[TenTec] How much for an Orion III?

[Stuart Rohre]

Well actually, the typical Army MARS post station, even the one for a 
whole Army, such as Fourth Army at Ft. Sam Houston, was heavily 
dependent on how good the Director was at getting funding from the 
Signal Corps or whomever controlled the purse strings.

In my first year in Army Mars as a civilian ham, the Post station had a 
Collins KWM set up, but their other main transmitter was a BC 610, and 
some surplus receiver (SP 610 or BC 348).

They also had a wonderful transmitter site on a hill full of rhombics 
which had been the Post HF station linking them to Washington, the Canal 
Zone, Europe and Asia.  Later, they were forced to move to much more 
confined quarters without rhombics; and use a beam and dipoles on the 
Old Post, near the Ft. Sam Houston historic Quadrangle fort area.

To make up somewhat, for the comedown in space, the Director wrangled a 
Technical Material Corp. TMC 90 receiver, which appeared even higher 
tech than KWM II equipment.  They may have gotten a TMC transmitter 
also, but I don't recall the BC 610 going away either.  The 610 was of 
course Hallicrafters WW2 vintage, AM and CW.

Later at the time of Viet Nam, I understand a lot of MARS stations were 
equipped over there with KWM II's and 30L1's to enable phone patch 
welfare traffic, in the days before email and computer phones.

The KWM II, even barefoot into the old Rhombics from the 30's station,
was like shooting fish in a barrel on the ham bands.

Stuart Rohre
K5KVH
(AA5KVH)