I got a note from one of the gang here saying "I enjoy reading your
"debugging status reports". I think old manual printing presses qualify as
QRP rigs, don't you?"
Well, yeah. Kinda. It's probably more like running an older tube transmitter
and receiver, as in a tube rig that doesn't have all the cute little features
that SSB tube rigs sometimes had. Like anything more than the selectivity
control that used to be on WW II bomber receivers. (No, I don't remember the
nomenclature. I wasn't born then and besides, I only know what they look
like, not what they're called. Big green bandswitch knob lookes like the lid
on a blender or something.)
Running old fashion hand-fed, foot-&-treadle pumped cast iron presses is a
lot more exercise than QRP. Unless you're running the rig off the stationary
exercise bike-&-generatorizeroony kinda deal. But you'd probably spend more
time sittin' on your duff settin' the type than you would running any radio.
Unless you're running a type caster, in which case you gotta factor in the
lead-oxide dust and sprues off the back blade of the mold. But that's another
story.
It's like rebuilding an old Johnson Viking that won't do anything but key up
full tilt even with the key open. (Yeah, I know: tubes... you gotta get tubes
what ain't gone soft....) Once you get all the waxy caps replaced and all the
chokes checked and blown all the dust and dead mouse droppings out of the
chassis, you still gotta go through hell getting the tubes. Like finding a
74HC240 when all the store's got is HCT240s, which I understand on good
authority is a very uncool substitution.
So the Pearl? Well, I'm headed over to Dave Churchman's Sterling Type Foundry
on Saturday to get the missing chunks of cast iron that will prevent the base
from folding over and thus breaking (again) the throw off lever, the roller
arms and one of the little toggle/lever doodads on the throw-off excentric
cam assembly. (Doesn't techno talk in something you don't wanna know about
really cheeze you off? Sure does me. Here.... have one of these cheese
otters... you'll feel better soon enough.)
Of course, to do all this, I'm taking with me part of the Grinnin' Turkey
Type Foundry stash of hazardous waste (a 5-gallon paint bucket full of sprues
and dead type metal), a bunch of 12x18 aluminum galleys, a 40-slot,
half-height galley cabinet, a kerning machine (yeah, you used to have to
actually machine the notches under the cross-bar of upper case Ts and the
like) and some other crap that I don't want cluttering up what's left of the
garage. Dave will probably give me some old ink or something in trade. The
parts I gotta pay for. Expect it to happen.
Weird thing though: I got a call the other day from Tom Ebbert (of the
sometimes noticed in various ham mags advertising as "Ebbert Graphics &
Stamps" what used to have a booth at the Dayton Hamvention sellin' QSL
printing, so as you'd know about him). He wants to go over to Dave's with me.
That'll be weird. We ain't seed each other in maybe five years or more.
Hmmm...
And I almost got fired up about building a box for the NC38S which I have yet
to take in to work and put on a scope for a real look-see. Did get a neat
10:1 reduction drive from Dan's SP&K, which makes tuning really neat.
Sli-i-i-i-i-i-i-ide through the signals. Verrry slo-o-o-o-owly. Maybe I will
have one fixed up for Dayton. If my luck and the weather holds out.
Did I say that Ebbert actually might take the type caster too? Set the hook
and reel 'em in, I say.
See ya on the air . . . which actually does happen. 'Though I spend most of
the time listening for someone talking about their NC38S. Hmmm . . . . Maybe
Ebbert needs one of these too . . . . (Sound of fish line paying out:
"zi-i-i-i-i-e-e-e-e-e")
73
Nils
WB8IJN &c
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