On Sun, 7 Sep 2008, raypsi wrote:

On Sep 6, 9:03*pm, wrote:
They didn't do away with Morse Code. They did away with the test
for
it. It was done a little at a time over the past 30 years.
hey jim:
Sorry I wasn't talking Morse code, .
Real Morse code nobody knows. That is lost already gone kaput history.
Vail invented the code you so aptly call Morse, So it's not real Morse
code
it's Vail code. What is really lost: everybody still calls it Morse
code.

I think I could make some money fire up the ole solar powered kiln and
start growing quartz.
I break out that old ARRL handbook that tells you exactly how to cut
the crystals
for the desired frequencies and sell them for 50 cent apiece.
I'd make so much money in volume sales.

Nobody has ground their crystals from scratch since about the 1930's,
if even then. I've been licensed since 1972 and in all the time since
then I've never seen anything about it, not in magazines and books
going back to the late 1940's and not in more recent material. I do
recall the 1964 article in QST about a buy in SOuth America who made
his own tubes.

Go back far enough, and hams just needed crystals within the band.
They had relatively little need for exact frequencies.

I suspect even if the Handbook did give such details at one time,
little bits may be lost since when something is current, "everyone
knows" things that may not be obvious to someone who comes later.

Now, they need them on exact frequencies, and they want them in
nice small packages, none of those FT-243 ones that were held together
with pressure.

Even if you can so easily grind a piece of quartz to frequency, packaging
them will be problematic, since a sealed metal case is going to be a lot
more trouble than an FT-243 package.


Michael VE2BVW

"Michael Black" wrote in message
ample.org...
On Sun, 7 Sep 2008, raypsi wrote:

On Go back far enough, and hams just needed crystals within the band.
They had relatively little need for exact frequencies.

And Novice regulations required the use of Xtal control, a ready
market...

I suspect even if the Handbook did give such details at one time,
little bits may be lost since when something is current, "everyone
knows" things that may not be obvious to someone who comes later.

Tools, techiques, sources for raw or processed materials. WWII
end provided what seemed to be an endless supply of radio
related parts and equipment. Tons of FT-243 xtals, ready to
use or to regrind, etc. I remember when one could find surplus
455kc xtals to make SSB filters; they are unobtanium now.

Pete, k1zjh

Michael VE2BVW

On Sep 7, 2:43�pm, Michael Black wrote:

Nobody has ground their crystals from scratch
since about the 1930's,
if even then. �I've been licensed since 1972 and in all the time
since
then I've never seen anything about it, not in magazines and books
going back to the late 1940's and not in more recent material.

There were articles in QST in the 1920s about cutting and grinding
your own crystals from the raw quartz, making holders, etc. A lot of
work and specialized equipment. The market was such that the
specialists quickly took over in the early 1930s.

After WW2 the enormous amount of surplus dominated the amateur market
for decades. Many of the "new" FT-243 crystals we bought were actually
surplus holders with new crystal inside.

�I do
recall the 1964 article in QST about a buy in SOuth America who
made his own tubes.

There's a guy in France doing it today. Has a movie on his website.
But again, lots of work and specialized equipment.

Go back far enough, and hams just needed crystals within
the band.
They had relatively little need for exact frequencies.

Well, yes and no.

Some xtal frequencies were more prized than others, because the
harmonics fell in higher bands.

I suspect even if the Handbook did give such details at one time,
little bits may be lost since when something is current, "everyone
knows" things that may not be obvious to someone who comes
later.

That's true of many things. Reading older radio books and magazines
can require knowledge of a lot of the jargon and methods of the day.

Now, they need them on exact frequencies, and they want them in
nice small packages, none of those FT-243 ones that were held
together with pressure.

The big difference is plated electrodes vs. pressure electrodes.
FT-243s are capable of quite good accuracy; .005% was common, which
works out to 200 Hz at 4 MHz.

Pre-WW2 xtals were big and rugged, but used a lot of quartz. Radio-
grade natural quartz came almost exclusively from Brazil, and the
difficulty of supply caused US xtal makers to develop xtal designs
that used less quartz. The FT-243 was ultra-miniature in its time!

73 de Jim, N2EY

On Sep 7, 8:46*pm, wrote:
On Sep 7, 2:43 pm, Michael Black wrote:



Nobody has ground their crystals from scratch
since about the 1930's,
if even then. I've been licensed since 1972 and in all the time
since
then I've never seen anything about it, not in magazines and books
going back to the late 1940's and not in more recent material.

There were articles in QST in the 1920s about cutting and grinding
your own crystals from the raw quartz, making holders, etc. A lot of
work and specialized equipment. The market was such that the
specialists quickly took over in the early 1930s.

After WW2 the enormous amount of surplus dominated the amateur market
for decades. Many of the "new" FT-243 crystals we bought were actually
surplus holders with new crystal inside.

I do
recall the 1964 article in QST about a buy in SOuth America who
made his own tubes.

There's a guy in France doing it today. Has a movie on his website.
But again, lots of work and specialized equipment.

Go back far enough, and hams just needed crystals within
the band.
They had relatively little need for exact frequencies.

Well, yes and no.

Some xtal frequencies were more prized than others, because the
harmonics fell in higher bands.

I suspect even if the Handbook did give such details at one time,
little bits may be lost since when something is current, "everyone
knows" things that may not be obvious to someone who comes
later.

That's true of many things. Reading older radio books and magazines
can require knowledge of a lot of the jargon and methods of the day.



Now, they need them on exact frequencies, and they want them in
nice small packages, none of those FT-243 ones that were held
together with pressure.

The big difference is plated electrodes vs. pressure electrodes.
FT-243s are capable of quite good accuracy; .005% was common, which
works out to 200 Hz at 4 MHz.

Pre-WW2 xtals were big and rugged, but used a lot of quartz. Radio-
grade natural quartz came almost exclusively from Brazil, and the
difficulty of supply caused US xtal makers to develop xtal designs
that used less quartz. The FT-243 was ultra-miniature in its time!

73 de Jim, N2EY

Absolutely jim

Looky at the January 1934 issue of QST.it's all there.
A yl friend of mine told me bigger is better, I know she's right
even when it comes to crystals.

As far as accuracy goes you know you can pull it to the frequency you
want
if your'e close enough, it's the oven you need to keep em on
frequency.

73 OM
n8zu