[HBR] Walt's project

[Don]

As I am a solid state man myself for the most part I really hope I am =
not intruding in your website....

I don't recognize the tuning cap but I have one of those bulky drives =
from Walts latest pictures. Currently on an old 6 meter tube rig that =
was junked years ago. If you or someone else wishes to have it let me =
know....free of charge too.  Also I have a box of ceramic plug in coils =
which are buried in my attic. They are octal bases but might be used in =
your rig Walt. Some were for plate circuits for power amps as they have =
the plate cap on them. You could get away from the vagaries of plastic. =
Also I have some military quality plug in coils with bakelite bases. =
They are slug tuned from the bottom with a detachable metal shield on =
top. I think I took them out of an old military signal generator. The =
coil could/might be rewound and tapped for switching bands. Have two to =
give.

Finished my own tube receiver last spring......you tube guys are =
gluttons for pain!!! Ended up using ladder filters made from Mouser =
microprocessor crystals. Have a 400 Hz CW and and about 1500 Hz SSB =
switched filters. Worked Isreal and Korea (real lucky) and a bunch of JA =
CW this month using my HB VFO and 6AG7/6L6 30W transmitter. My wife =
checks on me every few minutes when I use my tube gear...she is sure she =
is going to find me twitching on the floor one of the days. I am also =
working on the matching SSB/CW transmitter a little each week. Was going =
to use the rx LO and mix to basic 40M freq and mix again to 20, 15, 10 =
but I could not find a 4MHz SSB filter. I could probably make one but =
only about 1500 Hz like my rx filter... but 4Mhz is a little low for =
that. I  decided to build the SSb transmitter with 9Mhz filter now and =
use an on board VFO at 1.5 to 2.0 Mhz and may change my rx to 9Mhz IF =
too. In my rx I have 3 to 3.45 Mhz LO now with 4Mhz IF for basic 40 =
meter rx. And since my RX is interstage transformerless it would not =
take long. The 9MHz will make SSb filter easier but the CW filter a =
little harder. Everthings a compromise.

Walt if you would or anyone else want any of the above let me know. Also =
I have a reasonably simple method for building a HB tuning drive using a =
mayonaise jar lid. Its the old shaft and pulley method. I wrote an =
article for an electronics magazine years ago describing it. Using an =
1/8" shaft and 3" lid you can get about 24:1. If you add a panel mounted =
in-line 5:1 epicylic drive you can get 120:1. In my rx I use something =
similar...a 1.75" pulley, 3/16" shaft in line with one of the 5:1 =
drives. Gives me about 50 or 60:1. I got the drive at Dan's Small =
Parts..also a good source for ceramic standoffs and feedthroughs. Also =
got my panel and the rx bottom at On-line metals like you Walt....came =
with a few scratches but the 3/8" panel even though a little thick adds =
a lot of mechanical stability when using the crappy aluminum chassis' =
available. If you haven't already found a chassis for your rig yet. I =
think Hammond transformer in Canada might have steel chassis'. If I ever =
built another tube station again (which I won't as I am going back to =
solid state...so much easier) I would have used one of the audio =
chassis' I see on the internet. Also I was at my brother in laws house =
in California and he has a commercial tube audio amp for his stereo. It =
was pretty cool as the chassis was modularly constructed. It was made up =
of pieces bolted to gether. The pieces seem to have been standardized in =
size and the side and tops  were screwed together. It was approx 10 x 13 =
and I pressed on it and it was rock stable yet appeared to be able to be =
taken apart and made narrower or wider if the amp was to be modified. =
The sides were about 3" tall and could not be changed but could be =
lengthened or shortened.

Hope I didn't butt into your web site too much. I would send pictures of =
my rig but I am definitely not in the true spirit of Kee's site. As Walt =
knows from e-mails several months ago my rx is and tx will be alot of =
solid state and I have no interstage transformers as I used toroids or =
miniature chokes for all plate chokes, LO coils, etc. Rx has or will =
have 16 solid state devices when the 20, 15, 10 convertors are done and =
the tx low level devices will all be solid state...I just didn't want =
plug in coils mostly....to much work!!  But I enjoy all of the tube rigs =
you guys are building. Wish I wasn't so scared of high voltage!!! The =
transmitter will use 400 volts on finals and that is as high as I have =
ever worked with on HB.

Don Kelly KA5UOS




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