Yesterday, we posted this quiz from the July 1940 issue of Radio Craft magazine. Based upon the symptoms shown, what was wrong with the radio? As promised, here’s the answer: R1 is open. Here’s a more complete explanation:
We’ll give you 24 hours to think about it, and then post the correct answer tomorrow.
Would you have made the grade as a radio technician 80 years ago? You can find out from this quiz in an ad in the July 1940 issue of Radio Craft magazine. Based upon these symptoms, can you figure out what’s wrong? If you graduated from National Radio Institute’s home study course, you would undoubtedly identify the problem right away.
For a larger version of the image, click on it. Then, in most browsers, click on it again to enlarge.
We’ll give you 24 hours to think about it, and then post the correct answer tomorrow.
In this day’s issue of Broadcast magazine 75 years ago, the Broadcasting industry was alerted to something that hams would soon figure out as they got back on the air in the following years: There was going to be a lot of surplus equipment hitting the market soon. There were already rumors of a warehouse full of transmitters, and some 250 watt transmitters were already hitting the market.
A broadcast engineer with time on his hands could probably even track down most of the parts necessary for a 50 kW transmitter. With the war still going on in the Pacific, there was already an estimated $30 million in surplus available. And when hostilities ended, this was estimated to hit $5 billion.
An interesting look at Herbert Hoover’s 1928 campaign can be found at the National Archives Hoover Heads Blog.
We previously featured a 1917 ad for this Steward portable phonograph. The set had gone to war, as that ad pointed out that thousands were on their way to the boys in the Army and Navy. Peace now prevailed, and this ad shows the phonograph being used by picnickers.
The 1917 ad gave a Chicago address. By 1920, the phonographs were being made in Canada, and this 1920 ad gives the company’s address as the Lincoln Building, Buffalo, New York, presumably a more convenient location to import from Canada.
According to this ad directed to retailers, not carrying this phonograph was the equivalent of a dealer saying they didn’t want to make money.
The ad appeared a hundred years ago this month in the July 1920 issue of Talking Machine World.
One hundred years ago this month, the July 1920 issue of Electrical Experimenter introduced its readers to a new concept, namely, something known as the “extension cord.” The magazine noted that the extension cord was one of the handiest little articles around the electrically lighted home, and the it was naturally one of the first things wanted.
The article gave detailed instructions on how to put together an extension cord, and stressed the importance of using all new components for the plug, socket, and wire. It warned that house wiring needed to be kept 2-1/2 inches from other wires, and at least a half inch from any surface. In the extension cord, the wires would be in close proximity, separated only by combustible cotton insulation. Therefore, only the very best new materials should be used. As for the length, the magazine suggested that 25 feet would be suitable for most purposes.
For those wishing to save some work, extension cords are now readily available, and with the proper plugs. The one shown at left includes three USB ports. If you want to recreate the 1920 cord, I wasn’t able to find one off the shelf. However, it’s an easy matter of combining the cord shown at right and one of the the handy converters shown below.
Many savvy travelers toss one of the converters on the left into their suitcase. It almost always guarantees an extra electrical outlet in a hotel room.
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A hundred years ago this month, the July 1920 issue of Popular Science reported that the United States Forest Service had found a valuable ally in the radiotelephone. 42 sets like the one shown above were in operation at remote points in Wyoming, Montana, and Oregon. Range varied from 10 to 300 miles, with about 50 miles being typical.
The article noted that two such stations bore a cost of about $3000. However, that particular circuit covered 60 miles, and a comparable telephone system would have cost over $5000. Even though rangers started with no radio experience, the Service reported that after a few months, they were able to expertly take and send messages.
The trees themselves were pressed into service as antenna supports. At each site, two suitable trees would be stripped of branches and the wires stretched between them. Initially, storage batteries were packed back to the closest town for charging, but gasoline generators had just been installed to save that labor.
Mules, such as the ones shown at right, transported the equipment to its station. But when the trails got too steep for the mules, the rangers themselves carried the equipment.
Even though today marks the 244th anniversary of American independence, it is actually the 150th anniversary of the Independence Day holiday. July 4 was first made a federal holiday in 1870.
Seventy-five years ago this month, the July 1945 issue of Popular Science shared this self-explanatory helpful hint for mounting a radio on the wall. Many times, the radio wound up at the wrong end of the room, because that’s where the table was. With this idea, you can mount it wherever desired, and it had a sleek “built-in” look about it.
The magazine did caution that before following this scheme, you should make sure the radio’s cabinet is structurally sound.
