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 . 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

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 @

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

In article ,
"Lynn Coffelt" wrote:

(always a CRT for times when a half-hour
disassembly and windex didn't get the cigarette smoke "fog" cleared up)
Lynn, W7LTQ

Reminds me of the first time I went on a Service Call on a Halibut
Schooner. Skipper was an Old Norwegin, with a heavy accent. He
watch me like a hawk, while I tried to figure out why the modulation was
so poor. Finally I took the mic apart, and and found the cloth filter
in front of the mic element, PLUGGED with snoose. Removed the "Snoose
Filter" and reassembled the mic, and let the guy call his brother, out
dragging on the Wasihngton Coast. 5 by 9 and strong voice was the reply.
That old boy, keep saying the whole time I was onboard, "Thes radio, she
never vorked, since they day I bought her, not ever....." When I went
back onboard the next spring for the annual tuneup, the Old Boy,
remembered me, and never even followed me up to the wheelhouse, and told
the crew, "Now fella's there goes a REAL Radioman. He fixed the radio,
last year, and she never vorked so good. Never since the day I bought
her, not ever....." I can still remeber that guy even 35 years later.
The moral to this story is, "Always check the Snoose Filter, if you got
poor modulation"

Bruce in alaska
--
add a 2 before @

Bruce in Alaska wrote in news:bruceg-
:

"Always check the Snoose Filter, if you got
poor modulation"


8 lurkers just figured out what the Snoose Filter was and vomited into
their keyboards....(c;

--
Larry