NO MORE SMOKE: Lawsuit Leads to Podcast Changes

We mentioned on the last podcast that we had some difficulties that led to a long delay between Podcast #202 and #203.   We couldn't go into detail, and we are still somewhat limited as to what we can say, but we thought that today we should bring you all as up-to-speed as we can with what has been going on.  

First, an apology.  Some of what we told you was, in retrospect, kind of misleading.  Pete's computer didn't really crash.  Sure, he did have to reconstruct a lot of files, but his original computer was just fine.  The problem was that it had been taken by court order as part of the legal mess we find ourselves in.   

Here is the deal:  We got hit with a "violation of trademark" lawsuit.  It seems that one of the new agricultural industries that has sprung up recently in California has taken a very aggressive legal stance in protecting their "rights."  Part of this effort is a proactive filing for trademark protection for any product name that could in the future be related to their product.   So apparently anything with "smoke" in the name was scooped up by them.  They also claim to forsee the possibility of a "solder-scented recreational product." We also suspect they are in cohoots  with the new electronic cigarette "vaping" industry.   We  have heard that they are working with a "vaping" company in Birmingham, England that calls itself "SodderSmoke."  (As you may have heard, the word has a different connotation in the UK.)  They are using this British Vaping thing to bolster their claim that we are violating their trademark.  

Pete feels terrible about all of this.  The fact that he is located in California was what allowed the LA lawyers to take us to court in that state.  And we have been advised that we do not have much of a chance in this matter.  You see, marijuana has become a very important product in Pete's state. And "vaping" with e-cigarettes is also very big out there.  So there is big money and big cultural forces behind this effort.  We a tiny small fish caught in the net of big new industries.  

Pete wants to fight this (you know how he is) but I think we will have to just give in and move on.  Look, STARTING TODAY they are threatening to sue us for ONE MILLION DOLLARS every instance in which we use name of the podcast that you have all come to love so much.  I am scrambling to expunge the title from all the blog files.  Just look at the header on the top of this blog page. 

So at this point we find ourselves in search of a new name.  We turn to you, our loyal listeners, for ideas.  We hope to come up with something that will remind people of what we once were, of the good times we had under the old name.  Please send us your suggestion.  PLEASE DO NOT use the e-mail address that has the old name in it.  That would just make the lawyers and the "farmers" rich.   Instead, send your suggestions to n2cqr@yahoo.com

Bill and Pete

  

Yet Another Household Item Useful to Homebrewers: Toilet Bowl Cleaner for PC Board Fabrication

We have already been using Desitin ointment for heat sink compound, kitchen breadboards for radio breadboards, Scotchbrite pads for polishing, nail polish varnish for toroidal core coating and Olive oil as a field-expedient lubricant. (Am I forgetting anything?)   But I must say I was a bit taken aback by KV4QB's mention of his innovative use of the dilute hydrochloric acid in toilet bowl cleaners in his PC board fabrication process.   Good one DuWayne!   Eric Guth went the extra mile be suggesting a recycling of the liquid. 

This was a really interesting QSO Today interview.  Listen here: 

https://www.qsotoday.com/podcasts/KV4QB

SolderSmoke Podcast #203 Winter, Transceivers, Antennas, DC RX, uBITX, Mixers, 'fests, MAILBAG

N6QW in 1959. Building an SSB transceiver

SolderSmoke Pocast #203 is (FINALLY!) available: 

http://soldersmoke.com/soldersmoke203.mp3

24 March 2018

--The reasons for our delay. 
Winter, Computers, College, Family Trees, Lawyers....

-- Winterfest 2018 
-- Pete launches 2018    THE YEAR OF THE TRANSCEIVER
    http://n6qw.blogspot.com/
-- SDR -  Satan's Digital Radio?  
-- Direct Conversion Receiver Projects
-- Mixer Musings 
-- A Thailand Troubleshoot 
-- Nor'Easter knocks out Bill's Moxon -- An appliance replacement? 
-- Homebrew Electret Mics.  Seriously.  
-- uBITX Build with Rogier
-- Civilized Crystal Testing
-- Baofeng! 
-- DRAGNET

-- MAILBAG
KD4PBJ's REGEN 
N6ORS's SDR rig
Mike Rainey's DX-100

Haunted by Hallicrafters At Winterfest

I was on the verge of not going to the Vienna Wireless Society's Winterfest Hamfest this year.   We had just returned from a long trip.  I was tired.  Armand WA1UQO bailed due to a family obligation. But, since this is about the only hamfest that regularly attend, and because it is only about 5 miles down the road, I went.  

As soon as I got there I started wondering if I should have stayed home.  Here's why:  Hallicrafter S-38s.   Just about everywhere I turned, there were S-38s.  I had never seen so many of these EVIL  AC/DC trandformerless widow-makers.  I watched in horror as innocent hams reached into their wallets and bought these little monsters.  "Does it work?" asked one victim. "Well," said the seller, "it hums like crazy when you turn it on."  Yea, I'll bet it does.  (The guy bought it.) 

It was kind of a Hallicrafters day.  I even saw an Hallicrafters TV!  See above. 

Nothing big followed me home.   I got a couple of nice variable caps (one with a reduction drive).  A Radio Shack speaker.   Some coax.  A project box of BITX40 size.   A Weller soldering gun  slightly less beat up than the one I've had since age 13. 

I got to meet Richard Choy of Midway Electronics.  He has a business out in the Shenandoah Valley and is selling a neat little 2 watt CW transceiver kit.  Go to midwayelecrronics.us/qrp for more info. 

Oh yea, I got a kick out of this ENORMOUS BFO.  I almost bought it for Pete (who is so fond of tiny little oscillators).  This is a real Boatanchor BFO.  I wonder how many Si5351s you could put in that box? 

Thanks to VWS for putting on the 'fest.  In spite of the S-38s, I had fun.  

WA1UQO's Discrete Ceramic DC Receiver

Armand writes: 

The attached picture is your DC receiver. A little tweaking left to do as the range right now is ~ 7.44Mhz to 7.032Mhz. I used one of Farhan's trifillars and a couple of air coils that you gave me last year.  Listening to the Wisconsin QSO party as I type. 

FB Armand!  The receiver looks great.  I hope others will follow your lead and build this simple little receiver for 40. 

Homebrew Your Own Electret Microphones

Don't be such a microphone appliance operator.  Whip up some of your own electret material and turn it into a mic.  Imagine how the audio adjustment guys will react when you tell them you are using a special, tailor-made,  homebrew electret material that gives added PRESENCE and BRIGHTNESS and SPARKLE.  Wow.  Minds will be blown.  A cottage industry could be launched.  

I realize that I tried to fool you guys with a bogus story about making your own Rochelle Salt mics using Tartar sauce.   But on this one, I'm not kidding.  Check out Hack-A-Day's excellent article: 

https://hackaday.com/2018/03/07/a-bit-more-than-a-microphone-the-electret-story/

Great Video on Crystal Motional Parameter Measurement

Who out there can save us from further Dishal distress?  Who has one of these fantastic bits of old test gear and is willing to donate it to the cause of accurate filter building?  

Thanks to Tore LB4RG for alerting us to this gem.  

Moxon Destroyed

The north-east region of the U.S.  is experiencing a very strong winter storm.  These storms are called "Nor-Easters"- that describes their track up the coast.   Here, we had wind gusts at 71 mph -- that was around what we had with Hurricane Sandy.  But no rain or snow down here -- it is a different story in New England. 

I was on the air, having a nice chat with Ivo OP2A on 17 when suddenly my SWR went way up.  I knew immediately what had happened.  I stepped outside and saw what you see above. 

Oh well, we had a good run.  It went up there on July 20, 2014.  Not bad for some fiberglass poles from Amazon, some scrap lumber and some wire from Steve Silverman (thanks Steve).  

To tell you the truth I was kind of hoping this would happen.  I'll replace it with a Moxon or a Hex that covers at least 20 and 17.   

N6ORS and "Satan's Digital Radio"

Hey Bill,

I just finished testing the new rig.  Better sit down for this......
Its an SDR (Satan's Digital Radio). Actually its an estension of an
earlier experiment You might remember the 'Franken SDR". The Franken sdr

worked so well I thought I would make a companion for it and built a QSE 

(quadrature sampling exciter) and an amplifier chain to go with it. The rig
used G3PLX's fantastic SDRTX software for the transmit and DB0JBJ's
wonderful HDSDR software for receiving. The original idea was to make
a small rig for Digital comms, but I decided to add a Mic for voice, also
there is a 'Hardware" audio Phaser already in the building stages 

(you can calm down now).

A few specs. The RX is fantastic , -135 noise floor and the audio is
so clean that it copies wspr signals to -33db. The transmit is 

12 watts and the phasing audio sounds so nice that my wife says 

"thats your terrible voice exactly."So if you catch me on Sunday night

 and i dont sound 'yellowee' enough and you justdont like that 

no-crystal-filter sound just say  "Hey , Dont phase me bro"

See Ya on the bands,
73
Keith N6ORS

Dragnet Goes After TV Repairmen in 1951

Detective Friday goes after a vicious new kind of crime:  Crooked TV repairmen who overcharge their customers.  These monsters unnecessarily replace (or say they do!) transformers, when all that is needed is a new 5U4 tube.  Oh, the humanity!   

And the reporter they were working with pretended to be a salesman for a new company dealing in rosin-core solder!   

No kidding.  I really thought this was a joke.  They were serious.  Just click on the video above to listen.  

Or scroll forward to the 1:32:59 point on this link.  Lots of tube talk.  This one's for you Grayson!  https://wamu.org/story/18/02/20/big-broadcast-feb-25-2018/

Soldering Fingers (and SWR Bridges) in Norway

Tore Bonderudtåjet LB4RG tells us that he is a SolderSmoke listener, and that the old tradition of hams soldering their fingers together continues to be practiced in Norway.   Here are some pictures of his latest efforts.  This is an SWR bridge project.  Thanks Tore!  Careful with the fingers OM! 

N8NM's "20 Dollar Bill" DC Receiver

Steve N8NM wrote: 

I call it "The $20 Bill" because it contains about $20 in junkbox parts and complies with Bill's discreet component, hardware defined radio ethos.

73 - Steve N8NM

https://n8nmsteve.blogspot.com/2018/02/spontaneous-construction-20-bill-or-oh.html

I replied:  

Excellent Steve.   Very nice.   

Your post caused me to fire up my DC RX -- I was listening on 40 earlier today.  I think the world needs MORE 40 meter direct conversion receivers.  

Too bad about the regulator IC chip.  We need to get you an 8 volt Zener so that you can bring that receiver into a state of discrete component purity.  

DISCRETE HDR FOREVER!  

73  Bill N2CQR