CLASSIC RADIO EXCHANGE NEWSLETTER
FEBRUARY 2006 CX

CLICK ON THE CALL IN THE TABLE TO JUMP TO THAT REPORT
OR JUST SCROLL DOWN AND ENJOY IT ALL

SCORES

HIGH AM SCORE: K3KYR, JEFF

HIGH SSB SCORE: N6KN, ROCCO

HIGH CW SCORE: W8KGI, JIM

HIGH 6 AND 2 METER SCORE: K3KYR, JEFF

HIGH TOTAL SCORE: W8KGI, JIM

HIGH TOTAL QSOs: N6KN, ROCCO

FLASH: There were more 6 and 2 meter participants and QSOs reported than anytime in recent memory.

CLICK ON THE CALL IN THE TABLE TO JUMP TO THAT REPORT
OR JUST SCROLL DOWN AND ENJOY IT ALL

CALL	NAME	SCORE
W8KGI	JIM	318,373
N6KN	ROCCO	85,003
K3KYR	JEFF	64,568
K4CHE	BRECK	56,956
N2AK	MARIO	54,151
K3MD	JOHN	51,837
K9VKY	BRIAN	43,560
KF0HR	TERRY	36,151
W7FOX	CHRIS/FOX	24,154
KC2JLK	HAROLD	10,212
K4JYS	BRIAN	9,765
KC2GHT	HARRY	6.654
W8UT	AL	4,950
WQ8U	MAC	4,864
W2JEK	DON	3,472
W2XS	JOHN	3,362
W8TM	PAUL	2,272
VE3RTG	ROBERT	120

Wait just one or two microseconds here Mac. That is not the score I submitted!

Ahh yes. I recalculated the scores by mode, all QSOs on all bands, in that mode and just the age of the equipment used in that mode was used as the CX age multiplier. I think I got things sorted out using the logs that were submitted. If you think I goofed, please let me know.

Please do not give VE3RTG a hard time. He used a modern rig and very kindly submitted his log as a check log but I couldn't stop my calculator.

INDIVIDUAL REPORTS -NO SCORE SUBMITTED
W8ZR Jim	W4FRM Grady	W2IQK Carl	K3MSB Mark

FEBRUARY 2006 CX PICTURES

A number of interesting pictures were received following this CX so there is a special page displaying them - click here.

AWARDS

DI"STINK"TION AWARD - K4CHE Breck

Later I incurred a very long delay as my ART-13 decided to catch on fire. First noticed a problem when I saw the overhead lights flickering a little bit when I was over in the shop. Also if I listened carefully I could hear the Lambda 50 amp, 28 volt DC supply “chuggen” a little bit. I quickly crossed over to the shack and observed that smoke was pouring out of the ART-13 on the right side. Since the High Voltage was off it must be in the low voltage buss somewhere. I quickly put the top back on it and tried to contain the smoke but if quickly filled the shack. The two smoke alarms started and I just about had to use the C02 extinguisher. Windows were opened, fans were put in place while I tired to evacuate the smoke, thinking quickly that the XYL is not gonna be happy. Major operational delay.

ATTRIBUTION AND DISCLAIMER

The CX Newsletter is intended for the enjoyment of CX participants and others interested in the restoration, operation and enjoyment of Classic Ham Gear. This Newsletter was prepared from materials submitted by CX participants and from on-the-air observations and QSOs. Editorial comments on Individual Reports are shown in [Italics]. Any errors, omissions, or insensitive comments are unintentional. Please let me know if you have suggestions on improving the Newsletter or the CX website.
Thanks and 73,
Mac, WQ8U

REPORTS

W8KGI Jim

Yea, it was an "interesting" time, but I think I may want to change my strategy so that I use less gear but work more people. I qualified 23 receivers and 31 transmitters, but I didn't talk to that many guys. Most of my time was spent "running rigs" with just a few patient people. I've got to change that the next time out and talk to more guys.

All of my gear made it through this time once I got it working. I hefted the 32V3 off the shelf and onto the workbench to clean the relay contact that turns on the high voltage power supply, that repair being finished Saturday afternoon. Prior to that I replaced a filter capacitor in the NTX-30 that had gone bad and was pulling the HVDC way down. I found a few new birdies along the way. It has been VERY VERY dry out here, and I had some RF-in-the-shack problems that prevented the inside-shack keyer from releasing when I ran much more than 80 or so watts out on 80 meters. {Ed. Note: Jim has so many BAs that he has an “inside” shack – for cold weather, and an “outside/garage” shack for warm weather.}

I finally dodged the problem by running the inside-shack gear on 40 where the keyer works fine, and I switched about half of the summer-shack gear in the garage to 80 where it did not have a problem. I ran the other half of the outside gear on 20, so I spent more time in the garage (brrr) and with QRN from the pups (“bark bark”) than I did inside where it was toasty. A few rigs just didn't want to work - the McMurdo Silver 701 likes to sing on its own rather than to work on the frequency I want it to, the Conar wanted to double to 40 rather than going straight through on 80, and the SSB100 seemed to make the breaker in the garage cycle off when it was turned on. But with 31 rigs working, I didn't miss those three. I didn't get the 80 meter Command Set pair in the inside shack qualified. There was time to after I had qualified the gear in the garage, but all of the CX activity out here quit after 10 pm so I gave up too. I also was hearing RTTY birdies all over the 20 meter cw band on the NC303, but not on any of the other receivers. I think it has an image trap on 20 that I need to tweak. At any rate, I used the '303 for a few QSO's on 20, and it worked well on 80.

One other "interesting thing," the RTTY guys thoroughly messed up 7045 out here until they quit around 5 pm MST. But they only filled the band up to about 7070 kc. Above that there was plenty of clear space for CW QSO's. Would it make sense to shift the 40 meter cw CX frequency up above 7070, maybe around 7090 which is 2 x 3545 for crystal users, at least until the RTTY guys quit? Perhaps we could recommend an "alternate spot" to use on 40 when the RTTY QRM is bad on 7045. Think about it. {Ed. Note: What do other CXers think about this idea?} Now for the statistics: I had 23 receivers on with a total age of 1388 years - ranging from 38 years old (R4B) to 73 years old (SW-3 and FB7), with an average age of 60.3 years. I had 31 transmitters on with a total age of 1703 years - ranging from 41 years young (T4X) to 77 years old (1929 210 Hartley), with an average age of 55 years. No wonder they are so much "fun" to keep on the air. So my total CX multiplier is 3091 years. I made 103 contacts, all on CW, getting all of that mess qualified, so my CW score this time is 103 x 3091 = 318,373. I did not work Saturday, too much to do with Puppy School, a 25th anniversary wedding mass and supper and dance afterwards, and I did not work SSB or Phone.

So that's my story and I'm sticking to it!

Thanks to Howie, WB2AWQ, to Mario, N2AK, to John, K3MD, to John, K8AZT (Who did not know what the CX was until he called me but stuck with me through 11 pair changes on 40 and gave me good sig reports on all of my transmitters), to Tom, K8VBL, to Larry, KC8JX, to Fox, W7FOX, to Ray, N0DMS, {Ed. Note: Ray is the Editor of Electric Radio – an outstanding magazine about classic radios.} and to Bob at K2TOP for sticking with me through multiple transmitter and receiver changes. Without those guys in particular I couldn't have gotten so much gear on the air and qualified. And thanks to you, Mac, for stepping up and running the CX for us again and again.

73 until next fall,

Jim Hanlon, W8KGI

N6KN Rocco

It was another hot February weekend in Southern California - I think we set some heat records. I had both large fans on high and still cooked in the shack.

Phone Activity (Saturday): My wife conveniently left for a business trip at 6:30 am Saturday, so this freed me somewhat. The high bands were completely dead, so I opened up near 14270 with the Hallicrafters SR400A. Conditions were not great, but I operated most of the day until 6 pm on or very near 14270. I had a great QSO with Howie at NX2ND, operating on the Submarine USS Ling with and RAL for a receiver - the band was pretty good between the coasts. Notable signals were: W0IYH (homebrew solid state RX/TX); N0BAV (GT 550); KC0SHU (HT37/HQ180).

After a while, a small roundtable developed, and we helped each other work new stations as they came along. I think this was fun for everyone, especially some of the CX newcomers. CX regulars KC8JX, AA4RM and W7FE came up on frequency, and the group more or less held the frequency all day. This gave the guys with the dipoles a chance to hear each other; sometimes the skip cooperated, sometimes not. For some unknown reason, Swans were the popular rig of the day; it seemed that one Swan would attract a flock. {Ed. Note:Obviously they were not Mute Swans.} I qualified the 500CX easily and have developed a greater respect for these fine old transceivers. I qualified 11 rigs on SSB. The CE 100V blew out after one qso, so I can't count that one. I hope it's not something expensive! Overall, the SSB/AM schedule worked out very well for me; I think a lot of people were down on RTTY.

CW Activity (Sunday); I could only operate a few hours in the morning on 20 due to conflicts with two special church services followed by my hosting a party for 60 people Sunday evening. And my wife was out of town. I was out of my mind. So CX took a back seat. I heard that the RTTY interference on 40 was substantial during the day. 14045 was reasonably clear during the morning. I even worked an HA5- he probably thought my "CQ CX" was really "CQ DX" sent by someone sending with two left feet. Oh, well. Mark, K3MD had an especially outstanding signal into the LA area with several rigs. I had to shut down at 1700Z and work on the party preparations, so that was that. While I was running around after ice for drinks, I did hear W8KGI's chirp on 14045. However, I think this is the first CX I have missed making a contact with Jim. At least I heard him (in the car with a 4-ft whip). Overall, CW on 20 was great - I wish more CXer's had been on the air early; I missed many of the regulars who I usually catch later on 20 or on 40.

I thought splitting up the phone and CW/combined days worked out very well - Saturday was a fun day, and I did not feel the need to rush qso's to get to the CW frequencies. I will be interested to know how the CW folks did on 40 and 80.

Rigs Used:
Hallicrafters S-400A
Collins KWM-2A
Hallicrafters SR-150
Hallicrafters HT32B/SX-115
Swan 500 CX
Heath SB401/301
Drake T4X-C, R4-C
Drake TR7A
National NCX-3
Hallicrafters FPM-200
Collins KWM-1
John Valiant
Collins 75A-4

The Swan 500 CX was just the thing to blow a hole in 20 m phone, and I received great reports on it. I now understand why Swan sold so many of these transceivers - they are well designed and a lot of fun to operate. Ed Note: Given the performance, I bet it is a cob, not a pen.}

I had worked very hard on a National HRO-500 and have it working well but did not have time to match it to a transmitter. Maybe next time. The "new" NCX-3 turned out to be a great radio, but the NCX-5 was in little pieces on the bench - hope to have it together for the next CX. I also have two Signal Shifters and two HT-18's waiting on the shelf for CX prep.

Scores:
SSB 98 QSO's x 824 CX Mult = 80,752
CW 13 QSO's x 327 CX Mult = 4,251
Total Score = 85,003 (only a bit lower than last year, despite the restricted operating hours on Sunday.)

73 from Rocco N6KN
Owner-Operator of Way Too Many Old Radios

See you next CX,
Rocco, N6KN

K3KYR Jeff

Mac, I have really enjoyed the CX contests that I have been in.

Spent Saturday on 6 and 2 meter am, saving HF for Sunday. Family commitments eroded operating time, and the RTTY contest made cw operating difficult. I was able to do well considering, but should have done more with phone, both am and ssb.

Around 0030z 2/13 I called cq several times using the DX 20/NC 109 station with various crystals, but had no takers. I finished with 102 contacts, and total years of 1280, for a point total of 130,560. {Ed. Note: Obviously your other rigs did very well though Jeff. Great to see the 6 and 2 meter gear in the CX.}

Rigs Used:
Globe Hi-Bander Mod 62: 6 & 2 mtr am
Hammarlund HQ 110A VHF: 6 & 2 mtr am
Hallicrafters SR 42A: 2 mtr am
Hallicrafter SR 46: 6 mtr am
Knight TR 106: 6 mtr am
Swan 250: 6 mtr am /ssb
Heath HW 29A (Sixer): 6 mtr am
Lafayette HE-35: 6 mtr am
Heath DX 40: 40 mtram/cw
Hammarlund HQ 110C: 40 mtram/cw
Heath HW : 40 mtrcw
Heath DX 60A: 40 mtrcw
Heath HR 1046: 40 mtrcw
Hallicrafters HT 37: 40 mtrcw
Hammarlund HQ 170: 40 mtrcw
Yaesu FT 227R: 2 mtr fm simplex

QSO DISTRIBUTION:
57 AM QSOs
31 CW QSOs
7 SSB QSOs
7 FM Simplex QSOs
102 QSOs TOTAL

I was able to resurrect a Lafayette HE 35 just in time for the weekend. Really looking forward to the September CX, and have already added another station for 6m AM.

Keep up the good work.

73, Jeff
k3kyr@arrl.net

Some of the gear used during the Feb, 2006 CX is shown on the photo sheet. The radio room is located in my garage and is in daily use, typically on 40 cw, but occasionally 10,15, & 20 as well. I have made over 1600 contacts from here in last 11 months.

Ed. Note: The following is an exerpt from the K3KYR’s local club newsletter. There is a great plug for CX. Thanks Jeff ;-)

NORTH FRANKLIN AMATEUR RADIO SOCIETY
NEWS LETTER
FEBRUARY 2006

The weekend of Feb 11 & 12, will be the Classic Exchange contest, which encourages the use of vintage gear. Even those operating with newer equipment are welcome, and encouraged, to join the fun. Its amazing to hear some of the quality AM signals from radio's 40, 50 , and 60 or more years old. Lots of cw activity also, some with key clicks and chirpy signals.

During the September CX, several of us here in the area were active on 6 and 2 meter AM.

Those with multiple rigs, can work the same stations with each rig. At least 3 contacts must be made with each station setup to count. Scoring is accomplished, by adding up the age of the gear used times total number of contacts. i.e.: a 1960 receiver is now 45 yrs old, and a 1959 transmitter is 46 years old, so if that were the only station used and you made 10 contacts with it, it would score like this: 45 + 46 = 91 x 10 = 910 points. If a 1970 transceiver was used for 5 contacts the scoring would be: 35 x 2 = 70 then multiply by total 5, yielding 350 points. Transceivers count both as a transmitter and receiver, so that those using transceivers are not penalized, for not using separate pcs. Now in the above example, if both set-up's were used by same contestant the scoring would be 45+46+35+35= 161 x 15 = 2415 total points. CW, SSB, and AM are all usable during the contest, and contestants can work the same station on a different mode and have it count as a separate contact.

All band's 160 thru 2 meters are used with the exception of the WARC bands. For complete CX details: http://qsl.asti.com/CX/Feb06Announcement.html

73 to all,
Jeff
k3kyr@arrl.net

{Ed. Note: Great Job Jeff!!! Your article paid off, we had record 6 and 2 participation! Thanks}

K4CHE Breck

Ed. Note: Breck helped to advertise the CX by posting this on one of the BA Internet Boards. What an invitation!

The CX event is being held this weekend. Info is on the CX web site listed below. And I quote "The CX is a no-pressure contest celebrating the older commercial and homebrew equipment that was the pride and joy of ham shacks many decades ago."

I've been working on my military gear and hope to have my TCS , ART-13, RS-6, GRC-109, 18S-4, 32RS-1, WS-19,GRC-19 and some other equipment. Right now I got a lot of chirps, arcs, and sparks---- so I have quiet a bit of repairs to accomplish. Maybe leave some of the chirps alone. Last year I spent quite a bit of time listening to the multi op station K2TOP who resides in the great state of New Jersey.

Anyway hope to see you on this weekend.

73
breck
k4che

And the actual results
What a weekend! Started out on 75 phone a little late Saturday morning. Fired up the KWM-2A for my first couple of contacts on SSB . Why the KWM-2 A ? , well because it had been resurrected from a local junk yard two years ago by KA3WYC and given to me. It had been rendered useless by the military and been assigned to the scrap metal pile for sale to the highest bidder, it deserved to be first. . Anyway I wanted to use it for its first civilian contact and for my first CX contact with N2AK over in New Jersey. The KWM-2 A worked great and the plug in relays were outstanding but I could not work the low edges of the band due to PTO problems. I hate that grinding sound. {Ed. Note: What a great story!}

Then spent quite a bit of time trouble shooting my TCS 13 transmitter and found that I was trying to load up the TCS-13 transmitter into the T-195 transmitter output circuit. duh. After I switched the TCS-13 over to a real antenna it worked great. {Ed. Note: Even the best of operators occasionally gets a switch or coax in the wrong place – at least it didn’t burn out anything. .

Took a break at mid morning to get ready for the forecasted snow storm, so I checked generator, refilled gas cans and vehicles etc. Then that afternoon I switched over to the Viking Valiant and did my first chain gang-multi-phone rig- switchen-special and worked K8KSW with the KWM-2, Viking Valiant and the TCS-13. Finally fully qualified the TCS-13 with Mark KB3ZK for my first TCS to TCS contact. Then quickly worked my buddy KA3EKH with his TCS-13 , Ray was using a TBW and RAF ! Then worked KA3TGV, Paul was using a Collins 300-G. Later worked W0NYQ for my first ever Minn contact on AM with carrier, he was using an RC88 and Globe 400 for a nice setup. Worked a couple of stations who were using one of my favorite transmitters the Elmac AF67 when I talked to K2VH and W8MNQ. Herb was using his AF67 to drive a home brew amp using a 250TL and was using a 75A2 for a receiver, a nice classic setup. So many classic stations to mention but also have to mention K8VWX with his homebrew 4-100's. It was a great phone event but I must admit I did get quite a few calls from curious stations using Rice Boxes but picked them up anyway and put em in the log.

Sunday CW Only. I awoke to a 9 inch snow fall which here is Chickenland is considered a major amount, anything over 3 or 4 inches is always a big deal.They close schools and declare state emergencies. I looked out the window and observed lots of snow collecting on my one and only antenna a doublet fed with 600 ohm twin lead. So was delayed due to antenna problems. Put on boots and walked out through the 9 inches to shake snow off of the doublet antenna and found that it was ice and it wasn't gonna come off easily. The ropes were all frozen and prevented lowering the center section so I lowered each end and scraped the ice off of the antenna wire and poured warm water on the end insulators to clean them and then was able to jerk the center insulator loose by pulling on the legs of the antenna to remove ice and to finish the twin lead and the rest of the antenna.

So got off to a slow start Sunday but finally got on at 1038 EST and worked my first contact KB2GXP using my GRC-109. Then switched over to the GRC-19 and worked W2XS who was using Drake equipment. Then the circuit breaker starting tripping for the 50 amp Lambda power supply when it was initially turned on which was using a 220 feed. The dual breaker was rated at 15 amps so I changed the dual breaker to a 20 amp and that solved the problem. It was fed with number 10 wire anyway. {Ed. Note: You have to be a Jack of all trades and have a great junque box like Breck to get through a CX.}

Then switched over to the portable "roll around table station" a Viking Ranger and 51S1. I quickly discovered that my audio was very very weak on the receiver, so I quickly rigged up an external amplifier and was able to use it for my first Viking Ranger CW contact with W8UT. First time I had used the stock Ranger that I had returned to it original configuration and got nice chirp reports on it from WA2VMO and K9VKY. While in QSO with W8UT I did my first "chain gang-CW rig-switchen" with Al and went through the Ranger,PRC-47,WS-19, and the GRC-109. But I found that the GRC-109 transmitter (AKA RS-6) would only last about 2 minutes in transmit before the Oscillator section would quit so I would have to turn the set off in between the "chain gang CW rig switchen" drill.

I am proud to report that during the CW portion of the CX event that I received six (6) CHIRP reports. And even got a couple of slight rough note reports of 578 on the Collins 32RS-1. Many complaints of "backwave" and that I should check my voltage regulation on the PRC-47 and Collins 32RS-1. If they knew what I was doing to key the 32RS-1 "phone only" rig on CW the "backwave" reporters would understand and I could just see their grimace.

{Ed. Note: The following is what earned Breck the CX Award of Distinction.} Later I incurred a very long delay as my ART-13 decided to catch on fire. First noticed a problem when I saw the overhead lights flickering a little bit when I was over in the shop. Also if I listened carefully I could hear the Lambda 50 amp, 28 volt DC supply “chuggen” a little bit. I quickly crossed over to the shack and observed that smoke was pouring out of the ART-13 on the right side. Since the High Voltage was off it must be in the low voltage buss somewhere. I quickly put the top back on it and tried to contain the smoke but if quickly filled the shack. The two smoke alarms started and I just about had to use the C02 extinguisher. Windows were opened, fans were put in place while I tired to evacuate the smoke, thinking quickly that the XYL is not gonna be happy. Major operational delay.

The last CW contact for the evening was with WB2AWQ who helped me qualify my second TCS station. Howie was using a real classic transmitter a Hartley Oscillator.

Overall a great Weekend. My best operating aids included two variable capacitors , one a 175 uufd and the other a large 350 uufd with alligator clips, I used these to help tune some of the military equipment. Other aids included several CX equipment switches using the ceramic switches removed from BC-375's. (I didn't do it) and two Tromperter patch panels. This year I also used my own log sheet design that was designed to help keep track of my equipment that I used, the sheets had large columns and rows for the seeing impaired.

Major Failures, the ART-13, and was very disappointed when the Collins 18S-4 blew a fuse when tuning it up Sunday evening. I did not want to trouble shoot it because it is on it second tuning motor.

Dumb Mistakes: Trying to load the TCS transmitter into the output circuit of the T-195 instead of using an antenna. Also I trouble shot my first TCS rig for no audio in the headset, spent about 20 minutes trying to figure out why I had not audio. . . Then I found that the remote control switch was in the speaker position (and there was not speaker).

Best accomplishments, putting the Wireless Set No. 19 on the air, qualifying both TCS sets, and putting my junk yard KWM-2A on the air. "I love it when a plan comes together."

Equipment Used:
GRC-109
WS-19
PRC-47
T-195
R-392
Viking Ranger
Col 51S-1
KWM-2
KWM-2A
75A-4
Viking Valiant
TCS-13 R & T
TCS-7 Rec
TCS 52245
Col 32RS-1

: Scores:
Phone 46 contacts X 370+ 17,020 CW 39 contacts X 1024+ 39,936
Total February 2006 CX score: 56,956

N2AK MARIO

Click to see Mario's shack.
Ed. Note: The following is the story of the beginnings of a real BA Classic rig collector and operator.
Classic Exchange of Feb 06 was a challenge. The RTTY QRM during the day makes QPR on 40m ruff.

The vintage shack started 3 years ago with a single HW101 in it. It now contains the following : an NCX-5, an old SWAN 350 with one lung (final tube) that some previous owner decided was enough for a great signal … and he was right!; the HW101 and a HW100, my first commercial rig, an HT37; an Ebay pair of SB300 and SB401; a DX60B (another Ebay rig) and my 20 tube homebrew dual 1625 final rig that I built in high school in ’62 . I also have an NC303 that has been my mainstay for 30 years and a recently acquired HQ170 (for $25 at a club auction !) . Since last year I added Drake Twins ( R4A and T4xB), a great radio combination. Also a friend of mine Al, N3AVT hooked me up with a complete SB-104 station, Including the scope, phone-patch, remote VFO and Sb-230 amp, just like in the 1975 Heath brochure. A fine radio. I also added a 1950’s era Central Electronics 20A exciter, which I use on cw with a crystal at about 15 watts out. I also built a two stage acorn tube xmtr that runs about 1 watt . My friend Ted, W2TAG found a very nice Collins 75A4 receiver for me. Boy, that radio was sure ahead of its time. But I still like my NC-303, which I have owned about 35 years now, and still never had to fix anything on yet.

On Saturday I made some phone contacts, but there wasn’t too much going on. Overnight we has a bad ice storm and Murphy visited my yard by bending over a big pine tree and snapping my 3 band fan dipole, my main 40m antenna. Fortunately I have a 160m inverted L which I use a remote relay box on 80m and 40m. This became my primary low band antenna. I tried 40m on Sunday morning and worked Jack W8BVJ several times. I found that 20 cw was great during the RTTY mess on 40, so I was able to pound out cw contacts there until 7PM Eastern, when the RTTY guys ended.

During the day, I was able to run 12 different set-ups, including my old Atlas 210X, which during the summer lives on my sailboat at the Jersey shore. ( It wasn’t used to the ice here in the winter !)

As usual, I ran out of time (and energy) and didn’t get a chance to use many of my boat anchors, including the 1936 era homebrew design I cooked up last summer ( a 47 oscillator driving a pair of 53 triodes, for about 10 watts out) .Ed. Note: You need to get that into the AWA contests. Also, my 1960’s homebrew rig (about 20 tubes across 3 chassis in a homebrew rack) didn’t get any air time. I hope to investigate some vintage VHF gear next year, and of course I’ll be adding some HF rigs to the mix.

Thanks for all the great Classic Radio QSOs guys.

73 & CU NXT YR
Mario/ N2AK

K3MD JOHN

Score + 51837; 111 contacts, mult 467

Most interesting QSO was W8KGI... what an array of working tube rigs!!!! 24 receivers and 20 transmitters.
I had 14 QSOs with K3KYR!!!

My rigs:
2-C,
NC-270,
HA-1,
HT-37,
TR-4,
TS-520,
TS-820S,
IC-720A,
SB-200.

Alpha 76PA Printer completely bit dust, will try to get a replacement, used CX program (CW only) !! This program has no output other than paper.

73,
John K3MD

K9VKY Brian

Click here to see Brian
Hello Mac and the Gang
Lotsof changes were noticed in the February 2006 CX party. The big blizzard and accompanying power outages on the east coast probably kept a lot of guys from firing up this time. There was a noticeable lack of signals from that part of the world, and sadly, the regulars were probably biting their lips thinking, "Why THIS weekend?"

Howie, WB2AWQ, managed to show up in force, though, despite 27 inches of snow that had fallen in his area. A large number of non-CX guys seemed to show up inquiring about what CX was. (Some, no doubt, thought we were mistakenly sending CX instead of CQ!) For the most, part they seemed interested in our retro view ham radio, and more than a few related war stories about the glow-in-the-dark equipment they owned once upon a time. There also seemed to be an appreciation for mechanical keying, too. Three guys even said that they would be looking to join us in the Fall! {Ed. Note: Nice try Brian but there are no bonus points awarded for potential participant recruiting. - Got to watch this guy like a hawk.}

If I may step up on the soap box for a minute and offer a critique item, I was disappointed in the number of calls that weren't returned to crystal controlled transmitters in both the CX and January's Straight Key Night. Have the esteemed members of the Loyal Order of Ancient Iron forgotten what that big knob in the center of their receivers is for, or have their ears developed narrower pass bands over the years? I know its a problem to work the newer operators who have the bell and whistle rigs tightened up, but I'd like to suggest some more sniffing around the frequency on our parts.

I had to rely on mostly VFO controlled rigs to make contacts this time around with the exception of the Viking II, and the PRC-1 Spy Radio Set.

Mustering 44 contacts in the Sunday festivities were the usual fare from Waseca, Cedar Rapids, Benton Harbor, and Malden, Mass. whose collective ages came to 990.

Scoring was computed by a Ticonderoga #2 and came to 43,560. {Ed. Note: How old was the pencil?}

Here's hoping we see the initial upward swing in the solar cycle for the Fall CX effort--it's been a long time coming. Until then, happy hunting on the bands and keep those filaments glowing.

Brian
K9VKY

KF0HR Terry

Click here for pictures.
I had a good time running all my stations. Put on AM 8 stations and had 4 more that I didn't get to. Put on SSB 6 stations with 4 more that didn't make it on.

Here is my score.
AM 29 CONTACTS
YEARS OF TX AND REC 794 = 23,026
SSB 25 CONTACTS YEARS OF TX AND REC 525 = 13,125
FOR A TOTAL OF 36,151 POINTS

W7FOX Chris/Fox

Hello all CX’ers !
Had lots of fun this time as usual. I spread out some of the rigs so it would be easier to get to the antenna and power supply connections, but I haven’t got to the point where I can use multiple rigs during the same QSO. Jim’s switching arrangement must be a maze of wires since he used 9 combinations during our QSO… Wow!

I used a Viking-1 this time and really like the transmitter. I bought it on Ebay, and UPS re-kitted it for me. That is a model airplane term for a crash. Since all model airplanes start out as a kit of parts, crashing them simply returns them to kit-form. My friends at UPS threw the transmitter from adequate height several times to bend the chassis and front panel in more than one direction, and smash all the tubes. I completely stripped the chassis, straightened it out, and re-built the transmitter using new caps and resistors. I liked the project, but would have appreciated UPS compensating me for the loss, which they refused to do. Lesson: Don’t trust them, or the seller, who took no responsibility either. I’ve included a few photos showing the restoration. Click here to see

See everybody next time.

Best regards,
Chris (Fox on CW)

AM Rigs used:
Viking-1
Homebrew 1625’s
Collins 51S1A

SSB Rigs used:
SB-101(1)
SB-101(2)
SB-101(3)
HW-101
FTDX-100

CW Rigs used:
SB-101(1)
SB-101(2)
SB-101(3
1625’s
T20/ARC5
T19/ARC5
51S1A
TCS12
BC348R

SCORE: AM QSOs: 6
SSB QSOs: 16
CW QSOs: 32
TOTAL SCORE: 24,154

KC2JLK Harold

2 mtr, 6mtr, and 20 mtr AM, SSB, FM QSOs: AM: 24, SSB: 6, FM: 7
Years on rigs: 275
Score: 10,212

Rigs:
TS-700A
HW-29 6 mtr transverter
Heathkit Sixer
Heathkit MR-1 and MT-1

K4JYS Brian

It’s been another great BA “contesting” season. Between the CX and AWA events, my BA gear has been pretty active. As usual, I enjoy any excuse to use the vistage gear. I am pretty active all during the year with the BA ger, but especially enjoy working a concenterated number of enthusiasts durintg the CX events.

Joe, K2TOP filled in a lot of spaces in my log … even worked Joe with his TCS from his mobile setup. The only NC station I worked was Al, W8UT. I see Al at a lot of local hamfests, so it was nice to work him. Bunky, K4EJQ was booming in here with several setups.

The most unusual transmitter I worked was at W3ZT. Joel was using a Burstein-Applebee FU-40. They were one of my favorite places for goodies, but didn't remember them having a rig.{Ed. Note: That rig does not show up in Moore's book on transmitters but there was one on e-Bay recently.}

Again, thanks to all who helped behined the scenes to bring us the CX events and to all who participated

73
de Bill
K4JYS

My Set ups:
Viking 2 / SX-100 Mk2
AF-67 / HQ-170
Lysco 600S / HQ-140X

Score: 315 years x 31 QSOs = 9765

KC2GHT Harry

2 mtr, 6 mtr, 80 mtr AM, SSB
33 QSOs
Years on rigs: 352

Rigs:
HW-10
HW-29
HW-29 A
SB-100

W8UT Al

Hi Mac,
It was great to meet you at the DurHamFest a few wks ago. This PM I decided if I was going to do it, now was the time, so I got out the logbook and the rules, and figured up my score.

SSB eqpt age
HT-32 48
SX-115 43
age total = 91
5 QSO's

CW eqpt age
TR-4CWrit 40 x 2 = 80
11 QSO's
HB 35-T built 1938 = 68 only 2 QSO's, end of time (or operator fatigue) (but did have one more the next day)
age total = 148

SCORING
SSB: 5qso x 91yrs = 455
CW: 13qso x 193yrs = 2509
Total score 2964

The feature of the weekend for me was getting the old HB 35T rig together, figured out, and on the air. {Ed. Note: Shown below is an article Al wrote for the New Bern ARC promoting the CX and telling the story of the homebrew 35T transmitter. Thanks for sharing it.}

Now I'm really looking fwd to the next CX, I'll have the 35T rig on more, plus will have others ready for quick switchovers. I ought to be able to get 5 or 6 rigs on fairly easily if I just clean teh place up a bit to make more room on the benches & tables. I'll concentrate on CW. The Classic Exchange "CX"
"The CX is a no-pressure contest celebrating the older commercial and homebrew equipment that was the pride and joy of ham shacks many decades ago.

The object is to encourage restoration, operation and enjoyment of this older "Classic" equipment. However, you need not operate a Classic rig to participate in the CX."

I have operated in this event almost every time (it's done twice a year) for 7 or 8 years. This time, Feb. 11-12, was the most fun I've had.

to digress a moment--
I had made a few attempts at making fone QSO's in the past several CX's, with less than stellar results. So, in mid-Dec. I decided it was high time to get my CW proficiency back up, after minimal activity on CW in the last 8 yrs, and a frustrating try abt 2 yrs ago in a CX. I made a goal of making at least 1 CW QSO/day, and only missed 3 or 4 days in 2 months. Most of the QSO's were on 40m CW, and were ragchews. Needless to say, I feel a lot more comfortable now at 18-20 wpm

This year the highpoint of my weekend was finally on Sun. nite getting the W2UAS, Ed Goldberg's, HB rig on 80m CW. It's a 3 stage rig, with a 35T tube in the final, originally built in about 1938.

Several years before he died, Ed told me that he had a transmitter that he had built many years ago, and knowing my interest in old tube-type gear, he said he thought I might like to have it. I heartily agreed, but we never spoke of it again. He must have mentioned it to his wife, as she made contact with me last Summer, about a year after his death, and said she had found some old radio gear, and knew that Ed had offered it to me. She said, "bring help, it's heavy." I was thrilled at the news, and went over to her house with another local ham to see just what she had, and to remove some antennas and coax for her. Out in the garage we found 2 wooden packing crates made long ago, to hold his old transmitter and it's power supply.

The next day I opened the crates, inspect the contents, and was surprised to find all that was needed to get a CW transmitter capable of about 100 watts on the air on 80, 40, and 20 meters. Several crystals were included, coil sets for each band, and the proper tubes, all in separate boxes. I took some "as found" pix, and then cleaned up the transmitter chassis to ready it for pix with tubes and coils in place. It uses a 6L6 oscillator, 807 buffer/multiplier, and a 35T final tube. It appears after a quick search of old publications, that it may have been built from a combination of several articles in the 1937 edition of the Frank C. Jones Radio Handbook, a classic work.

This was the first time it's been on the air in probably about 60 years. It did take some tracing out, replacement of a few 60+ year old components, and rigging up power supplies, as I didn't want to take the time to go thru his original supply. I was late with it for the CX as I tend to really drag my feet when it comes to putting HV on something, in this case 1500v +-. I worked on it thru the weekend, and finally had it ready late Sun. PM

It can be seen at: http://www.boatanchors.org/Eds35T.htm along with more info and comments on getting it going.

I ended up making only 2 contacts with it that nite in the QSO Party, as I ran out of "steam." The rig did fine, and I made several more contacts in the next few days. Almost everyone I worked was very interested in knowing more about the rig, and it's provenance. I filled them in some, and referred them to the web-page for more details.

I guess I can call it "The Ed Goldberg Memorial Classic Exchange".

Thanks Ed.
73,
Al, W8UT
New Bern, NC
BoatAnchors appreciated here

WQ8U Mac

Well it has been five months now since WQ8U moved from OH to NC and the new shack is fully equipped if not fully operating. Click here to see. I prepared for CX by getting the QSK system up and running so I could operate break-in and easily switch rigs. I then brought a number of rigs up and checked them for operation. So far, so good. It looked like the Valiant, DX-100, Viking II, Navigator and Drake Twins would be there for CX along with the HRO-50R1, 75A4, NC-173, and HQ-129-X.

Due to family commitments I could not get on the air Saturday but Sunday was my day for CX. Starting about Noon the Valiant became the first casuality – blowing an AC line fuse – twice. Not to worry, other rigs were there. Next the DX-100 decided it would light up but not put out a peep! Unusual because it at least chirps. Down to the third string – the Johnson Viking II. Early on it developed a very sore throat and starting getting signal reports like RST: 596C from AA4RM, Marty who has a keen ear and knack for straightforward reporting. The bright side is the signal allowed easier copying through the RTTY QRM J. I didn’t know if I would get an OO postcard but I thought the better part of valor was to go deeper into the bullpen and put the Johnson Navigator on the air. What a great little trooper – if only it had more output….. What about the Drake Twins you ask? The LO in the R-4A died so I had to use the T-4X as the tuning source for the receiver. Just great if no QRM etc appears during a QSO – but that’s not life. Thanks to all who chased me during the QSOs.

All in all it was still a lot of fun. K3MD, John, seemed to be everywhere as was the multi-op team at K2TOP. It was a mini St. Xavier High alumni party with W8TM, Paul; AA4RM, Marty; W8KGI, Jim and myself. Jim was often heard but never worked – guess we had single direction propagation. K4EJQ, Bunky, said CX was fun but he used his old rigs daily as his main rigs – sounds like a lot of us. Bunky also had a crystal controlled 6L6 homebrew rig. WA2VMO, Bob, was running a 6146 final rig. Drake rigs were popular with W2XS, John, and N2AK, Mario, among others.

Score: 16 qsos and 304 yrs = 4,864