[R-390] And another thing - $99 headphones? Not a scam.

[Tom Norris]

On the other hand, here is something that I *don't* see as a sham.

There is another fellow that routinely sells H-251A headsets for $99   
He does it for collectors that don't have technical wherewithal to do  
it for themselves or that have no one else to do it for them.  He  
supplies a new H-251, replaces the connector with a switchcraft heavy  
brass phone plug and provides a pair of extension cords so the user  
can operate them with "normal" radios with 1/4 plugs or with older  
mil radios that take U-77 plugs.

I hate tinsel wire. Years ago I made a few up with phone plugs and  
sold to local folks and charged them a bit less than half that  
without any extension cords.  They hated tinsel wire too.  Several  
couldn't solder and one or two couldn't see how any longer - but they  
could listen to their receivers with decent 'phones again.  At the  
time they were cheap, new, and could be had by the case.

Think of the time put in the make the cables/cords. $25 per unit for  
headphones, new plugs and cable, and the rest for labor. I would have  
only a small amount of guilt charging that price.  For $99 I'd be  
able to add a reasonable warranty of some sort as well 90 days, maybe?

I'm not going to start doing it, but when I first saw this I thought  
it was a scam.  Then I spoke with him, saw what he was doing and why.

73

Tom N