MILITARY COLLECTOR GROUP POST, FEB.21/98 INDEX: OFF THE SHELF PRICK's; PART VI, PRC-127,& 129 by Dennis Starks MEMBERS WRITE; NEW GUY's ON THE BLOCK; ON THE COMMERCIAL FRONT; HUMOR; *********************************************** Get your Want, & Trade list, and corrections in by tonight for the Sunday morning Post. Ike had an email crash, lost most messages in regard the nicad batteries available. If your still interested you can contact him at . He was down here Thursday, and my suspicions were correct, two of these packs fit nicely into a PRC-68, or 126. He also has very few that can be used to make batteries for the PRC-64. Dennis *********************************************** OFF THE SHELF PRICK's; PART VI, PRC-127,& 129 by Dennis Starks PRC-127/RT-1594; Handheld VHF, FM transceiver. This equipment is a slightly modified Bendix King commercial business band radio. These modifications include a 2.5 watt RF output vice 5 watts, and the omission of the scan switch. Though it was most likely intended for various security uses, it is known to have been used in a tactical role in recent Desert Storm activities. Features include, 14 preset channels, front panel key pad for entry of channel frequencies, LCD display(a sliding/removeable door protects the key pad & LCD display when not in use), optional scan & call guard tone squelch, & clone capabilities(some PRC-127's are provided without the key pad). Ops on any of 14 preset channels 136-160mc. RF power output is rated 2.5 watts. Requires 12vdc as supplied by either rechargeable nicad battery packs(two ea provided), or a battery box containing 8ea "AA" alkaline batteries. Size 7.8 x 2.5 x 1.52", 1.5lbs(with battery). Accessories include AS-3960 helical rubber antenna, speaker/mic & nylon case/cover, nylon carry holster, dual rate automatic drop-in battery charger, 2ea nicad battery packs & 1ea alkaline battery pack. The PRC-127 interred service in approx 1990. The commercial 5 watt/ scanning, & UHF versions are also known to be in use. Original cost $910.00, NSN 5820-01-266-5964. Ref.#26,#28,#30,#31 One of the last "Off the Shelf" radios to be adopted is the PRC-127. It has several distinctions that set it apart from most of it's predecessors, first, it is always found with it's military data tag(unless it's been removed), second, it is known to have been used in a tactical combat role during Desert Storm. Last, it's manuals are full blown government publications, unlike others which can best be described as Re-covered manuals, printed by the original manufacturer. It is currently the most common of all those radios featured in this series. Both via legitimate surplus channels, and by way of the returning soldiers duffel bag. The below is from Sheldon Wheaton, a former employee of Bendix King: I can probably ask around and get lots of info on this subject for you, but my memory of these things has faded quite a bit. I never had much to do with them in the first place. Here's what I can tell you: - I don't believe the PRC-127 was an exact copy of any commercial unit, but it is almost the exact same as the model LPH. - There were lots of variations of it, including power level, band (VHF or UHF, and I believe a couple of other options. - Forrest Service was a big customer of the commercial unit. - I DON"T HAVE A COMMERCIAL UNIT! only a PRC-127. I've only had a chance to "buy" one, as opposed to picking one up at a "discount". - There was an aviation band version (KX99) which was AM VHF aircraft band, plus it had a VOR receiver built-in. It was a spin-off of the land-mobile band unit. - The unit was designed and built at the Lawrence, KS facility, mostly independent of the Main facility at Olathe (where I worked). - The whole crew of engineers that did land-mobile product design for King (in Lawrence) was hired by Garmin (my current employeer) a couple of years ago. They developed a small handheld combination GPS/radio about the size of a typical current Japanese HT, but the project was canned, perhaps due to an expected shift toward digital and trunked radio systems by the land-mobile customer base (my speculation, only). Surely one of the guys here that worked on this stuff, can provide me with lots of add'l info. Would be good if you had a list of specific questions. I'll try to get some kind of table that shows the different version of the commercial unit, and their respective features. My wife was one of two "inside salespersons" at King during the height of activity for the PRC-127. She only sold to government agencies (US and foriegn). She claims she can't remember shit about it, so not sure how much help she will be. Sheldon The transfer of workers from Bendix King to Garmin was prompted by the recent buyout of this Bendix King division by Relm(the old Regency company). It is currently unknown what effect this buyout will have on the continued military use of the PRC-127. But we do know that the commercial variants used by the military did see a sharp rise in surplus availability. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PRC-129;Hand held VHF, FM transceiver. Adoption of the commercial Repco model RPX-150. Most likely intended for general purpose communications. Original cost $1946.00,NSN 5820-01-225. Ref. #23,#28,#30 I've not yet found sufficient information to elaborate on this radio, though I'm pretty sure I know what it is, and even had one. Basically it's a highly updated version of the PRC-94. Retaining all the basic features, but reduced in size by about on half, and adding a few more options. The radio still retains the old Repco family resemblance. Dennis Starks; MILITARY RADIO COLLECTOR/HISTORIAN military-radio-guy@juno.com References: #1) MILITARY RADIO DATA, VOLUME I, PRC Designated Radio Equipment, by Dennis Starks (copies available from the author) #23) The authors personal collection #28) Federal Logistics Data on Compac Disc(Fed Log).1995 #30) Associated equipments technical manual. *********************************************** MEMBERS WRITE; 1) regarding Civil Air Patrol equipment, which is usually hamgear with CAP logo or label, altho Heath did have one dedicated model, HW-18, do we consider this as coming under the "military or paramilitary" classification, or is this pushing it? 2) re the humor item, whose players deserve a Darwin certificate of some kind: when i was still living in the motel, waiting for a place to live, the desk clerkette told me the man before me had lived there for a long time, 2 years. I asked why that was and she said he was learning to live on his own. He had gone fishing on Foster Resevoir, with dynamite, and had lost his arms and eyesight on this particular fishing trip. I hope he got some big ones! 3) we ought to find some email or smail addresses for a gov't official we can mass mail about their massive stupidity regarding surplus disposal. before this current brouhaha broke, i was thinking, now don't laff, Hilary Clinton. now why would i do that? an article i read couple years back gave me that idea. seems the FCC had some malicious jamming reports and was just sitting on it, but she gently kicked their butts and got them into action and solving the case within just a couple months. this was not a big deal, but she took an interest in it and got things moving. i think she is a person who would care about government efficiency and responsibility, believe it or not. hue miller ed) #1, I think they fall into our category, I personally classify them under Military-Type. Some of those radios were rather neat. #2, Darwin Award winners receive their awards posthumously. This because part of the requirement is that they are no longer contributing to the gene pool, thus not further contaminating evolution. Though that guy does deserve some kinda Dumb Shit award! #3, I've though several times of drafting a letter, for all to sign, and send to whatever personage they thought could do some good. But I've been crusading causes for the last 20 years, from federal to locale levels, and am a bit burnt out from it. But if somebody else wants to take up the banner, I'll help. But what help can we expect when the government is building $3mil out houses, and nothing is done about it? Don't get me started! ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Just wanted to send you a few of my observations from flooded Calif. You have probably seen news shots of lots of equipment from lots of agencies involved. The National Guard is getting involved and appears to be better organized than in past years. Requests for military and other state agencies have to go to the state Office of Emergency Services *used to be called the Disaster Office". This adds many layers of administration and delays. The Guard relies heavily on telephones and internet access and has no direct commo with field units most of the time. During a local leavee break last year, the military crews were actually support staff from the old Mather Airfield who responded their trucks at the direction of their commander. Last year we had a couple of instances of inexperienced drivers drowning their 5 tons cause they thought they were invincible. This usually happens during a rescue attempt and ends up adding to the victims. The newest 900 series 5 tons have air intakes under the driver's floor and very poor fording depth. Hummers don't do much better and they have been drowned in past years. One of the little recognized but highly efficient organizations doing lots of flood work is the Calif. Dept. of Forestry (CDF). They are coordinating the work of inmate crews who are trained as firefighters and support staff such as mobile kitchen crews. They have emergency command centers located throughout the state along with a state wide VHF repeaters and mobile command vehicles equipped for operation on all public agency frequencies and amateur radio. Most of the areas uninvolved in flooding have CDF people reassigned to a flooded region. Its interesting to listen to local news and then switch to national. On a recent night local news predicted 1" of rain and few problems. National news headline was "Floodtorn Calif. is Hit Again!. Confusion, logistics problems, politics, all sounds like fighting a war. Ken *********************************************** NEW GUY's ON THE BLOCK; Hi; I agree with the conditions. I am a ham (W1XB); male; aged 56 with an interest in primarily ARC-5/T-19 (Aircraft) military radios. I have a 40m receiver up and running, and am in the process of getting a transmitter on the air. My other interest is QRP. Thanks. Noel Anderson Colt N5856Z W1XB PO Box 342 Canaan, CT 06018-0342 (860) 824-7022 Please visit my Web site at http://home.li.com/~noel/noel.html ------------------------------------------------------------------- hello name is david davidson main hobby is military radios second is m-151military jeep.love those military jeeps.into collecting military radio/field phones/tested /eqm/etc and the history of these radios love to be in the group.i could use a prc-47 for 100.00 thanks for reply DAVID DAVIDSON SHELBY NC 28150 *********************************************** ON THE COMMERCIAL FRONT; Haney Electronic Company: J-45, leg iron CW keys, Correct for BC-1306, GRC-9, GRC-109, and PRC-47. These are new old stock units most still in original packaging, several contract dates from 1968 to 1980's. They include cord CD-201A with PJ-055B connector. The member price is $20.00ea, plus shipping. ed) except for the cord, the J-45 is identical to the KY-? used with the latter model equipment like the GRC-106. AS-2975, PRC-70 dipole antenna kit. Unused Similar to that use with the PRC-74 differing mainly in the balun it uses. The member price is $25.00ea, plus shipping ed) as the freq range of the PRC-70 is 2-79mc, and it's output 50ohms, these antennas should be good for just about any portable radio application. Quoted prices are good to group members only. To place an order contact Steve Haney at , If you have trouble with this address, try , or call 817-496-3346. ed) I've known Steve for several years, and have conducted numerous transactions, including trades, with him. You can deal with him in total confidence. The prices he has quoted us are well under that you'd expect to pay elsewhere, even at a hamfest, especially that of the J-45's. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- The below equipment has become available via two estates. I expect to go up and inspect the property next month, maybe sooner. If you have any interest in this stuff, let me know, and what you'd expect to pay for it, & I'll haggle with the estate executor. Dennis MUCH OF THE FOLLOWING HAS MANUALS BC 640 system NOT GREAT CONDITION ANOTHER SYSTEM JUST LIKE IT IN GOOD CONDITION BOTH COMPLETE WITH MANUALS BC640A tx type 5031A AMP PN6A (COULD BE PN3A OR PN8A) OUTPUT 5001 DRIVER 5001 OSCILLATOR PN9A 5001 MODULATOR PN10A 5001 CTL PANEL PN11A 5008 POWER SUP PN12A 5008/9 2ND PWR SUP SAME PW CONTROL PN13A 110K RBA SYSTEM CFT 46154 PERCISION APP 5" O SCOPE 5003A POWER UNIT RA-42-B RECTIFIER ASSOCIATED REASEARCH VIBROTEST UNIT J1195/GRC46 INTERCONNECT B KAAR ENG 25E RECIEVER S# 985 PA42B RECTIFIER 2- FIELD COMMUNICATIONS SETS BC 610E HALLICRAFTER TRANSMITTER BC939 TUNER MANY TU51 TUNING UNITS BC 939A TUNER RA 62B RECTIFIER 3 - R11A T11B T11A 3 - R32 REC STILL IN BOX SPARE PARTS PP112/ ?? KIT STILL IN BOX ASSORTED TUBES 2 - SW225 SWITCH 2 - BOX OF 4 (I THINK) TYPE 207 TUBES UNE UNOPENDE BOX RADIOSOND 2 - DYNAMOTOR MODEL MAR NAVY XTALS CY684 SPARE PARTS KIT KAAR TRANSMITTER SERIES 19 RADIOTELEPHONE RDR RADIO REC EQ CRV46283 REC IN TRANSIT CASE WITH MANUAL MILITARY 8MM MOVIE CAMERA KODAK SW225 SWITCH SIGNAL CORPS SLSC RADIO FILTER HALLICRAFTER SX 62 NO CASE STANDARD SIGNAL GENERATOR 805C LAMPKIN 105 RECIEVER EICO 955 CAP TESTER TS47A TEST OSCILLATOR LAJ4 AUDIO OSCILLATOR 2 - GONSET CAP COMMUNICATOR FR4-U FREQUENCY METER 2 HALLICRAGTERS SPLATTER GUARD I AM NOT FAMILIAR WITH MUCH OF THIS EQUIPMENT SO PLEASE EXCUSE TYPO'S OR BAD DESCRIPTIONS. PLEASE CONTACT ME AS SOON AS POSSIBLE I WANT TO BE FAIR TO THE FAMILY ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Another message that I've received and never followed up on. Again, I don't know this person, so take care. Dennis #Came across an R-220 in working condition, need some dust shields and a case. Is this thing of any value and are there any parts available. A junker would probably be the best bet for parts, any ideas?? I'd appreciate any comments you have on the radio, history, reputation, that type of thing. Also have an Aircraft transmitter "Type CAY-52173A" in near perfect condition, may have never been used. Only have a Range B tuning unit (800 - 1600 KC). Again, would be interested in background, value, etc. on this radio. Appreciate a response when you get a chance. Tom Bolton tvbolton1@juno.com *********************************************** HUMOR; A young farmer is newly married, and the couple just can't get enough sex. Before leaving the house for the fields at dawn, they make love, and when he returns home at evening they screw - before and after supper. Then a couple more during the night. The problem is, during the day, the fields are a long way from the house and the young man loses so much time traveling home and back again at noon, that he decides to consult a friend (the town's doctor) about what to do. "Easiest thing in the world, Homer" says the doctor. "You take your rifle out with you every day don't you? Well, when you feel like you're in the mood for some lovin', just fire a shot into the air as a signal to your wife, for her to come out to you. That way you won't lose any workin' time." Homer tries this and it seems to work pretty good for a while. One day the doctor stops by the house to pay a visit and he notices Homer sitting alone inside looking very morose. "What's wrong?" he asks. "Didn't my idea work? And where's your wife?" "Oh, it worked" says Homer. "Whenever I got in the mood I fired off a shot like you said, and Beckie'd come runnin'. Then we'd find a secluded place and screw. Then Beckie'd go back home." "So what's the problem?" "Well..... I ain't seen hide nor hair of Beckie since the huntin' season got started..." ---------------------------------------------------------------------- A keen country lad applied for a salesman's job at a city department store. In fact it was the biggest store in the world - you could get anything there. The boss asked him, "Have you ever been a salesman before?" "Yes, I was a salesman in the country", said the lad. The boss liked the cut of him and said, "You can start tomorrow and I'll come and see you when we close up." The day was long and arduous for the young man, but finally 5 o'clock came around. The boss duly fronted up and asked, "How many sales did you make today?" "One" said the young salesman. "Only one?" blurted the boss, "Most of my staff make 20 or 30 sales a day. How much was the sale worth??" "Three hundred thousand, three hundred and thirty four dollars." said the young man. "How did you manage that?" asked the flabbergasted boss. "Well", said the salesman, "this man came in and I sold him a small fish hook, then a medium hook and finally a really large hook. Then I sold him a small fishing line, a medium one and a huge big one. I asked him where he was going fishing and he said down the coast. I said he would probably need a boat, so I took him down to the boat department and sold him that twenty foot schooner with the twin engines. Then he said his Volkswagen probably wouldn't be able to pull it, so I took him to the car department and sold him the new Deluxe Cruiser." The boss took two steps back and asked in astonishment, "You sold all that to a guy who came in for a fish hook?" "No" answered the salesman, "He came in to buy a box of Tampons for his wife and I said to him, Your weekend's screwed, you may as well go fishing." ---------------------------------------------------------------------- There's an old guy sit-in out on his front porch and he sees a young kid walk-in by dragging some chicken wire. The old guy asks the kid what he's gonna do with it and the kid tells him he's goin to catch some chickens. The old guy tells the young kid he's an idiot and can't catch chickens that way. Well, about an hour later the old guy sees the kid walk-in by with four chickens stuck to the wire and can't believe it. The next day the old guy sees the young kid walk-in by with a long piece of duct tape trailin behind him. The old guy says hey dummy where ya goin with that duct tape? The kid tells him that he's goin to catch some ducks. The old guy tells the kid he's an idiot and can't catch ducks that way. Well, about an hour later the old guy sees the kid walk-in by with 3 ducks caught on the duct tape and can't believe what he sees. The next day the old guy sees the young kid walk-in by draggin something behind him and asks the kid what he's got, the kid replys they're pussy willows and the old guy hollers back to him and says hold on there boy while I get my hat and I'll go with ya. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- The longest one-syllable word in the English language is "screeched." On a Canadian two dollar bill, the flag flying over the Parliament Building is an American flag. "Dreamt" is the only English word that ends in the letters "mt". Almonds are members of the peach family. Maine is the only state whose name is just one syllable. The longest place-name still in use is: Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateaturipukakapikimaungahoronukupokaiw enuakitanatahu, a New Zealand hill. When the University of Nebraska Cornhuskers play football at home, the stadium becomes the state's third largest city. On an American one-dollar bill, there is an owl in the upper left-hand corner of the "1" encased in the "shield" and a spider hidden in the front upper right-hand corner. It's impossible to sneeze with your eyes open. 'Stewardesses' is the longest word that is typed with only the left hand. To "testify" was based on men in the Roman court swearing to a statement made by swearing on their testicles. -- Cynics are just more observant of reality. You're just jealous because the voices only talk to me. So you're a feminist. Isn't that cute. So many recipes, so few dogs. Friends help you move. Real friends help you move bodies. A friend in need... can be a real pain in the ass. How is it possible to have a civil war? If all the world is a stage, where is the audience sitting? If love is blind, why is lingerie so popular? If the #2 pencil is the most popular, why is it still #2? If work is so terrific, how come they pay you to do it? If you're born again, do you have two bellybuttons? Why is the alphabet in that order? Is it because of that song? What happens when none of your bees wax? Where are we going? And what's with the handbasket? *********************************************** (The preceding was a product of the"Military Collector Group Post", an international email magazine dedicated to the preservation of history and the equipment that made it. Unlimited circulation of this material is authorized so long as the proper credits to the original authors, and publisher are included. For more information conserning this group contact Dennis Starks at, military-radio-guy@juno.com) --------- End forwarded message ----------