Hallicrafters SX-28 and unusual cabinet.

[KC4ALF]

Picked up a Hallicrafters SX-28 from an Antique shop that is closing up in town. Rig is rough shape but restorable. it is the cabinet and tuner that are interesting though. Cabinet is marked Signal Corps, U.S. Army, CY-1256/G Equipment The hallicrafters Co. 1943. It is a table top Cabinet Designed to hold the Sx-28, Possibly two stacked, but this one has a tuner. The tuner is marked Signal Corps, Coupler antenna Cu-286/FRR-33 Collins radio. Does not appear to be of war vintage.

Got the Sx-28 working after removing a ton of Pigeon You-know-What off the tubes and Chasis. All tubes checked out. Not as much rust to remove as thought. Plays well on Am, but excessive distortion on Slop Bucket, but does tune it in. Dial will need realigned, that looks like a nightmare!

Any info on cabinet would be appreciated.

[WBear2GCR]

pix?

Got Pix?

       

[WB6NVH]

CU-286 is not a tuner, it's an antenna multicoupler and dates from 1957 more or less.  It uses 12AU7's.  70 Ohms unbalanced.  Some are labeled Collins but there are other contractors.  Mine were made by Eby, the tube shield company. 

[KA2DZT]

Eby made other stuff besides tube shields.  They made tube sockets too, and other stuff that I can't remember.  I think I have a catalog, I'll have to take a look.

Fred

[KC4ALF]

One day I will invest in a camera for the digital age. The only one I own is a 70's Vintage Rico SLR and as long as I can get film I use it. I guess I could scan into this thing?

At least I know what one thing isn't now. Listening to 80m CW right now and after about 40 minutes drift is just about stopped. Found a 40's vintage cabinet out in the shed that just about fits the SX-28 and popped it in. Had to modify the rear panel to fit, but since the lid is long gone didn't feel guilty about cutting out new holes. Power switch no longer works, as soon as you plug it in its on, so that will be the first thing to tackle.

[Opcom]

better change the caps in that thing! If you do that and also the resistors around the oscillator, the drift will be further minimized. The coils will cause drift but there is little to be done there except maybe let the set cook for a week. Be sure to check the fuse and make sure its the right size and no larger.

[Todd, KA1KAQ]

Good save, Ralph.

The CU-286 was used with a pair of R-391s (auto tuning R-390s) and a few other trinkets for diversity RATT in the FRR-33 system. It's a fairly scarce but specialized piece of gear requiring a bunch of those two pin twin ax connectors and a couple of cannon style. The attached pic shows mine in the rack between the R-390 and A models. Not sure why I still have it beyond the high coolness factor and 'what if' possibilities.

If the auto tune feature isn't important, you could lash it up to a pair of R-390s using twin-ax connectors from the IBM AS-400 system. Loosening the center keys allows you to set up the dials for different auto tuned channels or to manually adjust it I have a copy of the manual, but damned if I know where.

[WB6NVH]

Those couplers can go for serious money with the R-390 crowd. You might be able to get the SX-28 for free that way if you sold it.  Most of us don't want to run five receivers at once.

I was in a CVS drug store today and heard the clerk telling a woman "We don't do 35 mm anymore.  Just digital.  The labs are all shutting down."  I used to drop off my 35mm film and check the "CD with prints" option.  I think maybe Costco still does developing and gives you a CD but I haven't checked recently.  I guess when Wal Mart has digital cameras for $ 65 I shouldn't be surprised.

You can also scan your prints but I never did like the results I had.  Scanning the negatives seems a lot better.  But just being able to plug a camera into the PC is orders of magnitude easier.

[WB6NVH]

Todd, that's weird.  My 286's, which were new in the box, have all N connectors, and the only Cannon connector is the power cord one. 

[Todd, KA1KAQ]

You are a lucky man! Mine has a couple cannon connectors (for control purposes), an AC attachment(a standard single-socket extension cord fits it), and maybe 8(?) Twin-ax connectors. Sounds like they smartened up and changed the spec to the more compatible N instead. Mine is like new, but didn't come packed in its original box. Has a nifty little eagle stamped on the front panel, looks Signal Corps-esque, so probably ASA.

A couple have sold lately for $250 and $450.

And ironically, I ran a 1 hour lab for a few years back in the late 80s, using Noritsu developing and processing equipment. Put a lot of film through my Nikon FA back then, motor drive and all, since my cost was about 4 cents per print. I remember those big, kludgey early digital cameras in the mid/late 90s and thinking it would be a while before they'd replace 35mm. It was only a few years, though it took longer to improve the quality to somewhere near the resolution. I still prefer film for display photos, but digital sure is handy for the less-important stuff like random radio shots.

[WB2G]

Does it look like this.Joe WB2G.

[KC4ALF]

Tnx Guys. Joe thats almost Identical! Only difference is the top of the cabinet is abt 1-1/2" taller but thats it. Same colour and louvers. Tnx fer the pics of the 391's and rack. No don't really have use for it too modern for me, LOL.

Yep I have to get one of the digital things but I love 35mm. I guess I could learn to develop as there seems to be a lot of that equipment on epay and craigs. I have a shop around that still develops but they are not long for this world, when they old man retires it will close.

There is a surplus store here getting ready to shut its doors(well used to be now paint ball stuff), and wants to know if interested in his radio junk. I might have to get the camera if he has anything worthwhile. I've picked up some PRC-10's and German SEM-52's, but never really had much of interest. In never hurts to go look though.

[K5UJ]

Does it look like this.Joe WB2G.

unless I'm mistaken that's the S-35, the extremely rare panadaptor version of the SX-28.   I know a ham who owns a S-35 (he was a hallicrafters employee in the late '40s and early '50s) and he told me a ham offered him $10,000 for it.  He didn't sell for the usual reason that having a lot of cash isn't as valuable as having a S-35.   But anyway, if that's what you have, you should be able to get some serious do re mi if you decide to sell it.

[The Slab Bacon]

unless I'm mistaken that's the S-35, the extremely rare panadaptor version of the SX-28.   I know a ham who owns a S-35 (he was a hallicrafters employee in the late '40s and early '50s) and he told me a ham offered him $10,000 for it.  He didn't sell for the usual reason that having a lot of cash isn't as valuable as having a S-35.   But anyway, if that's what you have, you should be able to get some serious do re mi if you decide to sell it.

Idiocracy is priceless! ! ! !    

[w3jn]

That's not the S-35 in that picture, but I'm betting the cabinet KC4ALF has once held one.

Here's a S-35, SX-28, and the cabinet

[WB2G]

I think the panadaptor is a 1943 Paroramic SA-3, T-200 Panoramscope with the special order rack mount.The receiver has the extra RF stage and came from a navy vessel but all the name plates are missing.I rescued this from a garage with a leaky roof and water on the floor where it had sat for years.The only thing that saved it was the fact that it was used to listen to the AM broadcast band occasionally.It works but needs alot of TLC to get it back to spec.This another when I get to it project.Joe WB2G. Oops,I forgot,this is called the Navy RBY-1 receiver,I have no idea how rare this is.

[W2NBC]

It's raining Panadaptors..

http://www.ebay.com/itm/PANORAMIC-RADIO-ADAPTOR-MODEL-RBW2M-NAVY-DEPT-/110793600490?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item19cbd02dea

More info here:
http://www.navy-radio.com/rcvr-pan.htm

[vincent]

S-35