[Heathkit] Does Heathkit Still Exist?

[Duane Fischer, W8DBF]

Thank you Glen.

Just for those who are looking, St. Joseph is a county in southwestern lower 
Michigan. The town of St. Joseph is located in it.

When Heathkit closed down the town of Benton Harbor turned into an 
impoverished slum, so I am told by residents nearby it. Recently the town 
has been revived somewhat by some new influx of employment, although nobody 
who tells me about it seems to know what these new jobs are.

Benton Harbor used to be a small, quaint kind of/sort of rural community 
that was friendly and pretty. Hard to picture it as a "slum". I "hope" the 
stories I am hearing about a turn around and upswing are true.

Duane Fischer, W8DBF/WPE8CXO
dfischer at usol.com
HHI: Halligan's Hallicrafters International
http://www.w9wze.net
HHRP: Historic Halligan Radio Project
hhrp.w9wze.net

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Glen Zook" <gzook at yahoo.com>
To: "Duane Fischer, W8DBF" <dfischer at usol.com>; <heathkit at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Wednesday, August 29, 2007 10:24 AM
Subject: Re: [Heathkit] Does Heathkit Still Exist?


> Heathkit is still very much in business.  However,
> they are no longer making electronic kits (haven't
> been for decades).  They continued with the computer
> eductional systems that were started in their later
> years as a kit builder.  This basically the original
> company.
>
> Go to  http://www.heathkit.com to see their present
> business.
>
> The Heathkit operations are actually now in Benton
> Harbor, Michigan.  The old plant (when they were in
> the electronic kit business) was NOT in Benton Harbor!
> Their mailing address was Benton Harbor but the
> actual plant was in a large "H" shaped building in St.
> Joseph, Michigan, which is on the south side of Benton
> Harbor.
>
> When I was in high school (and a few times after I
> went off to college) I drove the 35 miles to the Heath
> plant from my "olde home towne" of LaPorte, Indiana,
> quite a number of times just to "drool" over the
> equipment which was displayed in a sales room in the
> plant or to purchase a part (like a new meter for my
> original DX-100).  You could walk in and purchase any
> current kit and take it home.  You also could purchase
> parts.  The display room was to the left of the main
> door to the plant.
>
> If you had a question on some Heath equipment that you
> already owned you could ask the receptionist and she
> would call back to the engineering department.
> Someone from that department (often the actual person
> who designed the unit or was on the original design
> team) would come out and talk to you.  Several times I
> came home with a hand drawn schematic and a bag of
> parts to make a modification on the unit (no charge).
>
> But, getting back to your original question:  Yes,
> Heathkit is still very much in business but is no
> longer at the old St. Joseph location.
>
> Glen, K9STH
>
>
> --- "Duane Fischer, W8DBF" <dfischer at usol.com> wrote:
>
> No, this is not one of my infamous spoofs. This is
> serious.
>
> I have a Ham who insists that Heathkit is still
> manufacturing products. Specifically what products he
> did not say. Nor did he indicate if these products
> were being made in Benton Harbor, MI where the
> original Heathkit was.
>
> Has somebody else purchased the name of "Heathkit" and
> is now making products bearing the "Heathkit" name,
> even if said products are not Ham or other types of
> electronics?
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Glen, K9STH
>
> Website:  http://k9sth.com
>
>
>
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