Where did all the crystals go?

[majoco]

Back in the late 70's I had a job with the NZ CAA installing crystals into Redifon R499 receivers which were going to be used on the South Pacific HF MWARA frequencies - I don't know if we supplied Tahiti but we did supply Fiji, Tonga and the Cook Islands as well as NZ of course. I believe that now the stations are supplied with Cubic and Marconi equipment so all those R499's became surplus and I have one. It's complete with the front end coil packs but no crystals - so my question is - where did all the crystals go? I know the radio works because with a bit of fiddling I injected the right frequency from a sig gen and I could hear signals, but I think the sig gen doesn't have the grunt to make it work well. The most useful frequencies around here are 13261kHz, 8867kHz and 5643kHz which means I would like to find crystals of 14661, 10267, and 7043kHz - the IF is 1400kHz. If anyone with a selection of HC6u crystals with the 12.7mm pin spacing - not wire leads - could they please have a hunt through and see if you can find one or two or three! I will gladly pay all your expenses - thanks in advance.

 

[FKimble]

Simple answer, no market. Last I heard, there was one manufacturer left. Sorry, don't remember the name. Maybe post a bunch of "want to buy" adds

Frank

 

[a29zuk]

If you haven't already tried:

Bomar Crystal | OCXO, TCXO, VCXO, Clock oscillators, SMD crystals and oscillators

Jim

 

[majoco]

Thanks, Jim, I had a quick scan but haven't had the time to go through every list yet - thanks for the link - looks promising.

 

[Ensnared]

I found this:

Scanners Crystals for sale | eBay

Great deals on Scanners Crystals. Be prepared and able to communicate in case of emergency with the largest selection at eBay.com. Fast & Free shipping on many items!

www.ebay.com

 

[WA0CBW]

I just received a quote from Bomar for crystals for some Hamtronics VHF/UHF TX and RX modules. The were $50 each with a minimum order of $100.
Bill

 

[Railbender]

Hc6u Crystals for sale | eBay

Get the best deals for Hc6u Crystals at eBay.com. We have a great online selection at the lowest prices with Fast & Free shipping on many items!

www.ebay.com

 

[majoco]

Thanks all you guys for the info - I might just request a quote from Hy-Q crystals in Australia - I'll just make sure I'm sitting down when I open the emailed reply!

 

[VK3RX]

Another alternative is QuartSLab in the U.K.

QuartsLab

I may be wrong, but I don't think Hy-Q manufacture locally any more. A couple of QC48/A5 I sought from them a few years back they said would come from the U.K., and quoted each $A42 plus $A13 DHL freight.

QuartSLab were cheaper.

Note that Redifon are listed in their list of commercial crystals manufactured for

 

[WB9YBM]

Back in the late 70's I had a job with the NZ CAA installing crystals into Redifon R499 receivers which were going to be used on the South Pacific HF MWARA frequencies - I don't know if we supplied Tahiti but we did supply Fiji, Tonga and the Cook Islands as well as NZ of course. I believe that now the stations are supplied with Cubic and Marconi equipment so all those R499's became surplus and I have one. It's complete with the front end coil packs but no crystals - so my question is - where did all the crystals go? I know the radio works because with a bit of fiddling I injected the right frequency from a sig gen and I could hear signals, but I think the sig gen doesn't have the grunt to make it work well. The most useful frequencies around here are 13261kHz, 8867kHz and 5643kHz which means I would like to find crystals of 14661, 10267, and 7043kHz - the IF is 1400kHz. If anyone with a selection of HC6u crystals with the 12.7mm pin spacing - not wire leads - could they please have a hunt through and see if you can find one or two or three! I will gladly pay all your expenses - thanks in advance.

Here's a resource that might help: Crystal Manufacturers

 

[techman210]

Here's a resource that might help: Crystal Manufacturers

That list is really out-of-date. Some of those companies haven't been in business for years.

 

[WB9YBM]

That list is really out-of-date. Some of those companies haven't been in business for years.

Thank you for the update--do you have something more current?

 

[techman210]

Thank you for the update--do you have something more current?

The current manufacturers have already been mentioned.

 

[WB9YBM]

The current manufacturers have already been mentioned.

yeah, but where?

 

[majoco]

Thanks, Railbender, an Ebay search gave no hits.
QuartSlab looks promising but I don't see the reason for adding 50% on the price for ovenised crystals - otherwise I'd be happy at their prices - bearing in mind I only paid NZ$50 for the radio - say US$30!
Rakon are our local manufacturers of anything to do with oscillators but reading the fine print they have minimum quantities that put it out of my price range.
I may do a bit of development into amplifying my homebrew synthesizer up to the level of the receiver oscillator and see how that goes.
Hey guys, thanks for all your assistance.

 

[techman210]

yeah, but where?

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