William Carl Grunow was a partner in the the Grigsby Grunow Hinds Company which was founded in 1921. They manufactured automotive accessories like Sun Visors, Loudspeakers, and “Majestic” brand Battery Eliminators. Two of the company’s partners sold out in 1928 and the company was renamed the Grigsby-Grunow Company. In 1929 they began producing “Majestic” brand …
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The S-120 was an entry level shortwave radio that was introduced in 1961. It replaced the previous S-38 series of receivers. This radio featured a totally modern-looking cabinet, 4 bands, internal speaker, and a BFO (Beat Frequency Oscillator) which was necessary for the resolution of single sideband signals. The radio even came with its own …
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It can receive the AM broadcast band (540 KHz to 1650 KHz), and 3x shortwave bands covering 1.65-5.1 MHz, 5-14.5 MHz, and 13-31 MHz. It has five vacuum tubes. The tubes are a 12SA7: Oscillator & Mixer, 12SK7: IF Amplifier, 12SQ7: 1st Audio Amplifier, and Detector, a 50L6: Audio Amplifier, and a 35Z5 Rectifier in …
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This Hyatt Model A portable broadcast receiver was made in 1927 or 1928. It was quite expensive at $105 with batteries and tubes, which is almost $2,000 in 2025 value. It is a TRF (Tuned Radio Frequency) design and uses 6x UX199 triode vacuum tubes that have 3.3V filaments. It uses 3x 1.5V dry cell …
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This 6-tube AM & SW superheterodyne console receiver was made by the RCA Victor Company and sold for $49 in 1936. The tuning range is 540 KHz to 1.8 MHz for the AM Broadcast band, and 2.0 MHz to 6.0 MHz for the Short Wave band. It is AC powered so no need for batteries. …
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This Superheterodyne Portable AM Broadcast Receiver was made by RCA Victor in 1940 at a cost of $20. It can receive AM broadcasts in the normal frequency range of 540 kHz to 1.6 MHz. It uses a “D” 1.5V flashlight battery to power the filaments, and a 67.5B “B” for the rest of the circuitry. …
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Varoujan Karentz, W1YLB, built this Amateur Radio Transceiver, starting in 1965, because someone gave him a Collins 455 kHz Mechanical Filter. Over the course of many months he prototyped and tested several sections of the transceiver, improving the designs during the process. Most of the parts for the transceiver came from his “junk drawer”, so …
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