R: [R-390] The story of Grundig

[Emanuele Girlando (IW1DHI)]

Great post. Thank you very much Harry.
Ciao.


Emanuele Girlando (IW1DHI)
http://space.tin.it/clubnet/egirland/
mirror at
http://www.qsl.net/iw1dhi/


-----Messaggio originale-----
Da: r-390-bounces at mailman.qth.net
[mailto:r-390-bounces at mailman.qth.net]Per conto di Harry Joel
Inviato: mercoledì 21 luglio 2004 20.39
A: r-390 at mailman.qth.net
Oggetto: [R-390] The story of Grundig


Any review of vintage radio offering on the e-Place will have a good number
of vintage Grundig table model superhets. You may not know how Grundig grew
to be the German equivalent of IBM+SONY. Before the start of WWII, in my
beloved birthplace, Fuerth, Bavaria, I remember seeing a whole-in the-wall
radio sales and repair shop run by a gentleman named Grundig. It was stuck
between the one and only seafood store and an Italian ice cream emporium.
During the war Grundig received many army contracts to fabricate
transformers and sub-asemblies for army communication gear. The army
supplied all raw materials and the government supplied assembly buildings
and the work force made up of Eastern Europe countries forcefully
expatriated and kept in primitive living quarters within the assembly
compound.  Unlike other contractors, Grundig treated this work force with
compassion and respect and managed to get extra food rations for them. Then
came the end of WWII. During the next few months, the expatriated workers of
other contractor went on a revenge binge of looting. The Grundig crew
however posted guards at all entry points and kept looters away.
Thus Grundig had a stash of radio components at his disposal being the
de-facto owner.
There was a big demand for new radios, with pre-war models going bad. The US
provisional government had put in effect a law which banned any
manufacturing of radios. Grundig used a loophole in this law by offering
radio KITS. The where simple regenerative receivers using two 12P2000 MIL
style pentodes, selenium rectifier, transformer, and all other bits and
pieces including a simple cabinet and of course instructions. The kits were
flying off the shelves and Grundig used the profits to set up a development
lab and was thus ready with a really super good line of receivers when the
ban on manufacturing was lifted. Soon his line included TV's, tape recoders
and many other electronic items. So goes the story about turning human
compassion into an electronic
empire.______________________________________________________________
R-390 mailing list
Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/r-390
Help: http://mailman.qth.net/faq.htm
Post: mailto:R-390 at mailman.qth.net
Unsubscribe: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/options/r-390