Radio Wreckers exists to keep older radio equipment alive

Old ham radios have stories, character, and a future.

G’day I’m Dave – VK4DP, I’ve been licensed and involved in ham radio and electronics for around 40 years, most of that time working as an electronics technician. Radio has never just been a hobby for me — it’s been a lifelong interest, a profession, and a constant source of curiosity.
I am now retired and live in the bush on six acres about 40 kilometres north of Hervey Bay, Queensland, where my shack is an ever-changing mix of old and new, analogue and digital, home-brew and commercial gear. If it has knobs, dials, meters, or a circuit worth understanding, I want it on my workbench.
I’ve always been drawn to older radios. There’s something honest about equipment with components you can recognise, circuit diagrams you can read and equipment you can repair. While modern radios are incredibly capable, I believe there’s real value in preserving the skills, knowledge, and equipment that shaped the hobby in the first place. Radio Wreckers is about keeping that side of amateur radio alive — the hands-on, practical side that encourages learning and experimentation.
Professionally, I’ve spent many years supporting and repairing radio equipment, including employment as the State Service Manager for the Yaesu agency in Australia. That background means equipment is assessed carefully, not treated as disposable.
Radio Wreckers is not about indiscriminate stripping or quick turnover. Where equipment can be repaired or put back into service, that’s always considered. When parts are needed, they’re recovered thoughtfully so they can help keep other radios on the air. It may be junk or a boat anchor to some – it is a treasure to me – and many other hams.

What Radio Wreckers Does Not Do
While I work on and restore equipment as part of the Radio Wreckers project, I don’t offer repair services for customer-owned radios. Radio Wreckers is not a general repair workshop and is unable to accept equipment for repair on behalf of others. The focus is on preservation, restoration where practical, and careful reuse of parts to support the wider radio community.
If you have equipment you’re unsure what to do with, or you’re looking for hard-to-find parts from an era when radios were built to be serviced, you’re in the right place.