The First Scanner

[ffjeff1984]

Does Anyone Know What Year The First Scanner was made???
Um, I Was Wondering because I was at a Yard Sale This Past Week and
bought 10 Old School Scanners for $10.00(10 bucks)...These Scanners
are The ones With The Little Red Lights Beaming across The Scanner Face... They Don't even Have The Analog or Digital Screen on The Face.
Thanks :shock: :shock: :shock:

 

[Admin0140434]

i cant give you an exact year, but i would imagine around the 1950's or 1960's (remember some of our veterans posing on the "what was your first scanner" forum). any others want to take a stab?

 

[bear105]

Good Question. Is there a history of police scanners out there??

Also, this is a good chance to post a pic of my favorite scanner of all time...

 

[Dougie]

I have these old analog tunable handheld police monitors. They are still in working condition. One is a hallicrafter and tunes from 146 to 169 its really vintage. Dont know if they are consitered to be scanners or not. I have older realistic tunables (patrolman pro-1, and pro-2)want 3). They scan the chips, but they also tune. I would consiter the realistic patrolman pro 1 to be the first scanner by realistic that was really a scanner but, dont know for sure cause it was sometime in the 70's. There might be earlier radios(scanners) from various r.s.'s manufactures. The tunable was pretty vintage though like a portable police monitor you still see em here. Go to E-BAY and put in -multiband radios-, that'll bring something up.

 

[n4voxgill]

in 1955 I bought my first scanner, it was an AM/FM table model radio that a technician changed the crystal in so I could tune it to 159.210. The police department and the sheriff's department each had a monitor made by motorola that was huge, about the size of 4 breadboxes stacked two on two, and they could talk to each other by monitoring what the other was saying. I believe the radio shack patrolman came out around 1966 and many tunable low priced scanners folowed.

 

[TinEar]

Yup...I still have my original Radio Shack Patrolman radio. It's still in great shape considering I've had it since the 60's. It was tunable across the VHF band and had a single crystal position. You selected either tunable or the crystal. I still use my Regency Aircraft scanner that has 16 programmable channels. It was one of the first programmables on the market. The audio from it is something to make you wish they still built audio circuits like they did then. It has a very clear, booming sound to it that puts to shame anything built in recent years. The sensitivity isn't as good as the new radios but I'm close enough to the airport to not have to worry about it. No external speaker necessary with those old radios. Then I look at the newer radios like my two 785D Unidens that are considered base radios with tiny speakers in the bottom that sound like cheap toys without external speakers. I'd love to see someone build a scanner that's made for base station use that has the audio circuitry and speaker quality of the old radios. I'd sure buy one. But today, manufacturers consider "smaller" to be better.

 

[ffjeff1984]

Bear105, The Picture of The Scanner You Provided, I Got 3 of Them That are Just alike The One in The Picture!!! That was The Scanner People used
back in The Day!!!!

 

[bear105]

Bear105, The Picture of The Scanner You Provided, I Got 3 of Them That are Just alike The One in The Picture!!! That was The Scanner People used
back in The Day!!!!

Yea...mine worked great up until a year ago when Howard Co went digital and pulled the PD VHF freqs. Sigh...

 

[wadeless28]

i cant give you an exact year, but i would imagine around the 1950's or 1960's (remember some of our veterans posing on the "what was your first scanner" forum). any others want to take a stab?

Try 70's and early early 80's. That technology isnt that old (speaking about the bear 105's style scanner)....young pup.

 

[KR4BD]

My First scanner was a Regency TMR-8H, a crystalled 8-channel VHF High Band (150-174 mHz). I bought it in 1971 and still have it. Still works fine. Had several tune-able receivers including the RS Patrolman at the time. Scanning was a "big thing" in Indianapolis around 1970 where I lived at the time. Of course, having the Regency and Bearcat factories in the area helped that situation. I don't remember any scanners being available prior to the late-1960's.

 

[Admin0140434]

young pup.

21 and still considered young... damn, i thought i got rid of that when i was 18

 

[ffjeff1984]

Bear105, The Picture of The Scanner You Provided, I Got 3 of Them That are Just alike The One in The Picture!!! That was The Scanner People used
back in The Day!!!!

Yea...mine worked great up until a year ago when Howard Co went digital and pulled the PD VHF freqs. Sigh...

The Three I just Bought,one of Them Works on The Worcester County's 46.380 and The 46.440...
Those are The Fire Channels...The Scanner Looks Like it Just came out
of The Box...Even Though I Got 3 New ones The Old Scanner Would Make a Very Nice Collectors Item and It Looks Good on The Book Shelf, Next to
The New Radio Shack Pro-2050 Series... The Other 2 on The Other Hand,
JUNK!!! BSafe-JLC

 

[Hoseman292]

Are you ready for this?

Eat your hearts out fellow scanner collectors.
Photos of my workshop. I've been collecting for a good number of years now.

The Bearcat 101 was always my favorite.

 

[Admin0140434]

Re: Are you ready for this?

Eat your hearts out fellow scanner collectors.
Photos of my workshop. I've been collecting for a good number of years now.

thats not a collection... thats an infestation!!!

*drools*

 

[ffjeff1984]

Re: Are you ready for this?

Eat your hearts out fellow scanner collectors.
Photos of my workshop. I've been collecting for a good number of years now.

thats not a collection... thats an infestation!!!

*drools*

Nice Collection,I see one of My Scanners in There, Radio
Shack Brand Pro Series on Your Top Shelf...

 

[trimmerj]

Bearcat III's

I have several and love the audio, but the squelch tail is really annoying. Does anyone have a mod to quiet it down ?

 

[kc4jgc]

I remember my father buying a Radio Shack 8 channel crystal scanner
in 1972. Had Virginia Beach PD, and Rescue/FD dispatch and 162.55 for WX.