[Milsurplus] Surplus stores, then and now

[Peter Gottlieb]

Oh, now I remember more...

Regarding Long Island, years ago I worked as a electromechanical tech at 
United Cerebral Palsy.  We used to get stuff at KRP Electronics, mostly 
surplus parts and commercial equipment with a few mil items here and there 
(was it Barry who ran it?).  We also got donations from Grumman, Hazeltine 
and Honeywell and would bring the truck out and fill it with stuff.  A few 
times we brought the truck right from Grumman to KRP, where we would trade 
the entire contents for a significant store credit.  Anything really cool I 
would take first, though.  We made more adaptive equipment for those CP kids 
in that small little shop than anyone could believe.

Many years later when I lived in Massachusetts there was Eli Heffron & Sons 
in Cambridge.  Commercial surplus and he had a side operation that sold 
chips.  I got a bunch of stuff there but he had some unrealistic 
expectations on price most of the time and in the end didn't sell too much 
stuff.  I don't know what happened to it all but I do know he got into 
computers, selling mini and mainframe components to companies then into PCs.

I met through a friend the guys (Mark, Roy) who ran the Teradyne salvage 
department.  That was a home run.  I got oddles of stuff there, test 
equipment, lasers, tools, supplies, furniture, even some mil surplus stuff 
(they had no idea why they had it, it must have been left over for decades). 
And it was CHEAP.  I still have a box of General Scanning galvonometers, 
maybe I'll eBay them or something (too many projects, too little time). 
They got moved from downtown to this big building by a drydock but then I 
moved to NY and I hear that Roy passed away and the department is no more.

Mark though had introduced me to a guy in South Boston who had a warehouse 
of mil surplus stuff.  Wow, I had forgotten about that!  I wonder if it is 
still there, it's only been 15 years, and he said he only sold to commercial 
and big users, except he would sell to us, but he wanted big $$ however 
negotiable.  That was interesting, should be followed up upon.

There is another guy, probably still there, Parker Products up in Reading, 
MA.  Was there a few years ago when I visited.  Big old building, mostly 
commercial stuff, but some aircraft stuff here and there.  Unless the guy 
likes you you cannot go scrounging in the place, which is what you want to 
do.  Be prepared, dirty clothes, gloves, big flashlight.  Place unheated, 
dress warm if it is cold out.  Aha!  Found his card... Parker Products, 10 
Pierce St, Reading, MA 617-944-8668 (I think they recently changed the area 
code), Harold P. Strand, Jr.  He has a lot of solar stuff, fiber optics, 
test equipment, industrial things.  If you ever wanted fiberoptic faceplates 
(like B&F used to sell), this is the place.



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Jack" <wa2hwj at worldnet.att.net>
To: "Wireless-Set-No19 @ yahoogroups.com" 
<Wireless-Set-No19 at yahoogroups.com>
Cc: <>
Sent: Monday, September 06, 2004 8:36 AM
Subject: Re: [Milsurplus] Surplus stores, then and now


> Long Island checking in...
>
> My "first" surplus store was AlgerRadio in Hempstead, NY.
> It was a small, triangle-shaped building run by a guy who
> smoked a cigar (didn't they all?). In 1959
> I was working on getting my Novice license and my father
> found out about the place through one of his co-workers
> who was a Ham. I bought a telegraph key (the sealed
> balck "Navy key") for 75 cents and a pilot light assembly
> (don't ask why). I still have both (45 years).
> Alger Radio eventually moved to a bigger store which happened
> to wind up a bock from where I went to high school. When the
> RTTY bug bit, I bought my first "RTTY Handbook" there.
>
> Then there was Community Electronics in Freeport, NY, run
> by Tom DeVito. Tom was great guy and I often stopped by to
> see him when I was on my rounds working for Ma Bell. I got
> to know Tom pretty well and became part of his inner
> circle. That meant I could come in the back door and join him
> and some other oldtimers for coffee or something stronger.
> He always had the really neat gear in the back room for his
> friends to check out.
>
> Edlie Electronics was a latecomer, mostly surplus electronic
> parts. I heard they're still in business in Levittown.
>
> 73,
> Jack WA2HWJ
>
>
>
>
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