71 replies to this topic

[Samiam]

The slot car hobby has outlasted Radio Shack.

 

So we got that going for us.

[MSwiss]

I've thought about it, and don't see the correlation of comparing longevity of a hobby/activity with a business.

[Samiam]

Radio Shack was a mainstay of do-it-yourselfers and hobbyists.

 

Not a precise scientific correlation. Just an observation. Thought about it when another blogger asked where to get some plugs for a controller. Just a few years ago Radio Shack would have been the answer. 

[MattD]

I do see a connection. For years RS was the place to go for wire, switches, little gizmos, plastic boxes for controller connections, terminal strips, all kinds of  things for the do it your selfer (slot car guys). Also the place to go for any kind of stereo, radio, speaker, or recording devices. Then RS got into the early computer market (probably too early). Then toys and cellphones and the do-it-yourself stuff became a smaller part of their business.   

 

This transition took place over the same time period as kids and adults got more hooked on entertainment from some kind of electric box rather than something they did with their hands. I always say slot car racing, building, and modeling in general has aged with all of us and younger people need instant gratification and do-it-yourself stuff is not important to them like it is to us.

 

How many of you guys 55 or older went to RS and got speaker or coax cable for wiring up your TVs at home? How many guys got some of those plastic work boxes for controller terminal or wiring boxes on their slot track? Even basic RCA plugs back when we all used them?

[MSwiss]

Sorry, but all the stuff Radio Shack sells that a slot racer uses can still be bought, from Fry's or Micro Center, and in the case of Fry's, a much better selection.

 

Regardless, I don't see how a business being run badly, that has a minor connection to slot racing, has to do with a niche hobby surviving.

 

I.E. slot racing is never going out of business.

 

Slot car companies do go out of business, and many have... just like Radio Shack.

[Ramcatlarry]

Solder and TV stuff - Home Depot, Lowes, Menards, or Ace have it... Electronics online - Allied,  Digikey, Mouser, McMaster-Carr, and others.

[Brinkley47]

Radio shack went out of business because of their connection to the wireless industry. The other products they sold made up a very small portion of their overall sales.

They got into wireless thinking they could be a major player. Reality set in and they burnt bridges with the top carriers. Goodbye, Radio Shack.

[Dave Crevie]

I believe Will may be correct about RS getting into cell phones, etc. They didn't approach it well. 

 

And Matt is right about hobbyists now not being the builders they were years ago. A few years ago I dropped in on an R/C airplane club I used to fly with, but had dropped out of 25 years ago. There were as many RTF and ARF planes there as the old kit-built standards. Many were electric powered. This fact may also account for die cast models becoming so popular.

 

Somewhere we have lost the sense of accomplishment we once had from creating something.

[gjc2]

The correlation is Radio Shack was and slot car raceways are places that rely on “do-it-yourselfers” for customers.

 

“Do-it-yourselfers” are an endangered species. 

[Phil Hackett]

I recently had an appliance repairman fix the refrigerator... but I'm about to install a new garbage disposal... so I guess I'm 50/50...

[Ramcatlarry]

Many of the RS part numbers can be found in the Allied electronics catalog. Of the current 1,000+ stores, over a dozen are in the Chicago suburbs today.
 
Not fake news.

[Rob Voska]

 all the stuff Radio Shack sells, that a slot racer uses, can still be bought, from Fry's or Micro Center, and in the case of Fry's, a much better selection.

 

Mike, when you live in the boonies Radio Shack was all we had. Almost every town over 30K people had one. There are no other options. Now we have nothing. 

[Samiam]

Where can I go when I need a coax connector for my K-5 CB antenna? 

[MattD]

I could always walk in a RS and browse the store and find odds and ends I could use. There was never any other kind of electronics store in my area where this stuff was available. Yes, you can get all of it through the internet, but it's hard to pick up an item and get a close look on the net. You also don't just walk by an aisle of parts and maybe something catches your eye. Definitely browsing is much different on the net than in a brick and mortar.  

 

I do agree that they made some serious mistakes with their business model and plans. The shifting of their core business was a big part, though. How many of us guys built/put together nice stereo systems in the '60s and '70s? How many still have such a system? 1 in 10? How many of us have some type of TV service and no outside antenae or internal wiring? If you have TC wiring in your house, did you do it or the cable/sat company? When is the last time you bought a cassette player and put it in your car?   

 

Just been a lot of change in how things get done and many people now just have somebody else do it for them.   

 

I bet 60% or more of you guys want something, think about needing something and just assume you will make or build what you want.   I bet if you are under 50 that number would fall to about 25%.    

 

So, I don't think you can deny the changing market made RS outdated and the changes needed to be a viable business as the years went by were never made and what was made was wrong.

[slotcarone]

Anybody remember Lafayette Electronics?

[Phil Smith]

I was a guitar player as a kid and all Radio Shack music related merchandise was terrible. Even their 1/4" and XLR connectors were crap. It didn't seem like they had anything that was worth a damn.

[Mike Patterson]

Where can I go when I need a coax connector for my K-5 CB antenna?

I know it's mail/internet ordering, but I like Parts Express out of Springboro, OH. Plus, they have print catalogs, a vanishing breed.
 

Anybody remember Lafayette Electronics?

Oh, yes. I have one of their old catalogs somewhere in the archives.

[Half Fast]

Anybody remember Lafayette Electronics?

 
 I bought a big shortwave receiver from Lafayette Radio.
 
There was an Allied Radio as well.
 
Cheers,

[Cheater]

My first stereo, built in my college dorm roon, was a Heathkit AR1500 received, at the time one of the best receivers available.

I think it's still kicking around the basement somewhere.

[Bill from NH]

I'm a Heathkit guy myself. I gave my receiver and several others away, but still use an ultrasonic cleaner, power supply, and motor speed control built in the '70s.

[Racer36]

They had electricity when you were in college, Greg?    

[Cheater]

Yeah, but only from Leyden jars. (Bet you have to look that term up... LOL!)

[Racer36]

You got me...

[MSwiss]

Yeah, but only from Leyden jars. (Bet you have to look that term up... LOL!)

Before I looked it up, I was right that you usually hear them referenced with Tesla coils.

Leyden Jar Battery for Tesla Coils

[Cheater]

Leyden jars were basically the first workable batteries.