Category Archives: Vintage Radio

Colin’s Hammarlund HQ-120X restoration

Many thanks to Colin Snow for sharing the following photos and commenting on his Hammarlund HQ-120X restoration. I originally noticed his photos in the Extreme Shortwave Listening group on Facebook and he kindly wrote up descriptions for each image to be published here on the SWLing Post:

Hammarlund HQ-120X restoration

by Colin Snow

Purchased on eBay March, 2016. Hammarlund HQ-120X (1939 restored) and PSC/10 speaker (1939 original). The radio was frist restored by KE7RD, the collector who owned this unit for years. This was a late production version. It has 6K7’s instead of 6S7’s (good). The O/P TRANS has been replaced and an SO-239 added. It was recapped and aligned both IF + RF and works well on all bands.”

I had the cabinet repainted locally at NRI Sandblasting and Coating with a black semi-gloss crinkle powder coat paint. I cleaned the chrome part of the handles with Quick Glo and stripped and painted the two shoulders with black gloss enamel.

I had the speaker enclosure stripped and painted at the same time as the cabinet with the same black semi-gloss crinkle powder coat.

The original 1939 speaker was a 10″ Jensen. It worked, but I wanted the best possible sound. This current production model Jensen fit exactly.

White lines for the knobs were done using white out. The lines are grooved so I just gobbed it on and wiped off the excess.

I had the faceplate rescreened by Adam’s Precision Screen Printing, Inc. San Leandro, CA. They created a film positive first, then a negative screen.

It was a perfect job. The color and sheen matched original. This should last longer because it is an epoxy ink that has been baked to harden.

The lettering came out clean. Even though they made a 1.5X negative they still had to create artwork for the fonts. The original letters were just etched into to aluminum. It looked like it was done by hand.

Funny how words change. We now say “megahertz”, not “megacycles.”

I refurbished the dial windows myself. They were easy to strip and I used a flat black enamel spray. The S-meter glass was dirty so I disassembled it and cleaned with Quick Glo.

Still works after all that!

Its final resting place is my office and looks pretty good next to an original Tiffany’s lamp. I have a second listening post.

Colin, I can see that you spared no expense to restore this Hammarlund HQ-120X and it has paid off–an absolutely gorgeous job! I love how its “final resting place” is in a part of your office that gives it an appropriate amount of space–a place to be admired and, more importantly, enjoyed. I bet the 120 sounds simply amazing!

Thanks again for sharing these photos and your commentary, Colin!

Jerry spots a rare Sony CRF-1 on eBay

8 Replies

Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, Jerry (WWØE), who shares a link to this rare Sony CRF-1 on eBay.

Here’s an excerpt from Bigapple59’s (the Seller) description:

This Ebay listing is for a Sony CRF-1 “portable” radio manufactured in Japan from 1981- 1986 and selling for a new price of around $1,795 not including the power supply. When using the CPI inflation calculator, the price when adjusted for 2016 dollars would be over $4,600! As you can determine, this radio was a premium portable that would outside the price range of anyone except the wealthy who desired the absolute best radio and had the money to purchase it. The time of this manufacture was also a time when Sony reached a height in worldwide respectability with it’s manufacture of Walk*man cassette players. From what we can determine gleaned from various sources, this radio was used by well-heeled buyers and by various media personnel who wanted a good shortwave radio to tune to the BBC, Voice of America, and other stations when they traveled internationally and to remote locations. Indeed, information related to this radio mentions that it can be tucked under the airline seat.

The CRF-1 is very scarce and is sought after by collectors. We have sold hundreds of radios and receivers here on Ebay, but do not commonly have a CRF-1 to offer for sale. Not only is this a scarce unit, but it is in nice overall cosmetic and operational condition. There are a couple of minor marks on the radio, but these can be considered as acceptable for the age of this unit and for it’s relative scarcity. Please note that there is a modification of extra inputs on the rear panel which are believed to be for external antenna and ground, but untested to verify.

Operationally, the radio works wonderfully with no known issues or problems. The front panel lights all illuminate and give off a nice green glow in a darkened room, but which are hard to see during daylight and do not show in my pictures. The included power supply can be adjusted to accommodate voltages ranging from 100 – 240 volts AC. Beneath the power supply is a battery harness clip that is used when you install D cell batteries for operation.

This CRF-1 comes with it’s AC power cord, a copy of the user manual, receiver reviews, copy of the service manual, a Theory of Operation document (not shown), and a CD that has many of the aforementioned documents on it. The unit has the battery holder at the bottom of the battery compartment. This is removed and then snapped on top of the batteries to secure them when the power supply is not being used. This CRF-1 also comes with it’s internal ACP-122W power supply which is not always present and can sell for a handsome sum of money when located for sale. One of these ACP-122W’s sold awhile back in Germany for nearly $300.

I’m sure SWLing Post contributor, Dan Robinson, will know all about the CRF-1 and can, perhaps, comment.

The BuyItNow price for the CRF-1 is $1,695.00 US–a hefty sum and well out of my budget. For what it’s worth, Bigapple59 has a very good reputation on eBay and seems to specialize in the sale of rare solid-state receivers.

Regardless if you’re a Sony collector or not, it’s still mighty fun to take a close look at these benchmark receivers of yesteryear. Hey–one can dream!

Click here to view on eBay.

eBay sighting: Barlow Wadley XCR-30 Mark 2

1 Reply

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Neil Goldstein, who shares a link to this Barlow Wadley XCR-30 Mark 2 on eBay.

The Seller writes the following description:

Up for auction is a rare military green Barlow Wadley XCR-30 Mark2. The radio works perfectly. This is a late serial number 14995.

Please request a shipping quote before bidding as I will charge actual shipping. I will ship via DHL which takes around 7 days.

It’s important to note that detail about shipping since eBay shows shipping as $250. Since it’s being shipped DHL from South Africa, costs could vary greatly, I imagine.

Click here to view on eBay.

Very Scarce Kneisner + Doering KWZ-30 DSP Receiver Surfaces on Ebay

3 Replies

Hailing from Germany, the KWZ-30 communications receiver was one of the first DSP receivers available. This collectable and high performance receiver is rarely seen for sale, but one is now available for a $1890.00 Buy-It-Now price from a Russian Ebay seller. Even with the few dings visible on the radio’s case, it’s likely worth the asking price to a collector.

The extensive Fenu-Radio web site has a nice capsule review of the KWZ-30, including some excellent photos.

At the $1890.00 price of this KWZ-30, you could buy a dozen SDRPlay receivers, or roughly a couple of the highly rated Perseus SDRs. Assuming available funds, is the KWZ-30 a receiver you would add to your radio shack? If so, why… or why not?

Guy Atkins is a Sr. Graphic Designer for T-Mobile and lives near Seattle, Washington. He’s a regular contributor to the SWLing Post.

Tubes and Valves: Dan’s research uncovers three vintage films

eBay: Dan spots a rare Drake RR3/R4245

7 Replies

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

Almost never seen on Ebay, the Drake RR3, otherwise known as the R4245, which is also essentially a Drake R7/A inside a marine style case.

This one has some condition issues, so anyone considering it should ask some thorough questions…

Click here to view on eBay.

Wow–I don’t think I’ve ever seen the Drake RR3/R4245 before. It would certainly be a unique Drake piece to have in the shack.

As Dan mentions, the seller does not offer returns, so you would want to thoroughly research the condition prior to bidding.

The Kenwood R-1000: A resurgence in popularity?

20 Replies

Kenwood R-1000 (Source: Universal Radio)

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

The Kenwood R-1000 has been enjoying a resurgence in popularity over the past few years, fueled in part by a positive re-review of the receiver at http://webpages.charter.net/n9ewo2/news.html

While new condition R-1000s, and you would be surprised how many of them are out there, have gone for $400, few have gone for as much as this one did [$451 US shipped]:

Click here to view on eBay.

My appreciation for this radio has only grown since acquiring it last year. Mine was in like new condition and I had it modified by KIWA to provide multiple selectivity positions.

Click here to search eBay for an R-1000.

Thanks, Dan! I think the R-1000 is a handsome rig and certainly represents everything I love about solid state receivers of the era: simple design, beautiful audio, admirable performance and a proper weighted tuning knob.

Note that if you’re an owner of the R-1000–or any receiver of a similar age–you should set aside a budget for the occasional repair. With regular maintenance, these receivers will give you decades of good DX.