# MoD Electronics store - March 2012.



## UrbanX (Mar 5, 2012)

Credit to Priority 7 who shared the site and done the logical thinking to navigate the tricky access in, and big props to Skeleton Key for the original research and uncovering the site. 

Due to the amount of artefacts left here, and the recent spate of sites being completely stripped as soon as they’re named online: This one is staying anonymous. 







Jacks in their original packaging:










Our time here was very hurried. We were in constant danger of being rumbled at any point. It was dark inside, so I stuck on my 50mm prime lens, and was literally just photographing everything I could hold to the light. 
















There was just room, upon room, upon room of electronic components. I don’t even know what most of it is, I’m sure someone that sees this will. 

Theye were in various states of assembly, from singular components, to complete instrument panels. 





Completed panel: 





Tubes….





And their packaging:





Then I walked into a non descript room - to be confronted with this sight: 






Boxes, upon boxes of microphones. You can see on the left that a lot of the packaging has been opened, and the microphones removed. I assume this is to salvage the magnet or copper coils. But this also prompts the question:
_
“Where are the microphones?” _The next room answered that question: 






Wireless: 






Typical store room: 





Some rough & ready details from said room: 










Valves:





More valves: 





No idea: 





Again, no idea: 





My worst shot of the day, was about ½ sec exposure hand held, but I just loved whatever it was: 





Again I stress that we’re keeping this one a secret as it has no architectural merit, the beauty of it is in the artefacts. Just enjoy our pics. 

I’m looking forward to seeing the other guys pics too, it’s one of those site where even though you all stick together you all see completely different things. 

Cheers for looking. Thanks again to Priority 7.


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## tattooed (Mar 5, 2012)

Cool find!


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## Priority 7 (Mar 5, 2012)

Come on UrbanX the last shot is a Galvanometer Shunt...a universal one at that....  Nice shots bud very nice...


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## Priority 7 (Mar 5, 2012)

Rather than start a new thread here are a few of mine:


























Great day with some great company  Cheers for driving too mate.


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## KingRat (Mar 5, 2012)

That's kinda special !!


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## wirelessmast (Mar 5, 2012)

That stuff seems to span from the late 50s through to the late 80s, Larkspur and Clansman items. 'CV' on a device/package refers to 'Common Valve' a WD/MoD standard way of identifying thermionic valves and semiconductors. The items you have as 'tubes' are high power resistors. The valves i can see range from octal bases from the 50s and earlier to late 70s devices. The Beryllia warnings are for berylium oxide semiconductor substrates, usually RF power transistors, the dust of which is carcinogenic.

I'd love to explore that place, to a radio engineer like me its a mecca! Those two valve radio sets want preserving!

The Robin item looks like a current clamp meter


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## wirelessmast (Mar 5, 2012)

Priority7 that big old wireless there is stunning! That really does deserve to be restored and in a museum

If i knew this place i'd try and find the owner and get permission to restore those sets!


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## UrbanX (Mar 5, 2012)

Nice shots P7! Especially loving the valve wide angle shot! 

Cheers for the info wirelessmast!


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## John_D (Mar 5, 2012)

Great find, the contents of that place looks like the abandoned warehouse of 'Proops' of Tottenham Court Road or the surplus stores of Lisle Street of the 1960's.


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## UrbanX (Mar 5, 2012)

Oh there was also ots of theatrical set in one bit, I didn't photograph them tho... weird!


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## night crawler (Mar 5, 2012)

Well done guys looks like a great place to explore.


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## godzilla73 (Mar 5, 2012)

_"That stuff seems to span from the late 50s through to the late 80s, Larkspur and Clansman items"_

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Clansman was the British Army's standard radio system Post WWII wasn't it?


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## Walrus75 (Mar 5, 2012)

Clansman came into use in the mid-70's and only went out of service in recent years.


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## Stussy (Mar 5, 2012)

Simply outstanding find! Hopefully us mere mortals can find more gems like this!

Great report!


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## Priority 7 (Mar 6, 2012)

I would also like to mention that I thought I had found this site way back in July and went to visit with SK and another only to be told by SK he already knew about it. I didn't manage to conquer the access that day and have been waiting to go back ever since. With this in mind any impression I may have given, to those I went with and indeed other forums members reading the report, that I dug this one up first I apologise for now, as far as I am concerned and indeed aware it was discovered long before I went there with SK by others and just kept very quiet.


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## MD (Mar 6, 2012)

lot of trouble to get the copper out !! 
it was mint when i was there, good on ya for keeping it quiet 
lets hope it stays that way since it appeared on another forum 




packages by M D Allen, on Flickr


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## nanook (Mar 6, 2012)

The Valves are probably used as new ones would be in cartons. Had the instruments been made in the 20's or 30's you could have landed some very nicely made wooden boxes as is possibly the Galvanometer shunt by Cambridge.


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## TeeJF (Mar 6, 2012)

Looks like a cool explore, well done guys!


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## wirelessmast (Mar 6, 2012)

godzilla73 said:


> _"That stuff seems to span from the late 50s through to the late 80s, Larkspur and Clansman items"_
> 
> Correct me if I'm wrong, but Clansman was the British Army's standard radio system Post WWII wasn't it?



Larkspur was still in use until the advent of Clansman in the 70's. Clansman was then retired recently witht he advent of Bowman. Huge quantities of Clansman are still being sorted and sold off.

Everything there looks to be old 80s or earlier stock, although its hard to say of course without seeing it first hand


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## Seahorse (Mar 6, 2012)

BARSTEWARDS!!!! No wonder we could never get spares back in the mid 80's. Some twat obviously decided he'd far rather hoard all the valves in one place.


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## Walrus75 (Mar 6, 2012)

Seahorse said:


> BARSTEWARDS!!!! No wonder we could never get spares back in the mid 80's. Some twat obviously decided he'd far rather hoard all the valves in one place.


Aye, bloody local storeman only had one left in stock but won't give it to you just in case someone needs it!


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## wirelessmast (Mar 6, 2012)

Stores is for storing! If they were for issuing, theyd be called issues! 

Its lonely in there, with your 1033 in your hand...


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## flyboys90 (Mar 6, 2012)

What a treasure trove there are hams out there who would give their eye teeth to get a handful of that lot,
Great photos.


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## Munchh (Mar 6, 2012)

It’s one of those places that always leaves you with mixed feelings about whether to post or not. It’s always personal choice. 

Thoroughly enjoyable report. Thanks guys.


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## Scaramanger (Mar 6, 2012)

nice to see stuff like this is still out there....gives hope for us mortals......nice one


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## UrbanX (Mar 6, 2012)

Munchh said:


> It’s one of those places that always leaves you with mixed feelings about whether to post or not. It’s always personal choice.
> 
> Thoroughly enjoyable report. Thanks guys.




Exactly that. Wrestled with it. 
But made the decision that something like this needs to be shared. It'll all probably be gone soon, and it would be criminal leaving it on a hard drive when theres so many geek... I mean 'enthusiasts' on here. So shared, but kept anon. 

Slightly off topic and I don't want to start another side topic: but secrecy is becoming more neccessary. I've left the name off my 'Site M' live telescope report. Just because the first person that googles the name of it will get a pic of me halfway up, next day it'll be in the paper with "Urban Explorers Raid Live Scientific facility". Thats different tho, just kept the name off, it's hardly a secret - it's hundreds of acres, and visable from 10's of miles away!


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## alex76 (Mar 7, 2012)

Cracking shots and find chaps


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## Krypton (Mar 8, 2012)

So much cool stuff here.

I recognise lots of things. Them sets of headphones look like they should belong with the De-Contamination Meter No.1

Lot's of crates there that are identical to the battery crates used by the ROC.


An awesome find and i hope its location isnt shared


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## krela (Mar 8, 2012)

There's a place in Somerset very similar to this, a real treasure trove of military history. Great photos!


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## Em_Ux (Mar 8, 2012)

What a cracking site!

Lovely shots too.


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## MD (Mar 8, 2012)

krela said:


> There's a place in Somerset very similar to this, a real treasure trove of military history. Great photos!



there was one in cardiff too 
but we all know what happened to that one


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## Priority 7 (Mar 8, 2012)

good point MD lots of shabby chic sales on ebay


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## irishmanlost (Mar 9, 2012)

Krypton said:


> So much cool stuff here.
> 
> I recognise lots of things. Them sets of headphones look like they should belong with the De-Contamination Meter No.1
> 
> ...



Also saw a report from another site and also worked out where it is, but don`t worry i`m not going to post or say where it is. As i too want places like this not being ebayed from known shabby chic explorers


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## nelly (Mar 9, 2012)

Nice work guys and tasty photos as always 




UrbanX said:


> I've left the name off my 'Site M' live telescope report. Just because the first person that googles the name of it will get a pic of me halfway up, next day it'll be in the paper with "Urban Explorers Raid Live Scientific facility"



RAID???? The place hasn't even got a fence!!!!


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## Seahorse (Mar 9, 2012)

Krypton said:


> Them sets of headphones look like they should belong with the De-Contamination Meter No.1



Bog standard Larkspur kit, they'll have been used with any mil kit from that era that needed audio out.


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## King Al (Mar 9, 2012)

Looks like the kind of place I could spend hours in! Good stuff UrbanX


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## UrbanX (Mar 9, 2012)

nelly said:


> Nice work guys and tasty photos as always :
> 
> RAID???? The place hasn't even got a fence!!!!



I know, that was shocking, but with that site I can see articles of "6 masked figures calling themselves urban explorers broke [email protected] etc. 

Then worse than that, you'd copy the article onto Facebook and add your own speech bubbles! Lol! 

Bloody hell irishmanlost, I didn't post any externals on purpose, that's some good detective work, that's what exploring is all about.


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## nelly (Mar 9, 2012)

Editing press photos with speech bubbles??? Moi???


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## mj1704 (Mar 9, 2012)

brilliant find enjoyed the great pictures thank you


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## UrbanX (Mar 10, 2012)

King Al said:


> Looks like the kind of place I could spend hours in! Good stuff UrbanX



Cheers, it's better than any museum! Unfortunately time was tight, and we got spooked a couple if times, so I was literally grabbing stuff and photographing it as quick as poss! 

I had someone contact me via my website about the 'Robin' device: it's for detecting / measuring currents along a cable.


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## Walrus75 (Mar 10, 2012)

wirelessmast said:


> The Robin item looks like a current clamp meter



WM beat me to it and I sat there nodding like a wise old sage when I saw what he'd posted... however him and I knew what he was talking about so either one of us could (and should) have explained the purpose of the item in laymans terms


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## st33ly (Mar 12, 2012)

This place looks amazing!


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## KingLewis92 (Mar 13, 2012)

Amazing place, And to be of the radar for untold number of decades and still in that condition is astounding... Just time until someone finds it and strips the place


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## hydealfred (Mar 17, 2012)

Would love to see the photo's but they have all disappeared - something to do with exceeded band width !!!!


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## UrbanX (Mar 17, 2012)

Bugger. I 'went pro' on another account. but have stopped uploading pics as I want to cancel the Pro (but not sure how!) 

It turns out someone posted my pics on an aviation forum this week, generating 100,000 views in a day on March 15th!

Thread here: (also using SKs photos) 
http://www.pprune.org/military-aircrew/479971-mods-missing-equipment-rediscovered.html

Soz, but I'm not getting another Pro account until I find out how to cancel this one! 

Hydealfred: I know you're an aviation nut, so if you PM me your email addy, I'll just email the pics over. Soz for the wait people!


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## hydealfred (Mar 17, 2012)

Thanks UBX - will PM you.


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## skeleton key (Mar 18, 2012)

Some cracking stuff a this location and has managed to survive the past five years ive known of it.
The owners of the property are aware of whats there and sell little bits every now and then.
But to be honest arnt overly interested.
Great stuff UrbanX


[ame]http://www.derelictplaces.co.uk/main/showthread.php?t=19590[/ame]

Some pics till u get ur band width sorted 

SK


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