What Will Happen to a Silent Key’s Ham Shack?
Many of us are of an age where we look at a lifetime of accumulated equipment, some boat anchors, some not and think “What do I want to happen to my shack when I’m gone?” For those of us that don’t want to burden our spouses or other relatives with disposing of a lot of items they may not know the value of, they may start to downsize and leave the balance with guidance about their worth. For too many others, the family is left to fend for themselves, perhaps relying on radio club members to assist in selling the items.
General guidance on estate planning contained in QST articles
APR 2020 – QST (PG. 24)
More SK Estate Planning Tips
(Correspondence)
SEP 2019 – QST (PG. 63)
Silent Key Estate Planning — A guide
(Feature)
SEP 2019 – QST (PG. 64)
Helping a Silent Key’s Family: Things to Remember (sidebar to Silent Key Estate Planning — A guide)
(Feature)
SEP 2019 – QST (PG. 64)
Disposing of Estate Items (sidebar to Silent Key Estate Planning — A guide)
(Feature)
NOV 2019 – QST (PG. 24)
More Silent Key Estate Planning
(Correspondence)
DEC 2019 – QST (PG. 24)
For Silent Key Estate Planning
(Correspondence)
Further information on estate planning is contained using the following links. Nothing here should be construed as an endorsement of any kind:
The author requested that we note that:
This is not a definitive legal document and is for guidance only. The writer provides this presentation in good faith and shall not be liable in any way for uses other than as an ‘Information and Guidance document’. No changes are to be made by anyone unless given explicit written permission. Original presentations and Adaptations take many hours to produce. Most of my presentations mentioned in the WMA Presenters list are located on the CMARA Website, CMARA.org.
https://nediv.arrl.org/estate planning
https://silentkeys.org/disposal-of-silent-key-equipment/estate-planning-tips/
Selling Amateur Radio Equipment for the Family
Guidance on selling amateur radio equipment is contained in eham.net and https://www.schulmanauction.com is a site where equipment may be sold. Families will often benefit from the help of club members who are willing to go to flea markets and/or advertise on places like the YCCC reflector, eham, and Facebook ham radios for sale groups.
Keeping the Shack Intact
In the case of the ham who would like to see his shack kept intact and re-used by a museum or school, the options are limited. A Google search yielded some possible destinations but much depends on the specific needs of the institution.
A search yielded the following possibilities:
College amateur radio stations
Other school clubs
Radio–related museums in New England
Museum ships
Science museums
- Chatham Marconi Maritime Center – WA1WCC
- McAuliffe Shephard Discovery Center Amateur Radio Station – KA1SKY
- Steam and Wireless Museum (East Greenwich, RI)
- Vintage Radio & Communications Museum of Connecticut – W1VCM
Other resources
There are several Facebook groups that could be used to find such destinations (be careful!). Sites like QRZ.com and eHam.net are also possibilities for locating worthy recipients.