[Hallicrafters] Drift Into Saturday Halli 40M Net

[Duane Fischer, W8DBF]

Please join us on Saturday September 8th for the Hallicrafters (HHI) 40 
meter Net. You do 'not' have to be operating with Hallicrafters, or other 
vintage gear, to participate. All we ask is that you have an interest in 
vintage gear!

Time: 12:30 - 2:00 PM EST/EDT or 1630 - 1800 UTC.

Frequency: As ever and always, 7.280 MHZ LSB +/- for key clicks, mike 
splatter and amplitude modulation lip splatter from above and those pesky 
Firebirds from below! Some of those Firebird GM guys have a signal as wide 
as the tail fins on the 1959 Caddy! You could raise a family of five in the 
trunk!

Here are some things that I wrote a long time back. I hope they still brings 
some grins to your faces yet -

                Ode To A Happily Humming Halli


                                  By Duane B. Fischer, W8DBF


I turned the knob and current flowed,
The filaments within now glowed.
I listened for those waves of short,
>From foreign land, the air and port.
But what was this, a rising hum?
It louder grew and drowned all fun.

I pulled the cord and sniffed for smoke,
Those roasted bugs were not a joke!
I pulled the tubes and checked each one,
And looked around for grounds undone.
Electrolytics oozing goo,
Resistors toasted black and blue.
Insulation all dried and loose,
No holiday for this old Goose!

A cathode short or cap that fried,
The coil hummed Taps and then it died.
The knobs were loose, shafts warped with age,
Missing was the schematic page!
Dial cord was frayed, the pointer bent,
The dial lamp filament was spent.
The chassis dark with flecks of rust,
But fix this rig I knew I must.

To Internet i went with haste,
To find some help, then cut and paste.
With solder warm and tester hot,
I searched my junk for parts forgot.
With coffee black and luck by dawn,
The annoying hum would all be gone!
And then with eyes all red like beets,
I'll turn that knob and mark defeat.

Now some may think this really dumb,
But solid state is just no fun!
There's nothing like that magic glow,
That comes from vacuum radio.
So when your Halli hums so strong,
Be sure to smile and sing along!


Original: 2008





                 Come Hum A Happy Halli Hymn!


                                  By Duane B. Fischer, W8DBF


I flip a switch, I hear the hum,
Filaments light as B+ climbs.
A ghostly glow from dial lamp comes,
As Fischer pens a Halli rhyme.

A rising hiss from speaker's heard,
While practiced hand selects the mode.
No need for Morse, just spoken words,
The ARRL has blown Taps on code.

Select the band, then spot the freq.,
Fine tune for drift then trim for splatter.
This Halli saved, rebirth, not wreck,
An xtal filter makes QRM not matter!

With mike in hand you key and call,
Your signals logged by Net Control.
You're five by nine and sounding tall,
As glowing tubes Ham skies patrol.

At HHI we welcome all,
Regardless whom your chassis made.
Our vintage rigs heard history call,
And freedoms price we Hams too paid.

A Halli rig or other brand,
The chassis matters not!
Just make them glow through surf or sand,
No cure for you, this bug once caught!


Join us on Sunday June 8th for the Halligan's
Hallicrafters International 20 meter Net. Be there and be
special!  Or just don't show up and be a square wave!

The pre-Net is at 12:45 PM EST/EDT, (1645 UTC) and the Net
proper at 1:15 PM EST/EDT, (1715 UTC)

The frequency is 14.293 MHz usb +/- for key clicks, mike
splatter and double dribble lip chatter. Listen for us from
14.292 through 14.293 MHZ, as somewhere in there we lurk!







         A Humming Halli Isn't Necessarily Bad News!


                                     Duane B. Fischer, W8DBF


I flip a switch, I hear the hum,
Filaments light as B+ climbs.
A ghostly glow from dial lamp comes,
As Fischer pens a Halli rhyme.

A rising hiss from speaker's heard,
A practiced hand selects the mode.
No need for Morse, just spoken word,
The ARRL has blown Taps on code.

Select a band and spot the freq.,
Fine tune for drift then trim for splatter.
Once near dead glow reborn by Tech,
A crystal spells doom for splatter!

With mike in hand you key and call,
Your call is logged by Net Control.
The Halli Net shows one and all,
That vintage vacuum tubes has soul!

Please join us soon, let's QSO,
And once again make gas tubes glow.
With extra parts in case one blows,
Revive that flow that made them glow.


Original: November 29, 2003. 357 words.


Duane Fischer, W8DBF - WPE8CXO
E-Mail: dfischer at usol.com
Hallicrafters web site: www.w9wze.net
HHRP web site: hhrp.w9wze.net