On my Second Day on 10 meter AM, I Worked K5JC -- the Creator of the Mod that I was Using (Video)

See video above.  This happened on my second day on 10 meter AM. I was using the little GE CB radio that I had modified for 10 meters. I had lucked out. First bit of luck: the CB that I bought (for parts!) at a hamfest turned out to be just the thing I needed for a quick and easy mod. The GE box had what is called a Hygain board and -- most important -- a PLL02 chip. Second bit of luck: I stumbled across an article by Jerry K5JC on how to put this particular kind of device onto 10 meter AM. Boom, Bob was my uncle, and I got on 10. Then, today, the miracle happened. I heard Benny K5KV and I gave him a call. He asked about my rig. I described the mod to the GE CB. Benny seemed kind of surprised, and for good reason. You see, Jerry K5JC (the guy who created the mod that I was using) had just broken squelch on Benny's rig! Benny told him to get on 10 and soon I as in contact with the guy who had created the mod that I was using. The Radio Gods Have Spoken. Thanks Benny and thanks a Jerry. This was all really cool.

Think of odds of this happening: On my second day on 10 AM, running just 4 watts, I just happened to contact Benny K5KV in Texas who just happened to be in 2 meter range of Jerry K5JC, who just happened at that moment to be breaking squelch on Benny's 2 meter rig. TRGHS.

Bill's Fortune Cookie

 TRGHS (The Radio Gods Have Spoken)

Mr. Carlson's ART-13 Transmitter (with Dynamotor)

Here we have a really cool video from Mr. Carlson.  In it he reveals (admits!) to what we already know:  HE IS A HAM RADIO OPERATOR.  FB Mr. C!

You can see that he is a true ham, with a true case of THE KNACK, when you see his reaction to the inside view of the ART-13.  He seems to gasp as he notes that there is a lot of "RF goodness" in that box.   There is a vacuum relay, a bread-slicer capacitor, there is even a variometer. And lots of good, big THERMATRONS.  Only a true ham, a true Knack victim can recognize this RF goodness. 

The Dynamotor that goes with this transmitter is really interesting to me.  I have been hearing these things whining in the background (audible noise, not a signal defect) on many early morning (Saturday 3885 kHz) of the Old Military Radio Net.  I can often hear the dynamotor of Buzz W3EMD as he transmits from Rhinebeck, New York.   It was great to see the inside of this device.  

Back in 2017, Hack-A-Day took a look at Dynamotors: 

https://hackaday.com/2017/07/04/retrotechtacular-dc-to-dc-conversion-rotary-style/

There are several good ART-13/BC-348 pictures on W3EMD's QRZ page:

 https://www.qrz.com/db/W3EMD   

I was especially taken by the handwritten frequency chart on the front panel of the ART-13.  This reminded me a lot of the handwritten readout that I have been using on various rigs, including (most recently) the 15-10 SSB transceiver. I hope Paul focuses on this paper-and-pencil frequency chart;  it is nice to step away a bit from the glowing numerals of San Jian. 

Mr. C points out that the ART-13 was the transmitter that was paired up with the BC-348 receiver.  He will be working on both in the weeks ahead. 

Thanks Mr. Carlson. 73 OM. 

Bill N2CQR Goes Citizen Band

 10-4 Good Buddies! 

The Grid Leak Detector -- Follow-up from Yesterday's Post on the Whole Earth Catalog's "Hippy" One Tube Receiver

Click on image for a better view

When I first looked at it in the Whole Earth catalog circuit, I thought it was a regen.  But a commenter correctly questioned this conclusion.  I remembered the grid leak circuit (WN2A provided more info in the comments).  This morning I found a Wikipedia page that explains it all very well.  I especially like the description of how this detector works both with small signals in the "square law" range of the tube, and with larger signals in the linear range of the tube.  The history of the discovery of the need for the large resistor is also very interesting.  I remember building FET amplifiers and finding that they would -- after time -- shut down.  This would happen as charge built up on the gate.  I had neglected to include the normal 100k ohm resistor (that would "leak" this charge to ground).  Once I put this resistor in, the amp worked fine.  

Here is the Wikipedia article:  

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grid-leak_detector

Whole Earth Catalog Part II: More on SWL (and a Hippy One-Tube Receiver)

Click on image for a better view

Lee McKusick was correct about many things, but of course we were a bit disappointed by his focus on store bought gear.  But the 1971 Whole Earth catalog made up for this by publishing the schematic for a very simple single-triode receiver: 

Click on image for a better view

There is a follow-up article on grid leak detectors here: 

https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2023/11/the-grid-leak-detector-follow-up-from.html

From the Last Whole Earth Catalog (1971) -- Short Waves -- Part 1

Click on image for a better look

Having recently returned from San Francisco, it seemed somehow appropriate for me to take a look into the Last Whole Earth Catalog  (1971).   I picked a copy of this book up some time ago.  There is some radio stuff in it, a lot of it on shortwave listening.  Above is one article. I'll post more in the days ahead. 

It was around 1973 that I gave my cousin's husband Mike an S38-E shortwave receiver.  It is a wonder that he survived.  He did report electrical shocks.  

SolderSmoke Podcast #249 -- Travel, Pete's 6BA6 rig, Books!, VFOs, SDR, Computers, Spectrum Analysers, Transistor Man! MAILBAG

New VFO for 15-10 Transceiver

Schematic below

SolderSmoke Podcast #249 is available:  http://soldersmoke.com/soldersmoke249.mp3

There is also a video version of this podcast: https://youtu.be/5xyaYivtOhw

Travelogue:  

HAPPY VETERANS' DAY TO PETE AND GRAYSON AND TO ALL THE OTHER VETERANS WHO ARE LISTENING. 

Trip out to San Francisco. Sticker placed on the corner of Haight and Ashbury:  See picture below.  Note other sticker.  Really Groovy! 

Cuban Cacharreo! Andy CO2AFV's Knack Story  https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2023/10/a-cuban-knack-story-and-pandemic-sits.html

Bill's DXCC-100.  DONE.   

Tribal Wisdom:  W1REX on HRWB https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2023/11/listen-to-rex-w1rex-lots-of-tribal.html

Pete's Bench:

Pete's 6BA6 rig

Pete's 6BA6 Rig

Pete Re-invents the Shirt-pocket SSB Rig

Pete's remake of the ShirtSleeve Transceiver

Pete Builds Two Computers 

Pete Adds a Second Band to his Homebrew SDR 

 

SHAMELESS COMMERCE DIVISION:  

BEZOS BUCKS ARE BACK!  PLEASE  BUY THERE! >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Mostly DIY RF:  Work proceeds in the Oregon Silicon Forest on P3ST kit development. Todd is confident the P3ST will be released on December 18th.Many other kits available now:  https://mostlydiyrf.com/ 

Sign up for the newsletter:  https://mostlydiyrf.com/subscribe/ 

Bill's Bench: 

Rebuild of the 15-10 VFO (for improved Dial Spread) (with yet another QF-1 capacitor) https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2023/10/dial-scale-linearity-spreading-out.html

Why Building for 10 meters is harder: https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2023/09/why-building-for-10-meters-is-harder.html

Copper Tape shielding of 15-10 rig. 

Crushing Spurs with Better Bandpass Filters (see blog post) https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2023/09/crushing-17-and-12-meter-spurs-with.html

Another 15-10 rig in the works... for SSSS.   Boards are accumulating... 

More problems discovered with the Herring Aid 5 Receiver . Lots of SS blog posts  Comment from Rick WD5L.  ) https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2023/10/a-big-error-discovered-in-1976-qst.html   Did you try to build one?  Did you succeed or did you fail?  Please let us know. 

The Basil Mahon books (blog posts) https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2023/11/basil-mahon-is-author-for-us-he.html

The Sunburst and Luminary book of Don Eyles (blog posts) 

The Art of Electronics by Horowitz and Hill (blog posts) 

Spectrum Analysers:  Tiny SA Ultra https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2023/09/the-tinysa-ultra-spectrum-analyser-video.html  and Polarad 632C-1; George WB5OYP gave me one of these spectrum analysers  (I NEED a manual! Does anyone have a manual or a schematic? )  : 

Polarad 632C-1

Stabilizing the EB63A (with Pete recommended LP filters from e-Bay. 

MAILBAG:

TRANSISTOR MAN T-SHIRTS!  Thanks to Roy WN3F! 

Todd VE7BPO on AF amplifiers.  Thanks Todd.  

Wes W7ZOI -- Always a privilege to exchange e-mail with Wes. 

E-mail from Jay Rusgrove W1VD. About the Herring Aid 5. 

E-mail from Eamon Skelton EI9GQ!  Amazing! 

HB2HB with Denny VU2DGR https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2023/09/hb2hb-contact-with-denny-vu2dgr.html

Nick M0NTV on diode matching for ring mixers: https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2023/10/does-matching-matter-diode-matching-for.html

Paul Taylor VK3HN on the new Elecraft CW rig. 

Dean KK4DAS fixed the noise in his Hallicrafters SW receiver.  A long battle, finally won. 

Dean also in contact with G3UUR. 

Ramakrishnan VU2JXN helping me set up a backup of blog on WordPress.  

Mark KA9OOI noticed that SS podcast archive appears gone.  In fact just temporarily relocated to http://soldersmoke.com/podcastarchive.html

(SS PODCAST Archive temporarily relocated to http://soldersmoke.com/podcastarchive.html) 

Andreas DL1AJG - Crystal radio video. https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2023/10/building-crystal-set-videos.html

George N2APB on the Herring Aid 5

Grayson KJ7UM experimenting with Varactors and Thermatrons! 

Thomas K4SWL on Mattia's DC receiver. https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2023/10/mattia-zamanas-amazing-direct.html

Bob Weaver of Dial Bandspread Linearity  fame.  Electron Bunker

Mike Bryce WB8VGE QRP Hall of famer -- he too couldn't get the Herring Aid 5 working. 

Kirk NT0Z wrote about the Wayback machine.  But this former ARRL staffer he also tried and failed to get the Herring Aid 5 going.  Way back when... https://soldersmoke.blogspot.com/2015/03/kirks-herring-aid-tuna-tin-and-regen.html

New 15-10 VFO with schematic

Dial Bandspread (Before)

At corner of Haight and Ashbury

Listen to Rex. W1REX. Lots of Tribal Wisdom in this Ham Radio Workbench Interview

 

https://workbench.libsyn.com/hrwb-193-building-projects-with-rex-harper-w1rex

This week's Ham Radio Workbench podcast features an interview with Homebrew Hero Rex Harper, W1REX of QRPMe fame. (The bulk of Rex's portion starts at about 1:26:30.)

I really liked this talk with Rex.  His enthusiasm for homebrewing is really inspiring -- it is very reassuring to know that there are others like us. Rex clearly has The Knack.  

I got a kick out of Rex's story about the outhouse at Dayton.  FB OM.  

Here is the video of the mojo transfer ceremony in which shared some of the Tuna Tin 2's mojo with my BITX 17.  Thanks again Rex!  

And thanks to George and the gang out at Ham Radio Workbench. 

Basil Mahon is an Author for Us -- He explains Faraday, Maxwell, and Heaviside

 

Armand WA1UQO has sent me two of Basil Mahon's books.  They are both really great.  He is a wonderful writer who has the rare ability to present not only the people who made the discoveries, but also the technical details of the discoveries themselves.  There is so much to learn from Basil Mahon's books.  I put a link to one of them on the column to the right >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

I bought his book on Maxwell so I can read it on a long flight our to California.   

PERSONAL:

Born May 26, 1937, in Malta;  married Ann Hardwick (a teacher of chemistry), April 1, 1961; children: Tim, Sara, Danny. Education: Attended Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, 1955-57; Royal Military College of Science, B.Sc., 1960; Birkbeck College, London, M.Sc., 1971. 

Check out his career: 

British Army, career officer, serving with Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers in Germany, Aden, and United Kingdom, 1955-74, retiring as major; Government Statistical Office, civil servant, 1974-96. Consultant and trainer on censuses and statistics, including work for clients in Russia, Estonia, Croatia, and Republic of Georgia.

And his thoughts on writing: 

Basil Mahon on writing: "To me, the joy of writing is simply the chance to give readers the joy of reading—to share one's thoughts and passions with them, hoping to leave them with a feeling of pleasure and well-being. By the time I came to write The Man Who Changed Everything: The Life of James Clerk Maxwell, careers in the army and the civil service had given me plenty of practice in writing instructions—where crispness and clarity were the cardinal virtues—so the big test was to try to hold fast to these qualities and to entertain the reader at the same time."

https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/mahon-basil-1937

From the Netherlands, Manu Joseph explains why he loves Mahon and Forbes' book on Faraday and Maxwell: 

Thank you Armand, and thank you Basil Mahon. 

Building a Crystal Set (Videos)

Andreas DL1AJG in Germany sent the above video to me.  Andreas is the fellow who ran the course in which his university-level students built direct conversion receivers.  

I like the presenter's technique.  But it would have been cooler if he actually used a chunk of Galena or Iron Pyrite, with a cats whisker.  (I still have some of the Iron Pyrite that Mike KL7R gave me many years ago.)  I think that all radio amateurs should (as a rite of passage) actually poke a crystal with a cats whisker in search of a signal. Like here: 

 Thanks Andreas!

Apollo Core Rope Memory -- CuriousMarc Takes it on (video)

Here is another amazing Apollo video from CuriousMarc (AJ6JV).  Thanks to Bob KD4EBM for alerting me to this. We have recently been discussing the "Apollo rope memory" as I read Sunburst and Luminary by Don Eyles (ex K4ZHF). In this video Marc and his colleague Mike get ahold of some actual Apollo memory modules, develop a device that allows them to read it,  and they discover a design error.  Wow.  

My analog HDR head hurts after watching this.  Even Marc says he was approaching his limits in explaining all this.  

I had not heard of the bug they discovered in the Apollo 11 software just a month before launch, and how they had to climb into the Saturn V to fix it.  Amazing.  

Thanks Marc, thanks Mike and thanks Bob.