Fellow hams,
This thread has really highlighted the divergence "make due with what you
have" vs. "spend what you can to get the best" mindset. Many, like me,
started in amateur radio by building what we could out of the parts we
scavenged out of old TV receivers donated by friends and family. Given that
early experience, there is a strong emotional satisfaction to seeing what
can be made MacGyver-style out of what we can put our hands on. Some have
dubbed this a "Depression-era mentality". The other approach is to put
together the most robust system with the most economical use of time making
the best use of the state of the art.
These are not mutually exclusive and can exist in different proportions in
each ham.
Contesting leans toward the latter approach, emphasizing reliability for
obvious reasons.
Using recycled connectors high up on a tower is likely not a great idea
under any circumstances, unless you like to climb.
I enjoy both aspects of our mutual endeavor.
73
--Paul, wa0rse
*Please make note of updated address:Paul Beckmann*
*Vista Meadows Homestead*
*30125 719th Street*
*Lake City, MN 55041*
*wa0rse@gmail.com <wa0rse@gmail.com>*
*612-414-0302 (cell, leave msg)*
On Tue, Feb 16, 2021 at 3:55 AM Jim Brown <jim@audiosystemsgroup.com> wrote:
> Kurt,
>
> I won't argue with the details, but at age 79, I've got a LOT of better
> ways to spend my limited number of hours left above ground.
>
> 73, Jim
>
> On 2/15/2021 11:16 PM, KD7JYK DM09 wrote:
>
> > A 325W Weller D550 gun, or a 100W iron, and practice. You can remove
> > the reducers, as well. I just use some old battery terminal pliers for
> > those, easy to grab the collar, and unscrew. D550, about $5 at a yard
> > sale, iron, new, about $30 at the time, a small machinists vise swiped
> > from Dad (about $30 for him) to use as a parts holder, a few bucks for
> > bore brushes, a few more for braid, a $9 solder sucker from Rat Shack, a
> > couple bucks for more sucker tips, a few dollars for spare D550 tips
> > (file, or crush to the right shape), also from Radio Shack, some liquid
> > rosin, I made that by the quart (necessary for el-cheapo de-soldering
> > braid), so maybe $5-10 there for a few pounds of rosin from Tri-S, and
> > some quarts of isopropanol from Thrifty's... That's it for "specialty"
> > items, then some tweezers, I found those in the trash, and some
> > stainless cleaning brushes from Harbor Freight, so maybe $5 there.
> > Canned air, or an air compressor helps, Dad bought a paint sprayer
> > compressor from Sear's in 1979, so that was laying around. I guess
> > about $75 across four decades, a hundred bucks maybe, at the outside.
> > But, heat, pull out in pieces (two, if lucky, the braid, and dielectric,
> > then the center conductor, then clean), shake, blow, brush, wick, wash,
> > no different that de-soldering a component, just a little more heat, and
> > practice. You should have it figured out in three, to four connectors.
> >
> > Kurt
> >
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> >
> >
> >
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