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Vintage Amateur and Military Radio Amateur/military receivers and transmitters, morse, and any other related vintage comms equipment.

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Old 9th Aug 2017, 2:20 pm   #1
Jon_G4MDC
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Default AR88 S Meter

I'm pretty sure that's what this is...

I'm thinking about having some waterslide transfers made to recover the scale markings. This scale plate can't be saved but the rest is in good shape.

While I am about it I will put right the mistake "db" mine will be "dB"!

I wonder if anyone has a decent photograph of an Ernest Turner for an AR88 please. It's needed to generate artwork.
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Old 9th Aug 2017, 2:33 pm   #2
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Default Re: AR88 S Meter

You're teasing me. That's exactly what I am looking for...
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Old 9th Aug 2017, 3:05 pm   #3
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Default Re: AR88 S Meter

I think this may be off an Hallicrafter.
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Old 9th Aug 2017, 5:17 pm   #4
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Default Re: AR88 S Meter

No teasing intended!! It is true your thread make me think of it when I last passed it's hiding place. I too have an AR88D with no S meter and this was something I was always meaning to do one day. Fixing the scale is obviously required.

It could be off anything but I think most likely from an AR88 as I also have the mounting bracket which looks correct for it.

It seemed wrong to post it in the same thread so I started a new one.

BR

PS I think a mistake of my own might have been fixed by a kind but invisible mod ;-)
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Old 9th Aug 2017, 7:33 pm   #5
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Default Re: AR88 S Meter

As the original meter has a translucent scale and is back-lit, would it be worth using the existing metal scale as a template for a thin polycarbonate replacement? White paper stained with tea might come close to the (probable!) photochromic darkening of the tuning and logging scales.
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Old 9th Aug 2017, 8:39 pm   #6
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Default Re: AR88 S Meter

That meter looks very similar to my Hallicrafters SX-73 one .
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Old 9th Aug 2017, 8:57 pm   #7
David G4EBT
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Default Re: AR88 S Meter

Quote:
Originally Posted by Jon_G4MDC View Post
I'm pretty sure that's what this is...

I'm thinking about having some waterslide transfers made to recover the scale markings. This scale plate can't be saved but the rest is in good shape.

While I am about it I will put right the mistake "db" mine will be "dB"!
The 'db' and the '100' look to me to be Letraset, not very expertly applied by an amateur in an amateurish fashion at some point in the meter's eventful life.
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Old 9th Aug 2017, 9:00 pm   #8
turretslug
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Default Re: AR88 S Meter

Ernest Turner meters are as British as Simpson meters are American.... There's an Ernest Turner 909 meter here (identical casing, similar looking 1mA LH zero movement) dated 1952- the UK military invested quite some effort in these receivers in the decade post-1945, maybe they had some 5mA RH zero with appropriate scaling made up? Whilst the specific calibration of many "S" meters can be a little tenuous (and certainly over the full range of a general-coverage receiver), they're undoubtedly a useful visual peaking aid and would give an idea of how individual sets were pulling their weight in a diversity set-up.
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Old 9th Aug 2017, 10:00 pm   #9
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Default Re: AR88 S Meter

In the diversity setups that many AR88s were originally used in, there were three external S meters gathered together in one panel of the rack. This is why most AR88s lack an internal meter.

Those meters must have been disposed of separately or recycled for their jewels. I certainly saw no trace of them in 1960's surplus.

David
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Old 11th Aug 2017, 8:44 am   #10
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Default Re: AR88 S Meter

Attached is an AR88 S meter. Don't think it's Ernest Turner as it still works.
Also attached is the S meter for the Hallicrafters SX73, this went open circuit a few years ago.
Don m5aky
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Old 11th Aug 2017, 10:24 am   #11
Jon_G4MDC
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Default Re: AR88 S Meter

Thank you for those.
Certainly the AR88 meter is quite different to the one I have and I agree the SX73 one is closer.

If my perished scale is homebrew it was done by an expert. The lines are very fine and accurately drawn so perhaps its history is a closer match to David's explanation.

As I lack the glass with the meter window and as it's not the right meter anyway I'll cogitate this one some more before doing anything with it.

Thanks for all replies.
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Old 11th Aug 2017, 10:54 am   #12
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Default Re: AR88 S Meter

The AR88 S meter has a right hand zero by the way. I guess this could have been fitted to one.
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Old 11th Aug 2017, 1:10 pm   #13
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Default Re: AR88 S Meter

Another manufacturer that used right hand zero meters was Hallicrafters, eg: SX28 etc.

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Old 11th Aug 2017, 2:42 pm   #14
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Default Re: AR88 S Meter

Well original meters are clearly rarer than even the output Tr's! Many people have put illustrations up but sadly few are that clear. Vosperd's photo at *10 is sharp and confirms the double capital "DB" lettering. There's another one in the thread by michaelC [29/12/16 RCA] AR88 S Meter Installation post *3.

I was interested in RW/David's comment at *9 re diversity usage and the separate, perhaps different type, meters being used in threes! My 88 is marked "Slave 34". I thought the meter was original, probaly not but it's a 1942 A K M [with a crown symbol in the middle 0-5 [50] Milliamp on the standard r hand scale. Could it be out of the "three stock"? It all looks original except the meter is on a blanking plate with a hole above to take a bulb, that seems to be unused
It took me a long time to decipher this set's serial No as 009755.

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