Dennis LaGrua posted:In the 1950's and 1960's the US electronics business was state-of-the-art and booming. Many young people started by building electronic kits and did science projects which prepared them for college education and good paying jobs in the industry. The electronics stores selling parts were all over the place and focused in one section of Manhattan called Radio Row. I was such a hobbyist who later graduated from engineering school and had a good career in the high tech industry. Sadly there is little opportunity in the electronics industry today and the closing of Radio Shack just confirms that.
Here in the rust belt we had Lafayette (LRE) as well as Radio Shack and mail order catalogs from Federated Purchaser Electronics.... and the usual supply of Heath Kits.
Radio Shack in it's heyday was surely a treasure trove. Rosin core solder in relatively inexpensive spools, great pencil soldering irons of various wattages and tips, soldering supplies, wire of all types, resistors and capacitors and transistors as well as metal boxes and knobs.
I built my first transistor throttle in the mid 70's from plans in MR as well as parts from Radio Shack as well as a local electronics supply house. The supply house was across the street from one of the nations foremost telephony labs and the counter parts guys were always friendly to help the young fellow whose dad dropped him off at the door. It was nice to hear them explain to me the difference of NPN versus PNP transistors and what kind of power supply transformer I needed.
The disappearance of Radio Shack simply echoes the broader society in that people are glued to TV/phone/game/computers and have little interest in the actual "infrastructure" of technology, of much of which is now engineered and built offshore.
Yep, sadly gone are the days of school science fair projects, huge Christmas retail train displays and model railroading merit badges and that is reflected in things like the Shack's downward spiral.
