"Bill M" bravely wrote to "All" (07 Apr 05 10:43:57)
--- on the heady topic of " Crystal radio"

BM From: Bill M
BM Xref: aeinews rec.radio.amateur.homebrew:9179

TW If you're using germanium diodes get some spares -- I've found them
TW very susceptible to lightning strikes, at least in the circuit that my
TW son and I built.


Why bother? Get a solar cell and power a radio with it. There is
more than 900watts/metre^2 free energy right outside the window.

BM How does using a solar cell prevent a detector diode from getting
BM zapped?

By mounting the detector diode under the solar cell of course! That
wasn't my point however. What I really meant to get at is that high
impedance headphones (25K ohms) are hard to find these days as are
germanium anything. The better alternative is perhaps the Schottky
small signal diodes and a crystal earphone (which are also rare). On
the other hand if one powers a small transistor radio from a solar
cell charging a battery then it results in something practical.
Perhaps it isn't as educational as winding your own coil on a
cardboard tube of Quaker Oats and finding a Galena out in the
old quarry but there is nothing wrong with not re-inventing the wheel.
Do we really need to re-invent it to learn how to be a car mechanic?
We would have to be idiots if that was the case.

A*s*i*m*o*v

.... We're young, rich, and full of sugar, what do we do?