[Milsurplus] what "ARC-5" stuff is

[Eric Jones]

de N4TGC Eric

It seems I must apologize - I did not realize so many on the milsurp list didn't
know what ARC-5 type equipment is, and don't recognize the nomenclature.  So
here goes:

The BC-459-A is a natural-aluminum-finish crystal-controlled transmitter, part
of WW2 Navy aircraft sets known as SCR-274-N.  It covers 7-9.1 mc (i.e., 40
meters), has a trio of octal sockets along the back shelf, one for a +ACM-1629
tuning eye, a 1626 triode oscillator, and the crystal which controls it,
(under)driving a pair of 1625 tetrode tubes mounted amidships.  It normally
plugged into a rack with other +ACI-Command+ACI- tx's of different frequencies.  The
correct socket on the back, a mica job, has been removed, and an octal put in -
see my ad for mention of the other externally visible mods.  I haven't opened it
yet, but there's not a host of holes blown in the chassis, so I have hopes ...
there should be numerous photos online of what they looked like originally.
Just google on BC-459-A, or Command Sets, or ARC-5, or SCR-274-N, or some
variations thereof.

The other two rigs are receivers, neither of which would have been used directly
with the tx.  The one covering 190-550kc was for navigation+ADs- the other, 1.5-3mc,
the 160-meter band.  This one is quite rare, being an early model, of the ARA
system which preceeded the ARC-5 and SCR-274-N series.

I'm sure I managed to mangle this sketch, but it would take WAY too much b/w for
me to give Command set history and the gazillion models and variations within.
Now +ACo-there's+ACo- something I bet's online: Command set history+ACE-

I'll go ahead and open these up and clean around on them and take some .jpg's.
This will take me a week or two (doesn't everything?+ACE-)

To Bill:  yep, I gotcher pix.  Pleased to see your progress in bringing one back
to life.  Maybe we can work a deal where you get the HV cover off this 459 ...
e