MILITARY COLLECTOR GROUP POST, July 28/98 Index: ANNOUNCEMENTS; PRC-6 project update, Special Event Reports, SPECIAL EVENTS REPORT; Oklahoma City, Baltimore Maryland, MORE TRIVIA, "MAYDAY"; MEMBER PROFILE; Scot Barth HUMOR; *********************************************** ANNOUNCEMENTS; PRC-6 project update, I have everything here to begin boxing up your PRC-6's and misc(between thunder storms). One thing holding me up though. I have over 180 messages pertaining to this group project in it's own folder. It is proving VERY difficult to sort them all out. So lets do it like this, if your involved in this project send me a message with ALL the following information. #1, number of radios you ordered? #2, number of batteries you ordered? #3, number of manuals you ordered from Ralph? #4, number of inverter data sheets you ordered from Ralph? #5, number of Ralph's 88mh toroids you wanted? (you may have several as there is a surplus) #6, amount of money you've sent me? #7, should I be sending you anything else at the same time? #8, your mailing address. I'm sorry for this necessity but as you might see, much of the above data has been sent me by 60 different people, each in a separate message, over an extended period of time, so it's real hard to get them all together, and I'm afraid of missing something, or someone. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Special Event Reports, I'm adding another feature column to our daily Group Post, that of Special Event Reports. While many of you might find it boring, I myself like to see what's showing up out there and what it's going for. I also like to see who it is that's participating, who's selling what, etc. I also feel that it might quench some of the ridiculous prices that are being paid for equipment if people can see what these same items are going for in the real world. I love to see when some dork has a $100 command set, or $200 BC-611, and ends up taking it back home with him from each event! Or $250-$300 R-1051's when they can be had from reputable dealers for $125-$200. I think we have the makings of an excellent Spy network out there. Special Events might include hamfest, military swap meets, gun shows, military vehicle shows, or anything else that might produce equipment or activities of interest to us. Let me know your thoughts on the subject. Thanks, Dennis ************************************************ SPECIAL EVENTS REPORT; Oklahoma City, The hamfest commitee had donated three tables for me to put on a display of equipment, so Ike and I set out for Oklahoma City at 04:00 on Friday. Ike from Kansas City Ks and me from CT Mo. we converged at Ft. Scott Ks then proceeded on to Oklahoma City arriving at a little after noon. Ike made a quik sweep of the place in an atempt to scoop up any goodies there might have been(Ike's just a blur he's movin so fast at such events). But there wasn't nothin. The pickins wouldn't impove much by hamfest end. The total military goodie count was a so-so BC-348(modifiad, for $175, it didn't sell), a couple BC-211's for $25.00ea(they didn't sell either), a nice R-390(sold for $175), a host of Zenith Trans-Oceanics(all priced between $150-200, none sold), a pile of 6 TV-7 tube checkers at $40.00ea(2 of them sold, a pretty good deal realy), and a couple command set transmitters in a dual rack with the shock mount for $50(I got them for $45.00, more aircraft shit!). I also got a handfull of T-17 mics for $5.00(all missing connectors), a handfull of vintage headphones for another $5.00, and Ike got a single T-17 for $5.00. The only hardware of some possible future use was a pair of Pogo-Sticks(BC-745), not in very good shape, and not having any accessories, I gave $40.00 for them anyway. These had been brought in by some local guy once he saw that I was there. Somebody taking advantage my not paying very close attention, dumped a bunch of test equipment on me while my back was turned. This was tried two more times before we left, but I was on my guard by then! I confess that I did buy an I-177 tube checker for $20.00, but it was another one of those deals where the guy had brung it to the hamfest because he knew I was going to be there, and otherwise would not have come. Mike Veldman brought in a partial set of manuals that had been printed up by the Electronic Radio-Television Institute of Omaha Nebraska for use by the US Marine Corps Radio Material School. They were each instruction books that include the following radios, RBZ, TBW-3, MU-MV-MW-MX(forerunners of the MAB), SCR-211-A,-B,-C, SCR-221-M, SCR-511-B. Of most significance is the presents of the RBZ, MU series, and the SCR-511(Pogo-Stick) which would tend to show Marine Corps use in early WW-II. Sorrily though, none are dated, but they should still prove to be of some historic significance. I got the ass, I need me a good, quite, super dependable generator of about 1500watts continuous duty. The Power Wagon's alternator must have stopped before leaving for OK City Friday morning. We drove about 200 miles with head lights on(through some realy nasty storms), radios, two fans & windshield wipers runnin. Me and Ike spent Friday night in the truck with two fans running, two dome lights, radio, and shit if I know what all. Saturday the exaust fan ran all day because I forgot to turn it off and can't hear it runnin no more. Got just past the Kansas line on the way home(100 north of OK City) and filled up with gas, battery was dead, so hooked up my auxiliary battery which I'd unhooked just in case Friday night. That got me to about Independance Kansas. Pulled over and dug out one the Atlas 12 volt power supplies I'd had at the hamfest, pluged it into the generator mounted on the back of the truck, and fired it up, and hooked the supply up to the truck, this worked OK till Ft Scott Kansas and the generator died not to be resurrected. Got about half way home from there(50 miles) and had to get out and unhook all the head lights but one. Pulled in home at 1:30AM in the dark. I have 2ea 1.250kw Techumpsie powered generators, and 2 late 40's vintage 650 watt military 2 strokers, can't depend on any of them! Their all gonna go on somethin I can. This weren't all the OK City troubles, we got about 20 miles north of town on the way home, and a tire exploded, and I mean EXPLODED! Not real fun at a high rate of speed on a interstate highway with a 3.5 ton truck, and a ton or two of radio junk in it. Twas all I could do ta keep the truck from flippin over. Ike was followin me in his van so we set off to find a tire. They must role up all the streets come noon on Saturday in that part of Oklahoma, as no place was open, and what was, didn't have a 950x16.5. We finaly found a used 875 that got me home. Friday a record temperature was set at 106 degrees(no that ain't C!), with Saturday at 107 degrees, can you imagine how hot it was out there on the asphalt? Ike, in his typical good nature calls these little episodes "adventures". Shit is, I had just put those tires on the truck Thursday for the trip to OK City. It took me 12.5 hours ta get home, it should have taken seven at most. Dennis Starks; MILITARY RADIO COLLECTOR/HISTORIAN military-radio-guy@juno.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Baltimore Maryland FM: Breck K4CHE SUBJECT: BRATS HAMFEST DIGNITARIES: Met with Surplus AL and Tom Bryan. Went to BRATS hamfest at Baltimore Maryland. Weather excellent with high cloud cover and no precip. Co-Pilot was Nick N3YMS whom I have trained to spot green radios with black radios being the second choice. We departed home station at 0405 and had an arrival time of 0605, flea market spaces were filling up rapidly and at this Baltimore site they have sold been out before on previous dates and everyone became slightly irritated all most to the riot stage, remember this is the East Coast. Situation: The flea market is open to anyone with fleamarket spaces but the civilians have to wait till 0800 before they are allowed in. We prowl the grounds like sharks on a feeding frenzy, knowing that soon "they" will be allowed "in". Soon the Mass whom are contained behind chain link fences will soon storm the walls. After parking I saw a mint Gibson Girl, with case, balloons, all the stuff, it was brand new. It had that smell that only surplus radios can have, I stood there staring at the thing . . . Ran my hand along the case feeling the painted yellow canvas\plastic canvas, wondering how they got the yellow on it like that , The price was $100, offered 50 of course but no deal. Never had to use the CRT-3 in a actual emergency but have spent a lot of times in various wet spots training on the thing. Dont ever volunteer to crank. Have to think to myself that 500 kHz is gone, gone forever. On down the line , ran into AB-1371/G complete antenna for $200 and at the same site had a AB-1372/G but only the mount for $150, too rich for me would like one for the jeep but on down the line. Saw a rare? Bancroft mount 5125 with the built in RF amplifier for $125 . Then AK-47 banonet for $12 with case, this is a hamfest?? also Enfield banonet , 2 for$5, how do you spell banonet? Came upon a complete GR-106 with vehicle mounts, all accessories and amplifier for $1400, yes that was correct $1400. Nice display, nice radio which I don't have but for $1400? Marine switch board for whatever, 16 lines , small you can pick it up. price was $40 Sat and talked with Surplus Al, several times, he says when he hits on the lottery that I am going to be his number one . Al is doing fine and is very excited, repeat very excited about going to Tappahana on August the 5th. His display was several spaces, lots of manuals, connectors, ropes, just weird stuff that only Al can produce, you want to get one of every thing. Saw only two KWM-2's for 350 and $400. Ran across TELCOM "giant" rotor for $75 Saw Tom Bryan, Tom had many books with him for reference. Told him of my discoveries, I think he was ahead of me going down the lines searching for green. Saw mint PE-94C for SCR-522 and other radios for $20 , in the box. I have ran the SCR-522 mobile before and it is quite a treat, but don't do it at night. Stood in awe of a Mint Bendix TA-12 Aircraft transmitter for best offer over 50, I offered $25 but no deal. Saw nice R-388 for $300 URR-27A for $10 but let someone else haul it home. R-48A for $75 Really nice National black RCK built for the FAA for 300, unusual radio for me as the coils did not plug in it had a band switch etc.. Going around the fest, I secretly scratched out the MHz and wrote in Mc, left my mark like zorro. Saw a nice Andrew black tripod with military type pins, looked military, smells like military but no numbers, bought it for $60. Like Andrews stuff. Also picked up an Astro Compass complete in green box , had mounts etc. for $20. Breck K4CHE ed) ya should have gone back for some more haglin on the TA-12, their pretty damn scare anymore, and while I too would have hated to pay $50.00 for it, it was a fair price. What the hell is a Bancroft mount 5125? *********************************************** MORE TRIVIA, "MAYDAY"; Why do pilots say "mayday" when they're in trouble? The Answer: You see it in movies all the time. A plane has some technical trouble and starts to nosedive, so the pilot grabs the radio and shouts "Mayday! Mayday!" leaving the audience wondering what the month of May has to do with the plane's predicament. Actually, the word "mayday" has nothing to do with the month of May. Instead, it comes from the French word "m'aidez," which means "help me," an appropriate thing to say when your plane nosedives. (Source: The American Heritage Dictionary) Neat. The actual pronunciation for "aidez" is... ay-day. "Help me" is... ay-day MWA (Aidez-moi) Actually, I like the French version of what to say when your airplane takes a final nosedive... MERDE! (aka the 4-letter word that starts with S and ends with T, and is often the last thing a pilot is heard to say in the "black box" voice cockpit recorder...) We now continue with the petty bickering of the proposed FCC reclassification of our licenses. :-) _Ray_ KB0STN *********************************************** MEMBER PROFILE; Scot Barth My name is Scot Barth. I was born in 1967 and received my first Amateur License in 1982. Amateur callsign is KA6UDZ. I make my living working as an RF Engineer designing receivers and frequency synthesizers for Mil GPS applications. My first mil radio was a TCS-9 Transmitter that I received in 1982 with a bunch of stuff given to me by my dad's co-worker. A year later a guy that my mother worked with was cleaning out his garage and told me to bring a truck. I didn't have access to a truck so the car made four trips way over gross. In this I found, among other things, an MD-7/ARC-5, SCR-522, AN/ARC-4, T-23/ARC-5, RHZ, TCS-12 Tx, and two ARC-5 receivers (One NIB). Some of the things received were scrapped. All of the above survived except for the TCS Tx which eventhough incomplete yielded some of the parts needed to restore the first TCS-9. At the time I did not know what I had, but could not stomach cutting up a brand new ARC-5 Rx. That same year I bought my first ARC-5 Tx for $2 at a swapmeet primarily for the air variables and roller inductor. It was incomplete, but survives as received to someday be restored. The same swapmeet resulted in my buying a new TCS-14 Tx for $15. Needless to say, that was just the beginning. In August of 1985 I bought copies of the pilots manuals for the B-17 and B-25 at the Madera Gathering of Warbirds. It was by reading these that I became truly infected with the Mil radio bug. I guess that I should mention that I am also a warbird freak. This explains why my interests are almost entirely War II aircraft sets including Command Sets (all flavors), ARC-4, SCR-522, SCR-269, SCR-287, ATC, and RU-16. My goal was and is to make everything I have operable. I have been successful to a certain extent, but have many pieces left to find. Racks, mounts, and connectors are the hardest things to find as anyone involved with this stuff undoubtedly knows. Scot Barth Udz@aol.com ed) I have known Scot for many years, and he is a very welcome new adition to our number. *********************************************** HUMOR; WASHINGTON, DC--On Tuesday, Congress approved the Americans With No Abilities Act, sweeping new legislation that provides benefits and protection for more than 135 million talentless Americans. The act, signed into law by President Clinton in Shanghai shortly after its passage, is being hailed as a major victory for the millions upon millions of U.S. citizens who lack any real skills or uses. "Roughly 50 percent of Americans--through no fault of their own--do not possess the talent necessary to carve out a meaningful role for themselves in society," said Clinton, a longtime ANA supporter. "Their lives are futile hamster-wheel existences of unrewarding, dead-end busywork: xeroxing documents written by others, fulfilling mail-in rebates for Black & Decker toaster ovens, and processing bureaucratic forms that nobody will ever see. Sadly, for these millions of nonabled Americans, the American dream of working hard and moving up through the ranks is simply not a reality." Under the Americans With No Abilities Act, more than 25 million important-sounding "middle man" positions will be created in the white-collar sector for nonabled persons, providing them with an illusory sense of purpose and ability. Mandatory, non-performance-based raises and promotions will also be offered to create a sense of upward mobility for even the most unremarkable, utterly replaceable employees. The legislation also provides corporations with incentives to hire nonabled workers, including tax breaks for those who hire one non-germane worker for every two talented hirees. Finally, the Americans With No Abilities Act also contains tough new measures to prevent discrimination against the nonabled by banning prospective employers from asking such job-interview questions as, "What can you bring to this organization?" and "Do you have any special skills that would make you an asset to this company?" "As a nonabled person, I frequently find myself unable to keep up with co-workers who have something going for them," said Mary Lou Gertz, who lost her position as an unessential filing clerk at a Minneapolis tile wholesaler last month because of her lack of notable skills. "This new law should really help people like me." With the passage of the Americans With No Abilities Act, Gertz and millions of other untalented citizens can finally see a light at the end of the tunnel. Said Clinton: "It is our duty, both as lawmakers and as human beings, to provide each and every American citizen, regardless of his or her lack of value to society or, for that mattter, the human race; some sort of void to fill in this great nation." ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- << Children's Letters To God: Dear GOD, Did you mean for the giraffe to look like that or was it an accident? -Norma Dear GOD, Instead of letting people die and having to make new ones, why don't You just keep the ones You have now? -Jane Dear GOD, Who draws the lines around the countries? -Nan Dear GOD, I went to this wedding and they kissed right in church. Is that okay? -Neil Dear GOD, What does it mean You are a Jealous God? I thought You had everything. -Jane Dear God, Did you really mean "do unto others as they do unto you"? Because if you did, then I'm going to fix my brother! -Darla Dear GOD, Thank you for the baby brother, but what I prayed for was a puppy. -Joyce Dear GOD, It rained for our whole vacation and is my father mad! He said some things about You that people are not supposed to say, but I hope You will not hurt him anyway. Your friend. (But I am not going to tell you who I am) Dear GOD, Why is Sunday school on Sunday? I thought it was supposed to be our day of rest. -Tom L. Dear GOD, Please send me a pony. I never asked for anything before, You can look it up. -Bruce Dear GOD, My brother is a rat.You should give him a tail.Ha ha. -Danny Dear GOD, Maybe Cain and Abel would not kill each other so much if they had their own rooms. It works with my brother. -Larry Dear GOD, I want to be just like my Daddy when I get big, but not with so much hair all over. -Sam Dear GOD, I think the stapler is one of your goodest inventions. -Ruth M. Dear GOD, I bet it is very hard for You to love all of everybody in the whole world. There are only 4 people in our family and I can never do it. -Nan Dear GOD, If You watch me in church Sunday, I'll show You my new shoes. -Mickey D. Dear GOD, I would like to live 900 years like the guy in the Bible. Love, Chris Dear GOD, We read Thomas Edison made light.But in school they said You did it.So I bet he stoled your idea. Sincerely, Donna ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Calling For Technical Support . . . Ring... Ring... Ring... Ring... Ring... Ring... Ring... Ring... Ring... Ring... Ring... Ring... Ring... Ring... Ring... Ring... Ring... Ring... Thank you for calling Technical Support. All of our technicians are currently busy helping people even less competent then you, so please hold for the next available technician. The waiting time is now estimated at between fifteen minutes and eternity. In order to expedite your call, please punch your 63-digit product identification number onto your telephone touch pad, followed by your product serial number, which can be found in a secret compartment inside your computer where, for security purposes, it is printed in the smallest typeface known to mankind. Do that now. (Lengthy excerpt from Mahler's "Lugubrious" Symphony in C Minor) Thank you again for calling Technical Support. We recommend that you sit at your computer, preferably turning it on at some point, and have at hand all your floppy disks, CD-ROM disks, computer manuals and original packing materials in order to allow the technician to aid you in the unlikely event that he ever takes your call. It would also be helpful for you to refrain from sobbing while explaining your problem to the technician. Shouting obscene threats will cause you to be immediately disconnected and black balled from further communication with Technical Support, not only from ours but that of every other electronics-related firm in the industrialized world. (Medley of Hootie and the Blowfish hits rendered by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir) Thank you once again for calling Technical Support. In order to enable us to better assist you, it would be helpful to know more about you and your equipment. Have you called Technical Support before? If you have, please press the numeral "one" on your telephone touchpad. If not, press the numeral "two." If you are not sure, using the letters on your touchpad, spell out the phrase: "I am confused and despondent and quickly losing the will to live." Once you have finished, hang up your phone and make arrangements to sell your computer because by the time the technician takes your call, it will be obsolete, and you will be too senile to use it anyway. (Rangoon Opera Company's classic 1963 recording of Wagner's "Ring Cycle" in its entirety) Thank you for calling Technical Support. Unfortunately, all of our technicians just went out for lunch. This means that to the estimated waiting time we gave you earlier, you may now add at least another two hours. (Wayne Newton singing "Danke Schoen" 1,743 times) Thank you for calling Technical Support. Before talking to the technician about your problem and risking the possibility that you may be wasting his valuable time, please ask yourself the following questions: If my monitor screen is dark, is it possible I have forgotten to plug in my computer or, alternately, that I have been suddenly struck blind? Have I exhausted every possible means of help before utilizing the sacred, last-resort-only telephone option? Have I sent a fax to Fast Fax Technical Support? Have I consulted my manual? Have I read the Read-Me notice on the floppy disk? Have I called up my know-it-all geek cousin who I can't stand but who can probably fix this thing for me in under five minutes? Have I given the central processing unit of my computer a good, solid whack? If you can not honestly answer "yes" to all these questions, please get off the line immediately so that our overworked technicians can help those truly desperate customers whose suffering is so much greater than yours. (Recording of Tibetan monks performing a six-day chant celebrating the reincarnation of one of their recently deceased colleagues into the form of a salamander.) Thank you for calling Technical Support. You may not be aware that this week we are featuring a discount on a number of popular CD-ROM titles you may wish to purchase, such as the best-selling Porn Doubler, which allows you to access erotic material from the Internet twice as fast. If you would like to hear all 26,000 titles read to you, shout "Yes! Yes! Yes!" into the telephone now. This will not cause you to lose your place in line for Technical Support; in fact it may jump you ahead of several other callers. (Tape loop of background music from the soundtrack of Johnny Mnemonic starring Keanu Reeves.) Thank you for calling Technical Support. Our electronic sensors indicate that you are about to slump over and die from a massive frustration attack combined with severe dehydration from lack of food and water. Before doing so, please take a moment to place your telephone receiver back in its base and switch off your computer so as not to wear down its internal battery. As a non-living person, you will have no further need of Technical Support and so we regretfully must remove you from our list of registered product users. Remember, we valued your patronage while you were alive and were happy to serve your needs. Do not -hesitate to have your heirs or beneficiaries contact us should any further technical problems arise. Thanks! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Stuntman dies in ATV jump ATampa entertainer died Saturday night after a fall from an all-terrain vehicle in Lancaster, Pa. Todd Seeley, 35, missed the ramp during a daredevil stunt and landed face-down in the dirt. He died in the operating room of Lancaster General Hospital, a spokeswoman said. Local people who knew Seeley were devastated by the news. "No! No! Not Todd," said Bonnie Hill, a promoter at Sunshine Speedway in St. Petersburg who booked Seeley about once a year. He is survived by Noreen, his wife of eight years. Seeley, who performed locally and nationally, held a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records from 1988 to 1991 for jumping 246 feet on a motorcycle, a jump made in Tampa. On Saturday at Buck Motorsports Park, he began with a successful 150-foot jump on a motorcycle. He then tried for the 150-foot jump on a four-wheel, all-terrain vehicle, which would have set a record at the arena. As the stunt began, Seeley revved up the red-and-white ATV's engine to reach 65 mph and aimed for the 12-foot-wide, 84-foot landing ramp. As he became airborne, however, more than 4,000 spectators gasped and rose to their feet as his vehicle visibly pulled left. He shoved the vehicle away in mid-air, his body clipped the safety restrainer along the ramp's side and then hit the ground beside the landing ramp. In 1993, he jumped 160 feet on an ATV at the Pontiac Silverdome in Michigan. The jump is considered a world record, although Guinness doesn't recognize that category. Seeley was an accomplished stunt man who had worked in dozens of commercials, television shows and movies, including the Jim Carrey movie Ace Ventura: Pet Detective and TV's Miami Vice. In a 1989 interview with the Times, Seeley spoke about the dangers of his sport. "People like Evel Knievel are the old-school type daredevils who take a lot of risks and get hurt ... I'm not in this to kill myself. A lot of guys just go out there and do it with little preparation, and they are the ones who get hurt or get killed. I like life too much." Hill said Seeley was a terrific showman but also a careful jumper. During his 15-year career, his worst injury had been a broken ankle. "Todd put on a show for the fans, but he was very safety conscious. I just can't imagine what could have gone wrong," she said. She said Seeley eagerly signed autographs for young fans and that he simply loved jumping motorcycles. "The point is to push the limits, but I think Todd was trying to do too much, more than he'd planned," said stunt instructor Daniel Gajecki of the Kahana Stunt School in Orlando, who was traveling with Seeley. "I told him not to do it, but the crowd was so in back of him, and he wanted to give them something extra." *********************************************** (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 or this group are included. For more information conserning this group contact Dennis Starks at, military-radio-guy@juno.com) ***********************************************