[Milsurplus] Managing Your Collection

[Laura and Jim]

Mortality - Been thinking about this more since my dad died last spring.

What I see through all this thread is a demonstration of the axiom that "you don't choose your relatives". So - The family Attorney NEEDS to be advised of your plans, otherwise ignorant relatives and various jackii (plural of "jackass"- Thanks, Shelly Berman!) will pull this kind of dumpster "stuff". If it's not on paper, it "never happened".

If you really want your pal to handle your BA "stuff", get it into your directive. Have a backup in case they go SK on you. It's NOT voodoo. I promise, you WON'T die (nor will your friends) if you draw up a will/directive. Some of this gear will actually represent a legacy to your friends and those who also appreciate it. That's why I am officially designating certain items to certain people (w/their knowledge and approval, hihi). 

Some folks don't wait. An older ham (Billy, KC6IGY) in the area gave me much of his collection of parts and a few BA rigs as his health started to fail, which included a lot of his brother-in-law's (Clif, W6VEC, SK ) homebrew "stuff" and BA gear. Clif knew where he wanted his "stuff" to go, and Billy knew where he wanted his "stuff" to go because he saw how much joy I got tinkering and building things. 

The 6L6 QRP CW rig I built last fall was created thanks to Billy and his generous gift of parts. The 1944 Handbook plans I built it from was the gift from a friend whose Dad was a Ham. I listened to China Radio International the other night on Billy's original 1946 Hallicrafters S-40. It was his first BIG PURCHASE as a teenager.The TCS-8 station that I also run regularly came to me from Clif. I used it Monday night and had a great AM QSO w/another enthusiast 170 miles away (a ripping 15W into a NVIS dipole). So, even though Clif's long gone, and I never met him, I still have a sense of who he was thru his gear that I now operate. 

Peace and health!
Jim
K6FWT