[Elecraft] Cans

[Ron D'Eau Claire]

Most professional operators placed the cans forward of their ears, so
they rested mostly on the cheekbones. That way they could copy CW and
carry on a conversation or at least hear what was going on around them
at the same time. If the signal suddenly faded or there was QRN/QRM, you
just grabbed one or both of them and pulled 'em back onto your ears to
hear better until the signal improved and you could put them back
forward where they were much more comfortable. 

You are right. They felt like having a pair of "cans" clamped on your
head. Many of them were bakelite - a very hard early plastic made by
mixing carbolic acid and formaldehyde. Bakelite had the advantage of
being an excellent electrical insulator that could be molded, so it
showed up in "radio" as early as World War I. 

Only those in high-noise environments, such as aircraft pilots and gun
controllers, put the 'phones directly over their ears and very early on
they added cushioning make them more comfortable over time and help
provide a better sound "seal". 
 
Ron AC7AC
K2 # 1289

I remember the "cans", I had several hand-me-downs from Dad, who was a
radio repairman, and still have one left as a curiosity...Dad didn't
have meters in those days (the '30's) and did all his testing with a #6
dry cell and those cans...There was no padding, the ear pieces were hard
rubber, were screwed on and retained a steel diaphragm...Talk about
headaches!...Those things could be used as C-clamps...Not "cool", as the
current generation would say...

Jerry, wa2dkg