Success with my ET-2 --TWO TRANSISTOR RIG

 

In my effort to replicate the ET-1 rig of Glen Yingling W2UW, I had a hard time getting the receiver to work well with the single FET being switched between receiver and transmitter, so I retreated a bit and went with individual FETs for the TX and the RX.  This doubled the transistor count -- to TWO.  So it is an ET-2.

I also boosted the power to 80 milliwatts by putting 12 V on the transmitter.  The receiver was running off the 9V battery you can see in the left in the picture. 

Here is the story of the contact: 

To K4MQG from N2CQR:

Gary: Wow thanks for the QSO today.  I was using 80 mW transmitter that consists of just 8 parts!  The receiver was a regen using one single transistor.  So one transistor on transmit and one transistor on receive.  And it reached South Carolina.

I was about to give up hope.  I had been calling CQ for days.  Then I was talking to Rob VE4GV on 20SSB.  Rob suggested that I "spot myself" on one of the DX clusters.  So I did (see below).  Obviously you saw my spot and a minute or so later, SUCCESS!   I'm really pleased.

Attached is a picture of the rig.  The transmitter is around the crystal and the blue pot on the right.  The headphones are from WWII.  The receiver was powered by the 9V battery.  The regen uses a variometer given to me by a friend in the Dominican Republic in 1992.  The main tuning dial is connected to the cap by an adapter from a 1930s-era regen.  Antenna was a 40 meter dipole at about 25 feet.  Obviously your 3 elements a 115 feet were doing the heavy lifting.

Thanks again Gary!

And thanks to Rob for the suggestion on the spotting.

73  Bill N2CQR

The BGCD: A Regenerodyne Receiver built on Pencil, Candy, and Tea Tins. Circuit from 1937 QST

David Newkirk recently put up a nice website on ham radio.   The page below provides details on the amazing creation pictured above:  The BGCD:   "The Byron Goodman -- Clinton DeSoto Regenerodyne." It is a beautiful piece of work, made more beautiful by the metal containers used in construction: pencil, candy and tea tins.  The circuit is based on a 1937 QST article. 

David's site reminded me of the wonderful writing of his father, Rod Newkirk of "How's DX" fame.   More on him in due course.

More on the BGCD here:

http://dpnwritings.nfshost.com/ej/pictures/pictures1.htm?fbclid=IwAR2-lmJ8E1kEBT_jsB3Q8UnPaN0vc472dP783ifABK7eSxgpe5M1Pl0N77g

Very Useful: Copper Tape with Conductive Adhesive

This copper tape is really useful, especially when doing "free style" homebrew.  At first I didn't even realize the adhesive is conductive.  This tape is great for creating a common ground among several printed circuit boards, especially when you are using a wood board as the base.  You can solder to it very easily.  You could even use it (with a wood or plastic base) in lieu of a copper clad board. Lots of possible applications for homebrewers. This stuff deserves a place on the workbench shelf right next to the Gorilla Tape and the Crazy Glue.   I'm using it in my Single Transistor Rig project. 

You can get it from Amazon -- there are many varieties and vendors.  This one is similar to the one I am using.  

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01I1XNY1E?aaxitk=I9X2Na8Gu23M3nrhlpSzYw&pd_rd_i=B01I1XNY1E&pf_rd_p=44fc3e0f-4b9e-4ed8-b33b-363a7257163d&hsa_cr_id=3252618550401&sb-ci-n=asinImage&sb-ci-v=https%3A%2F%2Fm.media-amazon.com%2Fimages%2FI%2F71sJrx27%2B-L.jpg&sb-ci-a=B01I1XNY1E

Analog Waterfall -- The Hallicrafters Skyrider Panoramic

We were talking about this a short time ago.  I was trying to reproduce the effect using my Rigol oscilloscope and my Feeltech scanning signal generator.  Hallicrafters did a much better job.  Thanks to the K9YA Telegraph for this picture. 

Organic Electronics

This made me think of the OLED screens.  But they are not, as far as I know, gluten-free. 

This guy would probably be a QRPer, probably running an HW-8 off solar panels. 

Single Transistor Transceiver On the Air

I got my version of the ET-1 transceiver working.  As I described in previous posts, I first got the transmitter and the receiver working separately, each with their own J310 FET (oh the extravagence!) Then I built a switching arrangement that allowed for just one shared FET and very short leads.   I used a 4PDT "push button" switch from an old Ramsey Electronic LC meter. See the last picture for details. I use the tube from a pen to operate the switch (that's the green thing in the picture). 

It is inhaling and exhaling.  My 20 mW signal is being picked up on the Reverse Beacon Network, mostly in New England, but today in North Carolina.  

No contacts yet.  I may have to resort to scheduled contacts.  OM Yingling W2UW was operating during much better propagation conditions (2001), so I don't think I will ever get close to his impressive (23 states!) operating record.  

But it has been fun getting this thing going.  The N0WVA regen design is one of the best and simplest regens I've ever built.  It is really nice --hardly demonic at all.  

I can run the whole thing off one 9V battery. I think it is a cool looking machine. 

The Collins Mechanical Filter -- An Advertisement from Australia, 1963

Peter VK2EMU sent me this ad a while back.  He said he regretted being unable to send a filter -- all he could send was the ad.  Thanks Peter -- I think that ad is a work of art.  Radio art. 

Thanks too to all those who sent me mechanical filters.  Pete sent the first one (it is currently in my HRO-ish receiver), then two more (both inside SBE transceivers, where they will remain -- it would be a sin to cannibalize those beautiful rigs.)  Then Mike Herr WA6ARA sent one as did Brad.    Brad assures me that the one he sent was boxed up by Art Collins himself! 

Thanks again guys. 

Brad wrote: 

To:soldersmoke@yahoo.com

Jun 23 at 7:49 AM

Kudos to Pete for 60 years! And I've always thought he was much younger than you......

Catching up on your podcast, I was surprised to learn that no one answered your call for a spare filter.  

I'm one of those older guys who is making his way back after leaving amateur radio in 1968 for girls and/or recreational drugs.

No one told me that The Force (electro-motive, that is) would require me to catch up on all the junk I would have acquired during my nearly 50 years away from the hobby (see list below).

A recent impulse purchase, the most beautiful thing with tubes ever made (SX-42), happened to be near Newington.  On the way home I visited ARRL HQ hoping they had some sort of a chapel where I could perform an act of penance and ask for guidance in dealing with my affliction.   Apparently, this is the equivalent of asking a crack dealer where the closest Narcotics Anonymous meeting is held. I ended up buying a copy of "200 Meters and Down" and have since acquired a couple of Atwater Kent projects. 

My place is full now, and my sweetheart would like back the half of her garage I've slowly taken by electronic eminent domain.   It seems that for every 100 pounds that departs to a ham fest, 125 pounds comes back.  Is this considered a normal ratio?

In order to be able to tell her that I have, indeed, gotten rid of something, I'll be sending you a F 455 filter (QRZ address OK?).

Thanks for you help,

--Brad 

W4AMV's Beautiful Receiver

Hi Guys,

We had our Knightlites annual BBQ this past Saturday. I wanted to share one of the radios from one of my Elmer's, Alan Victor W4AMV.
Pictured is him standing beside the preselector and receiver.
I hadn't ever heard a Collins mechanical filter vs Murata crystal filter side by side. The Collins was amazing. Single signal extracted from the band. The rig is line powered with a built in power supply.
There is a note (pictured) that has some specs.
Alan's work is to be savored, true analog engineering at its best. I wanted to share it with you.

Chris
KD4PBJ

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

FROM W4AMV'S QRZ.COM PAGE:

Here is a receiver that started out as a regen for the grandkids to copy code.

Digging through the junk box un convered parts that I forgot I had. Included a wide and narrow band set of filters. So, the unit wound up as a single conversion superhet. A fun radio to build as well to listen. The wide band filter provides super fidelity on sideband as well uncovers plenty of CW signals within a 10 kHz bandwith of the tuned frequency. A switch to either a 800 Hz audio filter or a 500 Hz CW filter permits focus on a single signal. I was going to package the whole unit, however I was prompted to leave it OPEN to show what makes it tick! 

Left side front is the RF preselector, mixer and pre amplifier with RF gain control. The rear double deck card is the IF and selectable wide and narrow band filters. The IF and pin diode IF gain control is bottom deck. The HF VFO is center stage with a 6:1 gear reduction. Right rear is power supply and voltage regulators. The active product detector and a BFO is just to the front of the power supply. The BFO is able to tune product detector output over a full 10 kHz of the IF. And finally the audio filter and 5 watt power amplifier. There is no AGC. Instead it is FUN to control every aspect of  gain control of the receiver; RF, IF and audio. Its a fun receiver to operate, dedicated to 40 meters and hopefully will spark the kids! 

Going forward a receiveing station is setup to copy code. Although a nice long high wire would be proper, I settled on something a little more compact. A 40 meter small loop, 2 turns, about 18 inches on a side is connected to the preselector thru a pickup wire. This arrangement works quite well. W1AW will knock the speaker off the desk if your not careful. However, rotation of the loop to the E-W knocks down W1AW to a whisper. The pix shows the little 25 W infinity speaker in a 8x8x8 inch cardboard box, works well and the single conversion receiver sporting a new front plexiglass panel is illuminated for evening tuning. 

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

Loop antenna used with the receiver

Radio Art -- Zenith Tube Ad

This ad was recently shown on the K9YA Telegraph.  I was wondering about its origins.  I asked noted thermatron guru Grayson Evans -- he referred the question to fellow tube guru and author Ludwell Sibley.  OM Ludwell gives us the origins: 

She’s in a promo for Zenith, an Italian prewar brand that sold European triodes of types originated by Philips, and a few equivalents of American types.  She’s based on classical Italian art.  Doing a high-wire act while holding a small early-‘20s European           radio! I have an 11 x 17 glossy color print framed on the wail in the display room.  I ran       her as the cover art in a long-ago issue of “Tube Collector.”  “Three cheers for the red,       white, and green!"

Ludwell Sibley is the editor of "The Tube Collector."   Great stuff.  Their web site is here: 

http://www.tubecollectors.org/tubecoll.htm

Sibley's book "Tube Lore" can be purchased here: 

https://www.amazon.com/Tube-lore-reference-users-collectors/dp/0965468305/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Tube+Lore&qid=1569660647&sr=8-1

Thanks Grayson, Ludwell, and to the K9YA Telegraph. 

Pete Juliano N6QW on Homebrewing and SDR (Video)

Pete recently spoke to the Peel (Canada) Radio Club about SDR and homebrew.  The first 13 minutes show the club members but then it shifts to Pete.  Great stuff.