Things to see and buy in Sydney

[nheather]

Just been asked to go to Sydney on a business trip for two weeks.  Any military museums or model shops worth visiting.

 

I won't have a car, so pretty much confined to the city centre.

 

Cheers,

 

Nigel

[Jabba]

Not many model shops when I went there about 10 yrs ago, but there was one in the Victoria building in the city centre.

[Paul J]

18 minutes ago, Jabba said:

Not many model shops when I went there about 10 yrs ago, but there was one in the Victoria building in the city centre.

I went to that one on my very short stay there. I think its called Hobbico or something. Tons of stuff there and Hasegawa prices more amenable to those here in UK. Needless to say I didn't buy anything because there wasn't anything that caught my and no room in my luggage allowance . However I did find the building fascinating and awesome to walk round. I found a little shop in Campbeltown too, but  much smaller  and much the same mainstream Hasegawa, Revell Tamiya stuff etc. Nobody seem to have heard about Oz Mod kits or have decals and other aftermarket goodies.  Same in NZ at the shops I found there in Napier or Blenheim.

However I didn't go there to hunt down model shops, they were visited if I came across them only.

 

Public transport is dead easy and cheap by the way.

To nheather /Nigel:

By the way you only live a few miles from me here in West Sussex. I'm just south west of you.

[Admiral Puff]

Not much in the city these days. Hobbyco, in the Queen Victoria Building in George St., is big, but doesn't carry much beyond the mainstream. If you're into cars, there'a an automotive bookshop in Dymocks Building just across the road which can be very dangerous for the health of your bank account; similarly Australian Jewellery Supplies in the same building has lots of things that "may come in handy some day". 

 

In the suburbs there are only two that I know of worth a visit - Northern Beaches Hobby Centre, 858 Pittwater Rd., Dee Why (ferry from Circular Quay to Manly, then a bus up Pittwater Rd.), and Hobbyland, 147 Peats Ferry Rd., Hornsby (train from Central Station to Hornsby - best to get a Central Coast service from the country platforms, which will mean fewer stops), on the western side of the station and almost across the road. Again, neither has much outside the mainstream. Plan at least 2-3 hours to visit either.

 

No museums within striking distance other than the Powerhouse in Ultimo, and it isn't really military. Worth a visit, just the same. Other than that, the closest are HARS at Albion Park and the FAA Museum at Nowra - both a good way from Sydney CBD. 

[Devo]

On 4/23/2019 at 7:50 PM, nheather said:

Just been asked to go to Sydney on a business trip for two weeks.  Any military museums or model shops worth visiting.

 

I won't have a car, so pretty much confined to the city centre.

 

Cheers,

 

Nigel

G'day Nigel,

 

I thinks its still a goer, not having been in Sydney myself for over a decade but if it is...……. and maritime stuff is up your alley, the Australian National Maritime Museum at Darling Harbour is within walking distance from the Sydney CBD. They have a Daring Class Destroyer ex-HMAS Vampire and an Oberon Class Submarine ex-HMAS Onslow, as well as a few other vessels including a Replica HMB Endeavour. I'd say worth a squiz if you want to fill in an hour or two.

32 minutes ago, Admiral Puff said:

Not much in the city these days. Hobbyco, in the Queen Victoria Building in George St., is big, but doesn't carry much beyond the mainstream. If you're into cars, there'a an automotive bookshop in Dymocks Building just across the road which can be very dangerous for the health of your bank account; similarly Australian Jewellery Supplies in the same building has lots of things that "may come in handy some day". 

 

In the suburbs there are only two that I know of worth a visit - Northern Beaches Hobby Centre, 858 Pittwater Rd., Dee Why (ferry from Circular Quay to Manly, then a bus up Pittwater Rd.), and Hobbyland, 147 Peats Ferry Rd., Hornsby (train from Central Station to Hornsby - best to get a Central Coast service from the country platforms, which will mean fewer stops), on the western side of the station and almost across the road. Again, neither has much outside the mainstream. Plan at least 2-3 hours to visit either.

 

No museums within striking distance other than the Powerhouse in Ultimo, and it isn't really military. Worth a visit, just the same. Other than that, the closest are HARS at Albion Park and the FAA Museum at Nowra - both a good way from Sydney CBD. 

@ Admiral Puff, What about the Australian National Maritime Museum at Darling Harbour...……..?

Edited April 25, 2019 by Devo

[Admiral Puff]

2 hours ago, Devo said:

@ Admiral Puff, What about the Australian National Maritime Museum at Darling Harbour...……..?

Yep, forgot completely about NMM! Should have remembered that, particularly as my brother-in-law is tied up with the James Craig group there, and a mate also serves as a guide.

[Greg B]

7 hours ago, Admiral Puff said:

Not much in the city these days. Hobbyco, in the Queen Victoria Building in George St., is big, but doesn't carry much beyond the mainstream. If you're into cars, there'a an automotive bookshop in Dymocks Building just across the road which can be very dangerous for the health of your bank account; similarly Australian Jewellery Supplies in the same building has lots of things that "may come in handy some day". 

 

In the suburbs there are only two that I know of worth a visit - Northern Beaches Hobby Centre, 858 Pittwater Rd., Dee Why (ferry from Circular Quay to Manly, then a bus up Pittwater Rd.), and Hobbyland, 147 Peats Ferry Rd., Hornsby (train from Central Station to Hornsby - best to get a Central Coast service from the country platforms, which will mean fewer stops), on the western side of the station and almost across the road. Again, neither has much outside the mainstream. Plan at least 2-3 hours to visit either.

 

No museums within striking distance other than the Powerhouse in Ultimo, and it isn't really military. Worth a visit, just the same. Other than that, the closest are HARS at Albion Park and the FAA Museum at Nowra - both a good way from Sydney CBD. 

School of Military Engineering has a new museum at Holsworthy. Open on weekdays, you can get the train there but will have to walk around to the front gate (15 minutes).  Access I can confirm for you, you would need your passport as a from of ID.

[Giorgio N]

Sorry I missed this thread, guess Nigel has gone and returned by now...

Anyway, a couple of places that may be of interest to anyone visiting Sydney and the suburbs... An interesting hobby shop in the area is Sherrifs Mini Cars, in King's Park. It's mainly dedicated to car models and kits but they used to also store other kits, including some very old and hard to find kits. Unfortunately the place is not that close to any public transport, so a car is needed to reach the shop. Now I said it is interesting but mind, haven't been there in many years, I know the shop still exists but don't know if anything has changed in the meantime.

The shop in Campbelltown mentioned by Paul is probably The Pump, in a shopping center close to the town. Yes, all standard stuff but the fact I could buy Airfix kits there for less than they costed in Europe was a bonus for me... not the same story with Hobbyco (that BTW also have a shop in Campbelltown), as they used to sell Airfix kits at quite high prices. Decent prices however for Hasegawa and other far east manufacturers, I spent quite a lot of money there every time I visited.

Not models, but there used to be a good military and aviation book shop in Parramatta, can't remember the name and don't know if it's still around.

Unfortunately closed is the North Fort Artillery Museum in Manly... or better, IIRC there is still a museum there but the artillery collection is long gone.

Also gone is the Australian Aviation Museum in Bankstown, that was not the best but had some interesting stuff.  For a proper aviation museum, in addition to the ones mentioned by Admiral Puff I would also mention Fighter World at Williamtown... it's a 3.30 to 4 hours trip with public transport (couple hours by car), but the museum there is quite nice and being located beside an active RAAF base and local airport gives a chance to see takeoffs and landings.