The Jaycar Fiasco

As suggested, I emailed Jaycar to ask whether they sell the resistors I need individually, so I don't have to buy in bulk from a wholesale supplier. The result was an absolutely hysterical exchange of non-information, which I summarised in my final email (with names changed to protect the innocent monkeys):

Hi,

I emailed your store three days ago, to inquire about purchasing some resistors. I wrote:

> Hi,
>
> I'm writing to inquire whether I can buy the following products
> from Jaycar:
>
> 1 x 300ohm 3W metal-oxide resistor
> 1 x 1k5ohm 1W metal-oxide resistor
> 1 x 68k 0.5W carbon-film resistor
>
> If so, can I order them for pick-up at your store on McIntyre
> Road, Sunshine, Melbourne VIC?
>
> Thanks for your time.
>
> Yours,
> Duncan Bayne

Today, I received an email reply from a staff member called John Adams - whose email address bore the signature of Ben Franklin, presumably a different staff member. It read:

> Victora Store - 03-9547-1022
>
> Give them a ring and see if they have them in stock to save you the
> trip if they need to order them from us for you
>
> Ben Franklin - www.jaycar.com.au - 1800-022-888 -
> techstore@jaycar.com.au

I called the number, which was for your Springvale branch, not the McIntyre Road branch as I had requested. The staff there informed me that they cannot obtain any of the components I originally requested! At this point I started to doubt that John (or Ben?) had actually spent any time reading my email before responding.

So I sent him an email, only to get the following response (typo included):

> Ben Franklin is no longer in the employ of jaycar electronics,
> Forward all relvant emails to techstore@jaycar.com.au

Apparently the poor chap has either resigned or been fired in the half hour or so since he sent me that email.

So, could someone from your company - preferably someone who's planning to remain an employee for at least half an hour after replying - *please* answer the questions in my email, which are:

- can I buy the resistors I listed?
- if so, can they be ordered into stock at the *McIntyre Road* branch for me to pick them up?

Thanks for your time, & I look forwards to your reply.

Yours,
Duncan Bayne

I expected there'd be another three-day turnaround, so got stuck into some coding. Lo and behold, a reply arrived in a matter of minutes:

Hi there
You'll need to contact the store directly.

So apparently the answer to my question "could someone ... *please* answer the questions in my email" is - to paraphrase - "no, sod off." So I will sod off, & will most certainly never spend money in a Jaycar store again ... unless I'm in need of some Pythonesque light entertainment :-)

Progress, and R-ing TFM

I've basically finished the case - it's sanded back to bare wood & I've put several coats of furniture wax on. The result is smooth wood and a beautiful lustre, especially under natural light. I'll post some photos as soon as there's a nice sunny day to take them.

On the electronics front, less success. After soldering all the resistors in the amplifier kit to the board, I learned why one should always read instructions in full before starting work on a kit. Two of the resistors - 1 and 3W metal oxide - had to be mounted off the board as they generate a lot of heat in operation. Annoyingly, by the time I discovered this, I'd already trimmed the leads.

So, construction is stalled until I get my hands on some replacements. Dick Smith didn't have any; they have in fact all but given up on hobbyists, preferring to focus on retail appliances. That's a shame, as my introduction to electronics was courtesy their Funway series. Anyway, I found an online retailer called RS Components, who stock a much wider range of components.

However, they only stock 330ohm resistors of the type I need, rather than the 300ohm specified in the kit. I've emailed S5 to ask whether 330ohm would be acceptably close, given the broad tolerances of the 3W resistors being used, and will be ordering what I need as soon as I hear from them.

Amplifier arrived

The valve amplifier kit arrived yesterday; it looks to be in perfect condition. Today I'm off to the hardware store to buy some varnish and sandpaper, then to the electronics store to buy a speaker. Then the cleanup and assembly can begin.

At this point I'm looking to modularise it somewhat, & actually have a standalone mini-PC or laptop within the case, hooked up to the amp through a plug & socket panel internally. That'll make it easier to develop, dramatically reduce the amount of woodworking needed, and make ongoing upgrades or repairs painless as well.

One complication is that as it's mains powered, I'll need to get it certified by an electrical engineer before I can leave it running - else if it catches fire & burns the house down, our insurance won't pay out. Still, it's a wise precaution as it's my first ever mains-powered circuit.