Articles
Information on shortwave radio and SWLing
| Posted | Category | ||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Skyking Skyking do not answer. Message follows...
Anyone who caught one of the Emergency Action Notifications (EAN) transmitted by the US Air Force on the HF bands remembers this phrase. But not many know how the EAN is actually used by our military. This re-creation of a Minuteman III Launch Control Facilitliy (LCF) in Utah provides a realistic view of what happens when an EAN is received by a missile control crew, 60 feet und... READ MORE |
 W9RAN 04/93/2024 |
Monitoring Post |
|
Grind your own?
If you're a long-time ham you might know what the smeary figure-8 pattern is. ...Back in the Novice era, many used crystals purchased from suppliers like JAN Crystals who purchased large quantities of military surplus crystals and reground them for the ham bands. That's why they were cheap, but also why you couldn't get a specific frequency as they'd grind by a formula and is lo... READ MORE |
W9RAN 01/22/2024 |
On the workbench |
|
K5HZ's "AC-2" Compactron transmitter
Ron K5HZ has been building equipment since he first got his ham license in the early 60s, and while he has other transmitters, all it took to build a new one was finding a "free to good home" power transformer at a hamfest. It also gave him a chance to try using a couple of Compactron tubes that had caught his eye - the 6T10 dual pentode and the 6GE5 beam power pentode that was... READ MORE |
W9RAN 12/364/2023 |
Heat up the iron |
|
DigiKeyer
If you build almost anything electronic, chances are good you've purchased parts from DigiKey Electronics. But did you know that DigiKey - now one of the world's largest electronics distributors - started out as a ham radio company? "More than 50 years ago, a digital electronic device designed to generate uniform Morse characters and spaces was made available for sale by amateur radio ent... READ MORE |
W9RAN 12/341/2023 |
Brass Pounding |
|
Heathkit - An Employee Looks Back
Electronic Design magazine published an excellent interview in 2020 with Chas Gilmore W8IAI, former Heath engineer, manager, and executive. Anyone with an interest in Heathkits will find this interview to be well worth the time to read. You can read it for free without registration here at the ELECTRONIC DESIGN WEBSITEThe photo below was borrowed from W8IAI's QRZ page, and shows... READ MORE |
W9RAN 11/332/2023 |
Looking Back |
|
Fusing the DX-40
Upon examining a DX-40 given to me by a good friend, I was surprised not to find the usual fused plug on the AC line cord. I thought maybe Heathkit realized the error of their ways and had put one inside - but no. A check of the schematic confirmed that fuses were never a part of the DX-40 design. This needed to be corrected but after first considering hogging... READ MORE |
W9RAN 11/320/2023 |
On the workbench |
|
KA8WQL's "Trifecta Receiver"
In racing, a trifecta is "a run of three wins or grand events. " When I read the first sentence of Bob KA8WQLs article about his homebrew receiver, the word trifecta came to mind because he managed to do all three things at the same time! I think you'll agree!I read once, a long time ago, that the Radio Amateur should have three stations: one that looks good, o... READ MORE |
W9RAN 11/312/2023 |
Heat up the iron |
|
EIA Codes - a clue to "who made what"
Although Source Codes ceased with the 2001 edition, it is available here for historical purposes. The EIA Source Code is a numeric symbol that was assigned and registered by the Electronic Industries Association (EIA) that could be stamped or marked on any or all products to identify the production source or the vendor assuming product responsibility.In addition, the EIA code provided for adding ... READ MORE |
W9RAN 11/311/2023 |
Tech Library |
|
David Gleason is an unsung hero
While working as a Univision programming and research exec in the early 2000, David Gleason began digitizing publications about the radio and TV business and posting them on his personal website so that he could easily share them as he traveled around and met with station staff. It was helpful in persuading the locals to take his advice, he says. “Rather than it just sounding like my opinio... READ MORE |
W9RAN 10/302/2023 |
Tech Library |
|
John Wells, Cliff Harvey, and the Harvey-Wells Electronics Company
Through the courtesy of the author, Hamilton K. Agnew, it's a pleasure to share this history of one of ham radios pioneering companies - Harvey Wells Electronics. The company was a very important contributor to world-wide electronics, both during WWII and many years after, as well as a substantial manufacturer of ham radio equipment.Download it from the link at th... READ MORE |
W9RAN 10/276/2023 |
Looking Back |
You are on page 1 of 11
[
Previous Page
/
Next Page
]