UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum - View Single Post - Attracting younger members to Vintage Equipment

Martin Bush · 10th Feb 2017, 11:48 am

Firstly, I must say that I would love to go to a repair café... I have an old sewing machine in the shed that was given to us as "not working, might just need a bit of attention". I don't sew so I've not looked at it yet. When I do I presume I will do a bit of head scratching and then put it back again... but it would be great to learn how to sort it in such an informal setting.

On to the subject of vintage gear in general...

My own personal interest comes from growing up with a valve set as the main radio in the house in the 80s. At that age I didn't think to challenge my Dad's insistence that it was good and so I grew up loving it and appreciating the look and sound of vintage radios.

At school electronics wasn't really a "thing" - we did a module that to me seemed not to make sense and that was it. So I went towards English and later the dreaded "Media Studies" (which allowed me to get hands on with cutting edge gear such as S-VHS editing suites!)

So now, as I approach 40, I am playing catch up and it's a struggle to get the technical side to "go in". But I am trying and keeping at it. Had I had the opportunity to make things as a kid I would be in a far better place, but that's life.

The challenge with this hobby is that it's not easy. Collecting records, stamps, books etc is really just a case of finding them and buying them. But this hobby has the added layer of complexity of making things work correctly and work safely (as well as finding components and time...).

Vintage gear is currently "cool", and that is a good thing I think. What we need is more people coming through with general technical knowledge and skills to balance up the duffers like me.

I must say that this site does a good job of helping people like me. There's a raft of people who will answer questions and sometimes let you go round with something for a quick look. I also get to read about things I'd previously never heard of and, very importantly, learn that you can't just plug things in and change a fuse if it doesn't work.

10th Feb 2017, 11:48 am	#28
Martin Bush Octode Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: Oxfordshire, UK. Posts: 1,911	Re: Attracting younger members to Vintage Equipment Firstly, I must say that I would love to go to a repair café... I have an old sewing machine in the shed that was given to us as "not working, might just need a bit of attention". I don't sew so I've not looked at it yet. When I do I presume I will do a bit of head scratching and then put it back again... but it would be great to learn how to sort it in such an informal setting. On to the subject of vintage gear in general... My own personal interest comes from growing up with a valve set as the main radio in the house in the 80s. At that age I didn't think to challenge my Dad's insistence that it was good and so I grew up loving it and appreciating the look and sound of vintage radios. At school electronics wasn't really a "thing" - we did a module that to me seemed not to make sense and that was it. So I went towards English and later the dreaded "Media Studies" (which allowed me to get hands on with cutting edge gear such as S-VHS editing suites!) So now, as I approach 40, I am playing catch up and it's a struggle to get the technical side to "go in". But I am trying and keeping at it. Had I had the opportunity to make things as a kid I would be in a far better place, but that's life. The challenge with this hobby is that it's not easy. Collecting records, stamps, books etc is really just a case of finding them and buying them. But this hobby has the added layer of complexity of making things work correctly and work safely (as well as finding components and time...). Vintage gear is currently "cool", and that is a good thing I think. What we need is more people coming through with general technical knowledge and skills to balance up the duffers like me. I must say that this site does a good job of helping people like me. There's a raft of people who will answer questions and sometimes let you go round with something for a quick look. I also get to read about things I'd previously never heard of and, very importantly, learn that you can't just plug things in and change a fuse if it doesn't work.