Category Archives: World War 2

1943 Code Practice Oscillator

The December 1943 issue of Radio News carried the plans for this simple one-tube code oscillator. The 117N7 with a built-in rectifier meant that it could be done with a single tube.

The author of the article is one R.C. Zaun, an engineer with the Thorardson Electric Manufacturing Company. Not surprisingly, the most expensive part shown in the schematic is probably the audio output transformer, which just happens to have a Thorardson part number.

As shown here, the oscillator had a pitch of about 1600 Hz. This could be varied in one of two ways. First, R1 could be replaced with a variable resistor, although the article noted that this would also affect the volume. Another method would be to change the value of C4, switching in capacitors of different values to vary the pitch.

If wartime parts shortages meant that the 117N7 wasn’t available, it could be substituted with other versions of a different filament voltage. Of course, an appropriate dropping resistor would need to be used.

Pyruma Putty Cement, 1943

Eighty years ago in the U.K., there was a war going on, which meant that many Christmas presents might have been unavailable. But Britons were known for keeping a stiff upper lip, and if there were no gifts in the shops, then they could make their own.

This ad for Pyruma putty cement appeared in the December 1943 issue of Practical Mechanics. After making the model, you baked it in the oven and it became stone hard. The compound was also used by the military in making models.

1943 Root Cellars

Screenshot 2023-11-28 9.17.36 AM Eighty years ago, many Americans were enjoying plentiful meals without worrying about rationing points, thanks to their victory gardens. And the December 6, 1943, issue of Life magazine offered some pointers about how to store the bounty of those gardens for the winter. Above is an image of a well-appointed root cellar. The magazine noted that a well-ventilated corner of the cellar, where the temperature remained between 35 and 50 degrees was ideal. And some of those fruits and vegetables are put up in some of the four billion Mason jars that were currently in use in the country.

For those without a cellar, the magazine offered some ideas such as the one shown at the left for storage of root vegetables. In this one, a barrel is buried in the yard. After filling, it’s covered with straw, and then soil. On nice days during the winter, it is opened, and food for the next two or three weeks is removed.

A Knock On the Door: 1943

In America 80 years ago, a knock on the door, even when you are listening to the radio, meant that a friend had come to call.

But as this RCA ad in the November 22, 1943, issue of Life magazine reminded readers, things weren’t the same in the Axis countries. It could mean the Gestapo and death if they knocked when you were listening to an American or British broadcast.

In America, you could even listen to enemy propaganda without worry, and it was often good for a hearty laugh. For now, American manufacturers such as RCA were supporting the war effort exclusively. But the ad reminds Americans that they would soon be back with fine radios and other electronic products.

Expedient Phono Cartridge: 1943

Eighty years ago, wartime parts shortages meant you couldn’t just walk into the store and buy parts for your radio or phonograph. Occasionally, substitutions were necessary, and they sometimes required a bit of ingenuity to make them work.

Such was the case for one John J. Leap of New York City, who sent this idea in to the publishers of Radio Craft, where it was published in the November 1943 issue. The pickup on his phonograph had gone bad, and the replacement was unobtainium. Therefore, he made his own, using a headphone and the reproducer from an old mechanical phonograph.

The stylus was soldered to the diaphragm of the headphone, which was used in the place of the original mica piece in the reproducer. The combined unit was then mounted to the original tone arm.

The editors of the magazine decided to duplicate the idea, and they found it to give good results both in quality and volume.

Postal Zones Introduced: 1943

Eighty years ago, the U.S. Post Office Department introduced postal zone numbers in the 124 American cities shown here. These were the predecessors of the ZIP Code, introduced 20 years later in 1963.

The number was written after the city, but before the state. When the ZIP code was introduced, these zone numbers became the last two digits of the ZIP.

This list appeared in the October 1943 issue of National Radio News, which reminded readers to use add the code 9 between “Washington” and “D.C.” when mailing lessons and other items to the National Radio Institute.

Courtney’s Radio Service, Stratford, CT, 1943

The cover of Radio Retailing, September 1943, was a tribute to the WWW. No, it had nothing to do with the internet–it was honoring Women War Workers, such as Mrs. Wallace Courtney of Courtney’s Radio Service, Stratford, CT.

Before the war, the shop was run by her husband, who had recently taken a job in a war plant installing radios in planes. Despite shortages of both parts and help, Mrs. Courtney, also the mother of a 12 year old boy, kept sets moving along as fast as possible.

The magazine noted that Mrs. Courtney was typical of a lot of American wives and mothers, who without any fuss or furor, had stepped calmly into their men’s places for the duration.

1943 British One Tube Reflex Set

This one-tube circuit appeared in the British Practical Wireless 80 years ago this month, August 1943. It made the best of wartime parts shortages, since the single tube, a P220, did double duty as both RF and AF amplifier. A fixed crystal was used as detector.

It had been sent to the magazine by R.J. Amblin of Bath, England, who reported that with 18 volts of anode (plate) voltage, it gave good volume through the headphones, and he was able to pull in the BBC Home Service with as little as 1.5 volts. For normal listening, he left it at 4.5 volts, which proved quite satisfactory.

American Steelworker, 1943

Shown here on the cover of Life Magazine 80 years ago today, August 9, 1943, is steelworker Ann Zarik. She had been employed by the Carnegie-Illinois Steel Works at Gary, Indiana, for five months as a flame burner. Her job was to cut out pieces of armor plate for ballistics tests. Her father worked there as a millwright, and her sweetheart was in North Africa in the Air Corps.

Women had quickly filled the ranks of lighter industry. For example, in 1941, only 1% of the aviation workforce were women, but that had jumped to 65% by 1943. But the magazine noted that, unlike in Britain and the Soviet Union, women were slower to fill jobs in heavy industry.

The women were paid the same rate as men, the minimum being 78 cents per hour. With overtime resulting from a 48 hour work week, that worked out to $40.56 per week.

The magazine noted that “the women steel workers at Gary are not freaks or novelties. They have been accepted by management, by the union, by the rough, iron-muscled men they work with day after day. In time of peace they may return once more to home and family, but they have proved that in time of crisis no job is too tough for American women.”

“Doc” Burkhart, Hanceville Drug Co, AL, 1943

Shown here is “Doc” Burkhart of Hanceville, Alabama, in the August 1943 issue of Radio Retailing. Next to his workbench, you might see some packages that look out of place, because Doc is actually a pharmacist, the proprietor of Hanceville Drug Company. He had turned his hobby in radio into a business. The store had a radio sales department for some time, and he had become the town’s only radio repairman.

In this picture, he was converting battery sets. Since batteries were hard to come by during the war, this allowed them to go back into service, doing their part to keep the nation informed and entertained.

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