Heathkit GR-900 Build Thread!

[N2IXK]

More pics:

[old_coot88]

Never having built a kit myself, just luuuv seeing this one go together. Built a few projects from the schematics Heath used to put in their catalogs, though. They all worked, too.

[MIPS]

I still think there's a bunch of miswired freaks out there wishing death upon you because god forbid you assembled a heathkit set.
What's the point of owning the kit if you don't want to assemble it?

[N2IXK]

Originally Posted by MIPS

I still think there's a bunch of miswired freaks out there wishing death upon you because god forbid you assembled a heathkit set.
What's the point of owning the kit if you don't want to assemble it?

There was at least one person on the Heathkit list who couldn't understand how building the set was more rewarding than flipping it for $ on eBay.

[Ed in Tx]

Back in the mid-'70s a friend (and still good friends today) built one of these. Never could get it aligned quite right. At the time we had a Heathkit store down on Ross Ave. in downtown Dallas. He hauled it there and they aligned it. Knockout excellent picture!

I got a lot of my initial experience building Heathkits and Knight kits for myself and friends. One of my first, a Heathkit tube clock radio from about 1963, I still have.

[wkand]

Originally Posted by old_coot88

Never having built a kit myself, just luuuv seeing this one go together. Built a few projects from the schematics Heath used to put in their catalogs, though. They all worked, too.

Wow! I never saw the schematics in the catalogs... I only got into Heathkit in the 1970's and '80's however. Were these schematic laced catalogs earlier than that?

[Kevin Kuehn]

Looks like a fun project. Impressive that they used G10 epoxy circuit boards.

If I ever find an un-built Heathkit TV I'd have to build it too.

[zenith2134]

Wow what a thread! I would be so excited to be embarking on this project. I know where there is an unbuilt color Heathkit locally but the guy is insisting on keeping it in original box. Not sure which set it is but, he claims to have acquired it in the early eighties.
The parts stock seems to be of nice quality on yours. Probably a good move to perform a leakage test on the original capacitors.
Say, if (heaven forbid!) one of the ICs were bad, would a replacement be procurable on its own, outside of a whole kit?
Not too many people left today who could say they actually built their own TV set!

[WISCOJIM]

Originally Posted by zenith2134

I know where there is an unbuilt color Heathkit locally but the guy is insisting on keeping it in original box.

More likely "boxes".

I know where 3 unbuilt color TV kits are right now. I don't expect they're going anywhere soon.

.

[zenith2134]

Yep. I suppose I can see the desire in keeping the "boxes" sealed but I offered this fellow good money in cash and he wouldn't even hear it!
Plenty of old sets out there still...it is amazing really

[old_coot88]

Originally Posted by wkand

Wow! I never saw the schematics in the catalogs... I only got into Heathkit in the 1970's and '80's however. Were these schematic laced catalogs earlier than that?

This was the late '50s.