[R-390] Shortwave Start

[William A Kulze]

Even though I grew up around radio, my dad being a ham, and hearing shortwave while still quite young, it wasn't until my late 20's that I got hooked. I found an old radio in the paper, an SX-28A. It still worked and the station I remember standing out for me was Africa Numero Un from Gabon. The music was awesome! It was on 15475 and beamed to NW Africa. I took a globe and laid a string across it, discovering not only that the string extended over California, where I lived at the time, but what a Great Circle was. I found a Panasonic RF-2200 in a pawn shop and from then on every camping trip centered on SWL. First thing I'd do is throw some wire up in the trees and it was the last thing to come down. Australia and New Zealand were favorites. But I think a couple I enjoyed that aren't there anymore, that I can tell, were Papua New Guinea and Tahiti. The Polynesian music (can you see a trend here) was beautiful.

But between that old Hallicrafters and all the old gear my dad had, hollow state had me for life!

Bill W2NVD

-----Original Message-----
On Behalf Of Steve Toth

Subject: [R-390] Shortwave Start

Wow!  Does this bring back some old memories!   I got hooked on shortwave listening in grade school because one classroom had a big old wooden, floor standing, console radio with AM and shortwave bands.  It must have had a loop antenna built into the cabinet.  The teacher would sometimes let me listen to the shortwave bands during recess and I got hooked.
 
The first receiver I owned was a Hallicrafters S-38E.  I saved up for a year so I could get the $60 together to buy it new.  It opened up the world with all the old standbys - HCJB in Ecuador, Radio Moscow, the revivalist statons; Radio Cuba, Voice of America, the mysterious "numbers stations", good old WWV and it's foreign equivalents, the russian "woodpecker", etc.  I still like to just cruise the bands to see what's there - doesn't seem to be as "target rich" since the internet became popular, but it's still fun.
 
After that it was my novice license, an HQ129X that I picked up used, a Globe Chief transmitter (used) and various ARC-5 receivers and transmitters (really used) in original condition that I converted, all using wire antennas on 80 and 40 and then "stepping up" to a rotatable one element center loaded aluminum dipole for 15.  I still have my original J-38 telegraph key.
 
Man, what fun that was!  Thanks for the stroll down memory lane!


-- Steve