorail station. The word “monorail” is there to avoid confusion with the LRT stations. From here on it gets really fucked up.

Berjaya Times Square has a whopping 9 floors of retail stores which is totally insane. Time Machine is located on the 7th floor. In fact, once you enter Berjaya Times Square from the Monorail entrance, go up the first escalator you see in front of you. Keep going till you reach the 7th floor. It should be somewhere near there, I think.


I’ve been to Time Machine quite a number of times, two of which end up with me buying something. Obviously, I’m not gonna buy anything today, I’m on scout mode remember? The store is more of a general-high-end-toy-store so it only sells mostly ONE specific brand of hobby products, and a few stray Tamiya acrylic jars and lacquer cans here and there but mostly it concentrates on the Mr.Hobby line of products. In fact it sells only a tiny bit more of the Mr.Hobby line compared to Hobby HQ, but nothing major.



-To read more of the Time Machine review, scroll down to the end of the post to find The Censored Review -






Tamiya Underground



First off, I would like to mention that Tamiya Underground is nowhere near Hobby HQ or Time Machine, let alone an LRT station. It is located in 1 Utama………..at the underground parking lot, duh. Yes, it is kinda far away from……well, wherever you are, but it is worth the trip. Lemme tell you why.

Tamiya Underground is the only Tamiya retail store available in Malaysia. Here, you’ll find the FULL range of Tamiya Lacquer sprays. I’m talking about PS, TS and even the special “aircraft” military colours. Right beside the spray rack is the paint jar rack. Again, the FULL range of Tamiya Acrylic paints, not the mini ones. They have the primer sprays, plastic cement, modeling clay, brushes, low-tack masking tapes, paint thinners, the full works. But one prominent Tamiya product that they don’t sell is Tamiya Enamels. Might be cuz nobody buys them, might be cuz it’s not popular, we’ll never know. All I know is that I need enamels for panel lining. No biggie, a small little jar like that, you could just order online, like me.

Again, the staff will not bug you or pressure you to make a decision and buy something. You bring in your kit manual, or notepad or whatever, stand there and take your time picking the perfect colour for your kits. No pressure. I stood there once for about a whole hour with my Gundam manual, nobody bugged me. My feet did feel tired, but nonetheless, I wasn’t pressured whatsoever. A VERY good thing.

I don’t know what else to say, good environment, a HUGE store, plenty of selection. Even though this place is a bit far for some of you just remember, if you are a keen buyer of Tamiya paint/products, if you are tired of jumping from store to store looking for Tamiya products scattered everywhere, then yeah, you should definitely think about it. Prices? Well, as far as middleman goes, It’s Tamiya selling Tamiya products. There IS no middleman. This is about as cheap as it can get, and it is quite reasonable if I say so myself. Heck, why do you think I go there all the time? I’m not gonna jump from one store to another looking for Tamiya Cement and Lacquer sprays when I can get it ALL right here.

Always worth the trip.





The Verdict

Here is the Excel chart showing the comparison between all 3 Hobby stores. Most products compared were chosen due to my own personal choice of most-likely-to-buy items and products which were sold in at least 2 stores. Some were chosen simply as a basis of comparison.



High-Resolution version:
Imageshack: Here
Imagevenue: Here

For each product on the list, there will be at least 2 stores selling it. The store that sells it for the lowest price is marked in GREEN and the one selling with the higher price is in RED. The price difference ranges from 1 ringgit to 10 ringgit. The box marked in YELLOW was a particular case of stubbornness which I will explain later in the The Censored Review .

If you look closely at the chart, you’ll notice something. Time Machine doesn't have any GREEN prices.

Not even one.

Well, I’d say more but the chart pretty much speaks for itself.



To wrap things up, I'm awarding the following star ratings:


Hobby HQ :






Tamiya Underground :

Time Machine :

• Pros - Availability of Bandai decals. In fact, if you factor in Samuel Decals it would be a zero star. But Samuel Decals doesn’t sell Bandai specific decals. So, half a star for that.

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The Censored Review


Earlier on, I mentioned that a can of Mr.Super Clear gloss was selling for RM38 at Hobby HQ whereas I bought it for RM55 at Time Machine. Like I said, this was a PLAUSIBLE genuine mistake. Here’s my reasoning:

The last time I walked out of Time Machine, I was greeted by a nice old Chinese lady who told me, “Thank you very much”. I wasn’t sure why she was being so nice to me. Maybe it’s just a part of her personality. Maybe she likes to treat people kindly. Maybe it was because I spent 115 Ringgit in one go.

Ok, that’s not too bad I guess. Modelling isn’t cheap anyway. Most of the stuff comes from Japan. I mean, the shipment costs, taxes, import duties, its gotta be expensive.

Right?

Well, only one way to find out. Let’s dissect my receipt, which I distinctly remember I had to ask for it, and it was only the nett total, no details. But I do remember this being my largest purchase and I distinctly remember what I bought cuz I’ve only bought stuff from there twice:

• 1x Mr.Super Clear Gloss Spray



• 1x Mr.Super Clear Flat Spray



• 1x Mr.Color Flat Black paint jar



• 1x Mr.Color Flat White paint jar



• 1x small aluminum paint palette

Let’s see, from my recent expedition, I can safely assume that 2 paint jars of Mr.color would cost RM 14. Although I did see a price tag saying RM6 a piece……Let’s just assume the higher price, RM7 a piece:

So, 115 -14=101

Then I have the paint palette which costs about 50 cents. However, the latest price tag says its one ringgit. I might have been wrong……Anyway, convenience purposes, let’s just round it up to a nice number 1:

So, 101-1=100



What’s left? –Two cans of Mr.Super Clear



...........

A 100 bucks for two cans?



....................

I paid a HUNDRED BUCKS for TWO CANS?!?!?!?!



...............................

TWO CANS?!?!?

Obviously, it will never sink in.







As I recall, the gloss spray was RM 55 whereas the flat spray was RM 40. Don’t know where the other 5 came from, maybe the Flat spray was RM45? Be that as it may, it’s gotta come from ONE of these two cans which is ridiculous looking back at it. Back then, I did do my research, but there were no local hobby stores to compare to, from my limited pool of knowledge. I thought the gloss spray had more expensive material which made it glossy, thus accounting for the price difference.



Bullshit.


I walked out of there happy as a lark, knowing that it was worth it. It was darn expensive but I kept telling myself, it was worth it. There was no looking back, I might as well believe that it was worth it.






I came back there yesterday, the day I did my price expedition.

I walked towards the shelf with all the Mr.color products neatly arranged. I picked up a can of Mr.Super Clear Gloss spray. The price tag read RM50.

I asked the woman behind the cashier:

Me: S’cuse me. Why is this 50 bucks, but the Flat spray is 40?

Her: ….......…........................… *long pause* oh. W-wrong label. It’s also 40.

OOOOOOHHHhhhmmmmyyyyyGGggggggggggggOOOOOOOODDD!!!


I felt so……..empty at that point. My money, down the drain, all because someone pasted the wrong label…………

If I didn’t point out the Flat and Gloss price difference, I don’t think she would’ve bothered anyway. I’m giving her the money right? Who cares?



The best part off all this is that I made my 115 Ringgit purchase in December 2008.

It is now August 2009.

The label still reads RM50 till this day.










The Inquisition

Ok, I gotta admit. This place was a bit intimidating. It was a small store, packed with toys from wall-to-wall. As a guy, you don’t wanna bend over or squat in public as often as you can. You wanna tuck your hands in your pocket, take a few steps back, and see the whole picture. Much more sophisticated. Not that it’s a problem or anything, but I didn’t know what to write as an introduction :P

Anyway, my main goal was the Mr.Color paint rack, which was located un-comfortably close to the cashier. The other Mr.Hobby products were located on a shelf on the right, at eye-level. I stood there for a moment, enjoyed the view, whipped out my notepad, and did my thing.

I was prepared to receive a volley of questions. I truly did expect it. The store owners weren’t exactly the wise-gentle-grandmaster-sifu-with-long-beard kinda people. They weren’t exactly radiating that vibe. They were more like the I-hope-these-kids-bug-their-mommies-to-buy-the-shiny-transformer-toys-cuz-I-gotta-pay-the-electricity-bill kinda people.

This was how our first, short, but full of hidden messages (sarcasm), conversation went:

Woman cashier/boss: Wah, u copy-ing all the prices ahh?

Me: Uh… just the ones that I need.

Sigh…….

Plan A – Remain as oblivious as possible FAIL
Plan B – Soldier on. Complete the mission. EXECUTE PLAN


Despite the fact that I wanted to remain oblivious, I couldn’t. As I was standing there in front of the Mr.Color paint rack, I was constantly disturbed by someone who wanted to go through the counter. As I mentioned earlier, the Mr.Color paint rack was placed uncomfortably close to the cashier counter. In fact, come to think of it, I was actually behind the counter at one point.

Y’know, its bad enough that Time Machine doesn’t have an online catalogue (No, a blog is NOT a website) but I can’t even have peace of mind when I’m choosing my colour scheme. Everytime my imagination is about to capture that one-of-a-kind paintjob……. *BAM* “Hallo, move.”

I gotta be reminded that I HAVE to buy something?? C’mon man. Show a bit of class.

My point is, even if you really are looking for paint, and you bring some sort of reference material or piece of paper, you will NOT be left alone. You will either have to move for the cashier, move for the customer to sit, move cuz your blocking one of two possible pathways in the shop, or get nasty stares from the shop owners.




20 minutes later

Woman cashier/boss: *agitated, cynical* You cannot possibly write down ALL the prices you know???

Me: uh, actually I… *interrupted by Bosozoku-san*

Bosozoku-san: *sarcastically* You copy down all the prices, after that, the price change, then you come here and copy it all again ahh? Why don’t you put it in excel, powerpoint, put it all there?

Damn.

That actually makes sense.

And here it is coming from the guy trying to chase me out. Oh, how it drips of irony...........

*Continued*

Me: Uh, no, I’m actually writing it down cuz I wanted to compare. I’ve been buying from an online store and its much cheaper here.......

HOTTTTDDDAAYYUMMNN!!!!!! A PERFECT EXAMPLE OF ROGERIAN ARGUMENT!!! IN YOUR FACE!!! Thank you Ms.**** (You know who she is ;P ) for teaching me those oh so useful English essay structures. And FYI, no, not SPM level, WAYYYYY beyond that.

As I was saying, I didn’t even give her a chance to bite me in the ass. Everytime she agitated me so that I could give her a reason to kick me out, I do a 180 and suck up, LOL. She had absolutely no concrete reason or the human will to kick me out. This I how I think it went down in her head:

“Must-evict-man. Incoming-compliment. Compliment-nature-unverified. Irrelevant. Compliment-equals-good. Irrelevant. High-possibility-false-positive-nature. Irrelevant. Shop-mine-CHEAPER. Keyword-verified.”

Needless to say, there was about 3 seconds of silence and I was back to scribbling on my glorified triple 5 pad. At some point before I told her to relax, literally. I’m not sure how she took it.

Oh, I forgot to mention , “Bosozoku-san” refers to the assistant that was present at that time, shifting boxes, taking out new stock. I have no idea what his name is.

Come on now, It’s like you EXPECT me to memorize the cashier’s name at McDonalds’, only to say “Set number 4 please”.

I’m gonna refer to him as Bosozoku-san cuz his hair reminds me of the Japanese Bosozoku Biker gang hairstyle.

Despite the fact that his hair was rockin’, he was acting more of a business professional compared to the Woman Cashier. Even though he knew I was a stirrin’ up the air, he knew that I hadn’t done ANYTHING wrong. So as I continue to question him, he acts like A PROPER BUSINESS PERSON WHO KNOWS HIS INCOME DEPENDS ON WHETHER I BUY HIS TOYS OR NOT *gasps in disbelief* and talks to me nicely, telling me that they don’t sell Robot Damashii stands.

At the end of the day, all that matters to me was his tone. If you are genuinely trying to be nice, it shows. And I appreciate that.

Woman Cashier, however, was far from professional. Needless to say, her manners were on par with that of a DVD peddler in Chow Kit Road emanating a buy-it-or-get-out-of-my-face vibe the whole time I was talking to her. Which was a total of 10 seconds. Max.

From what I could tell, she was in her late twenties, judging by her unmistakable sense of maturity :P

Don’t believe me? Read on.



After the first two “commotions”, I was still going strong, keeping a cool head, so that I don’t miss out on stuff that I might want to compare later on. Keep in mind, I wasn’t writing down the prices for ALL the Mr.Hobby products, just some. I was looking for Mr.Super Mettalic when I couldn’t find any on the paint rack. Just to be sure, I asked her. To my surprise, she acted like a 16 year old boy who won’t tell his parents where the hidden stash of Playboys are:

Me: *Points to paint jar in other hand* Do you sell Mr.super Mettalic, it looks something like this?

Woman Cashier: ........................ *Stares silently at blank space on table for 5 seconds* Look for it yourself.

EPIC PHAIL!!!!……...…..…DOHH…………



Hampeh, camane la nak jual produk kalo layan customer pun tak tahan? Bak kata pepatah mat salleh “Never bite the hand that feeds you”.

Needless to say, I was speechless. The thought of a grown woman dissing you is not a pleasant one. If grown men have trouble dealing with grown woman, imagine me, a guy with the value of about…………. *counts fingers* ………..two and a half men :D (pop culture reference)

Here I was thinking:

“OMG, what should I do? Should I smile, whilst shaking my head disapprovingly? Should I advise her to “grow up”? Should I tell her that she’s acting like my non-existent 18 year old girlfriend? Should I tell her to act her age? Should I tell her to “age gracefully”? Should I stop treating her like a 40 year old and start treating her like a 16 year old? Should I, like, totally diss her? Should I say “whatever”? Should I steal her boyfriend? Should I spread dirty rumors about her? Should I scoff at her? Should I mutter under my breath, but just so
she can hear it, “bitch”?”

And all of this crossed my noggin in light speed. As my mind ran off like a little girl, my body kept its physical composure, face – emotionless, cool as a cucumber, unaffected by her ice cold words. God, I hope she doesn’t touch me…….

Then it hit me. If I push her buttons anymore, she might actually throw me out before I can finish. So I do what every married male in a relationship does, shut up.

As the ordeal came to an end, I kept soldiering on ‘till the deed was done.



That was it. Never again.

I will never step foot in this shop, ever.



As I walked out of the store, I could still feel her razor sharp snide remarks, jabbing into my earlobe. All my hopes and dreams for getting me to even attempt to like asian girls have all gone south. This voyage has scarred my for life, for I shall never look at a hot asian girl, like in that Box-office flop Dragonball: Evolution, the same way again. When my mind starts to wonder how nice it would be to have a kawai-dessu asian girl right beside, she’ll suddenly snap and start ordering me around with her sarcasm laced remarks.

So readers, earlier on there was yet another point which I promised to get back on,which was the reason for my emphasis on the close proximity between Time Machine and Hobby HQ. After looking at the Excel chart, you’ll know why. Whatever it is that you buy at Time Machine, CAN be purchased at a lower price at either Hobby HQ or Tamiya Underground. Still don’t believe me?

Look at the chart again. Tell me in which row does Time Machine score the lowest price?



Exactly. None.

My point is, if you are in Kuala Lumpur looking to go to a hobby store, you might as well go to Hobby HQ. It’s cheaper than Time Machine and it’s about in the same area as Time Machine. It’s a no brainer.

As the popular slogan goes, why pay more?

I may have an emotional grudge towards Time Machine but put this mumbo-jumbo aside for a second and you’ll see that it all boils down to one thing, money.

Facts are facts, I went there, It was printed on the price tag, it can’t get any clearer from the truth than that. It’s human nature to get the best out of what we got. You, and the rest of the world want to buy stuff cheaper so you can buy more stuff eventually. If there is a product of price X, you’ll search for product with price X, minus 10.

If you examine the chart closely, you’ll notice a pattern. Whatever you buy at time machine, can be purchased cheaper somewhere else, it’s a fact. If you want to go against the norm, against me, for the sake of going against something, hey, I’m just spreading the word, it was always up to you whether you wanted to just read this blog for kicks, or get something useful out of it.

That wraps up an interesting, yet very comprehensive, review for today. Unfortunately, we're running out of time for Matt Damon. Good Day and Good Night Everyone!













This was an excerpt that never made it to the main article. Think of it as bloopers :)



Open up a goddamn website. No, a blog is NOT a website. You wanna sell your shit? Take a business lesson from me. TELL PEOPLE YOU ACTUALLY HAVE SHIT TO SELL !!! Put an online catalogue of EVERYTHING you have for sale. Not routine updates like “have restock of P51 color paint” , “new arrival Gundam RX-78 with 97 points of articulation” or “Out of toilet paper”. Oh, yea, we can ALL remember your stock and keep track of your items for sale. It’s so easy. Just remember what date I had the update click the blog date and there you have it!


Utter stupidity.


I gotta REMEMBER the date you bought it?!?!


Why?!?!


Do I give a crap?!?!?


Will this come out in the exams next week?!?!!?


You won’t sell it to me if I don’t remember your date of purchase?!?!!

Again, utter stupidity. And unnecessary hassle.








Oh, sure, you wanna keep your 37 jars of Mr.color red paint as a collection.

Now why didn’t you say so. That makes perfect sense :P