dave524 Posted June 4, 2020 Report Posted June 4, 2020 3 hours ago, woodenboater said: now more than ever, I really miss LeBarons. Was never a fun time shopping at BPS, and preferred Cabelas instead tbh. I liked Sail, but agree that the stores are HUUUGE and perhaps they could have trimmed down a few GTA locations, and probably will. Hope the can recover. I miss the Outdoor Stores , I went to the one at QEW and Dixie I think it was, joy when we got one in an old supermarket at Main and Parkdale in Hamilton. The yuppie Collegiate Sports bought them out , got rid of the nasty firearms ( albeit I did get some great closeout deals ) and it went downhill from there. 2
AKRISONER Posted June 4, 2020 Report Posted June 4, 2020 (edited) I would also like to point out here that Sail doesnt push an absolute garbage line of Chinese designed/manufactured crap like Bass Pro does. When i first started shopping at bass pro 15ish years ago they had a mixture of their BP private label and then normal brands. As time has moved on they have basically just completely moved away from selling anything but BP branded crap. The stuff is exactly that...crap nock off junk. most noticeable is their terminal tackle selection...you can barely buy anthing except for their junky BP brand stuff now. My best experience was wanting some tungsten drop shot weights and of course the only brand they stocked was their own. I took them out on the lake made one cast and literally every single one of them the swivels immediately failed and broke resulting in me losing the entire package worth of weights. When i went to get a refund with i think 1 weight left in the package the guy tried to question why I wasnt returning the weights with the packaging and I told him that they shouldn't expect their customers to go and pick up their faulty product that naturally ended up on the bottom of a lake. The best shop in the GTA right now is Pro J. I find the guy at Gangons to be unhelpful and somewhat rude as if they are only intersted in helping out the guys that they know. Thats just my experience...they have a decent selection of stuff and their pricing is solid, but I personally prefer to shop at Pro J. Phoebe at Pro J (spelling) is the man, knows his stuff and is always willing to help you find or even order in anything that you need. Their pricing is literally as low as you will find anywhere. Edited June 4, 2020 by AKRISONER
porkpie Posted June 4, 2020 Report Posted June 4, 2020 I'm sorry to see that they are in trouble. I don't spend much there in the way of fishing as I shop pretty exclusively at Kingsway down in Guelph, but Sail is one of the options that I will go to for hunting products or if I want a firearm. I just picked up a shotgun from Lake Huron rod and gun and it turns out they are going out of business. That's a real loss. I've never had much luck with BPS or Cabelas. They rarely have what I want in the hunting department. Elwood Epps is a good store to stop at also when I'm heading to the cottage. Sail is a good option for hunters and fishermen, although I think there are enough small tackle shops out there that as long as you live in the area you should be supporting them as long as they have good service. But for hunters, the options are dwindling!
David Chong Posted June 4, 2020 Report Posted June 4, 2020 Looks like their restructuring is going to involve the closing of their 4 Sportium stores in Quebec which has always been a burden from the moment they bought them! Also they will be closing the Vaughan and Etobicoke locations in Ontario leaving them with 4 locations in Ontario & 8 in Quebec! Hopefully this will allow them to focus on their profitable locations and continue on!
David Chong Posted June 4, 2020 Report Posted June 4, 2020 2 hours ago, dave524 said: I miss the Outdoor Stores , I went to the one at QEW and Dixie I think it was, joy when we got one in an old supermarket at Main and Parkdale in Hamilton. The yuppie Collegiate Sports bought them out , got rid of the nasty firearms ( albeit I did get some great closeout deals ) and it went downhill from there. In my youth I worked at the Outdoor Stores in the old Birk's store at Yonge & Temperance! Fun times and great stores! Yup as soon as Collegiate bought them it went downhill but I was no longer there after that! LOL
misfish Posted June 4, 2020 Report Posted June 4, 2020 47 minutes ago, David Chong said: In my youth I worked at the Outdoor Stores in the old Birk's store at Yonge & Temperance! Fun times and great stores! Yup as soon as Collegiate bought them it went downhill but I was no longer there after that! LOL There was one off Dufferin, just north of Eglington. My pop loved that store. We always tagged along. In Brampton there was one as well. I believe Pat Mahoney family ran it. Great people they were. I can remember spending half a pay check on that place each week. Fridays were get fishing gear, take the family to the Ponderosa restaurant right next store, to make up for the weekend I would be fishing .. LOL
lew Posted June 4, 2020 Report Posted June 4, 2020 There was another Outdoor Store on the Danforth and although it was small they carried alot of stuff and I bought a set of golf clubs there many years ago. There was also a Collegiate Sports not too far away at Warden & St.Clair and I used to like wandering around there but I think the only thing I ever bought was a pair of Kodiak boots. Nice store but they didn't last too long at that location.
dave524 Posted June 4, 2020 Report Posted June 4, 2020 1 hour ago, David Chong said: In my youth I worked at the Outdoor Stores in the old Birk's store at Yonge & Temperance! Fun times and great stores! Yup as soon as Collegiate bought them it went downhill but I was no longer there after that! LOL Dating myself , but going to U of T 69/74 just below Bloor on Yonge, there was Skinner's Sporting Goods on 1 side of Yonge and virtually across from it was Hallam's Gun Store, I recall getting a brand new 22-250 Remington varmint rifle there, putting it in a case and getting on the subway 🤣. Skinner's later moved down on Adelaide just east of Yonge in what was an old bank building and Hallams went to a strip mall, think they had an indoor range there. 1
Headhunter Posted June 4, 2020 Author Report Posted June 4, 2020 Glad they're keeping the Shwa store open. I usually go to Gagnon's first, then get whatever else I "need" at Sail. Growing up in London, my buddies and I would ride our bikes across town to the Outdoor Store on Oxford Street. It sure beat CTC for selection and price! HH
woodenboater Posted June 4, 2020 Report Posted June 4, 2020 1 hour ago, dave524 said: ...there was Skinner's Sporting Goods on 1 side of Yonge and virtually across from it was Hallam's Gun Store, I recall getting a brand new 22-250 Remington varmint rifle there, putting it in a case and getting on the subway 🤣. Skinner's later moved down on Adelaide just east of Yonge in what was an old bank building and Hallams went to a strip mall, think they had an indoor range there. Skinners...
misfish Posted June 4, 2020 Report Posted June 4, 2020 5 minutes ago, Headhunter said: Glad they're keeping the Shwa store open. I usually go to Gagnon's first, then get whatever else I "need" at Sail. Growing up in London, my buddies and I would ride our bikes across town to the Outdoor Store on Oxford Street. It sure beat CTC for selection and price! HH And here we all sit, saying man you guys are old back when, yet we now sit here and say,were the old guys. LMAO Love the old memory lane stuff. Back when it was simple and well, easy then. 1
AKRISONER Posted June 4, 2020 Report Posted June 4, 2020 ugh, the vaughan store is basically always empty so I am not surprised, but also sucks because now the store that is on route to my way up north is going to be closing. I guess it will be Cabellas that I have to visit going forward.
David Chong Posted June 4, 2020 Report Posted June 4, 2020 48 minutes ago, misfish said: And here we all sit, saying man you guys are old back when, yet we now sit here and say,were the old guys. LMAO Love the old memory lane stuff. Back when it was simple and well, easy then. Here you go! LOL 1
misfish Posted June 4, 2020 Report Posted June 4, 2020 18 minutes ago, David Chong said: Here you go! LOL I was 14 then. A trouble maker by some peoples standards. LOL 1
gordy28 Posted June 5, 2020 Report Posted June 5, 2020 I will definitely miss the Etobicoke location - very easy for me to get to from Mississauga and no need to use the 407 unlike Vaughan or Burlington (well right now its fine as 401 is pretty clear right now) I am not exactly sure where it was but I always remember a big trip out was my grandfather taking us to Lebaron in Richmond Hill (believe it was on Yonge North of Highway 7) We would then Hillcrest Mall to eat in the food court... Good times, better memories 1
John Bacon Posted June 6, 2020 Report Posted June 6, 2020 9 hours ago, gordy28 said: I will definitely miss the Etobicoke location - very easy for me to get to from Mississauga and no need to use the 407 unlike Vaughan or Burlington (well right now its fine as 401 is pretty clear right now) I am not exactly sure where it was but I always remember a big trip out was my grandfather taking us to Lebaron in Richmond Hill (believe it was on Yonge North of Highway 7) We would then Hillcrest Mall to eat in the food court... Good times, better memories There was one on Woodbine north of #7. Prior to that, they were located on Yonge north of Finch. I don't ever recall a LeBaron's in Richmond Hill.
Tjames09 Posted June 6, 2020 Report Posted June 6, 2020 I mean the Vaughan one was next to BPS. Not really a smart spot. Should open one where there’s no competition like Peterborough.
captpierre Posted June 6, 2020 Report Posted June 6, 2020 Is it still true that fishing license sales are steadily declining in Ontario? I don’t know about hunting. Doesn’t sound good for the business.
gordy28 Posted June 6, 2020 Report Posted June 6, 2020 11 hours ago, John Bacon said: There was one on Woodbine north of #7. Prior to that, they were located on Yonge north of Finch. I don't ever recall a LeBaron's in Richmond Hill. Ahh - that makes sense - so I believe I am thinking of Yonge and Finch location - maybe because we headed to Hillcrest after I just confused it w Richmond Hill
Dutch01 Posted June 6, 2020 Report Posted June 6, 2020 On 6/4/2020 at 2:07 PM, dave524 said: ....and virtually across from it was *Hallam's* Gun Store,..... Hallam's - now that's a name I haven't heard in decades! I bought my first bow (a Hoyt-Easton compound) from their location on Gordon Baker road I think it was. That was back in '85, making me feel old too 😳
ketchenany Posted June 6, 2020 Report Posted June 6, 2020 On 6/4/2020 at 3:18 PM, misfish said: And here we all sit, saying man you guys are old back when, yet we now sit here and say,were the old guys. LMAO Love the old memory lane stuff. Back when it was simple and well, easy then. You’re not old if you went to Al Flatery’s on Dufferin North of Rogers road.
misfish Posted June 6, 2020 Report Posted June 6, 2020 (edited) 6 minutes ago, ketchenany said: You’re not old if you went to Al Flatery’s on Dufferin North of Rogers road. They were south of the Fairbanks swimming pool. I was down that way about 2 months ago when I went to Copas. Just to see and remember the day. Talk about a total let down on how it was kept up from when I use to go there in the mid 70,s . The whole area was a slum. WOW . Edited June 6, 2020 by misfish
ketchenany Posted June 6, 2020 Report Posted June 6, 2020 22 minutes ago, misfish said: They were south of the Fairbanks swimming pool. I was down that way about 2 months ago when I went to Copas. Just to see and remember the day. Talk about a total let down on how it was kept up from when I use to go there in the mid 70,s . The whole area was a slum. WOW . We lived there at the same time loved that place, never went to the pool! wish I would have kept this place, I was very young when I bought it. One of my girls took the kids to see where nonno lived!!!!
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