From: military-radio-guy Full-Name: Dennis R Starks To: military radio collectors#2 Fcc: Sent Date: Thu, 11 Dec 1997 12:04:19 Subject: Military Collector Group Post, Dec.11/97 Message-ID: <19971211.120323.6903.2.military-radio-guy@juno.com> X-Status: Sent X-Mailer: Juno 1.38 Military Collector Group Post, Dec.11/97 Index: GRC-109/RS-1; What, Why, When, Where Part V; Dispelling The Myths, Part III, by Dennis Starks PETE'S UPDATED WANT/TRADE LIST; HUMOR; ******************************************************* GRC-109/RS-1; What, Why, When, Where Part V; Dispelling The Myths, Part III, by Dennis Starks Included in last part of this series was a lot speculation into the use of the RS-1 by the military attempting to push back their offically desclosed usage dates. And concluded with a rebut of the statement "The GRC-109 was never adopted for Regular Army use".(ref.#14) I contend that he RS-1 had been in use by the Army for a long time, & that it's adoption as the GRC-109 was just to simplify and expand it's continued use. I will here attempt to present some evidenced to prove this speculation, & disprove that final statement. Also I will show evidence towards the long standing connection of RS-1 with the military both before & after 1961, and it's re-designation as the GRC-109. To conclude the series, there is also contained here some of the documented historic accounts of the GRC-109, I truely wish there were more. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "The GRC-109 was never adopted for Regular Army use". NOT! (ref.#3,#12,#14) Let's look at the manuals, TM11-5820-474-14, May 18, 1962. Radio Set AN/GRC-109. Note the date on this manual! Also that it contains 6 changes already. The official adoption date of the GRC-109 is sometime between mid 1962, & early 1963. It would have taken some months (at least six) to compile the data, check for errors, and publish this material. This would place the adoption date no later than mid 1961, then theres the changes (4-6) that it contains which would push this date back even further. Also note that the Strategic Hamlet program initiated by the CIA, & utilizing units of the Army Special Forces officially began in LATE 1961(and they were using the GRC-109 then). FM24-24, May 20, 1977, List the deployment of the GRC-109 for,"Special Forces, & forward area patrols". Are we to assume that Regular Army units do not have "forward area patrols"? I'm afraid there are a lot of veterans that would fight you over this assumption! This manual supersedes FM24-19, November 1966, I do not have this issue, it would be interesting to see if the GRC-109 is listed there, & if so what it say's. FM24-24, Dec. 1983, Duplicates that material of the 1977 edition. TC24-24, Oct.3 1988 also includes a description of the GRC-109, but omits the deployment information. GRC-109 in print, Ref.#1 shows sales of the GRC-109 to both the Army, & the Navy with a set cost of $1007 dollars. Ref.#3, quote, "Since the Army lacked a lightweight patrol radio that could transmit over long distances, the chief signal officer arranged for the agency's RS-1 to be adopted for military use". Again, are we to assume that only Special Forces has long range patrols? Or a need for a "lightweight patrol radio"? Prior to 1965, sector & subsector adviser groups had been issued old but reliable HF Morse codes sets, but a shortage of qualifiad operators prompted the Electronics Command to order them new portable SSB sets then being tested by Special Forces, the FRC-93. (ref.#3) Resent History, Today we find in our collections, both RS-1's, and GRC-109's that are stenciled "SET-1", "SET-2" etc, usually up to #3, & if your lucky some unit markings. These unit markings are not always that of Special Forces units. You will also find GRC-9's and other HF radio sets stenciled in a similar fashion. 1984 began the large scale disposal of the GRC-109 by the government via DRMO sealed bids. In the Spring of 1988 a fair size lot (over 200) of just the transmitters & power supplies were auctioned, everyone wondered where the receivers were! In the Summer of 1989, we saw complete sets of both the RS-1, & GRC-109 being auctioned off in good sized quantities. It should be noted that in all these cases, the lots were composed of a Duke's mixture of BOTH the RS-1's, & GRC-109's combined in the same lots with similar quantities of each. I watched these sales transpire, powerless to participate do to a lack of sufficient funds. (for proof of this, see ref.#15) What conclusions can we draw from this? We have both RS-1's, & GRC-109's both stenciled with SET ID's, & unit markings, we also have quantities of each being sold together from the same source. We have the eye witness account of it's use by the Nation Gaurd in 1960, we also know that far flung military adviser detachments were stationed all over Indo-China, not just Vietnam, at least since 1955. Thus I would think that our conclusion would go like this: Though the RS-1 had been in use by the U.S. Army for a considerable time, 1961 saw it's official adoption as the GRC-109. This because of the extreme, & growing supply and logistics problems do to the continued military build up in Southeast Asia, combined with an ever expanding need for the set. Adoption of the RS-1, with a standard AN/GRC-109 designation greatly simplified support of the system through normal supply channels, thus insuring it's continued use in greater quantities with minimized difficulty. Existing RS-1's remained in inventory and continued to serve along side it's GRC-109 counterpart, or at least contributed to our nations strategic reserves possibly as late as 1980. I/E, the signal officer did not have the RS-1 adopted because of the need for a "lightweight patrol radio", they already had them, they just didn't have enough, or the support lines set up for more! It should be clarified that the Special Forces were not, & are not a section of the CIA. They are a part of our military structure, simply utilized by the CIA from time to time. Nor is their logistic support the responsibility of the CIA, as such CIA supply channels simply augmented those of the military at times when needed. Some More History of the GRC-109, In ref.#16, The author conducted some rather in depth interviews with radioman, and technicians in Vietnam concerning every facet of electronics being used in the war. He included in his interviews several Special Forces signalman from both "A", and "B" detachments. They reported their admiration for the GRC-109 which at the time was still their mainstay radio. They also had received a couple weeks before PRC-64's, their preliminary test with the radio were favorable in CW, but phone had not been tried, reports from higher echelons were more glowing. Some units had also begun to receive PRC-74's(formerly the Huges HC-162D), complaining about it's weight & the battery it used. Other radios reported on in the hands of these units were the URC-11 for fighter strike control, PRC-25, FRC-93(Collins KWM-2A), HT-1, TR-20, plus the GRC-26 in the "B" detachments. It can be seen that the conditions, and equipment in these "A" camps had improved considerably since 1963 as reported in ref.#2, when only the GRC-109, HT-1, TR-5, & the PRC-10 were available. By early 1966 the prevalence of voice FM and SSB radio is the theater began to adversely affect the CW proficiency of signalman. Determined that such a fate not befall Special Forces signalmen, their radio officer, Maj. Anthony J. Scibilia, required that the net to the "A" detachments be operated during certain hours on Mores code equipment only, the remainder of the day, new SSB voice radios could be used. When in March 1966 a large North Vietnamese force attacked the A Shau Special Forces camp in I Corps, Major Scibilia's concern proved prescient.(ref.#3) Having lost communications and power facilities except for a single GRC-109, and a hand-crank generator when the enemy overran a section of the camp, the camp's radioman had to send out his distress call by Morse code. For two days, as relief forces fought their way to the camp, only the uninterrupted reception of Morse code transmissions monitored by the "C" detachment in Da Nang enabled the relief forces to ascertain that the 200 American, and South Vietnamese soldiers in the beleaguered camp were still holding out.(ref.#3) Is your GRC-109 still just a really neat little black box? Or is it, as I have said many times, a physical part of our history? Is it yet apparent why we must know every little detail about the use of this equipment? The following was included in Pete's account(ref.#12), it is entirely correct, and compiled from the same source, he just left out some of the best parts. To maintain their flexibility, the Special Forces took the radical approach of scrapping high-performance technical equipment for it's less efficient predecessor. Throughout the Vietnam War, the Green Berets were issued a succession of sophisticated long range portable radios to meet the special needs of their far flung teams. But by the mid-1970's many Special Forces units throughout the world had adopted as their primary long-range radio the 1950's-vintage Morse code set they originally took to Vietnam. The radio was sturdy and simple to repair. Most important, it would work with a variety of power sources, including a hand-crank generator. (ref.#3) To understand the plight of these Special Forces teems with regard to this "succession of sophisticated" equipment, the reader must understand the that traditionally Special Forces have been our test bed for new fangled, experimental gadgets, as was first outlined by me in ref.17. These gadgets never had the logistic support needed to keep it operational in the field nor was it repairable by anyone other than the engineers that developed it. Nearly all required the use of special batteries which couldn't be obtained, and no alternate power source could be had. None were repairable under combat conditions even after completion of their experimental stage, and adopted as standard items. All this time, their lives depended on the precarious operation of this equipment. Thus the "old reliables" were kept around long after their gross obsolescence, just in case. I most sincerely hope that this series has presented to you enough information on these most noted radio sets, that you might truly appreciate their contribution to us, our history, and those men that used them, keeping their stories along with our history alive. Dennis Starks; MILITARY RADIO COLLECTOR/HISTORIAN military-radio-guy@juno.com Referances; #1) Federal Logistics Data on Compact Disk(Fedlog) 1995. #2) Tan Phu, Special Forces Team A-23 In Combat, By Leigh Wade #3) Military Communications: A Test For Technology, The U.S Army in Vietnam, by John D. Bergen, CMH Pub 91-12 #4) Military Radio Data, Vol. I, PRC Designated Radio Equipment, by Dennis Starks #5) Military Collector Group Post, Nov.25/97: The SSTR-1; From the Horses Mouth Part II, Reflections Concerning The SSTR-1, By Dean Cortright #6) Military Collector Group Post, Nov.26/97: The SSTR-1; From the Horses Mouth Part III, Further Reflections Concerning The SSTR-1, By Dean Cortright with editorial comments by Dennis Starks #7) Military Collector Group Post, Backmail #29: AN Type Numbers Versas RT Type Numbers, & Some URC Questions, by Dennis Starks #8) CIA Special Weapons & Equipment, by H. Keith Melton. #9) Time Runs Out in CBI, by Romanus & Sunderland, CMH Pub 9-3 #10) The War Report of the OSS, by Kermit Roosevelt #11) Vietnam, A History, The First Complete Account, by Stanely Karnow #12) Military Collector Group Post, Dec.1/97, GRC-109/RS-1; What,Why,When,Where, Part III, History? by Pete McCollum #13) The Secret Story of the OSS, author I forget. #14) Military Collector Group Post, Dec.8/97, GRC-109/RS-1; What, Why, When, Where Part IV; Dispelling The Myths, Part II, by Dennis Starks #15) Fair Radio Sales catalogs, WS-84 catalog supplement, WS-88 Summer catalog supplement, WS-89 Fall catalog supplement. #16) Magazine article, Electronics Magazine, May 16 1966, Vietnam Electronics in the war, by John F. Mason. #17) Military Collectory Group Post, Backmail #29, TRC-77,Good Radio,Wrong Time. by Dennis Starks *********************************************************** PETE'S UPDATED WANT/TRADE LIST; Pete McCollum 3810 Whisper Hollow Dr. Colo. Springs, CO 80920 719-548-3525 (work, call anytime) WANTED: * Any parts, pieces, or accessories for 'clandestine' equipment such as the GRC-109, GRA-71, RS-1, RS-6, PRC-64, Delco 5300, PRC-1, PRC-5, etc. Especially need an RP-1 or RP-2 power supply. * For BC-223-AX: Need two VT-63 (46) tubes, and three VT-62 (801/801A) tubes. Original crystal, 2000-3000KC. Have similar BC-610 crystal for trade. Manual copy. * Military stuff that hits the 6M band; including RT-68, RT-70, PRC-25, PRC-10, PRT-4, PRR-9, etc. Interested in complete units or parts and pieces. * Old military VHF gear, such as VHF ARC 5/12 boxes, SCR-522, RT-18/ARC-1, etc. * ARC Type 12 stuff. * ARC-44 stuff. * HP freq. counter, prefer nixie or early-LED models. * Interested in "unusual" tubes - not the rare/valuable types, but rather the ones that have strange shapes, large sizes, types made for obscure radar equipment, etc. * Acorn sockets, and the teeny-weeny clips that connect to the axial leads on some acorn tubes. * Sockets, plate-pin clips, and related hardware for 832A/829/3E29-type tubes. * PRC-6 antenna. * A spline shaft for ARC-5 stuff, prefer a short one. * Schematic for a Motorola FHTR1DH "handie-talkie" - has a telephone-style handset, inside are many submini tubes in little plug-in modules. * Any accessories for above, such as antenna, carrying case, etc. * Early 6502 uP hardware, such as an AIM-65 or SYM. Or, one of those early 8080-based boxes, such as an IMSAI. FOR SALE/TRADE: - Collins 618F-1C VHF transceiver, 117-136 mhz. No cables or control box. - 427D power supply/IF/AF unit, goes with the 618F. No cables, etc. Partly solid-state. - A few spare parts for PRT-4, such as whip antennas, batt. box, etc. - RT-285/URC-11 rescue xcvr. - 47092 coil container for GF-11/BC-230 xmtr coil - TS-127 freq. meter, 375-725 mhz, Lavoie Labs model 105SM - TS-1310/TRC-27 wavemeter, supposedly 4.4-5.0 GHz, has meter (0-3 W peak), no case, includes a tuned cavity and a 1N23 detector. 1969 contract. - Motorola Dispatcher T31BAT-3100B-SP3. With DC-DC inverter P.S. in base, marked "12V". - Six BA-4386/PRC-25 batteries. Unused, still sealed. 1982 date. - Two large BA-4840 magnesium batteries, each is about twice the size of a PRC-25 battery. Contains two independant 12V cells. However, they are designed for low-current, long-life applications - they won't put out high currents. Someone said they are for a portable beacon. - BA-5093 lithium battery, use unknown. Unused. 24V. About 3" cube in size. *********************************************************** HUMOR; What is the difference between a tick and a lawyer? (A tick falls off of you when you die.) Why does the law society prohibit sex between lawyers and their clients? (To prevent clients from being billed twice for essentially the same service.) What do you have when 100 lawyers are buried up to their neck in sand? (Not enough sand.) What's the difference between a dead snake in the road and a dead lawyer in the road? (There are skid marks in front of the snake.) What is black and brown and looks good on a lawyer? (A Doberman.) Why are lawyers like nuclear weapons? (If one side has one, the other side has to get one. Once launched, they cannot be recalled. When they land, they screw up everything forever.) What do lawyers and sperm have in common? (One in 3,000,000 has a chance of becoming a human being.) Did you hear that the Post Office just recalled their latest stamps? (They had pictures of lawyers on them...and people couldn't figure out which side to spit on.) Lawyer's Creed: A man is innocent until proven broke. What's the difference between a female lawyer and a pit bull? (Lipstick.) What do you call 20 lawyers skydiving from an airplane? (Skeet.) What do you get when you cross a bad politician with a crooked lawyer? (Chelsea.) If you see a lawyer on a bicycle, why should you never swerve to hit him? (It might be your bicycle.) Santa Claus, the tooth fairy, an honest lawyer and an old drunk are walking down the street together when they simultaneously spot a hundred dollar bill. Who gets it? (The old drunk, of course; the other three are mythical creatures.) It was so cold last winter that I saw a lawyer with his hands in his own pockets. A man walked into a lawyer's office and asked how much he charged. "$50 for three questions," replied the lawyer. "Isn't that awfully steep?" asked the man. "Yes," the lawyer replied, "...and what's your third question?" ************************************ A Mexican bandit made a specialty of crossing the Rio Grande from time to time and robbing banks in Texas. Finally, a reward was offered for his capture, and an enterprising Texas ranger decided to track him down. After a lengthy search, he traced the bandit to his favorite cantina, snuck up behind him, put his trusty six-shooter to the bandit's head, and said, "You're under arrest. Tell me where you hid the loot or I'll blow your brains out." But the bandit didn't speak English, and the Ranger didn't speak Spanish. Fortunately, a bilingual lawyer was in the saloon and translated the Ranger's message. The terrified bandit blurted out, in Spanish, that the loot was buried under the oak tree in back of the cantina. "What did he say?" asked the Ranger. the lawyer answered, "He said 'Get lost, Gringo...and your mother mates with mules.'" --------- End forwarded message ---------- When finished reading use browser back button or go to http://www.prc68.com/MCGP/MCGP.html