{"id":18792,"date":"2016-05-11T09:13:13","date_gmt":"2016-05-11T13:13:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=18792"},"modified":"2016-05-11T09:13:13","modified_gmt":"2016-05-11T13:13:13","slug":"bob-recalls-working-at-harris-and-putting-the-rf-505a-on-the-air","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2016\/05\/bob-recalls-working-at-harris-and-putting-the-rf-505a-on-the-air\/","title":{"rendered":"Bob recalls working at Harris and putting the RF-505A on the air"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Fullscreen<\/a><\/p>\n

In response to our post mentioning the Harris RF-505A<\/a>,\u00a0SWLing Post<\/em> contributor,\u00a0Bob LaRose (W6ACU), writes:<\/p>\n

I know the RF-505A very well. It was introduced in about 1969 while I worked at Harris in Rochester. I started working there as a Co-Op student while at RIT and then after I got my BSEE I joined them full time, initially as a Field Engineer but quickly found my way into Marketing and eventually Sales.<\/em><\/p>\n

Right after the first version came out, the RF-505, I took one home to my parent\u2019s house for a weekend and did some SWLing with it. It was very neat in one respect \u2013 it tuned ISB (Independent Side Band) and in those days there were a number of utility stations using ISB (separate traffic on each sideband). To an SWL some of the most interesting of these were the VOA point-to-point links from the East and West Coast, each carrying two simultaneous program feeds for the overseas relay stations!<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Harris-RF-505A\"<\/a><\/p>\n

While overall a good receiver my personal results on the sensitivity of the original RF-505 were not very positive. On the bench with exactly a 50 ohm source it looked good but on a real world antenna it was pretty numb. Eventually, after a lot of internal arguments, they came out with the RF-505A that included a tunable active preselector as shown in the photos. Problem solved.<\/em><\/p>\n

For a ham or SWL the RF-505 was a real pain in the butt to tune. You could dial in any exact frequency but the decade switches didn\u2019t roll over (either mechanically or electrically) so you had to do a lot of knob twiddling to do any kind of band scanning. The detents on the switches connected to the knobs were pretty stiff so you could easily take some finger skin off tuning around!<\/em><\/p>\n

If I remember correctly Harris built them for about a five year period and then replaced them with the RF-550, which was a monster of a receiver with all kinds of advanced features. It included a keyboard with electronic display.<\/em><\/p>\n

Great memories!<\/em><\/p>\n

Thanks so much for this RF-505A insight, Bob! I had a hunch that band-scanning wasn’t the RF-505A’s strong suit–it would be incredibly cumbersome to scan with so much “knob twiddling.”<\/p>\n

It must have been pretty amazing to work for the legendary Harris corporation. Thanks for sharing!<\/p>\n

\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In response to our post mentioning the Harris RF-505A,\u00a0SWLing Post contributor,\u00a0Bob LaRose (W6ACU), writes: I know the RF-505A very well. It was introduced in about 1969 while I worked at Harris in Rochester. I started working there as a Co-Op student while at RIT and then after I got my BSEE I joined them full […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3194,545,3,26,43,4796],"tags":[3746,4875,5055],"class_list":["post-18792","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-guest-posts","category-ham-radio","category-news","category-radios","category-shortwave-radio","category-vintage-radio","tag-bob-larose-w6acu","tag-harris","tag-harris-rf-505a"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-4T6","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":30947,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2018\/02\/seyfi-is-seeking-harris-rf-505a-documentation\/","url_meta":{"origin":18792,"position":0},"title":"Seyfi is seeking Harris RF 505A documentation","author":"Thomas","date":"February 22, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post reader,\u00a0Seyfi Gen\u00e7, who writes: I'm a strict follower of your blog and of course a SW listener and HAM (TA2MOK) from Istanbul Turkey. I bought a Harris RF 505A last week for just $30 US! I need to datasheet to repair it.\u00a0 I didn't find\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Harris-RF-505A.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Harris-RF-505A.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Harris-RF-505A.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Harris-RF-505A.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":48255,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2021\/03\/nick-acquires-a-harris-rf-505a-receiver\/","url_meta":{"origin":18792,"position":1},"title":"Nick acquires a Harris RF 505A receiver","author":"Thomas","date":"March 23, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Nick Booras, who writes: I just picked up a Harris 505A and I made a couple videos your viewers might like. This radio is extremely sensitive as you can see in the comparison videos. I am very lucky to have picked it up. I\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Harris-RF-505A.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Harris-RF-505A.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Harris-RF-505A.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Harris-RF-505A.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":18762,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2016\/05\/dan-notes-some-rare-harris-microtel-and-drake-receivers-on-ebay\/","url_meta":{"origin":18792,"position":2},"title":"Dan notes some rare Harris, Microtel and Drake receivers on eBay","author":"Thomas","date":"May 10, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dan Robinson, who writes: These days as shortwave continues on the decline,\u00a0we're seeing some great rarities, receivers that have\u00a0never been seen before on the used market. One of \u00a0these is [top of page], a Harris RF-505A. Click here to view the RF 505-A on\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Harris-RF-505A","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Harris-RF-505A.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Harris-RF-505A.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Harris-RF-505A.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Harris-RF-505A.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":34781,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2018\/11\/wsj-am-radio-and-electric-cars-dont-mix\/","url_meta":{"origin":18792,"position":3},"title":"WSJ: AM radio and electric cars don’t mix","author":"Thomas","date":"November 9, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"(Source: Wall Street Journal via Bob LaRose W6ACU Cars and AM radio go back a long way, but there\u2019s a rough road ahead for the old travel buddies. The same types of electric-powered motors that propel Teslas past 150 mph and the Chevy Bolt as far as 238 miles on\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "AM"","block_context":{"text":"AM","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/am\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Tesla-1024x640.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Tesla-1024x640.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Tesla-1024x640.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":25473,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2017\/05\/ebay-find-the-harris-rf-550\/","url_meta":{"origin":18792,"position":4},"title":"eBay find: The Harris RF-550","author":"Thomas","date":"May 2, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, Trevor, who writes: You might wish to share this with your readers. An example of an excellent commercial rack-mounted receiver at (what I would consider) a reasonable price on eBay: the Harris RF-550. If I lived in The States, I would buy it. Sounds\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Harris-RF-550-1024x768.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Harris-RF-550-1024x768.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Harris-RF-550-1024x768.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":44364,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2020\/07\/johns-mystery-book-better-shortwave-reception-by-william-orr-w6sai\/","url_meta":{"origin":18792,"position":5},"title":"John’s mystery book: “Better Shortwave Reception” by William Orr (W6SAI)","author":"Thomas","date":"July 15, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Herein lies one of the wonderful things about our SWLing Post community.... Yesterday, we posted a message from John (KC8RZM) asking readers to help identify a vintage radio book that had meaningful impact on his life. Within a few hours, SWLing Post contributor, Bob LaRose (W6ACU), came to the rescue\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Scan0006-e1594819113796.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Scan0006-e1594819113796.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Scan0006-e1594819113796.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Scan0006-e1594819113796.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18792","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18792"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18792\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18792"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18792"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18792"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}