On 5/1/2010 1:43 PM, John from Detroit wrote:

As recently as Viet Nam they were still using ham gear in the Military.
Good Solid KWM-2's in fact.

I used a KWM-2A and 30L-1 when I ran the Navy MARS station at Danang.

We had a log-periodic at 40 feet, and I was able to reach the states
nine nights out of ten.

The KWM-2A wasn't a perfect radio: at the Air Force MARS station in
Saigon, they had to pair each KWM-2A with a 51S-1 receiver, since the
receiver in the KWM-2A couldn't handle the intermod from adjacent
positions. However, it did combine rugged construction with relative
ease-of-use, and the audio quality helped a lot with noisy phone lines.

73,

Bill W1AC

(Filter QRM for direct replies)

On May 1, 1:43�pm, John from Detroit wrote:
K�HB wrote:

Better in what way?

Better in that it's more advanced..

At the risk of echoing K0HB: More advanced in what way?

Several years ago (about 30) I was
chatting with a ham who had just finished his hitch in the military, He
commented on being ask to check out some equeptment
since he was a
certified electronics tech both in civilian life and military life.

At the time they were still using HT-200's (I
do admit the 200 is more solid (durable) than the 220)

Is an HT-220 really that much more advanced than an HT-200?

I watched his dad bounce a 200 off the pavement.
.....
The radio continued to work.

In a lot of situations - and not just military ones - that it
continued to work is a lot more important than how advanced the radio
is.

I think the main point is that how "good" or "advanced" a rig is
depends in large part on the application, and judging military radio
stuff by amateur standards - or the reverse - is an apples-and-oranges
thing.

For example, the R-390 and R-390A were designed way back in the early
1950s, and one of the requirements was a digital frequency readout. A
lot of mechanical complexity went into producing a system where you
could just look at one set of numbers and know exactly (well, within a
couple of hundred Hz) where the receiver was tuned. No interpretation
needed. Such a feature would not appear in manufactured ham rigs until
the 1960s (National NCX-5) and wouldn't become common in ham rigs
until the 1980s.

Or consider the R-1051 receivers, which used a row of knobs to set
each digit of the frequency, rather than a single large knob. That
kind of frequency control became common in military HF sets but not in
ham gear, because the operating environments are so different.

The T2FD resistively-loaded antenna is another example.

the amplifier or transmistter was a common Ham
unit with a new paint job and military style knobs.

Several pieces of gear, Henry, Collins, Drake and more,
came in civilian and military versions. The only difference
was the olive drab paint and the military style knobs and
an "A" for Army (or some other designator
to indicate the cosmetic differences)

As recently as Viet Nam they were still using ham gear
in the Military. Good Solid KWM-2's in fact

In some roles, yes. But not in all roles. I suspect that the use
of ham gear in military applications came about only when nothing else
was available at the time.

Remember too that a lot of ham gear and components (such as the PTOs
developed by Collins) were originally developed for military
applications and then used for ham stuff.

Plus US military involvement in Viet Nam ended at least 35 years
ago. A lot has changed since then.

73 de Jim, N2EY

On May 1, 10:43�am, John from Detroit wrote:
K�HB wrote:
"John from Detroit" wrote in message
...

So he called back to the states.... �Direct to the President and
founder
of Henry Radio.. yes, the amplifier or transmistter was a common Ham
unit with a new paint job and military style knobs.

Several pieces of gear, Henry, Collins, Drake and more, came in civilian
and military versions. The only difference was the olive drab paint and
the military style knobs and an "A" for Army (or some other designator
to indicate the cosmetic differences)

As recently as Viet Nam they were still using ham gear in the Military.
� Good Solid KWM-2's in fact

The Collins KWM-2 (all-frequency-band maritime version) was used for
MARS under the AN/FRC-93 designation through the Vietnam War. No
change in color or knobs or much of anything else. For reference, see
TM 11-5820-554-12 for the "set-up-and-operate" TM. This is essentially
the Collins document under DoD wrapper. Date of TM is June 1976.

There have been a great number of civilian fixed station equipments that
have been designated as "military" (by the addition of a sticker/label)
as far back as 1953 without any special tests, physical or
electronic, without any changes or additions in appearance. None of
these were intended for field use up to about 1980 or so, therefore they
would not have undergone full environmental testing. Consider them
"COTS" (Commercial Off-The- Shelf) equipments as described by Hans.

Those of us who have served in the USA military usually
define "military" as those equipments which have gone through full
environmental testing and are used in the field or afloat. MARS is not
normally part of the standard tactical communications used by the
military even though such equipment may have military or NSN (National
Stock Number) designations for procurement purposes.

73, Len K6LHA

A real ham is an individual who has successfully become licensed under the
rules for amateur radio in his/her country. Nothing more, nothing less.

73, de Hans, K0HB
"Just a boy and his radio"
--
Proud Member of:
A1 Operators - http://www.arrl.org/awards/a1-op/
MWA - http://www.W0AA.org
TCDXA - http://www.tcdxa.org
CADXA - http://www.cadxa.org
LVDXA - http://www.lvdxa.org
CWOps - http://www.cwops.org
SOC - http://www.qsl.net/soc
TCFMC - http://tcfmc.org
--
Sea stories here --- http://k0hb.spaces.live.com/
Request QSL at --- http://www.clublog.org/logsearch/K0HB
All valid QSL requests honored with old fashioned paper QSL!
LoTW participant




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On Apr 20, 1:53 am, KØHB wrote:

A real ham is an individual who has successfully become licensed under th
e
rules for amateur radio in his/her country. Nothing more, nothing less
..

So much better a definition.

I've always been uncomfortable at the "real" definition, or whatever
is left for those who do not measure up.

Which is why I'm a proud Second class operator, #891 as are you, #291

http://www.qsl.net/soc/

- 73 de Mike N3LI -

Michael J. Coslo wrote:
On Apr 20, 1:53 am, KØHB wrote:

A real ham is an individual who has successfully become licensed under
th
e
rules for amateur radio in his/her country. Nothing more, nothing les
s
..

So much better a definition.

I've always been uncomfortable at the "real" definition, or whatever
is left for those who do not measure up.

Yes, this is by far the best definition I've seen so far.
Without all the other "But they don't know how to..." stuff.

Jeff-1.0
wa6fwi


--
“Egotism is the anesthetic that dulls the pain of stupidity.”
Frank Leahy, Head coach, Notre Dame 1941-1954

http://www.stay-connect.com

Yes, the new ARRL website organization is a train wreck. Broken links
abound!

--



wrote in message
news
On Tue, 20 Apr 2010 01:53:39 EDT, KØHB wrote:

A1 Operators - http://www.arrl.org/awards/a1-op/
A1 Operators - http://www.arrl.org/awards/a1-op/ Page not found!


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"KØHB" wrote

Yes, the new ARRL website organization is a train wreck. Broken links
abound!


They do acknowledge that it's not complete, and offer help finding stuff.
But then you have to wait for an answer....

Worse, it's just plain harder now (for me, anyway) to find things. For
example, Product Reviews are under the Technology tab (I discovered that
after finally entering "product reviews" in the site's search box, upper
right), and then you are grateful that ARRL Laboratory is the first section,
because only the first section is open, and in it you can (finally) see the
text title "Product reviews and test results." If Product Reviews were
elsewhere you'd never find it. Well, you'd find it eventually....

I'm not happy about the results of this reorganization. But no one asked me
to participate in the "focus group."

Howard N7SO

KØHB wrote:
Yes, the new ARRL website organization is a train wreck. Broken links
abound!

That is fairly common when a new page debuts... Alas, one would wish
that they would fully test it but as you know one of Murphy's laws is:

It is impossible to make anything foolproof, because as soon as you do
nature will invent a better fool

Murphy, you know, was a woman.. Yes, a woman. Ask if you need proof

How can you tell if you are a real Ham

1. When you look at a full moon and wonder how much antenna gain you would
need.

2. When a friend gets a ride from you and remarks that you have a lot of CBs
in your vehicle, it turns in to an hour long rant on how ham radio is not CB
radio.

3. When someone asks for directions, you pause, wondering if long or short
path would be best.

4. When you can look at a globe and be able to point to your antipode (and
you know what an antipode is).

5. Your cell phone ring tone is a Morse code message of some kind.

6. You have accidentally said your Amateur Radio call sign at the end of a
telephone conversation.

7. Your favorite vacation spots are always on mountain tops.

8. You notice more antennas than road signs while driving your car.

9. You have driven onto the shoulder of the road while looking at an
antenna.

10. Porcupines appear to be fascinated with your car.

11. If you ever tried to figure out the operating frequency of your
microwave oven.

12. When you look around your bedroom of wall to wall ham gear and ask: Why
am I still single?

13. The local city council doesn't like you.

14. You think towers look pretty.

15. Your family doesn't have a clue what to get you for Christmas, even
after you tell them.

16. Your HF amplifier puts out more power than the local AM radio station.

17. The wife and kids are away and the first thing that goes through your
head is that no one will bother you while you call "CQ DX" a few hundred
times.

18. When you pull into a donut shop and the cops there on their coffee break
ask if they can see your radio setup.

19. You refer to your children as your "Harmonics".

20. Your girlfriend or wife asks: "You're going to spend $XXXX on what?

21. You actually believe you got a good deal on eBay.

22. When you see a house with a metal roof, and your only thought is what a
great ground plane that would be.

23. You have pictures of your radio equipment as wallpaper on your
computer's desktop.

24. Every family vacation includes a stop at a Ham radio store.

25. The first question you ask the new car dealer is: "What is the
alternator's current output"?

26. You buy a brand new car based on the radio mounting locations and
antenna mounting possibilities.

27. You have tapped out Morse code on your car's horn.

28. A lightning storm takes out a new Laptop, Plasma TV, and DVD Recorder,
but all you care about is if your radios are okay.

29. Your wife has had to ride in the back seat because you had radio
equipment in the front seat.

30. Your wife was excited when you were talking about achieving that
critical angle, but very disappointed when you finally did.

31. During a love making session with your wife, you stop to answer a call
on the radio.

32. Your wife says "have a good time" when you tell her that you are going
on a "fox" hunt.

33. Talking about male and female connectors makes you feel excited.

34. You dream of big, comfortable, knobs, but not on women.

35. You always park on the top floor of the parking ramp, just in case you
might have to wait in the car later.

36. When house hunting, you look for the best room for a radio shack and
scan the property for possible tower placement.

37. When house hunting, you give your realtor topographical maps showing
local elevations.

38. The real estate agent scratches his head when you ask if the soil
conductivity is high, medium, or low.

39. You have Ham radio magazines in the bathroom.

40. When your doorbell rings, you immediately shut down the amplifier.

41. Fermentation never enters your mind when "homebrew" is mentioned.

42. Instead of just saying no, you have said "negative".

43. You have used a person's name to indicate acknowledgement.

44. You become impatient waiting for the latest AES catalog to arrive.

45. You have found yourself whistling "CQ" using Morse code.

46. You always schedule the third weekend in May for vacation.

47. You walk carefully in your back yard to avoid being clothes lined.

48. You have deep anxiety or panic attacks during high winds or heavy ice.

49. You and the FedEx/UPS men are on a first name basis.

50. You really start to miss people that you've never seen.

51. Your exercise machine is a Morse code keyer.

52. You walk through the plumbing section at the hardware store and see
antenna parts.

53. Your neighbors thought you were nuts when you ripped up your lawn to
bury chicken wire.

54. Your next door neighbor thinks that your wife is a widow.

55. Your wife has delivered meals to your Ham shack.

56. If you sold all your Ham radio equipment, you could pay off your
mortgage.

--
73, de Hans, K0HB
--
"Just a boy and his radio"
--
Proud Member of:
A1 Operators - http://www.arrl.org/a-1-op
MWA - http://www.W0AA.org
TCDXA - http://www.tcdxa.org
CADXA - http://www.cadxa.org
LVDXA - http://www.lvdxa.org
CWOps - http://www.cwops.org
SOC - http://www.qsl.net/soc
TCFMC - http://tcfmc.org
--
Sea stories here --- http://k0hb.spaces.live.com/
Request QSL at --- http://www.clublog.org/logsearch/K0HB
All valid QSL requests honored with old fashioned paper QSL!
LoTW participant



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