[Milsurplus] Vibrators

[Tom Norris]

Which reminds me, is there a noninvasive way of "solid stating"
the GRR-5 receiver power supply and still have it work on the
stock range of voltages?? I love to hear the vibrators hum, but
some day they might refuse to do so.

Tom NU4G

>
>
>My empirical experience indicates something on the order of half a century of
>no use before the contacts don't (make contact).  Ten years ago and back, the
>Korean War vintage ones virtually always worked out of the box and most makes
>of WW-II ones didn't.  Recently (last couple of years at least), Korean War
>ones usually do not work out of the box.   And for both groups, vibrators
>installed in equipment that had been used (i.e., not also NOS) 
>were/are more likely
>to operate without the contact clearance procedure than NOSB units.  So it
>would seem to be elapsed time since last use more than absolute age that
>determines the likelyhood of working on power up.
>
>BTW, yesterday I was in the neighborhood so I dropped by the place where we
>found the receiving antenna multicouplers, but although they let me prowl the
>aisles, they didn't have anything radio related.
>
>In a message dated 6/2/2004 10:07:04 AM Central Daylight Time,
>gl4d21a at juno.com writes:
>>  I recently reassembled a GE Progress Line mobile radio from 1954 for a
>>  vintage police car restoration.  It uses the dual interruptor vibrator,
>>  Mallory 1701 or equivalent.  Based on my previous experiences with
>>  vibrators, I hardly expected to find an operational one, but the first
>>  three I pulled out of the vibrator stash all vibrated on initial
>>  application of power.  I did not try to decipher the date codes on them,
>>  but they have been in dead storage for at least 20 years, so not all
>>  vibrators die in storage from sulfur contamination of the contacts.  I
>>  regret I did not record the manufacturers, but all 3 were different
>>  manufacturers.  I shipped all of them to the restorer along with the
>>  radio in case he gets serious about making the receiver work.
>>
>
>Robert Downs - Houston
><http://www.wa5cab.com> (Web Store)
><wa5cab at cs.com> (Primary email)
><wa5cab at houston.rr.com> (Backup email)
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