Al’s Hobbies Reviews 

116
TrustScore 4 out of 5

4.0

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Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Just got off the phone with Al, What a great bloke! Ordered loads of balsa wood strips, we must have been on the phone for 10 minutes with my order. He was patient, understanding and knowledgeab... See more

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Ordered 2 receivers as they were shown as in stock. The owner called me to say they hadn’t bothered to update their website and they didn’t have any, but they would send identical products they had se... See more

Company replied

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Al's Hobbies always provides brilliant service regardless of how big of small your request is. Every time I've been in everyone who's served me has been super helpful. 100% recommend them for anything... See more

Company replied

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

A fantastic experience buying for Al’s. People who are incredibly friendly, hugely knowledgable and really helpful. In addition to buying some bits I needed, I probably spent a good hour just chatti... See more

Company replied

Company details

  1. Hobby Store

Written by the company

Started in 1997 by Ali Machinchy Snr, Ali Machinchy Junior and Jane Machinchy. Al's Hobbies began in one small store in Hainault essex. From there it grew into one of the UK's largest independent retailers of radio controlled equipment.


Contact info

4.0

Great

TrustScore 4 out of 5

116 reviews

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1-star

No recent history of asking for reviews

This company hasn't invited customers recently, so reviews may not be representative

Replied to 100% of negative reviews

Typically replies within 1 month

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4.0

All reviews

(116)

15 reviews in the last 12 months

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Rated 1 out of 5 stars

I have delt with you for a long time…

I have delt with you for a long time but just lately I I am not impressed with the time it takes to receive orders. ☹️

7 June 2025
Unprompted review
Al’s Hobbies logo

Reply from Al’s Hobbies

Hi Peter, we have sent you a message regarding the availability of the magnets (perhaps you have not seen it). They are out of stock with perkins, we can offer the slightly smaller size and a partial refund?

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Outstanding customer service!

Ordered a Volantex Phoenix 2400 (best price) which came the next day, super fast. On inspecting contents found the control horn on rudder was broken ( nothing to do with Al's). Contacted Al's and within a couple of hours matter had been resolved with supplier sending me new rudder. Fantastic customer service, very impressed, A*****

5 June 2025
Unprompted review
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Reply from Al’s Hobbies

Thanks for this great review Mark, we really appreciate you taking the time to write it, hopefully the rudder will be with you in a few days.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

After market drone battery

After market drone battery.
After a rather large worldwide search for an aftermarket controller battery for my splashdrone 3+, it was only AL'S that had the nearest spec size and plug configuration. And it was here door to door in under 24 hours !!!!!!!! works a treat

Thankyou.

4 June 2025
Unprompted review
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Reply from Al’s Hobbies

Thankyou for your five star review Gavin, all the team really appreciate it.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Confident to order from them again.

Despite being honestly described as ''only available to order'', my G gauge track still arrived pretty quickly.
A quality product supplied at a very competitive price.
So, I'll be back...!

24 May 2025
Unprompted review
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Reply from Al’s Hobbies

Thanks for the great review Maggie, we're located just 15 minutes from the LGB UK distributor, so it helps us provide a faster service.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

brilliant company

Very good company to deal with reliable quote for Spektrum repairs and a speedy turnaround. Many thanks

29 April 2025
Unprompted review
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Reply from Al’s Hobbies

Thanks for the great review, all the team really appreciate it.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Great shop

I didn't know the shop but I had read previous very positive reviews. I just have to confirm the positive opinion. I spoke by phone with the owner and he seemed like a very kind and friendly person.

15 April 2025
Unprompted review
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Reply from Al’s Hobbies

Thanks for the great review Stefano, a pleasure doing business with you!

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

Got the wrong item delivered to my home…

Got the wrong item delivered to my home address, I've been waiting for this item to be delivered for weeks and weeks now and then I get it it's the wrong one, I can't believe it...

24 March 2025
Unprompted review
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Reply from Al’s Hobbies

Hi Paul, we're sorry for the long wait that you had for your item, it can be the case that pre-order or backorder items take longer than expected. We did inform you of the item we were sending, and made our best efforts to check with you. We have now processed a full refund having collected the item from you in good will.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Ali Machinchy's family shop - who knew...

Been wanting a Hanger 9 Ultra Stick 10cc for a while, so I decided to see if I could find a hobby shop within a 30-minute drive that had one in stock. A few calls later, and I am sat-naving my trip to Al's Hobbies near Milton Keynes. The thing that really inspired me to buy this plane was the fact it was re-designed by Ali Machinchy, who is a huge name in the business. Little did I know, that 45 minutes later, I'd be buying this amazing plane from Ali's Dad (Ali Snr) and Ali's uncle in Ali's family shop!!! I was offered a cup of tea within a few minutes of walking in and ended up chatting all things RC with Ali Snr and Ali's Uncle for the best part of 45 minutes, which was a real pleasure - and a real education. As I left that shop, I promised myself that I would never again order anything of any significance online if it was available in-store at Al's Hobbies. Looking forward to my next visit!

21 March 2025
Unprompted review
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Reply from Al’s Hobbies

Ali is so pleased to read your review, it's very, very, nice to hear such wonderful feedback.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

Not a great experience

Not a great experience. Ordered a few parts and 1 of those was some spares for a rc plane. The item that arrived had 3 parts, should of all been different but there was a a duplicate and the part I needed was missing. No resolution and no updates

14 February 2025
Unprompted review
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Reply from Al’s Hobbies

Hi Craig, Apologies that the resolution had not reached you. We have a replacement on order with the supplier that will be sent to you free of charge. As yet, we have not received an eta and the part may be several months away. We have tried to look at other options such as recovering the item from a model that has been damaged in another way, but this has been unsuccessful. When the part does arrive, it will be despatched ASAP and you will receive a notification. We'll update our system now, so you should receive a notification today.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

What a great model shop!

I have been an aeromodeller for years and have been ordering bits and pieces online from Al's Hobbies for a long time, but today was my first visit to the shop. What an absolute treat it was!
I was met by Ali (Snr) and had a lovely time chatting about models of yesteryear and how the hobby has changed. The shop is very well stocked and as far as Ali was concerned it seemed like nothing was too much trouble and he made my visit a real pleasure! I will make every effort to come back soon for another purchase and some entertaining model chat! Thank you!

3 March 2025
Unprompted review
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Reply from Al’s Hobbies

It's wonderful to read this review Ian, thankyou very much for taking the time to write it and we look forward to seeing you again soon.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

It was nice to walk into a friendly…

It was nice to walk into a friendly shop with an owner that was really knowledgeable about rc. I found the pricing to really good and their website really easy to navigate. The only downside is the lack of parking but there is a Aldi and a Tesco one minute walk from it.

11 January 2025
Unprompted review
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Reply from Al’s Hobbies

Thanks for the 5 star review Michael, we like to make it aware that there is parking nearby as you say for lidl and tesco customers. Our pick is the bakery at lidl if anyone is visiting the store.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Great shop with very friendly staff…

Great shop with very friendly staff bought my grandsons FTX outlaw for him and will be purchasing my arrma Gorgon from them as well . Milton Keynes one and only RC/model shop .if they haven’t got it in stock they can order for you .

15 November 2024
Unprompted review
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Reply from Al’s Hobbies

Thanks for this great 5-star review!!!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

It's great to find a place where they…

It's great to find a place where they know and have done the hobbies for years and can guide from real wisdom.
The devil is in the detail on things and that makes it worth the visit over just buying online

23 December 2024
Unprompted review
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Reply from Al’s Hobbies

Thanks for taking the time to write this great review Scott, all the team here really appreciate it. We hope you have a great Christmas and happy new year!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Fully recommend

When I contacted Al's hobbies by phone to ask for a charge cable to to be made up.. It was no trouble at all... I confirmed the request by email, was given the price and 2 days later they're with me, neatly soldered, correct length of the cables, connectors as requested and the agreed awg.. Noting that their pricing is pretty keen across the board,
I fully recommend. 👍🏻

19 December 2024
Unprompted review
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Reply from Al’s Hobbies

Thanks for the great review Marcus, we were more than happy to help, glad your happy with the resulting product. Hope you have a fantastic Christmas and Happy New Year!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Great help

Great help. Pointed in the right direction for RC multi charger.
Placed order, item arrived next day.

9 December 2024
Unprompted review
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Reply from Al’s Hobbies

Thanks for the five star review Hilary, we were more than happy to help. If you ever need assistance in future, just send us another email or call the store. Hope you have a great Christmas.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

First time I’ve used this company and…

First time I’ve used this company and it will be the last. No issues with the company per se but the staff have some kind of anger issues.
I made an online purchase and was surprised that there was no auto acknowledgment confirming the purchase and no order number sent to my email address. At this point I should have realised I could have possible problems.
I called the company today asking for details regarding the shipping company used and tracking number if they had one. At first the staff member I was talking to seemed polite and helpful, then after I informed him why I called it was like turning on a switch, not abusive but loud and somewhat aggressive, not what i would expect having called for information regarding a shipment.
Not what I would call good customer service.

27 November 2024
Unprompted review
Al’s Hobbies logo

Reply from Al’s Hobbies

Hi Richard, our sincerest apologies that you were not happy with the level of service provided. Our system does automatically send order confirmation and shipping updates, so perhaps this went to you're spam? The matter will be discussed internally, but I will say we have had some internal phone issues recently that has on occasion lead to poor reception that can make the operator inclined to speak louder to try and overcome it. I'm not saying this was definitely the case, but may have added to the situation. Again our sincerest apologies, we do aim to offer the highest levels of service as one of a few remaining traditional high street model shops left and do make every effort to assess when standards fall short.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Great shop

Great shop, very helpful and knowledgeable people, with some really interesting vintage stuff. Definitely worth a visit.

2 October 2024
Unprompted review
Al’s Hobbies logo

Reply from Al’s Hobbies

Thanks for the great review Robin, we all really appreciate it.

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