Army Radio

When I returned from Vietnam six months were left on my time in the army.  I was sent to Fort Dix, New Jersey, where I became a platoon sergeant in a basic training company.  I had a room to myself that had a small bed, a couple of lockers, and not much else.  In a used furniture store I found a small table and a chair to make my room more homey.  It helped but it was still a lonely space.  I decided what it needed was a source of music and news: a radio.  I walked to the PX (post exchange), and bought the store's most expensive radio, a Panasonic with a wood cabinet and a door covering the unit's control knobs.  I liked the way it looked, and figured it would have the best sound.  That hunch turned out well; the walnut case combined with two good speakers produce a warm, rich, and full tone.

Panasonic Model RE-7487

On the back of the unit are connections for an FM antenna but I didn't have one.  But what I did have access to was a roll of Army trip wire (very similar to florists' wire although it's olive drab rather than forest green).

I pounded four small nails in the corners of the room up near the ceiling, then attached the wire to the back of the radio and ran it up and around the nails.  I was then able to pull in numerous FM stations, and listened often to WNEW from New York City, about 60 miles to the northeast.

I still have the Panasonic Radio, and have used it continuously since I bought it in 1969. I've used real FM antennae over the years but it's not possible to align an FM antenna in an east-west orientation given the radio's present location, pictured above.  So I made a loop of wire using the roll of trip wire, attaching one end to each terminal on the back of the radio, and dropping it behind the book case.  The radio now pulls in the NPR station in St. Louis, KWMU, St. Louis Public Radio.  It has a weak signal, at least this far away, and must come through areas of interference.  But the trip wire antenna allows perfect reception.

 

So here we are forty-six years removed from my small room in the barracks of Fort Dix, and I'm still listening to the same radio and using Army trip wire as an antenna.