[TMC] Rare TMC TSTE-10K needs a new home!

[John Vendely]

Gents,

Well, It's the remains of the 10 kW PA section of a TSTE-10K, anyway.  
The entire left-hand side of the transmitter, which once housed the 
synthesized exciter, is missing, as is the intermediate power amp (IPA), 
which was based on TMC's standard 2.5 kW amplifier.  The left-hand 
section also contained the PA primary control circuitry, with step-start 
timer and primary dropping resistors, plus meters for PA bias, plate 
voltage, and plate current.  In addition, all the automatic tune and 
load servo modules are missing, and numerous small parts are gone.  The 
filament transformer and HV choke are not missing, but have been removed 
from the middle section of the PA cabinet, and are lying on the floor in 
the front where the 3-phase HV transformer once was.  The IPA cable 
harness has been cut and connectors removed, power supply cooling fan 
has been removed, and the PA screen regulator assembly has been 
cannibalized.  The grey squirrel-cage blower on the floor in one of the 
pix is not part of this transmitter.  Other than the missing servo 
modules, the RF section of the 10 kW PA is essentially complete, and 
still in pretty good condition.  Any interested restorers should be 
certain that the loose 3-phase power transformer is indeed the HV 
transformer, and not the 440 to 220 VAC 3-phase stepdown transformer 
most of these transmitters had.  It is slightly smaller than the plate 
transformer, but looks very similar.  The HV rectifier drawer appears 
complete.

It's not surprising that the exciter and IPA are missing, as these were 
the primary items of "commercial" value in this transmitter, from the 
viewpoint of the ham radio world.  The exciter and IPA (which used a 
5CX3000), with addition of a suitable power supply, would make a dandy 
2.5 kW HF transmitter which would beat the living crap out of the best 
amateur gear ever made.  This is probably what was done with this 
transmitter.  Indeed, TMC made just such a transmitter, the TST-2.5K.

I am certain this transmitter was one of the TSTE-10Ks produced in 1965 
for NASA for use in their HF comms network, ground and maritime.  The 
Apollo Range and Instrumentation Ships all had them, as well as the 
enormous TMC DDR-506 diversity receivers. They were also used in the 
ground stations as well.   The USNS Redstone, one of the original NASA 
R&I ships, had six TSTE-10K transmitters and one DDR-506 receiver (eight 
4-channel sideband DDR-5s!) on board.  It was with NASA (though "sailed" 
by the Navy) up until just after Apollo 11, at which time the ship was 
turned over to the Air Force and operated jointly by Air Force and Navy 
personnel.  This accounts for the Air Force asset tags, which most of 
the TMC "green gear" have.  I do have some green gear which has "NASA 
Wallops" asset tags.  NASA apparently had an HF station on Wallops 
Island.  For many years USNS Redstone was stationed at Port Canaveral, 
where it was used on the Eastern Test Range in support of further Apollo 
missions, as well as Apollo-Soyuz, Skylab, and various Navy missile test 
missions.

Large quantities of the "NASA green" TMC systems were surplussed out 
here on the Space Coast around 1980, when the 1960s vintage equipment 
was retired and replaced with Collins HF-80 systems. I've picked up a 
pretty good stash of the stuff over the years at local hamfests and 
surplus dealers, and have one of the SBG-3 exciters operational, 
installed with a PAL-1K amplifier and in regular use.

Based on its asset tag number, and since it was released here on the 
Space Coast, I believe this is transmitter number 6 from the USNS 
Redstone.  Perhaps Neil de P. can verify this in the records.  I have a 
bunch of this gear which came with DRMO release documents stating it was 
removed from the Redstone in 1980, and the exciter components have asset 
tags of identical style.  In fact, the tag on one reads" P/O 1-25889.  
The tag on Bill's transmitter reads "P/O 1-25881.  It's also possible 
it's one of the transmitters from the Malabar Transmitter Annex.   For 
decades, Malabar was the HF transmitter site for Cape Radio, also with 
TMC equipment, and operated by the Air Force.  I believe the receiver 
site was at Canaveral.  BTW, the HF systems at Malabar were finally 
dismantled after the Space Shuttles were retired.

Alas, cannibalization was the endpoint for virtually all the big 
TMC/NASA HF systems.  Though they were released essentially intact and 
would have been easily restorable then, with the passage of more than 30 
years there's virtually none of it left intact today.  Retrieving all 
the missing pieces of such a transmitter would be a long shot at best, 
but this rig would make an excellent parts unit for restoring a more 
complete specimen, if anyone is fortunate enough to have one.  I wish 
I'd been in the area early enough to have saved one.  I sincerely hope 
someone will give it a go...

73,

John K9WT
Malabar, FL

p.s., TMC also supplied GPT-10Ks, GPT-40ks and diversity receivers with 
the GPR-91RXD and SBC-9 to NASA under contract to Western Electric for 
the Mercury Tracking Network back in the Project Mercury days.  JP, a 
detailed chapter on "TMC equipment in the manned space program" would be 
a fabulous addition to your epic TMC history--which we all await with 
bated breath...




On 7/26/2014 11:11 PM, Robert Nickels wrote:
> On 7/26/2014 4:47 PM, John Poulton wrote:
>> This rig appears to be a TSTE-10K.
> Ya made me look ;-)   Wow, what an impressive piece of engineering 
> this was.   The "TechniMatiC" servo auto-controls alone must have been 
> a bigger design effort than most complete transmitters. Looking at the 
> picture and manuals on the tmchistory site I see the full 
> configuration included another auxiliary frame alongside that 
> contained a four-channel SSB exciter that generated all modes on a 
> 1.75 Mhz carrier with output from 2-32 Mhz.   The final PA took the 
> 1/4 watt out of the exciter to 10KW with a 4CX5000 PA, not 
> surprisingly running on 3 phase power.
>
> A timely thing to look at considering the 45th anniversary of the 
> Apollo 11 moon landing this past week (according to the photo, the 
> TSTE-10K was used in the Apollo program).
>
> 73, Bob W9RAN
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