Heading down here next month and of course will visit Andy’s HHQs!
Looking for museum recommendations.
Thanks
Pima Air & Space Museum is a must. Take the Boneyard Bus Tour as well.
Then drive south to Green Valley and visit the Minuteman II Silo. I literally live down the road from it.
Both site are worth the detour. Especially now that the museum is building a military vehicle museum and some of the tanks are on display there.
Ever wanted to build an M103A2? There’s one on display there.
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Also check out Falcon Field and the Commemorative Air Force Museum in Mesa. It’s maybe a 30 minute drive from Andy’s, and an all day affair to visit.
If you happen to be in town Saturday July 13, AZ AMPS meets at the American Legion Hall in old town Glendale.
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Thanks much
We will be there around the week of August 5-9th. Thanks
Tram tours only? Looks like the bone yard is off limits.
Well… That’s a shame. I took the bus tour inside the Boneyard itself years ago. The tram is just inside the museum in case you don’t feel like walking around the displays all day.
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Interesting, I will be in Tucson that week also.
@Stikpusher any intel would be helpful.
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August AZ AMPS meeting is on the 10th 
May I recommend The Hobby Place by the ACE Hardware Store on 22nd Street? Very nicely stocked hobby shop that I go to on a regular basis.
7071 E 22nd St
Tucson, AZ 85710
United States
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Thanks!
We have to be back on the 9th…
I hear ya. Well, 2nd Saturday of the month AZ AMPS meets at that location. After meetings is chow at a local eatery, followed by an after meeting visit to Andy’s. If you or anyone else here is in town on one of those dates… please join us.
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Sounds great, thanks
after hitting post I noticed numerous typos so I’ve gone back and corrected this post*
Have not read through all the replay so I apologize for any redundancies.
Go to the little town of Jerome above Cottonwood. It’s an old ghost town that was populated by hippies back in the sixties and now it’s a thriving tribute to their hated capitalism. Now art colonies and shops, there are a few museums there, one in a basement - former auto company. Lots of garage and automobile artifacts from the 1920s and 30s. Probably a few more things around there that I’ve ever had a chance to tour.
North of Flagstaff heading towards the Grand canyon is a little town with a pretty impressive Aviation museum. I don’t know if it’s still open.
There are some old military fort museum scattered around the state.
DOwn in Buckeye just south of Phoenix there’s an aviation museum. I think that used to be the airport that Bigert had their operations at. I’ve never been there aside from putting in an application for a flying job back in 1990. So I’ve never actually seen the museum.
Down in Mesa at the airport is an air museum. I think it’s part of CAF’s operation or maybe it’s separate, but it’s fairly nice if you like Aviation subjects. It ain’t the late Champlin fighter Museum no more but it’s still good. I haven’t been to it in over 10 years though.
Go down to Casa Grande to the airport, and see if Goss Hawk has a museum or at least will let you come and look around. I don’t know what’s down there right now but that’s the place that builds replica Ki-43 Hayabusas and I think they even worked on some Focke-Wulfs.
If you make it down to Tucson there’s the Pima Air Museum.
In Prescott they have a museum, some frontier Museum that includes a tour of the former Governor office and residence. I enjoyed it. I think there’s another museum nearby but I don’t remember it.
I think there’s a small but I’ve heard interesting Railroad Museum in Gallup or Winslow, outside of the Painted Desert along I-40.
In Scottsdale there’s the McCormick-Stillman Railroad Park, with big round of railroads as well as some Museum pieces. There’s another railroad park down around Chandler but when I was there 20 years ago, it’s a few pieces of rolling stock parked on a siding out of the middle of farm fields.
Travel east on US 60 to Globe, Miami, and Superior, I recall there are some mining museums. Never been to any of them. Stopped at a few but they were always closed.
Next time I go down there I intend to go to Casa Grande ruins.
In wickenburg there’s a western Museum cultural center. I went to something like it about 25 years ago and it was small but I liked it, but the website looks completely different from what I remember.
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Thanks
Flying or driving? If you’re driving, if you go through Oklahoma City on i-40, I strongly recommend you take a few hours and go to the 45th infantry division museum.
Tru-Color Paints is out there, too. On i-17 north Phoenix, I can’t remember the little town that used to just be a strip mall but now it’s really built up. It’s about 3 or 4 minutes off the interstate. I don’t know if they make time for anybody but I could contact the owner and see if they could spare some time to show you how they make their paints.
I’m not sure how long Andy’s has been open. If it’s where I’m thinking, back when they were like a little one room storefront, I visited. Next time I head back out there, I’m definitely going.
It’s a shame, because I remember the various hobby shops from when I was at Williams Air Force base. Then every year I’d come out for a visit, some would be closed and some new ones would be open. Last time I was out there though, aside from Michaels and Hobby Towns, nothing to choose from.
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Auto spell correct! I spend more time correcting my posts that I do dictating them! ***
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Flying and renting a car
I dunno if it is a museum or a theme park but if you go to Pima Air Museum, think about going to Old Tucson:
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