Portable hands-free Tube Radio

[ozmoid]

http://blog.modernmechanix.com/2009/01/18/headwork-in-the-garden/

From Modern Mechanix, 1957.
"Yesterday's Tomorrow Today."

 

[bricktop]

More fashionable and less annoying than the 'hands-free' bluetooth headsets everyone uses.

 

[Dave C]

My dad said a friend had a portable radio back in the 1930's that they took down to the local swimming hole on a creek back in the woods. They hauled a couple of car batteries in to make it work for an hour or so.

 

[sloober]

I wonder how you can make a radio using only 1 tube?

 

[mpholland]

I wonder how you can make a radio using only 1 tube?

:scratch2: Anything's possible, they've been making them with no tubes for almost half a century.

 

[Brian]

Betcha the tube ain't connected and the 2 batteries power a PR2 bulb to light up where he is pruning.

I too would like to see the circuit.

 

[gadget73]

I wonder how you can make a radio using only 1 tube?

Easily. Regen sets frequently have single tubes in them and are quite sensitive. You can make a reflex single tube, or even just a basic crystal set with a single stage vacuum tube amp to drive the headphones better. A regen or reflex set will get more use out of the tube since it provides for a lot more gain by cycling the signal back through the tube multiple times.

 

[markn2wae]

Another portable radio concept from the 1920's.

Here is another "portable radio" concept taken from the radio section of an old 1928 newspaper I have.

It is on the right side of my avatar, but did not come out too well there.

There MUST be batteries somewhere (backpack?).

The scary part about this I may have enough stuff around to build this!

The antenna is a rubberized cloth stitched with wire (the "loincloth" item in the picture).

Mark T.

 

[Brian]

The belt radio was the subject of a Book of Knowledge article from the BoK from the late '30s. I had a set as a kid and there were quite a number of interesting electrical and radio articles. It is where I learned to build my foxhole radio.

 

[majoco]

I guess he works at night out in the garden so the men in white coats can't see him......

...and to continue on the 'turtle-neck' theme....If blind people wear dark glasses, why don't deaf people wear ear defenders?..........

 

[mosspiglet]

Brian thanks for mentioning the Book of Knowledge foxhole radio article. I've been researching soldier-built radios for a while now (mostly WWII vintage) and more than one ham has told me they have a WWI origin. Never was able to find an article but now I have a good lead! The trick now is getting my hands on a 30's Book of Knowledge set...
(another) Brian

 

[Brian]

My set was disposed of by my parents when they retired. I tried to find a set when my son was born but the later editions were more like a regular encyclopedia and hence an entirely different format and not as interesting. I finally gave up the chase. Good luck in locating a set as they were wonderful reading.