BVWS Biggleswade Meet and Auction - Sunday September 25th 2022

[Pamphonica]

Stallholder packs were sent out yesterday, for all bookings received to date. If you were expecting a pack and have not received it in a couple of days, drop me a PM. 3 or 4 tables still available as I write.

All welcome on the 25th. Non-BVWS members are also welcome to come as guests, but won't be able to take part in the afternoon auction. BVWS Membership signup is available on the day.

See you all there...

-Jeremy

[audiomagpie]

Time creeps up on us all so quickly - so just a reminder that this event is this coming Sunday!

Look forwards to seeing many of you there at this new, fresh location, it's promising to be a great event!

[Stuart R]

If you need another excuse to make the trip, there is a Vintage Tractor Weekend at Haynes, about 9 miles to the West of Biggleswade. A bit cheaper than Shuttleworth and I know it will appeal to some here, so hope it's allowed a mention (no connection etc etc).

http://www.ovtc.org.uk/events/

See you there!

SR

[Paul Stenning]

The auction catalogue is attached.

There are no photos (we only do photos for RWB and online auctions).

[stevehertz]

Just got back from Biggleswade. Great event and thanks to all concerned for their hard work and effort in making it so. Thank you.

[Ian B]

Thoroughly enjoyable event, grateful thanks to all those involved in running it so smoothly.
There was some interesting stuff in the auction, and many of the prices were absolute bargains. Now looking forward to RWB in December!

Ian

[bobbyball]

It was a long drive for "us Northern folk" but a great venue, easy to get to and park at. Thanks to all who made it happen. Hope it becomes a regular feature.

[HamishBoxer]

Great day at a great new venue. Enjoyed be able to do the photographs again this weekend after the BECG last weekend.

Need something now for this coming weekend!

The hardest bit was avoiding temptation.

[beamcurrent]

Yes it was a good day and the new venue was very good, car park adjacent, lots of space. I thought the auction lots were well laid out and easier to examine. (the lighting was good too) altogether better that Harpenden.

[greenstar]

Yes, an excellent day, Many thanks for all the unpaid effort. And surely the hardest thing sitting on one's hands in the auction. Also would echo that it was far easier to see the auction lots, no need to grope about on hands and knees with a torch in the gloom. Came home with a couple of amazing things.

[stevehertz]

I haven't been to Harpenden for a long while, decades in fact. I recall dozens of stalls there, and so being a little disappointed in the amount of stalls at Biggleswade - no reflection on the event in general I hasten to add, just the amount of stalls. Retrotech too has many more stalls. Can anyone throw any light on this? Is it a general trend (Retrotech seems to suggest not), are people alternatively using online methods to buy and sell?, is the dearth of younger people coming through to 'blame'? Is all of the available floor space taken up at Biggleswade? Is it the more southerly position of Biggleswade (it's slightly more 'north' than Harpenden) putting northerners off? Any views on this please?

[Heatercathodeshort]

Probably a combination of the lot plus fuel prices and the coming cost of living increases. Most of us probably have too much junk and don't want to add any more. Modern houses and flats have zero storage space and no spare room. The very low prices reflect this. J.

[HamishBoxer]

Harpenden is to be demolished by the council for building land and all being well Biggleswade being a replacement.

[high_vacuum_house]

Good afternoon,
Many thanks for all those who put the effort in for organising this new venue. It worked well and the car park couldn’t have been closer. Much more and better parking than Harpenden if you tuned up late. Not too bad to get to from the M1 southbound.
I took my son with me who enjoyed the auction and came away with a few nice winter projects and some broken test equipment to play with!!.

I would have dearly liked that EKCO combined television and gramophone which was in the auction which went for £5 though didn’t have the space in the car after picking up a nice Murphy baffle console radio. The auction prices seemed a little low for a few items. The 19 set that was there must have been a bargain of the decade!!. Pre-war sets didn’t seem to make much. Maybe the size of them or the lack of quality AM transmissions is a problem. The tea and biscuits went down well! It did seem quieter than the Harpenden halls event. I will be looking forward to the next event held here.

Christopher Capener

[Pamphonica]

Firstly, a big thankyou to everyone, visitors, stallholders and helpers, for making our inaugural BVWS Biggleswade event a great success.

Originally Posted by stevehertz

I haven't been to Harpenden for a long while, decades in fact. I recall dozens of stalls there, and so being a little disappointed in the amount of stalls at Biggleswade - no reflection on the event in general I hasten to add, just the amount of stalls.

There were 30 stalls at Biggleswade plus the auction tables. 2 stalls were not taken up on the day and 5 were for the Wireless Museum Bring & Buy. The last Harpenden was about 24 stalls plus 3-4 for the Bring & Buy. The Harpenden Hall was probably a bit bigger, and the auction took place on the stage. So actually, the Biggleswade stall numbers were about equal. I do certainly remember Harpenden a decade or more ago, with probably 50+ stalls, but the numbers had dwindled over the years. Hopefully as word spreads, Biggleswade can reverse this trend.

The new Biggleswade main hall allows a more relaxed, spacious and light stall layout with the potential to enlarge the stall numbers in the main hall, and even to hire extra smaller rooms if the demand justifies it.

If anyone has comments, or ideas to encourage more visitors or stallholders please contact me. My email is in the front of the Bulletin.

See you all in March for the next Biggleswade Meet (and the BVWS AGM).

-Jeremy

[slidertogrid]

I thought the new venue was excellent. Very well laid out. I bought a couple of nice sets at good prices from the bring and buy. I nearly didn't stay for the auction as I do have enough stuff really! Then I decided there was a couple of sets I liked so I stayed and ended up with a few more than that! As usual a set I bought cheaply for spares has ended up with a reprieve! I found it had been serviced and works well so I can't break it !

I think it would be helpful to keep the two parking spaces in front of the stall holder's entrance empty at future events as walking between cars carrying heavy radios can be a bit of a struggle. That and the risk of damage if someone tripped or stumbled...

[Andrewausfa]

I had a super time. Well organised and lots of things to see and buy. And I did.

The only improvement I could suggest is to not let anyone park in front of the middle exit door. It looked a bit of a tight squeeze past with sellers trying to load up their tables and people exiting to put purchases in their cars. I thought there was a high possibility that the car parked there would end up with a nasty scratch on the side from a wayward R1155 or Hacker Herald or something.

Andrew

[Andrewausfa]

Well that's telepathy in action!

[davidh1041]

I to would would like to thank the organisers and everyone who took part in finding this excellent new venue, it truly is a gem! Had a really enjoyable day out, managed to shift some junk on the Museum stall and picked up a huge 10a PSU. The auction ran smoothly and as been mentioned it was much easier to look at the lots before the start.
As ever it was great to meet up with friends and have a chat about are hobby.
Regards, David