[ARC5] Inspired Hack Job

[Robert Nickels]

On 3/6/2013 10:50 AM, Geoff wrote:
> My W2EWL exciter was an excellent analogy to that T.
>
> The many BC-458's that were used as VFO's for Central Electronics rigs 
> and even provided by CE in a nice cabinet allowed thousands to get 
> their feet wet in SSB. I wound up with 3 that I converted. One for a 
> 20A on HF and the others for 6 and 2M transmit converters driven by a 
> 10A and 10B operating on 20M.
>
> Many are still in use. They had no other use in the ham world that 
> didnt require extensive mods
>
> Gonset used the BC-458 oscillator in the GSB-100 as did a few others. 

Yep, including the Lakeshore Phasemaster I'm working on now that you can 
see here:
http://smg.beta.photobucket.com/user/ranickel/library/Lakeshore%20Phasemaster

Unlike CE which repackaged the entire 458 as a VFO, Lakeshore extracted 
the precision tuning components and installed them on a new chassis.   
What may look like hacking through todays lens was just smart business 
back then, viewed the same as using a PC component would be today.   I 
don't think many would argue that the ARC-5 variable capacitor is still 
unmatched,  doubtless in part because the incentive to do so ceased to 
exist with the PTO and then digital tuning methods.

I like Carls analogy to the Model T, and hold Tony Vitale (the original 
W2EWL) in high esteem for coming up with a design that made use of the 
ubiquitous and cheap ARC-5 chassis and components yet still making it 
possible to duplicate by the average ham.   I've recently been working 
to remedy some deficiencies in my "Cheap and Easy", namely the 3rd 
harmonic of the VFO that appears in the 20 meter output.  But when you 
consider that most hams back then drove amplifiers with them (or in 
Tony's case, ran it into a mobile whip) - they added another tuned 
circuit that attenuated the undesired signal.  The W2EWL rig is a marvel 
of simplicity and innovative packaging.   And by the way, Ken Kinderman 
who currently holds that callsign was a kid in NYC who remembers Tony 
coming to radio club meetings and spreading the word about cheap and 
easy SSB back in the 50s.    I'm glad that someone who is aware of the 
historic significance now holds that call.

I use my CE 458  VFO and 10A exciter on the air regularly and am always 
impressed with the (relative) stability of the VFO, it's a good reminder 
of the care and skill of the original designers and builders.   I hope 
to be able to put the W2EWL on 20 meters as well as 75 soon.

73, Bob W9RAN