[Boatanchors] RATSHACK?

[Jim Wilhite]

Radio Shack was a stand alone company many years ago the Tandy purchased. 
Tandy Stores (remember them?) sold leather, leather goods, leather 
shoelaces, etc.  Now you don't see a Tandy Store anywhere.  Guess the profit 
was in electronics.

Radio Shack was one of the first retail companies to sell computers across 
the counter.  Who could forget those famous Radio Shack computers.  That is 
when they begin to get away from parts.

Maybe those "Lifetime" tubes taught them a lesson?  I had a friend give me a 
WRL 755A VFO recently and all three tubes were Lifetime by Realistic, a 
Radio Shack brand.  I don't know about today, but a few years back I took a 
bad Realistic tube to RS to have them replace it.  It really baffled the 
sales person who picked up the phone and called his district manager who 
instructed him to replace it.

The store was a franchise and the guy didn't like it because it wasn't as 
simple as them sending a new piece to him.  I don't know if they paid him or 
gave him stock credit for the tube, but he ordered another for me which did 
not have "Lifetime" on it.  It did have "Realistic" embossed on the 
envelope.

Who else would honor that kind of warranty today?  I don't know if they 
would still do that, but I will tell you the employees receive bonuses based 
on quotas for sales.  They received commission for each sale, that is part 
of the reason they don't want to fool with resistors when they can get much 
more money for selling a telephone or battery.  So why would they know about 
50 cent caps, resistors, or for that matter stock those parts?

73  Jim
W5JO

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "James Duffer" <dufferjames at hotmail.com>
To: <boatanchors at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Sunday, May 29, 2005 8:40 AM
Subject: Re: [Boatanchors] RATSHACK?


> It's about time a post acknowledges the good points about Radio Shack. 
> Convenience and quick emergency type needs is where they come in handy. 
> Many a field day operation was saved by a quick radio shack purchase.  As 
> far as the knowledge possessed by the workers at RS, I don't see that they 
> are in any worse shape than other "minimum wage" employees.
>
> The only radio shack in my area is getting ready to close, it was one of 
> those "independent" type (kinda like some of the Macdonalds) operating in 
> a furniture store.  Now the nearest radio shack will be about 50 miles 
> away (one way), so that the only redeeming features is moot!  Long live RS 
> and may many benefit from their convenience.
>
> P.S.  I have no connection with RS or Tandy, just an occasional customer. 
> Didn't that part of Tandy spin off from Allied electronics?  I remember 
> Allieds big catalog that use to be sent to the occasional purchaser.  I 
> know they are still in business and I ordered a part from them for my 
> Weller type pencil gun soldering iron.
>
> de wd4air
>