More on K0EOO's Amazing Homebrew SSB Rig

Hello Bill,

The rig was my own design based on an article by Guy Gillet, ON5FE, published in QST, Jan 1970. (Editor's Note:  ON5FE's article also appears in the 1970 edition of the ARRL's book "Single Sideband for the Radio Amateur.") His article had some features I wanted and became the guts of the transceiver I finally came up with…  The rig took me some 2-4 years to complete mainly because I keep changing circuits and improving performance.  For example, I started with a 4 digit counter using nixie tubes and ended up with 7 digit 7 segment LED counter summing the BFO, VFO and HFO.  I also later added the keyer and CW audio filter and so on…..

Other than the outer cabinet from LMB, I did all the metal work complements of the metal shop at our lab at CDC’s advanced design lab.

Pictures show bottom with RF bottom plate installed and bottom view of RF section with plate removed.  Front panel and picture of top cover open showing the plugin PCB’s.  Cannot see the digital counter display board in any of the pictures.

Here are a couple pictures of the old girl.  I’ve added a description of the rigs features:

Features:

• Dual conversion, first IF tunable, second IF fixed
• RF clipping
• 7 digit readout of exact operating frequency (digital summation of BFO, VFO and HFO)
• All solid state except for 6146 and 12BY7 driver.
• RF gain is 0-60dB step attenuator on input
• Dual VFO’s for separate receive/transmit or transceiver A/B
• Modes are USB/LSB/CW
• Auto zeroing S-Meter
• Built in VOX and PTT
• Built in CW keyer and sidetone generator
• Built in CW audio bandwidth filter
• Built in Tune mode
• Built in RF Clipping lever control
• Built in keying to PTT external amplifier
• Output signals for SB-610 scope receive signal monitoring
• Output signal for SB-620 Scanalyzer panadapter
• Diode T/R switching through out the radio, no relays, totally silent TR switching

Well Bill, you opened Pandora’s box when you asked me for more details, hi, hi…  You can almost see the buttons popping off my vest as I reminisced the feature list…

Regards, Dennis, K0EOO

K0EOO: Homebrew SSB in 1974

It is not everyday that you get on 40 meters and run into a guy who has actually built a single sideband transceiver.  But that is what happened to me today.   I spoke to Dennis, K0EOO.  He  showed an unusual interest in my BITX DIGI-TIA.  He went on to explain that he had done some homebewing himself.  In the picture (from 1974), right next to his Vibroplex bug we see his homebrew,  80-10 meter,  dual conversion,  solid state (except for the 6146 final) SSB transceiver with digital readout.  Wow.  That's a beautiful rig.  

Off his right shoulder is a homebrew 700 watt amplifier using dual 4CX250s. And behind his left shoulder we see a homebrew tube-type receiver.

Note the look of pride and determination in OM's eyes.  You can just hear him saying it: "Rig here is homebrew."

More pictures of Dennis and his rigs (including some amazing vintage gear)  here:

https://qrz.com/db/K0EOO

http://www.isquare.com/millen/members/k0eoo.htm

http://www.vintagessb.net/k0eoo.htm

Thermatrons Al Fresco: W4GON's FB HB AM Rig

I was listening to 7290 kHz with my BITX this morning and I heard W4GON say his AM rig is homebrew.  So of course I fired up the DX-100 and the HQ-100 and gave Joel a call.  Conditions were terrible but we had some support from the radio gods.  

From Joel's QRZ.com page: "It uses a pair of 6L6s in Push-Pull Class AB1 high level plate and screen modulating a 6146. I still have a lot of work to do on this rig, like building an enclosure, but it works and I just couldn't help but getting on the air with it!"  

I think it is a thing of beauty. 

Let's Give Jason NT7S Some Support!

Most of us are using Jason's code and his Arduino Si5351 libraries.   We now have an opportunity to help him continue to come up with the innovations that keep things moving forward on our workbenches.  

Consider becoming a patron.   Learn more here:  

https://www.patreon.com/NT7S

Thanks for all you do Jason!  

"So You Want To Build?" Words of Wisdom from Pete Juliano

Everything on Pete's blog is worth reading, but this article was so good that I could not resist posting a link to it here. 

Tribal knowledge from a leader of the homebrew tribe: 

http://n6qw.blogspot.com/2017/08/a-new-line-of-transceivers-difx.html

AE7KI (VK2APG), FT8, and WAS on a BITX20

I've had several very nice conversations with Gerry AE7KI (aka VK2APG).  His Australian accent sets him apart from the other Tennessee stations.  Last time we talked Gerry mentioned having competed Worked All States with his BITX20 (below). Very cool.

Gerry also alerted me to a new digital mode created by Joe Taylor.  This one is called FT8.  Gerry is using it to good effect on the 6 meter band. Here is Peter Marks' initial reaction to FT8:

http://blog.marxy.org/2017/07/new-weak-signal-mode-ft8.html

As I type, there are 252 stations monitoring 6 meters for FT8 signals.   You can see a map displaying these stations here: 

https://pskreporter.info/pskmap.html

Yellow Fever! The Cold War Origins of Juliello

How could you miss them?  That yellow was bright!  Apparently you needed high visibility to cope with the looming danger of nuclear annihilation.  The operator in the ad is obviously calm in the face of Armageddon -- note the cigarette dangling from his lips. In this 1956 Gonset ad we can see the inspiration behind what -- many decades later -- has emerged as the avant-garde ham radio color scheme known as Juliello.  The roots of this aesthetic are clearly not in the psychedelic "Mellow Yellow" hippie era.  No, this color has harder, more flinty origins.

Pete Juliano is not the only one to embrace this look.   Podcast #198 elicited this response from our friend Armand WA1UQO: 

Pete:
Don't let that Meara guy give you a hard time over the yellow Rigs.  The last three of mine have been yellow and I'm happy to see I'm not the only one with good taste.  In the picture they are from top to bottom a 30M One Watter, a 20M One Watter and of course the BITX 40.  The 20M does have a Juliano Blue cover though to give it an extra bit of class!  As always, enjoyed the podcast.
Bill,  see you at Berryville?
73, Armand WA1UQO

SolderSmoke Podcast #198 - D-104, HW-8, Juliello, DIFX, Dishal, Baofeng, MAILBAG

Bill Breshears WC3K (SK)

SolderSmoke Podcast #198 is available. 

http://soldersmoke.com/soldersmoke198.mp3

29 July 2017

Sign on a beach store:  SHACK-TACULAR! 

Noticed that EB63 amp was getting hot. Why?  

TT2, Herring Aid5, Farhan's Key:  QRPp and CW!  See?

D-104 lore -- Reading from Bill Breshear's (WC3K) ER article

Astatic  crystal/ceramic element -- disappointingly flimsy

Electret-ing it.  The G-Spot (see picture above)

Walery KB2FIV sent crystal mic element and piezo buzzer (reverse for mic!) FB

HW-8 AF filter Center Frequency Problem.  IT'S TRUE!  Fixed!  Finally. 

Shack re-org at N2CQR

Got Steve Silverman's HP 8640B Sig gen on the bench.  Required reinforcement

Pete's new DIFX

LM373 rigs.  Perhaps with that CA3020 Pete sent me. Chips Ahoy! 

Juliano Yellow? Origins of Blue?  Juliello? Julionyx? 

HB Crystal Filter Capitulation? Don't give up Pete --  just dish the Dishal!

Ceramic VXOs?  K.P.S. Kang

Crystal testers by G7WKE and Dino KL0S.  Impressive. 

Antennas and BITX40 modules.  Antennas are important.

Bill's new Baofeng HT on 440.

Fixing my Sony SW7600GR

MAILBAG

Steve Silverman alerts us to NYC radio row now in the Bronx.

Tony G4WIF on the cover of SPRAT -- Getting the Don Cameron award. FB 

Armand WA1UQO points out that the Berryville hamfest is coming up... 

Thomas KK6AHT F4HDQ writes in. 

On the air with W8NSA

Juliello.  No. 

Ralph Baer -- Video Game Inventor

Thanks to Stephen G7VFY for alerting us to this very nice video.   Ralph Baer did pioneering work in video games.   It is fun to see him in his workshop. He obviously has a variant of The Knack.  Stephen hinted at a reference to "noodling" but I didn't hear it -- perhaps Stephen meant that the whole thing was about what we'd call noodling.  I found the box on his bench labeled "Wire Wrap Materials" kind of ominous -- remember our April 1 announcement about the launch of the new "Wire Wrap Rap" podcast?

I liked Ralph's summary comment about how these days he just has fun building things.

KC8WBK's Cakepan BITX40

I talked to Paul KC8WBK last night during the regular 7277 kHz Sunday night BITX gathering (7 pm local). I like his BITX enclosure.  Very practical and economical.  It provides ready access to the circuitry.  He also has nice enclosure for the microphone and push-to-talk switch. He has more info on his QRZ.com page. 

Einstein's Knack (for Refrigeration)

https://www.wired.com/story/einsteins-little-known-passion-project-a-refrigerator?google_editors_picks=true

Intuitive Repair of a Sony Shortwave Portable

A few years ago my wife got me this nice little Sony ICF-SW7600GR receiver.   On the front it proclaims that it is "AM DUAL CONVERSION" and "PLL SYNTHESIZED."   It has a BFO, and a filter of suitable width for SSB.  It also has a synchronous detector -- it generates an internal carrier that matches the frequency and phase of the carrier being transmitted by the SW broadcast (or ham AM) transmitter.  This helps overcome the selective fading that often plagues AM signals.  Sony advises switching to USB or LSB once the synchronous generator locks onto the carrier.  Pretty cool. 

The BFO is the reason I wanted this receiver. And wouldn't you know, when I dropped it,  it landed EXACTLY on the little BFO fine tune control pot.  It was as if the Radio Gods disliked all the fancy digi PLL synchronous IC circuitry.   

I tried without success to find the value of the destroyed pot.  Finally, last week I just decided to have a look in there to see if I could just figure it out. 

On the board I could see that the pot only connected at two places, so I figured it would be a varactor circuit on the BFO with one end of the pot to DC and the wiper to the varactor diode.  I figured I'd try a 10K pot. 

This seems to have been some good radio intuition.  It works.  I went with a small trimmer because it is less obtrusive and because once I set the BFO in the right spot, I think the de facto channelization of the 40 meter ham band will keep most of the SSB sigs in tune. And the Sony only tunes in 1 kHz increments. If necessary I can move the BFO a bit with a small screwdriver.  I just glued the trimmer pot onto the back of the receiver -- two wires covered by heat shrink run back into the circuitry. 

10k might be a bit too small.  Maybe 100k would be better?  As it is, I can move the BFO above and below the "zero beat" point, and I don't need more range. Mouser has a small trimmer pot with a tuning wheel that looks like it might fit, so I may try for a proper repair. 

K.P.S. Kang's Minimalist VXOs (and one for the BITX)

K.P.S. Kang provides us with some great ideas for simple VXOs.  He includes an intriguing reference for a 5 MHz circuit useable in a BITX.  Tell us more OM! 

http://smallwonderqrp.blogspot.com/2017/07/vxos-simple-minimalists-signal-sources.html

NYC's Radio Row Survives (sort of) in the Bronx

Thanks to our friend (and official lexicographer) Steve Silverman KB3SII for alerting us to this important bit of radio news from the Big Apple.  It seems that a part of old Radio Row was saved and moved -- first to Brooklyn and now to the Bronx.   I got a kick out of some of the comments in the New York Times article about the store:  The insurance company determined that the contents of the store were "non-pilferable." And one young audio enthusiast was quoted as saying that old American tubes "sound better" than Chinese tubes.  I guess they have more presence.  Or brightness.  And less feathering.  Or something.

Here is the 2011 NYT article: 
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/20/nyregion/leeds-radio-is-a-haven-for-lovers-of-all-things-analog.html   


To N2CQR  

Jul 17 at 12:26 PM

Bill

Radio Row survives in a storefront in the Bronx, by appointment only.  Leeds Radio was started in 1923 and survives because an enterprising customer bought it from the 72 year old owner.

But this is where you can shop any time for stuff that should be in your junk box:

https://www.etsy.com/shop/LeedsRadio

Yikes, what is the world coming to?

I promise to keep any information about what you actually buy on that site a secret!

73

Steve  KB3SII  ... .. ..

PS  When I was 11 (and WN1ZPT) , my parents visited NYC and gave me $10 and sent me alone on the subway to the real Radio Row.  I was in heaven for a few hours!  Got good stuff too.

Excellent Description of the Electret Microphone

I've been experimenting with electret replacements for the D-104 crystal element.   I found this site with a really excellent description of what lies inside those little electret capsules.  Here it is: 

http://www.openmusiclabs.com/learning/sensors/electret-microphones/index.html

Dino's FB W1FB Crystal Tester

A couple of weeks ago I noted that the complexity of DeMaw's circuit caused many of us to wimp out on this test gear project.  I joked that those who had built the device might be able to set up small businesses to do the testing for the rest of us.  Perhaps our friend Dino can cut a deal with G7WKE to divide up the world market for crystal testing: Dino could have the Western Hemisphere while Rob covers Europe and points East.  

Bill -

Enjoyed seeing someone else who has built Doug’s crystal tester on the blog.  Here’s mine, built this back in early 2007.  Anyone who wants to duplicate the tester can find the article in the January 1990 issue of QST or the updated article in the W1FB Design Notebook (page 192).  Note that the QST article has a missing component value and a missing component (both corrected in the Design Notebook):

(1) R24 is missing its value - it’s marked in the Notebook as 56 ohms.

(2) There should be a 220 ohm resistor connected between the output pin of U2 the LM317T regulator and the top of R1 the voltage adjust pot that is connected between U2’s adjust pin and ground [corrected in the March 1990 QST Feedback column].

I built a FT-243 adapter to let me work with larger crystals.

73 - Dino KL0S

And Now For Something Completely Different: 70cm FM

So there I was, talking to KE5FV on my scratch-built 17 meter BITX, when in walks my son Billy with this walkie talkie.  "Hey Dad, I'm cleaning out my room -- could you use this?"  I'd seen it before but I thought it was some Family Radio Service device that he had picked up.  But no!  It is one of those very cheap Baofeng UV-5R FM transceivers.  I soon found myself scrolling through menus, trying to figure out how to use the strange new appliance. 

I got it on 70cm and soon established contact with a Bill W3HXF -- that was my first ever UHF contact.  We then switched to 2 meter simplex. 

It works fine.   I've been looking for something different.  This could be fun.  Any suggestions on how to make the most use of this thing?

Have You Ever Seen What's Inside a D-104 Crystal Element?

I had not seen this  I must say, I am disappointed.  I had visions a circular collection of shiny Rochelle salt crystals.  But look at this thing.  It is quite flimsy -- not at all what you'd expect from the sturdy D-104 exterior.  It has kind of a "Wizard of Oz" behind-the-curtain feel to it.  Yuck. If I can't find a D-104 element in good shape, I might reach for a dynamic element or -- gasp -- an electret.

Stop Me Before I Commit an Electronic Atrocity!

Sadly, not mine

I like the D-104 mic.  I bought one from Astatic shortly before they went under and it has provided good service with many different rigs for a long time.

I wanted another one, primarily for my DX-100/HQ-100 station.  I saw one on e-bay and a few days later it was here.  Unfortunately the seller was correct when they warned that it showed no output.  I had hoped it was a problem with the amp in the base, but no, it seems that the crystal element is quite dead.  It is an MC320 cartridge marked 7-77.  There is an aluminum sheet at the front that is apparently supposed to be riding atop a center support that connects mechanically with the magic crystals.  But it looks like a circular tent that has poked through the center support and collapsed around it.

Just a few years ago there were some options for replacement elements, but it seems that most of these are gone.  Bob Heil does have a dynamic element replacement kit for about 68 bucks. 

There are many schemes for putting electret elements in the old D-104 head...  I was reaching for the junk box but I stopped myself.  NO!  I will try not to commit this kind of electronic barbarity. (I have already sinned by killing several QF-1 Q multipliers and a couple of Benton Harbor lunch boxes.)  I will instead turn to the SolderSmoke brother/sisterhood and ask if anyone out there has a crystal element that could bring this old mic back to life.  My DX-100 deserves nothing less. 

Anyone have a D-104 crystal element in their junk box? 

Steve N8NM Gets Modular -- With Both Hardware and Software

Steve N8NM has an excellent article on his blog about the benefits of modularity.  He breaks new ground by extending the concept into the software realm.  Check it out:

https://n8nmsteve.blogspot.com/2017/07/sr-16-lets-get-modular.html 

Subscribe to Steve's blog, or link to it.  Hopefully this will encourage him to post more great things like this.

Another LM373 Rig - Pete Is Not Alone!

Bill,

Thanks for coming back to my call. It was a thrill to finally catch you on the air.Like I said my Soldersmoke marathon was amusing and kept me in great company on my round trip drive from Murphy NC to Chicago. While I was in Chicago I emptied my storage garage of goodies that have been there for 12 years, it was like Christmas in June. I uncovered treasures I didn't know I even had and yes I found the box of project boards that kind of or didn't work at all. I now have these treasures to play with and see with renewed eyes what I may have done wrong, or burned up. It looks like a few of these modules can be made into rigs.

I also found a couple of antennas that I traded for that never made it up.

Also the bigger surprise was how many parts I had kept especially the ICs that were intended to beused in rigs like the LM373's that Pete has talked about. I have one test circuit board to test the LM373 that just needed the oscillators so with my SI5351 breadboards I have what I need to get this going.

Now that I'm settled into my new QTH in the wilds of western NC I will noodling and tinkering moreto get my little DSB rig on the air and an LM373 based SSB rig too,  using mostly or all obsolete/vintage parts. This is something I have been noodling about for sometime now.

I also will get my MMM finished.

Thanks again for the QSO and I look forward to working you again. Now to melt some solder.

73,

Skip Davis. NC9O

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

Pete's LM373 page: http://www.n6qw.com/LM373.html

The Radio Laboratory at Bandung, Java -- SSB in 1927

Anton PA0AST alerted me to this important piece of radio history:

The first phone radio between Indonesia , the city of Bandung ( Dayeuh Kolot, Jalan Radio 1 ),  and Holland , Radio Kootwijk  were made  in SSB already in 1927... Before that time they had only a CW  1 Mega Watt spark transmitter in Malabar.
One of the receivers still exists in a museum in Amsterdam (cdvandt ). It is 3 meters in length and 2 meter in  height....  All made with plug-able units with 1 tube inside .

The transmitter was 10 kW. Ua was 6kV was made by dynamotors. Transmitting Tubes locally made by craftsman in a workshop.  Both  buildings as well  in Bandung and in Kootwijk still exists .

Anton

The old images come from:
http://www.cdvandt.org/bandung-lab-kwk.htm

At the other end was Radio Kootwijk in Holland. 

Before you jump to the English version of the page, be sure to check out the Drone video of the site, and the audio file of the Morse transmissions: 

http://radiokootwijk.nu/     Thanks to PA0JWU for the wonderful site.

Quite an impressive shack!  My favorite part is the note indicating that local residents cleaned out the cooling pool and used it for swimming each summer.

AC9JQ's Mini Digi VFO/BFO Al Fresco with OLED (and noise test)

From Dean AC9JQ:

Just completed the VFO/BFO/Arduino/OLED module for my radio.  I also have the LPF, BPF and crystal filters completed and tested.  Next will be the audio amplifier and NE602 modules.  I will probably build one of the NE602 modules and test things out as a DC receiver.  My ultimate plan is to have the rig no more that 1"x3.5"x3".  I still have a lot of "stuff" to stuff into that size of box.  I'll keep you posted.


I have been able to contain the entire Arduino/Si5351/OLED into a small cube in the front.  The rest of the radio has to fit on two levels in the rest of the area behind the Arduino/Si5351/OLED.  I think I will build the audio section and on NE602 mixer and run it as a direct conversion first to vet out any noise or other problems.  Bill, that small coax that you pointed out will really help on this build.  I used a small piece as a power feed-thru and will use it to feed out the VFO/BFO signals, thanks again for that pointer.

I decided to test for noise on the TIA transceiver test bed.  See the video of the results.  Not too much noise.  I'm only using my indoor magnetic loop for an antenna.  Video is kind of sloppy, but taking off the antenna and turning up the volume shows how little noise is left in the system.  Now time to stuff the rest of the radio into the tight quarters.

https://youtu.be/kXf7-7FtxEU

I purchased OLED from ebay.......

http://www.ebay.com/itm/401234789687?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

0.91'' 128x32 IIC I2C Blue OLED LCD Display DIY Module DC3.3V 5V For PIC Arduino | eBay www.ebay.com IIC interface. OLED display, no need backlight, self-illumination, the display performance is better than the traditional LCD display, also lower consumption. VCC: Power (DC 3.3 ~5v). Display Color:Blue. | eBay!

They are nice and compact, although as time goes on, I'm sure they will be harder to read.  I'm hoping to have an alfresco version in a week or two.  I used much of Pete's code from the shirt pocket transceiver upgrade, modified the code to address the smaller display and add USB/LSB capabilities. 

73's  Dean AC9JQ

G7WKE's Crystal Tester

Wow, this is an example of dedication to the cause.  I think many of us wimped out when confronted with the complex circuitry of the test device prescribed by DeMaw, but Rob G7WKE actually built the thing, and did a great job on it.  I'm tempted to suggest that Rob might want to set up a small business leasing this rig out to less dedicated filter builders.  Or perhaps he could have batches of crystals sent to him for DeMaw-ian analysis.

Hi Bill,

 

After listening to you and Pete discussing crystal filter design during SolderSmoke 197, I thought you might be interested in my latest project.

This is the Crystal Tester from January 1990 QST that is reprinted in W1FB's Design Notebook, which I believe is the circuit you and Pete were referring to.

It all appears to function as it should, so the next step is to sit down quietly with a pile of crystals and hopefully start along the road to a working filter!

73s

Rob G7WKE.

 

Smoke Test Failure!

This is why you need fuses!  And reverse polarity protection!  Yikes! 

The Workshop at AA8V

Field Day was a big success for me this year.  I was in category "1E" which meant that I was home in the air conditioning, but doing my bit for emergency service by using a gel cell as my power source.  A SOLAR CHARGED gel cell.  So don't anyone call me a slacker, OK?

I was on my HW-8 and made a total of two contacts.  The second was with AH6AX.  I wasn't fooled -- I knew they weren't in Hawaii.  But the op gave me his home call:  WB8YYY.  Curt is a SolderSmoke listener.  In a follow-up e-mail he alerted me to the web site of AA8V.   Great stuff.  Thanks Curt.

Here is the AA8V workshop:

http://faculty.frostburg.edu/phys/latta/ee/workshop/workshop.html#electronics1

AA8V was on the QSO Today podcast not long ago. 

FDIM: Bob Crane Interviews Ashhar Farhan VU2ESE

At Dayton,  Bob Crane interviewed our friend Farhan VU2ESE.  Farhan shared insights on the BITX, the Minima and future rigs. 

Farhan was inducted into the QRP Hall of Fame at this year's FDIM event.

You can listen to the interview here:

http://soldersmoke.com/FDIM17VU2ESE.mp3

Mod to Correct DESIGN ERROR in Heath HW-8

130k resistor inside heat shrink, across R-24

SPRAT 161 (Winter 2014/15) had a very intriguing article about the Heath HW-8 by Dave M0CEM.  Dave wrote about a possible design error in the active filter of the receiver.  The center frequency and gain shift significantly when you switch from "Wide" to "Narrow."   I was very interested because for many years I have noticed this problem in my own HW-8.  I just left it in "Wide" and never used the more narrow filter.  
 

Dave did some excellent circuit detective work and determined that the problem was R24.  He prescribed a change:  instead of 82k it should be 49.8k.  The placement of a 130k resistor across the 81k R24 would have the same effect.

Yesterday morning I installed Dave's mod.  I did as he suggested and put a 130k resistor across R24.  Brilliant!   What a difference!  In the past, I noticed a significant degradation in signal strength when I put the filter in the "Narrow"  position.  This doesn't happen now -- the response obviously does narrow, but the center freq stays the same.

It is really amazing to me that the Heath engineers made this error, and that it went uncorrected for so many years.  There have been many, many modification articles for the HW-8 over the years, but I haven't seen any that really address this problem. 

If anyone has more info on how this design error happened and why it went uncorrected for so long, please let me know.

Thanks to Dave and SPRAT for getting us back on the straight and narrow. 

Straight Key QRP Homebrew Adventures -- TRGHS

Last Saturday I put the Tuna Tin Two Top together with my Herring Aid Five 38 (year) Special and the Indian key that Farhan gave me.   I discovered that some of my 40 meter CW FT243 crystals had disappeared into the entropy of the shack.  But I was able to find one for 7050 kHz. That was a bit of good luck because it turns out that 7050 is the frequency of a congenial group of operators known as the Straight Key Century Club.  I felt right at home.  I have been inducted.  My SKCC number is 17272.  Very QRP, don't you think?   It is almost a Vanity SKCC.  Clearly, TRGHS.

I have been having excellent luck with this 7 transistor rig.  I have had one contact each day since I put it on the air, all of them in response to my CQ calls.  I've worked:

K1PUG Hank in Connecticut (twice)
W8HOG  Jerry in Ohio
WA4GQG Kevin in North Carolina
WA2AAW Frank in New York
KM4FO Dwight in Kentucky

This morning I added a little piezo buzzer for sidetone.  I am thinking of adding a VFO to the Tuna Tin.

The Possible Inspirations behind "Juliano Blue"

Close in color don't you think?  Dave Ishmael WA6VVL noted the NC-270 receiver's color was "Cosmic Blue."  Indeed, National noted the unusual color ("outstandingly different") in its advertising.  This now-rare receiver was produced between 1960 and 1964, so it could have influenced Pete.  Of course, the CK-722's color could also have played a role...   

BTW, shouldn't we ask Pete to get out his guitar and give us some "Juliano Blues"?  We need some music to go with the paint.

More "Canned Seafood" Homebrew CW, from KA4IBG

Bill:

My xYL hates sardines, but they look good together !

In the late 70's the community had a fetish for canned seafood and DC receivers. Do you remember the 80m Sardine Sender ? How about YL Special ? (QST Oct and Jan 1979.) I married them together in a kludged-together box made out of a bent rack-mount panel and defunct aluminum chassis cover.

The bottom board is the rock-bound transmitter. The upper deck is the receiver board. The little mini box contains VFO (so cute.) The 741 audio board is tucked under the scrounged ¼ inch jacks.

Super simple, but lots of fun. It's a handy rig for the week at the beach, although 80m propagation and beach week are 6 months out of phase.

Ed Hlywa

KA4IBG

Solstice Special: Midwinter BBC Messages to Antarctica

Thanks to SWL Post for alerting us to this wonderful annual event.  BBC SW stations send a special program to the UK crews at the Antarctic bases.   SWL Posts asks for listeners to record this year's program:

http://swling.com/blog/2017/06/help-record-the-2017-bbc-antarctic-midwinter-broadcast-today/

Here is an excellent recording of the 2015 show.

https://soundcloud.com/vinylzone/bbc-midwinter-special-transmission-for-antarctica-on-9590khz-21062015-21230z

And here is a recording of the 2017 broadcast:

https://ia601501.us.archive.org/30/items/BBCMidwintersDayBroadcast/BBCWorldService-Antarctic-Midwinters-Day-Broadcast-5985kHz-2130-2200-21-06-2017.mp3

A Fishy Rig: Herring Aid Five, Tuna Tin Two, VU2XVR Key

Haunted by a fear of rapid expulsion from the QRP Hall of Fame, I decided that I should immediately do something to establish some form of QRP street cred.  Looking around the shack, I realized that all of the ingredients were there:  My Herring Aid Five Direct Conversion receiver (completed after only 38 years), my Tuna Tin Two transmitter, the VU2XVR key that Farhan gave me, one 7050 kc  FT243 crystal.   I put it all on a piece of scrap plywood. A couple of nice connectors from W8NSA supported the DPDT T/R switch and the coax connector. I keep the receiver LO running all the time.

Now, let's be clear: running 250 milliwatts, rock bound with a Direct Conversion receiver that tunes both sides of zero beat is not for the faint of heart.  The log book does not fill up rapidly. But hey, I made one contact the following morning.  K1PUG said I was 559 in Connecticut.