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A huge haul of electronic history will see the light of day during a unique garage sale.
Retired electrical engineer Kevin Weatherall is opening the doors of his storage space in Caversham this weekend to sell his collection of vintage radios.
The 75-year-old wants to offload the curiosities to save his family from having to dispose of it in the future.
“I don’t want to leave it here and the kids have to deal with it,” Mr Weatherall said.
“Because I’ve seen people that have had to deal with collections like this.”
He started working on electrical equipment while apprenticed to the army and began collecting sets from the golden age of broadcasting when he left the military in his early 20s.
Later, he ran his own repair stores, including the Radio Shoppe, in South Dunedin.
Many pieces came into his collection about 30 years ago from an auction of items belonging to former Millers Flat radio repairman Ivan Fagan.
“He was quite a famous man in his day, he used to fix radios for people.”
Mr Weatherall offered a price for everything that failed to find a buyer.
“I was trying to save it from getting thrown out, really.”
His collection spans from the 1930s to the 1980s, from small portable devices to large “radiograms”.
“A radio and gramophone, quite popular in my youth.”
Housed in what was the local Caversham Scout Hall, his collection also features stereos, World War 2 army reception sets, film projectors, tape decks, telephones and testing equipment such as oscilloscopes and colour bar generators.
A standout piece is a 2-kilowatt Collins transmitter once used by Fiordland Radio.
“They had their own radio station over there,” Mr Weatherall said.
Some of the more unique items include cameras from the early days of television, first operated at the Auckland AKTV1 studios and then in the Dunedin television suites at Garrison Hall in Dowling St.
“When they got new stuff, they flogged off to Dunedin the old stuff.”
While he held a bit of sadness about clearing out the collection, he said it had to happen.
“It’s better that it happens while I’m still alive than wait.”
Most of the units will be priced at a modest $10 or $20.
“There might be the odd ones that are more valuable, but we are more keen to see them go to people who want them.”
The hall will be open to the public at 25 Caversham Pl this Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 5pm.
