Vintage TV/Radio/Hi-Fi Show in Paris on Sunday 7th March

[jhalphen]

Good day Gentlemen,

After a one year interruption, the RadioFil vintage TV/Radio Club (3000 members) is pleased to announce the 2010 edition of the Vintage TV/Radio/Hi-Fi Show, taking place on:

Sunday, March 7th 2010, 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM in Clamart (92)

Municipal Sports/Exhibit Centre, located at Place Hunebelle/rue de Meudon

Clamart is a suburb touching Paris with easy access by Tube, Bus and car.

The 2008 edition was a great success with nearly 2000 visitors, strong Radio/TV/Press media coverage and a strong emphasis on vintage TV with numerous demos of working sets displaying 441/819 line era test cards and programmes.

Please see the enclosed poster of the show.

Photos of the 2008 edition here:

http://retro-forum.com/viewtopic.php?t=18688&start=15

http://retro-forum.com/viewtopic.php?t=19062

For any inquiries as a visitor or exhibitor, contact:

jj DOT gransard AT wanadoo DOT fr

or myself via PM

We sincerely hope to see some of our British friends come over to meet, chat, buy, sell, have a beer or whatever...

Best Regards

jhalphen
Paris/France

[Pamphonica]

I checked the links and these poor chaps seem to have suffered (yet again) a hacker attack on their forum. The site is suspended currently and there is a message apologising but saying it will be a while, as they need to take additional security measures.
Let's hope we here can stay free of such unfortunate and inconsiderate actions by others.
I am sure we wish them well in getting back on the air.

[jhalphen]

Hi Pamphonica,

Sorry! about the RadioFil forum being temporarely closed. This has been the 3rd attack in a month and the webmaster is actively working on beefing up the security.

My guess is that it will reopen after/during the next weekend.

Anyway, the show being in March 2010, you will have ample time to browse the photos.

Best Regards

jhalphen
Paris/France

[tritwi]

Hello Jhalpen,
I'd love to come and see this wonderful show but...the 10th of March is not on sunday,it is wednesday. I think there is an error and I'd like to know the exact day the show will take place.
Regards
Marco

[jhalphen]

Hello Tritwi and all Forum members,

I made a mistake in my original post, the Paris show will take place on Sunday, March 7th and NOT on the 10th which is a wednesday. Thanks! Marco for spotting this error on my part.

The show's poster (attached to the original post) has displayed the correct date from the start.

I would like to edit & correct my original post, but can't gain access to editing functions (admin help please...)

Best Regards

jhalphen
Paris/France

[Paul Stenning]

I have corrected the date in the first post and also added the event to the forum calendar.

[David G4EBT]

Originally Posted by Paul Stenning

I have corrected the date in the first post and also added the event to the forum calendar.

Just a point for UK enthusists who might wish to go to this event, but are put off by the daunting prospect of getting to Paris. No worries if you can get to London St Pancras.

Our elder son is married to a French girl and lived and worked in Paris for many years, though they've lived in London for the last eight years. However, we have friends and extended family In Paris, so go there several times a year. We used to go by plane, but
it's too much hassle and I dislike intensely being treated as a terror suspect.

Apart from that, you have to get to the airport well in adavance, then get the Air France Shuttle Bus from CDG airport into Paris itself, then the Metro to your destination, and do the whole thing in reverse, so it's a drawn out tiresome process.

Hence, for some time now, we've used Eurostar, which often has cheap deals on non-flexible tickets, and also good hotel deals as part of a package rail/hotel deal, booked via their website.

We've often travelled on Eurostar for £59.00 return.

As the Paris Radio Show is on Sun 7th March, I've just checked the prices on Eurostar's website for a return from London St Pancras to Paris, and on the Saturday/Sunday of 6/7 March, it's £64.50 each way. (I think that to go and come back the same day earlyam/late pm would be tiring, but it's do-able).

However, on Thurs/Fir 4/5 March, and Mon/Tues 8/9 March it's only £34.30 each way, so to go Friday, come back Monday and make a weekend of it, the return fare would be £68.60. (£3.00 booking fee for credit cards - free for debit cards) plus a budget hotel.

It's very straightforward - you book online, print off your own tickets, wave the tickets over the scanner at St Pancras, and you're through. UK Passport Control check your passport, then a few Metres on, French passport control.

Effectively, once you've done that, you're technically "in Paris".

Hence, when you get off the train at the Gare Du Nord in Paris, there are no checks of passport or any other holdups - you just walk off the station. Same thing happens in reverse - passports checked in Paris by French/Brt passport control, then just walk off
the station back at St Pancras, as you would for an internal UK train trip..

The other benefit is that you don't have the baggage restrictions as you do with planes, and I guess that if you bring back an old radio or some components on Eurostar, you'll be treated as a harmless eccentric - not a potential terrorist with an IED.

For anyone with time to spare, north of Paris, on Sats/Suns the vast St-Ouen-Porte de Clignancourt Flea Market, "Marché aux Puces", (the Metro stops there) is a haven for antiques and bric-a-brac fanatics. Over 2000 stalls sell all sorts of collectables from furniture to knick-knacks and old radios.

Always worth a visit.

Don't expect to bag a bargain, but when they name a price, just laugh with indignation to show them you aren't a mug, wave some paper money under their nose for what you think it's worth to tantalise them and exclaim the only French term you need to know - "trop cher!!" - too expensive! Honour and entente cordiale is satisfied if you meet them part way.

The Paris Metro scores highly over the London underground for ease of getting around, and on price. A ticket anywhere on the Metro is I think 1.1 Euro - about a quarter of the London fare. (You can buy Metro tickets on Eurostar in books of ten, a bit more expensive than in Paris).

An added bonus for anyone who hasn't been to St Pancras is to admire its wonderful restoration and splendid shops and restaurants, in contrast to the down at heel state of the unloved Gare Du Nord. (Or indeed, Kings Cross).

If you haven't been on Eurostar, don't expect anything special - sure it's fast, (the cars on the adjacent motorways, probably doing 70 - 80 MPH, seem to be at a standstill as Eurostar whizzes past, but it's showing signs of age, and the baggage arrangements are a bit chaotic.

Hope these notes are of interest.

(I'm not on a retainer from Eurostar or Paris Office de Tourisme!)

David,
G4EBT

[Duke_Nukem]

Having used Eurostar end of last year (to Brussels), I can confirm it really is way simpler and hassle free than flights. OK, the return journey dumped me somewhere near Gateshead due to electric going out at St Pancreas, but I guess thats no different to the occasional motorway jam or delayed/cancelled flight.

One top tip if you book on-line is to remember we are in rip-off Britain, so its worth deleting your cookies prior to visiting their site, then when you go to their site select "Russian English" and you can often access a range of cheaper fares. Just remember to change the default country to the UK later on in the ticket process.

TTFN,
Jon

[jhalphen]

Good day Gentlemen,

Well the Paris vintage Radio/TV & Hi-Fi show took place last sunday in Clamart.

Due to sub-optimal timing (school holidays in the Paris region) TV presence was less than in 2008, but was more than compensated by a massive display of vintage hi-fi.

See my snapshots here:
http://s281.photobucket.com/albums/k...lamart%202010/

And Michel Martin's pictures here:
http://retro-forum.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=232947

Prices were reasonable to very reasonable, for instance i purchased a mid-80s working FM tuner for 8 Euros! at least the dire state of Euro economies is good for something...

A professional seller had two interesting items: a 6-9V to 250-300V variable HT supply on a tiny PCB and a miniaturized CPU powered valve tester with output on a LCD panel.

The show dates will be changed next year to a warmer season as the 2°C last sunday did nothing to lure people away from their warm flats!

And also obvious, school holiday dates will be avoided.

Paul, did you come? - loved your article about travelling to France.

Best Regards

jhalphen
Paris/France

[raditechman]

In 1983 I lived in Clamart for 11 months whilst working at a TV/Video repair shop in Rue du Faubourg Poissonniere (near Gare du Nord).
In 2000-2003 I had a house in Les Mureaux in the Paris outer suburbs. So know my way to, from and around Paris.
The event there on the 7th was of course the same day as Harpenden which is where I went.
I notice that the Paris event is having its dates put back to a warmer time of year so maybe next year there will not be a clash of dates.
I agree about the Market at Clignancourt, it's not cheap for radios.
John

[jhalphen]

Hello RadiTechman,

Thanks! for your reply.

Choosing the exact same date as the UK Harpenden show is downright silly. Another very good reason to change the date of Clamart 2011.

Myself & Jean-Jacques Gransard (organizer of the show) would be grateful if you could suggest 2011 convenient dates and times to avoid for UK visitors.

Inasmuch as possible, i will stress this point when choosing next year's date.

PS: you wrote: "I agree about the Market at Clignancourt, it's not cheap for radios."
I share your opinion, the Clignancourt flea market is often unfortunately a "Fleece Market" targeted at tourists...

There is a weekly non-permanent market "Porte de Vanves" alongside the Paris ring road (the Peripherique) where technology items are priced much more reasonably.

BTW, where did you work in 1983? Nord-Radio perhaps (still going) or Radio-Prim (now closed).

Best Regards

jhalphen
Paris/France

[reelguy]

Very good pics, Nice to see a few reel to reel recorders there as well.
Regards Peter W.......Reelguy