[ARC5] What's a Type 185?

[Mike Morrow]

> Reference ebay item:  280791538833
>
> A Bureau of Aeronautics item - but battery powered? 

Or better, http://www.ebay.com/itm/280791538833

My Type 185 Receiver with Type 186 Battery Box is on a later contract,
NO(as)-2876, serial number 33.  The auction item is NO(as)-185,
serial 501.  Mine was new, never used condition, with the initial
set of dry batteries in the box that have not physically deteriorated
after 67 years.  The paper inspection tag on mine is dated 12-13-44.

There are a lot of mechanical similarities to the earlier Type B-3
beacon band receiver made by Radio Frequency Labs in Boonton, a
predecessor to Aircraft Radio Corporation.  I don't know how
Boonton Radio Company, the maker of the Type 185/186, fits in with
RFL and ARC.  The Type B-3 is of very high quality construction.

This set is a sort of super high quality, very expensive, rather
large and heavy USN version of the popular civilian post-war Motorola
Airboy and the several other commercial portable battery-powered beacon
band receivers that were available to private pilots willing to cough
up $30 (about $300 today) or more!  The single most important piece
of aircraft radio gear for years after WWII was a beacon band receiver.

I seem to recall that the manual for my set specifically mentioned use
in the N3N-3 biplane primary trainer.

Mike / KK5F