One man’s junk can be music to another man’s ears.
Lee Nicolson has founded the Re:Gear Hardware Library — an operation initially aimed at repairing musical electronic components, musical instruments and recording equipment bound for landfill, and making it available for the public to borrow.
The initiative also has a more creative side, where people could use the spare parts to build things like guitar special-effects pedals and create unique sounds.
Now that the operation is gathering momentum, Mr Nicolson is starting to expand the operation by collecting other electronics and repurposing them.
One example is using a battery from an old laptop, to power tools like soldering irons.
"It started off as a way to create an inventory where people could find things that were useful, like spare parts.
"But it’s grown into a library of gear, which was originally going to be for music gear, but it’s now for anything that’s electronic.
He said the library was created with support from the Dunedin City Council waste minimalisation fund, Com2Tech, Cargill Enterprises and Trace/Untrace Records.
Alongside the library, he was also providing repair workshops to help members of the public restore some of their electronics or revitalise equipment and machines.
"The idea is that if someone doesn’t have the money to buy it, they can play with it and learn about it, rather than be inhibited by their finances.
"It’s fostering a repair community and a creative network for people from all backgrounds.
"It’s a lot of work but it’s worth it to keep it out of landfill."
