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Author Topic: Ten Tec , Iconic Ham Radios, support?  (Read 1010 times)

KD6VXI

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Re: Ten Tec , Iconic Ham Radios, support?
« Reply #15 on: November 28, 2022, 09:29:37 AM »

What some of the previous posters are not aware of, or conveniently overlooked, is that Mike Dishop did not buy a working company.  He bought the remnants of a working company that the previous owners were in the process of liquidating.  And he has spent years and $$$$ trying to put Ten a Tec back as a viable firm.

You cannot blame him for the loss of a legendary service department that was already gone when he stepped in.

He has not abandoned the Amateur Radio market.  He has put the plans to revive that part of the business on hold while he gets it back on a firm financial basis.  Huge difference.  In fact, he has indicated he plans to resume manufacturing (and presumably service) at the new facility In Dayton once he can obtain parts... and a small company like Ten Tec is not currently high on the priority lists.

I'm well aware of all of this, as well as him purchasing Alpha as well.  And EmTron.

I'm also aware that his attitude is just bullsh1t.

His attitude, the way he talks down to everyone whom asks a question about his companies, etc. is a major turnoff.

After watching the way he conducts himself towards people that have purchased equipment from his new (to him) companies made me say I will never own anything he has to do with.  You just don't talk to people like they are a piece of gum stuck to the bottom of your shoe.  After you mucked the stables.

The only reason I won't own an Alpha or a Ten-Tec product now, other than the availability factor, is the new owner of the companies.  His tone on the various web boards geared towards Ten Tec and Alpha, the way he talks down to past and potential customers and his holier than thou attitude of we should bow down at his feet because HE IS SAVING THE COMPANIES!!!!!  means I can spend my money elsewhere.

I don't have to support anyone that thinks I'm a burden.  And his own words maee this potential customer think that.  Good luck to him.

--Shane
WP2ASS / ex KD6VXI
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KD6VXI

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Re: Ten Tec , Iconic Ham Radios, support?
« Reply #16 on: November 28, 2022, 09:31:57 AM »

3PX, well, Collins thought they had a great deal buying Continental Radio for the renowned broadcast transmitters, also. got everything in the warehouse. then some stock guy tossed all the documentation as clutter. dead money, active stations with no support. had awful hum on a Devils Lake AMer for over a year when the power supply choke died. then their new Gates transmitter arrived....

A call to Peter Dahl would have fixed that pretty quickly.  And not taken a year.  Sounds like the BE needed to be fired and replaced if he couldn't figure that out.

--Shane
WP2ASS / ex KD6VXI
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K4BDA

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Re: Ten Tec , Iconic Ham Radios, support?
« Reply #17 on: November 28, 2022, 10:03:57 AM »

Which company bought Ten Tec?
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KD6VXI

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Re: Ten Tec , Iconic Ham Radios, support?
« Reply #18 on: November 28, 2022, 10:38:19 AM »

Which company bought Ten Tec?

A company didn't.  Mike Dishop, whom started Dishtronix > 20 years ago, is the entity that owns it now.  N8WFF is his call.

--Shane
WP2ASS / ex KD6VXI
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KD6VXI

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Re: Ten Tec , Iconic Ham Radios, support?
« Reply #19 on: November 28, 2022, 10:53:30 AM »

"If you don't like what I'm doing, if you can't say something nice, then why not
just keep your mouth shut?  What business is it of yours?  If you bought a
transceiver from RKR or RFC you didn't buy it from me. If you have a beef, have
your beef with them, not me.   Are you upset that I bought the assets of what
was left?   I'm sick and tired  of reading this drivel over and over again in
our forum.  I am now going to formally appeal to the moderators and owners that
whenever this negative stuff is posted in the future that you just delete it
and don't even send it out."

http://lists.contesting.com/archives//html/TenTec/2017-03/msg00066.html

Make your own assumptions.  This is only one of many diatribes calling customers stupid, etc.

--Shane
WP2ASS / ex KD6VXI
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ZS5WC

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Re: Ten Tec , Iconic Ham Radios, support?
« Reply #20 on: November 28, 2022, 10:58:17 PM »

 :(Interesting Thread..
Well if N8WFF or new owner of TT maybe appoints a dedicated private service tech and supplies relevant service info people like myself would not complain.
Lets face it, having such an iconic rig and having NO backup is just stupid.
At least keep the rigs out there running and save some face regarding TT brand.
Also, the chip shortage cited is a weak excuse.
Normally CHIPS like uPs seldom fail. Its discrete parts that fail, or a connector that is poor, or Screen failures.
You can get substitute screens or even better use an OLED screen with modern PIC or microcontroller.

Lots of things nowadays just dont make any sense.
73 de William
ZS4L / ZS5WC
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KA4DPO

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Re: Ten Tec , Iconic Ham Radios, support?
« Reply #21 on: November 29, 2022, 02:26:01 PM »

"If you don't like what I'm doing, if you can't say something nice, then why not
just keep your mouth shut?  What business is it of yours?  If you bought a
transceiver from RKR or RFC you didn't buy it from me. If you have a beef, have
your beef with them, not me.   Are you upset that I bought the assets of what
was left?   I'm sick and tired  of reading this drivel over and over again in
our forum.  I am now going to formally appeal to the moderators and owners that
whenever this negative stuff is posted in the future that you just delete it
and don't even send it out."

http://lists.contesting.com/archives//html/TenTec/2017-03/msg00066.html

Make your own assumptions.  This is only one of many diatribes calling customers stupid, etc.

--Shane
WP2ASS / ex KD6VXI

All I know is Shane, John Henry recently posted on Facebook that Ten Tec is working with engineers around the world to develop a new product. 

What can I say, if they actually do produce something it had better be the death star he promised or no one will even bother to look.  Arrogance and blame shifting is not a winning business model.


What some of the previous posters are not aware of, or conveniently overlooked, is that Mike Dishop did not buy a working company.  He bought the remnants of a working company that the previous owners were in the process of liquidating.  And he has spent years and $$$$ trying to put Ten a Tec back as a viable firm.

You cannot blame him for the loss of a legendary service department that was already gone when he stepped in.

He has not abandoned the Amateur Radio market.  He has put the plans to revive that part of the business on hold while he gets it back on a firm financial basis.  Huge difference.  In fact, he has indicated he plans to resume manufacturing (and presumably service) at the new facility In Dayton once he can obtain parts... and a small company like Ten Tec is not currently high on the priority lists.

He knew exactly what he was buying.  The above excuse is really weak.  If you are going to build radios then do it.  If you are going to tap dance around it for years, then throw a hissy fit everytime someone calls you on it, you need to do something else. 

Just watch the Videos from Hamvention and all of the, we're going to to this, and we're going to do that, and always just a couple of quarters from now.  Well?  Potential customers have already jumpped ship and moved on to other brands.   


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AC2EU

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Re: Ten Tec , Iconic Ham Radios, support?
« Reply #22 on: November 29, 2022, 05:06:43 PM »

:(Interesting Thread..
Well if N8WFF or new owner of TT maybe appoints a dedicated private service tech and supplies relevant service info people like myself would not complain.
Lets face it, having such an iconic rig and having NO backup is just stupid.
At least keep the rigs out there running and save some face regarding TT brand.
Also, the chip shortage cited is a weak excuse.
Normally CHIPS like uPs seldom fail. Its discrete parts that fail, or a connector that is poor, or Screen failures.
You can get substitute screens or even better use an OLED screen with modern PIC or microcontroller.

Lots of things nowadays just dont make any sense.
73 de William
ZS4L / ZS5WC

While his attitude is horrendous, he was trying to make the point that the original Ten Tec company was sold as "scrap" , just assets, not an intact operation.
That being said , he should stop implying that he is going to resurrect TenTec at some unknown future date.
Ten Tec is dead. The diagrams I have used are terrible as you say, but that is all there is, as far as know. i have managed to repair several TenTecs despite these drawbacks. There is no more factory support.  The problems I have encountered so far were repaired with generic parts.

KD6VXI

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Re: Ten Tec , Iconic Ham Radios, support?
« Reply #23 on: November 30, 2022, 08:55:40 AM »

John Henry has been saying that for nearly half a decade.

I'll believe Ten Tec wasn't a tax cow or a bad business decision when I see something come out of it, other than government radios.

Something is always just around the corner, we are all idiots for not just STFU and wait for his royal highness to bring to the table whatever he wants to do... Because we have ZERO ideas about how to run a business.  Got news for you bud, been there, done that.  Was profitable.  All the way until I hit a wall doing 130 mph on a motorcycle with a stuck throttle trying to get out of the way of an ambulance.

Anyway...  To me watching it all go down is a great diversion.  I wish Ten Tec all the best, I really do.  But as I said, it's been YEARS since anything other than some guy has talked down to anyone with a question. 

--Shane
WP2ASS / ex KD6VXI
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W3WN

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Re: Ten Tec , Iconic Ham Radios, support?
« Reply #24 on: December 02, 2022, 10:08:02 AM »

Interesting to note that of all the people posting negative comments on Mike and his attitude... yes, the Premature Funeral Committee membership drive is alive and well...

How many of you actually spoke to Mike face to face?  In person that is?  How many of you gave him a phone call and asked him some questions?  How many of you had an actual email direct from him?

Yeah.  I know what he's posted.  I know what a lot of people have alleged the man has said... in emails or texts or correspondence sent to someone else. 

But who has actually said an actual "hello" to the man and held a conversation?  Especially in the last 2 or 3 years?

Do I hear crickets chirping?
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Ban The DH!
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K4BDA

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Re: Ten Tec , Iconic Ham Radios, support?
« Reply #25 on: December 02, 2022, 12:23:22 PM »

Current status of Ten Tec... as I understand it... Correct me as necessary...

- Mike Dishop, or his company Dishtronix, acquired the remaining assets of Ten Tec.
- That would indicate that the original Ten Tec was not making a go of it anymore or just wanted to get out of the business.
- Now the new owner, in attempt to  get a return on his investment, is trying to salvage what they can from the remaining assets...
- Which I would guess are the Ten Tec name/trade-mark, Intellectual Property, Product Design documentation and maybe some remaining inventory of parts and/or products.
- Important to understand here that an asset buyout does not mean that the buyer is buying the company... they are just buying all of the companies assets.
- With the original Ten Tec organization closing the doors they probably had to lay off all their staff, including the product support group.
- Unsure if the new asset owner elected to hire any of the previous Ten Tec staff...
- But from the sound of things they opt'd not to pick up the immediate expense of hiring the original design and support team.
- I'm unsure if Mike/Dishtronix restarted production on any of the Ten Tec products. Likely it may not have been profitable to do so.
- Sounds like they want to come out with a new design and try to get the demand ramped up again...
- But that takes time and money to implement... and in the current market may be quite risky.
- In the interim would it be a wise investment to hire a support staff... when little or no money was coming in? Likely not.

If this is about right, I understand the new owners situation.
And, I understand the former customers situation.

Tough on both ends...
But this is what often happens when someone comes in and tries to pick up the pieces and put Humpty Dumpty back together again.

All that said... I'm unsure if Mike/Dishtronix bought a going concern or the remnants of a business not really producing a return on investment anymore... or worse.


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N8AUC

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Re: Ten Tec , Iconic Ham Radios, support?
« Reply #26 on: December 02, 2022, 08:10:07 PM »

I've been a ham for almost 45 years.
I've owned Ten Tec radios in the past. Really liked them, too.
But like a lot of things that I liked in the past and are gone now,
they will remain pleasant and nostalgic memories of what once was.

As far as I'm concerned, with what I've seen, read, and heard,
regardless of what the current owner says, the Ten Tec I knew and
loved sure seems to be dead and gone.

And with that, I don't expect to see any support for their older rigs.
Knowing that, I wouldn't buy a used Ten Tec rig today, in any condition.
I've seen some pretty ones on hamfest tables, too. But I just smile and keep walking.
Because I don't have the time, equipment, or desire to troubleshoot and repair one should a
problem arise. For those of you who do, I seriously wish you the best, and hope you have
loads of fun with them. Because those old Ten Tec rigs, back in the day, were mighty sweet radios.

Maybe at some point in the future the current situation will change, and I'll be all wrong.
And I'll be OK with that. But I'm not holding my breath waiting for it to happen either.

73 de N8AUC
Eric
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AC2EU

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Re: Ten Tec , Iconic Ham Radios, support?
« Reply #27 on: December 02, 2022, 08:14:10 PM »

Interesting to note that of all the people posting negative comments on Mike and his attitude... yes, the Premature Funeral Committee membership drive is alive and well...

How many of you actually spoke to Mike face to face?  In person that is?  How many of you gave him a phone call and asked him some questions?  How many of you had an actual email direct from him?

Yeah.  I know what he's posted.  I know what a lot of people have alleged the man has said... in emails or texts or correspondence sent to someone else. 

But who has actually said an actual "hello" to the man and held a conversation?  Especially in the last 2 or 3 years?

Do I hear crickets chirping?

Since you are implying that YOU have had a conversation with the man, is there something you would like to share about the status of TEN tec?

Personally, I'm fine with it as an asset buy from a dead company. I don't see where he has any responsibility to do anything! I do appreciate that he still hosts the diagrams for the models.

I also doubt that he will produce a new model, especially since the brand name momentum/goodwill  is lost and the economy is in the weeds.
Like a coroner, he should officially declare the death of TenTec so the "funeral committee" can move on.

ZS5WC

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Re: Ten Tec , Iconic Ham Radios, support?
« Reply #28 on: December 02, 2022, 11:15:51 PM »

 ::)I would still like PCB overlays and service info for older discontinued radios, like the ORION, just to keep them going!..
The Screen code..
Surely that could be made available on the TT website.
Guess its a pipe dream now.. So Sad.
Pse Santa.. ;D
73 de William
ZS4L / ZS5WC
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AC2EU

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Re: Ten Tec , Iconic Ham Radios, support?
« Reply #29 on: December 03, 2022, 08:20:10 AM »

::)I would still like PCB overlays and service info for older discontinued radios, like the ORION, just to keep them going!..
The Screen code..
Surely that could be made available on the TT website.
Guess its a pipe dream now.. So Sad.
Pse Santa.. ;D
73 de William
ZS4L / ZS5WC

Like Drake, Swan and Collins, etc, you only have the artifacts of the past to work with.
Distronix essentially bought the contents of a building, nothing more, Tentec probably  had equipment that he could use in his business.
Even the "big three" don't support radios older than 10 years!
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