The postwar era brought a new product: The clock radio. This ad, from the June 1946 issue of Radio Retailing, showed one of the earliest examples from General Electric, which appears to be a model 50, a four-tube set.

With this new innovation, customers could say goodbye to sleep-shattering alarms, but after five minutes, an alarm would sound, to keep them from cheating.  Dealers were encouraged to stock up, since it was a natural for multiple set sales.  Everyone in the family would want one, and there was a great ad campaign in progress, along with full color point of sale displays.

Sixty years ago this month, the June 1961 issue of Radio Electronics posed the question, “how can I prepare my child for today’s electronic world?” The answer was shown on the cover. A kit such as this would not make a child an electronic genius overnight, but it would let the parent find out of the child had an interest in and aptitude for electronics.

Shown here is the Heathkit Electronic Workshop model SK-50, and the magazine reviewed a number of similar kits. This one allowed the young radio fan to build 19 different electronic projects, simply by wiring the components together according to the instructions. The magazine article doesn’t state the price, but the kit was still in Heath’s 1966 catalog for $19.95.

I sometime hear it lamented that these kits are no longer available, but that’s not true. First of all, from the picture above, it would be possible to recreate the kit shown above simply by looking at the picture. But if you want to buy a similar set for Junior, then one of the Elenco Snap Circuit kits shown below fits the bill:

This young man is pulling in the proverbial strong local station thanks to one of two sets described in Popular Mechanics 70 years ago this month, June 1951. Both sets are billed as low-cost sets for young radio experimenters, and the magazine noted that such designs re not as plentiful as they should be.

The set above is a crystal set using a galena detector. The tuning coil is wound on a rectangular piece of wood under the chassis, and there is an opening on top for a slider.

The father-son team at left have upgraded the set. First of all, instead of a galena detector, this set uses a 1N34 diode. And for added volume, it employs a 3Q5-GT tube as audio amplifier. For the B+, the set uses 9 volts, but the article points out that for added volume, as much as 90 volts can be used.

If you are thinking of recreating one of these designs, you might find ideas for sourcing parts at my crystal set parts page.

Eighty years ago this month, as shown in the June 1941 issue of Popular Mechanics, Junior was so pleased with his new crystal set that Dad decided to make a second one for himself. The set was so small that it was built right in to an old set of “Baldwin” style headphones, which had an extra large Bakelite shell and cap to house the set.

Into the bottom of the shell was placed a spiderweb coil, and the the shaft of a small tuning condenser was mounted in a hole drilled in the bottom. A wire with a spring clip was used for the optional but recommended ground connection, with another for any convenient antenna.

Eighty years ago, the hapless radio serviceman at left was making his customer wait for a relatively simply job to be completed. The one at the right, however, was able to proceed immediately with the job, thanks to having in stock a kit consisting of 18 volume controls, along with various switches and shafts. He didn’t have to wait for the exact replacement. He just located the resistor of the correct value, and then added the shaft himself, tapping it in place with a hammer. If a switch was part of the control, it was an easy matter to add that as well.

The set of 18 controls sold to the dealer for $14.97, with a total list price of $29.95. The kit came from the International Resistance Company of 401 N. Broad Street, Philadelphia, and this ad appeared in the June 1941 issue of Radio Retailing.