Author Archives: clem.law@usa.net

1965 Fallout Shelter/Ham Shack

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1965AprQSTShown here, in QST for April 1965, is the fallout shelter and ham shack of Nathaniel Cole, WA6TOG. He had a contractor cut a deep trench in the hill, into which he lowered a corrugated pipe. At one end was a concrete bulkhead, and the other end was a concrete storageroom. Bunks for 6-8 people (the article reported that he had six kids) were welded to the pipe, and an entry tunnel led from the storage room to the surface, with a door of 2-1/2 inch laminated plywood.

The radio operating position was at the rear, where pipes led up to the antennas. There were an additional three four-inch air vents.



Hart-25 Transmitter, 1955

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1955AprPESeventy years ago this month, the April 1955 issue of Popular Electronics showed how to put together this simple two-tube (including rectifier) transmitter for the 80 and 40 meter bands. It was dubbed the Hart-25 and designed by Hartland Smith, W8VVD (later W8QX), whose later Hart-65 transmitter we’ve previously seen.

Smith was a prolific writer and kit designer, and you can find a number of his other projects on this site at this link.

This transmitter had about 25 watts input, and delivered about 9 watts to the antenna. Tune up was accomplished by observing a pilot light in series with the antenna while adjusting the output capacitor, as well as a trimmer in line with the antenna. There was a switch for shorting out the lamp. The article noted that you could turn it on occasionally to check the output, but it should be left shorted out most of the time, as it would consume power that would otherwise go to the antenna.

This video shows the transmitter in action:

1955AprPE2



Ham Band Walkie Talkies, 1965

1965AprPESixty years ago this month, the April 1965 issue of Popular Electronics showed the simple process for converting a Knight Kit C-100 walkie talkie to the ham bands. The author, Harland Smith, W8VVD, later W8QX, noted that a walkie talkie is handy for hams in many situations, such as staying in touch with friends at a hamfest, adjusting an antenna, or tracking down TV interference. But there were no low-cost units available for the ham bands.

He showed how simple it was to convert the $9.95 C-100 to 10, 6, or 15 meters. For ten meters, the set needed only a new crystal and a bit of retuning. For 15 or 6, it required rewinding a couple of coils.



1950 Coin Operated Television

1950AprRadioNewsThere was money to be made seventy-five years ago in coin operated televisions, according to the Covideo Coin Operated Television Company, New York, whose ad appeared in the April 1950 issue of Radio News.

Their sets were “specially built” and would play thirty minutes for a quarter ($3.31 in 2025 dollars). Thousands of locations were available, and they would yield immediate profits and steady income.

Unfortunately, they were perhaps a bit overly optimistic in some of their advertising, because a two years later, the Federal Trade Commission slapped them with a Cease and Desist Order.  Among other things, they were prohibited from representing that they manufactured the sets or any component parts. They were also prohibited from claiming that they maintained a staff of competent engineers and technicians, or that they had adequate facilities for research and experimentation.



Converting Your Old Phono to Play 33’s and 45’s: 1955

1944AprPMSeventy years ago, it was starting to look like those newfangled 33 RPM LP records, as well as 45 RPM records, were going to catch on after all. But that handsome radio-phono console in the parlor only played 78’s. Fortunately, a kit was available to add those new speeds. You purchased a new record changer, which came with a mounting board with precut holes to accommodate the new changer. You measured the old board, and cut the new one to fit the cabinet. Connecting the power and phono input were then simple. Depending on which cartridge the new player had, you might also need to add a preamp.

This guide appeared 70 years ago this month in the April 1955 issue of Popular Mechanics.



1925: Coolidge Opens Woman’s World Fair by Radio

Screenshot 2025-03-24 11.49.21 AMScreenshot 2025-03-24 11.24.56 AMOne hundred years ago today, President Calvin Coolidge opened the Chicago Woman’s World Fair by Radio, as shown here in the Washington Evening Star, April 19, 1925.

The event, held at the Chicago Furniture Mart, spanned a week, and was attended by over 180,000, and celebrated women’s achievements in science, art, and business.  In his opening remarks, Coolidge proclaimed that “for long ages past, men have gone forth into the world, more recently they have been followed by women. Each are endowed with the same desire, each attempting to contribute to the satisfaction of the universal longing of the human race to bring something better home. ”

According to the event’s program, among the occupations represented was that of Radio Broadcaster.



1940 DX’ing

1940AprRadioNewsIt wasn’t until June 5, 1940, that the FCC completely banned amateurs from working foreign stations.  And it wasn’t until after Pearl Harbor that amateur radio was put off the air entirely. But even before the ban on foreign contacts, U.S. amateurs had been prohibited from communicating with any of the belligerent countries, and even some neutral countries had shut down amateurs as a precaution. So there wasn’t much DX to be found, as the ham in this cartoon from the April 1940 issue of Radio News has discovered.



Invention of Portable Hole, 1955

PortableHoleToday marks the 70th anniversary of the invention of the portable hole. Specifically, the cartoon “The Hole Idea” was released on April 16, 1955.

The full cartoon does not appear to be available in English, but the Spanish version can be viewed here:



1965: Conditional Territory Gets Smaller

1945AprQSTmapSixty years ago today, “Conditional Territory” in the United States got smaller.

The Conditional Class amateur radio license had privileges identical to the General Class. But instead of taking the exam in front of FCC employees, prospective licensees living far away from FCC exam locations could take it through a volunteer examiner. Until 1965, this applied to those who lived 75 miles away from an exam location. But starting on April 15, 1965, the distance was changed to 175 airline miles. And as long as an exam was given at least semi-annually, that location qualified. As a result, the areas eligible for a Conditional license got much smaller, as shown on the map above. The majority of the population was now ineligible.

The FCC realized that this might be a particular hardship in some cases, and they would entertain requests for waivers. But in most cases, rural hams now needed to make a trip to the closest FCC exam location.

The map appeared in the April 1965 issue of QST.



1950 Automatic Transmissions

1950AprPS3Eagled-eyed observers will notice that something is missing from this picture on the cover of the April 1950 issue of Popular Science.  That’s right.  This Studebaker is missing the clutch pedal, and the magazine features an expose of those newfangled automatic transmissions.