Popular Electronics in the 50s & 60s



W8SU did it again. He sent along a picture of an old issue of "Popular Electronics". February of 1955 to be exact. What memories.
I’m betting I’m NOT the only one who grew up devouring every issue of this magazine. Hey, between it and "Electronics Illustrated", I was kept up to date (for the time!) with all the latest electronics info a kid could handle. Lots of dreams.
I still remember the adventures of Carl and Jerry from "EI"... Of particular note is an issue where the pair conspired to cheat at a spelling bee by taking a little earpiece apart (You know. The kind that came with your six transistor radio), taping it on the arm of one of them, attaching a miniature (for it’s time) receiver that he kept under his shirt, and the other conspirator sending the correct spelling of the word from the audience in CW, to be translated by the feel of the diaphragm on the skin. Wild!

Anyway, the cover of the issue sent to me by Bob includes a basic novice transmitter. If I remember correctly, and I may or may not, this particular project utilized a square baking pan from the kitchen for the chassis. And till the day she died, my mother never knew why she lost a cake pan every time I built a new project! Hi hi

I’d been lucky enough to get a box of old 1950s electronics magazines from the Warwick auction sometime in 1962. And I began to systematically read every one of them cover to cover. I loved every page, every project and even the amazing ads. Ah. Those were good times.

Also around that time, I was in 4-H. Our club specialized in electricity and electronics. Our leader, Paul Segi, was a ham. But somehow I cannot recall his call anymore. Maybe one of these days it’ll come to me. At any rate, he was a great elmer. He often explained some of the more difficult elements of some of the construction projects I’d find in the magazines. And he taught me not to be afraid to experiment. Of course, with the high voltage of the day, maybe I should have been BIT more careful.
OK. That’s plenty for tonight. Been a long day and I need to get some things done.

73 till next time.

Popular posts from this blog

My First Knight Kit

Image
This week once again I was able to take a trip back in time. A journey back that pretty much let me once again remember the smell of melting solder and the excitement of putting together my own radio with my own hands. Here's the story. The first kit I ever built was a Knight Kit C-100 walkie talkie. I poured over the Knight Kit catalog daily for what seemed like forever dreaming of all the toys inside. The Star Roamer and Span Master receivers. The T-60 transmitter. But the most special for me was the C-100. It only cost a bit more then $5. But for a poor kid living on a farm with no income, it might as well have been $500. It seemed impossible that I'd ever get these cool communications devices. But eventually, I did get the money to order one. I don't remember how, but it happened. I figured I didn't need (nor could I afford) two of them as they were often marketed. But since mom and dad had a couple of CB radios and would be able to talk with me on the designated ch
Read more

Back to the Heartland

Image
A couple of weeks ago I completed my move from Texas back to the Midwest. I headed up north to Charleston, Illinois to take the job as General Manager of WEIU-TV & FM, the radio-TV center of Eastern Illinois University. With minor exceptions, the move went calmly and was accomplished with minimal hassle. At some point down the road I'll spend some time talking about the job and the university environment. At this point I find it quite exciting and productive. But right now I want to spend a few words on the house I bought when I moved back to the heartland. The home I'm affectionately dubbing, The Farm House. This beautiful American classic was built way back in 1917 by a farmer, maybe rancher would be a better term, who had received a contract to breed mules for America's war effort. Yeah, this was long before humvees or even jeeps, to be sure. Those old enough to have read about "The Big One" may remember that horses and mules were still the major forms of t
Read more