2022

11/16/2022

Yep, still in Florida. What's new? I sold the Mainship 36DC Trawler. I'm so very happy that the big boat has found a new owner.
Hurrican IAN passed thru FL recently and trashed the Ft. Myers area where the boat now resides. I hope it and they got thru the blow OK.
I had been making steady progress on the pile of skids full of electronic gear, in the workshop, untill having a couple of what they called TIA's.
At 80, those things are a sign of what's to come. The clock is ticking. No worries, I've had a great run and have few regrets.

Ailyn has gone back to school. She is taking the Nursing RN classes at Jersey College in Brooksville. That is an hour drive three times a week.
Bayfront hospital agreed to pay for 25% of the tuition if she continues to work full time, plus work for them for four more years after graduation.
That means she goes to school 3 days and works 12 hour shifts the next three. Sundays are for study and catching up.
I have become the housekeeper and cook. That will be our schedule for two more years.

I've pretty much stopped chasing the Blue Herons out of the big pond. They typically got a few Koi each time one of them found us. Between herons and the Ospreys, our Koi population is wiped out. The pond has cleared well recently, and today I didn't see a single fish larger than a Mosquito eater, (Gambusia).

It's garden planning time again. I've been saving seeds from veggies that we eat and have started a few Monstera in cups on the window sill.
The "wicking bed" raised garden produced a phenominal crop this year. There are numerous styles of SIP beds (Sub Irrigated Planters). Ours has it's bottom 12 inches below grade and another 16 inches raised above the ground. The bed is lined with 10 mil plastic sheet and there are drain holes at ground level. Here in Florida, on top of a huge sand dune, it is impossible to keep the normal ground moist enough to grow a garden. Water that is applied quickly disappears down thru the sand and the 90F heat dries everything rapidly. Water is pricey here, so we have had to be inventive. We prefer a garden that won't break the budget.

The bottom of this garden is filled with the clean yellow sand that was dug out of the hole. 14 inches of good planting soil sits above that with a thick layer of straw and paper in between. Rain fills the bottom sand reservoir and the water wicks up and keeps the upper soil well moisturized. Everything grows rapidly, from radishes to 8 foot tall elephant ears which I will be relocating this fall.
For a full description of how this was built, go to: Wicking Garden link https://a1-main.com/a1-main/ailyns-pond/wicking_garden.html

2021

10/1/2021
And here we still are, in Florida. The humidity and heat are just starting to let up, and we are VERY SLOWLY settling in.
Ailyn didn't much care for the county job and is back at Bayfront Seven Rivers Hospital. After years of the fast pace in the medical field, the tedium of a desk job was too boring.

I'm still working on the Mainship 36DC Trawler. It is in the water at the Port LaBelle Marina on the Caloosahatchee river.
I decided to sell this big boat. It's just too tall and heavy for fishing these shallow waters. It's a great liveaboard cruiser, sleeps eight and has a fully furnished kitchen and air conditioning. I'm asking $44,500. I created a website for it at;
https://a1-main.com/mainship/mainship_36dc.html

I sold the 27' Slickcraft, pulled the 25' Angler back from Washington state after the partnership crumbled, and still have the 18' Bassboat and 12' Aluminum boat. I still have to complete the Bassboat transom. I replaced the structure with steel tube and it needs a couple of layers of glass/epoxy to finish it.

The two car workshop still has a couple of dozen skids loaded with electronics that I shipped here in a 53' semi-trailer.
Whittling my way thru it all is daunting. I can't seem to make myself throw things away. Some of these boxes cost many thousands of dollars and just the parts inside should be worth a few bucks to the right person. I guess I will have to get back on eBay. That makes me grit my teeth, but there isn't a nearby marketplace for old analog test equipment.

I don't get out fishing much since my lifelong friend and fishing buddy Peter Bukas passed away. Another close friend Marshall Biser of Everett, WA also passed away recently. They were my confidants and I miss them big time. When I was in my late teens, I had about 20 really close friends. Every one of those guys has passed away. If not for my dearest Ailyn, I'd be a very lonely man.

Teddy Bear, our canine companion passed away two years back, and we lost Panda Bear to cancer last year. Loosing a pet can be almost as devastating as loosing a child. We made a small memorial along the back fence for them.
We still have Tuffy Boy, a blond Bishon Frise. He is a great little guy. He follows my every step and thinks that he owns the whole world. Living remote means very little traffic, so he doesn't get to be around strangers except for an occasional trip to the flea market. His social skills are seriously lacking and he wants to eat anyone that comes to the door. He guards this acre and rapidly checks every inch of it every morning. He is constantly sniffing for dangerous intruders like the squirrels that raid our bird feeder and the Ravens that dig for white grubs in the yard. He also runs off the Blue Herons, but they typically get a few Koi before we wake in the morning. Between them and the Ospreys, our Koi population is almost wiped out. I just can't bring myself to harm creatures as majestic as these beautiful fish birds.

2020

Well, we are still here and pecking away at the mountain of boxes. Our new pond is stocked with Koi, but the Ospreys and Blue Herons have been getting far more than their share. I'm semi-retired and nursing my right shoulder. A fall ripped one muscle completely off and they had to pin it back on. Ailyn recently left her job at Seven Rivers hospital and is now enjoying working for Citrus County. I still sell a few repair parts and I'm always working on one boat project or another (5). Our Mainship 36DC is down near lake Okeechobee on the Caloosahatchie river.
I replaced both of the small block chevies with SBC 383 strokers. It should really hustle if I ever get it in the water.
I keep the 12' Aluminum on it as a dingy, but neither has been wet since 2015.
I'm replacing the two Ford 351W's in the 27' Slickcraft and the new floors and transom are almost complete in the bassboat. The Engler 25 is still in Everett, WA and that project is at a standstill due to partner personality issues.

Boy, I really need to find something to keep me occupied. He, he. Lovin it !

Dick & Ailyn Wilson  (352) 566-0622

2017

We finally sold the property in Chandler, Arizona and moved to Crystal River, Florida.
We are on the Gulf Coast in Pine Ridge.

Love it here. Don't believe the horror stories about terrible humidity. I'll take a couple of humid hours a day in mid afternoon any day in place of three months of 115 degrees in Phoenix.

Our mornings and evenings are in the seventies and lovely. We spend them on the open lanai.

Last month we erected a greenhouse and this week we planted a garden. We already have quarter size tomatoes and dozens of other veggies sprouting up everywhere.

Phoenix was an experience as was Alaska, but I'd never think twice about moving back to either.

We still have 35 pallets of equipment to dispose of. I'm taking my sweet time to break them down and get the items on the Internet. If anything on the a1main.com site is of interest, drop me an eMail to cmdrdick42@yahoo.com  Not everything is available, we sold / donated a lot as we were packing and have not had time to completely update the stock lists. But, give me a holler and I'll try to find what you want.   Dick

2013

Dear Customers:

Well, it has taken far longer to work my way thru the 11 warehouses than I ever thought it would. We are now down to 2-1/2.

Almost all of the high value items are gone (Oscilloscopes) and Tektronix test equipment. We still have a few odds and ends. The family will continue to stock and sell new probes and test accessories. Most of the used stuff that is left will go on eBay at ridiculously low start prices just to clear them out. I still have a few SONY U-matic decks, less than 10, and have already parted out about 100 obsolete pieces of test gear. If you are looking for a specific rare part, check with us. If my health holds out, I should be around for a while. Getting old is not for the timid!

Call with any questions,  (352) 566-0622  Thanks, Dick

2011

Dear Friends and customers:

All things must come to an end, and as I near my 69th year, I am becoming more aware of how precious time is. With that in mind, I will be slowly transitioning to a retired lifestyle.

The first thing to happen, will be the closing of our military surplus buying department.  We will be clearing out all of the old stock starting immediately.

If you are looking for a great deal on any of the used equipment on this list, then now is the time. No reasonable offer will be refused. If you are buying for resale, then call me and I'll cut you a great deal. The more you take, the larger the discount.

Since family members have expressed an interest in continuing some parts of the business, you will notice some changes to the website. They will continue to add brand new items to the list and the pond business will continue uninterrupted.

I will be overseeing the transition untill all of the used gear is gone and they can take over completely. Then it will be time to hang up my hat and hit the road in our new 5th wheel travel trailer.

I have sincerely enjoyed working with you all and making so many repeat customers and friends. If anyone has a technical problem that needs my input, feel free to ask. It might take a little time to get back to you, but when the message reaches me, I will respond.

Call with any questions,  (352) 566-0622  Thanks, Dick

___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, September 05, 2005

09.05.2005

The heat is sweltering here in the desert and just won't let up.
Some folks think that the planet is warming. I believe it. It just seems that everywhere you look the weather patterns are becoming more intense.
Fairbanks, Alaska got to 100 degrees, and here in Phoenix we've been over 100 degrees since I can't remember when. I'm really ready for a break.

This month I am introducing Laptop Computers. What's your favorite?
We have about 350 very nice used laptops in PI, PII and PIII vintages.
There are Acer, Apple, AST, Compaq, Dell, Gigital, Fujitsu, Gateway, Gridcase, Hitachi, HP, IBM, Keynote, Micron, NEC, Notebook, Panasonic, Sager, Samsung, Sharp, Sony and Toshiba. Maybe a few more oddballs thrown in. How about some early Apple units for the Macintosh collectors.
For a somewhat complete model listing, check out the following page;
http://www.a1main.com/main/sales/Laptop_Computers.htm

Let's try something different for a change. How about some camera gear?
Watch this column for the October 3rd update and I'll try to get a bunch of quality video cameras ready to ship. We have quite a few Sony, Panasonic, JVC and other units in U-Matic, VHS-C, VHS, Hi8 and DV.

Call with any questions,  (352) 566-0622  Thanks, Dick

___________________________________________________________________________________


Monday, August 01, 2005

08.01.2005

Ohhhh!, Its sooo hard to come back to work after a long vacation.

Well, we are hard at it, but it's going to take a while for us to catch up.

There are over 1100 eMails awaiting answers and a huge backlog of orders and requests to process. Please be patient while we sort it all out. I'll try at least to answer the eMails with a pleasantry and some sort of future date for a complete response. There are only a couple of us here and my techs are only in on Tuesday and Thursday. Please don't expect any miracles, but I do promise to get to everyone in turn.

Once caught up, we will be working on scopes and TM series plug-ins again.
We have over 500 of the Tektronix 500 series instrument plug-ins and about 50 SC501-SC504 series scope plug-ins.

These are fantastic instruments that originally sold for thousands of dollars each. Grab them now while still available and get a frame full of different instruments that are mix and match for your all of your varying jobs.

Call with any questions,  (352) 566-0622  Thanks, Dick

___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, July 04, 2005

07.04.2005

This is vacation month.

Well, who'da guessed. A relative in the Philippines decided to get married, so our June trip has been postponed til July so we can attend. We will then be traveling in SE Asia for most of that month.

All of our sites will be shut down, and the warehouses closed.

email to all of our addresses will be answered by an auto responder.

There will be no eBay or website sales while we are gone.

We will return to serve you in late July.

Call with any questions before June 30th,  (352) 566-0622  Thanks, Dick

___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, June 02, 2005

06.02.2005

Correction

Our vacation trip has been re-scheduled.

Operation will be normal for the month of June.

We have received another container of electronics and about thirty more laserdisk players. They are moving fast, so call for exact counts.

This lot cost us a bit more than the last so we have adjusted the price to $79. each FOB Chandler, AZ. 34465

Call with any questions,  (352) 566-0622  Thanks, Dick

___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, May 02, 2005

05.02.2005

May will be Laserdisc player month.

A few years ago you could not give a Laserdisc player away. More recently the Video Arcade game machines have started to experience failing players. In addition, the gamers have found them desireable for Dragons's Lair and other popular video games. Today they move very fast. We have sold more than 20 in the last 30 days and still have a dozen or so in stock. Each deck is tested thoroughly before shipping.

We have terrific deals on the following models;

SONY LDP-2000, LDP-1550, LDP-1500, LDP-1450, LDP-1400
PANASONIC TQ3032F
PIONEER LD-V8000, LD-6010A, LD-V4400, CLD-V2600, LD-700

Call with any questions,  (352) 566-0622  Thanks, Dick

___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, April 04, 2005

04.04.2005

April is Heavy Equipment month.
We have terrific deals on the following models;

Welders
Miller 330A/B/PS, Coolmate, Dialarc, MOG Resistance Grids
Marquette welder
Lincoln Idealarc Tig 300
P&H DAR-300HFGW
Vishay P-28 Strain Gage welder

Trailers
M105A2 1-1/2 ton, 2 wheel, Lunette ring, side boards, canvas rack.

Generators
30kw trailer mounted Hercules 4 cylinder diesel, 120 gal fuel, 120/240vac

Call with any questions,  (352) 566-0622  Thanks, Dick

___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, March 07, 2005

03.07.2005

March is Camera month.
Check out our deals on Cameras, controllers, lenses, etc.

Canon L1 Hi8 Pro 8-120 F1.4 lens
Canon 35mm EOS Elan with 28-80mm F3.5
Canon FD 50mm F1.8 lens
Canon FD 135mm F2.8 lens
Hitachi FP-10U Studio Camera System
JVC GR-AXM230U VHS-C Camcorder
Panasonic AG-180 VHS Reporter kits
Panasonic security cameras WV-140, 1410, 388P, CD11, CD134, CD20, CL350
Sony CCD-V99, TR700, TRV36, TRV70, DXC1610, DXC1820
Vivitar 70-210mm F4 Autofocus C/AF
Vivitar 80-200mm F4.5 MC Zoom lens

Call with any questions,  (352) 566-0622  Thanks, Dick

___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, February 07, 2005

02.07.2005

Heck of a deal. Would you believe 3000 pieces of military camouflage clothing. Too good of a deal to pass up. These are brand new, some with the tags still on them. The Marines have decided to switch to a new camo pattern and the bases have the option of converting on their own schedules. The base that these came from jumped in with both feet and they cleared out all of the stock in the old colors. We have Desert Camo Uniforms (fatigues) in the three color desert pattern that we have all seen on the news this last year.  New Trousers range in price from $11.95 to $13.95  New Jackets (Shirts) are $10.95 to $11.95  In addition, we have a ton of used but very nice BDU's (Battle Dress Uniforms). These are the Woodland Green Camo fatigues that are so popular with sportsmen and the paintball crowd. $5.95 to $7.95 per piece depending upon size. Every piece of clothing we stock is actual government issue, and some still have the name tags and patches.

Not exactly the electronic gear that we are used to seeing here, but in these days of fat military budgets, expect to see a lot more surplus of all types.

Call with any questions,  (352) 566-0622  Thanks, Dick

___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, January 10, 2005

01.10.2005

Well, no new electronic Instruments this month. We received a container full of Parachutes and related accessories.

Parachute, Canopy, Ram Air Gliding (RAG), Para-Flite,  Advanced Para Systems (A.P.S.), Sun Path Products, Javelin, Precision Parachute, Ranger, Glide Path Intl, Performance Designs, Relative Workshop, Flight Concepts, etc.
Numerous sizes and types (63 in stock). If you need a canopy, check us out.

Parachute, Canopy, RAG, Falcon 235 by Precision Parachute Co, Max Weight 240# Deep Blue, no lines, good line loops.

Parachute, Canopy, RAG, Ranger 9, Nine cell Ram Air Gliding Chute, full lines, approx 330 sq. ft.

Parachute, Canopy, RAG, Manta by Glide Path, Intl. Beautiful Red/White/Blue, Max Load 275#, 9 cell, w/sail type reefing slider, full lines

Parachute, Canopy, RAG, PD-210 by Performance Designs, Silver Gray, Max Load 210#, 9 cell, approx 170 sq. ft.

Parachute, Canopy, RAG, MC-5 by Para-Flite, Silver Gray, 810200-0X, 7 cell, 370 sq ft, No lines, loops intact.

Parachute, Canopy, RAG, Swift Plus 225 by Para-Flite, Light Blue, Max Load 240#, all lines and sail type reefing slider.

Parachute, Canopy, RAG, StarTrac II by Flight Concepts, Royal Blue, 7 cell, Max Load 319#, all lines and sail type reefing slider  

Parachute, Canopy, RAG, StarTrac 245 by Flight Concepts, Royal Blue, 7 cell, Max Load 267#, all lines and reefing slider

Parachute, Canopy, RAG, SharpChuter by Flight Concepts, Royal Blue, Max Load 254#, 7 cell, all lines and reefing slider

Parachute, Canopy, RAG, 11 x 17 Flight Concepts, 5 cell, Blue, damage at right wingtip, all lines and reefing slider

Parachute, Canopy, RAG, StarTrac 265 by Flight Concepts, Royal Blue, 7 cell, Max Load 291#, all lines and reefing slider

Parachute, Canopy, RAG, A.P.S. Rascal 202-R Reserve Max Load 207 pounds,by Advanced Para Systems, 7 cell, White, all lines

Parachute, Canopy, RAG, A.P.S. Rascal 202-R Reserve Max Load 207 pounds, all lines and reefing slider. White with Blue vertical separators.

Parachute, Canopy, Round, Troop, Personnel, T-10C, 35' diam, Max Load 360#, exp Oct 2007 19099111-1-1501-2

Parachute, Accessory, Harness, 11-1-2143 Capewell "K" Releases

Parachute, Accessory, Javelin J-003 by Sun Path Prod./ Vector II / Spring and main type pilot chute w/strap

Parachute, Accessory, Vector IIR square Wonderhog Harness/Container System V5-1/2 / V9 MLW 17-1/2 / 18-1/2 by Relative Workshop (2)

Parachute, Accessory, pilot chutes, Bags, Capewells, Sliders, Soft toggles, Risers, Maillon Rapide Screw Links, etc.

The military cut all lines before releasing chutes to the public, so the T10C and MC-5 chutes DO NOT have lines. Chutes can be re-lined, but it ranges from $200 up. We do not do any chute modifications here.

Call with any questions,  (352) 566-0622  Thanks, Dick

___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, December 6, 2004

12.06.2004

Happy Holidays.

Christmas is a time for giving and giving back.
So, in the spirit of joy, we have a gift for our friends.

Everyone that makes a $20 or greater item purchase during the month of December will be granted one free instrument manual download from our website. This does not apply to printed or CD manuals.

The manuals page is;

http://a1main.com/main/sales/Ebmanual.htm

You have one year to claim your manual.  Offer good til Dec 31, 2005.
Just drop me an eMail with the eBay auction number or the name and address that the item was shipped to and the name of the manual that you want.  I will respond with a link to the download page.  Merry Christmas!

Call with any questions,  (352) 566-0622  Thanks, Dick

___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, November 8, 2004

11.08.2004

Aloha!

This month I am gathering Tektronix 500 series Plug-Ins and TM series cases.
So far, I have located;

AA501A    DISTORTION ANALYZER    $1200
AM502     Differential Ampl.   $135
DC503A   Universal Freq Counter/Timer 125 MHz $131
DC504    Counter Timer $99
DC505A   Universal Counter $95
DC509     Universal Counter Timer  $175
DD501     Digital Delay  $75
DM501     Digital Multimeter  $60
DM501A   Digital Multimeter  $135
DM502     Digital Multimeter  $49
DM504A   True RMS Digital Voltmeter $89
DM505     Digital Multimeter $65
FG503     Function generator 3 MHz $89
FG504     Function generator dual wide  $295
PG501     Pulse generator  $39
PG502     Pulse Generator 250 MHz  $135
PG506     Calibration Generator $495
PS501-1   Power Supply  $65
PS501-2   Power Supply  $69
PS503A   Triple Output Power Supply 0-20vdc at 400mA and 5v fixed. $129
RG501    Ramp Generator  $89
SC502     2 Channel Oscilloscope 15 MHz $145
SC503     2 Channel 10 MHz Storage Oscilloscope  $135
SC504     80 MHZ OSCILLOSCOPE (1) in Pristine condition $495
SG503     Leveled Sine Wave Generator CALIBRATION SET  $225
SG5030   Progr Leveled Sine Wave Generator - Scope Calibration  $5995
SG504     Leveled Sine Wave Generator $695
SG505     DISTORTION ANALYZER Mod  WQ OSCILLATOR $645
SG505     DISTORTION ANALYZER Mod  WR OSCILLATOR $645
TG501     Time Mark Generator  $110
TM504A    4 BAY CASE TS4353/U DISTORTION TEST SET $179
TM506      6BAY MAINFRAME OPTION 2 MOD AA  $135
TM506A    6 Bay Mainframe $150.
TM515      5 BAY PORTABLE MAINFRAME $165

I'll continue drilling thru the database and try to locate more.

Call with any questions,  (352) 566-0622  Thanks, Dick

___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, October 4, 2004

10.04.2004 Welcome back..

We had two return questions come up this month, so this might be a good time to discuss our "No Questions Return Policy".

The return policy means that you have seven days after receiving the package to examine the item and determine whether it is suitable for your needs. If you don't want it, just package it carefully and return it to us prepaid. We would like to know that it is coming, so we can issue an RMA number. This helps us to keep the item from going to the wrong place and gets a refund out quicker.

Our policy is that we do not refund any portion of the S&H charges. We would not be in business long if we absorbed the cost of packaging and shipping and had a no questions return policy. Too many would abuse this  by ordering just to look or in extreme cases, to swap parts and return their junk. Yes, some disreputable folks have tried that in the past. We now keep an acurate record of serial numbers and on higher priced items the cases will be closed with tamper proof seals.

So, meet us half-way and consider the cost of shipping as a "try it first cost", which is what it is.

Lastly, we are not in the shipping business. We will be happy to package and ship any item by any method that you might desire. But, the shipping agent, whether Postal, UPS, Truck or any other, is your agent not ours. If the item is broken by the shipper, it becomes your responsibility to file a shipping damage claim. We can NOT do that from this end. If an item is returned damaged, the cost of repair will be deducted from any purchase cost refund that is due.

This may sound like a hard line, but think about it. What would you do if you were the seller? We do our best to please. If we screw up, we will absorb any and all expense to make it right. If we carefully pack and ship a good item, our responsibility for the package ends when it leaves our door.  That is why there is shipping insurance and we recommend it!

Call with any questions,  Dick

___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, September 6, 2004

09.06.2004 Hello again and we hope that you had a great month.

My fishin trip turned out to be a home rebuilding trip in the aftermath of hurricane Charlie. I'm back in Phoenix, but extremely loaded up and won't be able to plan any specials til the end of the month. Sorry.

See ya next month,  Dick

___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, August 2, 2004

08.02.2004 Hello again and we hope that you had a great month. We just got a few more 465m's and a couple of 2246's. Watch for them later this month.

We have two Tek 7104 1GHz mainframes ready to go.

We also received a box of SC502 (15MHz) and SC504 (40 MHz) TM 500 series scope plug-ins. Very clean. These move really fast, so call if interested.

I'm heading for Florida to do some fishin mid-month. I need to get out of the heat. I should be near a cell antennae at least every 2-3 days.

See ya next month,  Dick

___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, July 5, 2004

07.05.2004 Happy Fourth of July to all and we hope you enjoyed the holidays.

We still have a few 475 scopes available and are getting the 485's ready to go.

Busy, busy period for us and the heat is killing the guys in the warehouse. We do not have air conditioning and the temperature outside is about 110 degrees. It feels like 130 in the warehouses. I'll have more to report later.

___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, June 7, 2004

06.07.2004 Aloha friends. Our trip to the islands was great. The Guam container is on it's way and the Hawaii shipment is on the boat.

All of you teckies that might know a bit about the "Hubble Space Telescope", check this out. We have two lenses in the warehouse that may have come from the Hubble program. They just got in from Redstone Arsenal. We are still searching for info and could use any help that we can get. Contact Dick.

The 465M series scopes are all spoken for. Next week we will start on the 475's.

We have about twenty, including 475, 475A and 475M's. These will also go as kits including scope, cover, cord, 100MHz probe, primer and manuals starting at $275. We do have a few of the faster Tek P6137 probes, but will plan to package them with the 2465B scopes later this fall. We also have (3) of the Tek 7104 ONE GIGAHERTZ scopes. Anyone need a really fast instrument?

___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, May 24, 2004

04.24.2004 Hello all. This weeks special is Tecktronix 465M 100 MHz 2 channel scopes. We have five ready for shipment. Each kit includes a brand new 100 MHz probe, a front case cover, a manual reprint, and a scope primer - $225.

Next week look for AA501, SG505 WR and SG505 WS plug-Ins.
___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, April 5, 2004

04.05.2004 Here we are, almost eight weeks since the fire and nearly back up to speed. Back in February, I anticipated that we could accomplish everything in 2-3 weeks. I guess that was quite optimistic. In any event, all signs of the damage are gone, the records are rebuilt, and we are shipping. I'll be out of pocket for this next week to complete my donation to Uncle Sam, and then I hope to be back in charge again. My sincere thanks to all of the patient customers, and my apologies to those of you that we just could not help. We have not gotten any new lots in for the last month or so, and the tech bench is swamped just trying to keep up with orders, so it will be another week or two before we run any specials. I'll try to come up with a nice selection so everyone has a shot at something useful. Our stock of 465's scopes is very low, so look for some clean 475's at $295 around the 19th. We also have about fifty of the 15MHz Tek 422's. Very inexpensive, but excellent quality. If you need a bench scope for less that $65, one of these may be for you. I'll see what other scopes we have in quantity and add a few of them before the end of the month. Then, I'll get back to creating a different "specials" category each month. I noticed during the inventory that we have a large selection of CAMERA, VIDEO and SECURITY gear. So look for them in May. In June I'll gather some AUDIO and COMPUTER gear. June will also be our yearly clearance month, so watch for low, low $$$$$ prices. Lastly, we have a couple of Military M105 equipment trailers. The boxes are about 5' x 8' and extra heavy duty. Great for off-roading and hunters because of their height. One at $400 and one at $295.
___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, March 29, 2004

03.29.2004 We are at about 85% functionality now. I expect that we will finish the inventory this week and then stop everything for about a week while we complete our taxes. That done, we expect to quickly resume at the pre-fire levels.
___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, March 22, 2004

03.22.2004 The inventory is progressing nicely and we are shipping about 50% of what we were getting out before the fire. I've updated the online equipment list but it won't be totally accurate until the inventory is finished.
___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, March 15, 2004

03.15.2004 We gave up on the old data records. An inventory is in progress.

We expect to be finished around the end of the month. We are processing orders for the items that we can locate. Please be patient.
___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, March 8, 2004

03.08.2004 The data files are a huge mess. We have rebuilt them several times, but each pass has been fruitless. We were in the middle of an inventory at the time of the fire and a lot of data was in process in paper form. This data can not be rebuilt.

Oh woe is me. It seems that we are going to have to start the inventory from scratch. There goes another couple of weeks.
___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, March 1, 2004

03.01.2004 The office is finished and we are back at work.

We must now attempt to rebuild our data files from the backups.
___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, February 16, 2004

02.16.2004 The new construction is coming along well. The electrical and drywall are finished. The finishing touches and painting should be completed by next Monday. The software is dragging behind, but we don't need the web store cart to start shipping again. We hope to resume limited sales by the week of February 23rd.
___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, February 2, 2004

02.02.2004 We are sorry to report that we have had a disaster here at a1main.com  A laptop computer with Lithium batteries was left unattended overnight. It caught fire and destroyed our admin area. The warehouses were unaffected, however, it will be at least another two weeks before we are ready to resume business as usual. We are in the middle of an inventory and will take this opportunity to get our website updated. Hopefully the repairs and the software will all come together quickly. Thanks to our customers who showed patience while we stumbled in getting the in-house orders shipped.
___________________________________________________________________________________

Monday, January 19, 2004

01.19.2004 One TAS485 200 MHz 4 channel oscilloscope B031641 is ready to ship.
___________________________________________________________________________________
Friday, January 16, 2004

01.16.2004 We received a new shipment of Tektronix 500 series plug-ins and will have those listed very soon. We presently have Function Generators, Calibration Generators, Counters, Digital Delay Units, Distortion Analyzers,  Multi-meters, Oscillators, Oscilloscopes, Power Supplies, Power Modules TM501-506/5006 and 515, Pulse Generators, Ramp Generators, Sine Wave Generators, Timers, XY-Z displays.
___________________________________________________________________________________
Thursday, January 15, 2004

01.15.2004 One pristine SC502 15 MHz oscilloscope plug-in B039962 is ready to ship.
___________________________________________________________________________________
Wednesday, January 14, 2004

01.14.2004 One FG502 Function generator B037629  is ready to ship.
___________________________________________________________________________________
Tuesday, January 13, 2004

01.13.2004 One DC503 Universal Counter B040513 is ready to ship.
___________________________________________________________________________________
Monday, January 12, 2004

01.12.2004 One PS503A Dual Power Supply B023612 is ready to ship.
___________________________________________________________________________________
Friday, January 09, 2004

01.09.2004 One FG503 Function generator B024083 is ready to ship.
 ___________________________________________________________________________________
Thursday, January 08, 2004

01.08.2004 One PG502 250 MHz Pulse Generator B033032 is ready to ship.
___________________________________________________________________________________
Wednesday, January 07, 2004

01.07.2004 One P6109 150 MHz 10Mohm 13.2pF 10x 2 meter probe is ready to ship.
___________________________________________________________________________________
Tuesday, January 06, 2004

01.06.2004 One 465M 2 channel 100 MHz oscilloscope B035937 is ready to ship.
___________________________________________________________________________________
Monday, January 05, 2004

01.05.2004 Six P6137 400 MHz passive voltage probes are ready to ship. These 1.5 meter probes are used with the 2400 series scopes and are compatible with most compact probe accessories. Attenuation: 1 OX +/- 1 % at dc. Input Impedance (System): 1 0 M ohm shunted by 10.8 pF at DC. Compensation Range: 12 pF to 18 pF. System Bandwidth (-3dB): Use of the P6137 on a 2400 Series oscilloscope with a bandwidth measured to be greater than 350 MHz from a properly terminated 50 ohm source, and having an input capacitance of 15 pF +/- 2 pF, will result in a system bandwidth of at least 350 MHz. A similar correspondence is achieved for all 2400 Series oscilloscopes of identical input capacitance and different bandwidths up to a system maximum bandwidth of 400 MHz. Maximum Nondestructive Input Voltage: 500 V (dc + peak ac) to 1.3 MHz. 
___________________________________________________________________________________
Monday, January 05, 2004

01.05.2004 We have decided to keep a running weblog (BLOG) of tidbits and information relating to the products that we sell, customer questions, and things of interest. If you find this page interesting, please add it to your favorites and stop back often. We will monitor the number of hits it receives and determine whether we should continue the list.
__________________________________________________________________________________