Throw away society


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Another thread dealt with the demise of the local mechanic. Not wanting to hi-jack it I thought it best to start another.

It seems as though manufacturers have deliberately robbed us of much incentive to repair anything. Most new cars require hi tech diagnostic equipment which the average back yard mechanic does not have or can't afford.

In the early to mid sixties the company I served my apprenticeship with would repair small appliances. Kettles, toasters, hair dryers, irons etc. An electrician would stay in the shop for an hour or so to fix them before going out in his service truck.

Very often the fix was simple, a broken wire, broken switch or burned out element. The parts were readily available the repair was fairly inexpensive compared to the cost of a new appliance and the customer was happy. Also a servicable item was kept out of the landfill, which would keep the green crowd happy today.

As I've gotten a little older I would love to fix those items as a little sideline, but parts are next to unavailable and if you charge anything more than 4 or 5 dollars it is just cheaper for the customer to buy another "made in China" piece of junk.

Seems like the same with TV sets. Just toss 'em in the bin and buy another one.

So, in our brave new world the skilled tradesman who could make and fix items is on the scrap heap too.

Perhaps another depression will change that. We seem to be well on our way.

Sorry to be so negative. As Bip says it must be those pesky pills. !inthebin!

Dave

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Hi Dave

We bought the daughter an electric piano for her 13th birthday some years back and it gave good service upto about 4 years ago when the grandkids and niece used to come over and 'play' on it.

Anyhows, it stopped working one day after playing for a few minutes, shutting off and then re-starting etc, so I contacted Yamaha who recommended the 'local' repair agent who lived in Arnold.

He came out and diagnosed the 'something-or-other PCB'

One was duly ordered and he fitted it and it worked for about 1 day before - hey ho - it was back to square 1.

Needless to say, he refused to come back or even answer his phone as he seemed quite content spending our £75.!!!

Yamaha told me that the piano was obsolete and that they were not stocking spare parts as they had new models on the market, but this thing was only 13 years old and in great condition. Replacement PCB's were no longer available so I ended up contacting an electronics repair man off the net. Sent him the main Power PCB as this is what I traced the fault to, he tested it, replaced a faulty capacitor (58p) and sent me the part back.

Since the piano was rebuilt, it is working just like new.

If I had listened to Yamaha, I would now be £3k out of pocket!!!!!!

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If I had listened to Yamaha, I would now be £3k out of pocket!!!!!!

Classic example of what I'm getting at, Frank.

I am assuming that the PCB referred to was a Printed Circuit Card. If they will repair anything at all most techs just want to replace the card. They either lack the skill or the willingness to try to diagnose it down to the 58 cent capacitor.

The repair shop should have stood behind its repair. It's this kind of stuff that gets the whole business a bad name.

Yamaha, would have been delighted to sell you another piano and yours would not doubt have ended up in the landfill

Dave

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With modern switching power supplies, your in for all sorts of things going wrong within a couple of years or so. The capacitors "dry out".

A big problem with modern electronics are they cost more to work on than they cost brand new.

We cleared a house out that had been repoed, used to make us a few bucks doing it and we generally found some "good stuff" we can use in the process. In one was a 28 inch TV, dead as a do do when I checked it, there was a Dish Network Sat receiver too with a telephone cable still attached. I found a main fuse blown in the TV and put two and two together. Checked the diodes in the main switching power supply and found one dead short circuit. Replaced all four for higher ratings and the set is still working perfectly six years on. There was a severe thunderstorm at the time this set was smoked together with the sat receiver. We found when the old feller who lived in the house had died, so put two and two together that the set was still connected during those storms.

I've repaired a couple of shelf stereo's we picked up from vacated house we cleaned, I'm still keeping my fingers crossed I'll get a Collins "S" line radio Amp and the other goodies from a repoed house one day!

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On my trips to the local tip, Some of the stuff I was chuckin, others could use.

And stuff that others were chuckin, I could have used.

If they allowed recycling there, we could cut down the landfill

With Flat Screen TV technology, now lots of good recent large screen CRT TV's are being dumped!

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I refuse to do such a thing Mick, while LCD TV's cost an arm and a leg and mine works perfectly OK, I'll stick with it!

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I try to tell SWMBO that regarding the telly, I have an old one that I insisted goes in the loft for use with play stations in years to come.

As you ex pats know by now ,here in the U.K. we are losing our analogue T.V. channels, and as such we have to buy 'Set top boxs' (I am already on my third and we don't even need them yet!!) But these only work on certain tellys (If yours dosent have a 'Scart' input you are buggered and have to buy a new T.V.) Also ,something they neglected to tell you at the time, if you buy a 'Set Top' box that doesn't have two 'Scart' sockets you can't tape programmes either!!

Another little tale . Last evening our Adam got into our bedroom again , this time he emptied the contents of a brand new (Unused) tube of nose drops into my alarm clock / radio/ telephone, that I have had for 25 years , and succeeded in shorting something out inside it , as a result it's in the dustbin and I'm on the way to buy a new one . (I bet it costs a bit more than the last one (£8))

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Early next year Ian, it's hi def digital only here too. BUT, as I can only get three stations on the antenna from terrestrial stations, it's doesn't worry me. I get tv via satellite, so again it doesn't worry me while they broadcast both high def and standard, both are digital anyway.

There are digital conversion boxes now on sale, but I doubt I'd get many more stations on an antenna, so my repaired 28 inch Sanyo will carry me through a few more years.

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I get about 70 extra telly channels but a lot are plus ones ie Channel 4 +1 gives you the programme happening an hour ago . Can you imagine it 70 channels and nowt on!!

I do enjoy a freeview channel that we have called "Dave". 'It's the home of witty banter ' is their slogan , and they show all the old programmes I enjoy (Repeats) Top Gear , Question of Sport , Q.I. etc

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With modern switching power supplies, your in for all sorts of things going wrong within a couple of years or so. The capacitors "dry out".

A big problem with modern electronics are they cost more to work on than they cost brand new.

You put you finger on it right there Ayup. Cost more to work on than they cost brand new. That is now true of more than just electronics and I guess that is the root of the problem.

I can buy a new toaster for less than the price of a replacement 'stat or element.

That's what comes of lving in the 60s I guess. compusmash

Dave

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I've a Yaesu FT736R that has an intermittent fault on the switching supply, when I get time, I'm pulling all the electrolytics and replacing them.

My main rig, I'm a licensed ham by the way, has a switching power supply, I hate them with a vengeance, may be lighter, but boy do they cause problems!

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I don't normally respond to you me owd ducks, but ham radio has made me many friends in different countries over the years and linked my up to some old work mates I'd lost contact with over the years.

I've also "ragchewed" with many young lady hams and a few youngsters over the years too.

Loud mouthed you say, only met a couple out of hundreds of hams world wide. Now thats what I say.

Took me many hours of learning electronic and radio theory plus when I took my test I had to "copy" five minutes of morse code sent at 13 words per minute.

All in all, I've chatted and met up with many hams in the nearly 20 years I've been licensed and enjoyed every minute of it talking about ANYTHING, but mostly about family, what we do besides radio, electronics, like I say anything. Weather???? We know what the weather world wide is, we all have televisions you plonker!

Last time I was in the UK I dropped by Terry G0HMY whom I'd only chatted with on the radio, stayed and met his wife and family and his soccer playing dog.

So as one would say "stick that in yer pipe and smoke it" Thats what I say. !inthebin!

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the last vestage of a sad git !,
You say?

Its not a simple as you make out.

I'm No expert but theres a lot more to it than meets the eye.

hancock_radio_ham_330.jpg

You can send bread pudding to Kuala Lumpur?

"copy" five minutes of morse code sent at 13 words per minute
you say

"What a waste of time", I say. Joe Morse invented Data transfer, Which is not unsimilar to the data used for internet today

but what a slow modem in those days! slower than my first 2400 (c.1994)

"Dit Dit Dahh, Dah Dah Dit", you say, No thank you very much, you wont catch me doing that.

Get on channel 19 and get a copy, thats what I would do?

A bit like this texting lark on the car phones! Whats that all about?

"Ring em up and bleddy talk to them", Thats what I say!

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Cell phones, (mobiles as you call them) were invented by hams, plus many other everyday electronic items can be traced back to hams, even radio and tv!

During times of emergencies, hams are there giving their help free of charge, the Tsunami in the Indian Ocean a few years back, when communications were down in the region, during the Loma Prieta earthquake communications in and out of the Bay area were blocked, so hams set up health and welfare communications in and out of the area, during Katrina a ham was aiding the weather folks get vital weather info out of the area as phone lines were dead. After Katrina, most parts of Mississippi had no phones or electricity, as a good part of Louisiana, Hams were there helping the emergency folks with much appreciated communications equipment and help. List goes on and on. We are a national resource when emergencies abound, and we vollunteer our help free and at no cost to the taxpayer. Thats what I say.

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Never met any nerds who were hams, Joe Walsh most certainly wouldn't fit that mould, nor would the late Barry Goldwater, or the late Walter Cronkite or many of the famous hams like the late King Hussien of Jordon. One's I've met in person were radio station engineers/DJ's, business men, lawyers, electronic engineers, farmers, police officers, computer engineers, handymen, prison officers, in fact from all walks of life. There are even some pop stars, female types too, Joe Walsh being about the most famous rock star I know of. I believe Tony Hancock was one even though he sent us up in his famous sketch.

Here's a few more.

Stewart Granger.

Sir Brian Rix.

King Juan Carlos of Spain.

Andy Devine.

Marlon Brando.

Patty Loveless... Country and Western singer.

Chet Atkins.

Ronnie Milsap.. Country and Western singer.

Andy Griffith.. actor.

Agreed a few of these are dead now. But none fit the nerd look!

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Isn't the Main man in Saudi Arabia a big Ham opperator too John (Can't think of his title)

And IMMSC so was King Hussein of Jordan

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Let me get us all back on topic with a little news item.

Today I threw away [recycled] an empty can of garden peas which I ate for me dinner and a tin of new spuds which too I had for me dinner married together with two lamp chops yummy!

Tomorrow I’m planning to do the same but I might have carrots instead of the peas.

Bip.

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...married together with two lamp chops yummy!

I've got some very nice mint growing at the side of the house Den - goes wonderful with them lamb chops!

I throw a sprig in when I cook corn-on-the-cob too. Adds a lovely flavor!

!hungr!

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I've got some very nice mint growing at the side of the house Den - goes wonderful with them lamb chops!

I throw a sprig in when I cook corn-on-the-cob too. Adds a lovely flavor!

!hungr!

Mint thrown in with some fresh dug tiny new potatoes and boiled make a delicious combination.

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...I don't normally respond to you me owd ducks, but ham radio has made me many friends in different ...snip...So as one would say "stick that in yer pipe and smoke it" Thats what I say...

"...Never in the field of internet forums has so much troll feeding been made by so many to so few..."

Cheers

Robt P.

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