Monthly Archives: October 2019

1944 Combat Recording

1944OctRadioCraftThe cover of Radio Craft magazine 75 years ago this month, October 1944, showed an artist’s conception of the apparatus used for on-the-spot recordings of the D-Day invasion. Those broadcasts were made by Blue Network correspondent George Hix, whose reports were part of the pool coverage and heard on the other networks. You can listen to the reports at the video below.

The equipment being used was a Recordgraph manufactured by Amertype. We previously described that equipment.  It was a technology that was short lived, since it was soon replaced by magnetic recording. It recorded grooves on a 50 foot roll of film, with a total of 12,000 feet of sound track (in other words, 240 tracks on a strip of 35 mm film). The process is identical to a phonograph recording, but with a strip instead of a disc. The system allowed five hours of speech per roll. As you can hear from the recording below, the sound quality was quite good.

The magazine noted that the Navy considered that the device’s primary use would be production of a real-time log of a battle, although the ability to record a reporter’s voice was an important secondary use.



Science Fair Project: AC Ammeter

1939OctPSLast month, we showed how Junior can win the science fair blue ribbon by making a hot-wire ammeter. That device, however, required a bit of precise construction, and the idea might not work if he hasn’t started yet and the project is due tomorrow.

Today, however, we have a project that can be put together in one evening, using parts that can be found around the house, or from the local hardware store. While not as precise, this meter also measures AC current. Today’s project is from 80 years ago, from the October 1939 issue of Popular Science.

The meter consists of nothing more than several turns of wire around a cardboard tube.  A piece of toilet paper tube will work well.  Like most old projects, the instructions call for bell wire, since this was readily available back in the day.  However, any type of insulated wire will work.  Because relatively high currents will be used, it should be a fairly thick gauge.  I would recommend buying a cheap extension cord, cutting off both ends, and then “unzipping” the two wires.

To make the project a bit safer, I would use another cheap extension cord cut in half.  The plug end  can be plugged in to an outlet strip and turned on when it’s time for the experiment.  This would allow you to cover all exposed wires with electrical tape.

After cutting this extension cord in half, splice one set of wires back together.  The remaining set of wires are connected to the coil.  The plug end goes to one terminal of the coil, and the socket end goes to the other side of the coil.  Into the socket, plug in an electric heater, which draws a large current.

Plug this in to the outlet strip and turn it on.  The heater should be running, and all of the current is passing through the coil.  Then, lower two iron or steel nails or screws on a string into the center of the coil.  Since they are magnetized with the same polarity, they will repel one another.  The higher the current, the further apart they are repelled.  You can demonstrate this by switching the heater from high to low.

It should be noted that today’s project involves household current, and care must be taken not to touch any exposed wires, since contact could prove fatal.



The Beauty Corner: 1919

1919Oct8PhiilaIf you were a pretty girl a hundred years ago and wanted your picture in the paper, it was a simple matter of mailing it in for consideration. Shown here is “The Beauty Corner” from a hundred years ago today, in the October 8, 1919, issue of the Philadelphia Evening Public Ledger.  The feature explains that photos can be sent by mail for consideration.

The lucky choice on this day was Miss Helen Grote of 231 S. 61st St., Philadelphia.  Since her address was printed, I assume that her mail for the next several days contained letters from potential suitors.



Buying Live Chickens by Mail

1919OctPS2Some people are surprised to learn that it is still possible to mail day-old live poultry.  But the USPS regulations specify the conditions, and the Postal Service regularly delivers live chicks.  Since they need no water or food for the first few days, they have a surprisingly high survival rate.

The service was new in 1918, as featured in this item from the October 1919 issue of Popular Science.  Surprisingly, you can’t buy live chickens on Amazon.  You can, however, buy fertile eggs and the incubator.  But as both the 1919 article and the Amazon reviews make clear, the survival rate doing it this way is not as good.



Europe Is Talking: The Shortwaves in 1939

1939Oct6RadioguideMany radio receivers sold in the U.S. in the late 1930s contained a shortwave band, but it took war in Europe for many Americans to show interest in tuning in. Eighty years ago today, the October 6, 1939, issue of Radio Guide provided some pointers in how to get the latest news directly from the European capitals.

During the day, London could be heard on the 16 meter band.  Starting mid afernoon, you could tune to 19 meters and also pull in Berlin and Moscow.  Later at night, France and Italy could be tuned in on the 25 and 31 meter bands.



1959 Tesla Coil

1959OctEIThe young woman shown here is startling and impressing her friends by demonstrating the Tesla coil she constructed according to plans published 60 years ago this month in the October, 1959, issue of Electronics Illustrated. She is shown lighting up a neon tube and fluorescent tube thanks to the high voltage produced by the coil.

The article noted that most Tesla coils presented a problem for storage and transport, since the coil is so large. However, this one solved that problem by making both of the coils removable thanks to color-coded banana plugs. The smaller primary coil had color coded connections, and the larger secondary coil plugged right into the base. After dazzling her friends, she could unplug the coils and easily transport the set to the next location.



Golda Meir Visits Milwaukee: 1969

1969October4MJFifty years ago today, October 3, 1959, Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir paid a visit to her old hometown of Milwaukee, her first since becoming Israel’s leader. According to the next day’s issue of the Milwaukee Journal, she was welcomed with open arms and not without honor in her hometown. She is shown above wearing a paper corsage given to her by students at the Fourth Street School where she spoke.  She had attended the school from 1906 to 1912, and the school is now named in her memory.

Mrs. Meir explained that she had come to Milwaukee as a child, fleeing czarist Russia. It was the privileges and equality she enjoyed in America that caused her to believe that her people, like no other peoples, needed a place of their own. She left for Palestine in 1920 to lay the groundwork for Israel.

“I have come back,” she said, “to tell Milwaukee I represent a free and sovereign people who are still struggling for peace–and having absolute faith that, too, will come.”

Security was tight for the visit, with deputies armed with rifles with telescopic sights on the roofs of buildings as her ElAl jet set down in Milwaukee. More police armed with rifles were on the roofs of downtown buildings, and a police boat cruised the Milwaukee river. Seas of admiring fans waved flags, while pro-Arab protesters carried signs reading, “no shalom with napalm.”



1959 Radio Sunglasses

1959SeptPELong before Smart Glasses were even a glimmer in some engineer’s eye, a Japanese visionary came up with these fashionable sunglasses that concealed a three transistor radio. They are reviewed here in the October, 1959, issue of Popular Science.

The circuitry was concealed in the arms of the glasses. A one-transistor RF stage was on one side, with a two-stage AF amp on the other side. Sound was produced by a small transducer, and a tuning control was on the RF side. It was powered by a tiny mercury battery.

According to the review, the set was remarkably sensitive, and picked up most of the New York stations from PE headquarters in Manhattan. Selectivity wasn’t the greatest, but it was more than adequate for separating most local stations.

The glasses are apparently no longer available, but you can still buy the Bluetooth speaker glasses shown below:



Selling Shortwave Sets, 1939

1939OctRadioRetailingThe outbreak of war in Europe on September 1, 1939, meant opportunity for American radio dealers, and the editors of Radio Retailing were quick to point them out in the October 1939 issue.

In particular, the magazine pointed out that the war revitalized the sale of shortwave sets. The article started with some common-sense tips on how to listen, noting that most of the stations of beligerent countries would be presenting only part of the story at best. It also gives the frequencies of some of the strong European stations and gives some pointers on how to sell shortwave sets to new customers.

The article points out, however, that many existing customers had sets that tuned the shortwaves, but that the owners rarely listened to them. With the heightened interest in war news, the magazine gave some ideas. First, it suggested that many buyers might need a better antenna to optimize reception. And even if there was no particular need for an upgrade, it suggested that a friendly service call might be in order. The customer could be instructed in how to tune in the signals, and there might be some services that are needed. The magazine pointed out that a weak tube might work perfectly fine for strong broadcast band signals, but not quite strong enough to pull in the shortwaves.



October 1, 1919: Hams Back On The Air

1919NovQSTA hundred years ago today, October 1, 1919, Amateur Radio Operators were once again allowed to transmit, after being required to dismantle their stations during the war. They were allowed to begin receiving earlier in the year, but the transmitting ban was not lifted until October.

The notification came to ARRL headquarters just as the October issue of QST was going into the mail. Apparently a notice was added to the copies mailed, but that does not exist in the online QST archives. The notice above appeared in the November 1919 issue of QST.

Another article in the magazine reminded readers that prewar licenses had all expired. Amateurs who held an unexpired commercial license could operate under that authority, but all amateurs needed to get a station license.

Despite clerical staff being short, the radio inspectors were making provisions to get licenses issued as fast as possible. In fact, the inspector was able to advise the applicant that he had passed and what his call sign was going to be, and he could start operating immediately.

It was recommended that applications be made in person, but for those who couldn’t make it to the inspector’s office, there was provision for licensing by mail. In Boston, for example, the inspector required all within 40 miles to apply in person. Those more than 40 miles away from the city were allowed to apply and take the examination by mail.