The Heathkit Ham Shack was a shortwave radio owned by Scott Clarke and kept at Hawkins Middle School.
History[]
1983[]
On November 7, after Mr. Clarke's class had ended, all the other students quickly left while Mike, Dustin, and Lucas stayed behind. Mr. Clarke then led them to the AV club room, where he showed the boys the new Heathkit that had recently arrived. He enthusiastically explained that it was powerful enough to reach Australia. The boys each took turns using the device before they were called to the principal's office for questioning.
Needing to get Eleven to a stronger radio in order to contact the missing Will, the boys decided the Heathkit was their best option. Eleven managed to successfully find him and broadcast his voice over the device's speakers. While listening, they heard Will say he was in a place that was "like home, but dark and cold." However, the radio suddenly burst into flames and was destroyed.
Principal Coleman called a repairman to inspect the device, saying he didn't know what caused the damage. Unbeknownst to him, the repairman was actually an undercover agent working for Hawkins Laboratory, who then used the information he obtained to track down the boys and Eleven.