# Radio Shack on it's death bed?



## DennyM (Jan 3, 2016)

I saw this article on a news feed I get. I think they brought this on themselves because of the fact they moved away from what they use to be. Their pricing is too high and their employees that have no clue other than selling you cellphones and over priced computers. If you go in there for anything else most of them have no idea what your talking about.

[This March, for the second time in just over two years, RadioShack filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. In the wake of the announcement, the company has already made plans to close more than 500 stores nationwide. It has yet to announce what it would do with its remaining 1,000 locations. During the 2015 bankruptcy, about 2,000 RadioShack stores closed.
RadioShack’s bankruptcy announcement is the latest in what has been a disastrous year for retailers. Many of the nation’s largest retailers have closed or are in the process of shutting down operations. These retailers are shuttering a varying number of locations. Including the RadioShack announcement, just a few of the major retailers alone that are going bankrupt or restructuring plan on closing well over 2,500 stores nationwide, often at some of the biggest malls in the country.]


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

*Do you think we should drive a stake through it's heart, just in case?*


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## L0stS0ul (Feb 6, 2015)

shows how much I know. I thought they were gone a long time ago. I knew the website was still around but all of the retail locations around here have closed.


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## Yellowstone Special (Jun 23, 2015)

I hate to see any business shut its doors for good, whether it be a retail chain store, or a small business, and not just local hobby shops.

We still have our Radio Shack, but I don't know for how much longer. I would hate to see it close, because that's where I got a lot of my electrical stuff when I first built the layout over 5 years ago. They not only had what I needed right there, but were helpful in answering my questions, especially the feed wires to the track every 6 or 7 feet. 

I guess the only thing constant in life is change. But I don't like a lot of these changes. I can see our 3-rail O scale hobby changing every year, and not necessarily for the better. I wonder how much longer it will last?


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## BigAl56 (Dec 14, 2011)

Retail is in very sad shape. If you own or are thinking of opening a business you have to ask yourself a very simple question, "can I buy what I'm going to sell cheaper on the internet?" If the answer is 'yes' then you will not succeed.

Radio shack is dying because they forgot the reason why they existed, then failed to innovate once that reason no longer existed.

Sears and Radio shack were once very successful catalog flyer purveyors. I would look forward to receiving the Radio Shack flyer and Sears catalog supplements in my mailbox or newspaper. They were fun and interesting to read. More important they got me motivated to drive over and check it out. Somewhere along the way companies decided to abandon good old mail for email and the internet. Maybe I'm over simplifying but I'm finding it hard to point to any company that has succeeded after it abandoned print advertising.

Good by Radio Shack, gonna have to buy my batteries at Costco from now on.


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## PatKn (Jul 14, 2015)

There hasn't been a Radio Shack near me for quite a while and I do miss them. They were a convenient place to buy electrical/electronic supplies and parts. There are no places that filled that void. Now the only source for items like that are internet sites. I remember having a wallet full of battery cards and stopping in for a free battery whenever I passed one.


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## Wood (Jun 9, 2015)

I still have a pretty good RadioShack located in my community. It is managed by a long time employee who is knowledgeable and keeps a good inventory of wiring products and tools. The problem for them is the lack of variety in their inventory. Even though you have to wait a few days the online retailers have huge inventories with a much wider variety of items to consider.


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## Waddy (Dec 18, 2014)

BigAl56 said:


> Radio shack is dying because they forgot the reason why they existed, then failed to innovate once that reason no longer existed.


Exactly; they forgot their customer base.

Here in Kansas Ciiy we have an excellent source of electrical components, test equipment, batteries, breadboards, etc., and everything for the DIY electrical person.

This store is doing very well and always has customers in it when I go there. The staff is knowledgeable.

So there is a market for a brick and mortar electrical component store.

They also sell online. To me, that's just adapting to reality.

http://www.eskc.com/Default.asp


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## Norton (Nov 5, 2015)

Its not just Radio Shack. Sears and K-Mart are on their way out. Most of the big box stores are leaving the scene. Macys have left our area and Penny's is about to do the same.
My local Ace Hardware closed. They moved their power equipment to a small store across their parking lot. I asked the clerk why they closed the Ace store and he said no profit. The internet was killing them. All the mom and pop hardware stores are now closed within a 10 mile radius of me. There used to be 4 of them. Now its Lowes, Home Depot or drive 20 miles to the nearest Ace.

Pete


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## Spence (Oct 15, 2015)

Does anyone remember Caldors, Zayres, Two Guys, Ames, Woolworths, Montgomery Wards?? All have gone by the wayside.


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## Deane Johnson (Sep 19, 2016)

These traditional type stores have mostly lost the scent. They don't know who they are or where they are going. They have no identity.

Radio Shack didn't know whether it was a toy store, a phone store, or what. Sears doesn't know what it is anymore. JCPenny is in much the same boat, but isn't in the headlines right now.

All of these stores have faced new and fierce competition over recent years, but instead of figuring out how to be "new" themselves, they just floundered around grasping at whatever they could.

Every business needs a USP (unique selling position). Each of the above had a USP in their heyday, but as that evaporated, they never created a new one.


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## Waddy (Dec 18, 2014)

I think the success or failure of a local business depends on whether they can establish a niche for themselves.

Dillon Materials here in Kansas City is thriving. They sell AND service all kinds of electrical and air powered tools; compressors, air nailers, drills, etc. They also sell nails, staplers and all kinds of fasteners.

Up until now all Stihl dealers had to be parts and service dealers, but recently Stihl has stocked Ace hardware with their products; chain saws, weed eaters, blowers, etc. I asked the hardware guy if they were going to stock parts and offer service. No they aren't. Just sell product.

The key to Dillon's success and Stihl is that you could get parts and service where you bought the product. Service is something the internet can't compete with.

Our local welding store does well because it offers service for the products they sell. The wait to get a welder repaired can be several weeks; they are always booked up. But if you bought the welder from them somehow the wait isn't long.

Ace does nothing but sell product. Their employees aren't particularly knowledgeable. The internet does that better (more variety) and cheaper. A good service department is what makes it for mom and pop brick and mortar stores these days.

And I would add that JC Penney's used to be the working man's store. Their clothing and appliances were functional and long lasting. They tried to go all up-scale, but that isn't their forte. Same with Sears. I remember buying jeans for the boys (when they were like 5 and 6) at Sears because they had jeans with double reinforced knees, so they didn't blow out so soon. I think they still sell them, but functional, long lasting isn't their emphasis anymore.


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## DennyM (Jan 3, 2016)

The local Radio Shack here is part of another business call John's Stereos that installs stereos, alarms and remote starters in cars. They also sell TVs, entertainment systems and repair computers. Radio Shack is just a small part of what they have. If they were to lose that it really wouldn't affect them. John told me as long as they keep getting merchandise from Radio Shack, they will continue to carry the name.


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## Norton (Nov 5, 2015)

Waddy said:


> Up until now all Stihl dealers had to be parts and service dealers, but recently Stihl has stocked Ace hardware with their products; chain saws, weed eaters, blowers, etc. I asked the hardware guy if they were going to stock parts and offer service. No they aren't. Just sell product.
> 
> 
> Ace does nothing but sell product. Their employees aren't particularly knowledgeable. The internet does that better (more variety) and cheaper. A good service department is what makes it for mom and pop brick and mortar stores these days.


That might be your experience but here the ACE Hardwares stores are where you go if want to speak with someone knowledgable. Ours also serviced all the equipment they sold. Its the Home Depot and Lowes folk who are mostly clueless.

Pete


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## DennyM (Jan 3, 2016)

Norton said:


> That might be your experience but here the ACE Hardwares stores are where you go if want to speak with someone knowledgable. Ours also serviced all the equipment they sold. Its the Home Depot and Lowes folk who are mostly clueless.
> 
> Pete


Here it's a hardware store called Wolverine. They've been around since I was a boy. They carry 'Do It' products. Most of the guys pretty much know what they're talking about. Plus they give me good deals on rentals. The only other stores here is Menards and Tractor Supply. There use to be a True Value Hardware, but when the owner retired they torn down the building.


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## Lehigh74 (Sep 25, 2015)

Up until a few years ago, there was a Radio Shack a few miles from my house. It was nice to be able to pop over and pick up some toggle switches, heat shrink tubing, etc. The closest ones now are about 5 miles away in Philly. I won’t buy anything there because of the added 2% sales tax. I was curious so I did a store locator to see what else is nearby and found 25 stores within 25 miles. Six of those are closing so I would say Radio Shack may not be on its death bed, but it’s certainly not in the best of health. I did notice there is one in North Wales so maybe I’ll stop in the next time I go to Henning’s.


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## DennyM (Jan 3, 2016)

My mom bought my very first component stereo system from Radio Shack back in 1973. A 50 watt amp, speakers and a turntable. The Radio Shack was in a mall called Ford City in Chicago.


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## raleets (Jan 2, 2011)

My corner ACE Hardware is a DIY paradise staffed by VERY knowledgeable guys.
The owner is third generation that started working there as a teenager when his grandfather, then father owned the place.
Three of his clerks have each been there over 40 years. They know every nut and bolt in the place by first, middle, and last name.
They also provide service on water heaters, furnaces, plumbing, etc.
All in all, a terrific place to shop. Yes, their prices are 5-10% higher than HD and Lowe's down the street, but it's worth it to deal with guys who know what they're talking about.


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## seayakbill (Jan 16, 2016)

Radio Shack announced that they are closing 7 stores in Columbus, Ohio. I have not been in one for at least a couple years.

Bill


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## Waddy (Dec 18, 2014)

Norton said:


> That might be your experience but here the ACE Hardwares stores are where you go if want to speak with someone knowledgable. Ours also serviced all the equipment they sold. Its the Home Depot and Lowes folk who are mostly clueless.
> 
> Pete


I suspect quality may vary by location. So individual experiences will also vary. I agree, though, that the Home Depot's and Lowe's type places have the least knowledgeable staff.

In Kansas City the go-to hardware store is Strasser's on Southwest Blvd. They also service everything you can own.

http://www.strasser-hardware.com/


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## Lee Willis (Jan 1, 2014)

Wow. I thought they were dead and buried. Haven't even looked for one in ages.

Haven't missed them either, which I think says it all!


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## feldon30 (Dec 30, 2012)

I live in Rock Hill -- 20 miles south of Charlotte. There is no electronics shop within 100 miles of here. None. If I need an LED, a resistor, or anything else, my only options are online or drive 4 hours to Atlanta where there are two Fry's stores.

Yes Radio Shack failed to keep supplying its core audience with the things we wanted. We went from aisles of well-stocked electronics with employees who could provide some degree of help, to a single aisle of just a few bare essentials and blank stares from the employees when they were asked about anything other than overpriced Chinese toys, batteries, or Blackberry phones.

You cannot go into Radio Shack and buy a decent soldering station. Fry's has a dozen choices from Weller and others.
Radio Shack might have one or two multimeter choices. Fry's has two dozen. Fry's also has multiple choices of oscilloscope.
Radio Shack wants $9 for 30 feet of 22 gauge wire. Fry's has 100 feet for $7.

Radio Shack should have been at the forefront of the Raspberry Pi and Arduino wave. They should have been carrying everything you might need to create a robot or any kind of electronic item. I mean hell, Fry's has 10 feet of shelf space for robotics and another 20 feet of space for Raspberry Pi and Arduino servo motors, breadboards, prototyping boards, etc. Not to mention the 300 foot rows of resistors, LEDs, capacitors, etc.


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## DennyM (Jan 3, 2016)

Radio Shack took their name from Ham Radio operators. That's what we call our radio rooms. They use to sell Ham Radio and CB radio equipment. I have a old Radio Shack hand held 2 meter radio.


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## SDIV Tim (Nov 19, 2015)

Radio Shack is no longer in California


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## PatKn (Jul 14, 2015)

DennyM said:


> My mom bought my very first component stereo system from Radio Shack back in 1973. A 50 watt amp, speakers and a turntable. The Radio Shack was in a mall called Ford City in Chicago.
> 
> Radio Shack took their name from Ham Radio operators. That's what we call our radio rooms. They use to sell Ham Radio and CB radio equipment. I have a old Radio Shack hand held 2 meter radio.


Wow. You bring back memories and date me, Denny.  I was a Ham Radio operator also. My 2 meter rig was made by Lafayette Electronics. I had a Radio Shack 8 Track Recorder that I used to make my own 8 Track tapes. My first Stereo was a Heathkit - another name from the past.


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## DennyM (Jan 3, 2016)

PatKn said:


> Wow. You bring back memories and date me, Denny.  I was a Ham Radio operator also. My 2 meter rig was made by Lafayette Electronics. I had a Radio Shack 8 Track Recorder that I used to make my own 8 Track tapes. My first Stereo was a Heathkit - another name from the past.


Now your the one bringing back memories. My component stereo was a Lafayette and my first 8 track was a portable Sears radio/8 track player that you could separate into two halves if you wanted to. Each channel had a independent volume control. It was one of the first boom boxes before they got really big. Plus it was a recorder too.

My mother kept it until recently. She thought I would use it again someday. 

I made a lot of music recordings and then played the 8 tracks in my car stereo which was a Craig stereo and Jenson speakers. 

Dare I say my turntable had a magnetic cartridge?


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## BrokeCurmudgeon (Feb 8, 2016)

As an old radio technician and telephone man, Radio Shack was a great place to go in the old days. They had many and sundry parts and I could generally find the electronic part that I was looking for, but alas, that was many years ago! I wouldn't waste my time go to a RS now even if one was close by. :laugh:


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## DennyM (Jan 3, 2016)

I always thought they started going downhill when Tandy took over.


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## Lehigh74 (Sep 25, 2015)

Lehigh74 said:


> Up until a few years ago, there was a Radio Shack a few miles from my house. It was nice to be able to pop over and pick up some toggle switches, heat shrink tubing, etc. The closest ones now are about 5 miles away in Philly. I won’t buy anything there because of the added 2% sales tax. I was curious so I did a store locator to see what else is nearby and found 25 stores within 25 miles. Six of those are closing so I would say Radio Shack may not be on its death bed, but it’s certainly not in the best of health. I did notice there is one in North Wales so maybe I’ll stop in the next time I go to Henning’s.


I went to the store in North Wales this morning. Kind of small and not much there. And it too is closing even though it’s not listed as such on their web site. Maybe Radio Shack *IS* on its last legs.


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## Waddy (Dec 18, 2014)

feldon30 said:


> Radio Shack should have been at the forefront of the Raspberry Pi and Arduino wave. They should have been carrying everything you might need to create a robot or any kind of electronic item. I mean hell, Fry's has 10 feet of shelf space for robotics and another 20 feet of space for Raspberry Pi and Arduino servo motors, breadboards, prototyping boards, etc. Not to mention the 300 foot rows of resistors, LEDs, capacitors, etc.


Very insightful of you. Yes, they missed the boat. Arduino and robotics components would have been the natural progression for this company, not toys and cell phones, which everybody sells. Those are tough markets.


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## Deane Johnson (Sep 19, 2016)

The cell phone thing was a real turnoff. When you walked into the store, the entire front was cell phones, then the next layer was toys. It was as if electronics just weren't a part of it anymore. That's before you even got to the employees who knew nothing, weren't there yesterday, and would be gone tomorrow.


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## BobS (Jun 18, 2015)

OH SURE, NOW WHERE CAN I GET MY TANDY 99 SERVICED? CAN I STILL BUY 5 1/4" FLOPPIES SOMEWHERE?


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## raleets (Jan 2, 2011)

If you asked any of the current "associates" at an electronics store for a "floppy" he would think it was the latest fast food sensation.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

At our age, asking for a "floppy" will get you a different answer. 

What in the world are you going to do with that "floppy" anyway?


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## raleets (Jan 2, 2011)

At my age a "floppy" is usually associated with an afternoon nap.  :thumbsup:


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## Dave Farquhar (Feb 20, 2013)

I miss Radio Shack even in its diminished state. They had a really good replacement tip for Weller soldering guns, for instance. If I needed a resistor, or a spool of wire, there were two stores within five minutes of home, open until 8 pm most nights and at least until 6 on Sundays. Once or twice a year, Radio Shack's close proximity helped me finish a project.

But there weren't enough people like me to keep them in business. The two closest to me both closed about two years ago. The last one, nearly 30 minutes away, is closing now.

Equivalents to some of the stuff I used to get at Radio Shack is available at Home Depot now, so that helps. Micro Center's selection of electronic components isn't as good as even the diminished Radio Shack's was, so when it won't do, I'll have to order online.


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## DennyM (Jan 3, 2016)

Who else carries project boxes? I use them for togo switches that I use to turn power on and off on my train yard latter's and the activation buttons that are better than what Lionel sells....well at least the button that activates the uncoupling track.


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## BrokeCurmudgeon (Feb 8, 2016)

I just rely on ordering most parts from China now. The worst thing is the shipping wait, 2 to 6 weeks. But they are cheap!


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## DennyM (Jan 3, 2016)

That may not last long.


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## Cycleops (Dec 6, 2014)

BrokeCurmudgeon said:


> I just rely on ordering most parts from China now. The worst thing is the shipping wait, 2 to 6 weeks. But they are cheap!


Just don't let them have your credit card details!!


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## Lee Willis (Jan 1, 2014)

If I can buy it on Amazon, I will even if its a bit pricier than going to China or SE Asian suppliers, just because it arrives weeks earlier (at least if you check out the seller and estimated delivery time before pressing "buy.". At my age, by six weeks of waiting, I forgot what I ordered!


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## DennyM (Jan 3, 2016)

Lee Willis said:


> If I can buy it on Amazon, I will even if its a bit pricier than going to China or SE Asian suppliers, just because it arrives weeks earlier (at least if you check out the seller and estimated delivery time before pressing "buy.". At my age, by six weeks of waiting, I forgot what I ordered!


If I just walk into another room I forget why I went in there.hwell:


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## highvoltage (Apr 6, 2014)

I hadn't been to one in a while, but I recently needed a do-it-yourself RCA phono plug. Fortunately there was a Shack near my daughter's new house, so it came in very handy.

Not sure how much more I'll need them. I guess I'll buy online and pay the shipping.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Cycleops said:


> Just don't let them have your credit card details!!


One good use for PayPal, they never have any details of my credit.


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## Norton (Nov 5, 2015)

We are fortunate to still have one old time electronics store in the area and prices are great. When HDMI cables were selling for over 50 bucks at the big box stores, they had them for 6. 
I will miss Radio Shack for the weekend jobs though. My Radio Shack rooftop antenna amplifier died last month and I was able to make use of a mild weather day to pick another up at Radio Shack and make the swap. 
My wifes analog dumb phone is a 12 year old Radio Shack item. Still functional thanks to eBay and its battery sellers.

Pete


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## Stoshu (Jun 20, 2015)

gunrunnerjohn said:


> At our age, asking for a "floppy" will get you a different answer.
> 
> What in the world are you going to do with that "floppy" anyway?


_Mine fell off....._


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## Norton (Nov 5, 2015)

raleets said:


> If you asked any of the current "associates" at an electronics store for a "floppy" he would think it was the latest fast food sensation.


You guys laugh but we still have a 286 at work with 5 1/4 floppy drives. Its used to control an instrument and uses proprietary ISA cards in the computer box. To replace it with what the company uses today would cost well over 200K.

Pete


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## Stoshu (Jun 20, 2015)

_The common thread seems to be lack of knowledgeable employees. Most of these places would hire high school kids. In our area all the high schools eliminated shop classes. There is just nobody to hire. ( unless you need a phone expert ) 
I used to do a lot of K-mart work. They didn't seem to treat employee's very well. Combined with the " We are K-mart " attitude it's no wonder they have problems. 

Any service you provided was only allowed a 33% markup and a special labor rate.
Then you might get paid in 6 months. So when things would get good, decent contractors would go elsewhere.... _


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Norton said:


> You guys laugh but we still have a 286 at work with 5 1/4 floppy drives. Its used to control an instrument and uses proprietary ISA cards in the computer box. To replace it with what the company uses today would cost well over 200K.
> 
> Pete


The ISA bus was the last PC hardware platform I developed anything for, never moved on the the PCI bus versions. The whole Phila Stock Exchange used my video generators based on the PC, but I went whole-hog and used the 386 processor.


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## rkenney (Aug 10, 2013)

Sure glad this thread is in the 'O' section or I might have missed it! ...or would I?


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## balidas (Jun 3, 2011)

I haven't seen a Radio Shack around here for a few years now. 

In '06 I started working for a Sears repair center repairing 2 & 4 cycle equipment. A few months later I was surprised to hear that K Mart bought out Sears some time after themselves filing for bankruptcy & closing like 300 stores. I figured then my job wasn't going to last. Then in our meetings we started hearing about other repair centers being shutdown. Oct '06 we were told that a repair center in Oklahoma was being shutdown because "there was a problem with the property owner so the lease wasn't renewed". Yea, I believed that one. 

So I asked the unit manager when would our unit be shutdown. He actually looked at me with disdain..."We're not going to be shutdown". After the meeting I started telling my fellow employees to start looking for other work. They all laughed at me. On Dec 5th we were told that on Jan 7 '07, our unit will be shutdown. 

I'm not surprised to read of Sears & K Mart shutting down.


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## DennyM (Jan 3, 2016)

balidas said:


> I haven't seen a Radio Shack around here for a few years now.
> 
> In '06 I started working for a Sears repair center repairing 2 & 4 cycle equipment. A few months later I was surprised to hear that K Mart bought out Sears some time after themselves filing for bankruptcy & closing like 300 stores. I figured then my job wasn't going to last. Then in our meetings we started hearing about other repair centers being shutdown. Oct '06 we were told that a repair center in Oklahoma was being shutdown because "there was a problem with the property owner so the lease wasn't renewed". Yea, I believed that one.
> 
> ...


Some people believe the hype, you didn't. You should have told that manager, "Don't piss on my back and tell me it's raining". :sly:


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## balidas (Jun 3, 2011)

DennyM said:


> Some people believe the hype, you didn't. You should have told that manager, "Don't piss on my back and tell me it's raining". :sly:


The Outlaw Josey Wales. I love that movie. 

Well I don't know about that. I just thought it was obvious that if those people ran one company into the ground, why wouldn't they run a second to the ground.


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## DennyM (Jan 3, 2016)

balidas said:


> The Outlaw Josey Wales. I love that movie.
> 
> Well I don't know about that. I just thought it was obvious that if those people ran one company into the ground, why wouldn't they run a second to the ground.


The Outlaw Josie Wales is one of my all time favorite Eastwood movies.

Balidas, I have a tendency to speak my mind especially on the job.


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## BigAl56 (Dec 14, 2011)

Someday there will be a definitive book written about the Pirates that stole Sears then looted and squeezed it dry of all it's life's blood. Had a few friends that worked there full time and myself worked there over the holidays a few years ago. An employee pretty much has to be totally clueless or a habitual liar not to know by now what was happening to the company. Everyone that still works there knows full well the clock is ticking and just trying to hold out to retirement.


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## DennyM (Jan 3, 2016)

I bought my first set of tools at Sears. I liked the fact they would replace your tools no matter what happened to them.


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## Deane Johnson (Sep 19, 2016)

I was in Sears several weeks ago and the appliance department, which used to be full of rows of refrigerators, stoves, etc, was 3/4 empty. Just a huge empty space where things used to sit. It was the look of doom.


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## Stoshu (Jun 20, 2015)

Deane Johnson said:


> I was in Sears several weeks ago and the appliance department, which used to be full of rows of refrigerators, stoves, etc, was 3/4 empty. Just a huge empty space where things used to sit. It was the look of doom.


_I can probably tell you why. Nobody buy's them any more.
We bought a refrigerator 8 months a go and didn't get one that worked until the 3rd one. 
The guy that bought us the last one said that they run about a 40% failure rate since they moved production to Mexico. Sad...._


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## Deane Johnson (Sep 19, 2016)

Stoshu said:


> _I can probably tell you why. Nobody buy's them any more.
> We bought a refrigerator 8 months a go and didn't get one that worked until the 3rd one.
> The guy that bought us the last one said that they run about a 40% failure rate since they moved production to Mexico. Sad...._


Sears Kenmore used to be among the best. Were usually made by other manufacturers to Sears specs. I assume it was KMart who moved them to Mexico and at the same time dropped the quality standards. Makes sense, doesn't it. . .lower the quality, go out of business. I wonder if the Harvard Business School is aware of this clever business concept.

I think many Craftsman tools went in the same direction.


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## njrailer93 (Nov 28, 2011)

craftsman tools was bought out by stanley earlier this year. i wonder if they will keep the name or use the dewalt name.


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## Deane Johnson (Sep 19, 2016)

njrailer93 said:


> craftsman tools was bought out by stanley earlier this year. i wonder if they will keep the name or use the dewalt name.


I'd forgotten about that. That doesn't leave much of Sears still alive.


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## DennyM (Jan 3, 2016)

Well my friends I have said this before. The only constant in the universe is change and this proves it. I grew up with five & dime stores. I'm sure some of you younger guys are saying, 'A what?'. When I first started riding public transportation the fair was $.12. Now it's three or four dollars. Bus drivers could make change. Now you have to have exact change. I had to carry change for a payphone. Now people have cellphones glued to their ear or in their face texting. There are words like texting and hashtag. It was a pound sign at one time. The world is different.


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## rrbill (Mar 11, 2012)

I can remember in the late forties when the downtown Penney's building was constructed. They used a ton of bricks in that two story building!
By the way, it's Penney's, with two "e"s, after the founder, James Cash Penney, Jr. He lived until 1971, not that long ago to some of us.
We still have a Radio Shack about twenty minutes away. The manager's a nice guy who is knowledgeable and helpful. I don't know of another local source for small electronic bits. I can remember the Tandy Leather store in the fifties, where you could buy those wallet kits that you could turn into useful, but ugly wallets. If you had ten dollars in it at one time, you were a modestly wealthy kid back then.
Ah, the days, the days!


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## DennyM (Jan 3, 2016)

rrbill said:


> I can remember in the late forties when the downtown Penney's building was constructed. They used a ton of bricks in that two story building!
> By the way, it's Penney's, with two "e"s, after the founder, James Cash Penney, Jr. He lived until 1971, not that long ago to some of us.
> We still have a Radio Shack about twenty minutes away. The manager's a nice guy who is knowledgeable and helpful. I don't know of another local source for small electronic bits. I can remember the Tandy Leather store in the fifties, where you could buy those wallet kits that you could turn into useful, but ugly wallets. If you had ten dollars in it at one time, you were a modestly wealthy kid back then.
> Ah, the days, the days!


I remember when Carson's was Carson Pirie Scott. I worked at the original store downtown Chicago as a stockman. I also remember my dad going to a outlet store on 35th street. I don't remember is it was Sears or Wieboldt's, but I do remember the smell of fresh roasted cashews when we walked into the store. 

The Radio Shack here you have to know what your looking for when you walk in. If you ask anybody about what you need then you get to watch their head pop off and roll around the floor. They are nice guys though.


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## BrokeCurmudgeon (Feb 8, 2016)

rrbill said:


> I can remember in the late forties when the downtown Penney's building was constructed. They used a ton of bricks in that two story building!
> By the way, it's Penney's, with two "e"s, after the founder, James Cash Penney, Jr. He lived until 1971, not that long ago to some of us.


Speaking of Penneys: Way back in my cowboy days while I was working on a ranch in Wyoming, and on the occasional times I got to go to town I would shop at the very original mother store JC Penneys in Kemmerer WY. Those were the days. 
It is sad to see these old establishments go the way of the past.


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## balidas (Jun 3, 2011)

DennyM said:


> The Outlaw Josie Wales is one of my all time favorite Eastwood movies.
> 
> Balidas, I have a tendency to speak my mind especially on the job.


Same here, especially when it concerns employee safety which translates into my safety. I've lost a few jobs because I don't grin & bear it.



BigAl56 said:


> Someday there will be a definitive book written about the Pirates that stole Sears then looted and squeezed it dry of all it's life's blood.


Sounds like what happened with Pan Am. Some exec's started selling assets to their cronies for pennies on the dollar.




DennyM said:


> I bought my first set of tools at Sears. I liked the fact they would replace your tools no matter what happened to them.


Me too until I went to replace a rachet that stopped working. It was after K Mart bought them out & the clerk would only give me a "refurbished" rachet & not even the same style. When I complained I was told "Take it or not."




njrailer93 said:


> craftsman tools was bought out by stanley earlier this year. i wonder if they will keep the name or use the dewalt name.


I did not know that.


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## Wood (Jun 9, 2015)

Stanley has retained the name "Craftsman" and they are available in Ace hardware stores. The lifetime guarantee stands and no questions asked in my local store.


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## rrbill (Mar 11, 2012)

In about the 1970's, I bought one of Sears' heavily advertised "Type 1" corded electric drills. 
All these years later, it still works well, albeit a bit more noisily. It doesn't have a task light, doesn't tell the time and doesn't take your picture; but it does what it was intended to and will probably outlast me. Craftsman tools were fine quality tools back in the day.


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## BobS (Jun 18, 2015)

As each of my three sons was born, I started them out by purchasing them Craftsman tools. This was when Sears still had a catalog that arrived periodically in the mail. Every February/March was Craftsman tool month sale/ This is when I would purchase the tools for my sons. Sockets, ratchets, wrenches of all kinds, even metric stuff. Hammers, screwdrivers, chisels, you name it. If it was a Craftsman hand tool, I probably bought it, or three of it. I don't think my kids even know what most of the tools are for, but they own them.

Sometimes they will tell me of a problem, and I'll say "you have a tool for that", and then explain what it is, what it looks like, and how to use it. I admit, I was remiss in teaching them about tools and fixing things. I figured that they would all have my curiosity and ability to do things more on their own. Don't get me wrong, they all can and do things that require the use of tools, but, I think, somehow, the means to fix common things has disappeared from society, on the whole.


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## njrailer93 (Nov 28, 2011)

Wood said:


> Stanley has retained the name "Craftsman" and they are available in Ace hardware stores. The lifetime guarantee stands and no questions asked in my local store.


But are they still made in America or is it still over seas


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## BigAl56 (Dec 14, 2011)

Everything is made in China and is crap. Bought a 'Craftsman' snow blower about 12 years ago and it said 'assembled in China' on the box. That snowblower lasted 3 winters before it fell apart.
The hedge fund guy that ruined the company slowly and methodically dismantled the company and it's brands. The Craftsman name that Stanley purchased is a shadow of itself and worth pennies on the dollar to what it may have been worth 10 years ago.

Was a time before they put the name Kenmore, craftsman, or 'Sears Best' on anything it had to go through a thorough Sears vetting by the company inspector checkers. After all, it said 'satisfaction or your money back' over the door. I'll bet all those product checkers have long since been laid off. These days I have no confidence in anything sears is of quality.


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## balidas (Jun 3, 2011)

BigAl56 said:


> After all, it said 'satisfaction or your money back"


When I started working at Sears there were mimeographed copies on all the walls with the slogan "Satisfaction guaranteed or your money back". Shortly after K Mart took over that slogan & mimeographed sheets changed to "Satisfaction garaunteed". It was around that time that we started losing our performance bonuses. 

I actually asked someone if this was one of the signs of the apocalypse.


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