[HBR] pots required HBR13.

[Tim Shoppa]

Bill W2DGB writes:
> Having just fought the battle of trying to find the WW pots that ole' TC 
> specified for the HBR 13 I am building, I am now getting curious as to why 
> he did specify that these particular 5 watt components were needed.  The 
> current through the IF pot, for example is somewhere around 22 ma, I am 
> told.
> Would not the readily available AB sealed pots work here?   If not, why? 
> What am I missing here?

There is a long tradition in QST/QEX articles to show construction articles
as the one that the author built and is known to work.

This tradition (maybe it's even a rule) is a good thing, because it forces
the author to document what he actually did and is known to work.
Construction articles should be that - a construction article - and not
some theoretical description of how someone might build something.

In real life, much of the time the part chosen is not because it's optimal
or necessarily that one part, but because it was available in the author's
junk box or readily available at the corner electronics store.

This does not rule out the possibility that other parts can work just as well
or maybe even better.

The recent homebrew challenges (e.g. the $50 HF SSB transceivers in
the past year) actually go above and beyond the tradition by requiring
authors to ensure that parts are readily available and that the total
price tags will be less than $50.

Tim N3QE