Dial plates

Had a time finding knobs with dial faces for under e Pay prices. So I thought
about making my own. I got some copper sheet at the hobby store, and then
got some transparency paper to use with my laser printer.

I got the big iron out on high heat, with the copper plate covered with a sheet
of typing paper ironed the heck out of it.

It took a few trial and errors but I figured out how to do it. I cut out the
excess copper sheet and into the etch it went, for 20 minuets. A bit too long
per the instructions but I wanted a distressed look. After it came out of the
etch I rinsed and scrubbed off the printer ink.

Then using a sharpie I colored it in and rubbed it with rubbing alcohol
to thin it out. It outlined the numbers just a little bit. I my go back with
printers ink to make it pop a little more.

While I was at it I made a badge for the chassis.

Well I did decide to black them in. what do you think? Clear coat over the top should seal them nicely.
Not too bad for a first timer eh.....

6L6 Transmitter

We now have enough of the parts to start the 6L6 transmitter project. I began laying out the front panel after cutting it down to size. I drilled the holes to attach it to the chassis. Along with the hole for the key jack. My small drill press does a great job on this kind of stuff.

 I attached the 10 X 8 inch front panel with screws and inserted the key jack port. On the front panel I taped some paper 0-100 dial  templates I made with Adobe Illustrator just to get a idea of the placement of the controls and ma meter.   

Below I arranged the tuning capacitors, coil form socket, tube socket, and crystal socket. On the rear of the chassis I'll mark the positions for the terminal connection strip, SO 239 connector, and ground lug. More to come.....

Christmas In November

Came home today after taking my son to the dentist. On the front porch was a box from my good friend and elmer for the 6L6 projects James Tobola - KC5LDO. This is what I found, a 10 watt 25K resistor, a 5U4GB tube and a 6L6 tube!

After installing the 10 watt 25K resistor (up from a 10 watt 20K) I measured 352.2 V DC. Up from 338 V DC I measured with the old resistor. Nice...

One of the thinks I like about this hobby is the willingness of hams to share knowledge, parts, and past experiences. If you can help someone out please do. I have in the past and will continue to do so like countless others in this great hobby.

Thanks again James!

Power supply using a 5U4GB tube

For my Fall / Winter project this year I thought I would build from scratch a 6L6 transmitter and power supply. I'll start with the power supply using a 5U4G tube.

I started out with a slate gray metal chassis, and started laying out component placement.

 

I used a 10 X 6 chassis, drilled all the holes and checked for screw alignment. You don't want to be drilling after you paint it. ( although I've been there done that) I Dremel tool is great for any slight misalignment, or touching up a hole that is a little too small.

   

I wanted to try the Hammer Tone paint, so I bought a can of a copper colored paint. Isn't that paint nice!  Installed the grommets for the wires going through from the top.

 I installed the connection block and fuse. The other hole will be for the incoming AC power cord.

Installed the tube socket for the 5U4GB  tube, power switch, and indicator lamp. I'll let the paint cure a few more days before I turn it over and finish installing the smaller components.

A view of the under side. Wiring is a little goofy because I used pieces that I had laying around. Capacitor are 10 MF, 33 MF at 450V and a 10 watt 20K resistor.

All finished, powered on and works fine. The red lamp is a wee bit bright. I my add a small resister to dim it a bit. Output is 338 V DC, and 6.7 V on the terminals.

Anchors away!

I rearranged the shack. Set up all my older tube equipment that I have restored on the bench. Not at all a bad little collection. My wife said I am a radio hoarder. I showed her a shack that had hundreds of older transmitters and receivers. She asked if that was my dream shack......

Regulated power supply

You might remember the computer power supply I converted to a DC power supply. Well in a word It sucked...
Always not the right voltage for what I needed. So while watching Ham Nation episode 17  I saw George build one from scratch out of junk box parts. This is just what I wanted. A regulated power supply where I could control the voltage to my exact needs.

Here is a peek at the insides before I stuck everything down. The large heat sink came from the old computer power supply, and since the project box was big I left it intact. Perf board ( I used  point to point construction on the back side to wire it together) Its not very complicated a 4700 µf cap, voltage regulator, full wave bridge rectifier, fuse,  plus a few other small caps.

The power supply came from Radio Shack 12 bucks...

I can control the voltage from 1.25 V DC to 35. V DC . I added an LED and powered it from the AC side of the circuit buffered with a 10KΩ resistor.

W5SJZ-11 Balloon

Made a contact with Robert / WE5T using my Kenwood HT and arrow antenna with 5 watts. The balloon was at 68199 FT. Pictures are from Google APRS.FI

This is the flight path. The start was at the municipal airport in Hillsboro, Texas. I think the highest recorded altitude was a little over 80, 000 feet.

The last reported packet was at 32,388 feet. Never heard the 10 meter beacon. A fun diversion from a normal Saturday morning.