The smell of vintage electronics

[audio_tony]

LOL..

Try sawing a piece of brown vero board.. The dust is not very good for you though. The smell is quie nice..<snip>

Regards
M. Gregg

Yes, it does remind me of Veroboard, just a bit.

 

[AcoustatAnswerMan]

Every morning when I open my office door, I take a deep breath in and enjoy the wonderful aroma of vintage electronics.

It's just dawned on me however, that I don't actually know what that smell is ... and whether it may actually be doing me harm as I sit in my office all day with a dozen or so vintage amps and tuners.

I can definitely smell it every morning when I walk into my office though, quite pleasant and unseemingly dangerous ... BUT WHAT IS IT I CAN SMELL?!?

(These are all solid state components built in the seventies, Sansui, Mitsubishi, Dynaco etc., nothing older than early seventies and nothing newer than early eighties.)

Should I be mindful of this or am I just being paranoid?

I too love that smell. My dad used to have a big 'electrical drawer' filled mostly with stuff he 'acquired' from the military back in the 40-50's. I loved to open that drawer and breathe deeply. I think a major component of the smell is the shellac (varnish?) used for moisture protection on transformers, coils and just about everything else. Early plastics would out-gas alot, too. Thanks for that trip down Memory Lane!

Dangerous? Probably not. Look at me...I turned out normal...NOT!