Yellow Sheets

[Detroit47]

Ok so how long has it been since the Yellow Sheets died? I used to wait for them with much anticipation. In those days the Fair Radio catalog was like the Sears Christmas catalog to.

Johnathan N8QPC

[KA3EKH]

When I was in High School back in 77/78 use to get them, and the Fair radio catalog was as you say. Every summer or so they would send out a supplement too!
Every year when I go to Dayton Hamvention always get there a day early to take a trip out to Fair Radio in Lima Ohio, was talking with one of the people I always go with to share expense about maybe not going to Fair this year and saving a bunch of money on additional Hotel day and gas and he told me Hell No!  That’s like the annual Hajj to Mecca.
The more I think about it the more I think he is right.
You would have a hard time convincing people of it today but their once was life before the internet.

[Opcom]

Yes in the late 70's-and 80's.
I used to await B&F Enterprises. One 70's issue had a NOS magnetic drum memory. Lots of fixed heads, big heavy unit! $300 was a lot of money but I dreamt of it.

This is an old 1982 list of surplus companies.
https://www.americanradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Consumer/Archive-Radio-Electronics-IDX/IDX/80s/1982/Radio-Electronics-1982-11-OCR-Page-0051.pdf

[W7TFO]

I got Barry's Green Sheets & Bernstein-Applebee stuff in the mail. Yummy!

73DG

[KA3EKH]

There were real ads in the back of QST too. I remember reading the want and for sale ads when they had things that people were selling like radios and parts. Also listed things for sale there back in the day.
Can also remember not so long ago when EBay had lots of Ham items that were sometimes bargains before what we have today with tons of junk at high “Buy it Now” prices. Just looked and there are over sixteen thousand Ham radio items listed with only a little over four hundred being actual auctions.

Question: Where do you find you best deals? This is my list in order of best to worst.

1 Personal Deals with people I have meant thru friends, over the internet or over the air.
2 Ham fest and equipment auctions (excluding EBay).
3 EBay.
4 On line retailers or distributors.
5 Ham Radio retailers at their stores or at Ham fest (almost never buy from these people).

[W3GMS]

I remember the Yellow Sheets with fondness.  Back in the late 60's, a Ranger II was listed for $750.00.   It was all original and the owner still had the box it came in.    I figured the guy must be nuts asking such a over the top price, so I called him.  He informed me that it was a misprint and the correct price was $75.00.   I bought it and its almost my daily user on the air to this day. 

Joe-W3GMS

[nq5t]

In the late 60's you could buy a Johnson Disk, or even a KW-1 for near nothing (relatively, at least).  It was all considered nothing more than old junk.  Even in the mid-60's, while I was away at school, I finally had my dad sell my Globe Champion 350 and I think we got around $25.00 for it.  Who'd ever want one of those old things, much less use it 

[Steve - K4HX]

Got my first real receiver, a HQ-129-X through the Yellow Sheets. Fond memories reading through when the sheets arrived.

[W3RSW]

Yeah loved to look through those sheets.  But, Oh I was bad.  Bought from a mag. ad. with table bussing money.  Got a real used HQ 110 from Burngheart (sp)..    Strung wire from my 4th floor dorm room out to the guy wire on a telephone pole.  Since I was above it I just pulled the wire up into the crotch where it connected to the pole about 30 ft. up. Lasted a few months before the company cut it down.  Yes there was a dogbone on the end loop. 

[Opcom]

There were real ads in the back of QST too. I remember reading the want and for sale ads when they had things that people were selling like radios and parts. Also listed things for sale there back in the day.
Can also remember not so long ago when EBay had lots of Ham items that were sometimes bargains before what we have today with tons of junk at high “Buy it Now” prices. Just looked and there are over sixteen thousand Ham radio items listed with only a little over four hundred being actual auctions.

Question: Where do you find you best deals? This is my list in order of best to worst.

1 Personal Deals with people I have meant thru friends, over the internet or over the air.
2 Ham fest and equipment auctions (excluding EBay).
3 EBay.
4 On line retailers or distributors.
5 Ham Radio retailers at their stores or at Ham fest (almost never buy from these people).

This is a difficult question.
New vs used scenario and vendor makes a big difference.
There is much value in using a local store where you can go back with the thing and talk about a problem face to face.
Online is ok but I don't like the poor cal center service of some of them, plus the shipping cost.
The best deal, to me, is not always about the cheapest price. There are factors of suspicion that the hamfest fellow might be 'mistaken' about the condition of the equipment and at auctions (eastate, etc) it is not always possible to test or examine. On ebay there are outright liars in the mix. These things cause stress.

This could change depending on what the product is and wheter there is any sort of guarantee.

1 Personal Deals with people I have meant thru friends, over the internet or over the air.
2 Ham Radio retailers at their stores or at Ham fest
3 On line retailers or distributors.
4 Ham fest and equipment auctions (excluding EBay).
5 EBay.

[WU2D]

Druuuuul.