New to This......

[Rod_DVU SWL]

Name here Rod
Call used to be WA1DVU.
Call now: none.

Forum experience: none, so i don't know what this is going to look like.

I don't see many calls I recognize on here but maybe some of you have changed calls, a lot changes in the many years since I was on the radio.

One change is a grandson who wants to know about ham radio. So, I got him a Drake 2B at a ham radio flea market. Old Buzzard owner said it worked. Nope. After fixing some "fixes,' I got it to say a few words but alignment seems messed up.

I did learn that 2B alignment is not a simple thing without some good instruments, of which I have nothing left.

Enough disjointed rambling, but isn't that part of ham radio?

I'll see if I can make this appear where I think it will.

[W3RSW]

Welcome Rod,

de w3rsw, ex wa3ypi.
Yeah a lot of calls have been changed over the years.

How long ago you talkin' ?

As you probably know,
There are lots of older fine sounding receivers
you can find, especially if your partial to AM.

The 2B's a pretty nice early SSB rig. Hope you
get it working better.  Should be plenty of references in
the blogosphere.

[Rod_DVU SWL]

Thanks for the welcome, Rick.

It is something in the neighborhood of 20 years, I think, since I was on. Long enough for some fog to settle in.

AM was my preference although I did have some of the "other", mainly for mobile use.

Space for stuff was a big factor in choosing the 2B. He does not have a lot of room to play with. The audio is not all that bad, at least in good 'phones. Somebody "fixed" the speaker audio system but I haven't looked into that yet.  

There is a lot of 2B pages but they all seem to be copies of the same thing. I need to find out how to align the 80 meter front end because the whole rest of the radio is based on that.

[KA0HCP]

Welcome back, Rod!

Keep digging into the radio.  I'm sure it will jog loose your memory on electronics.  Having a motivation to aid a relative is good motivation!

Cheers, Bill

[Rod_DVU SWL]

Welcome back, Rod!

Keep digging into the radio.  I'm sure it will jog loose your memory on electronics.  Having a motivation to aid a relative is good motivation!

Cheers, Bill

Thanks Bill.

If he had not gotten interested I probably would not have started digging  out my old junk. But, maybe now I can find somebody who can use some of it.

[K4RT]

Rod,

Welcome back to radio.  My interest in SWL led me into amateur radio.  If your grandson develops an interest in ham radio maybe you both could study for the exam together.

If you don't have the complete 2B manual, Pete WA2CWA might be able to fix you up with a copy.  Don't overlook the AMfone search function. There might be a thread or two about the 2B here.

Lots of new interest in & activity on AM and quite a few tube sideband rigs are back on the air these days in case the bug bites and you go the tube route.

73,
Brad K4RT

[Opcom]

Hello Rod and welcome.

Pete's manuals are very fine quality and I was never disappointed.

I too got into transmitters after doing a of of SWL-ing for many years. Then I was coerced into ham radio taking the test as part of a bet. My tube audio hobby prevailed in steering me to AM but I will use other modes whenever it is necessary to do so.

The people here are nice so stay around and you will find friends and assistance!

[Rod_DVU SWL]

Rod,

Welcome back to radio.  My interest in SWL led me into amateur radio.  If your grandson develops an interest in ham radio maybe you both could study for the exam together.

I guess "back to" is fitting. There have been some long spells of hibernation but it all started for me when I was about 10 years old with a table top short wave set. About 1950.


If you don't have the complete 2B manual, Pete WA2CWA might be able to fix you up with a copy.  Don't overlook the AMfone search function. There might be a thread or two about the 2B here.

I haven't looked on here but the ones I have found on the Internet all look like the one (copy) that came with the radio, ie. 25th generation xerox. I would like to get something where one can read the markings on the schematics.

Lots of new interest in & activity on AM and quite a few tube sideband rigs are back on the air these days in case the bug bites and you go the tube route.

I didn't know there was anything but tubes. My computer uses tubes....... No, not really, but I like to think there has to be at least one in there.

I still have a couple of DX-100's, a32V-3 & some tube type SSB stuff.

My preference would still be AM.



73,
Brad K4RT

[Rod_DVU SWL]

Hello Rod and welcome.

Pete's manuals are very fine quality and I was never disappointed.

I too got into transmitters after doing a of of SWL-ing for many years. Then I was coerced into ham radio taking the test as part of a bet. My tube audio hobby prevailed in steering me to AM but I will use other modes whenever it is necessary to do so.

The people here are nice so stay around and you will find friends and assistance!

I'm glad you won the bet. For some years amfone has been a regular morning stop, your posts in particular. You can blame Steve_QIX for me showing up here.  Something I have been thinking about for quite some time but never quite getting there. I do have a lot of old parts that may be of some use if anybody builds things these days. I will have to get it into The Classifieds. Most of it will be available for the shipping cost or just come pick it up. Nothing remotely approaching SDR, I didn't even know such a thing existed until a few weeks ago.

The woods can be a quiet, comfortable place, but, one does miss out on some stuff.

Rod

[steve_qix]

Hi Rod,

WELCOME !  Glad you finally got things to work 

This is a good group on here - I think you'll find some great information.

Now, if you can just get back on the air 

For those who may not know, Rod is WA1DVU - a blast from the past !!  Used to talk with Rod "all the time" back in the day.

[WBear2GCR]

I'd check the BAMA manual site.
Probably has a Drake 2B there for free download.

The calibrator makes a good signal source for troubleshooting most radios, at least to get them to play...

[Tim WA1HnyLR]

Hi Rod,
I thought you fell into the abyss of forgotten radio amateurs, welcome back. As A general rule I rarely get on line for communication. I STILL use Ham radio on AM . Many people have passed or given up . The landscape has changed but some of us are still here.
Tim WA1HnyLR

[Rod_DVU SWL]

Hi Rod,

WELCOME !  Glad you finally got things to work 

This is a good group on here - I think you'll find some great information.

Now, if you can just get back on the air 

For those who may not know, Rod is WA1DVU - a blast from the past !!  Used to talk with Rod "all the time" back in the day.

Hello Steve
Yes, it sort of works.
I did hear you & some others on it, finally. I think somebody has had their "golden screwdriver" into it. The dial calibrations are not even close & I don't know what adjusts that, or if anything does. There are some things the manual says are factory set with special tools.

As for getting back on the air....... we'll see. Ambition these days is in short supply.

[Rod_DVU SWL]

I'd check the BAMA manual site.
Probably has a Drake 2B there for free download.

The calibrator makes a good signal source for troubleshooting most radios, at least to get them to play...

I have been looking at this web site almost daily for some years and it seems that I know you. But, of course, you never heard of me before. So...... nice to meet you. Thanks for saying hello.

I don't remember if I checked that site for a manual but I did hit a lot of them. As I have said before, A schematic that is readable would be a good start. They all look like they are 25 generations down the xerox chain. & I don't think it is my eyes, I can still read most stuff without glasses.

The calibrator does work but neither the trimmer nor the dial glass will move far enough to bring it anywhere close.

I used an SPR-4 to calibrate my wobbly old Knight kit signal generator to help find where things sort of were.

[Rod_DVU SWL]

Hi Rod,
I thought you fell into the abyss of forgotten radio amateurs, welcome back. As A general rule I rarely get on line for communication. I STILL use Ham radio on AM . Many people have passed or given up . The landscape has changed but some of us are still here.
Tim WA1HnyLR

Hi Tim

I guess I'v gotten into the quicksand off & on but never the abyss. I guess I have my grandson & some nudging from QIX to thank for digging me out this time. It seems some things are genetically programmed  and apparently radio & old cars  are a couple of them. He is afflicted with the old car thing too.

In the last few months I have been listening a lot more & you still put a good signal in here.

Thanks to this board I have kept up on a lot of things from the world of AM that I would not have known about.

I hope you are mending rapidly.

If I can dig my same old DX-100 or 32V-3 out from under the bench (see, it never goes away, just rests) Maybe I'll get on. (After I pass that license exam)

Rod