[Amps] Decline of homebrewing?

Sun Jan 8 10:13:15 EST 2017

Since we are sharing HV Death Wish events,,

This is not so much with a AMP, but it IS with HV, MAJOR HV,,,,

When I got my Novice in 1975, I had been a SWLer for a decade before 
that, and always had played with crazy antennas. NOW I can transmit with 
them too!

One of my first projects was a FULL SIZED 1/4 wave vertical for the 80 
meter novice band. Made from EMT conduit from the local True Value. That 
I brought home on my Bicycle! Think of this a full sized 1/4 for 80 
meters in a typical suburban Chicago area backyard!

Then I got into lifting long wires with balloons on calm days and with a 
large kite on windy days. It set up ala Field Day in the backyard, and 
launch!  Was HUGE fun. And incredibly Stupid.

The last time I did it out there I was flying the kite. I had close to 
two miles of aluminum electric fence wire aloft with the kite. Was 
having a blast. Two Miles,, Now I know it was Illegal that long of a 
kite line, but did not know back then,, Dumbass kids. Plus I was like 
only ten miles from O Hare airport and jets flew over us all the time. UG!

Anyway, it was getting into the evening and the wind started to slow 
down, so I started to wind up the kite.

But not fast enough! The kite got lower and lower and lower, I had it 
about 1/2 way in and decided too LOW! Cut her loose!

Reason for that is, about three blocks away, was a main supply power 
lines for the sub-division of the area. I'm not up on what voltage it 
was, but it was inbetween the typical 7200 feeder to houses, and the 
giant tower lines, it was the main feed for probably 1000 homes or more?

And this kite antenna wire was slowly dropping down towards it.

I cut her loose, and the wire ran away FAST! then about ten seconds 
later BOOM! big fireball and BOOM soundwave! and power was out for the 
whole area.

Fire dept came out to where this fireball was seen, and no one had any 
idea as to what caused it.  But this 100 pound geeky kid standing nearby 
knew, but wasn't sayin!

I can't imagine what could have happened if I had NOT cut her free.

Joe WB9SBD
Sig
The Original Rolling Ball Clock
Idle Tyme
Idle-Tyme.com
http://www.idle-tyme.com
On 1/8/2017 12:13 AM, Jim Thomson wrote:
> Date: Sat, 07 Jan 2017 21:30:23 +0000
> From: Manfred Mornhinweg <manfred at ludens.cl>
> To: amps at contesting.com
> Subject: Re: [Amps] Decline of homebrewing?
> Steve, and all,
>
>> I was nearly killed at age 15.
> ##  heres my sob story.  I was building a heath  GR-64  SW rx  between xmas + new year  1969.  Age 14
> My mum was  cooking dinner, and I was in the den, just off of the kitchen.  I had just finished building the
> kit after several days..and a had 3-4  components left over.  Thought to myself that heath was not too smart to
> be supplying parts that were not required.    Of course, when plugged in and turned on.... it was dead silent.
> I take off the lid, and flip it upside down.... and this is a tube RX.   I start probing around...with my fingers....with zero test gear,
> then got zapped with 300 vdc  off one of the filter caps..it was unplugged too.  Let out a scream, and went flying across the room.  Mother
> freaked out, and figures Im in way over my head, and has a fit.   Being from the UK, she thinks nobody should touch anything unless
> they have 1st completed the 7 year apprenticeship  in the appropriate field.   My older sisters  boyfriend at the time  was a physics
> lab  instructor at the local university, and had a lot of experience with HB electronics..and also fixing every heath /  dynaco / knight kit in town.
> He fixes it in a few hrs, and all is well.  3-4 components were indeed required.
>
> ##  fast forward   to 1974.     Bought a used HB  2 x  813  amp..with NO  B+ voltage meter.   Great fun driving it with  200 w po  from my used
> drake  TR-3  xcvr.   1100 w out.  Nobody even knew what IMD was back then, and could care less.   I short out the  filter choke on the fully exposed
> B+  supply, for even more B+.
>
> ## wanting more power,  around 1976,  I  buy a used  HB single  3-400Z  rf deck, no cabinet, no B+ meter, and no B+ supply.   I build a hb  5 kv no load  B+
> supply, and also cabinets for both the B+ supply + the RF deck.   Filter caps were a mess of  series and parallel 2-4-6 uf  oil caps....and no bleeder.   Drove the
> 3-400 Z with the TR-3.  No tuned input on the rf deck. 1700 w out of a single 3-400Z.  Tube ran bright orange to sorta yellowish.
> Was working out of  town those days, a week at a time.   B+ supply had been  OFF from sunday eve to the following friday night.   4 inch diam muffin was sorta loose,
> so tightened it with an xcelite   nut driver.   Tube was in the way, so tried to work around it.   Tried tightening the top pair of corner screws, and shaft of nutdriver
> was  touching the glass.    Shoulda yanked the tube but was in a rush,  contest on that weekend.  To get the driver to fit, I slide my fingers down onto the steel nutdriver shaft,
> and try to get the nuts tightened.    Wearing a T shirt with bare arms exposed.   Nut driver shaft touches the plate cap of the 3-400Z..and  also had both forearms resting on the
> aluminum  box.   Top lid was removed.   I get thrown 7 feet across the room, and wake up 5 mins later..dripping in sweat.
>
> ##  lesson learned was oil caps will stay charged for at least 5 days..... esp when  stupid enough to not include a bleeder.
> After that it was B+ meters wired in both the RF decks  and also the external B+ supplies. Bleeders  used, and ditto with shorting sticks etc.
>
> ##  Got zapped a few times while working at the telco....and each time was up 7-10 feet off the ground on a rolling ladder.   AC is bad news.
> B+  will throw you across a room..and both will easily kill you.    Had a buss bar explode in my face while trying to pry a stuck fuse out.   Blew
> a hole in the square shaft of the large screwdriver I was using at the time.   I almost had it out when the shaft touched the partially recessed mounting screw
> for the insulator block assy..in the rack.   I had shorted the input buss side of the bank of fuses.  Now you know why there is at least one guy in every
> telco office nicknamed ..... sparky.
>
> Jim   VE7RF
>
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