Eighty-five years ago, this gentleman is pulling in a program with a receiver he built for only $4.06, following the plans in the October 1940 issue of Popular Science.

The three-tube circuit was simplicity itself. It was an AC-DC set that used a 25Z5 rectifier, 6C6 regenerative detector, and 43 AF amplifier. It could provide loudspeaker volume on the broadcast band.

The chassis was an aluminum cake pan, which had the added advantage of being easy to work with. If no drill or punch were available, it could be cut with an ordinary pair of scissors. It was housed in a metal cabinet found in the home scrap pile.  The coils were honeycomb-style and were easy to wind. A 25 foot antenna was called for.