[Milsurplus] Commonly scarce but normally rare ...

[Eric Jones]

de N4TGC Eric

Here's how I interpret the Stinson Scale:

"Common" - can be found (on ebay or at a 'fest) within a few days, weeks or
months (some items, while piled up in Marty's back room, don't normally show
up on ebay ... ha)

Limited Availability - can be found within a year, for a price that won't
require mortgaging your house (if you can even get credit ...)

Rare/Scarce (these are essentially the same) - may take five years, many
Hamfests, or exhaustive lurking and bidding on auction sites  (not
necessarily costly; just not offered often, such as a Hickok 209A, 288X, RD
Instruments 1600, Browning Labs O'scope with DC Voltmeter: I have all four,
and have never offered them, either here, ebay, or at a 'fest.  ARB control
cables, anyone?)

Unique - only one or two known to exist (example: CM-10 'sled' for the ARC
Type 12 VHF rig, such as Mike Tauson and I both have - BTW, mine is the same 
Navy Grey as the rigs but smooth, has the ARC shield, etc.)

"Extinct" - All known examples have been lost to posterity; may not even
still have printed evidence of their existance, but may surface when an OF
dies ...

I put the first two ratings in qoutation marks, as they tend to be even more
subjective than the in-betweens:  A milsurp rig that may be common near old
mil-bases won't be in my armpit of the U, while some "ultra-rare" Ham rigs
show up with surprising frequency hereabouts.
    e