[R-390] Please spare us

[Veenstra, Lester]

Problem with the Racal's is not sensitivity which as a practical matter
is not significant, but rather, the number of spurious responses it had.

Lester Veenstra
Senior Engineering Program Manager
Intelsat General
6550 Rock Springs Drive, Suite 450
Bethesda Maryland, 20817
+1-301-571-1212
e-mail: lester.veenstra at intelsatgeneral.com
 

-----Original Message-----
From: r-390-bounces at mailman.qth.net
[mailto:r-390-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Roy Morgan
Sent: Monday, June 06, 2005 10:36 AM
To: Kenneth Arthur Crips; R-390
Subject: Re: [R-390] Please spare us

At 07:13 PM 6/5/2005, Kenneth Arthur Crips wrote:
>... Instead of arguing which radio is better the discussion sho(uld) 
>center on what is different and why they are different.

Ken,

There is a fellow in my antique radio club (www.maarc.org) who has had a

long and varied career in radio, both military and civilian. He's VERY 
knowledgeable about all sorts of radios. I heard him say once that the 
Racal RA.17 was ten times more sensitive than the R-R90A.  At the time,
I 
though "probably not!"  Then later I got a manual for the Racal (and
later 
yet a radio itself) and found that the specifications for sensitivity
are 
very similar.

I have not yet repaired and aligned the Racal RA.17 UC that I have, so I

can't report on it's performance.

I was interested to see in a Navy training manual, "Cryptological 
Acquisition Equipments" (or some such title) that both the R-390A, and
the 
Racal RA.17 under a military number, are described.

>...the Lysco model 600 Transmaster which has to be one of the worst 
>transmitters ever produced for sale, the engineers who designed this
turd 
>must have been drunk.

OR ... under directions from their employer  that were a severe
compromise 
of quality and performance in the interest of cheapness to make and/or 
production schedules.

I have just acquired an RBB and an RBC, Perhaps the original Boatanchors
at 
85 pounds each plus 55 pounds each power supply.  Designed in the late 
1930's, these have been described as a "dream project" for the RCA 
engineers, with no cost spared for quality and reliability.  I look
forward 
to the day that they are restored and aligned and pulling in the
moderately 
high signal levels they are only capable of.

Roy

- Roy Morgan, K1LKY since 1959 - Keep 'em Glowing!
7130 Panorama Drive, Derwood MD 20855
Home: 301-330-8828 Cell 301-928-7794
Work: Voice: 301-975-3254,  Fax: 301-948-6213
roy.morgan at nist.gov --

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