Electronics construction kits for kids
 

Are they still made ?
Just been sorting an old junk pile and there was a faded paper bag with a
couple of
Germanium AC126 trannies with highly distinctive red slide-on boots.
These were part of a Philips construction kit I got as a crissy pres a long
long time
ago. The board, I remember, was covered in springs to tie components
together
rather than soldering.

--
Diverse Devices, Southampton, England
electronic hints and repair briefs , schematics/manuals list on
http://home.graffiti.net/diverse:graffiti.net/

In article ,
N Cook wrote:
Are they still made ? Just been sorting an old junk pile and there was a
faded paper bag with a couple of Germanium AC126 trannies with highly
distinctive red slide-on boots. These were part of a Philips
construction kit I got as a crissy pres a long long time ago. The board,
I remember, was covered in springs to tie components together rather
than soldering.

Check out Maplin, etc. The answer is yes.

--
*I'm planning to be spontaneous tomorrow *

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

N Cook wrote:

Are they still made ?
Just been sorting an old junk pile and there was a faded paper bag with a
couple of
Germanium AC126 trannies with highly distinctive red slide-on boots.
These were part of a Philips construction kit I got as a crissy pres a long
long time
ago. The board, I remember, was covered in springs to tie components
together
rather than soldering.

Hi N...

Sometimes there are advantages to getting on in years;
remember getting those for the kids many many years ago...

And about 10 years ago getting one for one of the grand kids...
Fond memories of the day we built it into a rain detector -
so that if we needed to know if it was raining all we needed
to do was take it outside and within a few minutes it would
tell us whether or not it was raining :) I think he's
still pondering the wisdom of that one :)

Anyway, they were made by (or at least labelled) Radio
Shack, and available in several different sizes (50 in one,
60, 75,150, 160, etc)

There are still some around, here's a link to two of
them at ebay...

http://search.ebay.ca/radio-shack-ki...fsopZ1QQfsooZ1

And if that's too long, search for radio shack kit If you're
lucky enough to have a youngster to share it with, grab one,
you'll both enjoy it :)

Take care.

Ken

"Ken Weitzel" wrote in message
news:rA7Ce.255977$El.163040@pd7tw1no...


N Cook wrote:

Are they still made ?
Just been sorting an old junk pile and there was a faded paper bag with a
couple of
Germanium AC126 trannies with highly distinctive red slide-on boots.
These were part of a Philips construction kit I got as a crissy pres a
long
long time
ago. The board, I remember, was covered in springs to tie components
together
rather than soldering.

Hi N...

Sometimes there are advantages to getting on in years;
remember getting those for the kids many many years ago...

And about 10 years ago getting one for one of the grand kids...
Fond memories of the day we built it into a rain detector -
so that if we needed to know if it was raining all we needed
to do was take it outside and within a few minutes it would
tell us whether or not it was raining :) I think he's
still pondering the wisdom of that one :)

Anyway, they were made by (or at least labelled) Radio
Shack, and available in several different sizes (50 in one,
60, 75,150, 160, etc)

There are still some around, here's a link to two of
them at ebay...

http://search.ebay.ca/radio-shack-ki...fsopZ1QQfsooZ1

And if that's too long, search for radio shack kit If you're
lucky enough to have a youngster to share it with, grab one,
you'll both enjoy it :)

Take care.

Ken


If I'm not mistaken I could swear I seen a couple at the local Radio Shack
recently. Not sure what if any differences as opposed to those from the
past, but there "were" a couple there.

clf

"N Cook" wrote in message
...
Are they still made ?

Sure. Radio Shack, other retailers, and eBay for used ones.

N

In article , says...

Are they still made ?

Oh, most definitely. You just need to dig around a bit.

More specifically, check with your local electronics places
(and/or Google) for Velleman kits. They're good for educational
purposes, because assembling them requires soldering and basic
electronic assembly skills (lead forming, cutting, etc).

Be sure to invest in a good soldering station as well. Weller or
Edsyn come immediately to mind.

Happy hunting.


--
Dr. Anton T. Squeegee, Director, Dutch Surrealist Plumbing Institute.
(Known to some as Bruce Lane, ARS KC7GR,
kyrrin (a/t) bluefeathertech[d=o=t]calm -- www.bluefeathertech.com
"If Salvador Dali had owned a computer, would it have been equipped
with surreal ports?"

In article MPG.1d42cb18ca280853989776@localhost,
Dr. Anton T. Squeegee wrote:
Be sure to invest in a good soldering station as well. Weller or
Edsyn come immediately to mind.

I'd say they're a bit expensive until it's certain it's going to be a
hobby. A cheap non temperature mains one will be fine for a start. It was
many years before I could afford one, but can't remember ruining even red
spots with the old one. ;-)

--
*A backward poet writes inverse.*

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

Hi

Here downunder we have www.dse.com.au; www.jaycar.com.au;
www.altronics.com.au; www.oatleyelectronics.com/ + others. These supply kits
etc of varying degrees of complexity. We also have a great magazine
'Siliconchip' www.siliconchip.com.au.

We are well served in this department



--
Regards

Chopper

Remove 'Chopper' in Email address


"N Cook" wrote in message
...
Are they still made ?
Just been sorting an old junk pile and there was a faded paper bag with a
couple of
Germanium AC126 trannies with highly distinctive red slide-on boots.
These were part of a Philips construction kit I got as a crissy pres a
long
long time
ago. The board, I remember, was covered in springs to tie components
together
rather than soldering.

--
Diverse Devices, Southampton, England
electronic hints and repair briefs , schematics/manuals list on
http://home.graffiti.net/diverse:graffiti.net/

"Dave Plowman (News)" wrote in message
...

In article MPG.1d42cb18ca280853989776@localhost,
Dr. Anton T. Squeegee wrote:
Be sure to invest in a good soldering station as well. Weller or
Edsyn come immediately to mind.

I'd say they're a bit expensive until it's certain it's going to be a
hobby. A cheap non temperature mains one will be fine for a start. It was
many years before I could afford one, but can't remember ruining even red
spots with the old one. ;-)

Dollar store one is fine. Better to teach them to use a hot iron quickly
than a cool iron slowly. I had a teacher at college who tried to explain
grad, div and curl to me (with no success) but admitted he'd burnt the
circuit foil off a car battery charger kit trying to solder it together!

However most of the kits referred to use spring connectors.

N

"Chopper" wrote in message
...

Hi

Here downunder we have www.dse.com.au; www.jaycar.com.au;
www.altronics.com.au; www.oatleyelectronics.com/ + others. These supply
kits
etc of varying degrees of complexity. We also have a great magazine
'Siliconchip' www.siliconchip.com.au.

We are well served in this department

But so sad to see the demise of Electronics Australia while I was there, a
magazine we devoured (under its' various names) for many years.

N