Nostalgic spotting gear............

[Mike]

I had a rummage through the cupboards upstairs earlier and found these from the 60s & early 70s, the one with the Trident's tail is the 1964 edition of CAM (3/- is 15p in today's money ! ).

Does anyone else still have these?

[EGNH1909]

Hi Mike -I've got a couple of those somewhere- these are some of mine that I could just lay my hands on -some later than yours and some possibly around the same time- my wife keeps saying when are you getting rid of those old books/magazines - no chance!
IMG_0153[1] by Peter Rowe, on Flickr
IMG_0154[1] by Peter Rowe, on Flickr

Best Wishes
Pete

[Mike]

Blimey, Pooley's flight guide - I used to spend hours reading that, I'm not sure where my copy went - it'll be upstairs somewhere, 1974 edition if I remember correctly !

[LondonEye]

All looks familiar ! and I still have many copies. How about these added to the mix ?
Had a clearout recently, but some things just bring back so many memories.
My first CAM, first BIZjet, first AB British Reg, first LightPlane recognition (with scribbled notes), first JP Airlines ( do you remember the early ones came printed on green paper?).
Pete.


DSCF1491


DSCF1493

[Mike]

Great stuff guys, I had a huge clear-out a couple of years ago and only kept my older stuff - I was running out of space !
I've still got loads of other books that I'll get round to posting once I get the time to photograph them.

[Nighthawke]

Blimey - thought someone had been raiding my bookshelves

Although I didn't really start spotting until the early 80s, I did used to collect older publications from airshow book stalls etc.

[TheMightyOz]

Brings back memories. I remember having Civil Aircraft Markings 1983 and 1985-1987, purchased from the shop in the terminal at Luton Airport during childhood trips there with my dad. For some reason I don't think we had 1984. I had that British Airports book too.

[LondonEye]

Just to revive this - something reminded me about the old airband recievers we used to use.
Had a quick google but cannot see what I am thinking of.
My first radio was a "multi band receiver" ie get music, air, police etc, bought from a department store Gamages in Holborn, following an advert in newspaper.
It was the size of two bricks side by side. Basic volume and search - no squelch. Extendable aerial over 2ft long.
My mate always took his everywhere, and poked out many eyes at the airport.
Frustrated that I do not remember the maker.
Later went on to use a small handheld Sharp.
Any ideas anyone ?
Pete.

[Mrwillhay]

Sounds like a Shorrock Mark 5 receiver. I was given one for Christmas in the 1960's, and I took it everywhere.
Finally had to replace it with the Mark 6, which was half the size, but more expensive.
You're right about the aerial. It was very long.

Happy days,

Eric

[LondonEye]

shorrock_mk_v_1973258


Nope, but thanks for trying. I am sure your Shorrock will stir some memories though !
Thanks
Pete.

[Mrwillhay]

Thanks Pete.
The picture certainly brings back many happy memories. I remember having to buy new batteries the day after Boxing day.
Not because of usage, but because I'd left it switched on overnight!!

Good to hear from you,

All the best,

Eric

[EGNH1909]

I'm going to dig out some old Air Pictorials & Aircraft Illustrated mags (remember those?) to see if I can find any ads for airband receivers. In the meantime here's a pic of my trusty Sharp receiver- is this the one? Bought circa 1976 -about £10 if I remember- very battered but amazingly still works (just!)-the red light glows when you get a strong signal!- its been all over the place with me-its spent a lot of time hanging from perimeter fences and bike handlebars!!

sharp radio by Peter Rowe, on Flickr

Best Wishes
Pete

[tim_raper]

i had one of those, just the on/off/volume dial and tuning dial

[Undertaker]

I too had a small Sharp radio but my first VHF radio was a converter, however all I can remember is that it was a blue box with 108-135 VHF dial and it plugged into a transistor radio and also in to my car radio in the early 1970s, anyone else have one and what was the make ?

[andygolfer]

I too had a small Sharp radio but my first VHF radio was a converter, however all I can remember is that it was a blue box with 108-135 VHF dial and it plugged into a transistor radio and also in to my car radio in the early 1970s, anyone else have one and what was the make ?

I had one late '60s or early '70s but not sure what the make was, it was a blue box though, don't think I even plugged it it, just held it alongside the radio with a strong elastic band and it worked - probably burnt out my brain with microwaves or something far stronger than the earliest mobile phones (Mike will say that explains a lot!), here's one example(also a blue box type) I think it's the same one but not certain:

https://www.radiomuseum.org/r/skyway_vh ... s_100.html

don't we have things so much easier nowadays, mobile phones with FR24 running (until the battery gives up as happened to me yesterday), I often tether my tablet to it as well for a better screen and no waiting 6 weeks for a magazine to come out with the logs in it - Air Pictorial had a log section which on average had about a dozen LHR movements!
When I wrote the Stansted Aviation Society's Heathrow section every month I hand typed thousands of movements every month and it took me about a week to do, that was without cross checking first to ensure the logs received all tallied, members were always asking if I knew when the magazine was coming out - no waiting nowadays! Porkscratching (Nick) did the military section so he was kept equally busy - he will probably have a story or two to tell about it. He might have done the OTT section for flyovers going over the pond which relied on a few logs from people who has expensive SSB receivers, no instant tie ups then

Those were the days!

wait for it - Mike will quote the 4 yorkshiremen monty python sketch before the day is out

[Uuoret]

I can't post pictures, basically because of the size of my book collection (over 4000 books)

However, for example

Full set from 1943 of Observers Book of Aircraft
Civil Aircraft Markings from 1968
Military Aircraft Markings (British Military Aircraft Serials) then paperbacks to date,
Scotland Scanned complete
Wrecks and Relics edition 5 to date
Jet, Turboprop and Piston Airliner production lists
British Civil Aircraft Registers 1919 - 1999
Various Civil and Military Aircraft Recognition Guides, similar to these already shown.

....and an almost complete set (8 missing out of 102) of Biggles books!!!

ANORAK or WHAT!!

[Undertaker]

I too had a small Sharp radio but my first VHF radio was a converter, however all I can remember is that it was a blue box with 108-135 VHF dial and it plugged into a transistor radio and also in to my car radio in the early 1970s, anyone else have one and what was the make ?

I had one late '60s or early '70s but not sure what the make was, it was a blue box though, don't think I even plugged it it, just held it alongside the radio with a strong elastic band and it worked - probably burnt out my brain with microwaves or something far stronger than the earliest mobile phones (Mike will say that explains a lot!), here's one example(also a blue box type) I think it's the same one but not certain:

https://www.radiomuseum.org/r/skyway_vh ... s_100.html

don't we have things so much easier nowadays, mobile phones with FR24 running (until the battery gives up as happened to me yesterday), I often tether my tablet to it as well for a better screen and no waiting 6 weeks for a magazine to come out with the logs in it - Air Pictorial had a log section which on average had about a dozen LHR movements!
When I wrote the Stansted Aviation Society's Heathrow section every month I hand typed thousands of movements every month and it took me about a week to do, that was without cross checking first to ensure the logs received all tallied, members were always asking if I knew when the magazine was coming out - no waiting nowadays! Porkscratching (Nick) did the military section so he was kept equally busy - he will probably have a story or two to tell about it. He might have done the OTT section for flyovers going over the pond which relied on a few logs from people who has expensive SSB receivers, no instant tie ups then

Those were the days!

wait for it - Mike will quote the 4 yorkshiremen monty python sketch before the day is out

Thanks for the link, don't remember that one, mine was more blue I think I bought it at the Aviation Shop in Hounslow, something like £20, I know it took ages to save up for !!

[Mike]

Right. I had to get up in the morning at ten o'clock at night half an hour before I went to bed, eat a lump of cold poison, work twenty-nine hours a day down mill, and pay mill owner for permission to come to work, and when we got home, our Dad and our mother would kill us and dance about on our graves singing Hallelujah.

There you go, Andy.

[andygolfer]

Right. I had to get up in the morning at ten o'clock at night half an hour before I went to bed, eat a lump of cold poison, work twenty-nine hours a day down mill, and pay mill owner for permission to come to work, and when we got home, our Dad and our mother would kill us and dance about on our graves singing Hallelujah.

There you go, Andy.

no time for aircraft spotting then!

[skyking_comms]

Apologies for resurrecting this old thread but I came across it whilst searching for details on the Shorrock Mark 6 airband radio.

I'm trying to find a picture of the radio for my Vintage Airband radio website www.airband-radio.co.uk

Wondering if anyone can help?

Thank you