Another me too post. My first kit (a Christmas present) was a small one with components mounted on a colourful cardboard base with spring connectors. This was i

Another me too post. My first kit (a Christmas present) was a small one with components mounted on a colourful cardboard base with spring connectors. This was in the 70s and from memory its USP was that it had a small solar cell. I remember making a radio transmitter (very low power) and running an aerial cable up the stairs in a futile attempt to get some broadcast range. It also had a single red LED and I'm sure I made it blink. I remember how it felt. Later I was given a Radionic 160 (or 140?) which had a sturdy hardboard base and boasted Real Silicon Chips (a couple of 741 op amps). It also had an analogue meter. I made a lot of things with that kit. Then I discovered that my town had a shop [1] that sold basic components and surplus boards, and the classic Tandy (Radio Shack) electronics books. So I got a breadboard and got good at de-soldering, and the parts from the kit slowly got picked-off and scavenged for other projects... like a sky burial. Then I discovered computers in the early 80s, went on to do a software engineering degree and a career as a dev, and didn't do any electronics for 25 years. It was fun coming back to it later, but its hard to just "play" when there's so much choice and complexity. Like seemingly many here, this is part of my origin story as a techie. I guess I was lucky to have parents who cared and wanted to stimulate my interests, and to have grown up in a time before pervasive distraction. Different times now. [1] https://www.fanthorpes.co.uk/page/about-us https://www.fanthorpes.co.uk/page/about-us