[Milsurplus] VRC-19, thumbs up or down?

[Skip Frolik]

Ah yes .... AN/TRC-34. Thanks Robert. I knew I should
have gone out to the shop before trusting my old memory .... Hi.
I did verify that the VRC-19 transmitter was a T-278 for high band.
And that it did use 2E24's. One as the 5th doubler / driver and
2 more in the final. Mac made a comment that it was a quick heat
tube and that goes along with the previous comments that the VRC-19
was for more mobile applications. On the contrary the T-416 high band
transmitter used a 2E26 as 5th doubler / driver into a 5894 final.
That being the transmitter I have in the AN/TRC-34 unit in the shop.
Also after looking back in my notes in the library my comments about
6AK6's are only partially correct .... Hi. I had forgotten that only
later transmitters used the 6AK6 as the 3rd and 4th doubler and that
in the earlier runs a 3B4 was used in those positions. My note had
that in "Big Letters" so I guess we must have toasted a few before
picking up on those differences .... Hi. So one should check first.
I think Joe mentioned the single receiver cabinet. I picked up one
of those a few years back. It's up at the comm site in the parts room.
Came from one of our SK MARS member up in Trussville. I had never seen
one of those before. It definitely is long, green and heavy .... Hi.
George commented on the fixed stations. I believe the actual Electrical
Cabinet for them was a CY-1221 as opposed to the CY-938 for the mobile.
I'll bet that cabinet under the AN/TRC-34 was the power amp. I've only
got pieces of the amps but who knows maybe someday I'll find enough to
put one together. Fair had the power supplies but not the "Plug In"
RF deck. Also remember there was a complete series of low band units.
They show up from time to time. Anyway as has been mentioned the main
issue was the fragility of the sub-miniature tubes regarding the 1.4
volt filaments. The voltage regulation of these early 50's rigs was
on the crude side so it didn't take much to toast those filaments.
Now days with the solid state devices we have available we can prevent
a lot of these failures that is if one wants to actually use these rigs.
Eric and others mentioned heat. In fact if I remember correctly (and
I don't feel like going out and popping the cover off one of the VRC-19's
in the warehouse .... Hi) I don't believe any of the dynamotor supplies
(DY-93, 98, 100) had a fan. The AC supplies did have a fan even if it
only operated on transmit. (I believe that's correct). But .... one could
and should mount a muffin fan there to provide some cooling and modify
the case accordingly to release the heat. Things get pretty warm in there.
Course all that being said the real question is why bother ????
Joe said it best .... just because .... Hehehe. Anyway I've had mine
running for several years out in the shop and haven't had to replace any
tubes so maybe I'm just lucky or as we said a few mods make the difference.
Well thanks for the VRC memory lane. Tomorrow is a work day and have to
go work on some sand state comm gear. Oh well as Daffy Duck says ....
It's a livin ....
All take care.
Skip
AAV4HC
-----Original Message-----
From: WA5CAB at cs.com [mailto:WA5CAB at cs.com]
Sent: Sunday, June 20, 2004 03:15 PM
To: frolik at gulftel.com; Milsurplus at mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Milsurplus] VRC-19, thumbs up or down?


Skip,

The fixed version is AN/FRC-27 or AN/TRC-34, so you were close.  :-)  I had
to go and look it up to be sure.  Navy MARS also had a warehouse in New
Orleans full of them up into the 70's.

In a message dated 6/20/2004 2:54:47 PM Central Daylight Time,
frolik at gulftel.com writes:

Don't hear much talk these days about VRC-19's.
But ... set the "Way-Back" machine to the mid 60's.
Alabama MARS must have gotten several box car
loads of VRC-19's and AN/TRC-32's. (I might be
wrong on that second number).


Robert Downs - Houston
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