Artifax Books

General Radio Co.
equipment and paper for sale

Ordering and shipping:All items are subject to prior sale, so inquire first as to availability and to confirm shipping cost. Larger items will be shipped best way but I will need your street address. If you are near Stow, Mass. (20 miles West of Boston), pick-up may be possible; inquire.

Our email: tom (at) lakeboon.com (use @ symbol)

Condition: This equipment comes from an old New England estate; I have not used ot tested it. The owner was an engineer for General Radio Company in the 1940s and '50s, and had his own electronic test and calibration company. Unless otherwise stated, the items appear to be complete and in good condition, with typical signs of age and use, and in need of cleaning. I will describe major defects and missing or damaged parts when I am aware of them, but you should examine the photos, rely on your own knowledge of the equipment, and ask questions if necessary. Since such parts as molded resistors and electrolytic and paper capacitors degrade with age, and switch contacts oxidize, you should assume the equipment needs testing and possible repair before placing in service. Some equipment may be unusable and therefor merely collectible display pieces. In other words:

Age of items. Some of the equipment I will offer here is old, and some relatively new. As a rough guide, I will mention the GR address (if any) on the device.
Their first address was in Cambridge, Mass., where the company was started in 1915 by Melville Eastham. In 1952, additional space was constructed in West Concord, Mass.; this was used in conjunction with the Cambridge location until 1959, when the Cambridge building was sold. By 1965, West Concord was still the main office and plant, although a new plant had been constructed at Bolton, Mass. The company would eventually complete a move to Bolton.
Most of the Cambridge "black panel" equipment offered here has the molded alligator finish. I will make mention if it has the earlier smooth Bakelite panel.

1140 UHF Wavemeter.

Design of the 1140 (1140A) wavemeter began in 1943 (according to the blueprints which will accompany this unit), and it first appeared in the postwar supplement to Catalog K (1945). This wavemeter uses a butterfly circuit in which capacitance and inductance are varied simultaneously by the single front control. This has a direct reading drum type frequency scale and a slow motion drive. The scale ranges from 240 to 1200 Mc. A 1N22 silicon crystal detector is used, which can be easily replaced if damaged by overloading. It is enclosed in a molded phenolic case with the GR name and logo molded in (no other label or number appears on the unit). The knob is smaller than that shown in the catalogs. The meter glass is cracked; otherwise it is in very good cosmetic condition and will polish up nicely. Comes with over a dozen original blueprints of mechanical drawings and parts lists for this wavemeter. Second photo. Third photo.

SOLD

#RJKC804 Variable capacitor by James K. Clapp.

James K. Clapp (son of Clapp-Eastham founder J. Emory Clapp) worked for General Radio Co. from 1929 to his retirement in 1958. While there, he invented the Clapp Oscillator circuit (series-tuned Colpitts) in 1948. About 1954, he designed this precision variable capacitor. The front and rear main plates are 2-1/2" square; the main body is about 3-1/2 inches in depth. The lower shaft is a coarse adjustment, and rotates a half-cylinder within a fixed half-cylinder. The micrometer control is the fine adjustment, and moves the fixed half-cylinder linearly. This is apparently an engineering prototype, and possibly a pre-patent application model. A unique device with interesting provenance. Photo 2 Photo 3 $245. (S&H = $10.00)

General Radio history.
A History of the General Radio Company by Arthur E. Thiessen (Chairman of the Board of the Company), published by the Company, 1965, first (only) edition, red cloth hardcover, gilt title on cover and spine, 7-1/4 x 10 inches, 116 pages.
The scarce, official history of the company beginning with the early days of the Clapp-Eastham Company, written by the Chairman of the Board of Directors. The Appendix lists every employee of the company as of April 1965 (including even the "co-op student" workers). Illustrated with photographs. Very good condition, clean text, front cover lightly sunned. #0605BPR $129.00. (S&H=$5.00)

General Radio history.
A History of the General Radio Company by Arthur E. Thiessen (Chairman of the Board of the Company), published by the Company, 1965, first (only) edition, red cloth hardcover, gilt title on cover and spine, 7-1/4 x 10 inches, 116 pages. The scarce, official history of the company beginning with the early days of the Clapp-Eastham Company, written by the Chairman of the Board of Directors. The Appendix lists every employee of the company as of April 1965 (including even the "co-op student" workers). Illustrated with photographs. Very good condition, clean text, VG front cover, about 40% of back cover has spots and areas of light fading/mottling. #0605BGL $95.00. (S&H=$5.00)

General Radio Century Club certificate.

This is certificate no. 4 dated March 7, 1960 and certifies that the named holder "has obtained 100 points and confirmation thereof, qualifying him for menbership in the General Radio Century Club." This was likely given by the GR Amateur Radio Club to a member who worked 100 countries, similar to the A.R.R.L. DXCC certificate. This certificate was earned by a Massachusetts employee. A scarce memento of life at GR in the 60s. Very good condition, framed, about 8-1/2 x 10-1/2 inches. $40. (S&H=$8.00)

GR made telegraph keys during the WWI era for the US military. Etched into the cover of this model is "Signal Corps US Army, flame proof key J-5" with a date of March 1, 1918 and the maker General Radio Co. This is the scarce, early version of this key (more common is the 1945 WWII J-5-A made by Brach).

Any GR military keys that we might have will be offered on the US military key page.

Audio Frequency microvolter type 546B.

Cambridge address, wood case, 7 x 10 x 5 inches. Has two screws on the top, as though for a carrying strap. Good cosmetic condition. Inventory no. GR546B $65.00 (need your address to figure shipping)

Vacuum tube volt meter type 1800-B.

Cambridge address, wood case, 6-1/2 x 11 x 6" deep. RCA license plate on top lid. Includes black probe on cable, and probe marked "high frequency 10:1 multiplier." No AC cord (plugs into right side). Inventory no. GR1800B $85.00 (need your address to figure shipping)

Decade resistance box type 102-J.

Cambridge address, wood case, vertical lay-out, 5-1/4 x 12-1/2 x 4" deep. Smooth Bakelite panel, external contact switches, bottom terminals. Inventory no. GR102J $45.00 (need your address to figure shipping)

600 ohm attenuation box type 249-H.

Cambridge address, wood case, 16 x 5-1/4 x 4-1/4" deep. H-section attenuator with eight telephone type 3-position switches. Faded schematic / spec sheet affixed to back. Inventory no. GR249H $45.00 (need your address to figure shipping)

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