What is it? Set 270

On Feb 8, 5:24=A0am, "Michael Koblic" <[email protected]> wrote:
> humunculus wrote:
>
> =A0>The writing is chinese, rather
>
> > than japanese,
>
> What makes you say that?
>
> --
> Michael Koblic,
> Campbell River, BC

Because the written languages are different, and I live in Hong Kong.
I could still be wrong, but I asked a friend who teaches Mandarin what
the writing said, and he interpreted it for me and did not say 'by the
way, its in Japanese, not Mandarin'.

--riverman

On Feb 5, 7:13=A0pm, "Alexander Thesoso" <[email protected]>
wrote:
> 1532 =A0Radio Communications Receiver. =A0Separate front end tuners for v=
arious
> bands. =A0Band select switch. BFO switch for listening to CW code
> transmissions.
>
> 1534 Part of a cut-away turbine rotor.
>
> 1536 Guess... electrical firing trigger for a gun (cannon). =A0Imagine th=
at it
> might be used in the turret of a WW-II Japanese warship. Thumb safety, pu=
ll
> trigger to make bang.
>

That's a better guess than mine...I was thinking of a black-powder
starter's pistol, with the thumb mechanism as a backup for false
starts. But the construcion and style sure says 'military' to me....

Now I'm looking at either some sort of igniter to start old prop
planes (I don't know why I have this fixation that it uses powder...)
or else a trigger to set off explosives. The thumb trigger is the
safety/secondary.

--riverman

On Feb 5, 8:48 pm, humunculus <[email protected]> wrote:
> On Feb 5, 7:13 pm, "Alexander Thesoso" <[email protected]>
> wrote:
>
> > 1532 Radio Communications Receiver. Separate front end tuners for various
> > bands. Band select switch. BFO switch for listening to CW code
> > transmissions.
>
> > 1534 Part of a cut-away turbine rotor.
>
> > 1536 Guess... electrical firing trigger for a gun (cannon). Imagine that it
> > might be used in the turret of a WW-II Japanese warship. Thumb safety, pull
> > trigger to make bang.
>
> That's a better guess than mine...I was thinking of a black-powder
> starter's pistol, with the thumb mechanism as a backup for false
> starts. But the construcion and style sure says 'military' to me....
>
> Now I'm looking at either some sort of igniter to start old prop
> planes (I don't know why I have this fixation that it uses powder...)
> or else a trigger to set off explosives. The thumb trigger is the
> safety/secondary.
>
> --riverman

BTW, a Mandarin-fluent friend of mine just told me what the writing on
the front of the item says:

"The first character $B0B(B is likely the phonetic rendering of some kind
of firearm (?) made by a company that starts with the sound "An"--
Anderson? The second character $B<0(B means "style" or "kind".

Not a lot of help....its a firearm-kind-of-thing.

--riverman

"Rob H." <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Might be another difficult set, I need help figuring out three of them
> this week:
>
> http://55tools.blogspot.com/
>
>
> Rob

1531. Wireless microphone / bug perhaps a kit. No mic visible. Maybe a fox
hunt transmitter.

"Rob H." <[email protected]> writes:
>
>> I think you got 1532 wrong. It's not for listening
>> in on friendly bugs, it's for detecting hostile
>> bugs. It's a modular receiver that can scan the
>> entire spectrum from 1 mhz to 1600 mhz. A friendly
>> bug receiver would only tune to either the band or
>> specific frequency of the bug.
>>
>> This picture...
>>
>> http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=cold-ware-counter-surveillance
>>
>> Shows the receiver in the lower right side of the
>> briefcase with a whip antenna connected to the
>> 12-43 Mhz input.
>
>
>I really don't know enough about it to agree or disagree with your comment.
>I took the photo at a military museum, here is the uncropped shot which
>shows the museum's description:
>
>http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v80/harnett65/Album10/_1aDSC000163.jpg
>
>I'm sure it's possible that it's not marked correctly, or maybe it was used
>for both purposes and they offer just a partial explanation of it. Thanks
>for the link, they had some good stuff there.
>

The museum is description is likely accurate, but incomplete.

Such a receiver certainly could be used to monitor a bug. There are much
less expensive single band (or even single frequency) (and portable)
receivers used for that purpose, however.

We used to call this type of receiver "DC to Daylight".

scott

"DoN. Nichols" <[email protected]> writes:
>On 2009-02-07, Scott Lurndal <[email protected]> wrote:

>> We used to call this type of receiver "DC to Daylight".
>
> :-)
>
> I was impressed enough by the R-390A (if I remember it

Now there was a big heavy beast of a radio. Collins, IIRC. Still
desirable for shortwave listeners. The ICOM R-1 handheld is/was much smaller
and 3 decades newer.

scott

1531
Maybe the card out of a garage door opener. Or a far off vier of my
wife's cosmetics mess on the tray next to the bathroom sink.

On Feb 8, 4:48=A0pm, humunculus <[email protected]> wrote:
> On Feb 8, 3:02=A0pm, "David G. Nagel" <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> > Michael Koblic wrote:
> > > humunculus wrote:
>
> > > =A0>The writing is chinese, rather
> > >> than japanese,
>
> > > What makes you say that?
>
> > Both countries use the same character in their writing.
>
> Not entirely so. 'Kanji' is the form of Japanese writing that uses
> Chinese characters, but the vast majority of writing in Japanese uses
> only a very few Kanji forms, mostly limited to proper nouns, and mixes
> in the other forms of japanese writing. The other Japanese characters
> are considerably simpler and use fewer strokes, and are quickly
> identifyable as Japanese.
>
> Its not impossible that this item is Japanese, with just two Kanji
> characters describing its name, but I think that would be quite
> unusual. For example, here is a WW2 Japanese sniper rifle with some
> Japanese writing on it
> =A0http://tinyurl.com/azn97h
> You can see that this is not in Kanji: they are not Chinese
> characters.
>
> --riverman

I'm going to reply to my own post here. I could be wrong about the
writing; not because japanese writing uses the same characters as
chinese (it doesn't), but its possible that limited writing on
military items could be entirely in Kanji. The rifle, for example,
says '97 style' in both Mandarin and Japanese.

However, for the most part, Japanese writing makes limited use of
Kanji, so this item could very easily be Chinese instead. But its not
absolute.

--riverman

On Feb 7, 8:14=A0am, "DoN. Nichols" <[email protected]> wrote:

>
> 1536) =A0 The material suggests nautical use. =A0The paddle is a safety
> =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 which =A0has to be depressed prior to pulling the trigger=
.
>
> =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 My guess is that this is the firing mechanism for a harpo=
on gun,
> =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 used in more recent whale hunting. =A0It attaches by the
> =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 projection opposite the handgrip to allow aiming of the h=
arpoon
> =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 gun.

Hmm, a harpoon trigger seems possible. The writing is chinese, rather
than japanese, but its possible that the japanese whalers got their
trigger mechanisms from the mainland.

FWIW, here's a picture of an old WW2 American deck cannon with a
similar pistol grip...despite the differences, you can almost imagine
the sailor's thumb holding down a safety mechanism on top of the grip
similar to the one on the mystery item.

http://www.boat-links.com/Old-Navy/oldnavy-05B.html

--riverman

On Feb 8, 3:02=A0pm, "David G. Nagel" <[email protected]> wrote:
> Michael Koblic wrote:
> > humunculus wrote:
>
> > =A0>The writing is chinese, rather
> >> than japanese,
>
> > What makes you say that?
>
> Both countries use the same character in their writing.

Not entirely so. 'Kanji' is the form of Japanese writing that uses
Chinese characters, but the vast majority of writing in Japanese uses
only a very few Kanji forms, mostly limited to proper nouns, and mixes
in the other forms of japanese writing. The other Japanese characters
are considerably simpler and use fewer strokes, and are quickly
identifyable as Japanese.

Its not impossible that this item is Japanese, with just two Kanji
characters describing its name, but I think that would be quite
unusual. For example, here is a WW2 Japanese sniper rifle with some
Japanese writing on it
http://tinyurl.com/azn97h
You can see that this is not in Kanji: they are not Chinese
characters.

--riverman

On Feb 8, 11:14=A0pm, "David G. Nagel" <[email protected]>
wrote:
> humunculus wrote:
> > On Feb 8, 5:57 pm, Spehro Pefhany <[email protected]>
> > wrote:
> >> On Sun, 8 Feb 2009 01:21:56 -0800 (PST), the renowned humunculus
>
> >> <[email protected]> wrote:
> >>> On Feb 8, 4:48 pm, humunculus <[email protected]> wrote:
> >>>> On Feb 8, 3:02 pm, "David G. Nagel" <[email protected]> wrot=
e:
> >>>>> Michael Koblic wrote:
> >>>>>> humunculus wrote:
> >>>>>> =A0>The writing is chinese, rather
> >>>>>>> than japanese,
> >>>>>> What makes you say that?
> >>>>> Both countries use the same character in their writing.
> >>>> Not entirely so. 'Kanji' is the form of Japanese writing that uses
> >>>> Chinese characters, but the vast majority of writing in Japanese use=
s
> >>>> only a very few Kanji forms, mostly limited to proper nouns, and mix=
es
> >>>> in the other forms of japanese writing. The other Japanese character=
s
> >>>> are considerably simpler and use fewer strokes, and are quickly
> >>>> identifyable as Japanese.
> >>>> Its not impossible that this item is Japanese, with just two Kanji
> >>>> characters describing its name, but I think that would be quite
> >>>> unusual. For example, here is a WW2 Japanese sniper rifle with some
> >>>> Japanese writing on it
> >>>> =A0http://tinyurl.com/azn97h
> >>>> You can see that this is not in Kanji: they are not Chinese
> >>>> characters.
> >>>> --riverman
> >>> I'm going to reply to my own post here. I could be wrong about the
> >>> writing; not because japanese writing uses the same characters as
> >>> chinese (it doesn't), but its possible that limited writing on
> >>> military items could be entirely in Kanji. The rifle, for example,
> >>> says '97 style' in both Mandarin and Japanese.
> >>> However, for the most part, Japanese writing makes limited use of
> >>> Kanji, so this item could very easily be Chinese instead. But its not
> >>> absolute.
> >>> --riverman
> >> The two characters mean, respectively, "Peace" and "Left"
> >> individually, and in Mandarin are pronouced "an1 zuo3".
>
> > Unless your picture is a mirror image of mine, the second character
> > isn't zuo3, its shi4, which means 'style' or 'type'. On zuo3, the
> > vertical stroke is on the left, not the right.
>
> > I agree that the first character is an1.
>
> > -riverman
>
> And now we know why Chinese and Japanese languages are so hard to learn
> to read and write.- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

No different than minding your p's and q's....just in a different
language. :-)

--riverman

On Feb 8, 5:57=A0pm, Spehro Pefhany <[email protected]>
wrote:
> On Sun, 8 Feb 2009 01:21:56 -0800 (PST), the renowned humunculus
>
>
>
>
>
> <[email protected]> wrote:
> >On Feb 8, 4:48=A0pm, humunculus <[email protected]> wrote:
> >> On Feb 8, 3:02=A0pm, "David G. Nagel" <[email protected]> wrot=
e:
>
> >> > Michael Koblic wrote:
> >> > > humunculus wrote:
>
> >> > > =A0>The writing is chinese, rather
> >> > >> than japanese,
>
> >> > > What makes you say that?
>
> >> > Both countries use the same character in their writing.
>
> >> Not entirely so. 'Kanji' is the form of Japanese writing that uses
> >> Chinese characters, but the vast majority of writing in Japanese uses
> >> only a very few Kanji forms, mostly limited to proper nouns, and mixes
> >> in the other forms of japanese writing. The other Japanese characters
> >> are considerably simpler and use fewer strokes, and are quickly
> >> identifyable as Japanese.
>
> >> Its not impossible that this item is Japanese, with just two Kanji
> >> characters describing its name, but I think that would be quite
> >> unusual. For example, here is a WW2 Japanese sniper rifle with some
> >> Japanese writing on it
> >> =A0http://tinyurl.com/azn97h
> >> You can see that this is not in Kanji: they are not Chinese
> >> characters.
>
> >> --riverman
>
> >I'm going to reply to my own post here. I could be wrong about the
> >writing; not because japanese writing uses the same characters as
> >chinese (it doesn't), but its possible that limited writing on
> >military items could be entirely in Kanji. The rifle, for example,
> >says '97 style' in both Mandarin and Japanese.
>
> >However, for the most part, Japanese writing makes limited use of
> >Kanji, so this item could very easily be Chinese instead. But its not
> >absolute.
>
> >--riverman
>
> The two characters mean, respectively, "Peace" and "Left"
> individually, and in Mandarin are pronouced "an1 zuo3".
>
>

Unless your picture is a mirror image of mine, the second character
isn't zuo3, its shi4, which means 'style' or 'type'. On zuo3, the
vertical stroke is on the left, not the right.

I agree that the first character is an1.

-riverman

humunculus wrote:
> On Feb 8, 5:57 pm, Spehro Pefhany <[email protected]>
> wrote:
>> On Sun, 8 Feb 2009 01:21:56 -0800 (PST), the renowned humunculus
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> <[email protected]> wrote:
>>> On Feb 8, 4:48 pm, humunculus <[email protected]> wrote:
>>>> On Feb 8, 3:02 pm, "David G. Nagel" <[email protected]> wrote:
>>>>> Michael Koblic wrote:
>>>>>> humunculus wrote:
>>>>>> >The writing is chinese, rather
>>>>>>> than japanese,
>>>>>> What makes you say that?
>>>>> Both countries use the same character in their writing.
>>>> Not entirely so. 'Kanji' is the form of Japanese writing that uses
>>>> Chinese characters, but the vast majority of writing in Japanese uses
>>>> only a very few Kanji forms, mostly limited to proper nouns, and mixes
>>>> in the other forms of japanese writing. The other Japanese characters
>>>> are considerably simpler and use fewer strokes, and are quickly
>>>> identifyable as Japanese.
>>>> Its not impossible that this item is Japanese, with just two Kanji
>>>> characters describing its name, but I think that would be quite
>>>> unusual. For example, here is a WW2 Japanese sniper rifle with some
>>>> Japanese writing on it
>>>> http://tinyurl.com/azn97h
>>>> You can see that this is not in Kanji: they are not Chinese
>>>> characters.
>>>> --riverman
>>> I'm going to reply to my own post here. I could be wrong about the
>>> writing; not because japanese writing uses the same characters as
>>> chinese (it doesn't), but its possible that limited writing on
>>> military items could be entirely in Kanji. The rifle, for example,
>>> says '97 style' in both Mandarin and Japanese.
>>> However, for the most part, Japanese writing makes limited use of
>>> Kanji, so this item could very easily be Chinese instead. But its not
>>> absolute.
>>> --riverman
>> The two characters mean, respectively, "Peace" and "Left"
>> individually, and in Mandarin are pronouced "an1 zuo3".
>>
>>
>
> Unless your picture is a mirror image of mine, the second character
> isn't zuo3, its shi4, which means 'style' or 'type'. On zuo3, the
> vertical stroke is on the left, not the right.
>
> I agree that the first character is an1.
>
> -riverman
And now we know why Chinese and Japanese languages are so hard to learn
to read and write.

Michael Koblic wrote:
> humunculus wrote:
>
> >The writing is chinese, rather
>> than japanese,
>
> What makes you say that?
>
Both countries use the same character in their writing.

In article <[email protected]>,
Jim Stewart <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>I think you got 1532 wrong. It's not for listening
>in on friendly bugs, it's for detecting hostile
>bugs.

[...]

>This picture...
>
>http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=cold-ware-counter-surveillance
>
>Shows the receiver in the lower right side of the
>briefcase with a whip antenna connected to the
>12-43 Mhz input.

And also a triangular-shaped device which is possibly a LPDA used for
the UHF or microwave bands.
--
It's times like these which make me glad my bank is Dial-a-Mattress

"Rob H." <[email protected]> scribbled:

> Might be another difficult set, I need help figuring out three of
> them this
> week:
>
> http://55tools.blogspot.com/
>
>

1531. spy camera

"Rob H." <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Might be another difficult set, I need help figuring out three of them
> this week:
>
> http://55tools.blogspot.com/
>
>
> Rob

1531 I am going to guess at a receiver judging by the coil and the variable
cap.
1532 amateur radio receiver
1533 ?
1534 some kind of turbine?
1535 I am tempted to say it a chair mechanism but i doubt its that simple.
1536 ?

On Feb 8, 5:21=A0pm, humunculus <[email protected]> wrote:
> On Feb 8, 4:48=A0pm, humunculus <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
> > On Feb 8, 3:02=A0pm, "David G. Nagel" <[email protected]> wrote=
:
>
> > > Michael Koblic wrote:
> > > > humunculus wrote:
>
> > > > =A0>The writing is chinese, rather
> > > >> than japanese,
>
> > > > What makes you say that?
>
> > > Both countries use the same character in their writing.
>
> > Not entirely so. 'Kanji' is the form of Japanese writing that uses
> > Chinese characters, but the vast majority of writing in Japanese uses
> > only a very few Kanji forms, mostly limited to proper nouns, and mixes
> > in the other forms of japanese writing. The other Japanese characters
> > are considerably simpler and use fewer strokes, and are quickly
> > identifyable as Japanese.
>
> > Its not impossible that this item is Japanese, with just two Kanji
> > characters describing its name, but I think that would be quite
> > unusual. For example, here is a WW2 Japanese sniper rifle with some
> > Japanese writing on it
> > =A0http://tinyurl.com/azn97h
> > You can see that this is not in Kanji: they are not Chinese
> > characters.
>
> > --riverman
>
> I'm going to reply to my own post here. I could be wrong about the
> writing; not because japanese writing uses the same characters as
> chinese (it doesn't), but its possible that limited writing on
> military items could be entirely in Kanji. The rifle, for example,
> says '97 style' in both Mandarin and Japanese.
>
> However, for the most part, Japanese writing makes limited use of
> Kanji, so this item could very easily be Chinese instead. But its not
> absolute.
>
> --riverman- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

OK, I'm going to stop digging my own grave here and admit I am likely
wrong about the writing entirely. I didn't realize that the sniper
rifle is a well-known Japanese arm called 'Type 97', and was made in
Nagoya Japan. The form (using Kanji characters, ending with the
character for 'style' and identifying the firearm by using a stamp in
this format) is certainly Japanese in nature. The unknown pistol-grip
thingy has the same format....'something' style--B. I think its
Japanese, and from the same era as the Type 97 sniper rifle.

Walking away now...

--riverman

On Feb 5, 4:13=A0am, "Rob H." <[email protected]> wrote:
> =A0Might be another difficult set, I need help figuring out three of them=
this
> week:
>
> http://55tools.blogspot.com/
>
> Rob

1531: DTMF circuit from an early touch tone phone?

1535: Typewriter table (I grew up with one of these. Pain to adjust)

In article <[email protected]>, "Rob H." <[email protected]>
wrote:

> Might be another difficult set, I need help figuring out three of them this
> week:

Well, I don't feel quite as clueless as sometimes, but that's not saying
very much!

1531 - Quite obviously a little electronic circuit of some sort. It
appears to me to likely be a radio circuit, perhaps a cheap transistor
radio receiver, but it's impossible--at least for me--to tell without
being able to deduce a schematic for it. It may also be an amplifier or
timer or a host of other things.

1532 - Some sort of portable RF equipment, possibly an RF frequency
signal generator for testing other equipment. There are rather clearly
eight RF generator circuits covering a wide range of frequencies, but
it's not clear what the part in the upper-left is intended to do; it may
permit modulation of the RF.

1533 - Well, you hold the handle and....ummm....

1534 - Obviously some manner of a turbine; it doesn't look especially
sturdy to me, so I'll guess it's a large turbine air compressor.

1535 - I was initially going to say a piano stool minus the seat, but
it's too tall for that. Probably it's for an adjustable table of some
sort, maybe intended for a typewriter or such like.

1536 - Maybe a part of a paint spraying outfit? Seems quite complicated
for that, though.

Now to read other guesses...

--
Andrew Erickson

"He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot
lose." -- Jim Elliot

Rob H. wrote:
> Might be another difficult set, I need help figuring out three of
> them this week:
>
> http://55tools.blogspot.com/

1534 is the compressor in a jet engine or gas turbine

1535 looks very like a transmission stand for supporting the transmission or
engine when you're working under a car on a ramp. However it isn't tall
enough for a car on a ramp at head height so you can stand under it. Same
type of principle though.
--
Dave Baker

1532 Radio Communications Receiver. Separate front end tuners for various
bands. Band select switch. BFO switch for listening to CW code
transmissions.

1534 Part of a cut-away turbine rotor.

1536 Guess... electrical firing trigger for a gun (cannon). Imagine that it
might be used in the turret of a WW-II Japanese warship. Thumb safety, pull
trigger to make bang.





"Rob H." <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Might be another difficult set, I need help figuring out three of them
> this week:
>
> http://55tools.blogspot.com/
>
>
> Rob

> BTW, a Mandarin-fluent friend of mine just told me what the writing on
> the front of the item says:
>
> "The first character $B0B(B is likely the phonetic rendering of some kind
> of firearm (?) made by a company that starts with the sound "An"--
> Anderson? The second character $B<0(B means "style" or "kind".
>
> Not a lot of help....its a firearm-kind-of-thing.
>
> --riverman


Thanks! I was hoping someone would be able to translate that for us. I
agree with those who think it's some type of warship trigger. The owner of
it found it on a shelf in the cellar of an old adobe in Colorado.

-----

Below are links to a few photos of an usual object someone found in
California, not sure if it really has a purpose or not , but I am a little
curious as to what it might be:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v80/harnett65/Album10/_1a6image001.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v80/harnett65/Album10/_1a6image004.jpg


The owner's description:
"It is 6" long exactly, with the small end being 3/4" in diameter and the
large end being 1" in diameter. It is hollow all the way with the small hole
being 5/16" in diameter and the large hole being 5/8" in diameter. With the
insert installed the large end is 1-1/4" from the large end of the insert.
The insert is 1-1/2" long."



Rob

"Rob H." <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Might be another difficult set, I need help figuring out three of them
> this week:
>
> http://55tools.blogspot.com/
>
>
> Rob

1531) A small printed circuit board featuring two transistors (at least), a
small trimmer capacitor and a low inductance coil as well as assorted caps
and resistors. This could be anything working at a VHF frequency. I do not
see a crystal, so likely a front end amplifier of some sort.

1532) A wide-range signal generator with output regulation and modulation
facility

1533) A toothbrush for very bad gingivitis

1534) A turbine. GOK for what purpose.

1535) A Jack - there is a coarse and fine (screw) height adjustment. OTOH a
table top may be missing...

1536) A firing mechanism of some sort. I interpret the kanji as Japanese
meaning "cheap model"

--
Michael Koblic,
Campbell River, BC

Rob H. wrote:
> Might be another difficult set, I need help figuring out three of them
> this week:
>
> http://55tools.blogspot.com/

1531 A spy "bug"

1532 Mason AB3 countersurveillance receiver

http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=cold-ware-counter-surveillance

1536 A trigger for a large naval gun

> 1536 Guess... electrical firing trigger for a gun (cannon). Imagine that
> it might be used in the turret of a WW-II Japanese warship. Thumb safety,
> pull trigger to make bang.


I agree that this is most likely the answer, but it has proven to be a
difficult one to verify. The rest of the answers, except for number 1533,
have been posted here:


http://answers270r.blogspot.com/


Rob

Rob H. wrote:
>> 1536 Guess... electrical firing trigger for a gun (cannon). Imagine
>> that it might be used in the turret of a WW-II Japanese warship. Thumb
>> safety, pull trigger to make bang.
>
>
> I agree that this is most likely the answer, but it has proven to be a
> difficult one to verify. The rest of the answers, except for number
> 1533, have been posted here:
>
>
> http://answers270r.blogspot.com/
>
>
> Rob

I think you got 1532 wrong. It's not for listening
in on friendly bugs, it's for detecting hostile
bugs. It's a modular receiver that can scan the
entire spectrum from 1 mhz to 1600 mhz. A friendly
bug receiver would only tune to either the band or
specific frequency of the bug.

This picture...

http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=cold-ware-counter-surveillance

Shows the receiver in the lower right side of the
briefcase with a whip antenna connected to the
12-43 Mhz input.

> I think you got 1532 wrong. It's not for listening
> in on friendly bugs, it's for detecting hostile
> bugs. It's a modular receiver that can scan the
> entire spectrum from 1 mhz to 1600 mhz. A friendly
> bug receiver would only tune to either the band or
> specific frequency of the bug.
>
> This picture...
>
> http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=cold-ware-counter-surveillance
>
> Shows the receiver in the lower right side of the
> briefcase with a whip antenna connected to the
> 12-43 Mhz input.


I really don't know enough about it to agree or disagree with your comment.
I took the photo at a military museum, here is the uncropped shot which
shows the museum's description:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v80/harnett65/Album10/_1aDSC000163.jpg

I'm sure it's possible that it's not marked correctly, or maybe it was used
for both purposes and they offer just a partial explanation of it. Thanks
for the link, they had some good stuff there.

Rob

humunculus wrote:
> On Feb 7, 8:14 am, "DoN. Nichols" <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>>
>> 1536) The material suggests nautical use. The paddle is a safety
>> which has to be depressed prior to pulling the trigger.
>>
>> My guess is that this is the firing mechanism for a harpoon gun,
>> used in more recent whale hunting. It attaches by the
>> projection opposite the handgrip to allow aiming of the harpoon
>> gun.
>
> Hmm, a harpoon trigger seems possible. The writing is chinese,
> rather
> than japanese, but its possible that the japanese whalers got their
> trigger mechanisms from the mainland.
>
> FWIW, here's a picture of an old WW2 American deck cannon

Uh, that's Kipling's "dainty Hotchkiss gun", which is 1800s. Long
obsolete by the start of WWII.

> with a
> similar pistol grip...despite the differences, you can almost
> imagine
> the sailor's thumb holding down a safety mechanism on top of the
> grip
> similar to the one on the mystery item.
>
> http://www.boat-links.com/Old-Navy/oldnavy-05B.html
>
> --riverman

--
--
--John
to email, dial "usenet" and validate
(was jclarke at eye bee em dot net)

Here is another photo that someone sent in to me, along with this
description:

The item is in the collection of the Lititz Moravian Church's Archive and
Museum in Lititz, PA. The item is sheet tin, light weight, and shows no
signs of any wear or use, like for dipping or hanging. Each little, tin
v-shape going down are like 'pockets'. It could date anywhere from 1750's,
founding of the church, to the 1850's. We have many other tin items in the
collection from this period since the Moravians were like a communal society
set up to do missionary work with the Native American Indians in North
America, and all the tools and much of the output of the various crafts
folks in town remained with the church.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v80/harnett65/Album10/_7dcs008.jpg


Might be another one that doesn't really have a purpose, but maybe someone
will have an idea on it.


Rob

humunculus wrote:

>The writing is chinese, rather
> than japanese,

What makes you say that?

--
Michael Koblic,
Campbell River, BC

"Spehro Pefhany" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

> The two characters mean, respectively, "Peace" and "Left"
> individually, and in Mandarin are pronouced "an1 zuo3".
>
Not so. There is a Japanese interpretation of both.
The first character is "cheap" (onyomi=an, kunyomi=yasu[i]). It can be
combined with many other kanji to form words that have nothing to do with
"cheap". E.g. anzen (safety), anshin (peace of mind), fuan (unease). In fact
I thought the character on the piece somewhat signified safety but I do not
see the other kanji for "zen" which is almost invariably present in this
context.

The second character *looks* like "left" but it is a mirror image of kanji
for "left". Well, not quite, there is an additional stroke which I cannot
see in the picture, but it is usually very tiny. This makes this a kanji for
"model", "ceremony", "form" and in some context "style".

I have looked as hard as I could (those who use Japanese dictionaries will
know that this is not a simple process :-) but could not find the two
characters together in any context.

The kanji characters are in majority identical in their structure and
meaning to the Chinese. Not always. In Japanese, however, the words can also
be written independently in two alphabets using syllables: Hiragana for
native words and katakana usually for foreign words (Hence "Makudonarudo"
for McDonald's). The hiragana is used to modify kanji to express grammatical
forms, particularly in case of verbs.

--
Michael Koblic,
Campbell River, BC

1532: Electronic intelligence or Communications intelligence
(ELINT/COMINT) receiver with plug-in front-end modules to cover a total
of 0.3 MHz (300 kHz) to 1600 MHz. Possibly Watkins-Johnson.

Northe

On Sun, 8 Feb 2009 01:21:56 -0800 (PST), the renowned humunculus
<[email protected]> wrote:

>On Feb 8, 4:48 pm, humunculus <[email protected]> wrote:
>> On Feb 8, 3:02 pm, "David G. Nagel" <[email protected]> wrote:
>>
>> > Michael Koblic wrote:
>> > > humunculus wrote:
>>
>> > >  >The writing is chinese, rather
>> > >> than japanese,
>>
>> > > What makes you say that?
>>
>> > Both countries use the same character in their writing.
>>
>> Not entirely so. 'Kanji' is the form of Japanese writing that uses
>> Chinese characters, but the vast majority of writing in Japanese uses
>> only a very few Kanji forms, mostly limited to proper nouns, and mixes
>> in the other forms of japanese writing. The other Japanese characters
>> are considerably simpler and use fewer strokes, and are quickly
>> identifyable as Japanese.
>>
>> Its not impossible that this item is Japanese, with just two Kanji
>> characters describing its name, but I think that would be quite
>> unusual. For example, here is a WW2 Japanese sniper rifle with some
>> Japanese writing on it
>>  http://tinyurl.com/azn97h
>> You can see that this is not in Kanji: they are not Chinese
>> characters.
>>
>> --riverman
>
>I'm going to reply to my own post here. I could be wrong about the
>writing; not because japanese writing uses the same characters as
>chinese (it doesn't), but its possible that limited writing on
>military items could be entirely in Kanji. The rifle, for example,
>says '97 style' in both Mandarin and Japanese.
>
>However, for the most part, Japanese writing makes limited use of
>Kanji, so this item could very easily be Chinese instead. But its not
>absolute.
>
>--riverman

The two characters mean, respectively, "Peace" and "Left"
individually, and in Mandarin are pronouced "an1 zuo3".

They are often used to phonetically (in Mandarin) translate "Enzo", if
that might help. ("Anderson" is different).


Best regards,
Spehro Pefhany
--
"it's the network..." "The Journey is the reward"
[email protected] Info for manufacturers: http://www.trexon.com
Embedded software/hardware/analog Info for designers: http://www.speff.com

On 2009-02-05, Rob H. <[email protected]> wrote:
> Might be another difficult set, I need help figuring out three of them this
> week:
>
> http://55tools.blogspot.com/

Posting (somewhat late) from rec.crafts.metalworking as always.

I'll look at the other guesses *after* I make and enter my own.

1531) A very compact circuit for one with discrete components.

It looks to include a RF tuned circuit (the coil in the lower
right-hand corner and the object just to the upper right which
appears to be a tuning capacitor.

Guesses are:

1) Telemetry transmitter for model rockets or similar.

2) Spy transmitter, if one of those difficult to see
components happens to be a microphone.

3) Perhaps a transmitter to allow tracking a vehicle.

1532) Multi-band receiver -- capable of monitoring signals in up to
eight bands -- with plug-ins to select the bands, so you could
tune to multiple signals within a single band with the proper
plug-ins.

Looks like older military gear.

1533) No clue -- but I don't think that I would want it use on me. :-)

1534) Turbine assembly. While it could be steam, the visible portion
of the cut-away exterior makes it look like a jet engine.

1535) Color makes it look to be military in origin.

I think that the four arms take screws to secure a table at an
adjustable height -- perhaps for sighting equipment on a map on
the table.

1536) The material suggests nautical use. The paddle is a safety
which has to be depressed prior to pulling the trigger.

My guess is that this is the firing mechanism for a harpoon gun,
used in more recent whale hunting. It attaches by the
projection opposite the handgrip to allow aiming of the harpoon
gun.

Now to see what others have posted, and then to read the
answers, which appear to already be posted, since I see the link for
them is the color to indicate an active link.

Enjoy,
DoN.

--
Email: <[email protected]> | Voice (all times): (703) 938-4564
(too) near Washington D.C. | http://www.d-and-d.com/dnichols/DoN.html
--- Black Holes are where God is dividing by zero ---

On 2009-02-07, Scott Lurndal <[email protected]> wrote:
> "Rob H." <[email protected]> writes:
>>
>>> I think you got 1532 wrong. It's not for listening
>>> in on friendly bugs, it's for detecting hostile

[ ... ]

>>I really don't know enough about it to agree or disagree with your comment.
>>I took the photo at a military museum, here is the uncropped shot which
>>shows the museum's description:
>>
>>http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v80/harnett65/Album10/_1aDSC000163.jpg
>>
>>I'm sure it's possible that it's not marked correctly, or maybe it was used
>>for both purposes and they offer just a partial explanation of it. Thanks
>>for the link, they had some good stuff there.
>>
>
> The museum is description is likely accurate, but incomplete.

I would agree.

> Such a receiver certainly could be used to monitor a bug. There are much
> less expensive single band (or even single frequency) (and portable)
> receivers used for that purpose, however.

Looking at that particular bug -- single frequency receivers
would have a problem. Note that the open-air coil (inductor) is
squished from its original shape. This would not keep it from working,
but it *would* shift the frequency. And it is so easy to
unintentionally squish it a bit more just handling to to its point of
operation. After all -- you don't walk past the front desk of the
embassy (or whatever) with it in the open resting in your palm. It goes
into a pocket until you are where you need to install it.

I also don't see a source of power in the photo -- though coin
cells might be hidden on the underside or otherwise behind other
components. I know that pressure transducer style microphones can be
small enough to be included in the components on the board.

> We used to call this type of receiver "DC to Daylight".

:-)

I was impressed enough by the R-390A (if I remember it
correctly), which went from audio up to 40 MHz. Amazing mechanicals
inside, and tons of tubes. I remember being part of a communications
experiment which had us on an Air Force base in Arizona with three of
these operating in a duce-and-a-half -- generating a lot of unneeded
heat in mid-summer. :-)

Enjoy,
DoN.

--
Email: <[email protected]> | Voice (all times): (703) 938-4564
(too) near Washington D.C. | http://www.d-and-d.com/dnichols/DoN.html
--- Black Holes are where God is dividing by zero ---

On Sun, 8 Feb 2009 01:28:26 -0800 (PST), humunculus
<[email protected]> wrote:

>The unknown pistol-grip
>thingy has the same format....'something' style--B. I think its
>Japanese, and from the same era as the Type 97 sniper rifle.
>
>Walking away now...
>
>--riverman

Some food for thought...

From what I could find mucking about, England/Britain
supplied many of the early Warships for Japan (~1900). This
would have been around the time of the Dreadnoughts.

"...At this time the British were trying hard to build up
Japan as a counterbalance to Russian power in the Far East
-- Britain's first overseas alliance was the Anglo-Japanese
Pact of 1902. British shipyards continued building warships
for the Japanese through WWI, and sharing techniques with
Japanese shipyards as well. Meanwhile the Japanese were
assiduously amassing the technical expertise and yard
facilities to build for themselves. By 1904 Togo's fleet
included 5 modern battleships and 8 armored cruisers,
totaling about 60 vessels; two even more powerful
pre-dreadnoughts were building in Britain, but were not
completed in time for the war." From:

http://www.cityofart.net/bship/mikasa.htm


That may help explain the odd combination of numbering and
Kanji characters on the pistol grip thingy.

This old book makes mention of "Firing Keys".

http://openlibrary.org/details/elementarynaval00ramsgoog/leaf54

From about half-way down page 79:

"...the firing key is in the shape of a pistol grip. The
operation is simple; pressure on the trigger establishes the
electrical connection by bringing a spring in contact with a
contact nut. The two electric wires project out from the
muzzle or forward part of the grip. This system contemplates
having the pointer keep one hand on the elevating wheel to
point and the other on the pistol grip during firing."

This web page (slow to load, several images from manuals
make up the page):

http://www.eugeneleeslover.com/USNAVY/CHAPTER-VIII-FIRING-ATTACHMENTS.html

Has some discussion, schematics and diagrams concerning fire
control mechanisms for large navy type guns.

I suspect it was a war souvenir and most likely others do
too :)

Sure would like to hear/know the whole story behind it...

--
Leon Fisk
Grand Rapids MI/Zone 5b
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