Hallicrafters SX-42 in da house!

I picked up an old Hallicrafters SX-42 at the Charlotte Hamfest. I had one of these back when I was a novice in 1974, and sold it in the early '80's. I've regretted it ever since. It's not that it was a great receiver, but I do have a soft spot for it. I was fortunate enough to get a spare parts rig and the matching R-42 speaker with it.

The SX-42 was Hallicrafters 'Top Of The Line' received in 1947. It sported crystal phasing and allowed for up to 6 increasingly tight stages of selectivity. By today's standards, it's a poor receiver for single signal CW operation. It is, however, an AWESOME receiver for AM signals from the ham bands or SWL. It operates from 535khz to 108 mhz in AM, CW, and FM. My intention is to pair it with an AM transmitter for use on the 160 meter band.

I got it fired up fairly easy, with very little work. I plan to totally recap it, implement the service bulletins to protect the band switch and fix other things, and bring it back to new cosmetically. Here are a few videos of it in operation, fresh out of the mothballs (spider webs)...

Receiving on 3.875 AM...

Receiving on 1.885 AM...

Receiving on 94.7 FM broadcast...

Dave WB4IUY
http://www.WB4IUY.net