Robart Update - Interview with Mike Vassar About Recent Press Release...

Mike Vassar, from Robart, goes over the details of their recent press release. Jim T. talks to Mike about the future of Robart, what product lines will be carried forward, and their ownership of ZAP glues...

[@timmytom]

Shame to see the retracts dropped .

[@robkallok77]

I understand that a business needs to make a profit -no argument. But the Robostrut link that went up 300% is likely a small cost item - they buy those in bulk (doubt they are stamped inhouse). I suspect this was less about materials and more about labor costs. And I don't fault the machinists here. I get the sense that Robart was still a very old-school machine shop - not sure how much they invested in CNC. If they weren't investing in automation then it's not a surprise that their labor costs went up. That being said, I shopped at Robart for retracts, struts and sometimes wheels. I'd buy some extra odds and ends since I was already buying other stuff. I also bought Robart retracts since I knew I could always get parts. So much for that. IMHO this is much worse than losing TruTurn because I have a lot of money tied up in Robart gear that, if I have a problem down the road, it has to be thrown away and totally replaced. Not good...

[@adamcline8041]

The biggest question I have at the moment is will they continue to make the pneumatic accessories? All my models with retracts use Robart control valves and fill valves. Replacing these parts in all my models would be a major pain

[@keithplumley2054]

It's a shame that another American r/c company is leaving the hobby. To be honest, I don't own a single set of Robart retracts, they've always been priced higher than I could afford. I've been in the hobby since 1990 and have always had to look elsewhere for retracts. I do use their more affordable products but I don't think those will be around too much longer either. Good luck in your future endeavors.

[@Happy3DModel-hz6uy]

Robart always had the best / most realistic retracts i hope another company picks up where they left off...

[@CH-RC]

Uh no they have not. Sierra retracts and many others were and are much better. Robart is bottom tier.

[@coreydail7870]

All my RC models relied heavily on Robart gear products and I would pay more for the items because they are worth it

[@chrishaefeli9614]

id of paid a 40% increase on landing gear. i dont think many will wait a year for other gear to be made. hopefully someone jumps in the game.

[@maestrimq]

Sad... Chinese RC products imports killed the US Radio control industries. Sig,Robart, Great planes, topflight,etc..Fomies and electric system made less modelers to build and the new generation don't even have an idea what an RC kit was. The soul of the hobby is gone and now is all about just flying whatever.

[@CH-RC]

lol ... sorry, but Robart has been in decline for years. Their quality sucked, at way higher price points. Sierra retracts, and retracts that come with planes these days are higher quality than Robart. Robart has always put out retracts that needed modifications for durability, their electronics stunk and the metal they used for the tubes was soft. Bad attitude as well. He's using a sob story, because he's full of it. You can hear his sense of self-entitlement in the video.