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Question

Home-Brewing...what do you think

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Survey Comments

Home Brewing & Memories

I still have and use the same HF Link coupled tuner that I built in 1962. I also have the one tube xtal controlled oscillator that I built for the 40/80 meter novice band, and used until I received my general ticket.

Truth! I have never built a sophisticated all mode tranceiver, but I did discover the thrill of what it is like to put a signal on the air that began on a piece of paper.

Try homebrewing sometime, you might find a piece of joy that you can't buy even with the largest fortune.
Posted by WW8J on 2004-09-17

Homebrewing

I'm glad some people still do this! I've never quit building something or other at all times since before I was licensed (1966).

Although my main HF radios aren't homebrew, I use homebrew transverters and antennas for all bands from 50 MHz to 10 GHz and I'm starting to tackle 24 GHz. I am working on building little amps I designed for 2304 through 10368 MHz. I'm also working on several different methods of phase-locking the LO's for these microwave transverters to a 10 MHz stable source. I also built a KK7B R2-T2 D-C transceiver for 144 MHz that I use as a microwave IF.

I etch all my own pc boards for these, also. Hopefully my eyesight will last for a while because I'm now using more and more surface-mount components and those things are tiny! My magnifying headset is well worth what I paid for it.

Zack W9SZ
Posted by W9SZ on 2004-09-17

Homebrewing

I'm glad some people still do this! I've never quit building something or other at all times since before I was licensed (1966).

Although my main HF radios aren't homebrew, I use homebrew transverters and antennas for all bands from 50 MHz to 10 GHz and I'm starting to tackle 24 GHz. I am working on building little amps I designed for 2304 through 10368 MHz. I'm also working on several different methods of phase-locking the LO's for these microwave transverters to a 10 MHz stable source. I also built a KK7B R2-T2 D-C transceiver for 144 MHz that I use as a microwave IF.

I etch all my own pc boards for these, also. Hopefully my eyesight will last for a while because I'm now using more and more surface-mount components and those things are tiny! My magnifying headset is well worth what I paid for it.

Zack W9SZ
Posted by W9SZ on 2004-09-17

Home brewing...

Most home brewing these days involve making beer and whine...
Posted by NT9E on 2004-09-16

Homebrew is alive and well...

I have the solder burns to prove it.

If I didn't build it, I don't operate it on the air.

Gotta love those ARRL guides.

73
KC5WNK

Posted by KC5WNK on 2004-09-16

Home-brew

I remember contesting with a home-brew 1KW amp back in the late 70s...
Posted by KA6ARU on 2004-09-15

Homebrewing alive but unpopulated

Those who can do, Those who can't run high power and contest.
Posted by K1SMM on 2004-09-14

Homebrewing alive but unpopulated

Those who can do, Those who can't run high power and contest.
Posted by K1SMM on 2004-09-14

Alive and well

Just check out my homepage for pictures of the Southgate Type 7...

73 de Jim, N2EY


Posted by N2EY on 2004-09-09

Homebrewing Components

How about homebrewing components such as
the variable capacitor that one ham built
using a plastic bottle partially filled
with salt water? Build everything and see
how it works. Examples of this approach
are presented in the two homebrewing books
by H.P. Friedricks. The more homebrew the
better and more fun.
73, Nickolaus E. Leggett, N3NL

Posted by N3NL on 2004-09-09

My Kind of homebrewing

Im not great with components but happy to work with metal so here's my input, took abt 6 months to build and it works
http://www.qsl.net/ei5fk/trailer.html
Charles
Posted by EI5FK on 2004-09-08

HB GOOD IN MY BOOK!

I wonder why the "What's Homebrewing?" answer was put in this survey? But then again 25 or so have selected it...hmmm...
Love my HomeBrewing here.

73
Andy
Posted by KC2GOW on 2004-09-05

HB GOOD IN MY BOOK!

I wonder why the "What's Homebrewing?" answer was put in this survey? But then again 25 or so have selected it...hmmm...
Love my HomeBrewing here.

73
Andy
Posted by KC2GOW on 2004-09-05

Homebrew still fun

seems like thats why we got in to this if where not tinkering with something where just not happy.
well(73s)
good luck Florida
"keep on talking"
Posted by 355WV on 2004-09-04

Alive and kicking...

Homebrewing an antenna was, is and will be a kind of must operation, one can not avoid. I do not belong to showroom hams, I do not buy antenna. One should be made. 2m HB9CV's, I made quite a few, HF dipole, endless...
If you buy them, perhaps it is easier, but what is the point of being alive then...
Posted by M0NDN on 2004-09-03

QRO too

QRP is a mainstay of homebrewing, but the other end of the spectrum is still easy to build these days. I built 8877 amps for 160 thru 6 meters to replace my old 4-1000 amps.
Posted by NY1E on 2004-09-03

It's half the fun!

Let's see... scrounged parts and built a full size 80M 1/4 wave vertical plus ground system (about $50), built a 5 band 2 element quad ($100), 40M wire half square ($5), Elecraft K2/100 (OK, this cost a bit more), Elecraft KAT100, Elecraft 4 band K1 board, various antenna tuners, 12V power supplies, test equipment, even ventured into SMT/SMD construction... Yes parts can be tough to come by, but ebay always surprises and Mouser is well stocked and reasonable. Would like to see a trading group for parts... Neat to work the tough ones with all homebrew and 100 watts or less! I'm sure it's not everyone's cup o' tea, much like CW or digital modes.
cheers,
Julius, n2wn
Posted by N2WN on 2004-09-02

hb is alive

I build my own antennas and do a lot of hacking to radios. I build my own interfaces for digital modes. I enjoy building kits.
Ronn
AD5JN
Posted by AD5JN on 2004-09-01

HB FB

Almost all my operating is done with HB gear. Much was made from kits, with mods...antlers all HB. Also all QRP, also all CW. My idea of fun. Love this hobby!
Posted by K3ESE on 2004-08-31

Home Brewing

Breathes there a ham with soul so dead
that never to themselves has said
This is MINE - I built this sucker!

There are 2 kinds of hams - those who have built something... ANYTHING. - and those who have not felt the thrill. I still have the field-strength meter I built in 1962 - what a memory machine it is.

Geez... you aren't a real ham if you haven't built a "coat-hanger" ground plane for 2m with an old SO-239.

Let's face it - you haven't really felt terror until you've blown up something that glowed VERY BRIGHTLY for a brief period of time. 73 - Tom
Posted by WA0EAJ on 2004-08-31

Unique needs

I build my own stuff only when I want somthing specific. I enjoy making things and have always had a nack for mechanical stuff. Antennas, towers, tower adapters, outriggers, gin poles, guy brackets, and etc. I do build some in shack items like swich boxes to go from mic to head phones or to switch the bencher paddle to more than one rig. Most of the time I do it to remove myself from the daily grind.

To Each His Own I guess. Ray
Posted by N0UY on 2004-08-29

Parts

Ahhhhh, where to get parts. No, I am not a business. No, I don't need 10,000 100 ohm resistors. No, I don't want to place an order for 500 special made variables. No, I don't feel right paying $9.95 for a $5 order.
Homebrewing? I must be looking for parts in the wrong place!
Steve
Posted by W0OOW on 2004-08-28

Home Brewing

Home brewing is alive and well.... thanks to clubs like the AZ sQRPions (shameless plug!!!!) ;)By the way, I home brew both ham gear and beer!! Adam--KC7DVF
Posted by KC7DVF on 2004-08-27

Homebrewing

I still build. Everything from antennas to home made SSB transceivers for 6m. Tubes, transistors and ICs are used. Surface mount parts can be a bear to mount but in some cases they work better, just takes a bit of creativity.

Allison
KB1GMX
Posted by KB1GMX on 2004-08-27

Antennas are Homebrew

All my antennas are homebrew, my 6 meter beam, my 2 meter beam and my 70cm beam, also my long wire. Oh sorry i did buy one to replace my homebrew j-pole for 2/70cm.
Ok not all my antennas...most.
Anyway i enjoy the hobbie and building the antennas...
Have fun
Best of 73
de w3nrl
Posted by W3NRL on 2004-08-26

radio- warehouse

i am having trouble getting someone from this charlotte,nc co. to send me my order has anyone else had this headache with this co.
Posted by SKIP on 2004-08-26

What Homebrewing Used To Be Like

I remember home-brewing. That meant spending an
evening going through my Allied Radio or United Radio
catalogue and picking out parts and adding them to the
order sheet. Listing and putting down the unit price
resistor by resistor and capacitor by capacitor.

After 3 or 4 hours of catalog page turning I would have
two or three order sheets filled out and maybe a total
price of $27.44 or something like that.

I remember home-brewing. I remember buying some
Greenlee chassis punches so that I could make those 1 or
1 1/8 inch holes for those tube sockets. I remember the
day, even the very hour (maybe) that I got my first chassis
punch to mount SO-239s instead of drilling a hole by
hand.

I remember home-brewing. I was building a nice big
power supply for my linear as a Novice (hoping for that
general some day). And, I decided to use solid state
rectifier diodes in a fullwave bridge rather than tubes. I
blew those suckers out quicker than you can say short-
circuit. I went back to tubes (866s I think) and it worked
fine.

OK, I have not brewed my own since 1966 but back then
things were a lot simpler: you actually soldered wires, you
mounted each device individually, and things glowed in
the dark.

Phil
K7PEH
Posted by K7PEH on 2004-08-26

Home brewing

I don't home brew anything. I'm an appliance operator.
Posted by KC5SAS on 2004-08-26

A way of life??

AMQRP.org, I am fasting from that site. Put the plastic away when I visit. They have the best toys.

I need to get away for the pressures of life and let the mad scientist out to play.

The digital programmable VFOs at AMQRP are just to drool over.
Posted by KC8SBV on 2004-08-25

Times change and tools change...

Doesn't computer programming constitute a form of homebrewing? PSK31, WSJT, APRS and other new narrowband and weak signal modes have all been developed by hams experimenting -- but instead of working with solder, they're working with source code.

The tools of homebrewing may be changing, but the spirit is alive and well!
Posted by KB6WIJ on 2004-08-25

Ireland's home brewer

EI9GQ is doing his stuff even up to last night completing a 1296 cavity preamp, all his projects online have been tried and tested by others, very good site, First class homebrewer
Charles EI5FK
http://homepage.eircom.net/~ei9gq/
Posted by EI5FK on 2004-08-24

Homebrewing Alive and in well ... QRP

Homebrewing lives on within the QRP
community. Manhattan style building is all the
rage these days.

Also with the kits available from companies like
Oak Hills, Small Wonder Labs, Ten Tec, Elecraft,
Wilderness Radio pretty much anyone who can lift
a soldering iron can build a working radio. The
Elmer 101 tutorial series available on the web
along with the SWL 40+ tranceiver kit is a great
way for newcomers to learn about RF Electronics.

Michael VE3WMB

P.S. The receivers on some of these QRP kit
radios rival or exceed the performance of many
commercial rigs available today.
Posted by VE3WMB on 2004-08-24

I have not gotten into homebrew, but would like to..

I have not gotten into homebrew equipment and antennas, and I still have a lot to learn about electronics and such. I would like to try some homebrew antennas, and then maybe go into some audio equipment, who know I might make my own radio one of these days ;)

+Steve/KD5OWO
Posted by KD5OWO on 2004-08-24

I have not gotten into homebrew, but would like to..

I have not gotten into homebrew equipment and antennas, and I still have a lot to learn about electronics and such. I would like to try some homebrew antennas, and then maybe go into some audio equipment, who know I might make my own radio one of these days ;)

+Steve/KD5OWO
Posted by KD5OWO on 2004-08-24

QRP Homebrewing

Homebrewing QRP stuff is my niche in this hobby. I have built a Pixie2, RM-40, and a number of station accessories over the years.

The largest project involved a station console that survived for nearly 20 years. Its demise was caused by a 30 year old homebrew power supply that failed do to an apparent lighning problem.

I'm still working on my station accessories and QRP rigs. That is my cup tea and my future.

Ken
Posted by AE1X on 2004-08-23

Electronics side is about Gone

Antennas is a popular HB item. However, the electronics side of ham radio is about dead compared the '50s to '70s.

Fact is a packaged radio, power supply or amplifier is much less expensive to purchase. HBing a radio for QRP may have some merit, but a kit makes more sense.

Do to HBing being the most enjoyable side of the hobby for me, I switched to tube based home audio.
Posted by JAMES_BENEDICT_EX_N8FVJ on 2004-08-23

Electronics side is about Gone

Antennas is a popular HB item. However, the electronics side of ham radio is about dead compared the '50s to '70s.

Fact is a packaged radio, power supply or amplifier is much less expensive to purchase. HBing a radio for QRP may have some merit, but a kit makes more sense.

Do to HBing being the most enjoyable side of the hobby for me, I switched to tube based home audio.
Posted by JAMES_BENEDICT_EX_N8FVJ on 2004-08-23

Define Homebrew

I built lots of kits in my heyday, but never homebrewed anything other than antennas. I don't consider building a kit as homebrew because most everything's done for you. I figure homebrew involves either designing it yourself, or working from a schematic and buying parts, laying them out (incl pc bd etch) and making connections & chassis & cabinet. Anyone share this perspective?
Posted by WB2NVY on 2004-08-23

Too Old

I have trouble seeing the tip of a PL-259 let alone trying to get some solder in there. Homebrewing?...bahhh!

Electronics are the cheapest they've ever been including ham radio stuff. Why would I want to build it? From scratch???

Appliances forever...pass the Viagra, I've got better things to take up in hand.
Posted by WPE9JRL on 2004-08-23

Alive and well...

...when it makes sense.

I've never bothered to homebrew anything I could buy cheaper. There needs to be an R.O.I., and for me that usually means building stuff that just isn't commercially available, or the commercial equivalent stuff is horrible.

Three of my four kilowatt amps, a few antennas, and a lot of station accessories are homebrew here. The amps are specialty items, like a 4-1000 for 160m only; a 4-1000 for 6m only; and a pair of 4CX250s for 2m only. There just wasn't stuff like that on the market at the time, or if there was I didn't know about it.

Most of my homebrew stuff started out with a chassis and a drill press and no plans of any kind. Amazing most of it came out as nice looking as it did, but there are surely exceptions....

WB2WIK/6
Posted by WB2WIK on 2004-08-23

Separates the men from the boys

Still one of the most enjoyable aspects of ham radio.
Can still home-brew a pretty good linear amplifier. How about a class E AM rig??
Posted by WA2DTW on 2004-08-23

Good projects .....and Heathkits!

Even though you can buy one for $150, a 20 ampere linear power supply is still a good homebrewer's project that most hams can use and have fun putting together.

Audio accessories like preamps, processors, etc. are good projects.

Antenna's are right up there too.....

I miss Heathkits; there were so many good ones in the 60's and 70's. Anybody remember Graymark kits?? They were another awesome kit company. My first 5 band regenerative receiver was a Graymark, built it when I was 12.

Technology is great stuff and progress marches on (no complaints) but with the gains, we lost a little of the "depth" and "spirit" that started ham radio.

Sound like the makings of a good article?
Posted by WA1RNE on 2004-08-23

Good projects .....and Heathkits!

Even though you can buy one for $150, a 20 ampere linear power supply is still a good homebrewer's project that most hams can use and have fun putting together.

Audio accessories like preamps, processors, etc. are good projects.

Antenna's are right up there too.....

I miss Heathkits; there were so many good ones in the 60's and 70's. Anybody remember Graymark kits?? They were another awesome kit company. My first 5 band regenerative receiver was a Graymark, built it when I was 12.

Technology is great stuff and progress marches on (no complaints) but with the gains, we lost a little of the "depth" and "spirit" that started ham radio.

Sound like the makings of a good article?
Posted by WA1RNE on 2004-08-23

NY7Q: Have you looked at T-Kit?

NY7Q wrote:

"I would love to see another company like Heathkit tho'"

Have you looked at Ten Tec's T-Kits? They are pretty close to being the modern equivalent of Heathkit. They don't have quite the same variety but they are the closest out there. I'd also say that Elecraft is doing a great job and has an ever expanding line of rig and transverter kits and accessories.

73,
Caity
K7VO
Posted by K7VO on 2004-08-22

Alive and better than ever

While most folks won't homebrew or build their transceiver, with the exception of maybe Elecraft kits. There's plenty to build. Antenna's, amps, preamps, transverters, and the list goes on. I think it's much easier today than 10-20 years ago with resources like the internet for information and parts locating.
Kit building appears to be flourishing with companies like Elecraft, Khune Electronics, DEMI, Ten Tec, to name a few, turning out top notch kits for the builder.

Back to the sweet smell of rosin,

Tony
KB8JVH
EN80ua
Posted by KB8JVH on 2004-08-22

homebrewing

Common folks! 6 of the 7 choices write off homebrewing??

There are still many of us out here that enjoy building! A lot more, in fact, than we are often led to believe.

73
Dan

K9ZF /R no budget Rover ***QRP-l #1269
Check out the Rover Resource Page at: http://www.qsl.net/n9rla
List Administrator for: InHam+grid-loc+ham-books
Posted by K9ZF on 2004-08-22

Combine two of the poll options by homebrewing a beverage antenna with empty beer cans.
Posted by K1RDD on 2004-08-21

Home-Brewing. . .Alive but Different

It seems to me that home-brewing is alive but it ain't what it used to be. Two big changes that I see are:
1. Most home-brewing today is for accessories rather than for something like an entire rig. I wouldn't even thing of trying to home-brew a SSB transciever today and I expect most Hams feel the same way.
2. Home-brewing projects today often amount to a half-dozen resistors and capacitors, a wall-wart, and one or more IC "boxes." And often you can send off for a board to mount every thing. At one time home-brewing meant buying very tube (remember those?), transformer, resistor, capacitor, choke, etc. and mounting it all in and on an aluminum box.

All of this is not a complaint but rather a comment that home-brewing just ain't what it used to be.

My 2c worth, Robert W0MT
Posted by W0MT on 2004-08-21

K1RDD, I will help you empty those cans.

Most of my antennas have been homebrew. Heck, if you buy an antenna you still have to put it together.
Posted by WD5KCA on 2004-08-21

Alive but different

Home-brewing is increasingly shifting from being done on a component level to a board level. That simply mirrors the progression of the electronics industry in general. Is that really any different than the transition that home-brewing went through many years ago when the home brewer went from *making* all of their own components to buying ready made tubes, rectifiers, coils, and capacitors instead? I think not.

Today you are increasingly likely to buy ready-made synthesizers for LO's, mixer boards, sound cards, etc. instead making them yourself. So now home-brewing is more a matter of assembling the various sub-assembly (board level) hardware together and not so much the stuffing of components into boards itself. And now we get to play with software, didn't get to do that 100 years ago. But then today we don't have to worry about seriously hurting ourselves while trying to make a vacuum tube either.

Posted by N9DG on 2004-08-21

Station Accessories and QRP

Two aera were home brewing is alive and well are QRP rigs and the homebrewing of station accessories. I recently homebrewed up PSK 31 interfaces for myself, the VE7NA club sataion and another friend. I have homebrewed several accessories for my station over the years the first major homebrew project was my Accu-Keyer I made many years ago. You can never homebrew a rig the magnatitude of an IC-706MKIIG. You can certainly homebrew the accessories to go with that rig. Long live the art of homebrewing. It's a little different with silicon. Handwire chassis homebrewing is a lost art now a days.
73
Gerry
Posted by VE7BGP on 2004-08-21

Station Accessories and QRP

Two aera were home brewing is alive and well are QRP rigs and the homebrewing of station accessories. I recently homebrewed up PSK 31 interfaces for myself, the VE7NA club sataion and another friend. I have homebrewed several accessories for my station over the years the first major homebrew project was my Accu-Keyer I made many years ago. You can never homebrew a rig the magnatitude of an IC-706MKIIG. You can certainly homebrew the accessories to go with that rig. Long live the art of homebrewing. It's a little different with silicon. Handwire chassis homebrewing is a lost art now a days.
73
Gerry
Posted by VE7BGP on 2004-08-21

Home brewing

I agree its not like the old days, but it is still alive and well on another level(upper)I would love to see another company like Heathkit tho'
Posted by K7NNG on 2004-08-21

Still building

Still punching cabinets, chassis and panels here. All transmitters are homebrew from 5 -100 watts AM & CW. Most recent project is push pull 6L6 audio amp fed by a switching/mixer console taking audio from the detector of several receivers for HI-Fi sound.
If there aren't metal shavings on my shop floor, I havn't been doing much!
Posted by K8SWL on 2004-08-21