[Milsurplus] Re B-29 HF Radios

Sun, 05 May 2002 21:32:50 -0700

Hi,

The presentation on the History channel was awesome.  In that presentation, 
they displayed placards (from old Russian archives) of the main systems and 
subsystems that made up the B-29 (TU-4).   In one of these placards I saw 
the ART-13.  I was glued to the set as they described the detail to which 
they went (and were ordered) to backward engineer the parts.  It was 
interesting to see some of the problems they had...including the difference 
between their metric system and our SAE system of measurement.

The Russians have a history of copying American designs....from the B-29 -- 
C-141, C-5 and their Buran "space shuttle."

Check out their Buran space shuttle:

http://aeroweb.lucia.it/~agretch/Buran/gpk94ag_buran2.jpg

73 -- Ben -- WB8HUR

>Ben,
>
>I didn't say the Russians didn't replicate the B-29. As to the transmitters,
>just as they bought some US surplus components to use on the TU-4, they
>could have bought surplus ART-13's, at least for the prototypes.
>None of my Eastern European military collector sources ever saw locally
>anything similar to the ART-13.
>Surplus transmitters and receivers were always issued to the many radio
>amateur clubs throughout the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact, as well as
>were made available to "prominent" hams (read: well-connected to the Party).
>Some of my contacts had original BC-348's and later US-9's, but none had a
>US-made transmitter or a look-alike, nor they have seen any). For surplus
>transmitters they had obsolete Soviet Army or Navy equipment. Command-set
>type equipment is unknown there.
>The BC-221 frequency meter however was copied by the Russians and those were
>made well into the 60's.
>I have a complete Soviet Air Force receiver which replaced the US9, it's
>called the UZH8. It's a remote-controlled receiver, tuned by a 115VAC/400Hz
>servo system from the remote tuning head, while the power supply operates
>from 24VDC and 115 VAC/400Hz. This receiver has miniature tubes, all which
>have US equivalents (6BA6, 6BE6, etc.). The workmanship and construction are
>excellent, it's like a weird combination of Collins and Siemens... The
>connectors look exactly like they could have been made by Cannon!
>
>73, Meir WF2U
>
>
>  -----Original Message-----
>From:   [email protected]
>[mailto:[email protected]]  On Behalf Of Ben Wallace
>Sent:   Sunday, May 05, 2002 11:04 PM
>To:     [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]
>Subject:        RE: [Milsurplus] Re B-29 HF Radios
>
>Hi Meir,
>
>No, that is not correct.  The Russians did replicate a B-29 -- to include
>the avionics.
>
>There was a special on the Discovery cable channel about 3 months ago that
>went into great detail how Stalin ordered the Russians to re-engineer the
>B-29 exactly -- The Russians were successful in most endeavors and only
>made concessions related to machine guns, engines, wheels and tires.  They
>were so successful, and anal, in re-engineering the B-29 that they even
>include a repair patch to the fuselage.
>
>There were a total of three B-29s that the Russians got their hands on:
>
>On July 29, 1944 Ramp Tramp, a B-29-5-BW serial number 42-6256, was unable
>to return to its base after a raid in Manchuria and landed in Vladivostok.
>
>On November 11, 1944 The General H.H. Arnold Special, serial number
>42-6365, was damaged during a raid against Omura on Kyushu was forced to
>divert to Vladivostok
>
>On November 21, 1944 Ding How, serial number 42-6358, also landed in
>Vladivostok.
>
>Check this web site out.
>
>http://www.monino.8m.com/39a.html
>
>Fascinating.
>
>Ben WB8HUR