[R-390] R-390A Census

[Dennis A. Deaton]

Good Morning Gents,

 

I've been reading, with subdued interest in all the postings on the
Fowler-built R-390As.  My question is this:  Is someone putting together a
database of R-390A serial numbers?  If so, I would like to enter my R-390A
from the first Collins contract into it.  

My receiver has an interesting story.  Unlike all the published ideas being
thrown around, the R-390A receiver itself was never a CLASSIFIED piece of
hardware.  It was - and still is - a general purpose HF receiver.  Only its
application could have been classified.  If it was used as a piece of
communication equipment on board a ship of in an Army communication van, its
application was UNCLASSIFED.  If it was used at a three-letter-agency
listening post, its application was CLASSIFIED at the level of
classification of the listening post.  The equipment remained UNCLASSIFIED.
To support this, let me tell you how I first met my own receiver back in
1962.  My father was taking an electronics course at night at our local high
school.  I was 15 at the time and accompanied him to the class.  I sat in
the back of the classroom.  The teacher asked me if I was a ham and I
replied "Yes" (WV6TQG at the time).  Se sent me into a separate room off to
the side to operate the novice station while the class was in session.  Some
novice station!  If was a DX-40 transmitter and an R-390A receiver!  Many
years later, I was working as an Electrical Engineer for the Naval Air
Warfare Center at Point Mugu.  One of my old high school buddies was the
head of the Industrial Arts department at our old high school.  He said that
he had orders to clean out all the equipment from that same school lab and
asked if I wanted that R-390A.  After a short pause, I said "YES!".  Well,
its in my garage in the early stages of clean-up and restoration.  I did
some checking on how the school got the receiver.  All they did was
requisition it through some Defense Department program to provide equipment
for technical education back in the late 50's.  DoD would never give away
CLASSIFIED equipment.  Besides, all CLASSIFED equipment I've ever seen (and
I've seen a lot of it) has classification stickers and placards all over the
cases.  There are none of these markings on the R-390A's.  Hopefully, I'll
soon have the unit up and running.  I don't have a DX-40 to go along with
it, though.  But I do have a Johnson Adventurer.  Talk about an odd couple!
It should work quite well as a CW station.

 

Dennis Deaton, WA6ACC