(RARE) Motorola Personal. Any info?

[tunnelmot]

I HAD to pick this unit up off of the 'bay as I never knew it existed. This seems to be a pre-FRS radio on what became an FRS channel. 462.6125
I couldn't resist as it seems to be a UHF first gen P10 Spirit in a light gray case aimed at the non-commercial user. The housing is interesting as it is the typical early Radius P10, but with a P100/P200-esque speaker grille. And yes, it works well! I will be replacing the MX style antenna and carefully cleaning the case.
Any info about the marketing/history on this radio? Was it a dealer-only demo program? Forgive my white balance. The actual color is a VERY light neutral gray.

 

[GlobalNorth]

It reminds me of the Expo.

 

[ElroyJetson]

Neat. A P10 and an HT600 got busy and had a baby. What are its frequencies? Simplex or repeater pair?

 

[MTS2000des]

Sure sounds like a product that first appeared in the 1997 Radio Shack catalog: the very first FRS radio, FRS-105, RS catalog number 21-1805, for $179.99 each. "Can be set to operate on any one of 7 channels, made for Radio Shack by MOTOROLA".
The RS catalog shows a generic Spirit radio in black with no labeling at all.

1997 Radio Shack Catalog

Flip through the 1997 Radio Shack electronics catalog containing: vintage hi-fi stereos, radios, recording devices, headphones, computers, CBs, electronic components, test equipment, electronic kits & more!

www.radioshackcatalogs.com

Does your "PERSONAL" have DIP switches underneath the battery for changing the frequency or is it in fact, a P10 with crystal control?

 

[mmckenna]

I wonder if that was a precursor to the "Sport" line of GMRS radios they sold for a while.

 

[tunnelmot]

Neat. A P10 and an HT600 got busy and had a baby. What are its frequencies? Simplex or repeater pair?

Yup.
Single channel 462.6125 Simplex and no tones.

 

[tunnelmot]

Does your "PERSONAL" have DIP switches underneath the battery for changing the frequency or is it in fact, a P10 with crystal control?

No DIPs. Seems like the board has cutouts for them though.

 

[tunnelmot]

I wonder if that was a precursor to the "Sport" line of GMRS radios they sold for a while.

Definitely pre sport era. I do have a family member of those though.
Pretty cool. Voice assisted programming and it even has scan!

 

[DeeEx]

Honestly, I had better luck as far as durability goes, with the very early Spirit/Sport 7/Sport 7x/Talkabout Distance/DPS platform than I did with the P10/SP10/P50.

And somewhere in my garage I think I have some sort of mishmash that’s got a RS catalog number label on the back, I’m pretty sure RS branded on the top of the front, yet Motorola printed clearly at the bottom front, single-channel VHF business band (pre-MURS) that looks 100% identical to a Talkabout Distance, even the same short antenna although VHF.

Edit to add: The above-mentioned VHF radios look nearly identical to the BTX125, but not exactly. A quick search online found that to the the closest match.

 

[tunnelmot]

Agreed. A LOT of soldered connections and of course crystals in the P10 etc lineup. I think the whole lineage is kinda cool. It's mostly nostalgia, but I still geek out about this tough little platform and it's progression from single channel xtal up through fully synthesized. The marketing and brand crossover throughout the years is a trip.

 

[MTS2000des]

No DIPs. Seems like the board has cutouts for them though.

Based on the serial number, this is from mid 1992 (FSU) so this predates the "FRS-105" and is most likely indeed a P10 inside. Very rare find, almost FRS before Radio Shaft even thought about FRS. (Wasn't until 1996 when that NPRM was first introduced to the FCC and RS didn't start marketing FRS radios until 1997/1998).

 

[mikegilbert]

The Personal, Spirit 1, P10, and HT10 were more or less all the same radio - albeit with different housings and sales channels.

Personal: Single channel with drop-in charging; sold by retailers like C&H, Grainger, etc.
Spirit 1: Single channel with plug-in charging; sold by retailers like C&H, Grainger, etc. (predates the P10)
Radius P10: Single channel with drop-in charging; sold by Radius dealers
HT10: Single channel with drop-in charging. Same color as the HT600; sold by full-line dealers.

The Spirit 1 was sold in the early '90s and still had the old style transitional antennas before Motorola came up with a lower cost moulded MX thread antenna.

Here's some of my radios. I'll try to line em all up and snap a family photo.

 

[MTS2000des]

I'm envious of your collection. You have some rare birds and man, this brings back memories. Remember seeing that "Catch the Spirit" display in either Sam's Club or Builder's Warehouse in 1991 when I was 16. This was an era where Motorola had a Radius plant in Mt. Pleasant, IA. Made in USA by...wait for it...Americans. Remember those days ?

 

[tunnelmot]

Very cool Mike. I figured this post would ring your bell.
Thanks to all for the info and the trip down memory lane.

 

[ramal121]

I'm still intrigued by the frequency. P10's, Spirit's et al were rock bound and marketed on business/gmrs color dot frequencies of which 462.6125 was not in the offering. FRS came to be in the mid 90's which is viable for this line, but the radio fails on transmit power and removeable antenna for a FRS radio. Maybe a re-crystal?

 

[tunnelmot]

I'm still intrigued by the frequency. P10's, Spirit's et al were rock bound and marketed on business/gmrs color dot frequencies of which 462.6125 was not in the offering. FRS came to be in the mid 90's which is viable for this line, but the radio fails on transmit power and removeable antenna for a FRS radio. Maybe a re-crystal?

Agreed. I think this may have been a proof of concept pre FRS. I'm gonna keep it as is as a working shelf queen.

 

[mikegilbert]

I'm envious of your collection. You have some rare birds and man, this brings back memories. Remember seeing that "Catch the Spirit" display in either Sam's Club or Builder's Warehouse in 1991 when I was 16. This was an era where Motorola had a Radius plant in Mt. Pleasant, IA. Made in USA by...wait for it...Americans. Remember those days ?

Thanks man! I've been working to photograph as many models as possible to preserve the history.

I remember seeing the off-white Spirit radios at Costco back in the day.

Ended up working all summer to save up enough money to buy a pair of Radio Shack (Motorola) PRS-102 GMRS radios. One was stolen, and I have no idea where the other one went.

 

[mikegilbert]

Agreed. I think this may have been a proof of concept pre FRS. I'm gonna keep it as is as a working shelf queen.

Mine's also on 462.6125

 

[tunnelmot]

Ended up working all summer to save up enough money to buy a pair of Radio Shack (Motorola) PRS-102 GMRS radios. One was stolen, and I have no idea where the other one went

Same here. I had a pair of P10s and thought I was a sys admin at 15 years old.
Lets schedule a QSO...maybe the band will be open from Cali-Texas lol.

 

[mikegilbert]

Same here. I had a pair of P10s and thought I was a sys admin at 15 years old.
Lets schedule a QSO...maybe the band will be open from Cali-Texas lol.

The best part? A business in my hometown had a grandfathered license on a GMRS channel, so if I wanted to feel important, I'd turn to it and listen. They were a building supply company, so it was pretty active back in the '90s and early 2000s.