"dxAce" wrote in message
...


Steveo wrote:

"Hamsoldandnew" wrote:
Forget it folks..
IMHO Dayton is finished, stick a fork into it.
It will never go back to what it once was Years ago
despite all the marketing and hype that they make it.
Oh there will always be the camaraderie and the new
equipment showings, but the flea market is just about finished.
Stick to hamfests located with 30 miles of your QTH.

I agree. It looked more like a drive-in rummage sale than a
hamvention at
the outside vendors booths.

In the Hamventions defense it's not their fault as to what is
brought inside for
sale. They're probably trying to do the best they can to put on a
good event.

Agreed, most stuff is going to eBay these days, and no problem with
that. Can't
really fault a seller for wanting to move his/her equipment rather
than waiting
another year for Dayton.

I've seen the same here even with local fest's over the last number
of years.

Since this was the first time I'd been to Dayton in about
5 years, it was at least nice to see a bit less flea market
space devoted to DVDs and videos, console games, and
other items like honey and jam. I remember in 2000 about
twice as much space devoted to that as there was now.
Also unlike then, I could find more purely SWL related
stuff around, which was a nice change. (I didn't see
Joe Walsh, Ace, although there was one guy I did see
(or hear, rather) whom we must have seen down half
of the flea market aisles. He was yapping on a cell for
so long I was wondering how on earth he was keeping
his battery charged.)

Someone had an R8B for $1180 or so, someone else had
an R8 for $500, and there were several vendors with
R-5000's and IC-R71A's for $400-$450. There was one
group that had an HQ-180 for $600, and the thing looked
like it was dropped off a truck; the 180 that someone was
selling for $400 looked in much better condition. There
were several SP-600s and SP-400s around as well as
Hallicrafters SX-100s and older Hallicrafters and Hammarlund
stuff.

As for Hara, I often wonder how that place stays open.
They obviously don't put much money into the facility in
terms of upkeep or upgrading the facilities; hell, the whole
place still seems like it's in a 1950's time warp. That whole
area of Trotwood looks like it's downtown Baghdad, with
the Salem Mall partially torn down and mostly for rent,
and the other empty buildings in the area. If the Hamvention
decided to move to the Dayton Convention Center, Wright
State's Nutter Center, or the UD Arena, Hara Arena might
just fold.

--Mike L.

Michael Lawson wrote:

"dxAce" wrote in message
...


Steveo wrote:

"Hamsoldandnew" wrote:
Forget it folks..
IMHO Dayton is finished, stick a fork into it.
It will never go back to what it once was Years ago
despite all the marketing and hype that they make it.
Oh there will always be the camaraderie and the new
equipment showings, but the flea market is just about finished.
Stick to hamfests located with 30 miles of your QTH.

I agree. It looked more like a drive-in rummage sale than a
hamvention at
the outside vendors booths.

In the Hamventions defense it's not their fault as to what is
brought inside for
sale. They're probably trying to do the best they can to put on a
good event.

Agreed, most stuff is going to eBay these days, and no problem with
that. Can't
really fault a seller for wanting to move his/her equipment rather
than waiting
another year for Dayton.

I've seen the same here even with local fest's over the last number
of years.

Since this was the first time I'd been to Dayton in about
5 years, it was at least nice to see a bit less flea market
space devoted to DVDs and videos, console games, and
other items like honey and jam. I remember in 2000 about
twice as much space devoted to that as there was now.
Also unlike then, I could find more purely SWL related
stuff around, which was a nice change. (I didn't see
Joe Walsh, Ace, although there was one guy I did see
(or hear, rather) whom we must have seen down half
of the flea market aisles. He was yapping on a cell for
so long I was wondering how on earth he was keeping
his battery charged.)

Someone had an R8B for $1180 or so, someone else had
an R8 for $500, and there were several vendors with
R-5000's and IC-R71A's for $400-$450. There was one
group that had an HQ-180 for $600, and the thing looked
like it was dropped off a truck; the 180 that someone was
selling for $400 looked in much better condition. There
were several SP-600s and SP-400s around as well as
Hallicrafters SX-100s and older Hallicrafters and Hammarlund
stuff.

As for Hara, I often wonder how that place stays open.
They obviously don't put much money into the facility in
terms of upkeep or upgrading the facilities; hell, the whole
place still seems like it's in a 1950's time warp. That whole
area of Trotwood looks like it's downtown Baghdad, with
the Salem Mall partially torn down and mostly for rent,
and the other empty buildings in the area. If the Hamvention
decided to move to the Dayton Convention Center, Wright
State's Nutter Center, or the UD Arena, Hara Arena might
just fold.

Thanks for the report Mike... Guess I might as well try Joe through his email.
Figured he might show up at Dayton though. Dayton I guess is much like other get
together's or festivals around the country.

The Tulip Festival here at one time was a major attraction, but for some time
attendance has been dwindling. Not surprising as there are so many other things
out there to attract peoples attention.

dxAce
Michigan
USA