Drake TR-3
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| Frequency | TX/RX: 80–10 m (amateur) |
| TX power | 150 W (300 W PEP SSB / 260 W CW DC input; ~150 W RF output. Finals: three 12JB6 (12BY7A driver).) |
| Modes | USB, LSB, CW, AM |
| Weight | 7 kg (15.4 lb) |
| Connector | SO-239 |
| Year | 1963 |
| antenna | SO-239 |
| mic | microphone jack |
| key | CW key jack |
| psu | external AC-3 (mains) / DC-3 (12 V) supply |
Drake's first SSB transceiver (1963), combining the R-4 receiver and T-4X transmitter concepts in one box. A 9 MHz crystal filter for selectivity, three 12JB6 sweep-tube finals giving ~150W PEP output (300W PEP input), on 80-10m. Compact for its power. The TR-3 showed Drake could build a competitive transceiver.
Single conversion receiver with image rejection limitations on some bands. The crystal-lattice filter is adequate but not as good as later Drake or Collins mechanical filters. Early production units had VFO stability issues.
Drake's transceiver debut. The TR-3 was the stepping stone to the TR-4 and TR-7 that defined Drake's transceiver legacy. Good enough to compete with Swan and the early Japanese transceivers. A clean TR-3 is a capable CW and SSB radio.
The Drake TR-3 is a landmark radio, introduced in 1963, it was R.L. Drake's first transceiver of any kind and one of the earliest single-sideband transceivers on the market, packaging a complete SSB station into one box. It covers the 80 through 10 meter amateur bands (in 600-kilohertz ranges) in SSB and CW, with AM capability, using a 9-megahertz crystal filter for selectivity and a tube VFO.
Its all-tube design runs a 12BY7A driver into three 12JB6 sweep-tube finals, rated at 300 watts PEP DC input, roughly 150 watts of RF output, the figure usually quoted. At a time when most stations used separate transmitters and receivers, the TR-3 pointed toward the transceiver-dominated future of amateur radio, and it introduced the clean Drake receiver sound and rugged build that the TR-4 and TR-7 would carry forward.
It needs an external AC-3 (mains) or DC-3 (12-volt mobile) power supply, and the antenna connects through a standard SO-239. Early production units had some VFO stability quirks that later runs improved. It is a discontinued classic. Compare it with the later TR-4C and the solid-state TR-7.