What Was The Pearce Simpson Simba SSB/2?

[Dawn]

This radio as far as any service publication is concerned never existed. Even two ex employees of Shakespeare/Glading claim they never heard of it while working there during the 23 channel to 40 channel changeover. There's no question they existed as there is a video on Youtube and several have passed through Ebay. Those of you that remember, the Simba was one of the most expensive and flagship bases made selling for near $600 around 1974. Multiply that by 4.5 for today's dollars. The radio was a huge ripoff though as it was nothing but a $350 Cheetah stuck in a big box with a clock and power supply with a cheap stripline directional coupler that would have sold for $15 in a radio shack box for the SWR meter.

The Simba SSB/2 looks identical to the original. You can't tell them apart except for the Simba/2 on the front panel. There is no digital 40 channel display, just an expanded rotary switch to 40 channels that's blacked out when off and you couldn't tell it from the original without seeing the extra numbers. Nothing else changed, same mechanical clock, relay switching. I understand though they were not packed with the standard base mic, but an amplified D-104 with Pearce Simpson markings like last production 23 channel Simbas.

What was inside this radio? I've heard it was an early uniden 858 chassis identical to the RS TRC-457/8, I've heard it was the exact same chassis as the one of the 40 channel Courier Centurions with the rotary dial, also and 858 based chassis. I've even heard it was similar chasiss to RS's 23 channel TR-57 which was a discrete PLL design around a phase detector, divider chain, and seperate pll chip like the early SBE's.

Whatever it was, it must have been a very short lived,gap interval products that not many were made, just to have something ready to ship by the 23 channel sunset date.

 

[p1879]

I think I have one of those in my collection. No idea how many made, but I know people liked them.
p1879

 

[Dawn]

I got a PM from an ex. Pearce Simpson tech claiming there was no 40 channel Simba, that the Simba/2 SSB was like the Cheetah/2, an interm 23 channel model as was the Courier Gladiator PLL. He mentions the changeover to Cybrenet with the 2 digit readout models from the Uniden. I'm now really confused. Some folks mention that the Simba/2 SSB has switch with a click after channel 39. I wonder if it was marketed as a 40 channel compatible unit that could be factory expanded after the authorization to keep sales going rather then consumers waiting for the new models. There may have been a stop in the switch and the selector was ready. There was a lot of shennanigans going on behind the scenes from what I've read in historical accounts that caused many companies to go under because of the FCC's waffleing and uncertainty until the last minutes. This could make for a great topic if anyone is interested. They pulled crap like this twice, another one a decade before that cost Detroit millions on channels 24 and 25 on something that was type accepted and last minute cancelled. I've written a seller on E-bay selling one of these mint in a box a while ago and only got a response that it's 40 channels, but no confirmation that the docs or packaging say 40 channels although I think I seen a photo that clearly says it on the escutcheon next to the SSB/2. The Cheetah SSB/2 is another model rarely mentioned, but at least there is proof advertising that existed in a 23 channel version and the channel selector is blacked out, so you can't tell if more channels existed after 23.

 

[Unit243]

I found a pic for you

 

[Dawn]

I've seen the photographs and there is, or used to even be a video on the tube with one. Externally it's exactly identical to the original 23 channel as you can clearly see. Besides the model on the front panel, you can't even tell if the knob is 23 channels or a complete 40 channel unit out of the box. Only thing for sure was the board inside was a PLL uniden board and most likely the same '858 board in the Courier Centurion PLL. Not a single marking or mention it's 40 channels. As you know the original Simba and the 23 channel Centurion were exactly the same radio inside. Courier never made a PLL version of the 23 channel unit and entered first with the 40PLL, but did do that with the Guardian mobile.

Uniden did make one previous OEM board as a transitional PLL board that was originally going to be expandable to whatever band plan the FCC chose. Remember that almost unitil last minute, many companies were preparing for a 99 channel radio. The FCC was wrangling the band plan with the Federal IRAC now NTIA about frequencies that fell in federal jursidiction and they were reluctant to give an inch. CB sales froze because nobody wanted to buy a radio that was going to be obsolete. Some manufacturers/brands hinted that buy the new radios now and they will be ready for whatever happens in the future. It will be factory or service center modifiable whatever they decide later is the message the customers took away. I doubt they would have staked a claim like that without it being understood during type acceptance and the FCC themselves let it be known to prepare for up to 99 channels. Yet Sharp overtly made that claim and wound up sending new radios in place of the old ones. Radio Shack's sales personel were instructed to hint about that, but nothing was written down in writing or guaranteed later in the marketing of the TRC-57 base station, but it was sure implied.

I left the company a year before it came out and kept in touch with several of the crew there. There were some mighty mad customers that sunk the bucks into that radio and they came out with the TRC-457 which was the 40 channel, upd858 version with no plans to accomodate the earlier buyers with an upgrade. The TRC-457 had a discrete PLL using open architecture chips rather then a dedicated chip. That radio was obviously designed for future expansion and type accepted.

That's what I want to know about the SSB/2. I never seen it in real life, neither did several ex PS employees or marine dealers I did PS service for. First time I ever seen this radio was on the net 35 years later. Some describe it as a 39 channel radio which may only make sense if the switch inside was capable of more BCD count, but limited with a mechanical stop. Or was it a full blown 40 channel radio straight out of the box ?

What's crazy is I knew many of the people at the Shakespeare/Gladding plant here in town and still know many of them. The company sort of went in some crazy directions about the same time trying to be another Coleman type operations getting into camping supplies and other diversification including patio furniture and toys. Also spun off the Shakespeare lines; antennas, fiberglass manufacturing, and fishing supplies around the same time.

Howard Sams never made a book for it even though it was well early enough in the cycle several years before they stopped making the CB photofacts. PS's first 40 channel units did not have 2 seven segement displays in the beginning. With the cybernet boards and they dropped the silver plastic/wood grain 70's look for a different appearance altogether in the later units. They were also shipping direct from Japan to Australia. Indonesia, and NZ the same radios with a different brand name for a while, maybe a different importer and probably with a different channel arrangement to their band plans.

What I want to know is:

Was this unit 23 or 40 channels out of the box?
Was the board a UPD858 chassis like the Courier PLL40, 40D, Guardian PLL, Palomar 500, TRC-457/8 and others. Digital displays in those models were added after the fact to the same boards with a second BCD encoder stacked on the original switch and drove the 2 digit display. It was not encoded on the board, just and add on.
There was a Cheetah PLL and apparently 2 versions of the Cheetah 2 and Cheetah 2+, the latter being a cybernet in a black case. The Cheetah PLL from what I gather was 23 channels even though it was a PLL unit. Courier did the same thing with the Guardian PLL. There is no SAMS for the Cheetah PLL or Cheetah 2 either, but they did make them for other later radios. Nobody seems to know much about this version. I was hoping someone had one and could solve the mystery on what's inside and was it 23 or 40. Thanks anyways for posting the photo. Maybe it might jog someone's memory seeing it.

 

[Orbieswar]

Cheetah SSB/2

I have a mint condition in the box CHEETAH SSB/2
Have owned it since new from about the mid 70`s its never been tricked or modified.

What I want to know is:

Was this unit 23 or 40 channels out of the box? She is 23 only

Was the board a UPD858 chassis like the Courier PLL40, 40D, Guardian PLL YES
The PLL is enclosed in a metal tin .. The channel selector is wired like the old crystal sets with individual wires to the pll pcb

There was a Cheetah PLL I dont know about this one
Here in Australia we had 2 versions of a Hadadi Cheetah or Super Cheetah
They both looked like Stalker 1X
The first one used the 8719 PLL the other used the 2428 ? and was at the time unmodifiable
The 2428 being the more common same as the AX144 I think.

The Cheetah PLL from what I gather was 23 channels even though it was a PLL unit. Courier did the same thing with the Guardian PLL. There is no SAMS for the Cheetah PLL or Cheetah 2 either, but they did make them for other later radios. Nobody seems to know much about this version. I was hoping someone had one and could solve the mystery on what's inside and was it 23 or 40. Thanks anyways for posting the photo. Maybe it might jog someone's memory seeing it.[/QUOTE]

Hope that helps a bit... Jasson

 

[Dawn]

Wow! Thanks for the confirmation of several points Jasson.

The first point of either importer or branding. I remember that, but never knew the other name Hadadi as you mentioned. Those IIRC went straight from Japan and bypassed the state's P/S Gladding completely, but carried the P/S moniker on them.

The Guardian was issued both in a 23 and 40 channel non digital numerical dial version. I only know that from seeing both on the net. The 2824 was still Uniden and there were a few ways to skin a cat either by replacing the chip by a previous 28xx version that was being sold by suppliers or several other methods from an add on modification board to a 858 conversion board. That I remember because it became an issue with 10m conversions later. Essentially the cobra 146 debacle caused by the FCC freaking out about the conversions and probably the same board. Several manufactures here either changed mid year to another model like Radio Shack or produced a early/late version of the same model to the more restrictive 2824 chip. The 8719 must have been one of the Bengals rumored to be a 148GTL inside that was the holy grail for 10/11M conversions. I don't know how this fits with OZ/NZ models. I was pretty much out of the game by this time.

I really don't know the sucession of the 40 channel P/S units, but that nugget of information you gave makes perfect sense and probably what the SSB/2 was just by inference. There must be so few of those units and rare as hens teeth with probably only one production run. I'd suspect they would be like yours in a 23 channel version. Either the switch had a rotary stop or was changed out for another BCD encoded switch in those claiming it was 39? or 40 channels. The uniden '858 board variants were about the only ready for prime time board in a SSB model when the changeover came with some added restriction such as the modulation limiter or type acceptance. I guess it made sense for most everyone to use that board in first generation designs and this pretty much pegs the Simba SSB/2 as being an '858 board for sure. .

Thanks for the info and confirmation of what little I did know or heard about.

Just one question though. Were the models in OZ/NZ the same as the US/Canadian bandplan back then? From what I see from the Optima/Yeticom that I bought recently, the internal jumper for the NZ mode is a bit different then the US allocations.

 

[Orbieswar]

Give me a day or two and I will post some pics for you.. Including the internals

 

[Orbieswar]

Cheetah SSB/2 Pics

Ok lets see how this goes....
Here as promised are the pics of my Cheetah SSB/2 ( sorry for taking so long )

 

[Orbieswar]

More Cheetah Pics

Here are a few more
As you can see the radio is very real.... Only 23 chans.... UNIDEN Chassis ( no board number )
Has the PEARCE SIMPSON Division of GLADDING CORP clearly written on radio face plate &
on the rear ID tag plate and of course on the traditional green box.. ( now faded )
The PLL is enclosed in a metal tin, wired to the chan selector just like old crystal sets with individual wires.
In 35 years of playing radio I have only seen (and touched) 3 of these down here in Australia.
Hope this helps you out... Maybe this will attract a few more out of the attic...

 

[Dawn]

Thanks for posting the pics. I need to pull the SAMS on the couriers and the TRC-457 to see if either matches up. Another possiblilty is the early, pre-Korean made Palomar 500, TRC-459, and some of the early Presidents. This certainly narrows down the possibility that the Simba/2 was indeed 23 channels.

Were these sold with Gladding on them or did the home market have Hadadi on them and labeled Pearce Simpson? I've understood that the OZ channel band plan is different then ours. Does this radio conform to US/Canadian standards or yours?

 

[Orbieswar]

Pearce Who

Here in oz at the time we had no band plan... Our market was being flooded by US redundant radios.
That is your old 23 chan crystal units...and we snapped them up...Some 23 chan PLL units made it here as your FCC approved 40 chans... Most like the Super Panther / Super Bengal & President Grant/Washington (858 versions) were also only 23 chans... Some of president radios actually had a 40 chan switch fitted but with a small PCB fitted to the switch which blacked out the display and stopped it working above chan 23. All you had to do was remove this board and away you went 40 working chans.
The cybernet units all needed a new switch.
Not sure of the time frame but just as full 40 chan units began leaking into Australia our government legalized 18 channels.. Equal to US Chan 5 to 22 with two of your alpha chans.
Also not sure of the New Zealand time line... I did speak to many of them on the standard US band plan.
But they do have a legal band plan about 450Kcs I think below the US band.. same gaps just lower..
I did also speak to them on their frequencies many a time.... They also now like us here have a UHF CB band plan on 477Mhz.
Any way we had 18/23/40 chan in most PLL units mostly 18 you could buy 40 switches for the popular brands eg Cybernet or Uniden chassis
Not sure who was bringing in the Pearce Simpson products at the time... The Hatadi name did not come into it till late. At first it was just a sticker over the name Division of Gladding Corp on the box then it made it onto the radios themselves..

Here is a site that you may like to read.. CB Radio site about everything CB in Australia from the 1970's and 1980's

happy to help Orbie

 

[Orbieswar]

Forgot to mention.. They were all Pearce Simpson Division of Gladding Corp. and made in JAPAN
They were all US spec and band plan... until the 18 chan was legal but they were still within the US spec band plan..
I think Hatadi was the main importer around the time of legalization of 18 chans units before this I believe it was EXPO International who imported the original Gladding units
I also have a BENGAL SSB base unit and a couple of Pearce Simpson Gladding am only sets...


Look at the GLADIATOR PLL this is the closest I have found to the Cheetah chassis... it was sold here in both 18 and 40 channel formats

 

[Dawn]

Thanks for the link Orbie. This has been rather informative, especially about the band differences. Pearce Simpson was a hometown company here and lots of the hams I knew worked for them both before and after Gladding/Shakespeare. Here they were primarly sold through marine outlets initally. They continued to hand build the Guardian bases and the Bimini 25 VHF which was also sold to the hams locally as a 2M crystal radio. They also continued to make the marine DSB sets until '76 at the plant as well, but never came out with a sideband hf unit afterwards under their name. They did import a 2-4 meg sideband unit with a built in tapped tuner that fed a 21 or 30' whip directly without coax much like thier old AM sets, but it didn't go under the Pearce Simpson or Shakespear name, I forget the name that was used and it didn't last very long. They got hit pretty hard with a lot of unsold inventory of 23 channel units while the FCC was waffling about the expansion. They tried diversifying into other areas, but pretty much crashed after the CB boom. The shakespeare fiberglass rod plant was sold off and brand. Big loss here mostly due to the CB boom and bust. Lots of that unsold inventory went down to south america as the FCC made it illegal to sell a 23 channel radio after the 40 channel radios came out. Thanks again for posting the info and pics. Really appreciate your time and effort Orbie.

 

[Orbieswar]

First radio

My first taste of Pearce Simpson was a Bobcat 23D.. I loved the look and feel.. Something about the combination of Chrome / brushed aluminium and woodgrain finish that has always been appealing.
You mention Shakespeare....This brand was never associated with P/S here...Although the radio brand Shakespeare was sold here and was a reliable unit... It never sold well...
It came onto our market about midway through our boom and as all Shakespeare's were crystal the PLL units were just too popular...
There were 3 models 2 am only units and 1 SSB unit
By the way chan 11 is our am call chan....
chan 16 LSB our SSB call chan
& chan 35 LSB is our International Call chan although you would not think this with some local ratbags who sit there as is if its the only chan we have
chan 9 any mode is our emergency chan

 

[tinkyr]

Evolution of Simba

I won an auction on ebay for an SSB/2 and I will post pictures of the innards when I get it. I think I saw one in the late '70s that I thought was the same board as the Radio Shack 449/457/458. I saw an article in Secret CB though that makes me think that it is the UPD858 variant shown in the Cheetah. Maybe they had both. I nthe meantime, I thought it would be interesting to post the pictures I have found of the 4 different stages of evolution of the exterior of the Simba. The first radio has the big "G" logo and no tone knob. The second radio deleted the big "G". The third radio added the tone control, and the forth radio added the "/2" after SSB

 

[Orbieswar]

The Simba /2

Well done I finding a Simba 2 I hope she is in great condition when she arrives.
The Midland 79-893 is also the same chassis. SAMS manual 211
Its sad the cheetah/Simba were never considered for 40 switches.. If you do trick it for extra channels please don't drill a hole in the front panel to put the switch in.. It spoils the great looks of these magnificent radios.

Thanks for posting the pics... I never noticed the big G on the early models.
And I look forward to you posting pics of your new toy...

Welcome to the club ! lol

 

[tinkyr]

Simba

Hi Orbieswar

Thanks for the tip on the Sam's manual. I was wondering what I was going to do about that. I have heard that it is also the same and the PS Cheetah and certain variants of the Courier Gladiator and Centurion. I refuse to put holes in radios unless it is for adding some kind of accessory jack on the back. Then I try to make it at least look stock.

It was rather perceptive of you that I may try a "trick". I plan on doing just that. I want the radio to continue to look stock. I plan on intercepting the BCD data from the channel selector and changing the data going to the 858. For one pass of the channel selector, it will be stock. When a transition from channel 1 to 23 or 23 to 1 occurs, channels 1-20 will become 21-40. This will be indicated by the color of the channel indicator changing from amber to some obvious different color. I'll make a youtube video when it's done.

I did something similar with a Digiscan. Check it out --> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VX0ysnd3pFc

Tink

 

[Orbieswar]

Yep the Simba 2 is the same as the Cheetah 2... and yes the Gladiator/Centurion/350F etc..
That's a neat trick with the DigiScan device...I have a stock cobra 142 here but is there much activity obove 40 these days ?
I have a DigiScan and was going to fit it to the Cheetah 2. But as yet I have left it alone..As you can see in my pictures she is in mint condition and I just don't have the heart to basturdize it.. But I do miss not having the upper channels. The good thing is I have other radios that do.

 

[tinkyr]

Simba Mod

Orbieswar

If you want, you are welcome to the mod I am going to do to the Simba. I already tested the dual color LED idea last night. I use a Red/Green LED to produce yellow and green. When it is yellow, the channel indicated looks like the stock amber color, and when it is green, the channel indicated is green. My plan is to drive the LED and the 858 with a 28 pin PIC microcontroller like in the video. I will intercept the 10 wires coming from the channel selector and have 10 replacement lines coming from the PIC going to the 858. If you pay for the parts (about 5 bucks) and the shipping, I'll program the part for you. This assumes I get the Simba working, since the ebay ad says it is not.

tink