The AM Forum

I have the opportunity to pick up a SCR543/BC669 transceiver. The question is if I want to do it? Not to be disrespectful of the radio but I have done several low power AM WW2 radios, just finished a MAK WW2 Marine radio transceiver that involved several weeks of research, spending money on rocks and a Heathkit Mobile power supply and a lot of other stuff that results in a transceiver that I will maybe use three or four times a year, so now I am think what’s the next project? Already have done things like ART-13 and TCS sets and more exotic sets like my Collins ARC-38 100 watt autotune transceiver.
Now have a friend who wants to give me a BC-669, fast look at the radio and it appears to be bigger and heavier than a TCS and not that much power for the size.
Have been thinking of branching into the WW2 stuff, already have big commitments into Vietnam era stuff with my M151 and its GRC-106 and do many shows for both vehicles and radios just like Gilbert coming up this week but just looking at the BC-669 tend to think that it may be too much to move around by yourself and have no desire at this time to get into something like a WW2 GPW and if I did think I would rather do something like a jeep mounted TCS set up or maybe a SCR-506 being that’s heavier and less power but unlike the SCR543 it’s a radio you don’t see a lot of.
Anyone want to tell me the benefits or disadvantages of playing around with a SCR543/BC-669?

Hi!

I have ZERO experience from the SCR.543/BC-669, but I would love to have one.
But, then the reality catches up, what will it give me?
After the "fixing up making it to work" process, I'm afraid that it will not see a whole lot of use.
Partly because I have several transmitter/receiver sets to choose between and probably more important, it's crystal controlled transmitter, now... this can be a pain in the b*tt.

I should mention, I do not have a "plastic radios" I only have green, black or grey radios, from WW2 up to Harris Falcon era. It gives me a tremendous amount of satisfaction having a QSO with someone using old WW2 stuff, even if the distance is only 200 miles or so.

So, I'm afraid that if I was offered a decent SCR-543/BC-669 I would go for it... 

BC-669 started life as a marine transmitter-receiver for medium sized boats.  Weight and size are big factors.  The power supply (AC) is a bit rare and apparently the connecting cable between power supply and BC-669 is almost unobtainium.

If offered one with power supply and cable, I would grab it, but then I am not married and can do what I want.

At least with the BC-669 you get a tunable receiver, but you will be searching for big crystals for the transmitter. 3885 kHz was a stock frequency in these, I run across those crystals occasionally.

You will have to monkey with the transmitter output network a bit as this was intended to load a random wire of fairly short length working against a boat or vehicle ground.