Sunday, April 27, 2025

What Happened to Heathkit? The Legend Lives On



What Happened to Heathkit? The Ham Radio Legend That Vanished! - YouTube

Educating, Entertaining, and Helping Radio Enthusiasts to learn more about the History and Stories behind the technology we enjoy. ⁨@HamRadioGizmos⁩ 

Long before we were building robots with Arduinos or automating our homes with Raspberry Pis, there was a company quietly empowering ordinary people to build their own technology—one vacuum tube at a time. 

 CORRECTIONS: Thanks to very smart viewers who pointed out that the answer to Quiz Question #3 is incorrect. Apparently, Heathkit DID sell a microwave oven. Check out page 13 of this Heathkit catalog. I never remember them selling microwaves so that is my mistake. https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Arc... 

For non-English speakers, Subtitles are available in French, German, Hindi, Italian, Japanese and Spanish. 

Think Heathkit was just a bunch of mail-order gadgets? Think again. 

In this video, we take you back to the golden age of DIY electronics to uncover the surprising rise (and fall) of Heathkit—the brand that turned everyday people into engineers and helped launch countless careers in electronics, radio, and computing. From war surplus beginnings to hobbyist heaven, you’ll learn: 

• Where Heathkit really got its start (hint: WWII leftovers!) 

• How they revolutionized learning electronics at home 

• Why their kits were more than just fun—they were educational gold 

• And what ultimately brought the Heathkit legacy to a standstill 

Whether you’re a ham radio operator, a vintage tech geek, or just love a good origin story—you’ll get the full scoop right here.  

References and Research Heathkit Company History – Heath Company Archives and official product catalogs 

The Heathkit Legacy: From Airplane Kits to Electronics Empire

I'll create a comprehensive story about the history of Heathkit and the Heath Company, combining information from the video transcript and additional research.

The Accidental Birth of an Electronics Giant

The story of Heathkit begins not with circuits and resistors, but with wings and propellers. In 1926, aviator Edward Baird Heath founded the Heath Airplane Company in Chicago, specializing in affordable aircraft kits that everyday people could build themselves. His most popular model was the Heath Parasol, a simple single-seat plane with the wing mounted above the fuselage, resembling a parasol.

The romance of these early aviation days ended tragically in 1931 when Edward Heath took off in a prototype plane he was testing. The aircraft crashed, killing Heath instantly. The company struggled after Heath's death, eventually sliding into bankruptcy during the Great Depression.

However, in 1935, a businessman named Howard Anthony purchased the struggling Heath Company. Anthony moved the company to Benton Harbor, Michigan, and continued making airplane kits and parts.

The Wartime Pivot

When World War II erupted, the U.S. government sought companies with aviation experience. The Heath Company answered the call, pivoting to manufacture various aircraft components, including electronic equipment for military planes. This seemingly minor detail would change everything.

A Fortunate Accident

As the war ended in 1945, America faced a new challenge: what to do with mountains of surplus military equipment. The government began auctioning off massive quantities of electronic parts no longer needed for the war effort.

Howard Anthony placed what he thought was a modest bid on some surplus electronics, but what he received was far more than expected. The station master in Benton Harbor called Anthony with surprising news: "Hello Mr. Anthony, this is Mr. Williams at the Benton Harbor station. I am calling to inform you that four or five railroad cars filled with electronic parts just arrived. We can keep these for a week, but after that, we will have to charge you a storage fee on each box car."

Anthony hadn't remembered placing such a large bid and now had to scramble. He called friends, acquaintances, and anyone with storage space—barns, warehouses, anywhere to stash these mountains of electronic components before the railroad started charging daily fees for the box cars.

As Anthony and his team sorted through this electronic windfall, they discovered something interesting: they had acquired a large quantity of 5BP1 cathode ray tubes—5-inch display tubes used in radar equipment during the war. Anthony, ever the entrepreneur, started thinking about what he could do with them.

The First Heathkit

In November 1947, the Heath Company introduced something brand new: the O-1 oscilloscope kit. Selling for just $39.50, this wasn't an airplane part but the company's first electronic kit, built around those surplus 5BP1 tubes.

The timing couldn't have been better. Thousands of GIs had received electronics training during the war and were now home, many using the GI Bill to study engineering. There was a huge market of technically minded people who wanted affordable test equipment. Commercial oscilloscopes at the time cost hundreds or even thousands of dollars, far beyond the reach of hobbyists and students. At $39.50, the Heathkit version was revolutionary.

Yes, you had to build it yourself, but that was part of the appeal. You not only got an oscilloscope, you learned how it worked by assembling it.

The oscilloscope was quickly followed by other test equipment: a vacuum tube voltmeter, signal generators, and more. By the early 1950s, Heath was selling millions of dollars worth of electronic kits annually. The airplane company had transformed into something entirely different.

The Famous Heathkit Manuals

What really set Heathkit apart was their instruction manuals. The manuals assumed you knew nothing about electronics and walked you through every step with illustrations, explanations, and troubleshooting tips. The famous foldout pictorials showed exactly where each part went. They even included information about why certain components were used, turning each kit into an electronics course.

Expansion into Amateur Radio

In the early 1950s, Heath entered the amateur radio market with the AT-1 transmitter kit. This was a natural extension—ham radio operators were technically skilled and often built their own equipment. The marriage between Heathkit and ham radio would become one of the most successful partnerships in electronics history.

The Golden Age of Heathkit

The 1950s through the 1970s marked the golden age of Heathkit. Parts were neatly organized in bags, resistors sorted by value, and capacitors carefully labeled. There was something magical about transforming a box of parts into a working piece of electronic equipment.

The SB Series and Ham Radio Glory

In the 1960s, Heathkit introduced its HF transceiver line, beginning with three single-band SSB-only units. This was followed by one of its most successful lines, the SB-100 series, which was introduced in 1964. The SB series ham radio equipment became legendary among amateur operators. Many enthusiasts saved for months to buy an SB-101 transceiver kit. It took weeks to build, with over 100 hours of careful soldering and assembly, but when a ham operator made their first contact using gear they had built themselves, the feeling was indescribable.

Heathkit probably succeeded more on its ham radio products than anything else. Their early kits were shortwave radios, transmitters, accessories like antenna tuners, and the famous Cantenna (a 1-kW non-inductive power resistor in a paint can with mineral oil for heatsinking).

The Heathkit catalog became a wishbook for electronics enthusiasts who would spend hours poring over each new edition, dreaming about which kit they would build next. The company offered everything from simple radio receivers that could be assembled in an evening to complex color TVs that might take weeks to complete.

Educational Legacy

What's most remarkable about Heathkit was their commitment to education. They weren't just selling kits; they were teaching electronics. In 1974, Heathkit started "Heathkit Educational Systems," which expanded their manuals into general electronics and computer training materials. These courses and training systems were used in schools and colleges across America.

Getting a piece of equipment at a lower price was appealing, but building a Heathkit was about a lot more than that. It was about the journey, the learning, and the pride of creation. When someone asked about your stereo or ham radio, you could proudly say, "I built it myself."

The Computer Era

By the late 1970s, Heathkit entered the personal computer market with models like the H8 and H11. The H8, introduced in 1977, was an Intel 8080A-based microcomputer sold in kit form.

The H8 was similar to the S-100 bus computers of the era and, like those machines, is often used with the CP/M operating system on floppy disk. The main difference was the bus; the H8 used a 50-pin bus design that was smaller, more robust, and better engineered electrically.

In 1979, Zenith Radio Company bought Heath Company from Schlumberger for $63 million, renaming the computer division Zenith Data Systems (ZDS). By fiscal year 1980, computers represented 40% of Heathkit's revenue.

The Decline

The late 1970s and 1980s marked a turning point for the company. Electronics was changing rapidly, becoming more complex and integrated. Traditional through-hole components that were easy to solder by hand were losing ground to surface mount technology. These tiny components were perfect for automated manufacturing but nearly impossible for hobbyists to work with.

Consumer preferences were shifting as well. In the 1950s and 60s, building your own equipment often meant significant savings. By the 1980s, mass production made pre-built electronics more affordable, while kits on the other hand became relatively more expensive as they contained more complex parts.

As sales of its kits dwindled during the decade, Heath relied on its training materials and a new venture in home automation and lighting products to stay afloat. In March 1992, after 45 years of helping people build their own electronics, Heathkit discontinued its electronic kit business.

The Legacy Lives On

Today, the Heathkit name continues to exist. The current incarnation of the company states: "We are product fanatics. Our goal is to improve your life by helping you build the complex products you use daily. You'll learn how they work, and be able to fix and change them yourself."

The spirit of Heathkit lives on in today's maker movement. When we see young people building projects with Arduino boards or Raspberry Pi computers, we recognize that same excitement that was felt when opening a first Heathkit box. The technology has changed, but the joy of creating something electronic with your own hands remains the same.

From airplane kits to oscilloscopes to computers, the Heath Company's journey reflects America's technological evolution through the 20th century. What began with surplus war parts in desperate need of storage space became a company that helped build the technical foundation for our modern electronic world.

Heathkit History - Sources

  1. Video What Happened to Heathkit? The Ham Radio Legend That Vanished! - YouTube
  2. "Heathkit - Wikipedia." Wikipedia, March 17, 2025. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heathkit
  3. "H is for Heathkits and Hams: Part 2 – The 1960s." EEJournal, February 19, 2025. https://www.eejournal.com/article/h-is-for-heathkits-and-hams-part-2-the-1960s/
  4. "Whatever Happened To Heathkit?" Electronic Design. https://www.electronicdesign.com/technologies/analog/article/21801229/whatever-happened-to-heathkit
  5. "Heathkit." North Florida Amateur Radio Society. https://nofars.net/jacksonville_radio_collection/heathkit
  6. "K4NYW Vintage Ham Radio." Virtual History. https://www.virhistory.com/ham/
  7. "H is for Heathkits and Hams: Part 1 – Early Days through the 1950s." EEJournal, February 19, 2025. https://www.eejournal.com/article/h-is-for-heathkits-and-hams-part-1-early-days-through-the-1950s/
  8. "Ham Radio (also known as amateur radio)." John Patrick. https://www.johnpatrick.com/hobbies/ham-radio/
  9. "Heathkit." Official Website. https://shop.heathkit.com/
  10. "The History of Ham Radio." Ham Radio Prep, October 28, 2024. https://hamradioprep.com/history-of-ham-radio/
  11. "Heathkit Ham Radios - We all built them back in the day." Ham Radio Secrets. https://www.hamradiosecrets.com/heathkit-ham-radios-we-all-built-them-back-in-the-day.html
  12. "Classic Heathkit Computers." https://heathkit.garlanger.com/
  13. "S100 Computers - Heathkit History." http://www.s100computers.com/Hardware%20Folder/HeathZenith/History/History.htm
  14. "History of personal computers - Wikipedia." Wikipedia, April 6, 2025. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_personal_computers
  15. "Heathkit H8 - Wikipedia." Wikipedia, August 5, 2024. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heathkit_H8
  16. "Heathkit – The electronic history mystery." Adafruit Blog, April 7, 2017. https://blog.adafruit.com/2014/12/20/heathkit-the-electronic-history-mystery/
  17. "The Rise and Fall of Heathkit -- And Rise of SparkFun." SparkFun Electronics. https://www.sparkfun.com/news/986
  18. "The Rise and Fall of Heathkit – Part 2: The 1960s through the mid-1970s." EEJournal, December 6, 2024. https://www.eejournal.com/article/the-rise-and-fall-of-heathkit-part-2-the-1960s-through-the-mid-1970s/
  19. "Nostalgic Kits Central - Information on Heathkit and others." https://www.nostalgickitscentral.com/

 

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