On Tue, 19 Aug 2008 20:04:58 -0400, "D.Duck" wrote:


"Short Wave Sportfishing" wrote in message
.. .
On Tue, 19 Aug 2008 17:18:19 -0400, "D.Duck" wrote:


"Short Wave Sportfishing" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 19 Aug 2008 17:03:07 -0400, "D.Duck" wrote:


"Short Wave Sportfishing" wrote in message
om...
On Tue, 19 Aug 2008 16:06:12 -0400, "D.Duck" wrote:


"Short Wave Sportfishing" wrote in message
news:kc8ma4lmppfvlcgh1tuladh2lk8c2ghfj8@4ax .com...
On Tue, 19 Aug 2008 14:27:22 -0400, Wayne.B
wrote:

On Tue, 19 Aug 2008 18:21:40 GMT, Short Wave Sportfishing
wrote:

However, I can tell the difference between, say, my Mac 50s and a
similar power level solid state monoblock.

I think it's safe to say that the old tube amps had more "warmth",
just the thing for a cold winter's night in New England. :-)

Plus, the extra added advantage of glowing in the dark.

Nothing like a dim room and the soft glow of vacuum tubes. :)

I should take a picture of my Dad's Collins S-line some evening
after
dark.

Now that's a sight. :)

Don't the 30S-1 and 30L-1 use ceramic output tubes? Now the glass
tubes
in
the rx and tx would glow for sure.

Only the 30S-1 - cathode drive, ceramic triodes. The 30L-1 uses four
811A glass triodes cathode drive in parallel.

Got it, tnx.....memory fart.

The only reason I know that is because my Dad had both of them - the
S-1 I sold a few years ago because it is much too big for my purposes.

Besides, the L-1 looks better on the desk. :)

I used to have a KW-1. There was a real brute. While I was in the USMC on
Okinawa in '59 I used to transmit hour after hour of RTTY messages back
home
at full legal power plus a little for good measure.

I used to work MARS all the time when I was in SEA - loved the ability
to REALLY crank it up. :)

QRP? HA!!!

Anyhoo...

My Dad was a rather conservative soul, but when it came to radios, he
and his life long friend Fred used to "experiment" with antennas and
such.

Probably the classic Ed and Fred device was a 75 meter base loaded
antenna on his '54 Ford Crown Victoria powered by a homebrew
California kilowatt amp excited by his KWM-2. They jury rigged a
second generator and battery system to power the whole thing.

Occasionally, when the weather was right, you could produce a corona
ball off the tip of the antenna which was a sight in and of it'self
never mind the base loaded antenna. To keep it upright, they used
huge electrical service insulators and manilla rope tied off to the
door posts. :)

Then there...well, we'll tell that one another time. :)

I've seen some really wild mobile contraptions in my day. Your Dad's sounds
like a real prize.

Heh - Fred had a '58 Chevy wagon and his wife used to complain about
all the radio gear he had in the back of it. :)

I've done a few things in my day too - like shut feeding a bridge on
160 and actually making a contact with it. :)