W3DUQ's personal rig...

[W3MMR]

So, I have a chance to buy one of Bill, W3DUQ's homebrew rigs. Not sure what tubes are in it yet, but I hear Bill was quite a staple here in the NE on AM... This is the only photo I have. I'm going to look at it wednesday... Anyone know this rig or could tell some stories about the man?

[KK4YY]

Here the man himself starting at 10:20. His famous ID timer can be heard at 11:06.
http://amfone.net/mkportal/modules/media/file/mk_166.mp3

[W3MMR]

Here the man himself starting at 10:20. His famous ID timer can be heard at 11:06.
http://amfone.net/mkportal/modules/media/file/mk_166.mp3

Awesome! Sounds like like some deep stuff maaaaaan lol. It has a pair of Ax-9902's in it...

[KK4YY]

Here the man himself starting at 10:20. His famous ID timer can be heard at 11:06.
http://amfone.net/mkportal/modules/media/file/mk_166.mp3

Awesome! Sounds like like some deep stuff maaaaaan lol. It has a pair of Ax-9902's in it...

Oh yeah, real astral plane stuff.
That rig is probably in the 500 watt carrier output range.

[WB4AIO]

Wow -- that photograph really brought back some memories!

Here's WA1HLR's tribute to Bill, W3DUQ from 2014, featuring reminiscences from many of Bill's friends:

https://liberty.3950.net/W3DUQ%202014-1115-1122%20radio%20timtron%20worldwide%20uncle%20willie%20tribute%20both%20parts.mp3

73,

Kevin, WB4AIO.

[WB4AIO]

Here the man himself starting at 10:20. His famous ID timer can be heard at 11:06.
http://amfone.net/mkportal/modules/media/file/mk_166.mp3

Awesome! Sounds like like some deep stuff maaaaaan lol. It has a pair of Ax-9902's in it...

I made a speed-corrected version, which can be heard here:

http://liberty.3950.net/Am%20Jamboree%20W3DUQ%20W3VJZ%20WA3UAN%20W2WAS%20WA1OAT%20many%20other%20-%201980s%20-%20speed%20corrected%20mk_166.mp3

[K1JJ]

Hi Kevin,

That 2014 DUQ memorial by Tron was really well done.  I am surprised Tim  is not an international super star by now... :-)  (actually he is in my mind)

The recording you posted above of AMers past was quick intereresing too.   When we first record it we think it has no value, but just like old pictures, they get more valuable as time races by.  

It's like a moment captured in time, similar to the beginning of the movie "Contact" where we race away from the Earth hearing the progressing past, finally to be far enough away to be ahead of the radio waves and silence occurs.


T

[WA2SQQ]

An excellent example of "theater of the mind" I'd put this up there in the same class as Jean Shepard and Wolfman Jack radio!

[WB4AIO]

Hi Kevin,

That 2014 DUQ memorial by Tron was really well done.  I am surprised Tim  is not an international super star by now... :-)  (actually he is in my mind)

The recording you posted above of AMers past was quick intereresing too.   When we first record it we think it has no value, but just like old pictures, they get more valuable as time races by.  

It's like a moment captured in time, similar to the beginning of the movie "Contact" where we race away from the Earth hearing the progressing past, finally to be far enough away to be ahead of the radio waves and silence occurs.


T

Timtron is indeed quite the storyteller.

Yes, that is all true, Tom. Days of Auld Lang Syne. How short a time we walk on this Earth. The only thing that lasts more than a few milliseconds is Nature, our children, and the things we teach them.


73 to you and to Bill Nagle, wherever you are.

Kevin, WB4AIO.

[WB4AIO]

An excellent example of "theater of the mind" I'd put this up there in the same class as Jean Shepard and Wolfman Jack radio!

True, very true. I don't know where the Wolfman can be heard these days, but someone is broadcasting Shep 24/7 on an online radio station called Insomnia Theater: https://lf.org/insomnia/

I do wish someone who had extensive recordings of DUQ would post them for us.

73,

Kevin, WB4AIO.

[AJ1G]

That Tron tribute to Uncle Bill may be the world record longest old buzzard transmission he’s ever made...nearly 4 hours, yikes.  Listened to 40 minutes so far... had to come up for air!  Brings back lots of memories..Bill’s upside down tube rig...the discussion on the Apache with the outboard modulator perked my ears up...wonder if that is what inspired me to build my own WB2ZPS outboard modulator for my Scratchy Apache....1625s and a piece of mod iron from a Navy TDT (?) or TDQ (?) early VHF transmitter (829B final modded by 807s) drove it with a Heathkit A7 mono hifi amp...same amp you have Perry.  Still have the Shure Sphere-O-Dyne mic I used with it...man does it sound awful now!  Used to test the Apache with the outboard modulator (into a dummy load of course) with Led Zeppelin II cuts....sometimes used the outboard modulator to drive a some big speakers through an added on step down high power audio amp output transformer...man it was  loud for it’s time, was a great party sound system.

[W3GMS]

I knew Bill for most of my over 50 years and he was quite the guy. 

Extremely smart, very creative and the nicest guy to talk to on the air as you have ever ran into. 

I ran into Bill as an SWL back in 1964.  When licensed, I ground my 80M crystal from the Novice band up to 3.868 to talk to him! 

No mater what rig he was using over the years, he always sounded the same.  When I starting to talk to him in the 60's, he was using a modified Apache with an "upside down tube topology" in the RF amplifier.  It contained a peak tube and a carrier tube.  Super Modulation was kind on the bands in the 60's! 

He always ran a linear, non class C amp with a low lever driver of either his design or a heavily modified rig. 

A book could be written on the man and his contributions to our hobby. 



73,
Joe-W3GMS       

[N3GTE]

I remember Bill on the air back in the late '60s I was living the Md and could hear him quite well on my little BC-454. Was a young teen then and wondered what the upsidedown tube was. And he had at squeaky chair! Humorous and very sharp. Miss hearing him on 75.

Terry N3GTE

[Steve - K4HX]

I first tuned into Bill as a SWL in 1976. He was always one of the more interesting guys on the air. Bill had that squeaky chair until the day he went off the air. 

He was one of the first to bring back Hi-Fi AM. Check out his QSL card from 1957!

[KK4YY]

So the big question is: Are you going to buy it? If not, how about putting the owners contact info here so that someone who wants it can put it back on the air? Just sayin'.

[W2JBL]

Hey Steve- I have that same W3DUQ QSL card here. I was there at his place for a big AM party in '73 and saw and operated that PA. He's the reason I got on AM.