Sunday, February 19, 2017

Hamfest Haul; Still Sick

     I did get to the hamfest, and picked up a bunch of connectors (PL-259s for RG-8 and 8X-sized cables) and a few books -- Rider on Resonance and Alignment, one of their "An Hour A Day" tutorials, a bit stuffy but packed with useful information.  Also Elmer Bucher's The Wireless Experimenter's Manual, a 1920 book aimed squarely at the then-burgeoning amateur radio community, with lots of late spark-era data and projects as well as very early vacuum-tube and radiotelephone equipment for the home constructor.  Better build that rotary gap quick! The next ten years would see enormous advancement in the field, as broad, noisy spark signals gave way to needle-sharp CW, clear voice and the beginning of radio broadcasting.  I found a nice reprint of the Hugo Gernsback 1935 Short Wave handbook, too, with equipment as different from the Bucher book as a laptop is from a portable typewriter.

     Other finds included a trove of Cannon "P" connectors, which are king-sized microphone plugs dating back to the late 1930s (and my house-standard for low-impedance, non-carbon mics); a collection of telephone-type lever switches for an ongoing project; a nice 0 - 1 Amp RF ammeter in a box with coaxial connectors that will be a useful gadget, if it works; and, of all things, a telephone dial mounted in a soup can with an L bracket so you can fasten the thing in a convenient location for -- well, I'm darned if I know.  The price was right and it was interesting.  Also, I have a nice old Art Deco phone with a seized-up dial that this one appears to match, so....

*  *  *
     Returned home after a couple of hours, very sleepy, and proceeded to do nothing much.  Nuked a lasagna (Evol brand -- not bad!), ate it, fiddled around a bit more, and went to sleep early, waking multiple times only to cough, sneeze, and eventually discover that sleeping on one side had caused my sinuses on that side to fill in a manner both horrible and not (you'll be happy to know) especially describable. So here I am, enjoying sausage hash with onion and egg (and a layer of flour in the bottom of the pan* with some paprika and pepper), and almost tasting it.  Going back to bed is looking better and better.
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* Just a thin layer, fingertip-sifted.  This helps with the excess grease and forms a nice, crunchy crust.  I'm sure it's not good for you.
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4 comments:

  1. Douglas2February 19, 2017 at 10:11 PM

    I've still got some cables with the Amphenol "EP" version in 2, 4, and 8 poles hanging on the wall of the shop for some 30-year old PA speakers that didn't yet use Neutrik Speakon type connectors.

    When the interns (accustomed to 'big' XLR vs 'small' TA4F or even smaller MicroDot) ask about them, they are usually flummoxed by my response "Oh, that's a 'standard' microphone connector. XLR is a 'miniature' microphone connector".

    ReplyDelete
  2. Douglas2February 19, 2017 at 10:15 PM

    The Amphenol ones, by the way, are still widely available with out relying upon used or old stock -- e.g.:
    http://www.parts-express.com/cat/ap-ep-connectors/3472

    ReplyDelete
  3. Roberta XFebruary 20, 2017 at 12:29 PM

    The three-pin ones, standard for microphones, are much more difficult to find. Four-pin versions were widely used for stage speakers, despite the ability for a clumsy and strong user to mate them 90 degrees off.

    At one point, I worked for a place that used P connectors, XLRs and tiny-QG connectors, all three-pin and very similar except for size.

    ReplyDelete
  4. AnonymousFebruary 20, 2017 at 7:49 PM

    The "healthy" freezer stuff seems to be better than the regular. At least around me. I have to keep gluten free these days, and some of the convenience food is good, not just edible.

    It just isn't cheap.

    ReplyDelete

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