From: military-radio-guy Full-Name: Dennis R Starks To: military radio collectors#3 Cc: WHOLE-SALE-RADIO@JUNO.COM Fcc: Sent Date: Tue, 24 Nov 1998 04:41:08 Subject: MILITARY COLLECTOR GROUP POST, Nov.24/98 Message-ID: <19981124.044004.17527.1.military-radio-guy@juno.com> X-Status: Sent X-Mailer: Juno 1.49 MILITARY COLLECTOR GROUP POST, Nov.24/98 Index: PARA-MILITARY RADIOS; Part I, by Dennis Starks MANUAL COPIES, LAST CALL; MEMBERS WRITE; Harris RF-550? Free BC-733's, ARR-11/ART-13 etc, NEW MEMBER; Wayne Nowacki HUMOR; *********************************************** PARA-MILITARY RADIOS; Part I, by Dennis Starks Forward, "Is it a military radio? It looks like one. Why doesn't it have a military model number? Who used it? Where? When? For what?" I am asked these questions a lot, and often I don't have an answer, or a coherent one anyway. In fact, I often find myself asking these very same questions! As it stands, there are numerous reasons that these radios exist, highly dependant on the time period they appeared, the agency that used them, and their purpose. Sadly though, we are seldom able to ascertain any of these conditions as these radios are among the absolute most, "historically neglected"! For various reasons they seldom if ever appear in any of the official annals, reports, or equipment catalogs. When it's often almost impossible to document the exploits of even a common item of military radio equipment, known to have been adopted as a standard item, and seen extensive service, can our plight be imagined when it comes to these Bastard Children ? Those who have been exposed to my writings are familiar with my extreme disdain for anything to be "historically neglected"! I think there to be a exceptionally good reason for this outlook. These radios are Icons to history, if the equipment can't be remembered, then remembering those men who used it and their heroic exploits or achievements become more difficult. Indeed, it is the history of these men that this equipment represents that commands our interest and admiration. If we cannot document this history, both of men, and equipment, then all are lost. The men die, history fades, but the hardware often remains to remind us. A case in point, if I show you a PRC-1, or an RCA(Pilot Radio) V-100 are you reminded of some of the most gallant achievements of men in war and history, under the most adverse of conditions humanly imaginable? Probably not! But when I can tell you these were used in what's been termed "the Forgotten Theater of WW-II" I/E China, Burma, India(CBI), by groups such as OSS Detachment 101, or the men of Merrill's Marauders(later to become Galahad) and the neither common nor ordinary Army/Air Corps grunt . Then your interest is stirred and the story of these men lives on. Now off my soap box. While this series of articles will not answer all the above questions, it will allow me to vent some of my frustration, and in the process possibly induce some discussion that could lead to a greater understanding. Or at least give us some clues, and generate interest in these radios. As I've already meantioned, we do not find reference to these specific radios in any official, or readily available material. As such we must gather small tidbits of information from the more unconventional sources and combine them to form some conclusions. These include the personal rememberances of veterans and industry personel, subtle clues from the equipment itself, one line sentenses in obsure books magazines or promotional material all long out of print. In all these instances it is beyond the limited life span or geographical limitations of any one person to gather enough information. Here, we have the unusual opertunity to combine all the above clues gathered by the hundreds of members of this group spread all over the world, from thousands of these "unconventional sources". During the process of this series there will be MANY specific radios that I do not mention. It's just impossible to know of them all, or in the case of WW-II and Vietnam, even a small fraction of them. But it is our purpose here to learn about them and learn from each other! So if you have, or know of, any examples that might fall into the above category, PLEASE LET US KNOW ABOUT THEM! Leaving out no known detail. If you are aware of any details omitted in this article, or any discussion that might follow, again, please let us know. Shit! I again find myself atop a soap box! Is it a military radio? Many radios we'll come across have very military looking cosmetics or construction yet no model number that would confirm a military background or history. Indeed, they may have no model number at all or anything else on them that would describe their lineage. They might have OD, haze gray, black, or black crinkle paint, and physical construction apparently too robust, ugly, or cost prohibitive for a civilian market. I like the UGLY! They may not even have been manufactured by a company we'd associate with producing military equipment, if we know who made it at all. Just a few of the reasons for radios of these types are noted below. #1,Been used in limited quantities, for specific applications, thus not warranting official adoption. #2,Been made for use by MARS or Civil Defence programs. #3,Been Commercial & or Military in nature. #4,Been built for export to foreign nations. #5,Been used by various Government organizations that required anonymity,& in this case may have no identifying marks. Though examples can be traced back to our military's earliest days in radio, we'll begin in the mid 1930's with the major reasons behind why this type of equipment exist. There were two major factors that governed radio design, testing, adoption, and production. In order of period importance these were: rapidly advancing technology, and possible war in Europe. Rapidly Advancing Technology, By the mid 30's we had progressed to octal and loctal tubes, less than half the size of their predecessors and twice as efficient. Though huge by standards just 2-3 years later, they would be named "American Miniatures" in Europe. At the same time, new circuit technology including Armstrong's super-regenerative and super-heterodyne receiver designs. Followed only a couple years later by his invention of FM which would change military tactical communications forever! All this produced an extreme clamor by both military and commercial concerns to find practical applications for these advances. As usual, the first to implement these advances in technology would be those various commercial concerns, having an interested in both civilian and military/government markets, foreign and domestic. As a result, they would greatly influence military thoughts on communications techniques and equipment. Possible War in Europe, As most of you know, it can take many years for our military to progress through the stages of perceived need, design concept, development, testing and final adoption of any item of equipment. In the event this is an item of a highly technical nature, this equipment might be grossly obsolete by the time this process is completed, or the original need may have become extinct. A case in point: It took approximately nine years for the perceived need of an individual solder's radio be addressed. It took another couple years for technology to advance to a point that this need could be realistically addressed. A couple more years were spent an the design concept, with all interested party's unable to agree. Then a few more years on testing, and final adoption. Followed by a couple more years worth of delay's associated with production problems & logistics. The result, it took nearly twenty years for the PRT-4 and PRR-9 to actually inter the field. And EVERYBODY hated them! This spawned the PRC-68 which would take another ten years to materialize. The PRC-70, over 5 years. The PRC-8,-9, & -10 family, about 7 years. A replacement for the aged PRC-77 has been in the works now for 20 years, and while there has been some false hopes, for various and complicated reasons, the job has still yet to be accomplished. As it can be seen from the above, the radio needed to fill a specific nitch might not exist, and waiting for a suitable design might take years. In the face of an eminent or extreme need, it might be too late if waiting on the established system were the only option. While the above examples either began during WW-II or some years later, the circumstances were/are the same, only the dates and specific items of equipment were different. The BC-654(SCR-284), BC-611(SCR-536), BC-620, -659 and a host of others were all adopted well before WW-II, but none would inter the field before March of 1942. We're now in the late 1930's war in Europe is eminent and our military's (specifically Army) communications capabilities's and equipment are grossly outdated for either participation in, or friendly support to, a modern war. There's not enough time to mess with a lengthy, drawn out process that's plagued with constant controversy between the responsible agencies and prospective user's. Enter Private Industry! As has been noted above, private industry had kept a close eye on advancing technology. They had either already produced equipment for a civilian market that might be readily adapted to a military application, or had developed equipment specifically meant to appeal to either a domestic or foreign military agency. Some of the most noted companies involved in pre-war production of both commercial and "para-military" equipment included Galvin(later Motorola), RCA(many different divisions), General Electric, Westinghouse, Bendix, Link, Crosley(later to become Avco), and the legendary Collins. Companies like Hammerland, National, and Hallicrafters, while at the time not specifically targeting military sales, would none the less be drafted into the pre-war effort with most of their equipment being either adopted/purchased "off the shelf" or only slightly modified to conform to military needs. They would produce vast quantities of equipment both during, and many years after WW-II that we might refer to as "Para-Military" today. Some being adopted as standard types and granted full blown military status, others retaining only their original civilian model numbers, and others labeled with both. There were countless smaller, and less known companies that would do the same. Numerous delays in the delivery of equipment that had run the gauntlet of government acceptance would force the procurement of non-standard "Stop Gap" sets to serve their purpose until the standard types were readily available. Some of these "Stop Gap" sets would receive official government nomenclature and actually outperform and replace the equipment they were only intended to stand in for. Others would not. Yet they would servive in government inventory and use well after WW-II, retaining their original civilian model numbers. Still others might have received full adoption by both Army and Navy contingents and assigned military nomenclature, yet were never marked to that effect. But for most their fate is simply lost to history. Some specific examples of all these will be presented later. Dennis Starks; Collector/Historian Midwest Military Communications Museum email: military-radio-guy@juno.com *********************************************** MANUAL COPIES, LAST CALL; SCR-585(BC-721) Only one request has been received for this manual. This is your last chance to contact Ed Guzick to reserve one. Radio Set SCR-585,A,operation & maint,T.O.08-16-186 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PRT-4/PRR-9 Manuals, Hi Dennis Could you please post this message at your convenience. I have PRT-4/ PRR-9 Manual requests from the following people: Ralph Hogan Todd Huss Ed Kirkley Don Reaves Ray Robinson If I missed your name or you have decided that you do need these manuals, please let me know ASAP at the address below. PRT-4,PRR-9,Radio Receiving Set PRR-9,Radio Transmitting Set PRT-4,oper & org maint,TM11-5820-549-12,Oct.66 PRT-4A,PRR-9A,Radio Receiving Sets PRR-9,A,Radio Transmitting Sets PRT-4,A,oper & org maint, (C-4)TM11-5820-549-12,Sep.68 Radio Receiving Set PRR-9A,Radio Transmitting Set PRT-4A,di sup gen sup & depo maint, TM11-5820-549-35, April 1968 KG0QE@juno.com (Kevin Hough, Farmington MN.) *********************************************** MEMBERS WRITE; Harris RF-550? Hello Mil folks. I was hoping there was someone in our group who has had some experience with the Harris RF-550 receiver. I was thinking about buying one and wanted to get some feedback regarding performance, operation, etc.. I can see from an older Fair catalog I have that the 550 is listed as having 3 bandwidths .5, 6 and 16khz. If that's the case, the 6khz might be too wide for serious SSB use. The Up-down freq selection switches look interesting. Anybody have one? use one?? used one?? Thanks Glenn Finerman ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Free BC-733's, Dennis; Please send this out when you get the time. I need to get rid of these and don't want to throw them away if I don't have to. Last Call: Free for pick-up in Austin, Texas: BC-733 Glide Slope receivers. Good tubes in here. Most in nice shape. A few depot re-news. Aircraft restorers /collectors get first choice. Will not ship--- sorry. Don't have the time. -- David Stinson AB5S ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ARR-11/ART-13 etc, Tell Ray not to worry about his foot. The BC-348 was designated ARR-11. The ART-13 was indeed mated with the ARC-5 in several navy installations, most noteably the TBM torpedo bomber. The ARC-5 R-26 receiver was fitted with an autotune device known as a Yardeny Spot Tuner, which gave six preset receive channels. The ART-13's C-87 control box was modified to allow it to control the Spot Tuner with the first six of its ten positions. The remaining positions left the Spot Tuner on channel six. 73 DE David Stinson AB5S Dennis . my T.O 12R2-2ART13-2 says" The complete Radio set AN/ARC-8 includes the radio receiver....... illustrated is the interconnection of the Radio Transmitting set AN/ART-13A with the Radio Receiving set AN/ARR-11" [unquote] It would appear that the ARR-11 and the BC -348 were optional receivers with the ART-13 which was used in B-29, B-36, and C-119. Of interest is the fact that either late WW2 or post war, the ART-13B had an optional 20 channel xtal box installed in place of the LF oscillator. It was made by some outfit down in Coral Gables {Fl]. I remember it well having used one back in the '60's. Of further interest is the Manual of Aircraft Maintenance put out by DCA [ Department of Civil Aviation Australia} which gives info on" how to " etc. on this tx. It is dated 30 December 1948. . The ART - 13 had been around for a while since its conceptionl late 1930's and used widely in commercial aviation . Maybe someone can confirm the story that Art. Collins won his contract on the strength of the design which was accepted for communications for an Antarctic expedition around that time. Pete Williams VK3IZ ed) having known several retired Collins Engineers and doted on every word that emanated from their mouths, I've been related several times how Collins had developed a design that the government subsequently took an interest in. The scenario would go something like this, The Government being interested would tell Art to "make it mil spec and we'll take it", Art would respond, "it's good the way it is, take it or leave it!" In every known case, the Government opted to "take it." This is most certainly the case with such legends as the TCS, ART-13, 618T, KWM-2 and others. I should note here, that the ARR-11 is a "system" which included the BC-348 as a component part. Also that the ARR-41 was capable of TTY operation when combined with an external converter. This would have been a necessity for the earliar long range strategic bombers of the Cold War with their nuclear payloads. *********************************************** NEW MEMBER; Wayne Nowacki I accept your requirements to be a member of your group. I am a licensed ham radio operator, and have been semi interested in military radio for many years. I have recently aquired some prc 9 and 10 s, along with this i pickup, 1979 dodge 4x4 surplus that is basicily original military camo paint and all. I would also like to equip this vehicle with military type radio equipment. All equipmet I want must be able to be used in ham bands. I am in the process of building an ac power supply for the prc radios, after completing this project I want to build a dc-dc converter for the prc radios. My occupation is a fire chief in a Rural fire district in the Rathdrum Idaho area. I am also a part time police officer for thr City of Rathdrum. My past employment has been in law enforcement and prior to that I was an electronic tech two way radio and microwave. I have worked with electronics off and on since the mid sixtys. Some day I would like to obtain a modern type military communications equipment. tnx wayne nowacki *********************************************** HUMOR; A young peasant girl of fourteen went to work in a broom factory. After 2 months she gave the boss a two-week notice. The boss was quite unhappy to let her go since she was hard working, knew her tasks etc. He called her into his office, "But why?" he asked. "Nothin, I just wanna quit that's all," she said sullenly. "Look, I'll give you a raise." "No," she said "You can't just quit like that. There must be a reason. Tell me." "Okay if you must know..." said the girl, and she took off her underwear and pointed to her pubic hair, "Look I haven't had this before, it's the broom's bristles, I tell you..." Tickled by her innocence, he too took off his underwear and showed his, and said, "Ha ha...my dear it's nature. Look I have it too...." "Oh no!" the girl cried, "I can't wait two weeks, I quit now! Not only do you have the bristles, but you've grown the handle as well." ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A young fellow walks into a talent agent's office and says he wants to break into show-biz, so the agent says "O.K. kid show me what you do". The kid tells some jokes, does a little soft shoe, sings a bit, does an acrobatic act with an ottoman, and is good enough to impress the agent. "Great kid! Just great!" says the agent "I can do things for ya! I think I can get you a show on T.V." (This was the early sixties.) "By the way, what's your name?" The young man, proud and excited, exclaims "Penis$Van Lesbian". "'Scuse me?" questions the agent. "My name is Penis Van Lesbian" again replies the young man. "Hey I'm sorry kid, you're gonna have to change your name, nobody is gonna hire you with a name like Penis Van Lesbian." Well the young man is crestfallen but steadfastly refuses to change his name, so he leaves to find another agent. A few months later he returns to the same agent. "Hey kid! Good to see ya again!" says the agent, "Are ya still looking for work? Have ya changed your name?" With his head hanging low the young man replies "Yes. Every agent in town turned me down because of my name, Penis Van Lesbian. So I've changed it". "Great kid, great! What's your new name?" "Dick Van Dyke." ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Baghdad Bugle Sunday, 22 February, 1998 U. N. Premier Trophi Anus announced that a big deal may be near in the negotiations with Illustrious Leader, Mr. Saddam Hussein, in the matter of the recent bombing threats of the Great Satan (better known as Mr. Bill Clinton) against Mother Iraq. Spokespeoples for Mr. Trophi Anus have announced that as many as 7 divisions of Premier Leader and Best President in Modern Memory - Saddam Hussein's personal Republican Guards and all their equipments will depart with Mr. Anan for New York, as soon as sufficient aircraft can arrive from China and Russia to carry them to United Nations headquarters there. Iraqi U. N. delegate Shadi Hussein said: "These troops will be initially billeted in the United Nations Building, local apartment complexes, and surrounding parking lots before being used to help liberate the American Peoples from the war monger Clinton and his evil cabal of lawyers in Washington, DC." Sources close to President Hussein said: "Our Beneficent Leader and Finest Military Strategist, Saddam Hussein has been secretly shipping the Republican Guard's heavy equipment to the United States for three years, and it is all in place on railroad cars scattered around Washington ready for use." Mr. Hussein borrowed the idea from those stinky Americans. U.S. heavy equipment has been shipped to and stored in Kuwait for several years. Mr. Saddam said he was delighted that all his plans succeeded, and that he was amazed that as soon as a ship full of tanks and artillery pieces arrived at any port in the United States with as sign on them saying "Ship C.O.D. To Washington, DC", they never questioned anything at all. "Those stupid ninnies just put them on rail cars and just shipped them out to where my boys wanted to put them". "We figure we can put an end to the international squawking from that criminal Clinton with ease now that every bit of the United States Army, Navy and Air Force is in the Middle-East" said Linda LaFemme, personal private secretary to Mr. Anus. A United Nations deputy premier, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said: "Once he sees that all of our...er! the troops are buying tickets for Washington, carrying all their shooters with them, and boarding trains in New York that will take them right to where their tanks are parked and waiting for them, that Clinton crowd will run screaming and crying from Washington and head back to Arkysaw". "This has been one of the better deals I ever made with the United Nations", said Mr. Hussein. "We should do this more often", he said prior to departing for his weekend retreat at Imperial Palace #19. Trophi and Linda were invited to spend the weekend with Mr. Hussein at Imperial Palace #19, but decided they would rather spend it at Imperial Palace #23 which was closer to Baghdad's Saddam Hussein International Airport. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A lady goes into the local sporting goods store to buy a fishing rod to give to her husband for his birthday. A salesman wearing dark glasses with a dog is behind the counter and asks, "Can I help you ma'am ?" "Well, I'd like to buy a fishing rod, can you tell me about this one?" she answers. The salesman replies, "I'm sorry ma'am but I am blind and can not see the rod you're referring too. However, if you'll drop it on the counter I'll tell you all about it as I can tell from the sound it makes." The lady picks up the rod, and does what he says and drops it on the counter. He belts "That's a Zebco 2500, fiberglass, 6.5', medium action - $15." Lady - "Wow !" She finds another and does the same. "Thats an Orion 35C, graphite, 6', light action - best used with ultralight tackle - $20."Very impressed the lady decides to buy the second one. As the man is ringing up the sale, the lady makes a rather large noise as she passes gas but feels no need to apologize as the salesman is blind and has no idea who she is.Salesman says, "That'll be $25." "TWENTY FIVE DOLLARS !? YOU SAID $20?" "That's right mam, $20 for the rod, $3 for the duck call, and $2 for the fish bait." *********************************************** (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) ***********************************************