Koden MD-3600 Radar

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
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> > 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
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In article ,
"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.......
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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
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Bruce in Alaska wrote in
E7C05A.11085428072005.TakeThisOut@netnews.att.net:

> "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;

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Larry
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Me Wrote:
> In article dbput5$e3d$1@domitilla.aioe.org,
> "Lynn Coffelt" coffelt2.RemoveThis@comcast.net wrote:
> -
> Hmmmm......... The guys that showed me the ropes used a Simpson 260
> with a
> battered leather case, an earphone and a wet finger. (Oh, yeah, as
> you
> mentioned, an NE-2 taped to the end of a diddle stick)
> Old Chief Lynn, Anacortes Marine Electronics (for 20 years)-
>
> What, you taped yours to a diddle stick??? We always just held them
> in our fingers out in front of the waveguide flange..... Well not on
> 40Kw Decca 404's.... but all the rest.....
>
> Hmmm, sounds like an old timer....The really good techs came from
> Northern Radio, Radar Electric, and Raytheon Marine back in the 60's
> and
> 70's. I am an old Northern Man, and one of the few "Old Boys" left.
> Don Hollingsworth Sr. is still around at G & L Marine, and he is a
> Raytheon transplant. Billy Pulse came from the end of the era Radar
> Electric shop. That's about it for that generation, that still
> practice
> the "Art" of Marine Electronics. Same with the "Regulators". (FCC)
> After the closing of RegionX in Kirkland, there just isn't anyone left
> that really understands the Marine Mobile Radio Service. Bob Dietch,
> Bob Zenes, Gary Solsby, Bill Johnson, and even Denny Anderson have all
> retired.
>
>
> Me getting old is a Bitch......all the good guys just die off....

I worked at Raytheon in Seattle between Feb 1970 and Oct 1979. I sure
remember Bill Pulse. Is he still with us? When I first applied to be an
electronics technician, I interviewed with Bill. He rejected me. UG
Allen at Raytheon hired me. I worked with the guys from G&L a lot.

I am now retired in Ironwood, Michigan. Yes, getting old is a bitch. I
still remember the people and equipment like it was yesterday.

Weigel




--
Edward Weigel
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In article ,
Edward Weigel wrote:

>
Me Wrote:
In article dbput5$e3d$1@domitilla.aioe.org,
> "Lynn Coffelt" coffelt2.TakeThisOut@comcast.net wrote:
> -
> Hmmmm......... The guys that showed me the ropes used a Simpson 260
> with a
> battered leather case, an earphone and a wet finger. (Oh, yeah, as
> you
> mentioned, an NE-2 taped to the end of a diddle stick)
> Old Chief Lynn, Anacortes Marine Electronics (for 20 years)-
>
> What, you taped yours to a diddle stick??? We always just held them
> in our fingers out in front of the waveguide flange..... Well not on
> 40Kw Decca 404's.... but all the rest.....
>
> Hmmm, sounds like an old timer....The really good techs came from
> Northern Radio, Radar Electric, and Raytheon Marine back in the 60's
> and
> 70's. I am an old Northern Man, and one of the few "Old Boys" left.
> Don Hollingsworth Sr. is still around at G & L Marine, and he is a
> Raytheon transplant. Billy Pulse came from the end of the era Radar
> Electric shop. That's about it for that generation, that still
> practice
> the "Art" of Marine Electronics. Same with the "Regulators". (FCC)
> After the closing of RegionX in Kirkland, there just isn't anyone left
> that really understands the Marine Mobile Radio Service. Bob Dietch,
> Bob Zenes, Gary Solsby, Bill Johnson, and even Denny Anderson have all
> retired.
>
>
> Me getting old is a Bitch......all the good guys just die off....
>
> worked at Raytheon in Seattle between Feb 1970 and Oct 1979. I sure
remember
> Bill Pulse. Is he still with us? When I first applied to be an
electronics
> technician, I interviewed with Bill. He rejected me. UG
Allen at Raytheon
> hired me. I worked with the guys from G&L a lot.
>
> am now retired in Ironwood, Michigan. Yes, getting old is a bitch. I
still
> remember the people and equipment like it was yesterday.
>
it has been years, since I had thought of Old U.G. Allen..... but I
remeber you, Ed. Can't picture you in my minds eye, but the name sure
does resonate in the dusty memories. Yes, Billy Pulse is still around
in Bellingham, WA and I talk to the Don's Sr & Jr at G & L Marine from
time to time, especially when I get stumped on a Radar problem. Just had
one of those last month. Had a Furuno 1941 start losing range over a
month or so. Went from solid 36 Mile targets, down to barely 4 mile
targets. Still had the OEM Magnitron and something like 6000 Operating
Hours logged. So I figured, "tired Maggie" right? Replaced it, and no
change. After looking at the Manual Receiver Tuning, and finding that I
could run the Tuning Voltage from 5Vdc to 35Vdc with absolutly no change
on the received targets, I got really suspicious of the MMIC Front-end.
Pulled the T/R Pan and looked at the Tuning Voltage @ the inside of the
feedthru Cap inside of the MMIC casting to make sure I just didn't have
a broken wire somewhere. Since I didn't have a new MMIC, and also had no
way to test the T/R Pan offline, I sent it down to Don Sr. and he did the
replacement, and tested it on his testbed Radar Bench. Reinstalled,
and have 36 mile targets again. That was the first time I have ever
heard of a MMIC having that particular failure. (Tuning Line Voltage not
actually tuning the LO in the MMIC) Live and Learn...

Bruce in alaska
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"Bruce in Alaska" wrote in message

> In article ,
> Edward Weigel wrote:
>
> >
> Me Wrote:
> In article dbput5$e3d$1@domitilla.aioe.org,
> > "Lynn Coffelt" coffelt2.DeleteThis@comcast.net wrote:
> > -
> > Hmmmm......... The guys that showed me the ropes used a Simpson 260
> > with a
> > battered leather case, an earphone and a wet finger. (Oh, yeah, as
> > you
> > mentioned, an NE-2 taped to the end of a diddle stick)
> > Old Chief Lynn, Anacortes Marine Electronics (for 20 years)-
> >
> > What, you taped yours to a diddle stick??? We always just held them
> > in our fingers out in front of the waveguide flange..... Well not on
> > 40Kw Decca 404's.... but all the rest.....
> >
> > Hmmm, sounds like an old timer....The really good techs came from
> > Northern Radio, Radar Electric, and Raytheon Marine back in the 60's
> > and
> > 70's. I am an old Northern Man, and one of the few "Old Boys" left.
> > Don Hollingsworth Sr. is still around at G & L Marine, and he is a
> > Raytheon transplant. Billy Pulse came from the end of the era Radar
> > Electric shop. That's about it for that generation, that still
> > practice
> > the "Art" of Marine Electronics. Same with the "Regulators". (FCC)
> > After the closing of RegionX in Kirkland, there just isn't anyone left
> > that really understands the Marine Mobile Radio Service. Bob Dietch,
> > Bob Zenes, Gary Solsby, Bill Johnson, and even Denny Anderson have all
> > retired.
> >
> >
> > Me getting old is a Bitch......all the good guys just die off....
> >
> > worked at Raytheon in Seattle between Feb 1970 and Oct 1979. I sure
> remember
> > Bill Pulse. Is he still with us? When I first applied to be an
> electronics
> > technician, I interviewed with Bill. He rejected me. UG
> Allen at Raytheon
> > hired me. I worked with the guys from G&L a lot.
> >
> > am now retired in Ironwood, Michigan. Yes, getting old is a bitch. I
> still
> > remember the people and equipment like it was yesterday.
> >
> it has been years, since I had thought of Old U.G. Allen..... but I
> remeber you, Ed. Can't picture you in my minds eye, but the name sure
> does resonate in the dusty memories. Yes, Billy Pulse is still around
> in Bellingham, WA and I talk to the Don's Sr & Jr at G & L Marine from
> time to time, especially when I get stumped on a Radar problem. Just had
> one of those last month. Had a Furuno 1941 start losing range over a
> month or so. Went from solid 36 Mile targets, down to barely 4 mile
> targets. Still had the OEM Magnitron and something like 6000 Operating
> Hours logged. So I figured, "tired Maggie" right? Replaced it, and no
> change. After looking at the Manual Receiver Tuning, and finding that I
> could run the Tuning Voltage from 5Vdc to 35Vdc with absolutly no change
> on the received targets, I got really suspicious of the MMIC Front-end.
> Pulled the T/R Pan and looked at the Tuning Voltage @ the inside of the
> feedthru Cap inside of the MMIC casting to make sure I just didn't have
> a broken wire somewhere. Since I didn't have a new MMIC, and also had no
> way to test the T/R Pan offline, I sent it down to Don Sr. and he did the
> replacement, and tested it on his testbed Radar Bench. Reinstalled,
> and have 36 mile targets again. That was the first time I have ever
> heard of a MMIC having that particular failure. (Tuning Line Voltage not
> actually tuning the LO in the MMIC) Live and Learn...
>
> Bruce in alaska

UG Allen!!!! Holy Smokes, I don't think I've heard that name for 20 years!
He helped me (via telephone) work my way through a Raytheon that I'd never
seen before...... forget the model number, but you guys probably are
familiar with the beast. 115vac motor generator wasn't it that turned a big
fat open scanner with a tube transmitter and receiver inside the scanner?
Big orange filtered CRT...... all the letters and numbers worn completely
off the indicator controls, substituted by big black pencil marks where the
skipper had the best luck. Easily picked seagulls out at 1/4 mile on flat
water. Quarter size burned spot in center of CRT..... standard for those
Raytheons according to UG.... Local fishermen told me that he was the
smartest man they had ever met, and that he was black. I never met him face
to face, but he taught me (telephone again) the fine points of tuning a 1600
and the hot new 2600. Those were the days!!!!
Old Chief Lynn
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In article ,
"Lynn Coffelt" wrote:

> "Bruce in Alaska" wrote in message
>
> > In article ,
> > Edward Weigel wrote:
> >

snipped for brevity

> > >
> > it has been years, since I had thought of Old U.G. Allen..... but I
> > remeber you, Ed. Can't picture you in my minds eye, but the name sure
> > does resonate in the dusty memories. Yes, Billy Pulse is still around
> > in Bellingham, WA and I talk to the Don's Sr & Jr at G & L Marine from
> > time to time, especially when I get stumped on a Radar problem. Just had
> > one of those last month. Had a Furuno 1941 start losing range over a
> > month or so. Went from solid 36 Mile targets, down to barely 4 mile
> > targets. Still had the OEM Magnitron and something like 6000 Operating
> > Hours logged. So I figured, "tired Maggie" right? Replaced it, and no
> > change. After looking at the Manual Receiver Tuning, and finding that I
> > could run the Tuning Voltage from 5Vdc to 35Vdc with absolutly no change
> > on the received targets, I got really suspicious of the MMIC Front-end.
> > Pulled the T/R Pan and looked at the Tuning Voltage @ the inside of the
> > feedthru Cap inside of the MMIC casting to make sure I just didn't have
> > a broken wire somewhere. Since I didn't have a new MMIC, and also had no
> > way to test the T/R Pan offline, I sent it down to Don Sr. and he did the
> > replacement, and tested it on his testbed Radar Bench. Reinstalled,
> > and have 36 mile targets again. That was the first time I have ever
> > heard of a MMIC having that particular failure. (Tuning Line Voltage not
> > actually tuning the LO in the MMIC) Live and Learn...
> >
> > Bruce in alaska
>
> UG Allen!!!! Holy Smokes, I don't think I've heard that name for 20 years!
> He helped me (via telephone) work my way through a Raytheon that I'd never
> seen before...... forget the model number, but you guys probably are
> familiar with the beast. 115vac motor generator wasn't it that turned a big
> fat open scanner with a tube transmitter and receiver inside the scanner?
> Big orange filtered CRT...... all the letters and numbers worn completely
> off the indicator controls, substituted by big black pencil marks where the
> skipper had the best luck. Easily picked seagulls out at 1/4 mile on flat
> water. Quarter size burned spot in center of CRT..... standard for those
> Raytheons according to UG.... Local fishermen told me that he was the
> smartest man they had ever met, and that he was black. I never met him face
> to face, but he taught me (telephone again) the fine points of tuning a 1600
> and the hot new 2600. Those were the days!!!!
> Old Chief Lynn
>
>

Yea, UG was a hell of a Radarman back in the day... Lynn, your thinking
of the Raytheon 1700 Radar, that had a DC Motor/AC Generator that turned
the antenna as well as provided the 115Vac that ran the electronics, from
the DC voltage input. They came in 12, 24, 32, and 110Vdc versions. My
first 12Vdc/115AC PowerConverter in my 1958 Dodge PowerWagon PanelTruck
was one of those from a scrapped out 1700 that I got from UG. RadioMen
loved those old Raytheon Radars, as they had a MTBF of about 100
Operating Hours. Crystals were a instant $50 fix, for their pocketbook,
and 2J42's were forever getting cooked by to high of heater voltage.
The thing I hated about 1700's was cleaning all those sliprings on the
antenna unit that feed the display. The 1700 also had a headphone jack,
on the receiver end of the antenna, so you could hear the Baseband while
tuning the 2K25 Klystron LO.

Bruce in alaska remembering those Goodtimes, of bygone days.....
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