N6QW Homebrew Radio

6/1 ~ More Progress on the Touch Screen

Start Drooling -- you too can have one of these --www.kookye.com Buy it at Amazon.
73's Pete N6QW 5/24 ~ A Dual Conversion Transceiver!




Perhaps one of the most sterling examples of a Double Conversion Transceiver is the UBitx which is currently enjoying international acclaim and wide spread "tinkering".

In 2012 I built the KWM-4 which was a double conversion with a 1st IF of 10,7 MHz and used an FM type crystal filter for the 1st IF and that signal was mixed with a fixed 10.245 MHz crystal oscillator to result in a difference of 455 kHz. That worked very well using the cylindrical (early KWM2 style) filter. So now I have two Collins 455 kHz, mechanical filters with one at 2.1 kHz Band Width (bathtub later version) and a second at 3.2 kHz cylindrical type. These are begging to be used in a new rig.

My earlier venture used a K5BCQ Si-570 board to control frequencies using channels for LSB and USB. In essence I shifted the 1st LO frequenc…

May 8, 2018 … Winding things down!
This seems like a good place to wrap things up and this will be the last of the blog posts.
Hopefully I have encouraged other to take up the iron and build something. This is such an amazing time for the homebrew enthusiast, whether you scratch build something or build a kit, there is an amazing sense of pride in being able to say I did that.
Good luck and Happy Trails. 
This has been a fun ride and now time to close up the blog and turn off the iron.Thanks for riding along.
73's Pete N6QW

5/6/2018 ~ Update
Here are some photos that have survived ....

The above photo is the "Officers" shower facility and the man near the right hand center of the photo is taking a "whiz" into an outdoor urinal. This device invented by the Seabees is comprised a 12 inch diameter piece of PVC pip sunk into the sand and that is it. I must admit that after a few drinks the 12" target was hard to hit and the same problem late at night.
The next photo taken in 1965 should conjure up thoughts of the movie and TV series "MASH" -- I think the movie stole our lifestyle. That is my rack in the corner of the hut. Please note that my 782 Gear is packed and at the ready. Oh there are those asking what is 782 gear. Well the Seabees worked closely with the US Marines and adopted many of their processes and procedures. The term 782 refers to the form used to delineate the field gear that a US Marine (or Seabee) is issued. Typically this is a pack, helmet, entrenching tool …

Something Old Something New!2009 Homebrew SS Tri-Band HW-101


Follow the link above the you tube and click on 2009 Tri-Band XCVR There is a complete project description with schematics and detailed photos
Shown above/ below is a rig I built in 2009 but unfortunately when my XYL's health forced a move back to Southern California resulted in the rig being given away. At times you have to make tough choices and this was one of them.


Shown above is a triband (40, 20 and 15 M) solid state version of the Heathkit HW-100/101. Yes it uses a crystal filter and heterodyne crystals from the heathkit rigs. 
The first conversion is to 8.395 MHz with a 5 MHz PTO liberated from a Ten Tec Triton 4 as was the main tuning knob and control knobs. Yes the S Meter is from a heathkit transceiver The second IF is 3.395 MHz which was the stock heathkit crystal filter. thus 8.395 -5 = 3.395. The rig had selectable USB and LSB  To get the display to read properly I came up with an unusual scheme where I sampled the…

Building the W7ZOI, 20M SSB Transceiver4/10/28 ~ Comment: this rig is only one of three that I have built that is fully SSB and CW capable. with the other two being the KWM-4 and this rig's twin brother. Unless you provide capability for narrow signal filtering then operating CW using a wide SSB filter (700 Hz as compared to 2.1 KHz) does not make for a competition grade rig. OK for casual contacts; but not one for a true CW enthusiast. Today I would look at a diode steered two filter scheme and like in the KWM-4 and the W7ZOI rigs use a separate CW keyed crystal oscillator (or the third clock on the Si5351). 
Since I am not a CW enthusiast nor always QRP my main thrust is SSB and to have linear amps on the output. Hats off to those who like QRP + CW. There is room in the hobby for all.
73's Pete N6QW



In 1999, I decided to build the W7ZOI 20M QRP SSB Transceiver that appeared in a two part article 12/89- 1/90 in QST. [That was before contests and latest product reviews consumed so…

The KWM-4 ~ A True Homebrew Rig.
Pete N6QW
Who is Doing What to What?
(No this is not about the Emperor and the Porn Star!)

I raise this question because I think it is a good idea to always look beyond what one is doing in their shack and to see what is over the fence. I am on a quest to build a complete 20M homebrew SSB transceiver within the confines of an Altoids tin. The last time I built a really small SSB rig it was 16 cubic inches (2X2X4). So now how to make it even smaller.
To that end I am firm believer to doing research on what others are doing, which lead me to K.P.S.Kang, VU2KR. He has a blog called http://smallwonderqrp.blogspot.com 
In the May, June and July of 2016 blogs there are entries regarding a rig he designed called the PIXET. This is an amazing design and it has many possibilities "built as is" as well as looking at the topology and how that could be incorporated into my "super small shirt pocket transceiver". Keep in mind there are always better m…