Category Archives: Nostalgia

The Muzen OTR: A handcrafted salute to Radio Caroline

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, John Harper (AE5X), who writes:

I thought you and your readers might be interested in this […] a cool little radio I learned about from the YouTube channel of a drone flyer I follow.
I like the craftsmanship:

Click here to view on YouTube.

Many thanks for sharing this, John!

I’ve actually been following the Muzen OTR for several months via Indiegogo thanks to my buddy and radio-enabler, David Korchin (K2WNW).

If the name Muzen sounds familiar, it’s likely because we featured the company last year in this post. After publishing the post, I was so interested in Muzen products, I reached out to a retailer who used to be a US distributor. Sadly, he no longer carried Muzen products, though he was a big fan.

The Muzen OTR is $69 US shipped. For an FM radio, Bluetooth, AUX-in speaker that’s handcrafted, with serious audio fidelity, in such a small size, I think it’s quite a good deal. On top of that 10% of the funding will go to Radio Caroline.

Even though I’m going through a serious down-sizing at the moment, John’s note prompted me to back this campaign, so I bit the bullet this morning and ordered a Muzen OTR. [In a sarcastic tone: “Thank’s a lot, John!”] Ha ha!

Click here to check out the Muzen OTR on Indiegogo.

Can you ID this radio in “Diamonds Are Forever”–?

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Chris, who writes:

Last weekend, I watched a few old James Bond movies and this caught my attention when Blofeld was listening to a shortwave broadcast:

Can anyone identify this radio?

Post readers: Please comment if you can ID this radio model!

CBC News picks up story about sale of RCI’s WWII era transmitter

Dan spots an Icom IC-R71A in Narcos

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dan Robinson, who writes:

I like to note appearances by shortwave receivers in TV programs…here’s the latest…at the 14 minute mark of the new season of NARCOS (one of the best TV series there is by the way) a ICOM IC-R71A makes an appearance. At the point in the show, a key character is listening to reel-to-reel tapes, so it’s not quite clear why they stuck in a 71A tuning to a shortwave frequency….ah, the drama! Another show, The Americans, features numerous shots of various receivers, including Zenith Transoceanics and Hallicrafters…

Great catch, Dan–thank you for sharing! I’ll add this find to our growing archive of radios in film.

A photo tour of the 2018 Greenwood, SC hamfest

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Last week, my buddy Vlado (N3CZ) informed me about a small hamfest in Greenwood, SC–I had never attended, but had heard positive comments about it.

I believe Vlado was somewhat on the fence about going, but once I expressed a strong interest in selling some gear, he did too so it quickly became a plan!

Greenwood, South Carolina, is about a 2.5 hour one-way drive from my home. Vendors were encouraged to arrive around 7:00 to set up (general public admission was at 9:00), so Vlado and I hit the road by 4:30 AM!

Notice the lack of traffic on the interstate at 4:30 AM!

We arrived as the doors opened and purchased a total of three tables to sell our gear. My goods took up most of one table and Vlado packed the other two with his gear!

By general admission time, less than half of the vendor tables were occupied, which did worry me. However, overall foot traffic wasn’t bad at all! This vendor was certainly pleased.

I sold at least 80% of the items I brought with me, no doubt due to my generous and agressive pricing scheme (i.e. nearly giving things away–!). Vlado sold some large items, too.

In the end, I didn’t purchase a single item at the hamfest. I was in selling mode, not buying mode, at this hamfest as I’ve been making an effort to downsize some of my collection and use the money to offset the costs of travel this year. With that said, I would have snagged a classic portable had one appeared.

This BC-317 is just asking to be taken home!

Mind you, I was very tempted by two BC-317 receivers being sold together for an asking price of $60, but I resisted as the whole idea of “thinning the herd” is to make room in my small radio shack.

I find that small hamfests like Greenwood actually have better vintage radio pricing than the larger ‘fests.

Greenwood Photo Gallery

Though the hamfest was modest in size, there were quite a few quality offerings among the vendors. I was very impressed with the number of transceivers–indeed, a new ham would have had a selection of affordable benchmark 90s era rigs to choose from!

Click on the thumbnails below to enlarge or comment on the photos. Most of the photos were taken prior to the doors opening but I did my best to capture price tag information if available:

I love the design of this Heathkit Signal Tracer

Though this Delco hadn’t been refinished and didn’t have original knobs, it was still a thing of beauty.

A very clean Heath SB-1400.

This Icom IC-761 was eventually sold for less than asking price–a briallint deal for a superb benchmark transceiver.

Vlado was selling this R-1000 which he recently repaired and restored. No one bought it, so if interested, you might try contacting him!

Greenwood had quite a few Drake transmitters and receiver combos for sale.

A gorgeous Collins.

The IC-7200 is a fantastic rig for $650.

Do I plan to revisit Greenwood next year? You bet!

Al shares vintage RAE theme

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Al Quaglieri, who writes:

In the ’60s and ’70s, RAE had a really evocative theme song that opened and closed their broadcasts. For years I searched for a copy of this, even going as far as writing the station about ten years ago. They graciously obliged, sending me a recording of the LATER theme, not the one I wanted. Well, here it finally is. RAE used an edited-down version.

My clip begins with a vintage RAE open and close, and then the song! It’s an obscure composition by Argentine composer Waldo de los Rios, entitled “Sol Alegre,” from a 1957 Columbia album called “Kiss of Fire.” Hope it brings back some memories!

Click here to listen at Clyp.it.

Thanks for this stroll down Memory Lane, Al!

The National HRO-5TA1: Parting is such sweet sorrow…

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As I mentioned in a previous post, I’m in the process of selling and giving away radio gear that I no longer use or that’s been sitting on the workbench way too long.

This is an easier process when it involves modern gear, as I have comparatively little attachment to radios I could go out and purchase once again, should I feel so moved. The only modern portables I keep, regardless, are those I must have on hand for comparison testing and reviews. And, yes, I do have a number of favorites I never intend to sell.

But when it comes to vintage gear? Letting go is hard to do.

A few years ago, I acquired a bunch of vintage gear and accessories from a friend whose father was a radio operator in WWII. Since then, I’ve been selling this equipment and giving the proceeds to our non-profit (ETOW). I’ve also donated a lot of equipment to the Hickory Aviation Museum in North Carolina––I’m a member, and have been piecing together an AN/ARC-8 system for permanent display (only now lacking a good BC-348).

The only receiver I kept for myself was a National HRO-5TA1. It’s totally original and has likely not been operated since the late 1940s.

In a sense, this is the radio equivalent of a “barn find.”

I love the HRO dial and the overall aesthetics of this vintage set. It absolutely shouts “1940s” radio––! These sets were initially manufactured during WWII under some large orders. Indeed, the “H.R.O.” acronym is said to be the National internal designation of the series…meaning, “Hellva Rush Order.” There were many variations of the National HRO; mine was the 1946 “5TA1.”

The HRO-5TA1 uses coils to change bands. My HRO has the full set of coils and even the coil box. To change coils, you simply pull out (unplug) the coil from the front of the receiver and plug in a new one.

The power supply is self-contained and connects to the HRP-5TA1 via a four conductor plug.

The back panel of the receiver couldn’t be more simple.

Inside, it’s impressively clean for its age; check this out:

If you can’t tell, letting this one go is going to be one of the toughest I’ve experienced. Parting will, indeed, be sweet sorrow. I must give someone else an opportunity to put this girl on the air, else it will sit here for many more years before I have an opportunity to do the necessary upgrades to make her airworthy again (needs at least recapping).

This weekend, my buddy, Vlado (N3CZ) and I will reserve a couple of tables at the Greenwood, SC hamfest. Unless I sell the HRO-5TA1 beforehand, you’ll find it on my table there!

On that note, readers, please comment if you have a suggestion what I should charge for this set. You can also comment if you think I’m crazy for selling it. It’s not going to be easy!