- REGENCY IMPERIAL'S? - Nope, DSB
- E.F. JOHNSON? - Nope, guess again
- GENERAL RADIOTELEPHONE'S SB-72 - Try again
- MARK "SIDEWINDER"? - Getting Warmer!
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Ac
tually, this was a kind of trick question that I just asked you, as all of those rigs just mentioned were made by a CB radio manufacturer. It was just recently that I happened across an issue of "Electronics Illustrated" (May '63) which had their Exclusive about the "1st Single-Sideband set in Operation on the Citizens Band!"
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This was no quicky half-page article (afterall, the subject and designer were on the cover), but a five page article about how it came about, complete with block diagrams, etc. and was written by Len Buckwalter! If his name sounds familiar, it's because he authored several Citizens Band related books (i.e.- "ABC's of Citizens Band Radio").
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The idea came from a young man named George Mason who happened to be president of NES, which used Citizens Band radios. Making contact with each other was hit-or-miss, and George (a HAM operator) knew that SSB would increase their range. At this early stage of the Citizens Band Radio Service it was not quite clear about whether or not Single-Sideband transmissions were legal. A call to the FCC cleared that up with a BIG "A-OKAY", so George assigned the project of building the prototypes to Roland Martin (one of his top men).
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Len Buckwalter went along with Roland Martin on a road trip to see just what kind of results they were getting with the radios and found that they could easily talk to the Base location 25 miles away! The rig was like any other at that time (Tube), but they also had a transistorized version in the works, with plans to market the rigs to public. Of course today, the question is "What happened to their plans of marketing this rig?" as well as are there any of the prototypes lying around in some storage room or basement as this would truly be one hot collectible rig.
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FT-101B UPDATE
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The FT-101B that I wrote about a couple weeks ago is now on the test bench and so far - it's working! I straightened out the crushed in rear panel as best I could, replaced the tube and straightened out some internal components that had been pushed in as well, then put the rig back together again and with the rear fan installed, you really have to be observant to notice the wrinkling of the metal plate. It's been "ON" now for 48 hours without a glitch (mostly receiving), and the final stage will be as much transmitting as possible...talk about a big sigh of relief!
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UPDATE: FORSALE SECTION
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I'll bet that you thought that I put my 4-SALE section on the back burner, but quite the contrary - It's progressing (albeit slower than I would like) and I have several sections setup, and as I take pictures of the items, insert them into the proper section. The hardest part is testing the equipment and sorting through various magazines and catalogs, double-checking to make sure I don't sell something I want to keep.
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FROM
THE
MAIL BAG
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As e-mails arrive, on my desk in the "Fortress-of-Solitude" (located in beautiful downtown Sealy), I like to post some for others to read. Sometimes the e-mail has a great tip or two, and who knows? A particular tip may come in handy for you one day!
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Today's e-mail comes from "Vinnie", Subject: Grant LT -
Woody,
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First let me tell you how much I truly enjoyed your page. I am 39. After a 20 year absence in CB, got back into it in late 2003. Have been on ever since. Last year, I upgraded to a ham ticket, all the way to general in my first attempt. I now own a Icom 746 and a Uniden Grant LT for 11 meters. I do some 80 meters, DXing on 20 meters during the day, and talk to my fiends on the CB at night.
Here is my story. I was looking for a Uniden Grant XL for use as a base on the 11 meter band (since I did not want to use my Icom on it), largely based on many recommendations including your review. Except there was one problem. The XL was going from upwards of $150 on ebay, for hacked radios, and as much as $300 for "New in Box". There was no way in hell I was going to pay that much money for a CB, either used and hacked, or "virgin new". I did see that Uniden Grant LTs were going for well under $100 used, and around $120 new. That is when I started my research. I Googled everything trying to see if they were the same radio. Most opinions were that they were in fact the same, with the exception of the backlighted knobs and and the DSC circuit. I even read the XL mods worked fine for the LT, and the schecmatic was virtually the same. Without any hard proof, I went to the horse's mouth. I emailed Uniden, hoping they would respond. They in fact did. And they confirmed the radios were identical, with the exception of the lighted knobs and DSC. So there it is. I then went on Ebay, and got a "virgin" new Grant LT, for about $115. I did the Grant XL clarifier mod to perfection on the LT. I even hooked up a Galaxy FC-347 frequency counter, for my sideband use. I didn't do the channel mod, or any other mod after that. As far as the radio, the receive shines. It's so quiet and sensitive.
I couldn't be happier. So, every so often, I go onto ebay and do a search for "Uniden Grant", and see the same thing. People paying out their behinds for an XL, and the LTs are going for bargain basement prices, right under their noses.
You can use this for your Blog.
Thanks again for your great webpage,
Vinnie
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[Woody replies: Hi Vinnie, thanks for taking the time to drop me a line! You are right on the money about the Uniden Grant LT - I've been using one for about a year now and have no complaints - in fact, with the backlighting, it's actually a better rig for night time driving. I've noticed the price difference as well, and given a choice between the Grant XL and the LT, I'd go with the LT, especially considering the price difference. Take care, and once again, thanks for the e-mail! Woody]
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