Oh, Wow! Doug, that technique was never taught at this outpost. But
studying, with crossed eyes, the arc reaching the tip of one's nose was
instructional.
Nope, not me. I did a small amount of radar and HF AM work in the late
50s, early 60s on the Oregon coast, and then spent 20 years in the US
Navy,
retiring as a CTMCS. Did some part time marine work when I was stationed
in
the Aleutians in 70-72 and in Maine 76-84. I have only been into it full
time for about 4 years now, after high tech manufacturing crashed in this
area.
Had an installer come begging for a digital VOM the other day as his went
"over the side". I handed him a Simpson 260. He looked puzzled and asked
what that antique does. He was Air Force trained, so guess that explains
it.
He declined my offer as it was "too complex".

Our main troubleshooting instrument when I was a young mechanic in the Air
Force was the PSM-6. (early '50s to late '70s). In a second life, after Air
Force, Jerry Hamilton, my marine electronics mentor at Whatcom Marine
Electronics in Anacortes wouldn't allow a digital VOM in the shop. He fired
one tech who was addicted to digital and wouldn't do field work without a
scope. (we only had one scope, and it was sorely needed at the swamped
repair bench)
Old Chief Lynn, W7LTQ (ex-Aircraft Maintenance Superintendent)

In article ,
"Lynn Coffelt" wrote:

Our main troubleshooting instrument when I was a young mechanic in the Air
Force was the PSM-6. (early '50s to late '70s). In a second life, after Air
Force, Jerry Hamilton, my marine electronics mentor at Whatcom Marine
Electronics in Anacortes wouldn't allow a digital VOM in the shop. He fired
one tech who was addicted to digital and wouldn't do field work without a
scope. (we only had one scope, and it was sorely needed at the swamped
repair bench)
Old Chief Lynn, W7LTQ (ex-Aircraft Maintenance Superintendent)

Now there is a name I haven't heard in a few years, (Decades)....
How is old Jerry (Hamilton) do'in these days? I haven't heard
of Whatcom Marine Electronics for a while either, and figured Billy
"Radar" Pulse had stolen all their business, and they had folded.
If you see Jerry these days, tell him "Hello" from Bruce Gordon...


Bruce in alaska
--
add a 2 before @

Now there is a name I haven't heard in a few years, (Decades)....
How is old Jerry (Hamilton) do'in these days? I haven't heard
of Whatcom Marine Electronics for a while either, and figured Billy
"Radar" Pulse had stolen all their business, and they had folded.
If you see Jerry these days, tell him "Hello" from Bruce Gordon...


Bruce in alaska
Jerry Hamilton left me running the Anacortes shop for Whatcom Marine
Electronics in mid 1978, and went to Ketchekan to try to start a Whatcom
shop there. I haven't had much personal contact with him since. He was a
straight arrow guy with lots of pressures. I, too would like to hear from
him. He helped me a lot, and I never had a chance to thank him.
Whatcom Marine Electronics made a big expansion into Nordic Marine
Electronics with shops and seasonal service reps in several locations. When
the king crab boom started to flounder and Bristol Bay took a dive, I got
some help from several people to separate from them and become Anacortes
Marine Electronics. Which is still plugging away without me.
Jerry Writer, one of the two original owners of Whatcom Marine Electronics,
owns and operates San Juan Electronics. Doing quite well, and surviving a
stone's throw from Bill Pulse's empire in Bellingham.
Me, a "Johnny Come Lately" turned "Has-been".
Lynn, W7LTQ, Once Radiotelephone First! (now general......grrrr)

In article ,
"Lynn Coffelt" wrote:

Now there is a name I haven't heard in a few years, (Decades)....
How is old Jerry (Hamilton) do'in these days? I haven't heard
of Whatcom Marine Electronics for a while either, and figured Billy
"Radar" Pulse had stolen all their business, and they had folded.
If you see Jerry these days, tell him "Hello" from Bruce Gordon...


Bruce in alaska
Jerry Hamilton left me running the Anacortes shop for Whatcom Marine
Electronics in mid 1978, and went to Ketchekan to try to start a Whatcom
shop there. I haven't had much personal contact with him since. He was a
straight arrow guy with lots of pressures. I, too would like to hear from
him. He helped me a lot, and I never had a chance to thank him.
Whatcom Marine Electronics made a big expansion into Nordic Marine
Electronics with shops and seasonal service reps in several locations. When
the king crab boom started to flounder and Bristol Bay took a dive, I got
some help from several people to separate from them and become Anacortes
Marine Electronics. Which is still plugging away without me.
Jerry Writer, one of the two original owners of Whatcom Marine Electronics,
owns and operates San Juan Electronics. Doing quite well, and surviving a
stone's throw from Bill Pulse's empire in Bellingham.
Me, a "Johnny Come Lately" turned "Has-been".
Lynn, W7LTQ, Once Radiotelephone First! (now general......grrrr)



Oh, don't give "Me" a hard time, He has been around the industry
longer than I have. I used to work with him over at Northern
Radio back in the early 70's. He was an excellent tech and
Poineered, a lot of the Point to Point VHF Paths that are still
in use up in Bristol Bay, between the villages, and Naknek/King Salmon.


Bruce in alaska one of the few with an Aircraft Endosement on
his ticket.......
--
add a 2 before @

Bruce in alaska one of the few with an Aircraft Endosement on
his ticket.......

I always coveted an Aircraft Endorsement, but after I got the Radar
Endorsement, work and feeding four hungry mouths sort of saturated all the
time that existed.
Northern was always King, I guess, I admired the company, and even did
a couple of quick contract jobs for them.
When I needed another load of Morad antennas, I was too cheap to have
them delivered, so Morad would put them under Northern's dumpsters at close
of day, and I'd drive down after work and pick them up. What impressed me
more than anything was that they had "business" hours. A concept completely
foreign to Anacortes.
Lynn, W7LTQ

"Lynn Coffelt" wrote in message
...
Bruce in alaska one of the few with an Aircraft Endosement on
his ticket.......

I always coveted an Aircraft Endorsement, but after I got the Radar
Endorsement, work and feeding four hungry mouths sort of saturated all the
time that existed.
Northern was always King, I guess, I admired the company, and even
did
a couple of quick contract jobs for them.
When I needed another load of Morad antennas, I was too cheap to have
them delivered, so Morad would put them under Northern's dumpsters at
close
of day, and I'd drive down after work and pick them up. What impressed me
more than anything was that they had "business" hours. A concept
completely
foreign to Anacortes.
Lynn, W7LTQ


Speaking of Aircraft endorsement, I watched an old John Wayne movie "Island
in the Sky" last week on TV (an Ernie Gahn book). The radio op was running
what appeared to be a BC348 receiver, and an ART-13 transmitter with a bug.
It was in a WWII C-47 (DC-3) plane.
Did Northern ever make military receivers? I remember a Northern Electric or
Northern Radio version of the Hammurlund SP-600 that I worked on back in the
late 60s. I thought it was a Canadian firm that made them under a NATO
contract. However, one Navy guy from the pacific NW said they were made in
Seattle.
Speaking of business hours...I remember a coax distributor in Portland who
would hide rolls of coax under his shipping dock so they could be picked up
in the early AM on the way to work at the old Portland Radio Supply. You
don't get that kind of deal anymore.

73
Doug K7ABX

In article ,
"Lynn Coffelt" wrote:

Bruce in alaska one of the few with an Aircraft Endosement on
his ticket.......

I always coveted an Aircraft Endorsement, but after I got the Radar
Endorsement, work and feeding four hungry mouths sort of saturated all the
time that existed.
Northern was always King, I guess, I admired the company, and even did
a couple of quick contract jobs for them.
When I needed another load of Morad antennas, I was too cheap to have
them delivered, so Morad would put them under Northern's dumpsters at close
of day, and I'd drive down after work and pick them up. What impressed me
more than anything was that they had "business" hours. A concept completely
foreign to Anacortes.
Lynn, W7LTQ



Yep, I worked for Dennis, and Chuck (the Yellow page salesman) for a few
years after they bought out Northern Marine Electronics, from Northen
Radio as the Service Department. Smoke O'kelly was still at NME, when I
left but Lou Navarre had already gone by then.Had a very good
relationship with Eddie Zanbergen over at Morad as well, before he died.
Still use Morad stuff alot up here. Very good stuff for band weather.
Ahhhhh, "the Good Old Days"......

Bruce in alaska
--
add a 2 before @

In article . net,
"Doug" wrote:

"Lynn Coffelt" wrote in message
...
Bruce in alaska one of the few with an Aircraft Endosement on
his ticket.......

I always coveted an Aircraft Endorsement, but after I got the Radar
Endorsement, work and feeding four hungry mouths sort of saturated all the
time that existed.
Northern was always King, I guess, I admired the company, and even
did
a couple of quick contract jobs for them.
When I needed another load of Morad antennas, I was too cheap to have
them delivered, so Morad would put them under Northern's dumpsters at
close
of day, and I'd drive down after work and pick them up. What impressed me
more than anything was that they had "business" hours. A concept
completely
foreign to Anacortes.
Lynn, W7LTQ


Speaking of Aircraft endorsement, I watched an old John Wayne movie "Island
in the Sky" last week on TV (an Ernie Gahn book). The radio op was running
what appeared to be a BC348 receiver, and an ART-13 transmitter with a bug.
It was in a WWII C-47 (DC-3) plane.
Did Northern ever make military receivers? I remember a Northern Electric or
Northern Radio version of the Hammurlund SP-600 that I worked on back in the
late 60s. I thought it was a Canadian firm that made them under a NATO
contract. However, one Navy guy from the pacific NW said they were made in
Seattle.
Speaking of business hours...I remember a coax distributor in Portland who
would hide rolls of coax under his shipping dock so they could be picked up
in the early AM on the way to work at the old Portland Radio Supply. You
don't get that kind of deal anymore.

73
Doug K7ABX




I believe that Northern did make some stuff on Contract for the Military
during the war, as I saw some old stuff on the shelves when I first went
to work there in early 71....The guy who would know is the Old Chief
Engineer, during the early 50's, Dan Farley, if he is still alive. He
helped the curater of the Seattle Museum of History & Industry save
pristine models of all the old Northern AM Rigs. I helped him procure
some of these from old Cannery sites in alaska, over the years. They
have a really good Libby, McNiel, Libby 250 Watt Transmitter that used
205th's as Finals and in Modulator. Stood 6 feet high in a 19" Rack,
with BIG Meters and Knobs. That came from the Kenai Plant when they
dissassembled the old Radio Shack above the Office in the early 80's,
after SSB became Manditory. I used to have a classic N529E that was
complete with Receiver, and Power Supply stored in Dry Storage, but
soimeone trashed it and it went to the scrapmetal guy. 5 feet high
19" Rack, with glowing 866's as Rectifiers on the HV Supply. Man that
was Cool to operate.

I loved the sound of that dynamotor HV supply in the movie....I made
a DVD of the film.

Bruce in alaska who has a complete set of Northern Radio Manuals
dating back to the early 40's.......
--
add a 2 before @

.. Speaking of Aircraft endorsement, I watched an old John Wayne movie
"Island
in the Sky" last week on TV (an Ernie Gahn book). The radio op was
running
what appeared to be a BC348 receiver, and an ART-13 transmitter with a
bug.
It was in a WWII C-47 (DC-3) plane.
Did Northern ever make military receivers? I remember a Northern Electric
or
Northern Radio version of the Hammurlund SP-600 that I worked on back in
the
late 60s. I thought it was a Canadian firm that made them under a NATO
contract. However, one Navy guy from the pacific NW said they were made in
Seattle.
Speaking of business hours...I remember a coax distributor in Portland who
would hide rolls of coax under his shipping dock so they could be picked
up
in the early AM on the way to work at the old Portland Radio Supply. You
don't get that kind of deal anymore.

I really don't know about Northern and military receivers, but years
(and years) before I got a commercial ticket, I helped a tech install and
tune surplus military gear converted to commercial marine by Northern. The
biggest one that I recall, was a converted (to crystal control) BC-375. That
rig, in the military, was companion to the BC-348 receiver, and I have seen
pictures (I'm not quite that old) of the BC-375/BC-348 installation in B-24
and B-17 bombers. Art Collin's ART-13 replaced the BC-375 about as fast as
Collins Radio could turn them out.
A new surplus (converted to 115vac) BC-348Q, by Wells-Gardner was my
first ham receiver for the first ten years.
Lynn, W7LTQ

I always coveted an Aircraft Endorsement, but after I got the Radar
Endorsement, work and feeding four hungry mouths sort of saturated all
the
time that existed.
Northern was always King, I guess, I admired the company, and even
did
a couple of quick contract jobs for them.
When I needed another load of Morad antennas, I was too cheap to
have
them delivered, so Morad would put them under Northern's dumpsters at
close
of day, and I'd drive down after work and pick them up. What impressed
me
more than anything was that they had "business" hours. A concept
completely
foreign to Anacortes.
Lynn, W7LTQ



Yep, I worked for Dennis, and Chuck (the Yellow page salesman) for a few
years after they bought out Northern Marine Electronics, from Northen
Radio as the Service Department. Smoke O'kelly was still at NME, when I
left but Lou Navarre had already gone by then.Had a very good
relationship with Eddie Zanbergen over at Morad as well, before he died.
Still use Morad stuff alot up here. Very good stuff for band weather.
Ahhhhh, "the Good Old Days"......

Bruce in alaska

Gosh, you remember lots of things that have evaporated here! The names
are familiar, but not the faces. Mostly telephone contact when I was in
trouble, I guess.
Thanks for the smidgen of history about Northern. I always suspected
there was some sort of connection between Northern Radio and Northern Marine
Electronics, but have never had it explained.
Might be a different guy, but there was a "Lou" (old timer) that worked
for Nordic Marine Electronics, Seattle service shop in the late 1970's that
gave me my entire formal education on Decca Radars. By Telephone (and a
couple of times by HF SSB) He really didn't like to talk too much about the
050, which infested our waters, but he enjoyed exposing my stupidity on the
110. A really, really great radar............ or?
Dan Asplund, Chuck Johnson or Jim Manwaring had to be consulted on the
"Group 9", but with the Washington State Ferries contract continually in
jeprody here in Anacortes, they always had me supplied with a spare T/R unit
and at times a display..... (always a CRT for times when a half-hour
disassembly and windex didn't get the cigarette smoke "fog" cleared up)
Lynn, W7LTQ