Crystal sets

[5thumbs]

The other day while in Senior Daydreaming Mode I tried to remember how I got my first interest in electronics.

I recall my grandfather encouraging me as I built various adaptations of crystal set radios. Remember those? Hand wound coils around toilet paper tubes. Galena crystals tickled by a "cat's whisker" wire. A water pipe for ground, mattress springs for the antenna. On a good night with enough tweaking you could pick up two or three AM radio stations in the Chicago area. Headphones, of course. Don't sneeze - if you did you'd have to re-tune. It was fun, it was magic.

Anyone else remember those? I'm guessing there are a few geezers here who do.

 

[beecee]

That stuff always baffled me but I guarantee there will be several like minded techno wizzards coming along soon.

 

[GAD]

It was fun, it was magic.

Anyone else remember those? I'm guessing there are a few geezers here who do.

I've heard ham radio called the magic hobby.

Crystal radios are an awesome way to start to appreciate how radios work. Back in WWII Soldiers used to build crystal radios to get news because they weren't allowed to have powered radios. They were commonly called foxhole radios.

 

[Brad Little]

Yep, built one when I was probably 8 or so, could only pickup our local station, but that was with no real antenna. Piqued my interest in radio (although the big multiband console in my grandparents dining room was even a bigger goad). Got my novice in 1965, but didn't have enough practice to get to 13 WPM (which was random characters at an FCC office at the time). Got back into it mid-80s, had no problem getting to 20 wpm for the extra class exam.

 

[Ross]

In the late 1950s - early 60s I had a "rocket radio", a crystal set in a plastic tube that was styled to resemble a rocket ship. It picked up several stations; it could be tuned by twisting the rocket's nose.

 

[Guildedagain]

I have an old radio some lady just gave me at a yard sale just out of the blue, she asked if I wanted it and I took it home, this old beehive looking thing.

A Philco commemorative 1982-1972, and you fire it up, so weird, all those howls and squeals and preachers, it's like back in time or something. It's the past and the future all in one.

If you find the right stations, all those oldies you haven't heard in a long time that you don't have/never had in your music collection, it's awesome.

 

[GAD]

Yep, built one when I was probably 8 or so, could only pickup our local station, but that was with no real antenna. Piqued my interest in radio (although the big multiband console in my grandparents dining room was even a bigger goad). Got my novice in 1965, but didn't have enough practice to get to 13 WPM (which was random characters at an FCC office at the time). Got back into it mid-80s, had no problem getting to 20 wpm for the extra class exam.

As someone with an Extra who never had to do code, I think they should bring back the code requirement. Of course if they did that then the hobby would probably be dead by now.