This is sure a long-running thread; since 2006. But the subject will always be relevant, as will be the experience of every one for the mutual benefit.
Perhaps in all fairness I should qualify this post with: RANT.
This is now the middle of the year 2011 - and sadly, matters sure have deteriorated. I am at present 'shopping around' for the manufacture of output and power transformers for my 100W valve amplifier (500VA range). NO manufacturer is immediately interested, also those with whom I had business within the last less than a year. E-mails are sent in vain; one has to phone up and sound important, often several times, getting a non-committal reply to start with - they clearly do not even recall or can immediately locate your (several) e-mails sent within less than a month.
To be blunt: Forget about an e-mail request to Souris; they have simply stopped to be interested in small private orders. (I recently had a rather stiff chat to someone 'in charge', with a somewhat arrogant attitude. If it was not that they can also supply end bells with three popular core sizes and their quality is superior ....) Then I had quite favourable dealings months ago with 'SJ Andrews Electronics', but attention has suddenly waned.
I am hunting for the Garner blokes, but understood that they no longer exist. Dealings/practice with the local CJ Transformers for other than toroids, better go unmentioned. I am also hunting for the successors of previously 'Fanvier', last in Minerva Ave, Lea Glen, Jo-burg. Mr Howard Glass there is/was pleasant and a man of experience. (Gunter Steinhart used them for his transformers.)
And so it goes on; maybe the impatience of my age is setting in - but why must one accept mediocre attention; my money has the same colour as that of others and I have never argued about someone's price. Perhaps the picture is more favourable elsewhere in the nation - one would like to hear about that. Only cost of post in the case of transformers is rather prohibitive. Almost forces me to exorbatant measures like constructing my own facilities as Karel Mars does.
(That leaves cores. In all fairness, I must praise the efforts of AMC [Alloy Magnetic Cores (Pty) Ltd] in Jo-burg. I believe most SA transformer manufacturers use their cores. They have been pleasant to deal with, even winding non-standard C-core widths for me at no extra cost. Even more alluring to set off on one's own....)
