Jim,
I don't believe the Omni VI+ existed in the time frame from 1965 up to 1970's
on I was discussing. :-) Of course it is High End today! All Ten Tecs are
high end in their time, but at reasonable prices for what you get! :-)
You have a good point IF many CB'ers who became hams then did buy import; as
of course most of the CB stuff was imported. I am not sure many of the CB'ers
became hams. CB ran its fad cycle, and many more dropped out for various
reasons.
Neglected to mention the Sun Spot cycle influence on all this, and THAT in
this last low point, was an issue in the decline in HF upgrades by all
accounts of ARRL folks I have heard. After perhaps 1969, we were surely on a
decline in sunspot cycle, given the 11 year period, with 1957 being a high
point.
The first Icom Ic 22 I opened up does not appear to have been assembled by a
machine. That came later. Much later, in the 80's?. Early Trio Kenwood
(Remember the Trio name?) radios were also hand soldered, just like a Collins
KWM 2, and other American brands.
Another possible factor early on might be that import radios were soon lighter
than American ones, save for the compact Atlas line. Heath kept metal cases,
while off shore pioneered molding plastic radio cases.
However, no matter what factors all entered in, there was a slow down in teen
agers coming into ham radio, and that is unfortunately reflected in the aging
ham population today.
I like the other thread comment someone made to donate a Ten Tec kit to a
young person or school ham club near you. Especially, the simple direct
conversion radio kits are available in club discount quantity buys, as are the
other kits.
We need to encourage young people into ham radio, to provide continued demand
for Ten Tec kits and assembled products.
73, Stuart
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