I'm very fortunate living in Chicago. I have a fabulous fly shop less than 5 miles from me. www.chifly.com is their on-line portal.

I will also say that I feel that I have an obligation to purchase items from them and not always look for the best deal on the internet. This is my personal opinion only and I realize it's my right to shop on-line for cheapest prices and not pay the ridiculous Chicago sales taxes. But I love the shop, I enjoy stopping by there and talking shop. So I think of myself as a steward to make sure they survive and to do my part by making purchases there. Not to say I don't buy items on line - I absolutely do.

Back to the point and not to hijack the thread with my personal opinions of purchases, I have a great shop in a major metropolitan area that I can be at in 10 minutes

Cheers,
Mike.