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EF Johnson Ranger II

Amateur Radio > Vintage Transmitters

As found: Johnson Viking Ranger II. 160 through 6 meters AM/CW transmitter.

This Ranger has a bad spot on the front panel; it looks like damage from a spray cleaner of some sort. The paint used on johnson equipment is very susceptible to damage from cleaners, even dishwashing liquid can dull the finish. I am loooking for a better panel, or I may re-screen it. It is a kit version; at first glance, it looked like the builder did a good job; however, detailed inspection showed it was a hurried job. It has been modified, but not yet re-capped. I am hopeful this will be a good rig for 6-meter AM. :-)

Top View:

The Ranger is fairly clean. The screen resistor has been relocated to allow a small solid state supply for the PTT relay. The relay was removed, and a new screen resistor was installed in its original location. The relay was replaced with one of N6TLU's D-Lab PTT units.

Bottom View:

There are a few small mods found under the chassis. Refreshingly, it has not yet been re-capped. I have two other Rangers that were significantly damaged by careless use of a soldering iron.

The Ranger II uses 7027A modulator tubes instead of the 1614's or 6L6's used in the Ranger I. 1614's or 6L6's can be used in the Ranger II modulator as long as pin #1 of the modulator tube sockets have no connections to them.

The tank coil is often found damaged by turning the Ranger on its top without using supports under the transformer and the choke. This tank coil is in surprisingly good condition.

After about 8 hours work removing the modifications and bringing the transmitter back to stock, it works. 40 watts is easily attained on the lower bands. 6 meters is running at 15 watts. There was a wiring error in the modulator section that damaged two resistors; this has been corrected. Bad solder joints were found in various locations, and one connection was left unsoldered.