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Test Equipment and Repair Workshop Equipment
Certain simple repair and maintenance work could be carried out by the signalmen themselves. The technical regulations for all military wireless equipment (Reglement) include chapters for routine maintenance and checks and some simple troubleshooting.
Instructions on troubleshooting in case of simple malfunctions are usually included in the technical regulations, some of them contain flowcharts. From a certain complexity onwards, repairs may only be done by specially trained units (Uem Ger Mech, wireless equipment mechanic). For complex repairs and realignment, a special military signal equipment workshop or even the manufacturer had to be consulted.
Some manufacturers developed specific test equipment to be used by the wireless equipment mechanics. At the Uem Ger Mech workshops also general measuring equipment were used, similar to the equipment found in commercial workshops. The equipment usually was acquired by the central signals service, so that the signalmen would find standardized workshop equipment in their reserve courses.
Device-specific test equipment
These test sets were developed specifically to check and align the most popular military radios.
| Tester | for repair / adjustment of …. |
|---|---|
| Test Equipment FOX | SE-100 (FOX) |
| T-101 | SE-200 (LUX), SE-201 (REX) |
| T-104 | SE-101, SE-102 |
| T-105 | SE-206, SE-207, SE-407 |
| T-106 | SE-410 |
| T-107 | SE-208, SE-209, SE-411 |
| T-108 | SE-407, SE-411 (BG) |
| T-111 | SE-415 and High power stations |
| T-112 | SE-125, Part of Maintenance and repair kit B |
| T-113 | SE-125 |
| T-114 | SE-227, SE-412 |
| P-667 | SE-125, functions analog to T-112 und T-113 test sets |
| QEG | SE-104 (P) and SE-108 (K1) |
| QEG P5f | SE-106 (P5f) |
| Service Meter MD 31 | SE-202 (SEF) |
| T-646 | E-646 |
Wavemeters
The early wireless stations did not have calibrated dials, but the frequency had to be determined with the use of logging scales and calibration curves on graph paper. Another possibility to determine the operation frequency was the use of a „wavemeter“, a device with a calibrated frequency scale. This acts as an oscillator to check receivers (it transmits a weak signal at certain frequency calibration marks) or as a receiver (in the vicinity of a powerful transmitter, for example, a lamp will glow when tuned on the correct frequency). The most well-known set was the U.S. made wavemeter BC-221, which was used in Switzerland for example with the SM46 (SE-406).
| Wavemeter | to be used with …. |
|---|---|
| KW61 (Telefunken) | TS 18, FL 19 |
| Spez 125Bs (Telefunken) | TS 25, FL 25 and with the receivers E25 and E31 |
| Spec 831F (Telefunken) | FG IV and Z Station 38 (FG IV Ground Station) |
| A409D (SFR) | FG IX, SFR |
| Frequenzkontrollgerät (Radio Sport, Biel) | High Power Stations |
| BC-221 | SM 46 (SE-402), SE-018 (H station) |
Artificial Antennas
To align a radio transmitter without transmitting radio power over the airwaves, an artificial antenna is used, some of which have been specifically tailored to certain radio equipment.
General Repair Workshop Equipment
In the wireless equipment repair workshops, the signalmen found the basic measuring instruments and service equipment, to accomplish everyday repairs. The knowledge of these signalmen was varying, some were radio amateurs, some trained professionals, some simple mechanics.
| Manufacturers | purpose | |
|---|---|---|
| Elmes 20A | Dust, Richterswil | Multimeter |
Battery Testers
Battery testers have been provided as accessories to several radio sets to test the state of charge of batteries and accumulators. Since battery exhaustion was one of the most common reasons for a radio malfunction, it was usually recommended to use fresh batteries or to check the voltage of batteries and accumulators as a first step if something seemed to be wrong with a set.
Battery testers are de facto voltage meters; the state of charge can be estimated better, if a certain load is connected in parallel.