[Central-Electronics] CE 20A and BC-458 vfo

[Cal Fuhrman]

Nice find Frank.  I'd like to ride along with you on this journey when you
get to it.  Several years ago I was chased home from Orlando Hamcation by a
CE-20A and a very interesting little Amp in an original CE case.  This Amp
has a pair of 832 tube's and looks to be in excellent condition.  So, a few
weeks ago I bid on and purchased the CE VFO from Schulman Auctions.  I'm
also backed up with projects but would really like to get these units back
in use.  I've got a CE-10A and BC -458 that I converted at our Northern
location.  I finished getting that one working some years ago.

With several of us working on the same units it might be helpful to share
experiences.

73
Cal - WA3CTZ


On Sun, Apr 6, 2025, 1:18 PM Frank Barnes <fbw4npn at gmail.com> wrote:

> At the Raleigh Hamfest, I acquired these two units, which apparently have
> not been used for decades so they will require a thorough restoration.
> I'm not even certain why I got them ($30) but I have always been curious
> about phasing-type exciters.  I'm an old-time HF guy (age 84) and still
> like tube-type units.
> I have put together a very rough web page where I'm collecting whatever
> documents I can find regarding these units.  The link is here.
> <https://w4npn.org/central-electronics/>  It will be a while before I can
> restore these since I have a dump-find Heath SB-1000, a 2 x 807 xmtr and a
> workshop power supply in the que first.
> I also printed an old CQ magazine article (*The Command Set Roundup*) that
> speaks to command sets in general and which looks helpful.
> And I see some chatter on the Central Electronics blogging site in the AM
> Phone system.
> I haven't yet opened up the units so I don't know about their internal
> condition but first impression is that they can be refurbished.
> *If anyone knows of other articles, etc., about these Central Electronics
> 20A units, or has advice regarding rebuilding these, please share it! * I
> had no idea how complex the 20A is...looks like excellent engineering for
> the time.
> Advice is welcome.
> Frank
> W4NPN
>
>
> --
> Frank Barnes
> www.W4NPN.net
> Chapel Hill, NC
> Grid Square FM05
> Cell 919.260.7955
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