[Elecraft] Historic CW On the Air

[Ron D'Eau Claire]

Station KPH/KFS in California participated in the "Night of Nights"
operations this week marking another anniversary since the end of CW as the
mainstay of Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS). 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-FxuVquKP74

 

Check out the sidetone-- very typical of commercial CW gear and why I
chuckle at those who insist on a perfect sine wave sidetone from their rigs.


 

I had the pleasure of visiting that station, and working them on the air
occasionally, when their CW signal was the "voice of the Pacific"

 

At the beginning of the video you see the outside of the main receiving
facility at Pt. Reyes, CA. The camera pans to how they handled the big open
wire feedlines on poles and crossarms to the expanse of rhombic antennas. 

 

It's been a long time since I got to watch mercury vapor high-voltage
rectifier tubes blink, either at KPH or at my home station, Hi! 

 

The transmitter site shown is some miles south at Bolinas. That way they
didn't need any fancy QSK circuitry. 

 

Ron AC7AC