MILITARY COLLECTOR GROUP POST, JAN.15/98 INDEX: ANNOUNCEMENTS; SCR-511 DISCUSSION; by Lenox Carruth, & Dennis Starks WW-1 Telephone/Telegraph, & PRC-68's available; GERMAN TUBES STILL AVAILABLE; HUMOR; ************************************************ ANNOUNCEMENTS; The PRC-64 project is at a close, all the sets were mailed out on the 13th. There are a few salvageable sets left in various states of dis-repair but these must be retained untill everybody has theirs up & running in case they need some parts. The manuals have as yet not arived from the supplier, a fax was sent to him on the 13th to see what the hold up was. As yet there has been no responce. I plan to waite awhile yet before getting nasty as these manuals are rather rare. The Group Want's & Trade's will be posted Sunday morning, so please have yours in by Saturday night. Dennis ************************************************ SCR-511 DISCUSSION; by Lenox Carruth, & Dennis Starks Regarding Bill's excellent article on the SCR-511: Inspection of the radio shows that it is a very close relative of the BC-611. Many of the parts appear identical and the circuit is similar although several tubes were eliminated in the newer design of the BC-611. The radio was popularly known as the "Horsey-Talkie" or the "Pogo Stick." You are correct in that it was NEVER designed to be stuck in the ground. The manual is quite clear and quite repetitive about this. It was really a brilliant solution for its time to the problem of horse cavalry using a radio while mounted and even while in motion. It could be operated with one hand leaving the other hand free for horsemanship. Many people think that this radio saw little combat but this is not true. The three-volume Signal Corps history has numerous examples of this radio being used in the North African invasion (operation Torch) and in Sicily and Italy. Of course, by the time of the Normandy invasion, it had been replaced by the more convenient SCR-536 (BC-611). I recall no reference to its being used in the Pacific. Its lack of waterproofing and moisture and fungus proofing would have been disasterous in tropical climates. (Not that the BC-611 was much of an improvement in the waterproofing area!) The problem with paint flaking off is, apparently, due to the expedient of not using a primer. This is the same reason that paint flakes off of Command Sets, BC-654s, and some other WW-II equipment. They never expected it to last more than a few months much less 55 years! Much material of the time was not primed - just given a color finish coat. Lenox Carruth, Jr. carruth@swbell.net --------------------------------------------------------------- Lenox, You are quite correct in your observation of the BC-745, & BC-611 common components, and they do share a common lineage. They were both designed by Galvin, originally prior to the our entrance into WW-II. Your are also correct in regard it's multiple nick names, and extensive use during WW-II. We are only partially aware of just how extensive that use was. There is evedence that places it in use after Normandy, & in the hands of airborne troops. Your statement of "brilliant solution", also deserves merit, this "solution" would be thrown in the face of frustrated designers 20 years later. You are however incorrect in regard MFP preparations, & use in the Pacific, it's use in this theater too was extensive. Non-MFP'd BC-611's & BC-745's were in use in the Pacific, the life expectancy before the anti-fungus prep was 36 hours, after the prep was extended to 30 days. Also the Pogo Stick was not replaced by the BC-611, they were both designed, and adopted at exactly the same time, but with entirely different intended roles, and accual use. Rather than spoil the story, I'll let you hang on that one for awhile. Suffice to say, all the above will be expanded on in PART II. Paint sticking on Command sets, is more due to their aluminum construction, BC-654's on the other hand were as you say, primed and I've not noticed that affliction with any of mine. Your again correct of the life expectancy in combat of these radios, a little trivia, by 1945 the combat casualty rate of the BC-611 was 6000 a month in the ETO alone. So, as you say, why waist a nice paint job an a radio that was only expected to survive 30 days. Can we now see why there was such a huge supply of surplus after the war? Dennis *********************************************** WW-1 Telephone/Telegraph, & PRC-68's available; Just got a call from Quarter Master Military Surplas. He's got a model 1917 field telephone/telegraph Walnut & Brass cased, new condition, with original battery. Want's $200 for it but maybe he'll haggel. He also had 3ea PRC-68's, 2 with battery boxes, and some antennas, said they'd make noise when the battery was connected, want's $165ea for them. Also a bit pricie for unknown set's, would make him come down to at least $100, and then only if they are in good physical shape. call Ray at 1-800-539-3588 Dennis ************************************************ GERMAN TUBES STILL AVAILABLE; Dennis, Here is the current status of German tubes which I have for sale. Will hold for the group for another two weeks but in Feb will send list to a Tube dealer. Bill Howard Inventory listing, still on hand 15 Jan 1998 RL 2 P 3 - 2 tubes RV12P2000- 59 tubes, 56 good? 3 dead tubes, display items only. RG 12-D 60 - 15 tubes small tube pullers 33 large tube puller 1 $20.00 each, Call or e-mail for quantity discount THE WILLIAM L. HOWARD ORDNANCE TECHNICAL INTELLIGENCE MUSEUM e-mail wlhoward@gte.net Telephone AC 813 585-7756 ************************************************ HUMOR; A pheasant was standing in a field chatting to a bull. "I would love to be able to get to the top of yonder tree", sighed the pheasant, "but I haven't got the energy". "Well, why don't you nibble on some of my droppings?" replied the bull. "They're packed with nutrients". The pheasant pecked at a lump of dung and found that it actually gave him enough strength to reach the first branch of the tree. The next day, after eating some more dung, he reached the second branch. And so on. Finally after the fourthnight, there he was proudly perched at the top of the tree. Whereupon he was spotted by a farmer who dashed into the farmhouse, emerged with a shotgun, and shot the pheasant right out of the tree. Moral of the Story: Bullshit might get you to the top, but it won't keep you there. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Little Johnny asks his mother how old she is. Her reply is, "Gentlemen don't ask ladies that question." Johnny then asks his mother how much she weighs. Again the mother's reply is, "Gentlemen don't ask ladies that question." The boy then asks, "Why did daddy leave you?" To this, the mother says, "you shouldn't ask that" and then sends him to his room. On the way to his room, the boy trips over his mother's purse. When he picks it up, her driver's license falls out. The boy looks it over and goes back to his mother saying, "I know all about you now. You are 36 years old, weigh 127 pounds and daddy left you because you got an 'F' in sex!!!" -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Brenda O'Malley is home as usual, making dinner, when Tim Finnegan arrives at her door. "Brenda, may I come in?" he asks. "I've somethin' to tell ya." "Of course you can come in, you're always welcome Tim. But where's my husband?" "That's what I'm here to be tellin' ya, Brenda. There was an accident down at the Guiness brewery..." "Oh, God no!" cries Brenda. "Please don't tell me..." "I must, Brenda. Your husband Shamus is dead and gone. I'm sorry." Brenda reached a hand out to her side, found the arm of the rocking chair by the fireplace, pulled the chair to her and collapsed into it. She wept for many minutes. Finally she looked up at Tim. "How did it happen, Tim?" "It was terrible, Brenda. He fell into a vat of Guiness Stout and drowned." Oh my dear Jesus! But you must tell me true, Tim. Did he at least go quickly?" "Well, no Brenda......no." "No?" "Fact is, he got out three times to pee." --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- It's the Spring of 1961 and Bobby goes to pick up his date. He's a pretty hip guy with his own car. When he goes to the front door, the girl's father answers and invites him in. "Carrie's not ready yet, so why don't you have a seat?," he says. "That's cool" says Bobby. Carrie's father asks Bobby what they're planning to do. Bobby replies politely that they will probably just go to the soda shop or to the drive-in. Carrie's father responds, "why don't you two go out and screw? I hear all the kids are doing it." Naturally, this comes as a quite a surprise to Bobby, so he asks Carrie's Dad to repeat it. "Yeah," says Carries father, "Carrie really likes to screw; she'll screw all night if we let her!" Well, this just about makes Bobby's eyes light up, and his plans for the evening begin to look pretty good. A few minutes later Carrie comes downstairs in her little poodle skirt and announces that she's ready to go. Almost breathless with anticipation, Bobby escorts his date out the front door. About 20 minutes later, Carrie rushes back into the house, slams the door behind her, and screams at her father: "DAMMIT DADDY! IT'S CALLED THE TWIST!!!" ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ************************************************ EDITOR; Dennis Starks; MILITARY RADIO COLLECTOR/HISTORIAN military-radio-guy@juno.com --------- End forwarded message ----------