THE NATIONAL COMPANY'S SRR RECEIVER

     The acronym stands for "Super Regenerative Receiver" and I think it was their first foray into the old amateur radio 5 meter band, before the sophisticated 1-10 "Ultra High frequency" receiver was much more than a gleam in James Millen's eye.

     It's a tiny thing, 7¾" x 7¾" x 7" and 5 meters is where it tops out; with a minor reshuffling of coil connections, it covers the lower ham bands, from 10 meters down to 160 meters.

     As a "rushbox" super-regen without an RF amplifier to isolate the detector from the antenna, it's not a good citizen on any of them; in operation, it radiates a broad swath of noise, inherent in the superregeneration process.*

     And I own one.  There it was, at the Indiana Historical Radio Society's Spring swapmeet, standing out on a seller's table to anyone with an eye for old National equipment, at a remarkably low price.  I made an offer and somehow ended up with a nice homebrew absorption wavemeter in the bargain.

     Have a look inside the receiver:

     The coil and socket are standard 4-pin "tube base" configuration, unusual for a National product; they usually preferred their own designs.  But that will make it simpler to wind new coils.  The one in the socket probably isn't for this receiver -- not just the "Hammarlund" name on it, it lacks the cathode tap found on all SRR coils.  I may have coil-winding data.  I'm certainly going to give it a try!

     Rough schematic:

        It uses a version of National's "S-101" interstage coupler that I had not seen before.  The S-101 is a weak point in the design, as the internal audio choke (inductor) has a very high impedance, meaning many turns of small-gauge wire, which tends to perish in the potting compound.    Checking that will be the first order of business.
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* I believe it was Howard Hughes' 1938 around-the-world flight that found radio communication nearly wiped out by interference from people trying to listen in with simple superregenerative receivers.  This is why the later 1-10 had an RF amp, to keep that detector from getting in the way!

NEW TUBE TRANSMITTER KIT

     Yes, there's a new one: Chinese kit-maker YouKits offers their TT1A two-tube transmitter kit for US$129, less power transformer, HV rectifier and filter (though they supply all the info to build the B+ supply).

     It's a nice-looking little kit, with a tube lineup that appears to be close to 6C4 - 6AQ5.  The instruction manual is very clear, which solves the main concern of internationally-marketed kits.  Have no fear, YouKits has found someone bilingual in Ham.

     They also offer more-modern kits and an impressive antenna analyzer that is also sold in the U.S. by Ten-Tec.

THE CLOTHES/DISH WASHER

     It really existed; in fact, it was part of the appliance package for the higher-end models of all-metal Lustron homes: the Thor Automagic Clothing and Dish Washer!

     Even though you changed out the entire wash basket to swap from washing clothing to washing dishes, a lot of people just couldn't feel comfortable about cleaning dungarees and dinner plates in the same machine.  It wasn't a success.

     Sadly, under new ownership the company tried a comeback early in this century with a slick ventless all-in-the-same-drum washer/dryer and that doesn't appear to have worked, either.  The company website is gone and their last official Tweet was in 2010.

SOMETHING FOR YOUR VICTROLA EVEN IF YOU HAVEN'T GOT ONE

     Where do you go to find carefully transferred-to-digital Edison Blue Amberol cylinders?  Ragtime, jazz, brass bands and way more?

     One of my coworkers pointed out an attractive option: Archeophone Records.  Well worth checking out!

     (I'm still needing to move iTunes from my old computer to my new computer, which is gonna require digging out the spare monitor and keyboard and making them find each other over my home network before even starting.)

PENNY-FARTHING, NEXT STEP

     The next step up from a 28" mini-penny?  For me, a 36" hiwheel designed -- and then redesigned* -- by unicycle maker QU-AX (shown here with an eye-glowing window spectator, in an image that does nothing for my vanity):

     Riding in the dark, with a multi-led flashlight clipped to my inner sweatshirt -- it's chilly, I'm wearing an insulated hoodie over a plain hoodie over a knit top.

     Whee!  (I'm hoping to ride this bike in daylight sometime-- I just missed a Tweed Ride.  And me without my jodhpurs!)

     The larger wheel means better speed -- and less effort.  For the well-to-do ($$$$!) and technically-inclined, here's a possible upgrade: a hub with a 1.5:1 transmission!  I'm pretty sure a 36" wheel that acts like a 54" wheel is not in my immediate future.  Come to think of it, neither (I hope) is a respoking job.  But maybe someday.
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* Seriously redesigned: much shorter stem, tricky front brake removed, seat hugely improved (and retroized) and matching grips added.  At least everything but the grips is a safety improvement and they all materially aid rideability.  QU-AX really did right by this product -- and the people who buy it.

DIME KEY

     In the far-off past when radio was nearly all Morse code (what's that Fessenden fellow on about?), everybody keyed fairly high currents in the primary side of big transmitters, especially spark rigs.  Commercial stations used big, purpose-built keys or keying relays.  Hams....improvised.

One key, two silver dimes and a nice big soldering copper (or electric soldering iron).  Add amateur ingenuity.

 Real dimes!  (Filed flat.  Honest, Mr. T-man, I didn't do it!)

     This example was found on Etsy.  "Dime keys" are often fakes; this one, the key's an older type, the solder looks like the old-time stuff, the dimes are sure-enough silver and the knob bears an "Aug 3, 1920" patent date; a little late but not too late.  So it's probably the real deal.

BLACKWING 602 PENCIL: WILL IT MAKE YOU A WRITER?

     Only if you have two of them, a lot of yarn, a lot of time and you're extraordinarily skilled at knitting.

     The original Blackwing 602 was the preferred writing implement of many famous writers (including John Steinbeck, though after the debunking of Travels With Charley, that might be a mixed blessing).  The last one rolled  -- well, slid, the special eraser ferrule prevents rolling -- off the line in 1998. Cal Cedar bought the machinery and brought them back as the "Blackwing" in 2010, took some heat over the differences, and added the closer-to-original "Blacking 602" last year.

     They're not cheap, $20 a dozen.  On the other hand, most pencils sold these days are lousy, splintery things with reconstituted or synthetic "wood" and the lead's nothing to write home with, either.  So I splurged.

     Gee.  They're nice.  And the old motto actually means something -- "Half the pressure, twice the speed."  You do go skimming right along.  Here are my notes (Copyright 2012, all rights reserved) for the vignette "Mo," over at I Work On A Starship, written in real-time while observing one of the people on whom the character is based:

     I'm not any better a writer with it, but the hardware doesn't get in the way of the work, which is a pretty big deal.  Are they worth $20 a box?  Probably not if all you're doing is making grocery lists and leaving notes for the plumber.  On the other hand, if you enjoy good writing tools, they certainly are a nice treat!