shelter-mounted radio sets - TRC, MRC, GRC, or VRC?

[maddawg308]

Confused a little by the Joint Electronics Type Designation System (formerly the Joint Army/Navy Nomenclature System), on radio installations. T designates transportable, M is Ground Mobile, G is General Use, and V is vehicular.

What would most shelter-based radio systems be designated? TRC, MRC, GRC, or VRC?

I'm pretty sure it's one of the first two. Most of the GRC radios I have seen are small, man-portable jobs. And VRC to me are radios installed in vehicles, not shelters (even if the shelter is mounted on a truck).

What were your shelter setups before you got ahold of them? Pics of the data plates perhaps?

 

[LowTech]

Here's what mine has on it.

 

[maddawg308]

Okay so yours is a "TSC" for:

Transportable
Special (or Combination)
Communications (2-way)

 

[SCSG-G4]

In order of frequency of applicability, "T", "V", "G" and last "M". 'Manpack' radios might be used to monitor a frequency that needed attention infrequently that was not covered, frequency wise, by the other sets. Because they were usually much smaller, they could 'fit in' to places the larger, more powerful units would not. You are building an S-280 which would normally have two or three operators, one of which might be a supervisor or doing clerical functions not involving directly being on radio(s). Four people in a 280 is crowded, but probably existed for short periods of time. Take careful looks at Patrick's shelter (OPCOM) to get ideas on what fits and wnat does not. And remember, you will need at least one teletype. The guys that put on Operation EastWind (Aswayze and others) should also have a good feel for the proper equipment.

 

[moving chicane]

Most of the shelter mounted radios/repeaters will be AN/TRC. I spent all of my army signal days in switches and nodes though (we always got better A/C "for the equipment").

 

[123mack]

From radionerds: http://www.radionerds.com/index.php/Radio_Numbering_Specification

 

[moving chicane]

FM 24-24 chapter 6 is a good primer for shelter configurations.

 

[maddawg308]

And remember, you will need at least one teletype.

Nah. Teletypes are electro-mechanical nightmares and I don't need the hassle of installing and maintaining one of those beasts. There will be a computer onboard to decipher data signals should the need arise. Same mode, but more modern technique.

 

[maddawg308]

FM 24-24 chapter 6 is a good primer for shelter configurations.

Thanks for the heads-up on FM 24-24. I'll look that up and see what it reads...

 

[maddawg308]

Okay, well, did some looking into the FM 24-24 edition I have, which is the 1994 edition, there are several types/designations of shelter installations:

Switches:
TTC - Automatic Telephone Central Office (TTC = Transportable (Ground), Telephone (Wire), Communications (2-way))
TYC - Automatic Message Switch (TYC = (Transportable (Ground), Data Processing, Communications (2-way))

Teletypewriter:
MSC - Telegraph Terminal (MSC = Ground Mobile, Special or Combination, Communications (2-way))
TSC - Telegraph Terminal (TSC = Transportable (Ground), Special or Combination, Communications (2-way))

Multichannel:
TCC - Telephone Terminal (TCC - Transportable (Ground), Carrier (Electronic Wave or Signal), Communications (2-way))
TRC - Radio Terminal/Repeater Set (TRC - Transportable (Ground), Radio, Communications (2-way))

Multichannel Satellite Communications Terminals:
FSC - Satellite Communications Terminal (FSC = Fixed Ground, Special or Combination, Communications (2-way))
GSC - Satellite Communications Terminal (GSC = General Ground Use, Special or Combination, Communications (2-way))
MSC - Satellite Communications Terminal (MSC = Ground Mobile, Special or Combination, Communications (2-way))
MSQ - Satellite Communications Control (MSQ = Ground Mobile, Special or Combination, Special or Combination)
TSC - Satellite Communications Terminal (TSC = Transportable (Ground), Special or Combination, Communications (2-way))

High Frequency Radio:
GRC - Radio Teletypewriter Set (General Ground Use, Radio, Communications (2-way))
VSC - Radio Teletypewriter Set (Vehicle (Ground), Special or Combination, Communications (2-way))

Communications and Operations Centers:
GSQ - Message Center (GSQ = General Ground Use, Special or Combination, Special or Combination)
MSC - Communications Operations Center (MSC = Ground Mobile, Special or Combination, Communications (2-way))
TYQ - Communications System Control Element (TYQ = Transportable (Ground), Data Processing, Special or Combination)
TSC - Communications Patching Center (TSC = Transportable (Ground), Special or Combination, Communications (2-way))
TSQ - Communications Technical Control Center (TSQ = Transportable (Ground), Special or Combination, Special or Combination)


SO, all that being worded out and analyzed, to answer my own question, there are several designations that could potentially be used for a radio installation in a military shelter (S-250, S-280, S-144, S-788, etc.)

 

[LowTech]

Thanks for the heads-up on FM 24-24. I'll look that up and see what it reads...

Is there one of those in PDF that we could post up? I didn't find one when I did a quick search.

 

[maddawg308]

Yes, I have it in .pdf as well. Will upload to the TMs section right now.

 

[papakb]

You've opened up a real bag of worms here Maddawg. I agree that trying to interpret what the military used when they added nomenclature to anything in the communications world is a true mystery . Most of these are generalities and shouldn't be taken as gospel. MRC was a prefix used by the USMC to indicate Mobile Radio, Complete and didn't reference the radio specifically but the entire communications unit, including the vehicle. For instance when a TRC-75 set was put into a M38A1 by the Marines they called it an MRC-83. Put a VRC-12 into a USMC jeep and it becomes an MRC-135A. Whereas the Army would have just called it a TRC-75 or heaven can only guess with the VRC-12s. They then became VRC-43 - VRC-49s. The Army also used the designation MRC to indicate their hodge podge of radio sets like the MRC-108s that included anything under the sun to give forward air controllers full frequency range capability and these were replaced with the GRC-206s. TRC was usually used to indicate a Transportable set or one the was too large to be humped around although the GRC-206 and GRC-142/4s definitely fall into that category. GRC-26 or a GRC-142/4s are compete radio sets in S250 shelters, although a GRC-93 is just an HF radio set by itself. PRC was usually used to indicate a radio however large that was expected to be carried by one or more troops. VRC usually meant a Vehicular mounted radios like the VRC-12 series which are various combinations of RT-246, RT-524, and R-442 radios. Then you have URC radios usually designating Universal radios, however there are the URC-100 and URC-120 radios that are portables and URC 93s that are fixed station sets. So good luck figuring anything out in this crazy world.

 

[ke6rwj]

There is logic behind the numbering, although its often hard to see why certain things are classified the way they are. I researched this some time ago and published an overview, there are some docs on it around..

http://radionerds.com/index.php/Radio_Numbering_Specification