[R-390] R390 story

[Llgpt@aol.com]

In a message dated 8/24/02 11:39:19 PM, jshorney@inebraska.com writes:

<< Someone was asking for R390 stories.  This one is from my good friend
Wayne, KE0BZ.  When asked why he doesn't do CW anymore, he says he got
burned out on it.  Wonder why...


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R-390 stories?

Well the most memorable involved a stunt I used to do back in the Navy
down in Panama in 1970.

As a Communications Technician, my job was to spend most of my time
copying code using a couple of rack mount R-390A's.  The headphone
outputs were wired up to a stereo headphone jack that was switched so
we
could listen to either receiver or both (one in each ear).  All our
code
copying was done on an old manual typewriter.  After a few months you
got to where code was so automatic that it did not even register in
your
head, if you heard a di-dah, your left pinky finger automatically hit
the "A" key, and so on.

Whenever we got a new guy fresh out of school, someone would bring the
newbie around to watch me work.  They would see me there with my feet
up, listening to the code station on one side of my headphones,
listening to some good rock and roll on the other side (usually Radio
Nederlands), copying code on the typewriter with one hand, holding a
cup
of coffee in the other hand, and talking to the visitors all at the
same
time (and getting perfect code copy at about 15 groups a minute).  Talk
about multi-tasking!  Needless to say, this always got the new guy
nervous.

There is my big story.

Wayne

 >>

And, a good one.  father was a teletype and crypto technician during the 40's 
through the 60's. We were stationed overseas most of my teen years. Maany 
times I would go with him to Chicksands or Menwith Hill (England) and see 
literally dozens of operators wearing headsets while carrying on 
conversations, drinking coffee, smoking cigarettes and typing out messages. 
And they thought they were normal??

A good friend who was a Naval Intelligence high speed code intercept operator 
during WW2 tells me the same stories. He told me another interesting 
story............zzzzzzz

WAKE UP!!!!!!  This is a good tale:

He was in Tokyo harbor for the signing of the peace treaty. He and others 
were sent aboard japanese ships (what was left) to remove communications 
equipment to send back stateside for examination. They had copies of the 
National HRO's, right down to the diamond with the "N" in it. Ya gotta love 
'em! Then he was due to be discharged, and was asked if he would like to make 
some good money..........he thought about it and said yes. He was discharged 
from the Navy, sent to China and got a crash course in Chinese. They were 
then sent to a listening site near Russia, given Hammarlund Super-Pro's, had 
literally miles of wire antennas. Using wire recorders they copied the 
russians in the clear for a year. Once a week a C-47 would land and drop off 
supplies and pick up the rells of wire tapes. Once a month he was given 
$1,000.00 in american dollars. At the end of the year, he came back and went 
to four years of college in Louisiana, he attained a degree as an EE and ME. 
He is still kicking and is quite fond of R-390's.



                  Les Locklear
" That's my story and I'm sticking to it "