Any collectors out there

[JimmyW]

I collect old consoles and arcade machines

[mojo]

i now collect pokemon











just kidding

[Fonefixer]

My boys used to collect pokemon. I collect egyptian gold - I try not to every time I go but I dont seem able to pass the jewellers without looking. (Not that I wear hardly any of it)

[Pete_S]

LED watches - buyer beware!

To anyone thinking of tracking one down, these are the main problems I've encountered with them.

1) Main enemy is leaking batteries. If these were left in the watch after they expired, it's probably been ruined by battery acid. I have succeeded in cleaning up one or two but it's very difficult and the watch is unlikely to ever work again.

2) Sticking command buttons. If there's been an attempt to free them using normal lubricating oil it will either have leaked inside the watch and killed it, or completely destroyed the rubber seal and jammed the buttons solid. The only lubricant I would dare to use is (expensive) "dry film" lubricant which doesn't contain oil.

3) If the watch has "stopped" and is continuously showing an unchanging set of LED segments, it could require a new quartz crystal. Sometimes these crystals become inefficient causing the circuit not to oscillate any more. They can be sourced and fitted but it's a tricky job requiring good soldering skills and eyesight.

There is also the hazard of missing, faulty, LED segments, although surprisingly I haven't found this to be a major problem.

I hope this helps anyone who sources an LED watch making an expensive mistake

Before I sign off, here's another couple of old goodies for your delectation


A very scrappy example I happen to have at work. Rockwell, a chip manufacturer, briefly got into manufacturing calculators in the early/mid 70s (using their own chips, naturally). The styling with the distinctive brown rounded keys is the standout feature. Note the "percent" feature. Features taken for granted now, like "memory", "percent" facility, and "constant" were all charged considerably extra for and emblazoned across the front!


A customer at my shop left me this knowing I collect old tat! The 0860 number is still written on a stickytaped bit of paper on the back. Sometimes I feel like walking down the street bellowing into it just for a laugh

[frimo]

Thanks for the heads up with the watches Pete.

Also a tip for anyone who has a nice lighter or one that's stuck in a draw, remove the flint as it welds itself in with time. Had to drill one out of a Christian Dior lighter, think it was more luck than anything else to remove.

Can remember my parents buying me a calculator in 1977 for my CSE's, didn't make any difference as didn't know how to use it.

[Fonefixer]

I had one of those calculators! Couldnt afford the phone though!

[Sandgrownun]

I collect small hand-held multi media gadgets.
The oldest is a Mustek personal media player with a two inch screen. It is capable of playing videos recorded straight from a TV or CD player it will also play MP3's and display photos as slide shows. I bought this at a computer fair back in the days when a 1gb SD card was £70.00 or more. The next is a Creative Muvo MP3 player 128mb. I have three Aldi Tevion MP4 players of various capabilities, one has a built in DAB radio and all have a text only e book reader. Next is a Philips GoGear that is vastly over-rated. The only redeeming feature is that it is capable of playing DRM protected stuff downloaded from the BBC iplayer. One of my favourite gadgets is the Archos 3 Vision with 8gb of storage space.
There's a Maplins Personal Telecom DAB radio but it will only pick up a few stations. Pride of place goes to a Maplins Nikkai 3" Freeview television with built in TV recorder it has a superb picture quality from its internal aerial. I almost forgot this next one a Hanvon ebook reader as supplied to the Russian Astranauts, this I cannot do without......but there again I can't read it in the dark.......but now I own a Scroll which can be read in the dark ! !

[JACknaThaN]

I collect Neo Geo stuff and have started collecting jamma acrade game boards as well. I have yet to start selling off any of this stuff, some of it I overpaid for some of it I got nice and cheep so we will see if it was a good investment or not in time..