I heard the name “McGrath” somewhere the other day, which prompted me to look it up as the name of an old electronics store in the Melbourne CBD, to see if any of its history had been recorded.
The first thing that popped up was in this thread of an electronics forum that I was not previously aware of:-
https://www.electronicspoint.com/forums/threads/what-about-melbourne.135600I decided to join the forum so that I could revive the 13 year old thread and make my contribution. In the process of researching for my post, I saw there was a similar, more recent thread in the EEVBlog forum:-
https://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/old-electronics-shops-in-melbourne-what_s-there-today-(video)/msg791971/#msg791971So having spent quite some time writing this rather long post, I decided to maximzse my ROI and post it to both forums, but the older thread is now archived read-only.
A lot of this is my hazy recollections from over 50 years ago, so there is much room for error. Where I know there could be mistakes, I've added a question mark.
McGraths in Little Lonsdale Street.
My first electronics shop. I was introduced to this place at about 10 years of age by an older family friend. It was all new components laid out on tables in hundreds of small, painted, cake baking tins. A feature of this place that sticks with me is the thin balding guy at the first of the four small sales counters. Every time I dealt with him, it all seemed like life was just too much for him. He appeared to hate his job, yet was there for years.
(I think it was mentioned that they had used gear, but that would have been United Trade Sales across the street?)
United trade Sales
I'm pretty sure that this was the place across the street from McGraths? Run by Jock Ellis, an always cheerful pipe smoking Scotsman. I think he then moved to a larger shop in Lonsdale Street on the other side of the same building(s). Later moving out to Clayton as Ellistronics. Possibly he had another place out there, but I only vaguely remember just the one near the corner of Blackburn & Wellington Rds, Later to become "Tecs" for not very long, as I recall.
I bought a couple of IBM 1311 disk drives from him when he had the store in Lonsdale street. They were the satellite units, not the master that controlled them, which had more electronics. Luckily, Jock knew who bought the master unit, and put me in touch with them. Through our common interests, Mike and I became very good mates. Sadly he's been gone for quite a while now.
Waltham Trading Company
A large 2 or 3 level shop in Elizabeth Street near Collins St or Flinders Lane in the city. Lots of war surplus electronics, much of it NOS components. I didn't fully appreciate the stuff they had back then, but would like to play with now. I wish there was a place like that still around. They finished up at a large garage in Richmond, in (another!) Elizabeth street, maybe near the corner of Church St?
Ham Radio Supplies
Another large shop in Elizabeth st, like and near Waltham Trading Co - Or am I imagining that?
Certainly they later had a small shop in Swanston Street near Little Lonsdale St, plus a hangar at Essendon Airport for storage, where they'd scrapped an IBM 7044 and 1401 (From Melbourne Uni, and by which I'd been mesmerised years earlier as a youngster on open days). One day, I left the airport with my Toyota Crown station wagon absolutely chock full of the guts of those machines. About 7000 SMS circuit boards => *lots* of gold!
(I'm pretty sure the 1311's also came from Melbourne Uni)
Rockby Electronics
A friendly family run business, one of the few still operating.
I first found them in Haughton road, next to Huntingdale station, then they had a couple of places in Huntingdale road, a small shop in a small shopping strip in Huntingale Rd near Edward st (or was that only Stewart Eectronics?), then a larger place in the main shopping area, and finally the current place in Renver road. (I think there was also another location that now escapes me?)
I still go there every month or two. The building is up for sale, though they are staying on, at least for now.
But I'm told that they do intend to wind up some time in the next few years.
Stewart Electronics
Started as a shop in the small Huntingdale Rd strip, then to Stafford St in the industrial area behind the main shopping area.
A father & son team. Large Range and high prices. Specialized in keeping customers waiting.
Stock went to Rockby when they closed.
All Electronic Components
In Lonsdale street, past Russell street, so a bit away from the main CBD electronics precint.
Bought the PCBs for my EDUC-8 from them. There was an old bloke there with a bung eye, that he lost in an accident involving caustic soda.
There were also the more obscure and specialized, small non-retail local agents for various semiconductor companies. Though you could still by from some of them as a hobbyist.
Jamisom Rowe annoyingly designed the Electronics Australia EDUC-8 computer to use a $50 Fairchild bipolar RAM chip, which was far, far, far faster than what was actually needed. I don't remember the name of the place, but I bought a 2102 NMOS RAM chip for $3 from a (NatSemi?) agent somewhere in Collingwood. The 2102 had a different pinout, but did the job just fine.
A few years later, I visited a Signetics distributor in Moray St South Melbourne a number of times. I got a couple of 2650 MCUs, plus various TTL stuff as I recall. An American ex-IBM CE who worked there gave me a few pointers in trying to get the 1311 disk drives that I'd bought from United Trade Sales going (did get them seeking, but no read/write of data).
Semtronics Queen St Nunawading
Another of the remaining few. I only went there once, as Nunawading is outside of my stomping ground, but as I remember it, a proper old style electronics shop, mostly new parts that have been sitting around for years, but possibly some used stuff was in the small, fairly congested space.
Earlier this year, I needed an new EMI filter for a PDP-11/34, and found a perfect match on eBay at a very good price, and was most surprised to see that it was at a shop in Melbourne. One that I'd never heard of, despite it having been there for many years. Went out there right away, and was back home with the new filter within a couple of hours of starting my search.
Radio Parts
First went there when I lived not too far from their North Melbourne head office, but much later frequented the East Malvern store which was only a few minutes walk from home. It had been there for many years, but some bean counter decided to close it, much to my continuing annoyance. They had a good range of components and good prices for "VIP" trade card holders. A couple of the guys there were good fun, when they saw me come in, they'd say "Look, here comes intabits, He must be outa bits!"
Bernie's Emporium
Three locations that I know of, only been to each of them once. Lots of used electronics gear, organized as your usual explore for yourself junk warehouse. First I went to was in North Road at the intersection of Koornang & Tucker Rds, then at Oakleigh in a back street (Fulton? or Manton?) of the triangular light industrial area between North Rd & the railway line. He/They then seemed to become a larger, more profit-oriented/professional outfit named Macservice, selling on ebay from a warehouse in South Clayton (Fairbank Rd or Obsborne Ave)
Truscotts Bayswater ?
Now gone, only vaguely aware of it and never went there. Way out in the eastern burbs, too far away for me.
Dick Smith
Early on, the main one I went to was in Bridge Rd Richmond, around the corner from the Yarra Blvd. Much later they were the first occupants of a new large building, conveniently at the end of my street in Dandenong Rd Carnegie. I think they were owned by Woolwoths by this time?, and already sliding towards the gurlger. Initially about 20% of the store was "proper" electronics, but reduced quickly to about 2%, and then they folded. It's now Officeworks.
Tandy
Desperation only, but the one in Glenhuntly Rd Elsternwick was once handy if I needed some wire, a resistor or a connector.
Right next to the electronics precinct in the Melbourne CBD was the Elizabeth street motorcycle precinct. Saturday mornings were a festival for motorcyclists back in the heyday of both these areas, with hundreds of bikes parked up and down Elizabeth street. In the 1970's I had a Kawasaki Z1A, and Saturday mornings in those days were an great time in my life where I could indulge two of my main passions. Riding in there with a wonderful girlfriend on a sunny day, was a joyous experience. I do miss those times. (She eventually woke up and moved on to better things)
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