How to Organize a Small Shack

A YouTube comment from Paul VK3HN sent me back to "The Spirited Man" YouTube channel, and one of the first things I found was this video about how to organize a small space.  This is very relevant to my shacks in Virginia and in the Dominican Republic. 

Lots of good ideas here, but that propane heater kind of scared me.  And it seemed inconsistent with concerns behind the fire-preventing garbage can.  What do you folks think? 

Thanks Paul. 

 

Some Pictures of SolderSmoke Shack South

That's me at the operating position.   Window looks out to the terrace and to the ocean to the East, the  Mona channel.  The shack is on the top (seventh) floor. 

Here is the view from the terrace, looking South.  The big terrain feature is Cabo San Rafael. 

From the terrace looking North. 

Looking East into the morning sun 

From the terrace looking West. 

Antennas will go up there.  Perhaps solar panels too.  

A bog portion of the shack is a workbench with tools and test gear.  

Yesterday an old friend from Santo Domingo, Luis Ernesto HI8LEZ stopped by.  Thirty years ago we were pioneers in the use of amateur radio satellites from the Dominican Republic.  Luis Ernesto is in the book! 

ANOTHER Great Workshop

As I get ready to build the SolderSmoke Shack South, the Radio Gods (well at least YouTube) keep sending me these workshop videos.  Today's is also for a shop specializing in the repair of vintage audio gear, but the lessons-learned and observations are also applicable to a ham radio workshop.  This fellow's shop is in New York City, where space is very limited.  Check it out.  Lots of great ideas here.   

And check out the Novalux Stereophhonic channel:

 https://www.youtube.com/c/novaluxstereophonic

 

Some Really Amazing Test Gear

Wow. Really great test gear, and an amazing parts collection.   This guy even gets a "nice workshop" comment from Mr. Carlson.   Pac1085 seems to be in Rochester N.Y. and he says he specializes in the repair of vintage audio gear.  He should have more subscribers.  Does anyone have more info on him?  

Here is his channel:  https://www.youtube.com/@pac1085/featured

Innovations and Inventions in Garages and Basements

The Hewlett-Packard garage

There is a lot of inspirational stuff in this blog post, especially for those of us who work in home workshops, often in garages or basements. 

https://www.strangeloopcanon.com/p/the-mystery-of-the-garage

Thanks to HackaDay for alerting us to this. 

Pine Boards, Analog VFOs, and Homebrew BITX Transceivers -- AG5VG's Magnificent Creations

Click in image for a better view

This is amazingly cool.  WE ARE NOT ALONE!  There are others out there breaking the tyranny of the Si5351, building BITXs with analog LC VFOs.  And using copper clad boards affixed to pine boards. Plywood cabinetry!  And medicine bottle coil forms.  Really great.  And what a wonderful workshop. Thanks Michael.     

Good Afternoon Bill,

This is Michael Sahn, AG5VG.

I hope your doing well, all is well here in south Texas. I have recently built a bitx20 receiver and bitx20 for 40 meters receiver.

I built it using the analog VFO and both of mine are stable. What an awesome feeling it is to have a stable homebrew VFO. I have attached pictures .

It’s been a fun journey to get to this step. I have just been enjoying the receiver as Farhan instructed us. Then I’m going to go through the transmit side.

Air core coils are great for VFO. On my bitx40 I used a medicine bottle bottom but I put the VFO in a tin can as you will see in the pictures.

The bitx20 is all out, hand capacitance is a slight issue but it’s all learning experience.

Going to be adjusting the pvc coil bandpass filter inductors, I think the value is a bit off so it’s not as loud as it should be, but everything else is set good.

Just wanted to check in and great job on the videos and podcasts. I really enjoy them

73s

Michael

Click on image for a better view

Click on image for a better view

K0IYE's Thoughts on Homebrewing and Workshops

Click on the image for a clearer look

I like Frank Harris K0IYE's book so much that I don't mind posting about it frequently.   "From Crystal Sets to Sideband" is must-read material for all homebrewers.  

The picture above is especially significant.  I first came across it in the old pulp-style magazine called World Radio.  The picture, like Frank's book, is truly inspiring.  

This week I stumbled across a relatively new chapter in Frank's book.  Chapter 3A deals with his approach to homebrewing (Luddite, analog, HDR) and his advice on how to set up a home ham-radio workshop.  There is a lot of wisdom in this chapter.  

The opening paragraph of Chapter 3A really grabbed me.  Check it out here.  Click on the text below for a better view: 

Click on the image above for an easier read

Frank's advice on what to do when you get stuck on a problem is right on the mark, and a bit counterintuitive, but very true: Do something else for a while. 

Click  here for all of Chapter 3A:

 https://www.qsl.net/k0iye/CHAP3A.html 

Chapter 3B also looks great. 

And click here for the entire book (including a Spanish translation!) 

https://www.qsl.net/k0iye/

Thank you Frank for sharing with us all of this wisdom.  73 OM   

Andreas HB9BLA's Ideas on Building a Lab or Workshop

Lots of great ideas on workshop or lab design from Andreas, the guy with the Swiss accent.  Andreas is HB9BLA.  I liked all of this, especially his idea on books.   

A while back Andreas was interviewed by Eric Guth on QSO today: https://www.qsotoday.com/podcasts/hb9bla

Thank you Andreas!  

Mr. Carlson's New Lab and Workbench

I am very glad to see that Mr. Carlson is NOT slowing down.  In fact he has built another lab and is ramping up.  FB!  

How to Tap an Aluminum Heat Sink: Pete Juliano Shares Tribal Knowledge

This is a SolderSmoke Classic:  Pete Juliano N6QW coached me on how to tap (put screw threads)

a piece of aluminum.  This is an important homebrew skill that -- as I demonstrate -- is 

easy to screw up (no pun intended).  Thanks to Pete for sharing this tribal knowledge. 

This video has been quite popular.  It has been viewed more than 33,000 times since 2014, and there are 35 comments attached to it.  

Thanks Pete! 

The Workshop and Bench of the QRP Home Builder, Todd VE7BPO

What a treat!  We have been learning so much, for so long from Todd VE7BPO.  I was really pleased to have this look at the workshop where all the magic happens.  

While my technical abilities are far inferior to his, I was pleased to see some scenes and some shelves that are similar to those that can be found here. 

Thanks Todd! 

Workbench and Workshop Tips -- Please Put Suggestions in the Comments

During a recent visit to Barnes and Noble I picked up Adam Savage's book (please use the Amazon link in the righthand column) about Making and workshops.  Adam's book reminded me of the importance of giving thought to the organization and set-up of your workbench or workshop.  I found more tips on YouTube: 

Wow,  watch the KatVoltage video (above).  Unlike the person in a recent unfortunate advertisement, Kat clearly knows which end of the soldering iron to grab.   She is setting up a good workshop -- you can tell from how she is organizing the bench.   I wish her a lot of luck. htt(s://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NcVzTu7TbE&t=54s

Andreas (the guy with the white glove and the Swiss accent) has some good ideas:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=inW57njiq1A

The EEVblog guy has a good guide to the basic stuff that you need to build an electronics workshop.  It is a bit dated (2011) but the guidance is still very good (I wouldn't go with the homebrew or kit-built power supplies): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_PbjbRaO2E 

Van Neistat has a very good Top Ten List of things NOT TO DO in a workshop. NO FLATHEAD SCREWS.  I'm with you Van.  NO HOARDING.  etc. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3bAZQ9nWybM&ab_channel=VanNeistat  Paul VK3HN suggests we develop a similar list for ham radio homebrewers.  Please put your suggestions in the comment section below. 

Building a Workshop (or a Shack) in a Crawl Space

At first, this video made me think of Michael AA1TJ and his underground Hobbit Hole workshop.  Then I started thinking about my own crawlspace -- it looks remarkably similar to the one in this video.  Hmmm...  But no, I think I will stay above ground. 

One thing that would DEFINITLY not work for us would be the flooring that kind of eats small parts that get dropped.  I would all soon have large numbers of small parts under those mats.  This would drive me nuts.  

But lots of good ideas from Australia in this video.  

Flip-up Workbench Build -- Possible Application for Our Test Gear

Interesting workbench build.   While his tools were all for woodworking, this got me wondering about using this technique to store bigger pieces of electronic test gear that are not in use every day.  

 

QRP Labs HQ Tour

Really cool to see Hans describe his QRP Labs workshop in Turkey.  Lots of soul in that worshop.  Thanks Hans.  

 And here is a 2022 Turkish media interview with Hans and his team in the workshop:  

The Amazing Workshop and Test Gear of Tony Albus PE1ONS

This is almost too much.  This makes me want to go out and buy some more test gear, maybe another scope, or a spectrum analyzer, or at least another DMM.  I mean Tony has at least three of everything. 

This is really amazing.  Tony is obviously a test gear guy, but he also has a ham call PE1ONS.  He says he is not too active, but we should encourage him to get more involved with ham gear.  We need guys like him working on ham gear.  And he seems like such a happy person.  

Here is his QRZ.com page: https://www.qrz.com/db/PE1ONS

Here is his awesome YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/TonyAlbus

Tim Hunkin on Prototyping, Welding, and on Being a "Jack of all Trades"

I always like Tim Hunkin's videos, even when they are not directly related to radio electronics.  In this one we learn about his prototyping techniques -- this does seem similar to what many of us do when building rigs.  

I liked his explanation of welding, and of the dangers of the angle grinder (his precautions on this device were similar to those in a recent video by "Spirited Man" Van Neistat). 

Tim's final comment on how in the modern world we seem to have moved away from the notion of having one person skilled in many different areas -- we are now very specialized, so the "Jack of All Trades" is increasingly rare.   That's a shame.  Oh well, we can be Jacks of all Trades in our radio shacks. 

Thanks Tim! 

Words of Wisdom on Which Tools to Buy

Also interesting are Van Neistat's thoughts on workshop design: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8bzWKBvZsE

 

Soldering School -- 1958 (Video)

I went to a similar course at Ft. Gordon Ga. in 1977.  But I think my instructors would pass out if they saw the way I REALLY solder in the shack today.  But hey, I am building SSB transceivers, not spacecraft.  If one of my joints is bad (they rarely are), I can fix it.  So chill out Mr. Instructor -- if we were to do every connection your way it would take us a lot longer to build a rig.  

 

Soldering to Aluminum with Mineral Oil

 Hack-A-Day has a potentially useful workshop tip.   Has anyone tried this? 

https://hackaday.com/2022/03/06/how-to-solder-to-aluminum-easily/