[ARC5] RME As Aircraft Radio (?!?)

[Geoff]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Richard Knoppow" <1oldlens1 at ix.netcom.com>
To: "Todd, KA1KAQ" <ka1kaq at gmail.com>; "Mike Morrow" <kk5f at arrl.net>
Cc: <arc5 at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Thursday, November 15, 2012 1:12 PM
Subject: Re: [ARC5] RME As Aircraft Radio (?!?)


>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Todd, KA1KAQ" <ka1kaq at gmail.com>
> To: "Mike Morrow" <kk5f at arrl.net>
> Cc: <arc5 at mailman.qth.net>
> Sent: Thursday, November 15, 2012 9:54 AM
> Subject: Re: [ARC5] RME As Aircraft Radio (?!?)
>
>
>> On Thu, Nov 15, 2012 at 11:49 AM, Mike Morrow
>> <kk5f at earthlink.net> wrote:
>>
>>> One would suspect that the claim made in the auction item
>>> description that
>>> it is a
>>> "Shortwave radio, amplifier and speaker from 1936 removed
>>> from a US
>>> fighter in 1942"
>>> is a bit doubtful.
>>>
>>
>> A BIT?? This receiver is a home/amateur receiver from the
>> mid 30s, in no
>> way compatible or even desirable for aircraft use. The
>> DB-20 is required
>> for acceptable reception above 18-20mc.
>>
>> Could've possibly been used as a ground station receiver,
>> but it would've
>> been in one of those 'this or nothing' situations. These
>> things were
>> rapidly outpaced by the Super Pro, HRO, etc. well prior to
>> the war.
>>
>> Definitely a funny read. Looks like it's been buggered up
>> with an
>> additional switch as well as some well-intentioned
>> polishing of the painted
>> brass dials that were never meant to be shiny beyond the
>> raised numerals.
>> Appears to have been oversprayed or wiped with a new coat
>> of black paint,
>> too.
>>
>> ~ Todd,  KA1KAQ/4
>
>     A receiver for a ground station would have the low
> frequency bands used for aeronautical purposes, generally
> 200 to 400 Khz.  The Super-Pro, HRO, and other receivers
> were supplied in special versions for this.
>     I think people are very confused by much of anything
> that is old. Old meaning it was made before _they_ were
> about ten years old.
>     For some reason RME liked the idea of a separate
> pre-selector. Perhaps it was because it resulted in cheaper
> receivers and gave them a second product to sell which could
> be applied to many other receivers.  At some point, after
> WW-2 RME also made a converter to allow reception of higher
> frequencies on receivers limited to a high end of around
> 18Mhz, which included a lot of the surplus military
> receivers.  I have no idea how well this thing worked but it
> would have knocked image response down a lot more than the
> pre-selector. They were not made for long.  RME also made
> VHF converters but those stayed in the catalogue for years.
>     A curious company; they used to advertise that they
> would customize receivers for customers. Like other
> companies who merged with larger ones it did not survive the
> merger for long.
>
>
> --
> Richard Knoppow
> Los Angeles
> WB6KBL
> dickburk at ix.netcom.com


At the beginning of WW2 the military was begging for hams to "loan" their 
receivers and transmitters to the cause. While most didnt cover below the 
BCB they certainly were useful to the Army and Navy shore installations