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Wednesday, July 30, 2014

M0XPD Goes 3D with Boxed BITX with Digi-Hinge!


Paul, MOXPD, has put his BITX-based rig in a proper box.  In spite of his recent collaboration with famed miniturizer Pete Juliano, Paul used a BIG box.  It is not quite milk carton size, but it is getting there. Well done Paul.   I really like the way Paul kept the digital and analog elements in different dimensions.  The digi bit is sort of floating above the main analog board (almost in a "cloud"!).  In SolderSmoke 163 Pete Juliano mentioned a downside of this kind of stacking:  it makes it hard to get to the main board.  Paul ingeniously solved this problem by putting the digital board on a hinge.  Excellent.  This will prevent you from becoming "unhinged" when the time comes to fix or modify the main board.    

Here are all the details on Paul's project: 
http://m0xpd.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/boxing-clever.html


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

Saturday, July 26, 2014

SolderSmoke Podcast #163 Pete Juliano! Tribal Knowledge Part 3 "Sideband Sidecars"


Crystal Filters built by WA7MLH

SolderSmoke Podcast #163 is available: 

http://soldersmoke.com/soldersmoke163.mp3

Saturday July 26, 2014

Part III with Pete Juliano:  Tribal Knowledge -- Sideband Sidecars

-- Moxon Update "A Thing of Beauty"
-- Pete is Building Peter Parker's Knobless Wonder
-- Ladder Filters
--Construction Practices for SSB rigs
-- Essential Test Gear
-- Junk Box development and parts storage

Next time:  Tubes, Valves, Termatrons, Firebottles. 

Thanks to Bob Crane and the FDIM musicians for this episode's musical opening. 

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

EXCELSIOR! Jean Shepherd's Birthday



Bob Crane (and, I think, Garrison Keillor) alerted us to this important birthday:

It's the birthday of humorist Jean Shepherd (books by this author), born in Chicago, Illinois (1921). He's remembered for the autobiographical stories he told on the radio about a boy named Ralph Parker growing up in Hohman, Indiana. One of his stories was made into the movie A Christmas Story (1983), which he narrated. It's about a boy who wants a BB gun for Christmas, even though every adult in his life says that he'll shoot his eye out.
The stories Shepherd told on-air were always improvised, but he later wrote them down and published them in collections like In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash (1967) and Wanda Hickey's Night of Golden Memories and Other Disasters (1972).
Jean Shepherd said: "Some men are Baptists, others Catholics. My father was an Oldsmobile man."

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

My Moxon on Hackaday!



I was really pleased to see my Moxon on Hackaday.  Their write-up was a lot of fun.

http://hackaday.com/2014/07/23/fishing-for-radio-signals-with-the-moxon-antenna/ 

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

Thursday, July 24, 2014

WA7MLH's RD16HHF Amplifier


OK, so now that I have the MOXON in the air, my thoughts are turning to amplifiers and a possible winter project. Hey, even QRP guru Doug DeMaw conceded that every once in a while a fellow needs a few more db. And the sunspot count will be dropping.  

On the BITX group there has been an interesting discussion of using RD16HHF MOSFETs in place of our familiar IRF-510s.  I thought these devices were new, but some Googling this morning led me back to the wonderful website of QRP giant (hey, he is IN SSDRA!) Jeff Damm,  WA7MLH.   Jeff has been using these devices for quite some time.  As with all of Jeff's projects, I find his EXTREME UGLY building methods to be inspirational and reassuring.  Even if you have been there before, you should visit his site:


Even his QRZ.com page makes you want to build something:

Thanks Jeff! 



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

Tuesday, July 22, 2014

Part III with Pete Juliano this Saturday

 

It looks like Pete Juliano, N6QW, and I will be able to do Part III of our discussion of homebrew SSB gear this Saturday.  We might start out with ladder filters.  Other possible topics include construction practices (shielding, decoupling, the handling of heat, etc), junk-box practices, essential test gear and, time permitting,  tube (or, as Grayson would say, "thermatron") gear. Speaking of which,  here are some pictures that Pete sent me of a 20 meter CW rig he is working on. 

"Here is a 20 Meter station that I recently got working and hope to have it on the air soon. The Rx is something I cobbled together and it does have a Crystal filter. The Tx is an amalgamation of several Handbook radios – one feature it uses a bandpass tuning network from the oscillator to the final. The screen voltage has a separate regulator. Each unit  size is 4 inches high, 4 inches wide and 8 inches long. There is still some work needed for the control and TR."  


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

Sunday, July 20, 2014

Moxon Aloft!



We put it up on the roof this afternoon.  I think it looks great!   The neighbors have not yet risen up in opposition to the new skyhook.   My family thinks it cool that I can spin it around.   I have it pointed at Europe and I notice a big difference.  I've worked F5LIW, OT4A, YL2BJ,  F5BBD.  Lots of fun. 



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
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