[Milsurplus] More 'Windtalkers' minutiae

[Hue Miller]

Dave Ross tells me in "Windtalkers" the pilot lamps on the TBY  are
always
on. (  Duct tape modification, no doubt.)

But - the TBY used in the movie has a coil spring in the antenna - in
the movie,
it's actually a look-alike made from wood.

The TBYs that had a pilot lamp - the early ones, TBY, TBY-1 and
TBY-2,  had
a simple, straight antenna with no coil spring in it. The later
radios, with no
pilot lamps, but with radium painted panels, did use a coil spring.

BTW, looking at the stitching on the  TBY bag yesterday, i decided
that
even without battery, the load versus the shoulder strap stitching
looks like
a potential problem site. I can see how with a full load, complete
operating
radio, the stitching is just waiting to pull loose. Of course, this
was a wartime
product and not aimed at surviving  well into history.
Hue Miller