SolderSmoke Homebrew Direct Conversion Receiver Hall of Fame Update: 118 Completed + 7 Honorable Mentions: Total Receivers Built: 125 (As of March 6, 2026, 1406Z)

N7PHR's Group

One of the 10 Receivers They Built

Please let us know if you spot any errors, or if we have inadvertently missed anyone.  Don't worry about being late to the game -- the challenge continues.  All of the info is still available. 

As of March 6, 2026 1406Z:

So far 118 completed receivers, and 7 honorable mentions.  Total Count:  125.  Receivers built in 17 countries.   

NE3U (KY4EOD)  Matt 

KQ4AOP       First ham signals ever heard! 

N9TD             Derek

AC3NG          Ryan

VK3TPM       Peter Marks  

W4KAC         Ken 

W4KAC         Ken built a second one! 

N2EPE           Erik

VA3NCA        Wayde    

KI5SRY         Mark -- Gears on PTO screw

 

KA1MUQ       Frying pan receiver

AA1N              Adam

ZL1AUN         Aaron -- Using SSB transmitter -- New Zealand

W8UC             Never before homebrewed. 

VK4PG           Phil -- Nice case, "really pleased"

G7LQX           Working well, video of CW and SSB.  -- England

KE2AMP        John     Spring on PTO screw -- great

N9SZ              Steve  nice receiver

KD9NHZ        Piotr  Nice one

KE8ICE          Calvin, Very cool receiver. 

 

WV3V              Jayson!  Got it done!

GM5JDG         Martin.   -- Scotland 

KF8BOG          Jim:  A long struggle, but success.  

Chris Wales    Fantastic video.  -- Wales

YD9BAX         Wayan! Homebrew transformer!  Indonesia

N0NQD         Jeff 

WN3F              Roy -- Made new stickers! 

AB5XQ            Bill  

KB7ZUT          Andy  

AA1OF            Jer

VictorKees        Holland

KC9OJV           John -- Manhattan-style convert

WZ5M              1, 2 or maybe even 3 receivers!

K1KJW             Jim in Vermont

KC5DI              Dallas -- friend of WZ5M

Gary                 Australian -- Wooden PTO form

LU2VJM          Juan in Argentina  -- Argentina

K1OA               Scott "Most fun in 50 years"

KC9DLM         Ben -- Had EFHW problems

PH2LB             Lex  Yellow, Glue Stick -- Netherlands

AI6WR             David

G6GEV            Dave (It was a blast!) 

KC1ONM        Wayne  MakerLabs NH

KB1OIQ          Andy    MakerLabs NH

KA1PQK         Jay       MakerLabs NH

W1TKO           Mike    MakerLabs NH

K5KHK            Karl

SM0TPW         Mikael  -- Sweden

KI7LKB           Brian (coat hanger tube)

M6CRD            Chris

W2DAB           Dave in NYC

W4JYK            Wes of VWS

KA4CDN          Mike of VWS

M7EFO             Adrian 

VK5RC             Rob

KD8KHP          Dave

VK1CHW         Chris

KA0PHJ           Brian

W0IT                Louis

W1PJE             Phil

W2AEW           Alan

KN6FVK          John (Barkhausen-Be-Gone Spray) 

VU2JXN           Ramakrishnan -- India

AA0MS            Doug 

9V1/KM7ABZ   Paul  --  Singapore

VK2BLQ          Stephen -- Australia

N3FJZ              Rick

Daniel               VE5DLD  -- Canada

Student 1          Student of VE5DLD

Student 2          Student of VE5DLD

Student 3         Student of VE5DLD

K7WXW          Bill 

NK3H               Mitch

KN4ZXG         Ted

WA1MAC        Paul

N4AVC             Chuck 

K3IY                 Kevin

N6ASD             Ashish in Bangalore

W1DSP             Rick

WD4CFN         Steve

KM5Z             Mike

KF5DAN         Dan

Fritz                 Fritz

N9OK              Joe

WA5DSS         Bill 

K0GDB           Grant

G0JNR            Shane Glow-in-Dark Coil Form

KK7BCO        Tobias

K2BVR            Bob

Robert              Sutton

K5YFO           Dave (Texas) 

KD4PBJ          Chris

KN4GAH        Chris -- EE perspective

F1GMA           Philippe  -- France

W2TEF            Todd

EI9ITB            Karl  -- Ireland

VU2TUM         Puneit Singh

AA7EE             Dave Richards

KI5VIR            Jay

CT7AXD       Graham -- Promoted from Honorable Mention!

G3MOT           Josh

KW4H             Steve

NJ7V                Charlie (RedSummit)

N2ETZ            Denny

AB9LM           James

W9XT              Gary

G0PJT             Alex

Ohio                Tyler

N7HPR           Steve (Instructor) (N7HPR Group)

Clark               (N7HPR Group)

KQ4ZHO        Kurt (N7HPR Group)

KQ4OBR        Brian (N7HPR Group)

KR4CUF         Justin (N7HPR Group)

Amanda          (N7HPR Group)

David               (N7HPR Group)

KM4AED       Jamey (N7HPR Group)

KN4MVH      Larry (N7HPR Group)

N5GVW          Dick (N7HPR Group)

-------------------------

Honorable Mentions: 

*AA7U            Steve No PTO

*VK7IAN        Ian -- No Manhattan boards -- Tasmania

*KC1FSZ        Bruce's build on a PC board

* DL1AJG      Andreas -- Germany

* Matthew      Student of DL1AJG

* Arash           Student of DL1AJG 

*KA4KXX     Walter -- FB 20 Meter version

Rex Harper on the 50th Anniversary of the Tuna Tin 2 -- DONATIONS NEEDED!

I was really pleased to see Rex Harper W1REX on a special edition of the RedSummitRF video podcast:  

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUQE4OvkAtU

Rex provides a lot a great background info on the Tuna Tin 2.  We are approaching the 50th Anniversary of the publication in QST of the Doug DeMaw article that launched the TTT revolution.  Rex has the original TTT in his possession, and is organizing a 50th Anniversary tour. We can only hope that much Mojo will be dispensed. 

I built one in a real tuna can:  https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2014/05/fdim-midnight-mojo-ceremony-tuna-tin-2.html  I still have the board! 

And above you can see Rex allowing the Mojo of the original TTT to flow into my homebrew 17 meter BITX (2014).  Rex and Charlie talked about this ceremony in the video cast.  Very cool. 

Rex is making available a 50th Anniversay edition kit of the Tuna Tin 2.  Get yours here: 

https://www.qrpme.com/?p=product&id=50A

Also,  Rex needs some help in financing a Tuna Tin 2 world tour.  YOU CAN HELP!   No need to limit your donation to 1 dollar.  Donate here!  https://www.qrpme.com/?p=product&id=WWT

Thanks Rex, thanks Charlie! 

Stuart Brand

A couple days after I announce that I don't want to help Jeff Bezos make any more money, it might come as a surprise that I am linking to this article about a guy who seems to LIKE Bezos (and also Musk!).  But I do like Stuart Brand.  I have a copy of the Whole Earth Catalog, and it had a lot of good ham radio content in it: 

https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/search?q=Whole+Earth+Catalog 

Anyway, here is the article.  I found it very interesting. 

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/feb/25/tech-legend-stewart-brand-on-musk-bezos-and-his-extraordinary-life-we-dont-need-to-passively-accept-our-fate

SolderSmoke Podcast 263: DR-PR, UM, DCRX, SKN, Design, PSSST, W7ZOI, FT-101, HW32A, VK, HST, AMP, MAILBAG

Pete Juliano N6QW

February 23, 2026

SolderSmoke Podcast #263 is available for download: 

Audio:  http://soldersmoke.com/soldersmoke263.mp3

Video:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fn164glxQ6s

Opening 

May 26, 2014, coming up on 12 years! That was the 1^st podcast where Pete N6QW was interviewed by Bill in Podcast #161,  which means 102 podcasts ago. 12 Years of Julian-ismo.  Thanks Pete!  

What to build?  Question faced by VWS Makers Group and by Charlie of RedSummit RF.   Regen?  Test Gear?  Simple oscillator?  

But did you DESIGN it yourself?  What does that even really mean? Barrie Gilbert in Jim Williams' book:  https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2025/12/homebrew-you-say-but-did-you-design-it.html

Grayson KJ7UM on a podcast -- Make it your own way.  Copper Clad and Glue!  Manhattan style! "BUILD SOMETHING!:  Tube testers not necessary.  OK to call thermatrons "vacuum tubes."  No ruling on calling them "valves" yet. 

Pete:  

-- When hams were hams -- Turning a Heath monobander into a tribander

-- Simple SSB

-- W7ZOI rigs

-- The Yaesu FT-101

SHAMELESS COMMERCE DIVISION:   Mostly DIY RF!   Patreon!   But no more Amazon.  We do not want to help Bezos make more money. Even if this will cost us.   So please,  consider a donation or a Patreon sponsorship instead.  But no more Amazon through SolderSmoke.  

Bill:   

-- Dominican Republic to Puerto Rico on 2 meters -- status report. 

-- Working Australia on 20 meter SSB in the morning. 

-- The SpiderWeb net. 

-- The Hubble Space Telescope -- an old friend

-- One contact on Straight Key Night (Dean reminded me).  I worked NB1U on 20 meters with QCX from KD4EBM. 

Dean: 

-- The University of Michigan ant the Direct Conversion receiver project.  

-- Boxing up the amplifier.  A tale of woe.  Identifying oscillations.  A QSO with the Dominican Republic: https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2026/02/a-qso-with-dean-kk4das-northern.html 

 Travails with other homebrew gear... Trying to find a working transceiver.

AI assisted repair of Bitx40 PA in my Mythbuster 

VWS club station update, tendency of Flex and other SDR makers to not release even basic technical information.

MAILBAG: 

Ian VK3MO  Huge antennas, big signal, friendship with WA3O https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2025/11/vk3mo-and-wa3o-brotherhood-of-ham-radio.html

Bob KD4EBM  2 meter propagation info

Todd K7TFC  -- Mostly DIY RF

Mike K6STR  Worked Pete on 40, building for CW and SSB on 2 meters

Grayson KJ7UM    German Avionics,  MMM Origin.  Old Steampunk Homebrew rig: https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2025/12/a-very-interesting-old-steam-punk.html   

Phil  W1PJE   Forrest Mims III     Mims's sad denial on climate change. 

Ciprian  YO2DXE         Heard the SAQ Alternator  see: https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2025/12/alexanderson-alternator-on-172-khz.html

Tom NS6T:  Very useful azimuth map with grey lines: https://ns6t.net/AzShadowMap/experimental.html

Walter KA4KXX -- 20 meter Direct Conversion Receiver.  FB Walter! 

WN2A Mike   Dos Equis man is BACK! https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2026/01/hes-back-dos-equis-man-most-interesting.html

KB4HG Rhett:  On USB on the Old Military Radio Net with a PRC-74.  Want one! 

Saw the Hubble Space Telescope Again this Morning

Skies were brightening at 0626 local.   And there were a lot of clouds.  But HST appeared right on  schedule, and I saw it between the clouds as it passed overhed.   There should be even better passes in the morning during the next two days. 

The Mahbood Radio Service Company of Hyderabad, India

Our friend Farhan sent this today.  It is really beautiful and captures very well the magic of radio.  Thanks Farhan. and thanks too to Mohammad Moinuddin of the Mahbood Radio Service. 

“Before television and smartphones, Hyderabad listened to the world through radios. And in those days, my father ensured that the city stayed tuned in.

My father, the late Shaik Mahboob, founded Mahboob Radio Service in 1933 in Dabeerpura. At a time when radio was still a luxury, he began selling and repairing sets for households across the Old City. In 1948, after Hyderabad’s accession to the Indian Union, he shifted the shop to its present location in Chatta Bazar, where it continues to stand even today.

Interestingly, he did not begin with radios. In the late 1920s, he was involved in the PVC pipes trade. But as radio technology slowly entered Indian homes, he recognised its future and transitioned into the business of radio sales and repairs. That decision shaped our family’s destiny.

Like my father, my brother and I grew up surrounded by valves, wires, and wooden cabinets. After school, we would sit beside him, carefully observing how he handled brands like Murphy, Philips, Bush, Marconi, and later Sony. Those were the golden years of radio in Hyderabad.

Among our customers were prominent families of the city. We even serviced radio sets for the palace of the last Nizam, Mir Osman Ali Khan. Payments would arrive in a sealed lifafa — a gesture that felt both formal and special. In those days, radio wasn’t just entertainment; it was how people heard news, music, cricket commentary, and the world beyond their homes.

Over time, technology changed. Transistors replaced valve sets. Then came television. Now, smartphones have taken over. Radio sets are no longer common in households. Many shops that once repaired them have shut down.

My brother, who shared this passion with me, is no more. But I continue to open the shutters of our shop every morning. People still travel from different parts of the country — some carrying radios that are older than me — hoping to restore a memory. I repair them not just as machines, but as pieces of someone’s past.

Today, in my late seventies, I sit at the same wooden table where I learned this craft as a boy. Because this is not merely a business, it is continuity. It is a responsibility.

On World Radio Day, my only wish is that people remember the warmth of gathering around a radio set. I also hope today’s radio jockeys continue to create thoughtful and meaningful programming. Because radio is not outdated — it is timeless.  As long as I am here, Mahboob Radio Service will remain tuned in.”  

– Mohammad Moinuddin, Mahboob Radio Service

A QSO with Dean KK4DAS (Northern Virginia to Dominican Republic)

Dean KK4DAS was checking out his new homebrew solid state 100 watt amplifier.  We were talking about it on the phone, then we decided to give it a try on the air.  Above is the Dominican end of the QSO.  It was great to talk to Dean on the air.  Below is how the QSO looked and sounded from Dean's QTH in Northern Virginia:

 

 Next we need to bring Pete into the conversation so that we can have an All-SolderSmoke QSO.  

Early Hacking with an IMSAI 8080 -- "War Games" (1983) Scene with Matthew Broderick and Ally Sheedy

Some computer history here, and it is old enough (1983) to fit into the SolderSmoke theme.  Plus it appears that the young fellow has a shack (of sorts) and uses it to impress a girl from his biology class.  Finally, we know the IMSAI guy has an important YouTube channel... 

Attempting 2 meter contact, Dominican Republic to Puerto Rico

It is about 100 miles across the Mona Channel.  That is a longshot on 2 meters, but I got the idea when, this past summer, I regularly heard WIDI 99.5 FM in the Dominican Republic from western Puerto Rico.  So over the fall I gathered 2 meter gear, and got a directional antenna and sent all of this gear to the DR.  

Here is the antenna.  Seven elements. I got it through Amazon.  It came kind of incomplete and without any written or on-line instructions.  AI told me to do exactly the WRONG thing with what they assumed was a reflector.  Fortunately I ran into this YouTube video and learned that it was in fact a "ZL Special" antenna, and that it has, in fact, TWO driven elements.  It was through that video that I learned how to assemble this thing.  

My "station" consists of a Heathkit HM-2109.  It is a VHF wattmeter/SWR meter that I bought by mistake.  But I kept it, and it proved very useful in this 2 meter Mona Channel project.  There is a Baofeng UV-5R (boo! hiss!) and a Yaesu FT-470 that KD4EBM gave me.  I have a Communication Concepts 2 meter amplifier -- I must have picked this up at a hamfest.  It promises 35 watts with 5 watts of drive.  The old CCI amp gives the rig good juju. 

This morning I wrote to the hams of western Puerto Rico: 

--------------------------------------------------------

Saludos desde el otro lado del canal de la Mona! 

Soy radio aficionado:  Hi7/N2CQR.   Vivimos en República Dominicana en Cap Cana seis meses cada año.

He notado que puedo escuchar WIDI 99.5 FM aquí.  Parece que hay Tropospheric ducting. 

Como radioaficionado, me gustaría averiguar si podemos hacer contacto en 2 metros usando la misma propagación. 

Tengo: 

Dos transceptores de FM

Un amplificador a 35 vatios. \

Un antenna directional de 7 elementos con un gain de 11.5 db. 

Estoy a una elevación de 7 Pisos.  Puedo ver el canal de Mona. 

Hay alguien en la costa oeste de PR (tal vez cerca de Mayagüez) quien puede hacer un schedule para probarlo? 

O hay un repetidor en la zona que puede usar para averiguar si puedo -- por lo menos -- "kerchunk"  el repetidor?  

Gracias por su ayuda! 

73  Bill  Hi7/N2CQR

-----------------------------------------

Greetings from the other side of the Mona channel!

I am a radio amateur: Hi7/N2CQR.   We live in the Dominican Republic in Cap Cana six months every year.

I've noticed that I can listen to WIDI 99.5 FM here.  There seems to be Tropospheric ducting.

 As a radio amateur, I would like to find out if we can make contact in 2 meters using the same propagation.

 I have:

Two FM transceivers

An amplifier at 35 watts. \

A 7-element directional antenna with a gain of 11.5 db.

I am at an elevation of 7 Stories.  I can see the Mona's channel.

 Is there someone on the west coast of PR (maybe near Mayagüez) who can make a schedule to try it out?

 Or is there a repeater in the area that you can use to find out if I can -- at least -- "kerchunk" the repeater?

 Thank you for your help!

 73  Bill  Hi7/N2CQR

-------------------------------

Stay tuned! 

Watching the Hubble Space Telescope (an old friend) from the Dominican Republic

 

A recent article about the possibility of an early demise of the Hubble Space Telecope caught my eye.  I first saw HST as it came overhead (a lot) during my first stay in the Dominican Republic (1992-1996).  

Here is an entry from my observation log showing one of my first sightings of HST from the DR: 

2 February 1995: (message placed on COMPUSERVE board) I got a really nice look at the HST this morning (2 February) from my perch here in Santo Domingo. I woke up early and checked the computer for any satellites that might be in the neighborhood. (I'm a ham and have been trying to communicate through the new Russian Hamsat RS-15). I noticed that HST would be visible starting at around 0935 UTC (0535 local); I scrambled up onto my roof with binoculars in hand and began to scan the southern sky. There she was, right on time! I first spotted the satellite when it was in Centaurus (with the Southern Cross glimmering off to the right) and followed it through Scorpio, below Venus and Jupiter until it vanished in the east. Great way to start the day! Yet another benefit of southern latitudes! 73 and Clear Skies, Bill (N2CQR/HI8)

I am back in the DR now; I decided to look for it again.   

The Heavens-Above web site gave good info on the orbit.  So did the N2YO site.  There were a couple of morning passes in January that didn't work out because of local cloud cover,  but last night (January 20, 2026) I managed to see it on an evening pass. It was fainter than I remember, peobably because I saw it at 1930 Local, near  zenith, as it was getting ready to fly into the darkness.  But I saw it.  My old friend, HST.  

Here is the pass that I watched last night: 

There is another good pass tonight.  I will give it another try.  Stay tuned. 

He's Back! The Dos Equis Man -- The Most Interesting Man in the World -- RETURNS!

Memes with this guy appeared in many SolderSmoke posts.  

Examples: 

https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2022/10/worlds-most-interesting-man-on-ptos-and.html

https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2017/06/stary-thirsty-my-friends-very.html

https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2022/11/watching-shortwave-broadcast-stations.html

And now he is back!  

https://edition.cnn.com/2026/01/16/food/dos-equis-most-interesting-man-ads

Background info on The World's Most Interesting Man:  

https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/06/02/most-interesting-man-world-friends-barack-obama-215215/ 

"His personality is so magnetic, he is unable to carry credit cards."

Stay thirsty my friends!  

Here is another new one: 

MIT Technology Review on Why AI LLMs are So Strange and So Alien

Until recently, I thought that the AI LLMs were just sort of fancy, souped-up search engines.  Google on steroids.   But then they started getting simple things wrong.  And they seemed to understand that that our April 1 stories were just sarcasm.  There seemed to be more to them than fancy search engines.  

This MIT article explains what is going on with the LLMs.  

https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/01/12/1129782/ai-large-language-models-biology-alien-autopsy/

What do you folks think of this?