The AM Forum

Had a great eyeball with each of them in their shacks. Was even able to AM express somethings for Joe back from Franks. Joes place was so wild I just bout soiled myself !!! The Vortex Museum should be visited by every living ham at least once. I am beginning to think that every piece of ham gear that has ever existed may have passed through there at least once.
Frank has some very nice restoration work he has done and enjoyed his stories. Look forward to seeing both of them again perhaps in 1 land at my QTH?     
http://home.comcast.net/~8tj/SLAB_BACON._JPG.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~8tj/IBX.JPG
http://home.comcast.net/~8tj/KPD_at_IBX.JPG

 

Now wait a minute Carl,
is this some kind of trick lens that you used for the effect,
or is this another manifestation of distorted laws of physics caused by
<<<<<<<<<<<<< V O R T E X  ---   J O E   >>>>>>>

The bending of the shelves is caused by the strong supernatural forces sucking radios down the stairs to the right of the picture.

It is all you can do to pull yourself back up. I was just about hit by a DX-100 and a Pattterson PR-10 that came floating by themselves from the sky .

Clearly it is an unusal act of the gods that brings so many BAs to one spot in PA

 

So what you're telling me is Vortex Joe iis the same as Uri Geller, eh ?


You know instead of bending spoons with his mind ...

                 Got Radio?

Wow !! Nice set of  pics. Joe's got a really awesome shack there. Nice stuff.  Very nice.

Yeah and just for the record, Joe and I collected some more 'items of interest' for the Vortex yesterday. Those shelves aren't bending, they're groaning! And they aren't the only ones. If you would have looked around Carl, you would have seen many more. Its rumored that an event horizon is forming near the Vortex as evidence of time becoming slower and light failing to escape from the lower bowels of Joe's residence :)

Every Radio known to man must be in the VORTEX!!!!!!
Nice Pics guys.

Have a safe weekend.
Fred

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...and I presume the weather vane on top of the house is in the form of a BUZZARD??? [/b]



                  ::) ::) ::) ::) ::) ::)







.

Driving by his QTH early the other morning I was able to capture this pic of the actual N3IBX Vortex in action. It was an awesome sight. It occurs just after sunrise for about 73 seconds

Thanks for the pics Carl. hope I can make an eyeball qso with Joe sometime, well you are a real traveller! when you come back to Mexico again?

Regards

Carl - Did you take that picture about 5AM? The vortex effect is all done with transformers, "ESCO" genemotors, and of course, vacuum toobs. I set the angle of the dangle proportional to the input direction of the triode vectors. Once the old "ESCO" is fired up I have B+, and set things in a clockwise motion.

BTW, I just picked up a real nice "ESCO" for use on an OB rig. 12VDC@50 amps will give me 1725VDC@250ma. I just love to hear the 400hz or so whine from a genemotor doing it's job. Lets you know your B+ is working!

I have Steve Davis, KD2NX to thank for the "Vortex Joe" monicker. He said: "Anything with a vacuum tube in it that is 500 miles from Washington Crossing,Pa., gets sucked into my besement shack - never to see the light of day again.

Paul,VJB: - The shelves are weighted down from a few pieces of smaller "iron" resting on them. I used to keep some of my smaller audio transformers and associated millieu on those shelves until I discovered the bow in them. I since co-mingled the small audio iron with the medium and large audio iron to a seperate room; but the bowed shelves remained that way. I figured it was still useful until I find something else like it lying by the curbside.

Best Regards,
                  Joe Cro N3IBX

Pedro - You're more than welcome over here anytime. Ditto with anyone from the AM Community. Any chance you'll be out this way in the not too distant future?

Best Regards,
                   Joe Cro N3IBX

Yes, a very old one!

I think the first pic is the 1936 W4DKE transmitter I gave Frank imported from Tennesee on the back of my pickup truck. Last I heard he got it back to 90% done. Any farther progress?

DERBmeister,
                  As far as I know Frank is pretty close to "lighting it off". He's done painstaiking work to it, and it looks like a brand new rig inside and out. He had to do the "Vulcan Mind Tap" to figure out where some of the parts went, but there was a place for everything and everything is in it's place. I believe he incorporated a Millen exiter into it to drive the 8005's.

I can't wait to hear it on the air!

How have you been Derb?
Best Regards,
                  Joe N3IBX

Oh I'm not doing too bad. My radiation teatments are almost done, only 8 more to go. I've been taking daily rad and chemo for the last 24 days. SOme days are good, others not so good. Lucky I have not been barfy yet, but I have had some other yucky side effects. I am as bald as they get, no hair.

I dont have much energy and I sleep quite a bit becuase of the fatigue. I'm not able to work, at least doing what I used to do. I can walk, but it hurts a lot sometimes. I need a cane most days. Left hand/arm leg/foot is kinda crapped out, not bad enough to need a chair yet thank god. I think I told everyone me and Gloria got married, but I'm not sure. Some days are a blur and other days I almost feel normal.

I'd like to be there for the lighting off of that TX. Hopefully I'll still be around come the fall when op season gets started back up.

Timmy,
          Great to see you on here!! I have prayed for your recovery, and hope that all turns out ok-fine. I miss your mug and the imfamous B.J.B.!! I have got the W4DEK transmitter about 90% done, but I just cant seem to find that last elusive part that I need to finish it. Its called a round tuit. They are made of unobtanium and tough to find. Every time I set out to work on it more projects seem to pop up. I will let everyone know when it is finished. I now have the poifict receiver to pair up with it!
thanks to a little bird I now have an SX-28 to pair up with it!

the Vortex Museum is by far beyond anything that one could comprehend if you havent been there to experience it in person. I often wonder when the walls are going to start to shudder and the roof is gonna blow off!! Now, here is an even scarier thought for those who have experienced it: Imagine being in there at night and the lights went out! Could you make it out alive!!??

My short visit with Carl was by far too short! This man is a true Gentleman!!
I had an experience with him that has never happened to me before. He came down to buy the 2 Vikings that I had posted for sale. We had emailed back and forth and agreed on a selling price for said merchandise. Upon his examination of the goods
he said that I had understated the condx of said goods and was very adamant that he give me more than we agreed on. I have never had this happen to me in the past.This man is a true gentleman!! I only hope we can enjoy each others company again when we have more time to hang out!
                                                                   The Slab Bacon

Hey Mr. Bacon,
I enjoyed the visit too and agree it was way to short but as you know I was trying to get to CT that night. Made it as far as Princeton NJ at 10 and called it a night.
As far as the price goes the units were far better then I thought based on the description so the only right thing to do was to make up the difference. I aint gonna be no rug merchant.

Derb, glad to here there are some good days mixed in and that you missed out on the barfing. May the good days become more often. You got to get over to Franks and see the beautiful job he has done on that xmtr

"Mr. Bacon,"

I like that one !

You guys have heard of Iggy Pop, right?

Well the always-formal BBC once did an interview with him, and in keeping with protocol, the interviewer constantly referred to him as "Mr. Pop."

Paul - How about "Slab-a-Dabba-Doo"?

Geezee Paul, You know me pretty well, but I cannot envision myself equated to Iggy Flopp!  I am ornery and not at all modest, and can be put up to doing just about anything for a laugh. But I just couldnt envision myself fondling and playing with my "private parts" on a stage in front of a live audience!! Thats pretty bad!!
                                                                                The Slab Bacon

Well somehow calling him the" Slab Master "did not seem fitting of a man of his stature and refinement

Besides, Franks latest project is petitioning the local PUC to force the electric utility to replace all wire from the generation station to his house using special gold plated copper wire suspended in liquid oxygen. All connections to this feed must be airtight and specially welded to the feed. Mr. Bacon, an renowned researcher in the audio arena says that tests he performed indicate that “This is the last step to insuring more liquid mids and satin highs, while maintaining that smooth bass and focused soundstage”

By installing special house wiring, sockets, plugs and power cords in his own house,  Mr. B says that he has been able to prove that harmonic textures ebbed and flowed with startling dynamic nuances and the sort of liquidity and purity one only comes to associate with world-class audio products.

He sees all of this as critical to properly use the rack transmitter he got from the Derb. Be careful, he is an obsessed man on a mission about this

Any news on the oxygen free listening area???????

Vortex Joe, I'd heard of you and your vortex before I ever showed up here on amfone.  KD2NX and I have known each other for a number of years.  He's a good guy too and when I met him he had quite a collection of great stuff too.  I had met him due to our common interests in Motorola stuff, but goodness knows I surely appreciated his boatanchor collection in the kitchen as well.

I'm overdue to call him.  I'll be sure to let him know you mentioned him.   I know he'll be happy about that.

Mr. Pop.  Yep, I remember that.  Too funny.

"And which one's Pink?"

Chris, and Joe,
                      I had a very pleasnt telefonium qso with Steve last night. He is doing well. I was poking him with a stick to get him to get back on the air!!
       
                                                              the Slab Bacon

Frank,
       I appreciate the nudging to get Steve back on the air. I always enjoy talking to him. I heard he was on 75M slopbucket about a week ago. If he can get on ssb, he can get on AM. I'm not sure what equipment he has left, but I know he has his Globe Kings, and other gear that will transmit AM. I may even have offered him a loaner or two. I bet it was good getting caught up with things between you two'ins.

Chris,
      If you have Steve's number please give him a call to "nudge" him as well. If you need his fonium number send me an IM and I'll give it to you.

I remember all of the commercial and military stuff he had in his basement, the Globe Kings and TR-7 station in his kitchen, along with the huge blackboard with everyone's telefonium number on it, and the HT4-H out on the back patio. The HT4-H went from Steve's house to the shack of Ray, WD2AFJ, and eventually got "sucked" into my basement shack. What a job it was moving it. I'm still recuperating from the adventure three or four years ago - hi!

Steve definitely had a "military and commercial rig Vortex" in his basement since you had to watch where you walked. There were military and commercial rigs everywhere. If you didn't watch your step, you would definitely step on something! I think he had two Viking II's, DX-100's, a new uncrated ART-13, Bendix ATD, and lots of other "stuff" and useful bits, transformers, etc. down there as well. I always loved going into the "Vortex" Steve had in his basement and throughout his whole house.

Best Regards,
                  Joe N3IBX

Chris,
      Did Steve ever do his A-rab imitation for you? It was a "hoot" and he was always right on the money!
      Regards,
                 Joe Cro N3IBX