The ultimate insult: Hammarlund SP-600 dismantled

[w1vtp]

Dunno what was the scoop but this is the pits

http://shop.ebay.com/xdbi63/m.html?_trksid=p4340.l2562

This guy is selling the guts of a SP600

[KA0HCP]

Gotta love the wiring harness.  'Rotsa ruck figuring out how to reinstall it.

[KX5JT]

It is NOT the pits for someone looking for hard to find parts for another SP600.  Think of it as an organ donar.  Maybe the thing was dropped and the case all bashed in or something.

[WA1GFZ]

Maybe the guy strips cars for a living and wants to branch out.

[Pete, WA2CWA]

Over the years I've seen a number of SP-600 parts from gutted receivers, show up on ebay and other lists. Same can be said for lots of other receiver and transmitter parts that find their way to ebay and other lists.

[K9PNP]

Maybe UPS shipped it.  And those parts are all that is recognizable.

[WA3VJB]

Maybe the guy strips cars for a living and wants to branch out.

If he's got the time to sell components he will probably make more money than selling it complete as a beater.

[W2VW]

Maybe the guy hates the radio's guts enough to take it apart.

Could happen.

[N2udf]

Looks like something my dogs did.

[KF1Z]

Most radios are worth more as parts, than a complete unit.

Even newer rice-boxes....

It's almost like "added-value" to strip them down.

[wb1ead]

Hi Al..yup does seem a shame to see a rig no matter what canibalized..but on the other hand as Bruce mentioned they ARE sometimes worth more torn apart..sure looks that way as E-Pay has been posting quite a few rigs both old and new torn apart..I suppose it probably suffered from bad transformer blues or sumptin as drastic or cosmetic..ya know a gud dose of rust and corrosion all over..John-o-phonic has it right..a damn gud source of non-available parts for other owners..on the one hand I hate to see that but on the other I tolerate it......73 de DAVE

[Todd, KA1KAQ]

Most radios are worth more as parts, than a complete unit.

Very seldom, if ever, is that really true. Like assuming someone who buys an estate and sells the stuff is making a ton of money, it doesn't take into account the time involved with disassembling, testing if needed, listing on ebay in this case, packing, and shipping. Though I'll guess that pulling cards out of a plastic Yaecomwood or a board from a Class E HB rig is not a time-consuming or difficult job, you could strip the radio in 15 minutes.

Biggest problem is the older receivers is that so few of the parts sell. Transformers, chokes, knobs, maybe dials and a few of the more common cosmetic parts. Often things like the chassis, tube sockets, minor components and other left overs get tossed.

Though I agree with the 'organ donor' approach (bad packing and poor handling add to this pile daily) and with a person's right to do with their equipment as they see fit, it's always a bit sad to see a known-good set torn down and sold as parts. Some will recall that Martyn a.k.a. radio-mart on ebay got his start this way. He was notorious for listing a complete SP-600 with a big reserve, then stripping and trying to sell parts a week or two after it didn't sell. I recall a lot of comments on the email lists and news groups from people who wanted to dismantle him.

[W2VW]

If anyone ever dismantles Martyn I'd like a chance to bid on some of the pieces.

[Steve - K4HX]

I don't see it as an ultimate insult. It's just a radio. Further, it's that guy's radio. He can do with it as he wishes. Would you want someone questioning your use of your radios?

[K1JJ]

Todd, you're right.  There's big competition out there and we don't get any free lunches. To market a parts radio, we would have to invest a lot of time to tear it down, photograph the parts, list each one, collect the funds, ship them out one by one, etc. Then we have left over parts that do not sell.  Compare this to listing just one radio and selling it whole.

I know that cars parted out do VERY well. The reason is that most guys needing just one part are willing to pay a premium for it vs: paying big money for the whole car they don't need. Same for parts radios.

Personally, I look at it like the airplane bone yard out west. Sometimes we need to be unemotional and let these old noble airships provide one last service - as parts to extend others' lives. I have no problem with seeing a rig parted out. If it wasn't a viable method, it wouldn't be done cuz the guys would be losing money doing it. Somebody obviously needs parts out there. This is a good thang. In 1000 years everything we know now will be dust anyway...

Heck, I will be the recipient of an FT-1000D PA unit and low pass filter board soon. My friend's FT-1000D blew out its main local control CPU with no replacements available. Now here's a $1200 radio that will be parted out and will make a lot of radios whole again, probably netting  most if not all of his money back. No one would pay that for a whole junker but will if they need parts like I do..  

T

[W7TFO]

Ummmm..Kinda like the kidneys, hearts, & lungs eTc that keep some of us around for another hamfest or two.

73DG

[KM1H]

Around here it woud be from FedWrex.

[w3jn]

As I found out to my chagrin, the ultimate insult appears to be removing one turn off a 51J-4 endpoint adjust coil in order to make it usable.

A friend parted out a ratty SX-16; he needed the knobs for his.  He passed it to me, and I stole some coils out of it to restore an otherwise very nice SX-16 whose top band had been hammy hamboned.  I've helped out a bunch of guys with trimmers, coils, the crystal, the dial, etc.  I'm betting this one sad SX-16 has gotten a dozen more operational and off the shelf.

There were a bazillion SP-600s made, I'm not gonna lose any sleep over it.

[Todd, KA1KAQ]

As I found out to my chagrin, the ultimate insult appears to be removing one turn off a 51J-4 endpoint adjust coil in order to make it usable.

For shame for shame! Spoiling that pure Collins originality. Bailiff! Whack his....

I've got an equally-or-worse ratty 75A-2 sitting up north purchased at Hosstraders years ago for $75, mainly to get the 4:1 tuning knob someone had installed. They also added a few tube sockets, switches, an International product detector kit and a few other 'improvements'. So far it's donated its BFO can, knobs, escutcheon, some iron, and other goodies. Another one I have isn't as bad, but its panel will be going to Slab the next time I'm up there to grab it.

Todd, you're right.  There's big competition out there and we don't get any free lunches. To market a parts radio, we would have to invest a lot of time to tear it down, photograph the parts, list each one, collect the funds, ship them out one by one, etc. Then we have left over parts that do not sell.  Compare this to listing just one radio and selling it whole.

I've seen this time after time in simply cleaning up, repairing, or otherwise trying to upgrade the condition of a piece of gear I want to sell. 9 times out of 10, it sells for no more money or I end up cutting an already low price just to move it. Evidenced recently at Richmond with a very clean transmitter for sale.

It's easier just to send it down the road as-is, otherwise the investment of time, new tubes, and whatever else eats up any perceived profits or negates the perceived benefit of having done so.

Heck, I will be the recipient of an FT-1000D PA unit and low pass filter board soon. My friend's FT-1000D blew out its main local control CPU with no replacements available. Now here's a $1200 radio that will be parted out and will make a lot of radios whole again, probably netting  most if not all of his money back. No one would pay that for a whole junker but will if they need parts like I do.. 

I heard the story of that friend's radio. Tragic, indeed.   Glad to hear some of the pieces will be coming your way, and also glad that it's a newer radio where stripping involves popping out some boards and sending them down the road. Hopefully he'll break even at least on the deal. Or perhaps he'll be able to employ his method for reselling spools of copper wire, in which case he could retire comfortably. 

[k4kyv]

My friend's FT-1000D blew out its main local control CPU with no replacements available. Now here's a $1200 radio that will be parted out and will make a lot of radios whole again, probably netting  most if not all of his money back. No one would pay that for a whole junker but will if they need parts like I do..  

I assume Yaesu has "discontinued" replacement CPUs.  Funny how manufacturers have a knack for discontinuing replacement parts just about the time the product is getting old enough that it might need replacement parts.

Not sure how old the FT-1000D is, but I remember it was the top of their line not that long ago. Something to think about next time you even contemplate the idea of spending big bucks on one of the more expensive plastic appliances: how many of them will still be operational and in use 60, 70, 80, or for that matter even 15 years from now? Yet we hear 1930s, 1940s and 1950s era transmitters running AM every night, and reports of receivers of the same era receiving it.

[w5omr]

I assume Yaesu has "discontinued" replacement CPUs.  Funny how manufacturers have a knack for discontinuing replacement parts just about the time the product is getting old enough that it might need replacement parts.

Makes ya wonder if they engineered the gear to break at a certain time, don't it, Don?

[Steve - K4HX]

Not hardly. Most FT-1000s are 20 years old and working fine. Their resale price remains high for a reason.

[Pete, WA2CWA]

My Kenwood Twins and TS-830S from the late 70's are still working fine.

[K1JJ]

Old rig longevity is related to a simple bell curve.  At one end we have rigs that crap out right away. At the fat middle, most run for an "average" lifetime. At the other extreme end we have rigs that last for many, many decades. "[Rigs] are like a box of chocolates - you never know what you're gonna get."

Just hope we have no rig accidents, bad parts, poor ventilation or other problems that shorten life. It's much akin to human life spans.   The genes (rig quality)  have the most effect, but how well the body (rig) is cared for matters too.

In a recent case, I know of an HPSDR receiver that had 200W injected into its front end. The doctor called today and said a small operation will fix it. Accidents do happen...

T

[KF1Z]

Todd, you're right.  There's big competition out there and we don't get any free lunches. To market a parts radio, we would have to invest a lot of time to tear it down, photograph the parts, list each one, collect the funds, ship them out one by one, etc. Then we have left over parts that do not sell.  Compare this to listing just one radio and selling it whole.

You guys make it sound like hours and hours of work to take apart a radio! 

Plastic radios take about 15 minutes to dismantle. As Todd said.
( I don't quite get the jab about taking a board out of an E-rig though.. geez..)

Another hour at most to photograph all the bits and list for sale.
Packing and shipping, another 5 minutes per piece.

One MIGHT have as much as 3 hours work total in stripping a radio, and shipping it.

Made some 'good' money doing this for a few years.
(not just amateur radio gear, but other "junk" too)
Once you have packing supplies supplied free of charge from the post office on hand,
it all goes very quick

Of course, I don't value my time like some of you guys do.
If I make $5-10 an hour, sitting home turning a screwdriver, it's all gravy!

Since I'm sitting home with the kids anyway....  :-)

Depending, of course, on the exact model... you can generally collect 10 to 30% more as individual parts ( boards etc), than selling it whole...
The exceptions are if the rig is in PERFECT shape, inside and out... and whether it's considered "collector quality"... then yeah.. better left whole.

Oh well... as usual, my opinion differs from the mainstream...

Know what?  I don't care!