Since I was set up in the outdoor flea market and watching my tables by myself, I did not get to see much beyond my viewpoint. I did get to wander the flea market some before opening and after closing, but my flea market vendor ticket did not allow me access to the buildings outside the normal business hours. In previous years I could "borrow" a commercial vendor ticket from Stan at ESRC, but that's not an option now, so I have no info about the ham equipment inside the buildings. There are several YouTube videos with complete walkthroughs including some of the flea market.
My personal flea market experience started out with an event fitting this thread. Thursday was setup day. The hamfest was not open to the public but vendors had most of the day to set up their stuff. I set up my tables, a pop up canopy that I have used for years, placed several heavy sales items on the tables, and covered everything with tarps. Thursday is also a popular day for vendor to vendor sales. The guy next to me in the flea market was also selling tubes and other vintage audio and electronics stuff kept returning to his tables with acquisitions. I took the last hour of the day to wander the flea market, but didn't buy anything. I left for my hotel about 15 miles to the east at closing time. I was awakened in the middle of the night by hail hitting the hotel window and severe storms.
I got to my flea market spot before dawn Friday morning to find my canopy destroyed and a couple tables flipped over. There were several other flea market vendors in the same situation. Friday is usually the best day in terms of selling stuff, but I spent most of the morning recovering from the mess. I never even got my generator running or any of my test equipment powered up. Despite the mess, I still sold some tubes, transformers, old radios, and other stuff that I would never use. From my perspective it did look like there was a good crowd and lots of money changing hands. My only purchase was $6 worth of ice cream "home made" on site.
I got to my site before dawn on Saturday and had everything set up before opening. The usual crowd surge as the gates opened was strong and lasted until well after noon. I did see a lot of stuff changing hands and a good bit of "equipment" being carried out to the parking lot. The oddest "ham radio related equipment" that I saw change hands at the hamfest was an accordion and a mint looking grill for a 1969 Camaro. A few diyAudio members stopped by to chat.
Around 3 PM Saturday, a voice came over the PA system advising the outdoor flea market vendors that a strong storm system was approaching the area and would arrive in 20 to 30 minutes. the storm contained high winds and rain, small hail, and lots of cloud to ground lightning. Radar on my phone showed a lot of ugly coming our way. Vendors were urged to lower or remove all antennas as some people in the flea market had erected towers, secure all belongings, and take shelter in a vehicle or building. Most took this as an exit call. I packed everything in the van and decided to get wet and go shopping for bargains. I wandered the flea market in the mild rain for about an hour and a half, but everybody had left or was leaving. I did not buy anything. The strong storms never materialized. I left about 5 PM and met the strong storm on the way to my hotel. It would not have been fun to go through that in a large flat field with lots of antennas for lightning rods. I did not drive through any hail, but the parking lot of the hotel was 4 inches deep in rain water with plenty of ice cubes floating in it.
Sunday morning there were only about 10 to 20 % of the vendors remaining in the flea market. There were lots of damaged tents and canopies, so the storm obviously found the fairgrounds after I left. The general public gets into the hamfest for free on Sunday and large crowds are expected at open, and around noon. Neither materialized, but there was a slow steady flow of people.
All in all I converted several hundred pounds of stuff that I'll never use into a few hundred dollars to buy stuff that gets blown up or used in the quest for music reproduction and generation. My only non edible purchase was $10 worth of pin headers that will go into a DIY music synthesizer module. I'll do it again next year.
It's that time of year again. I will be in the same place as last year from Thursday (vendor only setup day) through Sunday.
Due to several circumstances beyond my control, after 18 years Tubelab Inc. will cease operations at the end of 2023. It is lab cleanup time. I will stuff my van with tubes, transformers, unfinished amps, parts, books, and other stuff that I will no longer need.
Due to several circumstances beyond my control, after 18 years Tubelab Inc. will cease operations at the end of 2023. It is lab cleanup time. I will stuff my van with tubes, transformers, unfinished amps, parts, books, and other stuff that I will no longer need.
Wow. I'm really sorry to hear that. I've referred quite a few people to you over the years.
Tom
On behalf of us tube-o-phile DIYers out here, I'm sorry to hear you're closing up. You will be sorely missed. I've learned so much from your posts and your projects. All best wishes to you.
I will be located in the same place I was last year and every year before that. As long as I come every year, I can keep those spaces. That is the plan for now. I have a 2000 square foot basement full of stuff and an 850 square foot mobile home that serves as my warehouse. I'll keep whatever I think I can use in whatever life I have left (I am 70 years old) and sell off the rest one hamfest at a time. I will also list some items for sale in the swap meet here too.
There is another smaller hamfest in Butler Pennsylvania a few week after Dayton that I usually attend, but it has been cancelled for three years running. I used to go to Orlando every year, but a death in the family cancelled the trip last year after the van was already packed. With the death of HamCom in Dallas, Dayton and Orlando are the last two remaining mega-hamfests. There used to be about 5 or 6 really big ones with Miami being in the top three. I think the Miami hamfest ran for 45 years or so. I went to all but 2 or 3 as it was local for me. Mismanagement and the NFL killed the Miami hamfest.
There is another smaller hamfest in Butler Pennsylvania a few week after Dayton that I usually attend, but it has been cancelled for three years running. I used to go to Orlando every year, but a death in the family cancelled the trip last year after the van was already packed. With the death of HamCom in Dallas, Dayton and Orlando are the last two remaining mega-hamfests. There used to be about 5 or 6 really big ones with Miami being in the top three. I think the Miami hamfest ran for 45 years or so. I went to all but 2 or 3 as it was local for me. Mismanagement and the NFL killed the Miami hamfest.
I will still be around on the forums, but all board sales will cease as of the end of 2023 or whenever supply runs out. I haven't ironed out any of the details yet but I'll probably put the Gerber files into public domain so anyone can make them or organize a group buy. There are also dozens or other PC boards that I have made, but never released. Not sure what to do with them yet either. The web site is paid up until August, and I will renew it for at least a year if funds are available.
I am in the early stages of deciding what to bring to the hamfest. If there are any requests let me know soon. I have lots of stuff to find new homes for or discard. I posted some more info in the other Dayton thread here:
https://www.diyaudio.com/community/threads/hamvention-dayton-oh-anyone.385814/#post-7338515
https://www.diyaudio.com/community/threads/hamvention-dayton-oh-anyone.385814/#post-7338515
Well, crap-ola. Count me among the many who hate to hear you're shutting down TubeLab, but I get it. Eighteen years is a heck of a run for any business, not to mention a hobby venture. And your willingness to help those encountering difficulties with their builds deserve special mention; I know I don't have the patience, myself.
I'm tentatively scheduled to arrive early Thursday afternoon, so please don't hesitate to send me a PM if you'd like some assistance in setting up.
I'm tentatively scheduled to arrive early Thursday afternoon, so please don't hesitate to send me a PM if you'd like some assistance in setting up.