[Milsurplus] ] Re: RBF-3 (David Stinson)

[Hue Miller]

----- Original Message ----- 

> I finally located the RBF-3 entry in NAVSHIPS 900,116 (April, 1946).  
> Says"The Model RBF-3 Equipment is designed to receive frequency modulated signals 
> transmitted by the Sono Radio Buoys anchored offshore".  In other words, it's a 
> shore-based receiver for a harbor ASW system.  Tunes 70-90 MC with a 10-Channel 
> automatic tuner to automatically monitor groups of 6, 8 or 10 sonobuoys.  
> Receiver is CQW-46204.  Tuner is CQW-10177.  Antenna assembly is CQW-66084.  No 
> TM reference given.

Interesting. So that thing listed on Epay, is it unified, accounting for the weight, or is
that the tuner part only? I think the 10-presets business also accounts for the big
weight. It would be interesting to know what the sonobuoys were and how often
the batteries were serviced, for example.
I notice that on some of this VHF wartime equipment the operational specifications
were close to postwar broadcast standards. This thing uses 75 kHz deviation and 
70-90 and would actually work for some of the postwar FM band, as-is. ( Too heavy
for me, tho, i think. )  The AXR-1/ AXT-1  airborne TV, except for the tuning range,
is close enuff to the postwar TV standards that it could work for TV broadcast
reception too.  I don't know if this was the military electronics equipment 
manufacturers just adopting established technique to wartime equipment or, 
postwar broadcast equipment being based on wartime developments, but i 
suspect it was more the former, since FM and  TV were already going, when the
war started. -Hue Miller