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Modifications and accessories for low-power entry level radio equipment
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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
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
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Test those 6146s!

"The most sensational beam power tube to come your way!"  was the banner headline for RCA's 1952 ad promoting the new 6146 tube.     Sensationalism aside,  there's no doubt that more Novices first RF came from a 6146 than any other  tube and its popularity even grew during the sideband era when "a pair of 6146s" was found in many SSB transceivers from the high-end Co...  READ MORE

W9RAN
03/85/2023
Heat up the iron
The Walter Ashe Novice Rig

Novices in the St. Louis area had no reason to envy their New York or Chiago ham buddies, not when they had Walter Ashe Radio Company in town.   The spot they once occupied at 1125 Pine St in downtown St. Louis is now a parking lot, but the memories of this full-line electronics distributor lives on in it's catalogs which rivaled those of its bigger city counterparts.And Walter Ashe wa...  READ MORE

W9RAN
02/47/2023
Heat up the iron
How To Build Radio Receivers

Looking for a simple radio project?    Or just a nostalic read with those great old-time pictorial wiring diagrams?   This little booklet was published for many years and still has ideas that might motivate you to get the iron hot!...  READ MORE

W9RAN
02/46/2023
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The National MB-40-SL tuning assembly

 It's probably safe to say that no company produced more components for radio builders than the National Radio Company of Malden Mass. ,   many of which were designed by radio engineer extrordinaire James Millen  W1HRX.    Having acquired a degree in mechanical engineering at Stevens Institute, Millen always stressed solid mechanical design principles in Nationa...  READ MORE

W9RAN
09/254/2022
Heat up the iron
Build a Z-Match Tuner - You'll like it!

     Many hams still use manual antenna tuners  for impedance matching at HF.   Most current manual tuners are T-Network types, great for impedance-matching, but as high-pass filters, harmonic attenuation may be inadequate.   As modern transmitters have low-pass filter networks in the output, most guys don’t need an antenna tuner for harmonic reducti...  READ MORE

W9RAN
04/114/2022
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Johnson Ranger restoration by WD4NKA

Longtime glowbug advocate and creator of “Tube Pad”  Gary Johanson WD4NKA shares the story of his Johnson Ranger restoration.  He plans to do what's necessary but not make any major mods at this time:  “Finally got around to opening the Johnson for the first time. It still has its fused plug. As I suspected, it’s all original, no mods. It’s very clean...  READ MORE

W9RAN
03/76/2022
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DX60B FUNCTION SWITCH REPAIR AND MODIFICATION

*** The . PDF file is downloadable below ***There are lots of mods for the Heathkit DX60 on the internet. These include audio and PTT mods. The PTT mods address an issue with the function switch and makes switching between RX and TX more flexible. The Function wafer switch on an unmodified DX60 switches the high voltage secondary of the power transformer when going from standby (receive) to trans...  READ MORE

stonebs
12/342/2018
Heat up the iron
Heathkit DX-60 PTT Modification

** The . PDF file is downloadable below ***One of the biggest short comings of the DX-60 is the function switch, and the need to switch the phone operation to Push-To-Talk (PTT), which should enhance the operation and save the function switch. I also wound up using a D-104 unamplified microphone with my DX-60B. Parts List: 1 – Two pin Microphone connector 2 – 6 or 12 VDC 4PDT Relay (I...  READ MORE

stonebs
12/342/2018
Heat up the iron
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