Hi, Carl Well I never could have afforded anything as fancy or expensive as a Viking 1 or HQ-129 in those days. My first ham receiver was a 4-tube Heathkit AR-3, equipped with the QF-1 Q Multiplier and I added a homebrew outboard tunable RF stage with plug-in coils. With the QF-1 and the RF-stage it was a workable CW receiver and I worked a lot of stuff with it! Later I had a borrowed BC-348 receiver that my dad borrowed from a friend where he worked at Western Electric in Burlington, NC. Sort of broad IF, but a decent receiver. Later I eventually graduated to a National NC-109 receiver that had an adjustable "crystal filter".
My cars wereolder also, and ins more recent years I used to dance to an old R&B "boogie-woogie" song about "My Rocket-88" :-) 73, Charlie, K4OTV -----Original Message----- From: Carl [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Saturday, January 18, 2014 8:19 PM To: Charlie Cunningham; 'James Rodenkirch'; 'Top Band Contesting' Cc: Mike Waters Subject: Re: Topband: Nostalgic "openings" I was lucky as the Johnson 122 VFO was part of the second hand V-I package, I have another set of those here and even work topband DX CW with it and several different receivers including a HQ-129X with a QF-1 and BC-453 as I had then and do today. The big difference is I no longer use a Vibroplex bug, just my trusty old KC Keyer. Its amazing how quiet those old radios are when the bandwidth is narrowed. No phase noise or hash from multiple conversions. I also built the W2EWL SSB exciter in late 58 with its BC-456 beginnings and 1625 finals and used only on 20M mobile once I got it debugged with letters and phone calls to the author Tony Vitale, W2EWL. I had sold my customized and hotrodded 49 Ford 2 dr and "upgraded" to a 49 Olds 88 coupe with a 56 Olds engine, 55 Dual Range Hydro and converted to 12V. Carl KM1H ----- Original Message ----- From: "Charlie Cunningham" <[email protected]> To: "'James Rodenkirch'" <[email protected]>; "'Carl'" <[email protected]>; "'Top Band Contesting'" <[email protected]> Sent: Saturday, January 18, 2014 6:48 PM Subject: RE: Topband: Nostalgic "openings" > That Heathkit VF-1 freed a lot of us from being "rock-bound" back in the > old > days! > > 73, > Charlie,K4OTV > > -----Original Message----- > From: Topband [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of James > Rodenkirch > Sent: Saturday, January 18, 2014 6:17 PM > To: Carl; Top Band Contesting > Cc: Charlie Cunningham > Subject: Re: Topband: Nostalgic "openings" > > I had a Viking I as well, Carl....after a couple of months with xtals, > purchased a Heathkit VFO kit, put it togwether and was in HOG heaven. > Decided to employ a relay so when I hit the VFO transmit switch I keyed > the > Viking I....installed the relay on the back of the Heathkit VFO cabinet - > when I switched that VFO "on," I believe my signal sounded like a drunk > canary for a brief period of time 'cuz that AC relay sure shook the VFO > cabinet up! Hi Hi DANG....Great memories of my time back in Central > Wisconsin in the late 50s! > >> From: [email protected] >> To: [email protected]; [email protected] >> CC: [email protected] >> Subject: Re: Topband: Nostalgic "openings" >> Date: Sat, 18 Jan 2014 17:42:29 -0500 >> >> I first tried 160 in 1957-58 with a DX-100 and Viking I, all AM from >> LINY. >> First SSB contact was in 58 with a CE-10A and homebrew coils, all of 8 >> watts or so. >> >> It wasnt until 1967 at my first home in NH that I tried 160 CW and >> worked some DX with a CE-100V that had the optional 160 kit and a >> 75A4; I still have both. I was already into 80/75 and 40 DX plus >> contests and with 8 acres a couple of Beverages. I met Stew Perry >> several times as he was a regular at National and hamfests and taught >> me a lot about the band and really "listening". I owe him a lot. The > antenna then was a dipole between a 100' >> and 120' tower with the ends bent down at an angle and it also held >> the 80M dipole as a full horizontal using the same coax. >> >> Carl >> KM1H >> >> >> ----- Original Message ----- >> From: "James Rodenkirch" <[email protected]> >> To: "Top Band Contesting" <[email protected]> >> Sent: Saturday, January 18, 2014 3:19 PM >> Subject: Topband: Nostalgic "openings" >> >> >> > >> > >> > >> > >> > >> > By the bye, the e-mail from Don, WD8DSB, reminded me of an old Globe >> > Scout double side band rig I owned YEARS ago: >> > Globe Sidebander DSB-100: transmitter. >> > It's ad appeared in MAY 58 QST; price $119.95 kit, $139.95 wired; >> > 40 watts AM, 50 watts CW, 100 watts DSB; bandswitching 80 thru 10 >> > meters; >> > 6CL6 crystal oscillator, 6CL6 buffer/doubler, pair 6DQ6A final >> > amplifier; >> > 12AX7 speech amplifier, 12AX7 driver, 6AQ5 modulator, 6AL5 speech >> > clipper, 5U4GB rectifier; weight 30 lbs. >> > Go here for a pic: >> > https://www.google.com/search?q=globe+sidebander+dsb-100&tbm=isch&so >> > urce=iu&imgil=sU-DHOHX30gNzM%253A%253Bhttps%253A%252F%252Fencrypted- >> > tbn3.gstatic.com%252Fimages%253Fq%253Dtbn%253AANd9GcTD2FiUvvky-Ujm-w >> > JiMEew4QzUvbI0CQgbZHBu3ikMSaLp2Otg%253B640%253B428%253BjgUGacNNUJMas >> > M%253Bhttp%25253A%25252F%25252Fwww.oldtuberadio.com%25252Fglobe-side >> > banderdsb-100%25252F&sa=X&ei=SuHaUsa_MqPuyAGt6IHYCQ&ved=0CDoQ9QEwAg& >> > biw=1511&bih=714&dpr=0.9#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=sU-DHOHX30gNzM%253A% >> > 3BjgUGacNNUJMasM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.oldtuberadio.com%252Fwp-co >> > ntent%252Fuploads%252F2012%252F04%252FGLOBE-SIDEBANDER-DSB-100.jpg%3 >> > Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.oldtuberadio.com%252Fglobe-sidebanderdsb-100 >> > %252F%3B640%3B428 Sigh.....good memories of WRL and Heathkit....Jim >> > Rodenkirch K9JWV _________________ Topband Reflector Archives - >> > http://www.contesting.com/_topband >> > >> > >> > ----- >> > No virus found in this message. >> > Checked by AVG - www.avg.com >> > Version: 2014.0.4259 / Virus Database: 3681/7013 - Release Date: >> > 01/18/14 >> > >> > > _________________ > Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband > > > > ----- > No virus found in this message. > Checked by AVG - www.avg.com > Version: 2014.0.4259 / Virus Database: 3681/7014 - Release Date: 01/18/14 > _________________ Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband
