Motorola Service Technicians Discussion Group, old stories and Photos

[Radioguy37]

I was looking around the web wondering if there was a Motorola Service Technicians Discussion Group.
A place where MSS Techs could discuss old times, funny story's and share pictures from past days.
I haven't found anywhere yet, Maybe this would be a good spot?
I'll start, me on an oil derrick tying down coax from a low band whip on the top, and yes the derrick was working and you better hang on when they pulled a new pipe. 1979ish.

 

[Radioguy37]

One of our service vans displayed at the local fair. Early 80s

 

[GmanX]

I remember those days of just a linemans belt for safety

 

[cmdrwill]

The photo of the service van brings back memories. A MICOR radio on the bench. One van I had in the mid 70's had wood cabinets. No rattling on those long dirt roads to the mountain top.

BTW, I still have my Motorola Universal Control panel, that I have not used in many years. I had made cables and mods so I could work on those other brands.... I still have the last service van, that got retired in 2014.

 

[Radioguy37]

We still have vans but no service bench. Time's they are changing. Please post some old pictures.

 

[N4KVE]

Many of the hams local to me worked at the factory in Plantation Florida. A few of the old timers are still there, & at the local radio free fleas, they talk about when they designed, & built the Sabers. One of them, Chuck, W4ROA who died a few years ago personally built the MX that went up in the space shuttles. That HUGE factory has been sold, & Motorola is just renting a small space back. How times change.

 

[Radioguy37]

Checking amplifier levels for underground radio system in a coal mine 1991

https://forums.radioreference.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=61550&stc=1&d=1510100562

 

[Radioguy37]

One of our guys working on a radio, look close he's working on a tube radio. 1983

https://forums.radioreference.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=61551&stc=1&d=1510101052

 

[902]

I wish I had pictures from my days, not so much doing the job, but of the people I used to work with. One by one, they're going where old radiomen go.

 

[radioman2001]

An era gone by, where you could actually make a living doing a job that was very important to the customer. Now you have cell companies that are only interested in you buying the next gen phone, and throw away products not needing repair.

I love the old Syst Donner 1327 Service monitor, that you had to change the front end on to change bands. I have a pair of 2008's with cellular options I bought new in 1984, and also the universal test panel.

I too wish I had pictures of those days, and I have been fortunate enough to find a PS agency to work for that still believes in VHF Carrier Squelch. KISS radio like POTS telephone.

An unintended consequence of radio technology moving forward is the lack of qualified technicians or anyone wanting to go into that field.

Quote"
I wish I had pictures from my days, not so much doing the job, but of the people I used to work with. One by one, they're going where old radiomen go.

Unfortunately that's what happens when we get old. LOL

 

[Project25_MASTR]

I'm not old...actually one of the younger senior techs you'll find in the industry right now.

Excuse my mess...I'm tired of cleaning since we are moving in less than a month to a new location and have been updating personal radios in my free time.

I've got a couple of interesting posts over at Comm Tech Forums with some of the S*** shows I've run into over the last year or so. Couple of other Astro 25 techs hanging out there as well.


They've done a lot of remolding in Schaumburg.

 

[speedway_navigator]

The old days when the first thing you did in the morning was turn on your soldering iron and wet your sponge.

 

[W5KVV]

Great thread. Love the old gear in the pictures. My elmer would love this. He was a radio tech for the FAA. Back when Motorola was king of the world and RSS was a "regular soldering station". . .

Radioguy37, Do you recall what equipment and band the oilfield was using? Around here they used lowband exclusively & could really cover some ground.

 

[Radioguy37]

W5KVV Mostly low band, Oil field companies got into radios fairly early so maybe that is why so many were on low band. Probably worked on some Motrac's, Mocom 70s I remember working on some RCA tube types. :-(
Spudder trucks were always nasty oily.
Working on antenna on oil field truck.

 

[Radioguy37]

Building a tower for an oil company 1980s

 

[Radioguy37]

I went to some pretty muddy places to work on oil rigs.

 

[K2NEC]

Excuse my mess...I'm tired of cleaning since we are moving in less than a month to a new location and have been updating personal radios in my free time.

Ya got enough XTS5000's on your desk?? lol

 

[K2NEC]

A ham friend of mine told me a story of when he was a tech for Motorola. It goes something like this:
"A local police department that was coincidentally located near my office came back to us to have one of their HT90's fixed. They said that the previous night an officer got sent to a bar for an intoxicated disorderly person. He gets on scene and the subject pulls a knife on the officer as he grabbed his radio so the officer took a swing at the guy radio in hand. Besides a cracked housing and broken battery latch, the radio was fine however the suspect was knocked unconscious. The radio might have saved my officer's life." He said to me "Just goes to show you the quality of Motorola"

 

[Project25_MASTR]

Ya got enough XTS5000's on your desk?? lol

There's only three. Two VHF M1's and a 7/800 M2. Doesn't show the other two VHF M2's, the missing VHF M1 (which has some issues). Also not counting the BN revision 2500 M2 in view either. (Surprised nothing was mentioned of the two R2600 series monitors).

 

[K2NEC]

There's only three. Two VHF M1's and a 7/800 M2. Doesn't show the other two VHF M2's, the missing VHF M1 (which has some issues). Also not counting the BN revision 2500 M2 in view either. (Surprised nothing was mentioned of the two R2600 series monitors).

You are living my dream!