Electronic Circuits and Projects Forum

Unless you are launching a satellite, the cost of mil grade (JANTX) devices is ridiculous.

Originally Posted by dr peppers

However as mentioned the retailer also has a lot to do with it, RS shift boxes of them and can afford to sell them cheap, a hobbyist stock holder only sells low quantities and has to pay someone to count them out and handle all the associated admin.

Ebay is a good source if you dont want traceability, there are lots of sellers doing surplus and bankrupt stock for peanuts, they get them for next to nowt and sell them for peanuts.

Get this right....RS don't sell cheap components. All are up to Manufacturer spec. At least. No rubbish there....

Excellent parts and definitely not cheap. Genuine components.

Don't mislead people dr peppers. Get your facts right.......

Regards,
TV Tech

You misunderstood me I'm afraid tvtech.

I said RS sell them cheap, not that they are cheap components, RS comply with several european directives and ISO standards and ceratinly dont sell 'cheap' components, you are right RS are a reputeable company, if they were not I wouldnt be spending a thousand quid a month with them, I have a purchasing manager account with RS components.

Please get your facts right before you shout at me.

Is "RS" Radio Spares in the UK or is it RadioShack in USA?
I think when RadioShack was still in Canada they sold "seconds" which were from the garBage bin of a manufacturer.
Now I think their expensive parts are cheap Oriental copies that might or might not work.

In the UK, "RadioSpares" became "RS Components" about 40 years ago.

We never have had (as far as I know) "Radio Shack" as such, in the UK that organisation was always known as "Tandy", selling the same stuff as Radio Shack in the USA and Canada.

When someone in the UK mentions RS, they mean RS Components, a supplier of good quality (and expensive) stuff.

JimB

I think Maplin in the UK sells the same cheap junk at extremely high prices as RadioShack in the USA.
Somebody on one of these forums recently posted the Tandy or InterTan link between a UK parts distibutor and RadioShack but I didn't save it because I am not a Brit and I am not an American.

Originally Posted by audioguru

Is "RS" Radio Spares in the UK or is it RadioShack in USA?
I think when RadioShack was still in Canada they sold "seconds" which were from the gargage bin of a manufacturer.
Now I think their expensive parts are cheap Oriental copies that might or might not work.

Radio Shack has long specialized in selling "cosmetic rejects". It's not that they're necessarily inferior, just mismarked or with some other defect that doesn't affect the electronic properties. They also package somewhat related parts in those fifteen packs of "transistors anonymous". They still work just fine.

"Cheap Oriental copies" are frequently counterfeits.