[Hallicrafters] HA-6 and HA-2 transverters

[Peter Bertini]

I was afraid Heath didn't offer a matching six meter mate for the SB-500. I
see quite a few of the Hallcrafters models, but they've all been rust
buckets and are always missing the cables and the even rarer power supply.
In almost 50 years of hamming I've never seen the P&H transmitter converter,
so that one wins the prize for rarity.  I'll keep poking around for HA-2 and
HA-6 combo. I'm almost tempted to find a Johnson 6N2 and use it for
the start of a homebrew a dual band TX transverter :)

Pete k1zjh
On Mon, Aug 9, 2010 at 7:24 PM, <N4ch at aol.com> wrote:

>  Good luck in your search for a tube-type transverter.   Heath made just
> ONE (the SB-500) transverter.......it would "convert" your 10 meter or 6
> meter IF (U chose which IF U wanted, and used the appropriate parts to build
> it for that application) to 2 meters.   They never made any other
> transverters besides this one (they made the SB-110/A transceivers for 6
> meters, but they never had any tube-type transverters for 6, or SSB
> transceivers for 2 meters).   Heath did make two different types of receive
> converters for both bands.......the XC-6 and XC-2 were from the "Mohawk"
> era.   Later, they made some smaller, less elaborate converters for the
> SB-300/301 receivers in the 1960s.   The SB-500 is quite rare, and it's not
> all that great a performer.   Another transverter series from this era U
> might want to consider (and these are a lot more common than the SB-500 and
> the Hallicrafters HA-6/2) are the various versions of the Swan 2 meter
> TV-2.   These could be configured for either a 6 meter IF (to use with the
> Swan 250/C), or a 20 meter IF (to use with the 350/C, 500/C/CX, etc).   I
> bet I see about 8-10 of these for every SB-500 or HA-2/HA-6, and they work
> pretty well.   Swan made quite a few improvements from the original TV-2
> thru the TV-2C, but all worked pretty well, and are simple to use.   The
> main disadvantage the original TV-2 had was that U had to "re-cable" things
> to disable it, and use the IF rig as a stand-alone radio on its original (6
> or 20 meters) bands.   Later models added a front panel switch, so one could
> do this a lot easier.   I think all of the TV-2s had a 5894 final (good for
> about 100 watts out), and (like the SB-500) had a Nuvistor front end.
> Drake also had gear that would get U on VHF, but their offerings are hard to
> find.   They went a different route.........they made solid-state receive
> converters (that one could mount in a "console" box, along with power supply
> and crystal calibrator), and the tube-type transmitter converters (these
> were also available for 6 or 2 meters) were separate.   I think their 6 and
> 2 meter offerings all used a 20 meter IF.
>
> I still have the SB-500 I built about 40 years ago, and the TV-2 that I got
> shortly after that.......made a ton of Oscar 6 contacts with both.
>
> Good luck and 73, Herman, N4CH.
>
>