[Hallicrafters] Radio Pioneer Frank Lester SK

Wed Sep 27 20:10:07 EDT 2006

Outstanding job Dave, thank you very much for sharing this. It is Electric 
Radios loss - but then again, they really do not have an Editor either. More 
would see it here!
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "David Thompson" <thompson at mindspring.com>
To: <Hallicrafters at mailman.qth.net>; "Old Tube Radios" 
<boatanchors at theporch.com>
Sent: Wednesday, September 27, 2006 7:20 PM
Subject: [Hallicrafters] Radio Pioneer Frank Lester SK


> Frank I. Lester W4AMJ, Ex W2AMJ and 2MJ passed away recently at 99.  The
> Fall issue of the QCWA Bulletin has a recent picture.
>
> Frank was first licensed in 1920 and worked for  Mesco and Lafayette 
> before
> World war II.  He met his wife at Lafayette and got Lafayette started in 
> the
> Kit business way before Heath came along.   He worked for Insuline during 
> WW
> II and after the war went to work for Link along with Stu Meyer W2GHK.
>
> In the mid 1950's hammarlund had lost their way in Amateur Radio products
> and Frank Sylvester then sales manager at Hammarlund signed on Frank to be
> the sales tech.  Frank said there were no hams on the engineering staff 
> and
> he pushed them to get their ham licenses.  Soon Frank was the man from
> Hammarlund you saw at shows and hamfests becoming the Sales Manager.   His
> first project was to call Frank Sylvester at Henry Radio and tell him not 
> to
> sell them the requested 100 Pro-310's.  The receiver was a mess and the 
> drum
> mechanism cost hammarlund $75 each so they would not make much on each
> receiver even if sold.  Frank led the process to bring the 310 to specs 
> but
> since the profit per unit was so low Lloyd Hammarlund soon decided to pull
> the receiver from the market.
>
> In addition to being the Sales Manager, Frank soon functioned as Chief
> Design Engineer and the new look arrived in a General Coverage Receiver, 
> the
> HQ-100.  But Frank was hard at work on a new design that would be 
> profitable
> and put Hammarlund back on the map.  He churned out a Ham band Only 
> Receiver
> in 1957 called the HQ-110.  But his real accomplishment was the Hammarlund
> HC-10 converter that made virtually any 455 kcs IF receiver a modern
> CW/SSB/AM receiver.  The design was later incorporated in the HQ-170, 145,
> and 180.
>
> Frank also took ownership of the Super Pro 600 and produced numerous notes
> and sold several dozen versions to hams and the military.
>
> Since the ownership of Hammarlund changed several times Frank brough in 
> his
> old friend Stu Meyer W2GHK to be the Chief Engineer and later President.
> Stu was the architect of the modern factory at 7388 mammarlund Drive In 
> Mars
> Hill, NC.
>
> When hammarlund moved everything to mars Hill Frank became a independent
> sales Rep for hammarlund and W2AU products.  He retired and moved to
> Englewood, Fl in 1970.
>
> Frank was a charter member of QCWA (Member number 3) and actually came up
> with the name for the organization.  He was a VHF pioneer and a Dxer.  I
> remember W4 April May and June working DX on Long Path 20 in the early
> 1970's.  His QSO pals included W8GZ (Windy Windom), W5AG and others. 
> Frank
> ran a small amp and a tri-bander but with his Florida QTH could hang in 
> with
> the best of them!
>
> He was active to the end although he moved to an ssisted living home 
> several
> years ago.  His first request was for a 2 meter rig to stay in touch with
> QCWA and friends.
>
> I have an excellent taped interview with Frank from May 1997 which I
> translated to a written interview and sent to Electric Radio 2 years ago.
> So far ER has not seen fit to print the interview.
>
> RIP Frank we are all indebted to such pioneers!
>
> 73 Dave K4JRB
>
>
> ______________________________________________________________
> Hallicrafters mailing list
> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/hallicrafters
> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.html
> Post: mailto:Hallicrafters at mailman.qth.net
> ----
> List Administrator: Duane Fischer, W8DBF **for assistance**
> dfischer at usol.com
> ----
> Hallicrafters Collectors International: http://www.w9wze.org
>
>
>
> -- 
> No virus found in this incoming message.
> Checked by AVG Free Edition.
> Version: 7.1.405 / Virus Database: 268.12.8/455 - Release Date: 9/22/2006
>
>