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- Subject: Re: Radio shack to file for bankruptcy
- From: Mark Connelly <markwa1ion@xxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 16 Jan 2015 22:08:24 -0500
- Delivered-to: irca@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
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The Shack provided some of my best portable DX machines from 1961 right
into the Eighties.
Most were in the popular "TRF" series.
In August 1966, at a summer cottage rental at West Dennis Beach, MA, I
had one of my first big hauls of transatlantic MW stations. This was
with a 12R614K Realistic TRF model, a predecessor to the more famous
12-655 of the Seventies.
Some TRF's I was able to modify with regeneration to boost selectivity
and sensitivity.
My TRF tribute page, with links to the Radio Shack catalogues site:
http://chowdanet.com/markc/doc/trf.htm
Radio Shack catalogue site:
http://www.radioshackcatalogs.com
With Radio Shack stores likely to close, experimenters and hobbyists
will be looking for "fire sale" clearance offers.
When the stores are gone, we will be mostly shopping in an online world
with C. Crane, Universal Radio, Fry's, HRO, AES, and Amazon covering
much of the equipment end.
Parts can be bought from the likes of Mouser, Digi-Key, Newark/Farnell,
Jameco, and Allied. Here in MA we still have the "You Do It"
electronics store in Needham.
Much of the rest or Radio Shack's stuff (e.g. cables, small hand tools)
may be found at Walmart, Home Depot, Lowe's, auto parts stores, etc.
More than once, the Radio Shack store here in South Yarmouth bailed out
beach DXpeditions and antenna raising sessions with emergency parts and
gear - even if just a humble bag of clip leads. The value of that
store goes back to 1974 when my parents had moved to the town from
Arlington, MA. This quick access to needed items won't be as easy in
the future I suppose.
Short story is that this chain lost its focus and could not compete
with big box stores in electronic commodity items (phones, TV's, PC's,
stereo, etc.) or with the hard-core parts stores such as Mouser for
hams, makers, d-i-y folks, computer / robotics geeks, and other
hobbyists. They retained way too many brick-and-mortar outlets 20 or
more years after online shopping had become a regular activity for most
potential customers.
No matter how you look at this, it's THE END OF AN ERA.
Mark Connelly, WA1ION
South Yarmouth, MA
-----Original Message-----
From: Rick Dau <drummer1965us@xxxxxxxxxxx>
To: irca <irca@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>; am <am@xxxxxxxxxxx>; abdx
<abdx@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Thu, Jan 15, 2015 8:56 pm
Subject: Re: [NRC-AM] Radio shack to file for bankruptcy
Anyone with at least half a grasp of what their situation has been like
in recent years (i.e., dire) could see this was coming, so it's not too
surprising at all. ÂFortunately, there are still places like Universal
Radio in Ohio and Ken's Electronics in Kalamazoo, Mich. that sell the
receivers and parts that we in the DXing hobby need and seek out the
most.Â
Â
73,
Rick Dau
South Omaha, Nebraska ÂEN21afÂ
Kenwood R-5000, Quantum QX Pro loop, Sangean ATS-909X, Select-A-Tenna,
Quantum Stick+, and Midland WR-300
http://www.dxworld.com/bcblog.html
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