Tonight is the "Night of Nights"

 

 

From "The SWLing Post" we learn that tonight may be the last opportunity for us to listen to CW from U.S. Coast Guard stations:

 

http://swling.com/blog/2015/07/night-of-nights-xvi-july-12-2015/  

Our book: "SolderSmoke -- Global Adventures in Wireless Electronics" http://soldersmoke.com/book.htm Our coffee mugs, T-Shirts, bumper stickers: http://www.cafepress.com/SolderSmoke Our Book Store: http://astore.amazon.com/contracross-20

Interview in China with Arduino's Massimo Banzi: "Be nice!"

Our book: "SolderSmoke -- Global Adventures in Wireless Electronics" http://soldersmoke.com/book.htm Our coffee mugs, T-Shirts, bumper stickers: http://www.cafepress.com/SolderSmoke Our Book Store: http://astore.amazon.com/contracross-20

KC2THY's Mighty Mite - A Thing of Beauty

Bill,

I have been a listener of the Soldersmoke Podcasts for several years now and I have worked my way through most of the back episodes of the podcast. It is terrific production and has taught me so much about radio electronics. I have also read all of your books. Thanks for what you do for this hobby.

Attached is a photo of my recently completed Michigan Mighty Mite.  The FFT function in my scope confirms a good clean signal and it sounds great when I listen to it on another radio. I am sure that the photo depicts one of the worst looking MMMs to date. I built it on a solderless breadboard as I have never built anything using Manhattan or ugly construction techniques. It was a great introduction to very basic homebrew electronics.

Thanks again,

John Stockman, KC2THY

Morristown, NJ

Our book: "SolderSmoke -- Global Adventures in Wireless Electronics" http://soldersmoke.com/book.htm Our coffee mugs, T-Shirts, bumper stickers: http://www.cafepress.com/SolderSmoke Our Book Store: http://astore.amazon.com/contracross-20

SolderSmoke Dreams (and Nightmares)

 

 

 

Bill,

I've just listened to Solder Smoke episodes 168-170 and I'm following your advice.  My Michigan Mighty Mite sits on my desk only lacking the variable capacitor.  I was amazed that I had everything needed in my junk box!  Including a 3.575611 crystal.  

Last night I dreamt that the incomplete breadboarded Mighty Mite was beckoning me.  I walked over to the desk and I had the palpable sense that the Mighty Mite itself wanted to oscillate, as if by arranging the components in this way I created something alive.  I touched the tank and it began oscillating by itself without the variable cap.  The universe seemed complete in that sweet moment.  

When I awoke I attempted to replicate the event unsuccessfully.  haha.  I definitely need a variable capacitor....  

Regards,

Bryan 

KV4ZS

 

 

Bryan:   You might be able to make your dream come true with a fixed value cap.  Do you have something of about 150 picofards?    Try that.   It might work.   Or do you have an old transistor radio that could sacrifice its tuning cap?   
 

I have had similar homebrew dreams.   Well, nightmares mostly.   I dreamed that in a fit of frustration I took ALL the parts off the BITX 17 board.   That was a scary one.   I'll cc Steve Silverman to see if he could help with the variable cap.  

73  Bill

Our book: "SolderSmoke -- Global Adventures in Wireless Electronics" http://soldersmoke.com/book.htm Our coffee mugs, T-Shirts, bumper stickers: http://www.cafepress.com/SolderSmoke Our Book Store: http://astore.amazon.com/contracross-20

The Wizard of Warrenton: Jerry KI4IO

 

That's Jerry KI4IO of Warrenton Virginia sitting in front of truly impressive collection of homebrew gear.  The cream-colored box above the Vibroplex is Jerry's new 7 MHz phasing transceiver.   He has a wonderful write-up of this rig in the qrp-tech group files section:

https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/qrp-tech/files/KI4IO/

You may have to join the yahoo group to access it, but believe me, it is worth it.  Jerry took a very eclectic approach to circuit selection and came up with a very cool rig.  Lots of soul in that new machine!  Here it is in breadboard form:

 

 

Jerry worked in U.S. Embassies as a communications officer and is obviously a member of the International Brotherhood of Electronic Wizards.  From his QRZ page:

 

While in India I was licensed at VU2LHO and worked a lot of US hams with a 135' flat-top and open-wire feed. I had the antenna strung between two bamboo towers atop the embassy housing 2ND-story roof-top. I also put up a 3/8 wave vertical on the roof for 10 meters. That little antenna had 110 radials stapled into the roof scree and worked very well! The rig was a HW-101. I was in Kathmandu, Nepal from early 1980 to late 1982. I could not obtain a license there, but became good friends with Father Moran, 9N1MM, and would often spend time up at his place putting his Drake station on CW. Pretty cool being real DX!

 

Warrenton, Virginia is not far from my QTH (it is the birthplace of Cappuccio the wonder-dog). 

 

FB Jerry. 

 

Our book: "SolderSmoke -- Global Adventures in Wireless Electronics" http://soldersmoke.com/book.htm Our coffee mugs, T-Shirts, bumper stickers: http://www.cafepress.com/SolderSmoke Our Book Store: http://astore.amazon.com/contracross-20