[ARC5] ARC-5 and BC-4xx Serial Number Question

[WA5CAB at cs.com]

With one minor quibble, my information agrees with Mike's.

Serial Numbers were assigned by component on those components that carried 
Serial Numbers (not all did, and some that did early in the War did not 
later).  There are numerous examples that substantiate this.  Early radios with 
plug-in tuning units such as BC-191 and BC-223 were issued with all tuning 
units having the same serial number as the transmitter.  The BC-1306 and the 
RT-77/GRC-9 were originally issued with matching serial numbers on the 
receiver, transmitter and case.  However, depots made no effort to keep the 
serial numbers matched on the last two sets.  And I seriously doubt that any 
effort was made to match serial numbers on ARA/ATA or SCR-274-N components 
initially installed in any given aircraft.  I know for a fact (conversation with 
my father-in-law who flew B-24's in the Pacific) that no such matches were 
worried about in theater.

Every TM I have ever seen that quoted a serial number in the context of a 
component change made during production also quoted an Order Number.  The 
same thing is true of Navy serial numbers versus changes except that given the 
Nayv's SOP to increment the radio set model number with each new contract, a 
Navy manual would say something like Serial Number nnnn of TCS-12 and 
Serial Number mmm of TCS-13 instead of quoting a Contract Number.  All of which 
in general argues for Serial Numbers starting over with each new Contract 
(Navy) or Order (Signal Corps).

Minor trivia point - a Navy Contract is equivalent to a Signal Corps Order. 
 So many of such and such radio set for so many dollars to be delivered by 
some date.  I don't know what the Navy called their equivalent agreement but 
a Signal Corps Contract was an open-ended agreement for the duration to 
build any type of widgets that the Signal Corps might decide that they needed 
and to put up with Signal Corps Inspectors and other administrative matters.  
The legal agreement to build so many of a specific radio or radio set for 
however much money was an Order.  Signal Corps technical documents never 
mention Contracts.

Robert D.
 

In a message dated 02/03/2013 22:31:06 PM Central Standard Time, 
kk5f at earthlink.net writes: 
> John wrote:
> 
> >Just out of curiosity, were the Serial Numbers assigned sequentially for
> >each type, or across all production?
> >
> >Ie: Was there:
> >
> >BC-453  S/N 1000
> >BC-454  S/N 1000
> >BC-455  S/N 1000
> >etc ...
> 
> AFAIK, serial numbers started from 1 with each new contract, for each 
> component.
> I have some late SCR-274-N components with low serial numbers that can't 
> possibly
> represent the numbers of such components that had been made at that point.
> 
> I even have a USAF contract A.R.C. R-15 with serial number 1...but made 
> under
> a late contract.
> 
> I'll bet that others here have more accurate info on this aspect.
> 
> Mike / KK5F
> 

Robert Downs - Houston
wa5cab dot com (Web Store)
MVPA 9480