UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Powered By Google Custom Search Vintage Radio and TV Service Data

Go Back   UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum > General Vintage Technology > Where To Get Sets and Parts

Notices

Where To Get Sets and Parts For discussions about swapmeets, rallies, NVCF and BVWS, car boot sales, antique and charity shops, dealers, newspaper adverts, the local tip and just about any other source of equipment (other than eBay).

Closed Thread
 
Thread Tools
Old 12th Aug 2020, 7:24 pm   #721
G6Tanuki
Dekatron
 
G6Tanuki's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Wiltshire, UK.
Posts: 13,951
Default Re: Maplin stores

Being realist: the sort of corner-shop where you could buy an odd screw or a couple of capacitors would - in these days - never generate enough turnover, let alone profit, to pay someone in a brown housecoat to sit behind the counter and dish-out said microvalue-transactional stuff.

Minimum-wage; Business-rates; Employers National Insurance; Employers Pension-contributions; Public-liability insurance; VAT; Heating; Lighting; Rent; Capital-depreciation-on-stock; It goes on and on...

OK, if you'd be prepared to pay £30 for that odd screw or a couple of diodes, to cover those ongoing costs. And I bet you'd com-plain-like-hell if they didn't have four 1970s TMS2708 EPROMs in stock.

Tandy/Maplin tried to handle this by selling higher-value profitable 'tat' to offset the ongoing costs of supporting the small-component stuff, but it was clearly a path-to-bankruptcy.

I'm not worried about the demise of "local shops for local people" - RS/Mouser/Hobbytronics/Farnell/Bitbox/Jabdog/Rapid/Digikey/Cricklewood can get me the obscure parts I need, delivered to my door by 09:00 the next day.
G6Tanuki is offline  
Old 29th Jul 2021, 8:26 pm   #722
David G4EBT
Dekatron
 
David G4EBT's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Cottingham, East Yorkshire, UK.
Posts: 5,736
Default Maplin in business.

Maybe it isn't news, but it is to me, to see that Maplin are in business albeit in a much more modest way.

Perhaps they'll make a go of it now that they no longer try to stock thousands of low value low turnover items such as resistors, caps, and other bits and bobs which accounted for much of their inventory but contributed little to their turnover. By trying to stock all the shops as well as their warehouse, they couldn't carry low value low turnover items in large quantities in shop, so the likes of us were forever bleating that we wanted five capacitors and they'd only got two in the shop.

Might be worth a look, if only out of curiosity.

I don't think they've got anything that isn't on offer elsewhere, but they have such things as soldering stations, a few kits and bits, but of course nothing on the scale of yesteryear.

https://www.maplin.co.uk/about

https://www.maplin.co.uk/maker-stem

For info really - not to resurrect the interminable debates that rumbled round like summer thunder when Maplin finally hit the buffers.

For old time's sake I wish them well.
__________________
David.
BVWS Member.
G-QRP Club member 1339.
David G4EBT is online now  
Old 29th Jul 2021, 9:18 pm   #723
SiriusHardware
Dekatron
 
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Newcastle, Tyne and Wear, UK.
Posts: 11,482
Default Re: Maplin in business.

Had a quick look, interesting to see that most of the solder in their range is lead/tin.
SiriusHardware is online now  
Old 29th Jul 2021, 9:34 pm   #724
Scimitar
Heptode
 
Scimitar's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: Gloucestershire, UK.
Posts: 719
Default Re: Maplin in business.

It isn't actually Maplin though. It's just like Debenhams.com, just the name attached to a totally different business.
Scimitar is offline  
Old 30th Jul 2021, 9:37 am   #725
Craig Sawyers
Dekatron
 
Craig Sawyers's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Oxford, UK.
Posts: 4,939
Default Re: Maplin in business.

Yes - you can purchase the brand name for a defunct or moribund outfit the same way as any other asset. There is nothing really in common between the original Maplin and the new one. Different business.

As a further example, Creusen used to make superb bench grinders. I have one. But they went bust, alas. It is now called Creusen 2.0 Green Technology. The current owners purchased the assets and reconfigured the business.

Craig
Craig Sawyers is online now  
Old 30th Jul 2021, 9:52 am   #726
SiriusHardware
Dekatron
 
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Newcastle, Tyne and Wear, UK.
Posts: 11,482
Default Re: Maplin in business.

Where this annoys me most is where the brand buyer clearly has no idea what the brand originally represented, so you get weirdness like Polaroid, originally a well known film and camera brand, being put on TVs and radios.

I've even seen the old 'GPO' name and crest being used on some goods including phones, yes, but other items as well.

At least the stuff on that new 'Maplin' website is a small subset of what 'old Maplin' might have sold. They haven't suddenly branched out into fashion, or DIY.
SiriusHardware is online now  
Old 30th Jul 2021, 12:37 pm   #727
emeritus
Dekatron
 
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Brentwood, Essex, UK.
Posts: 5,316
Default Re: Maplin in business.

The far eastern company that bought the rights to the BUSH trademark from Rank Bush Murphy were well aware of the goodwill that the name attracted. That is why they paid £1.2 million for it.
emeritus is offline  
Old 30th Jul 2021, 4:00 pm   #728
G6Tanuki
Dekatron
 
G6Tanuki's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Wiltshire, UK.
Posts: 13,951
Default Re: Maplin in business.

Must admit, I doubt I'll be buying anything from them; not when RS have a vastly greater range along with free before-10AM-next-day delivery, or Bitsbox - https://www.bitsbox.co.uk/ - who have an interesting range and only charge a couple of quid postage.

[Similarly, after Tandy folded, an online version reappeared and is still extant: they sell valves! I've used them a couple of times]
G6Tanuki is offline  
Old 30th Jul 2021, 4:16 pm   #729
Aub
Nonode
 
Aub's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Nuneaton, Warwickshire, UK.
Posts: 2,033
Default Re: Maplin in business.

Interesting site. Looks like they sell second hand stuff too.

Aub
__________________
Life's a long song, but the tune ends too soon for us all.
Aub is offline  
Old 31st Jul 2021, 11:21 am   #730
electronicskip
Nonode
 
electronicskip's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Gloucester, Glos. UK.
Posts: 2,149
Default Re: Maplin in business.

Tandy is a similar example of an old brand resurrected , although i was quite surprised to see they were selling a few valves recently on their website.
__________________
Oh I've had that for years dear!!
electronicskip is offline  
Old 1st Aug 2021, 4:00 pm   #731
stevehertz
Dekatron
 
stevehertz's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Rugeley, Staffordshire, UK.
Posts: 8,809
Default Re: Maplin in business.

Quote:
Originally Posted by SiriusHardware View Post
Where this annoys me most is where the brand buyer clearly has no idea what the brand originally represented....
Well yes, but from the off the new company more often than not has zero intentions of following any brand policies or even sticking to the lines that the original company sold, they're just 'capitalising' on the famous brand name that they've bought and legally using. Yes, it's disappointing in a way (time and tide wait for no man), but there's nothing particularly wrong with it, just so long as one isn't daft enough to expect anything else. I think we all understand how it works TBH, it's been going on since 'Ekco' started making hostess trollies - a long way from circular bakelite radios! Mind you, you can now buy an Ekco valve amp - that's a bit closer I suppose!
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version

Name:	WD-Ekco-ev55-3.jpeg
Views:	145
Size:	28.9 KB
ID:	238625  
__________________
A digital radio is the latest thing, but a vintage wireless is forever..
stevehertz is online now  
Old 3rd Aug 2021, 5:02 pm   #732
Vintage_RC
Heptode
 
Vintage_RC's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2018
Location: Twickenham, London, UK.
Posts: 536
Default Re: Maplin stores

I have had excellent service from Bitsbox and as has been mentioned postage is very reasonable.
__________________
Alan G6PUB, BVWS
Vintage_RC is offline  
Old 3rd Aug 2021, 7:59 pm   #733
wireman
Heptode
 
Join Date: Feb 2021
Location: Edinburgh, Scotland, UK.
Posts: 528
Default Re: Maplin stores

I note that the about page is full of mission statements and harks back to the history of the Maplin brand.

But when it comes to putting you in your place should you want a refund on a real Maplin product they are keen to let you know they are a new company...

"Maplin is a new company trading under Digital-First Retail Ltd. We will not be accepting return requests or issuing refunds and exchanges for goods purchased prior to 1st October 2018 (either in-store or online purchases)."

I still have a Maplin catalogue on my shelf.
wireman is offline  
Old 3rd Aug 2021, 8:39 pm   #734
SiriusHardware
Dekatron
 
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Newcastle, Tyne and Wear, UK.
Posts: 11,482
Default Re: Maplin stores

Don't we all, the mid-period Maplin catalogues were packed with IC data sheets and application circuits. I think one year they actually removed the TTL / CMOS IC pinout section and there was uproar.
SiriusHardware is online now  
Old 3rd Aug 2021, 10:01 pm   #735
Richard_FM
Octode
 
Richard_FM's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2017
Location: Stockport, Cheshire, UK.
Posts: 1,999
Default Re: Maplin stores

Quote:
Originally Posted by SiriusHardware View Post
Don't we all, the mid-period Maplin catalogues were packed with IC data sheets and application circuits. I think one year they actually removed the TTL / CMOS IC pinout section and there was uproar.
I remember the mid 1990s ones had a lot of useful information at the start of each section.

I'm still still miffed about getting rid of a catalogue from that period, though it was during a parentally enforced clear-out.
__________________
Hello IT: Have you Tried Turning It Off & On Again?
Richard_FM is offline  
Closed Thread

Thread Tools



All times are GMT +1. The time now is 10:01 am.


All information and advice on this forum is subject to the WARNING AND DISCLAIMER located at https://www.vintage-radio.net/rules.html.
Failure to heed this warning may result in death or serious injury to yourself and/or others.


Powered by vBulletin®
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Copyright ©2002 - 2023, Paul Stenning.