[Milsurplus] Re: AN/WRT-2

[WA5CAB at cs.com]

Ken,

I worked on those rather extensively while on Active Duty in the late 60's.  
Pretty reliable running 24/7/365.  But they weigh a ton (almost literally), 
and input power is 220/440 3 Phase.  Mostly tube, if I'm not confusing it with 
something else, 807W (or the 4-digit number) finals, 3B28 rectifiers   A few 
discrete transistors in the 1 MHz reference oscillator and part of the divider 
chain.  

Nice to look at but I wouldn't buy one.  Although not as reliable in 24/7 
operation, the AN/URC-32 has similar specs and is a lot lighter.  If I wanted a 
heavy shipboard transmitter of late 50's/early 60's look, I'd go with the 
slightly earlier AN/SRT-14, although I never actually worked on one of those, only 
operated it.

The manual on the WRT-2 is NAVSHIPS 0967-073-3010 (and probably other 
numbers).  I have one but it runs to some 900 pages, a significant fraction of which 
are foldouts.

As to what receiver it would have been paired with, except for 
transmitter-receiver sets like the TCS, or transmitter-receivers like the AN/WRC-1 or 
AN/URC-35, the Navy didn't "pair" transmitters and receivers in general day-to-day 
operations.  I don't know what the practices were on ships built in the 60's 
and later but prior to that back to I'd say 1939 at least, the typical 
organization was that Radio Central had receiver and transmitter transfer switchboards. 
 It also had some of the receivers and some of the operating positions.  
Transmitters and receivers were patched to one or more operating positions.  The 
radios themselves might be scattered all over the ship, especially the 
transmitters and VHF and later UHF radios.

In a message dated 10/14/2005 1:15:23 AM Central Daylight Time, 
kgordon at moscow.com writes: 
> What can anyone tell me about the subject transmitter? By examining 
> one I saw tonight, I know that it covers 2 - 30 Mhz, and outputs multiple 
> modes including ISB, AM, CW, FSK, has a built-in FSKeyer, etc.
> 
> But I need to know how much one might have to pay for such a 
> transmitter, how reliable it might be, how difficult to find, whether 
> manuals are available for it, power output, input voltages/currents 
> required, availability of any special components, etc.
> 
> I assume that it was sometimes paired with the AN/WRR-2 receiver?
> 
> Would it be worth having?
> 

73

Robert Downs - Houston
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