Sixty years ago, this New York scout made the front cover of the November 1960 issue of Electronics Illustrated by demonstrating this one-transistor superregenerative receiver for the 11 meter Citizen’s Band.

According to the accompanying article, a pair of CB transceivers would set you back about $150. But for many uses, one-way communication was sufficient. The example shown on the cover was “the Boy Scout out on a hiking expedition who wants to tune in home camp.” In addition, the article suggested that a physician might carry a small receiver on a large hospital campus to be paged. Or a TV serviceman working on a roof antenna could hear instructions from the ground.

This simple circuit would satisfy all of those needs. According to the article, the set would provide clear reception up to three miles without fading.