An Epic Trip Through Japan!

[@ActionRetro]

Sometimes you just gotta get away. Smashing.

[@UsagiElectric]

Someday, I'll find that Youth Energy, which is Something to Believe In. Next time, you should Come Out and Play too!

[@ActionRetro]

@@UsagiElectric 😂😂😂

[@skynetcybersystem3tech]

@@UsagiElectric ✋ cool I admire you sir you are mega talented and I am 44 years old but when I was 18 I had to show my ID when I wanted to buy a beer because in the store they assessed me as 13 years old now I deal with pipe computers and I watch your videos with great pleasure they are very interesting👀⭐🏆⭐👍

[@JarrodCoombes]

@@UsagiElectric But you left us So Alone, which has affected my Self Esteem, but I am working on my Bad Habit but It'll be a Long Time before I can also Come out and Play! :D

[@StephenVieau]

nice

[@santherstat]

I always forget that David used to be a translator for Japanese. Makes the museum segments easy lol

[@UsagiElectric]

Yup! It was good to get back and flex those muscles in the brain again!

[@CathyInBlue]

Absolutely Nobody: Name three enthusiasms that have absolutely no overlap. Also nobody: Vintage computers, rabbit keeping, and Japanese culture. Usagi Electric: Hi!

[@UsagiElectric]

Don't forget a light sprinkling of race cars!

[@sittingstill3578]

Three of the four overlap for me even before being introduced to this channel. I did get really into fish keeping and visited some of the famous sites near Osaka, Nagoya and Ojiya. You could get yourself some serious heat stroke visiting in the summer though so make sure to bring plenty of liquids and a parasol because as ubiquitous as convenience stores are in Japan they don’t seem to be around when you really need them outside city centers. If you like race cars and exotics, head to Nagoya. I spent a year there and every day for several months walking to work downtown meant seeing different rare exotics being driven. A dealership a stones throw from my apartment had a 1974 Datsun that had run at Le Mans. An exotic car dealership had one of the fifty Maserati MC12s. While walking home from Kanayama, a gentleman had his garage door open and he was working on his De Tomoso Pantera and next to it a Lamborghini Countach. A final memory was again just walking to downtown Osaka I passed an open commercial garage where I saw a couple Ferrari 458 Italia GT3s being prepped. One more, I met a young man at a church meeting who was showing me how he used Gran Tourismo on his PSP to practice his lines at Suzuka where he drove for a GT team. A few weeks later after the F1 race he brought me a couple signatures of the F1 drivers.

[@Jaden-y7e]

​@@UsagiElectric3 Replies

[@svensimon]

@9:46 Thanks for swinging by our meet-up. Had a blast chatting with you and getting to hear some more behind the scenes stories.

[@Nichetronix]

David, that was great. Thank you for sharing it. Now, I want to go!

[@BrainboxccGames]

what an interesting trip, so much big iron and so much computers!

[@UsagiElectric]

Thanks! The Bendix G-15 was pretty much the entire reason we flew into Tokyo instead of direct to Nagoya, and boy am I glad I did. Seeing the Facom and Univac as well were both just stunning!

[@tony359]

Amazing journey, thanks for showing us the geeky side but also the natural side!

[@nezbrun872]

Second hand electronics in Japan is generally in very good condition IME, but, exactly as you say, the logistics of getting your haul home does temper the appetite! For radio amateurs looking for an excuse to go to Japan, I can solidly recommend JARL's HAM Fair, an annual event in August, with lots of rare second hand ham radio gear in superb condition.

[@UsagiElectric]

Same here, even the stuff labelled as "Junk" often times just works when plugging in. You can find some wildly good deals, so much so that you run out of luggage space real quick, haha.

[@RoyEltham]

Beautiful! I really want to visit Japan some day. Also, lots of very cool retro tech. Looking forward to the vids on that calculator!

[@UsagiElectric]

It really is worth it to go! I'm also super stoked about that calculator, it's just so cool looking.

[@SenileOtaku]

I have a few places I want to see in Japan as well; Mt Fuji, Kyoto, and definitely a day trip to Toyosato (yes, I'm one of THOSE anime fans). But I suspect I will never get to go.

[@MegaMoto85]

Haircut and The offspring, alright let's go.

[@UsagiElectric]

I was curious how many would catch the reference, and I'm very pleased to see many!

[@joshuag.newsteder6284]

Got it!

[@joshuag.newsteder6284]

@@UsagiElectricyessir!

[@Jaden-y7e]

4 Replies

[@fritzkinderhoffen2369]

Love the plugboards in the Univac 120. I have a bunch of IBM type 912 plugboards and they are similar. My dad programed them using jumpers back in the 60s at Collins Radio. He laughed when he saw one had a metallic cover plate securing the jumpers and said they were the only thing that kept other employees from taking his plates and altering them for their own uses. From the serial number of the board in front of me I'd say they weren't scarse.

[@mattelder1971]

I lived in Yokosuka in the early 90s while I was in the Navy, and made frequent trips to the Akihabara district of Tokyo. I was always looking around the used electronics shops and looking at the amazing Japanese computer systems that I'd never seen before. I remember the Hard-Off stores!

[@Otakunopodcast]

20 years ago (time sure flies...) my partner and I went to Japan on a tour package. Back then I wasn't as into vintage computers and gaming as I am now, so I didn't go to any computer/hardware type places (also while our tour schedule did offer some flexibility, there just wouldn't have been enough time to go to every place I would have wanted to go.) I was (and still am) a huge anime fan though, so we did find some time to traipse through Akiba, which was absolutely amazing. (although since I wasn't as into retro back then, I didn't go to any of the retro gaming/hardware type stores like HARD-OFF, BEEP, etc.) It was the first, and so far only, time, I have ever traveled beyond my local area, and I had the time of my life, and I so desperately want to go back, especially now that I am into retro, and after watching videos such as yours and retrobits' (another KZbinr.)

[@twol78s90]

Thank you for taking us along with you on your visit to Japan. Wonderful! A great mix of the geeky stuff and just soaking up the amazing beauty of the place. I loved the deer park. Such beautiful and gentle creatures. We have lots of them around where we live, and enjoy watching them when they decide to come graze in our fields. No getting close to them, though...as soon as they smell our scent, they bound off into the forest. Congrats on the fantastic find of the old Casio AS-A. A rather groundbreaking calculator with a minimalist design that allowed Casio to brag the calculator as the smallest, lightest, and least expensive calculator on the market at the time. It came with some compromises in order to shrink the electronics down to 35 ICs and a handful of discrete components, though. I have some information regarding the Casio AS-A/121-A that you may be interested in . Blessings to you, RIck B. from The Old Calculator Museum.

[@MVVblog]

Shikanoko Noko approves this video! 😄 Finally, a video about Japan that shows interesting things!

[@raymitchell9736]

I really liked seeing all of those machines and the beauty of the land. It was a treat to experience that, thank you for sharing.

[@MarcelHuguenin]

David, thanks for sharing this awesome trip with all of us. I have thoroughly enjoyed watching it.

[@GentryBa1]

One of your best videos so far (and you have SO MANY GOOD ONES!) :)

[@subynut]

Super cool, man! I really enjoyed this! You proved that Japan is a really neat place and well worth the trip at least once in one lifetime!

[@Starchface]

What an absolutely brilliant video. I enjoyed it immensely. You sure packed a lot into a short trip!

[@TastyBusiness]

Cool seeing what the greater vintage computing community looks like in another part of the world.

[@jozsefizsak]

I absolutely love this video and I would happily keep watching for hours. You have a great skill for this stuff, old boy. 😊

[@balloonvendor]

いつも Usagi Electiric を楽しみに見ています。日本へようこそ！ 日本の楽しい動画をありがとうございます。 I always enjoy watching Usagi Electiric. welcome to Japan! Thank you for the fun movie from Japan.

[@jedver242]

I gotta say im diggin the channel man. Keep it up!

[@SeishukuS12]

Epic. One of these days I'll visit Japan, it's something I've always wanted to do.

[@UsagiElectric]

It's totally worth the trip!

[@deeiks12]

how awesome is to see proper jdm car content on this channel. epic.

[@baronvonschnellenstein2811]

Those are some nicely assembled vignettes of your road trip, enthusiastically sprinkled with your brand of superlatives - Thanks David!

[@JapanPop]

わあ、すごい！日本の電卓やコンピューターの歴史を紹介してくださって、ありがとうございます。Just got back from Japan myself. Haven’t been to Ridai yet. Next time!

[@UsagiElectric]

お帰りなさい！ ビデオ見てくれてありがとう！

[@frankhenigman5117]

I've seen tons of videos about Japan but this makes me want to go as much if not more than any of them. Thanks!

[@SomeMorganSomewhere]

One of the most hilarious things I've ever seen in Japan was the wild deer on Miyajima wandering up to tourists and eating their maps ;) There seemed to be a lot less of them when we were there back in January (at least compared to the last time we were on Miyajima which was about 2014 IIRC).

[@JamiesHackShack]

Awesome trip. Thanks for sharing it with us!

[@bobblaine1437]

Thanks for sharing. Absolutely beautiful scenery.

[@jonord]

Been to Nara too, interesting to see how the deer targeted those who was afraid of them rather than those who weren't. Have some lovely (but unfortunately shaky) footage of that.

[@JamesHalfHorse]

Getting poetic at the start of the video. Japan is easily the top 3 places I would like to go. It seems like a fascinating place with a fascinating culture. I would love the electronics malls. Would hate what it would cost to ship everything I bought home. Thanks for sharing the experience.

[@KeritechElectronics]

Beautiful Bendix and FACOM, but the Univac takes the cake. I'm certain that the logic modules use thyratrons rather than regular single triodes. If you found a Wang in a Hard-Off, would it become Hard-On? There's just a ridiculous amount of cool vintage stuff inside, and now I guess Western retro tech youtubers affluent enough to travel to Japan are gonna raid them all, haha. I'd get lost in one of those places and not go out anytime soon. The Japanese counterpart of Ax-Man or Apex Electronics. And speaking of typewriters, I wonder if you spotted any Selectric. Of course you had to get those 6AU6! Marketed towards audiophiles. AS-A, a thing of beauty and a joy for ever! Good luck with the deep dive. I wonder what you'll find Waaaaaaaaaay-Down-Insiiiiiiiiiiiiiiide. Cool caves. I always liked going underground. 26:59 that Canola has a lot of edge-lit displays! Just like those used on the Apollo mission control consoles... A thing of beauty, a joy for ever. It would be so cool to see that calculator in action - I wonder if it works.

[@Mueller3D]

Loved it! Thanks for sharing!

[@boredwithusernames]

I love the travelogue style of this video, you should definitely do more of these whenever you visit Japan, this made my entire Sunday, thanks for sharing this 😎👍

[@PCBWay]

Glad to know that you had a wonderful trip. If possible, make yourself to China one day! We'd be thrilled to have you here😁

[@Oguz286]

I'm going to Japan next month. Going to Hard Off was recommended and I can now see why. Nice!

[@ChristopherHailey]

I was hoping you would post something from your Japan trip! Thanks!

[@thebunyip]

Thanks for sharing your vacation.

[@mutzbunny]

you know its kinda interesting, you rave about how beautiful the countryside of japan is. and it really is. but you also say sometimes how hard it is to get to the actually very pretty spots. I live in switzerland, i have countryside like that litterally infront of my door, and it kinda makes me so happy to live here. the japanese landscape and also japanese roadwork really looks similar to what we have over here

[@SimonBauer7]

i think it has something with the Mountains, these change perspective a lot, i as a bavarian Love Switzerland too.

[@IlBiggo]

IKR, I live in Southern Switzerland and when I visited Japan I was like "12 hours on a plane and I'm basically home" :D

[@Roads_of_Europe]

This was a stunning video. Thank you.

[@UsagiElectric]

Thanks for checking the video out!

[@AttilaSVK]

I would love to spend a week or two (or maybe even more) in Japan, but I just can't afford it. I love so many things about the country: the technology, the food (at least what I've tried in Japanese restaurants), the music, musical instruments (synthesizers in particular), and audio tech. The language barrier might be hard to break, but since my native language is quite a hard one (Hungarian), I might be able to learn some Japanese as well. Loved all the bits in the video, and I really appreciate you took the effor to share it with us.

[@domramsey]

This was amazing! Thanks for sharing, loved both the tech and the road trip. Can't wait to see inside that Casio too!

[@kevincozens6837]

Stunning scenery. David has another Bendix machine to get operational. :)

[@barjammar]

Hi David, I enjoyed your video, lucky I didn’t see all these retro collections before my holiday as the family had other things planned. I noted the car and clock museum as I have a synchronous IBM “International” clock and I saw one in the Hotel Nara. I did visit Akihabura though to look for retro junk!😂(a bit wet and humid in early July; - May and September probably better).

[@MrStoooooo]

Thank you so much, that was lovely!

[@kencarlile1212]

I love the oval piston engine bike. Such cool tech.

[@justinpakarno4346]

You really did have an epic trip!

[@UsagiElectric]

It was a ton of fun!

[@Stjaernljus]

a smashing intro

[@PaulBaker85]

Was looking for this comment. Intro to 'Smash' right there.

[@UsagiElectric]

I saw the massage chair and immediately understood the assignment!

[@user-uz1yv2oc9v]

Hey! I collect old calculators. It is nice to see an old old AS-A. I have several of these, one new old stock still in its string sealed box, as well as the AS-B it's slightly thinner and newer replacement. Have you had it apart yet? Work of art inside.. Magnetic reed switched keys too! They came with some black vinyl dust cover for the calculator too but the only one I have is with the new old stock one so I guess they were often discarded. This was built before casio developed it's LSI (If I recall correctly they were the first to really integrate everything!) so it's made up of around 40 individual chips, none of which should be too challenging to replace if needed. The layout of the calculators two boards is also pretty well thought out, the logic is on the sub board and the driver stuff is on the top. Since you have some signs of life you most likely have an issue on the top board, probably around the driver transistors, which are all individual. The two boards don't use an edge connector though like the later models do and are instead joined together by about 40 wires so just be extra careful when you take it apart as it's easy to break stuff on them. Look forward to see it coming back to life!

[@alc5440]

I'm glad you were able to take such an incredible trip and I appreciate you sharing it. I'm also a little jealous 😅

[@cheeseparis1]

So glad to watch these happy moments you spent in Japan. Did you buy only two vacuum tubes? dozens of them fit in any luggage

[@horusfalcon]

Natsukashii! I used to live on Uchinaa (what the natives call Okinawa) as a child, and would recommend, if you haven't already, that you visit Japan's newest prefecture, Okinawa. The vistas you showed us in Japan are very beautiful. I can't believe you found a Bendix G15 there, and what it was used for was even more incredible. There's so much to see and do, and it takes me back to about 12 years old to see it.

[@RetroJack]

Great-looking trip - I'm so jealous! 😁

[@UsagiElectric]

Thanks!

[@maillouski]

Ahaha! I finally got to see the cheater bike! Awesome!! David, this video is right down my alley. You hit every freaking interests I have!!

[@frankowalker4662]

That's one hell of a trip. Nice.

[@UsagiElectric]

Thanks!

[@popcorn109i]

Thanks for sharing video of trip! Was really interesting. And dreaming about my trip to Japan one day too.

[@UsagiElectric]

Thanks for checking the video out! Definitely get there some day, it's totally worth it!

[@mamulcahy]

Dude, you clean up pretty good!

[@steffenjachnow8176]

Just one word: Wonderful!

[@landspide]

Noticed the Hikoki film projector too :) Cool!

[@StevesRetroFunzzz]

love your vids, hi from New Zealand!

[@UsagiElectric]

Thank you so much! I would love to visit New Zealand someday, it seems every bit as beautiful as Japan in the countryside!

[@adrimathlener8008]

Thank you for taking me to Japan and share the view of unbelievable nature.

[@Flofutz]

the Good old Offspring record. The melodies kicked in my head

[@UnixGoldBoy]

Awesome video! You should do more travel videos.

[@minombredepila1580]

Amazing video. Taking notes for my next trip to Japan !. Arigato gozaimasu !!!

[@UpLateGeek]

Oh man, those thrift stores look awesome! I wish we had something like that here in Australia, but instead I'm forced to buy off Yahoo Auctions Japan via a proxy buying/shipping service, which does work out cheaper if you hang out for a bargain, but they're not amazing deals. A few weeks ago I picked up a Game Boy Color [sic] and Game Boy Advance for a "reasonable" price (only slightly more including shipping than you'd pay for either off eBay Australia). The GBC worked fine and I used it with an OLED screen upgrade kit, which worked great. The GBA didn't initially work, but then I disassembled it and it magically started working. Could've been a dodgy power switch, and cleaning the board with IPA may have helped bring the switch back if some got inside. Anyway, I guess the sights were pretty good too. Glad you had a great time.

[@BLADIEBLA-k3k]

thanks for sharing this, I really liked it!

[@UsagiElectric]

Thank you so much!

[@VincentGroenewold]

Loads of driving, but also loads of nature! Reminds me of my time (lived there for a year) in NZ as well, that area of the world is one of the most unique places imho. Kinda regret not having visited Japan when so "close by"

[@landspide]

Epic production, heading there next month !!

[@UsagiElectric]

Thank you so much, and enjoy your trip!

[@landspide]

@@UsagiElectric Just curious, is the TUS museum the one at Shinjuku (1-3 Kagurazaka, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-8601, Japan) ?

[@landspide]

​@@UsagiElectricI found it in the end (Noda), just returning back to city, fantastic place, lots of calculator history. Well worth the visit, the people especially were so nice!

[@dancamp1515]

Back in the day, the only way to get to Matsuyama was by ferry... but that was a LONG time ago... Also, if you like deer, try Miyajima. Glad y'all had a good time...

[@christopherdecorte1599]

Great video enjoyed the scenery.

[@whiskerlesswalrus]

Did you see any of those big hornets when you were in the countryside and the bunny shots are absolutely adorable!!

[@SimonBauer7]

25:21 everything being Underground is the case here in Germany too.

[@docfoot316]

Totally enjoyed ,wow amazing stuff and views

[@the40rk]

Hah, that first shot of Hardoff in Nagoya used to be my go-to location. That SFC in carrying box has been there for a while and I had been tempted to buy it a few times. The Fujitsu Oasis has been there for about 2 years, given the price point.

[@robertolson483]

I love how the TX-85 had the date (Showa) 60.12.17 which translates to 1985.12.17. Love that.....

[@htfcirno2000]

This is such a fun video to watch, thank you for this :)

[@lubbock2704]

Yay! The Parametron has been featured~ I wonder how hard they could be to make...

[@bonemar66]

Hard Off sounds like a risky name to call a chain of stores.

[@GothGuy885]

or worse so, if they named it Hard [ opposite of off ] 🤐

[@8bitwiz_]

This is certainly an interesting time to make a video about Nara deer. Currently there is a completely mental meme anime involving a girl with deer antlers on her head, and a bunch of deer creepily hanging around and eating senbei. There was even a reference to the deer having a supercomputer network. It all breaks my brain, and now I have to catch up on it.

[@GeoffSeeley]

Japanese cars, computer and electronics, what's not to love! My idea of a trip!

[@Zadster]

I'm sure I recognise that woodland gorge area from the (way too many) Japanese otter videos I have watched. I would love to go, not just for the tech, but the gardens, countryside, historic bonsai and the overall culture.

[@jobalisk6649]

Cool video. I used to live in the Okayama/Fukuyama and spent time at the IPU in Okayama so its a bit of a trip down memory lane. Funnily enougth I also have family in Nagoya

[@josephroth3982]

I will get to Japan one day. I watch car camping videos from Japanese creators and the people and scenery are just awesome.

[@wdavem]

I'd love to go there. You even showed us a Facom! I'm a tape TV production gear guy, not as much computers (though I like any tape or media machine) so I'd love to go there several times, especially if I know anyone there.

[@SteveHodge]

Such a great album.

[@falksweden]

Amazing roadtrip! The S15 was a real gem! I've owned S13's and S14's, but the S15 was never sold here or as LHD. When's the next road trip? I'm in! 😂

[@yuppiehi]

I just received a mint condition NEC TK-85. Also got the 100-pin edge connector. Ready to make heads/tails out of this board.

[@sittingstill3578]

It’s funny how over-exposed the outside shots are but having visited Japan I can attest to how intense the sun is during the summer months. I noticed that there were a lot less cooled spaced in the train stations on my last visit.

[@Daveyk021]

Thank you so much for that tour of Japan, that I will never get to see; I really enjoyed it. If it was me, I would have been buying a large suite case, to put thrift store purchases in. Back when I was flying a lot in the 80s and 90s, you could check 6 heavy bags, plus have a carry-on. Are you limited to two checked bags today? If not, I would have been buying, buying and buying at those thrift stores!! I guess there is always shipping stores. P.S. - I didn't recognize you clean shaven - lol

[@UsagiElectric]

Thanks for checking the video out! Sadly, regular economy passengers are limited to just a single checked bag these days. Fortunately, my friend had status with American and could check three bags, so between the two of us, we could get four checked bags back. Makes buying a lot a lot more difficult. On the upside, Mrs. Usagi is Japanese, so one of us goes back on the regular, I'll definitely have more chances to snag some more good deals in the future!

[@Rockythefishman]

Amazing trip, I want to go more than ever

[@UsagiElectric]

Thanks!

[@wtfusernamecrap]

Four minutes into the video I was wondering: have you done a general video overview over how the Bendix machines were used and what for? I was wondering if it would've helped me to better appreciate these machines importance. Something like the "History of Centurion" video, but with more examples of how the Bendix actually integrated into a workflow. As a an engineer, I'm familiar with modern and vintage computers back to the 80s. Anything older becomes progressively more strange and alien, to the point where I can't understand anymore at which point manual labor would've been supported by computers, because every step seemed to involve so much manual labor and so many people that inserting a computer seems pretty random.

[@jurepecar9092]

On topic of caves and gorges, if you can, come to Slovenia.

[@Argoon1981]

Something very similar to that initial scene at 1:05 is what I see everyday outside my home in Portugal. :)

[@UsagiElectric]

Oooh, I can imagine that Portugal has some beautiful scenery, and color me jealous for that being an everyday sight!

[@cjh0751]

That's it, I'm playing Ridgeracer after i finish watching this video.

[@denispolygalov5151]

Hi David. I live in Tokyo and few years ago I found a book titled "Parametron", published by "Parametron Institute" back in 1960 As far I I know the book was published in both English and Japanese. If you will need any information about this please let me know.

[@f.k.b.16]

Funny... A few years ago, a family member would bust out a slice show on their vacation and force people to watch... Now 5,000 flock to watch the same thing on KZbin 😂

[@SimonBauer7]

31:54 yeah, i life 50m from the forest and here deer are afraid of humans, so yeah these ones are very used to people.