RAN Technology

More hamfests return to WI-IL-IA in 2021


it's about time!


General Information 03/25/2021 


 Content Source

Posted By: Robert Nickels (ranickels)
Posted on 03/25/2021

Hamfests return in 2021 to Illinois, Iowa, and Wisconsin!

 


The 2021 DeKalb (Sandwich) and Starved Rock hamfests were great successes!   This was the first time for Starved Rock Radio Club to hold the hamfest in Mendota IL which worked out great -  hope it helps the club rebuild what was once one of the best hamfests in the area..

The South Milwaukee 'fest is special because it's what a hamfest should be, to my way of thinking at least - a big tailgate swap area and nothing else.  No "indoor sellers" (at least not many), no new equipment dealers, and no seminars or other distractions from the business at hand - buying and selling old radio junk.  It's always been the kind of 'fest where a load of "barn fresh" gear is likely to show up for picking, and where friends from half a state or more away will make the journey.    Really glad to see it's back!  (even without the free beer)

Photo above is from Peoria 2007, in front of the "Taj", with the famous WA9VRH rib smoker visible in the foreground.


As the hamfest season for 2021 draws to a close it's now possible to say that the two I first wrote about were the best.   The Peoria Superfest did take place, which is a bit surprising since the club was forced to relocate TWICE.   This is probably the new permanent location as the city of East Peoria which owns the event center added crushed blacktop to the dirt field, making it at least as good as the worn-out parking area at Expo Gardens.  The indoor space seemed adequate and hopefully if the outdoor flea market expands to fill the available space the club and city will find a way to add more spaces.   The biggest shortcoming was the lack of any kind of food service at the hamfest.   Why the club didn't at least notify a food truck vendor or two is a mystery to all.    On the plus side, the outdoor spaces were generous in size and marked (although not clearly) and there are some good local restaurants within walking distance.

The CFMC has held it's RadioFest at the Boone County Fairgrounds at Belvidere IL since the closing of "Grayslake" and it's a nearly ideal venue with long paved "streets" between the vendor spaces and plenty of indoor space, bathrooms, food, etc.    The problem was attendance - based on the number of sellers in previous years the fleamarket area had to be at least 20% smaller, and the overall quality of "shtuff" included more non-ham offerings than usual.  But it was a beautiful day and hopefully attendance will bounce back at both 'fests next year.

The annual BBQ-AM Get-together at the beautiful home of KI8BQ was again, as WA6GYC puts it, "the high point of the summer".   This will be the last year that Gary is able to host the event, but stay tuned, as plans are being made for it to continue under the auspices of Terry N6TLU at Battle Creek MI in 2022.

   

Crystal Replacement
Posted: 02/38/2024
Comments: 0
How good can a crummy receiver be?

Hundreds of different simple SDR receivers have been designed around Dan Tayloe's Quadrature Sampling Detector or QSD.   Mine add nothing to the state of the art, and in fact subtract things, as I like minimalist solutions and the QSD is right in that sweet spot.   Following the evolution of Tayloe's design I delete the resistors in series with the sample lines for inst...  READ MORE

Technical
Posted: 02/37/2024
Comments: 0
What's in a number (3253)?

The FST3253 dual four-to-one mux/demux IC has long been used as a "Tayloe Detector" or QSD (and QSE) in low-cost SDRs.   They provide incredible performance for such a simple circuit, converting RF to baseband IQ with low loss and the ultimate in simplicity. Unfortunately the original FST3253 part has become obsolete and while substitutes are available, this is where the...  READ MORE

Vintage Ham Radio
Posted: 02/32/2024
Comments: 0
The Stancor 10P Transmitter

There weren't really many commercial transmitters in the 1930s as most hams built their own.   But many of the ones that were offered came from the transformer companies who had two chances to profit.   First, from those who would buy the kit, and two, from those would would see it in the (free) booklets the companies provided to their distributors who would then sell the iron to ham...  READ MORE

Vintage Ham Radio
Posted: 12/355/2023
Comments: 0
The Care and Feeding of the EF Johnson Courier amplifier

The EF Johnson "Courier" is a grid-driven amplifier using two 811A tubes.   Switching is provided for operating in either class C for CW or as a class B linear amplifier for AM or SSB.   Rated power is 500 watts input for CW, 500 watts PEP input for SSB, and 200 watts input for double-sideband AM with carrier.    Since all amateur power levels were meas...  READ MORE

Historic
Posted: 11/329/2023
Comments: 0
TV Duplexer

Some things are interesting, even if totally useless nowadays.   Such is the case with the Philco 426-3034 Crossover Kit for UHF TV.   What the heck is that? Well, back in the late 50s,  UHF television stations operating on channels 14-83 started to appear in many areas of the US where viewers had a VHF-only TV antenna, and in many cases an externa UHF converter was...  READ MORE

Crystal Replacement
Posted: 11/327/2023
Comments: 0
Replacing failed crystals

For decades, quartz crystals were used everywhere a stable frequency source was needed, even in some applications that depended on overtone (harmonic) behavior into the VHF range.   These crystals were less stable and more dependent on circuit parameters that fundamental types and thus more problematic.    Such was the case with the 94 MHz crystal in the 2 meter converter ...  READ MORE

Historic
Posted: 11/315/2023
Comments: 0
My Own Ham Radio Story by W9RAN

Everyone has a story of how they got involved in ham radio - this is mine.   It started much earlier, including receiving a Knight Kit Span Master shortwave radio for Christmas in about 1963, at age 12.   I'll never forget the night my dad and I finished building it and I wanted to try it out.   It came with a 50 ft. antenna which was still coiled up - but ...  READ MORE

Technical
Posted: 09/267/2023
Comments: 0
Hot to simulate vacuum tubes in LTSpice

LTSice is a powerful simulation tool that is provided free by Linear Technology Corp.   It comes with a complete library of passive and common analog solid-state components but if you want to use it to simulate vacuum tubes, it doesen't work as-is.    Even though triode and pentode symbols can be found in the "Misc" folder, they are just schematic symbols and...  READ MORE

Friends Remembered
Posted: 07/208/2023
Comments: 0
Merv Schweigert, K9FD (SK)

Comments from Robert Nickels W9RAN,  July 27, 2023: There is nothing worse for a ham radio operator than to see a beloved friends callsign with the letters "SK" behind them.   Yet sadly, that's what happened on July 23, 2023, when I learned of the passsing of Merv Schweigert, K9FD.     While many of our ham radio interests were different - Me...  READ MORE

Vintage Ham Radio
Posted: 01/19/2023
Comments: 0
"Winter Projects"

I know many of us who enjoy restoring and repairing vintage gear look forward to winter when there is less competition for time and energy, and a chance to really make a dent in our "to be fixed" piles.    A couple of years ago I set time aside for "Heathkit Singlebander Week" and went through every one of them I had, with the result that they're all working ...  READ MORE