Spotted in Reflections Carmarthen

[Rich Woods]

£25 each or 3 for £69 apparently if anyone local is interested. Can’t justify it myself as I’ve got too much to do in the repair / restoration stakes at the mo.

[Nickthedentist]

The big, dual-speaker, FM-only Ekco (A274) at the bottom of the stack would be a good buy at that price.

[paulsherwin]

Yes, a fairly easy restoration and a good performer.

[Nickthedentist]

And looks better than the ropey example on Radiomuseum!
https://www.radiomuseum.org/r/ekco_a274a_27.html

[The Philpott]

'Reflections' looks like the a) the sort of shop we don't get in 'these parts' and b) the sort of shop that is increasingly vulnerable.

There's a paucity of interesting charity shops near me, but interesting charity warehouses where the larger and more obscure stuff ends up, we do have at least one.

Dave

[Boulevardier]

Originally Posted by The Philpott

'Reflections' looks like the a) the sort of shop we don't get in 'these parts' and b) the sort of shop that is increasingly vulnerable.

There's a paucity of interesting charity shops near me, but interesting charity warehouses where the larger and more obscure stuff ends up, we do have at least one.

Dave

Over many years, I haven't ever seen even one vintage radio in a charity shop around here (and there are plenty of them). I've always assumed that that was down to H&S and PAT complications for the sellers, but some of them do sell 2nd-hand power tools, etc..

Mike

[stitch1]

I see a trim phone too, looks like an interesting shop.

I volunteer behind the scenes testing electrical items for a well known charity shop. Electrical items are checked in then await PAT testing, if they fail they’ll be disposed of, if they pass they are function tested and again if they fail they ditched even if there’s a simple fix. If they are high quality or collectable they’re sold on eBay not on the shop floor.

John

[McMurdo]

I've got 2 of the GEC ones, (with theyellow star), nice sounding am/fm radio and I have one on in the workshop from time to time.

[Paul_RK]

And in the middle there a late example of Pye's long-running series of radios pretty basic at heart but with eight or nine mostly SW bands on the polychromatic tuning scale. I would be tempted by all three, but especially the Ekco, if Carmarthen were Fakenham. Haven't seen a single old radio in a charity shop here, though an especially lethal 1930s toaster somehow showed up in a window once and I quickly provided it with a home: some still appear in the weekly auction, where their mains leads are invariably lopped off by the visiting electrician on viewing day.

Paul

[The Philpott]

Charity shops do set aside certain items not suited to the shop floor, but which are capable of being posted....the most routinely honest 'for sale' listings you're likely to see.

Dave

[DrStrangelove]

The YMCA shop in Swansea used to sell electricals and one of the charity shops in Neath used to.

I've bought a 26" crt panasonic ctv, one of those little Chinese 5" portable radio/tvs, and a couple of 10" portable ctvs, one purely for the remote control.

I've never seen any classic brown wireless sets though.

[mole42uk]

I have an Ekco A274 - it was in daily use until the HT choke died. I wonder if I should drive to Carmarthen to grab a spare?

[DrStrangelove]

Originally Posted by DrStrangelove

I've never seen any classic brown wireless sets though.

I tell a lie: there is (or was) a Murphy baffle wireless in one of the charity shops in Swansea.

Though it's not brown any more because someone painted it a rather ghastly shade of green.

[Doghouse Riley]

Originally Posted by Rich Woods

£25 each or 3 for £69 apparently if anyone local is interested. Can’t justify it myself as I’ve got too much to do in the repair / restoration stakes at the mo.

Attachment 285959

I might be wrong, but don't such items have to be PAT tested before being offered for sale in the UK?
I've always believed that's the reason why I've never seen vintage audio in charity shops.

[paulsherwin]

Charity policies vary a lot, but they are much less likely to sell mains powered valve radios because they are difficult to PAT test authoritatively and conclusively. Charities are very concerned about both reputational damage and consequential liability. If they sell mains electricals at all, these are likely to be restricted to modernish things that are easy for their volunteer PAT testers to assess, such as toasted sandwich makers or DVD players.

Some charities do sell donated HiFi in their shops, but it takes up a lot of store space and they generally don't have the expertise to assess it properly, so most don't bother.

[John10b]

I visited Reflections in Carmarthen a few days ago, the owner of the shop is an interesting and knowledgeable chap to talk to, with an interest in vintage radios. On the day I visited there was only one ac/dc EKCO in the window, which I was not interested in.
John