Slightly Off Topic...Not Radio, but Electronic Item Wanted

[Ordnance]

I've tried about everywhere in vehicle circles to find this item and thought perhaps the gatherers of German radios and electronics might be able to help.

I am looking for the remote control unit for an Sd.Kfz.302 Goliath demolition carrier. It is roughly the size of a German field phone and, in fact, might have been built using the bakelite body of the field phone as the case. It had studs on the ends to use a leather neck strap. These are the best images I have been able to find in more than two years of searching and have never found any private collector or musuem with an original remote unit to inspect or photograph. I'm sure some have survived somewhere but they don't seem to be residing with the various Goliaths out there in museum collections. But considering some of the absolutely goofy things some GIs brought home as souvenirs, including oddball electronics and optics, someone must have one of these.

I know there are some marvelous collections of German radios and electronics in Europe and America and it seems logical one of these devices might have found its way to one. By itself, without a Goliath, it sure fits better in an electronics collection than with ordnance or vehicles. Of course, I'd like to buy one, but at minimum would like to find a genuine example for additional photographs and measurements. Have any of our Forum members seen one? By the way, the third image shows a relay module in the Goliath's center compartment.....need one of those, too. Thanks.

[Yuri D.]

Very interesting information. That I've never seen before.

Yuri

[Ordnance]

Yuri,

Thanks for the response. Of course, I was hoping you would say...."that looks just like the one I have.....I've been wondering what to do with it". LOL

Here's a photo of the remote on display at the Sinsheim Auto and Technik Museum in Germany. As you can see, it is an obvious reproduction without the firing key or reverse lockout safety switch. It also appears to have been built with a telephone case, complete with the hinged lid the original remotes never had.

When I see pictures like this, I always take it as a bad omen. I figure if the best technical museum in Germany doesn't have a real one to display, it's going to be a tough search for me. But being an optimist, I figure there's a survivor out there some place. It just hasn't found me yet. I never thought I would find the Goliath itself either, but it's sitting in my garage, just waiting to be reunited with a remote control box.

[umformer]

I have been looking for one for atleast 25 years, at every military show and ham fest. Nerver seen one forsale. The cool factor would have to be high so I would think there has to be a few here in the states somewhere. It could be because they went boom, anything to do with the goliath was off limits.

Alan

[umformer]

Also would like to see and find a vampir, night vision and electronics. I want one of those too!

Alan

[François B.]

Was it really in a telephone box.....? Or just fantasy by the museum?

Intresting subject....

Do you have some pics of your Goliath?

Cheers

[Dufleuve]

Very interesting pictures.

Have faith. There are devices in private collections that even Sinsheim does not have (or does not display): a friend of mine recently found the four channels sender for the remote control of Goliath's big brother, complete with the frequency quartzs !

Cheers,

[Mat Holloway]

Good luck with the search
You need to get some fliers with photos made up and distribute them to militariadealers, junk shops, antiques shops,electronics recycling depots, tips/dumps etc. Make a website as you never know whose searching and could help you! A lot of collectors do not use forums like these.

[Ordnance]

Thanks guys, for that little sliver of optimism. I'll definitely keep searching until I find an example somewhere, at least to photograph. I have posted photos previously on the Panzer Forum but here's a few more:



This photo was taken before I purchased it from a place where it was stored on outside display. You can see how much rust there was in some of the bottom track links.



One of the original Bosch 24V drive motors. They seem to be in restorable condition and with some penetrating oil sprayed in, the armatures could be turned by hand. I haven't analyzed the electrical circuits and don't have a schematic, of course, but the relays looked good with the covers off. With some TLC, I think this thing will run. For now, I'm concentrating on the broken and missing track links before diving into the electronics.



Another view of it rusting away on outside display.



I went to a gun show in Phoenix, AZ in December, 2006 and a dealer there had a German Signal soldier's wire reel backpack. I asked about buying a reel without the leather padded frame and straps and he just happened to have one back at his shop. I hand carried it on the plane ride home and when I got to my house at about 1AM, the first thing I did was carry it to my shop and try it in the Goliath. The brake bar (to provide drag on the remote control wire and keep the reel from free spooling) was already there, as were the trunnion bearings and caps for mounting the reel. It dropped in like it was made for it, which it probably was. But I find it almost odd that the Germans used an off-the-shelf reel rather than designing something unnecessarily special for the Goliath. Now I need to find about 800 meters of cloth covered, three strand, twisted wire to fill it.

Regarding the telephone case, I don't think the remotes were originally built using them, but might have employed a shell from the same basic mold. The phones have holes, cutouts, and a hinged lid that the remote contols didn't have, but the basic size and shape is very close. If I have to build a reproduction, I'm planning to use a Swedish field phone case that was found at a militaria show. It is the same size and color, but with far fewer cuts and holes in it. It also has a nice leather neck strap that looks much like the one in the first photo below.

As long as night vision things were mentioned, I'll add that I'm an enthusiast in that field too, just as umformer and Dufleuve have indicated their interest. I'm not aware of a surviving Vampir rifle scope for the MP44 either, but I'm sure one of those exists too. I have seen several parts for the system on the Panther for sale over the years, for lots of money, of course.

I limit my night vision collecting to Allied equipment in an effort to not spend EVERY dollar I've ever earned on militaria. My pride and joy is an original, uncut Inland T3 sniper carbine with a 1943 dated T120 infrared scope assembly, the first issued U.S. infrared sniper weapon. I've taken over 20 years to gather up all the parts to complete it and it's almost done. If I can be that patient and determined to find IR gear, the Goliath remote should be a snap, assuming I live that long.