How Did You Get Started Collecting?

[Kiwick]

My uncle played a major part in starting me on electronics, i was about 3 years old when he took apart my portable phonograph to show me how it worked, i was so fascinated! it didn't take long for me to understand how to use a screwdriver and my poor little phonograph was soon strewn all over the home, incredibly though, it survived in pieces inside a box and i rebuilt it to like new conditions a few years ago!

My uncle also took me to the many small (illegal) dumps along rural roads and we had some fun at dismantling old TVs (usually 60s B/W sets) my favourite item was the speaker, i started collecting TV speakers then and i still do it today, i have a ridiculous quantity of them! probably over a thousand.

At some point we took home an entire set, an early 60s 23" Emerson, and we fixed it (it just had a loose aquadag strap) and this became my personal TV set for many years (i still have it) but my parents forbid my uncle to drag home more old TVs.

Then in 1995 when i was 16 years old my grandpa bought me an Haflinger pony (the one in my avatar) with a little cart so that i could move around on my own without riding a "dangerous" motorbike, big mistake! that little cart allowed me to drag home dozens of old TVs, this got me in serious problems with my parents and they cyclically shackled the cart, but at some point they gave in and built a shed for my old TVs!

After this, i almost took home each and every TV i found, i have about 80 sets now, and i still use that old cart whenever i find a big TV or console stereo which doesn't fit in my tiny hatchback car, although that cart is pulled by a mule now as the old Haflinger pony is enjoying retirement.