Here Comes The '29 QSO Party!

Saturday, November 9th, as well as the following Saturday (16th), will see the annual running of the Bruce Kelley 1929 QSO Party, otherwise known as the '1929 BK'.


Only transmitters that are 'era-appropriate' are allowed to be used. More specifically, transmitters must employ tubes that were available in 1929 or earlier, and transmitters must be self-excited. No crystals allowed! Crystals were new and largely unaffordable for most hams back in the depression days.

The year of 1929 marked a real turning point in amateur radio as governments finally cracked-down on things such as frequency stability, out of band operations and re-alignment of call districts. In short, hams were henceforth required to behave themselves and to clean up their signals and methods of operation.

courtesy: http://www.arrl.org/

Although the new rules did a lot to improve things when it came to 'signal purity', there was still a long way to go ... but the wheels of improvement had been officially set in motion. The next decade would see monumental changes in both transmitter and receiver architecture, as engineers along with some particularly gifted amateurs, strove to unlock the challenges of this relatively new technology.

If you tune across the CW bands during these two upcoming Saturday nights, you will have the rare opportunity to hear exactly what the bands would have sounded like back in the very early '30s'.

For the most part you will hear single-tube Hartley, Colpitts or TNT oscillators along with a few two-tube MOPAs thrown in. Many of them will suffer the same problems encountered by the boys of '29 ... chirp, drift, buzzy notes and frequency instability from antennas swaying in the wind.

The MOPAs will sound much better but some surprisingly nice-sounding signals can be heard coming from properly tuned and optimised single-tube oscillators. I recall being blown away by the lovely sounding signal I heard from such a rig when first tuning into the BK activity several years ago, only to learn that it was a self-excited Hartley using 1/4" copper tubing for the oscillator tank circuit!

The '29 watering-hole on 80m will be around 3550-3580 kilocycles (be careful not to confuse this with kilohertz!) while the early afternoon to post-sunset 40m activity will be found from 7100-7125 kc. There may even be a few on the very low end of 160m. Although many of these transmitter styles were used on 20m and higher, the BK rule-makers have wisely decided not to inflict these sounds on the present ham populace as it would likely keep the 'Official Observers' busy for several days writing pink-slips.

Like last year, I will set up my Hull Hartley (160, 80, 40m), as I haven't used it much since building the MOPA a few years ago. If it's very windy (almost assured), the Hartley will really sound like 1929!

My  Hull Hartley

You can learn more about amateur radio happenings leading up to and following the 1929 crackdown in my earlier series of 'Why '29' blogs here:

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4

Those wishing to put something together for next year's event can find everything needed here:

Introduction To Building ... '29-Style

Building '29-Style - Part 1

Building '29-Style - Part 2

Heck, there may even be time to throw something together for this year if you have a few parts and an older tube or two ... the '27' comes to mind and is readily found in many junk boxes. Maybe you know an old-timer or two with lots of parts that could help you out. Your transmitter does not need to look pretty nor need it use period-correct components or coils ... it's just the tube that needs to be correct ... 27's are dirt cheap and easy to find. A simple Hartley '27' oscillator will get you enough wattage to have plenty of fun!

Let's hope for good conditions for this event as the last few years have been adversely affected by geomagnetic storming. Poor propagation or not, I guarantee there will be plenty of  '29ers busy calling 'CQ AWA' on the low bands.

Complete BK details are available here.

Here Comes The '29 QSO Party!

courtesy: Lou, VE3AWA

This Saturday night as well as the next will be the annual Bruce Kelley 1929 QSO Party, otherwise known as the '1929 BK'.





Only transmitters that are 'era-appropriate' are allowed to be used. More specifically, transmitters must employ tubes that were available in 1929 or earlier, and transmitters must be self-excited. No crystals allowed! Crystals were new and largely unaffordable for most hams back in the depression days.

The year of 1929 marked a real turning point in amateur radio as governments finally cracked-down on things such as frequency stability, out of band operations and re-alignment of call districts. In short, hams were henceforth required to behave themselves and to clean up their signals and methods of operation.

courtesy: http://www.arrl.org/

Although the new rules did a lot to improve things when it came to 'signal purity', there was still a long way to go ... but the wheels of improvement had been officially set in motion. The next decade would see monumental changes in both transmitter and receiver architecture, as engineers along with some particularly gifted amateurs, strove to unlock the challenges of this relatively new technology.

If you tune across the CW bands during the next two Saturday nights, you will have the rare opportunity to hear exactly what the bands must have sounded like back in the early '30s'.

For the most part you will hear single-tube Hartley, Colpitts or TNT oscillators along with a few two-tube MOPAs thrown in. Many of them will suffer the same problems encountered by the boys of '29 ... chirp, drift, buzzy notes and frequency instability from antennas swaying in the wind.

Again this year, signals should be a little louder as well, since the previous long-time power limitation of 10W input has been increased to 25W.

The MOPAs will sound much better but some surprisingly nice-sounding signals can be heard coming from properly tuned and optimised single-tube oscillators. I recall being blown away by the lovely sounding signal I heard from such a rig when first tuning into the BK activity several years ago, only to learn that it was a self-excited Hartley using 1/4" copper tubing for the oscillator tank circuit!

The '29 watering-hole on 80m will be around 3550-3580 kilocycles (be careful not to confuse this with kilohertz!) while the early afternoon to post-sunset 40m activity will be found from 7100-7125 kc. There may even be a few on the very low end of 160m. Although many of these transmitter styles were used on 20m and higher, BK rule-makers have wisely decided not to inflict these sounds on the present populace as it would likely keep the 'Official Observers' busy for several days writing pink-slips.

This year I will leave the MOPA on the shelf and set up my Hull Hartley as I haven't used it since building the MOPA a few years ago. If it's very windy (almost assured), the Hartley will really sound like 1929!

My own Hull Hartley

You can learn more about amateur radio happenings leading up to and following the 1929 crackdown in my earlier series of 'Why '29' blogs here:

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4

Those wishing to put something together for next year's event can find everything needed here:

Introduction To Building ... '29-Style

Building '29-Style - Part 1

Building '29-Style - Part 2

Heck, there may even be time to throw something together for the following Saturday if you have a few parts and an older tube or two ... the '27 comes to mind and is readily found in many junk boxes. Maybe you know an old-timer or two with lots of parts that could help you out.

Let's hope for good conditions for this event as the last few years have been adversely affected by geomagnetic storming. Poor propagation or not, I guarantee there will be plenty of '29ers busy calling 'CQ AWA' on the low bands.

Complete BK details are available here.

Upcoming '29 BK QSO Party

courtesy: Lou, VE3AWA

This Saturday night as well as the next will be the annual Bruce Kelley 1929 QSO Party, otherwise known as the '1929 BK'.





Only transmitters that are 'era-appropriate' are allowed to be used. More specifically, transmitters must employ tubes that were available in 1929 or earlier, and transmitters must be self-excited. No crystals allowed! Crystals were new and largely unaffordable for most hams back in the depression days.

1929 marked a real turning point in amateur radio as governments finally cracked-down on things such as frequency stability, out of band operations and re-alignment of call districts. In short, hams were henceforth required to behave themselves and to clean up their signals and methods of operation.

courtesy: http://www.arrl.org/

Although the new rules did a lot to improve things when it came to 'signal purity', there was still a long way to go ... but the wheels of improvement had been officially set in motion. The next decade would see monumental changes in both transmitter and receiver architecture, as engineers along with some particularly gifted amateurs, strove to unlock the challenges of this relatively new technology.

If you tune across the CW bands during the next two Saturday nights, you will have the rare opportunity to hear exactly what the bands must have sounded like back in the early '30s'.

For the most part you will hear single tube Hartley, Colpitts or TNT oscillators along with a few two-tube MOPAs thrown in. Many of them will suffer the same problems encountered by the boys of '29 ... chirp, drift, buzzy notes and frequency instability from antennas swaying in the wind.

This year, signals should be a little louder as well, since the previous power limitation of 10W input has been increased to 25W.

The MOPAs will sound much better but some surprisingly nice-sounding signals can be heard coming from properly tuned and optimised single-tube oscillators. I recall being blown away by the lovely sounding signal I heard from such a rig when first tuning into the BK activity several years ago, only to learn that it was a self-excited Hartley using 1/4" copper tubing for the oscillator tank circuit!

The '29 watering-hole on 80m will be around 3550-3580 kilocycles (be careful not to confuse this with kilohertz!) while the early afternoon to post-sunset 40m activity will be found from 7100-7125 kc. There may even be a few on the very low end of 160m. Although many of these transmitter styles were used on 20m and higher, BK rule-makers have wisely decided not to inflict these sounds on the present populace as it would likely keep the 'Official Observers' busy for several days writing pink-slips.

You can learn more about amateur radio happenings leading up to and following the 1929 crackdown in my earlier series of 'Why '29' blogs here:

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4

Those wishing to put something together for next year's event can find everything needed here:

Introduction To Building ... '29-Style

Building '29-Style - Part 1

Building '29-Style - Part 2

Heck, there me even be time to throw something together for the following Saturday if you have a few parts and an older tube or two ... the '27 comes to mind and is readily found in many junk boxes. Maybe you know an old-timer or two with lots of parts that could help you out.

Let's hope for good conditions for this event as the last few years have been adversely affected by geomagnetic storming. Poor propagation or not, I guarantee there will be plenty of '29ers busy calling 'CQ AWA' on the low bands.

A Weekend '29 Transmitter Project

A recent posting to the Yahoo AWAGroup, reminded me of a wonderfully simple transmitter that would easily get anyone on-the-air for the Bruce Kelley '29 QSO Party coming up in December. The AWAGroup is largely composed of '29 builders and operators and is often the source of much good discussion related to these activities.

When builders first tackle a '29 style rig, eligible for the BK Party, the first thought is often about finding an affordable tube that might make the transmitter a 'legal' entry. A suggestion of tubes and their relative availability can be found here in one of my earlier blogs. Although some of the tubes may not be typical junk-box items, one that is often very readily available and inexpensive is the '27' or the '227' / UX-227.

The '27 was a popular audio tube used in receivers back in the 20's and can easily be pressed into service as a self-excited oscillator on HF. When properly adjusted, the '27 can produce up to 4W of RF, more than enough for you to join the '29 fun a make plenty of contacts over the dual-weekend event.

Scott, WA9WFA, has produced a great article describing the construction of a 1929 Hartley oscillator using the 27. There is no need to utilize period-appropriate parts, other than the vacuum tube itself. If you are pressed for building time or just want to get something on the air, there's no need to be overly concerned about construction aesthetics ... there's plenty of time for that later, and besides, the uglier ones often work and sound the best!

WA9WFA's 27-Tubed Hartley

Power supply requirements for the transmitter are pretty minimal and could even be an old receiver supply ... something that delivers 250-300 VDC at 35ma. An effective way to easily double the power of this transmitter is to add a second tube in parallel with the original one, providing your power supply can supply the extra current (~35ma) required. Although Scott's information describes an 80m Hartley, there is no reason why you could not wind a coil for 40 or for 160 and take advantage of any activity on those bands as well. Like most of these link-coupled outputs, you'll probably squeeze a little better efficiency from the circuit by adding a variable capacitor (~365pf) in series with the pick-up link and the hot-side of the coaxial feedline.

Nick, WA5BDU, wrote his description of building the 27 Hartley which can be found here. He also includes information on running the 2.5V filament from a 5V transformer.

WA5BDU's 27-Tubed Hartley

ABØCW uses two 27s in parallel for the oscillator section of his 1929 MOPA. Details of his interesting Hartley can be found here.

ABØCW's Parallel 27s

As further proof that you don't need a lot of power to have fun in the 1929 BK Party, here is the rig that Kevin, WB2QMY, used when we worked on 80m CW. His little TNT, just barely putting out 2W, made it all the way from New York!

WB2QMY's 80m 2W TNT

When it comes to the BK ... if you build it, they will come. Hopefully you can join the fun this winter as well.

Building For The BK Party?

It's almost that time of the year when, once again, the '29ers start preparing for the winter Bruce Kelley 1929 CW Party. A recent posting on the Yahoo AWA (Builder's) Group by Lou, VE3AWA, reminded everyone that there were only 108 more sleeps before this year's Party.



In case you're not familiar with the 'BK', it's a winter CW event celebrating the early days of amateur radio.

Transmitters used for the event must be self-excited only ... no crystals are allowed ... and the tube(s) used must be those that were available in 1929 or earlier. It's an eye-opener to hear how the band must have sounded in the early days of amateur radio CW... even better if you're making those beautiful sounds yourself.

The 'BK' usually spawns a flurry of construction, so if you think it is something that might interest you, you have until December to get ready! Unfortunately many aspiring '29ers always leave it too late and inevitably run out of time before any last glitches can be overcome.

For many builders of  '29-style gear, especially transmitters, the two-weekend December event is the highlight of the year as it gives them the opportunity to get on the air with their early-style rigs and work as many other '29ers as they can.

Every year there are numerous transcontinental CW contacts made with the simple, usually single-tube, self-excited oscillators that look as if they would have difficulty just being heard across town! Tuning in to the BK Party may be the closest thing you can find to a 'time machine' these days, as a small section of the CW bands (160-40m) take on the same sounds you would have heard when tuning across these bands in the late '20s.

When I first listened to a BK Party several years ago, I was surprised at the wide range of signal quality coming from these faithfully reproduced exhalers, running the gamut from the 'almost Collins-like' MOPAs to the unique sounding raw-AC notes coming from some of the one-lungers.

Most of the stations I have worked in past BK events were running less than 10W input yet, even with the terrible conditions experienced in the last two events, their signals were making it across the continent on the low bands ... and all were having a great time doing it!

Larry's (NE1S) TNT makes it back to the west coast every year in the BK Party.

Shown above is a fine little TNT built by Kevin, WB2QMY, in New York. It uses a very affordable UX-201A triode, originally manufactured in 1925 for radio receivers. Although Kevin's TNT puts out barely 2 watts on 80m CW, we had no trouble working each other in the BK QSO Party. If you build it, they will come!


If you've ever entertained thoughts of wanting to participate in the '29 QSO Party, this late-summer 'heads-up', could be just what you need to make it happen ... there is still plenty of time to put something together for this year's event. Here is the specific information for this year's BK Party.

There is plenty of information available right here on my blog that will answer many of your initial concerns surrounding tubes, circuits and components:

An Introduction To Building ... '29-Style

'29-Style Transmitters ... What To Build? - Part 1

'29-Style Transmitters ... What To Build? - Part 2

As well, my own website contains several detailed construction procedures on various transmitter styles used back in the day ... and an inspirational 'Gallery of '29-Style Transmitters' from other builders. In addition, there is a lot more '29-specific information in this blog, all of which can be found here, for several nights of bedtime reading!

Should you decide to take on a simple transmitter for this year's party (and there are dozens of participants hoping that you will), here are a few things to keep in mind:

You don't need much power to make contacts ... just a few watts will do it. If your antenna system is efficient and you can hear reasonably well, expect to work '29ers all across the continent.

Your transmitter does not have to 'look pretty'! You can breadboard up something with modern components and as long as the tube-year qualifies, you're good to go. Too many get bogged-down with making a showpiece ... that can always come later.

I, and others, have found Hartley oscillators to be the easiest to get going and often produce the best notes. Although the power limit this year has been increased to 25 watts DC input, just 2 or 3 watts coming from a simple Hartley will guarantee you a ticket on the BK time machine.

A wonderful source of advice, inspiration and even help with parts, can be had by joining the AWA (Builders) Group.

For now, I'll tempt you with the basic information regarding the QSO Party as published by the 'BK' sponsor...the AWA.

The Bruce Kelly 1929 QSO Party is a yearly AWA sponsored event where participants build their own transmitters using the designs, techniques, and tubes that were available in 1929 and earlier, and then put those classic transmitters on the air and try to contact as many other 1929 stations as possible.  Since they use early designs, it is a cacophony of whooping, chirping, buzzing, clicking, drifting, swishing, swaying, warbling, and other interesting signals.   This is what ham radio sounded like in 1929 and for two weekends in December its 1929 again on the ham bands.

Rules:  Transmitters must be 1929 or earlier types of self oscillators such as the Hartley, TNT, PP tuned grid tuned plate, MOPA, Colpitts, etc.  No crystal oscillators.  Tubes must have been available during or before 1929.  Typical tubes often used are type 10, 45, 27, 211, 71A.  Individual stations can be worked only once on each band over the course of two weekends.  You can use any vintage or modern receiver that you wish.  The event is open to all 1929 stations including non-AWA members and AWA members. 

Input Power:  Transmitters are limited to a power INPUT of 25 watts or less. 

Frequencies:  The QSO Party typically operates between 1800 to 1810 Kcs, 3550 to 3580 Kcs , 7100 to 7125 Kcs, plus or minus depending on QRM.  40 meter activity is up significantly because it offers both night time AND daytime propagation!   

Presently, a large percentage of the activity is from Minnesota and points eastward ... the west is poorly represented for some reason but activity out this way has been slowly increasing over the past few years.

You don't need much in the way of power ... every year I work several eastern 'BK' stations that are running just 2 or 3 watts, usually using  receiver tubes pressed into RF oscillator service ... much like the original 'boys of '29' probably had to do. 

With the solar cycle winding-down and the expected return of undisturbed great winter conditions, this year's BK Party should be better than ever ... especially with even more new clunkers chirping away in the night.

Should you join the fun, there will be many '29ers looking for you I can guarantee!

courtesy:VE3AWA

1929 QSO Party Weekends

This Saturday as well as the next will be the annual Bruce Kelley 1929 QSO Party, otherwise known as the '1929 BK'.





It's the once a year opportunity to celebrate the sounds of early amateur radio ... only transmitters that are 'era-appropriate' are allowed to be used. More specifically, transmitters must employ tubes that were available in 1929 or earlier, and transmitters must be self-excited. No crystals allowed! Crystals were new and largely unaffordable for most hams back in the depression days.

1929 marked a real turning point in amateur radio as governments finally cracked-down on things such as frequency stability, out of band operations and re-alignment of call districts. In short, hams were henceforth required to behave themselves and to clean up their signals and methods of operation.

courtesy: http://www.arrl.org/

Although the new rules did a lot to improve things when it came to 'signal purity', there was still a long way to go ... but the wheels of improvement had been officially set in motion and the next decade would see monumental changes in both transmitter and receiver architecture, as engineers along with some particularly gifted amateurs, strove to unlock the challenges of this relatively new technology.

If you tune across the CW bands during the next two Saturday nights, you will have the rare opportunity to hear exactly what the bands must have sounded like back in the early '30s'.

For the most part you will hear single tube Hartley, Colpitts or TNT oscillators with a few two-tube MOPAs' thrown in. Many of them will suffer the same problems encountered by the boys of '29 ... chirp, drift, buzzy notes and frequency instability from antennas swaying in the wind. The MOPAs' will sound much better but some surprisingly nice-sounding signals can be heard coming from properly tuned and optimised single-tube oscillators. I recall being blown away by the lovely sounding signal I heard from such a rig when first tuning into the BK activity several years ago, only to learn that it was a self-excited Hartley using 1/4" copper tubing for the oscillator tank circuit!

The '29 watering-hole on 80m will be around 3550-3580 kilocycles (be careful not to confuse this with kilohertz!) while the early afternoon to sunset 40m activity will be found from 7100-7125 kc. There may even be a few on the very low end of 160m, later on the first Saturday night only. Although many of these transmitter styles were used on 20m and higher, BK rule-makers have wisely decided not to inflict these sounds on the present populace as it would likely keep the 'Official Observer' guys busy for several days writing pink-slips.

You can learn more about amateur radio happenings leading up to and following the 1929 crackdown in my earlier series of 'Why '29' blogs here:

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4

Those wishing to put something together for next year's event can find everything needed here:

Introduction To Building ... '29-Style

Building '29-Style - Part 1

Building '29-Style - Part 2

Heck, there me even be time to throw something together for the following Saturday if you have a few parts and an older tube or two ... the '27 comes to mind and is readily found in many junk boxes. Maybe you know an old timer with 'lots of stuff' that could help out.

Unfortunately due to a number of coinciding events, I'll not be on-the-air for the event this year, the first one I've missed since getting in on the fun several years ago.

Getting Ready For The '29 QSO Party

Although the Bruce Kelly 1929 QSO Party is not until December, now is really the time to be putting something together if you've been thinking about getting in on the fun this year!




Like almost all of the operating in 1929, this is a CW only affair and if you've taken a listen in previous years, you know that the chirps, yoops, sudden frequency excursions and musical notes are all part of the original difficulties faced by the boys of '29 as they struggled with the relatively new adventure of 'amateur radio'.

Why 1929 you ask? It was the Radio Act of 1927 that came into effect in 1929 that laid out the foundation and future of amateur radio, with most of the early tenets still in effect today. The BK QSO Party celebrates the turning point in what had been pretty much a radio 'free-for-all' up until that time. Real progress was made quickly once the ground rules were established.

Rules of the BK Party require that all transmitters use tubes that were available in 1929 or earlier and must be self-excited ... no crystals allowed! This might seem to present a daunting task but in reality there are many readily available tubes that will make your transmitter legal.

In three previous blogs I've outlined some of the construction options available to new BK entrants and you can probably find enough information there to get you well on your way to some mid-winter fun. You will find links to these on the sidebar to the right.

Over the past three years I have posted a lot of 1929-related material, covering construction as well as BK Party activity. You can get all of these '29 blogs here and get enough bedtime reading for the week and hopefully, enough inspiration to grab the soldering iron and think about throwing something together for the party ... and it doesn't have to be pretty, as long as it works and is 'legal'! As well, my website has detailed construction information for three of my own '29-style transmitters.

I'm always impressed with the level of operating seen in the BK Party. For some reason, these guys can copy the weakest most awful sounding signals with ease. If you can get something going with a couple of watts or more, I guarantee that you will be heard and will work many of the '29 stations ... just don't wait too late to start building as I'd hate for you to miss all the fun!

Field Day - '29 Style!

courtesy: WA3TTS & NO3M

Although the first ARRL Field Day was in the summer of '33, Eric (NO3M) and some of his friends decided to set up and run a '29-style operation during last weekend's annual event. Thanks to Mike, WA3TTS for the camera work.


In Eric's own words:

I had a 1920/1930s style Field Day setup this weekend and a bunch of guys over.  80M doublet with homebrew open wire line (approx 550 ohm), the transmitter was a 27-24-24-865 job more or less straight out of July 1931 QST, but with a Hartley instead of crystal oscillator.  27 tuned to 80M, first 24 to 40M, second 24 also 40M, and the 865 on 40M.  About 10W.  Never did get a chance to try her out on 20M by using the second 24 as a doubler.

I also built the complementary amplifier using a 203A from the August 1931 QST article.  I had not even tested the amplifier, only having been finished at 1AM Saturday morning!!  It is somewhat different in that the grid circuit is composed of the driving rig's antenna coupling coil/cap, re-wired to be in parallel, not series, of course.  It was coined as being a good amp for any existing power oscillator or MOPA,  We did a quick job of neutralizing while the gang was here and fired it up..... no modern measurement devices in sight, so we were only going on RF current.   0.9 amps into 50 ohm (pre-tuned the homebrew link coupled, balanced tuner with an analyzer beforehand)... so about 40 watts.  I was hoping for 100W.... anyways, after most guys left, a couple of us starting messing around with it more, mainly tightening the output coupling of the MOPA and amp tanks.  NICE!  1.45 amps, ie. 105W on 40M.

Anyways, I'll have a full writeup and photos on my website in a few days.  We used an HRO5 for a receiver; everyone commented on how good it sounded and well it handled.  Of course, this is from a bunch of guys that grew up with this stuff and/or has owned one at one time or another.  Everyone had a great time and lots of good discussion and visiting, including 153 QSOs with that pile of junk!

73 Eric NO3M



Most will agree that Eric's station is far from a "pile of junk" as his superb homebrewing skills are clearly evident! Setting up this old style gear can be challenging at any time, but doing it for an outside weekend operation must have been a ton of work. Well done Eric - I'm sure the 'boys of '29' were smiling down on you!

For more information about building and operating '29-style transmitters, see the links on my blog sidebar.

************************
 Eric has just added a write-up of his FD activities and posted here. 

The Boys Of '25

"6BHH" - Ray Thomas courtesy: SCARA

I've been fascinated with the ham radio gear and activity of the late 20's for a number of years, ever since getting a bundle of 'Antique Wireless Association' journals from Harry, VE7AIJ. Many of the issues described in detail, the construction of simple '1929-style' transmitters, and once I learned that there was an annual '1929 QSO Party', I was hooked.

Knowing of my interest in early radio, Paul, K7CW, recently sent me a link to a truly delightful piece of old 16mm 'home movie' style film. The footage appears on the Santa Clara County Amateur Radio Association's website where a description of the film places it in or around San Jose, California and likely filmed over a number of months from early 1925 to 1926.

These were the very early days of ham radio ... the 'wild-west' in terms of rules, frequency allocations and enforcement. Hams operated throughout the LF / MF spectrum and it would not be unusual to find them working ships at sea or trying to work the latest geographical expedition to the Arctic or to some other far away place. It was also the transition period from spark to carrier-based communications, with RF generated by tubes and not with rotary high-voltage generators.

The film shows the radio 'boys of '25' (and girls!), now all so long gone, when they were young and full of life. We see them meeting, playing in the California sun and proudly showing off their shacks and equipment ... occasionally mocking those 'new-fangled' transmitting tubes, soon to replace their much-loved spark generators.

I hope you enjoy this treasure from the past ... I'm sure the 'boys of '25' would be delighted if you do.

'29 BK QSO Party - Night #2

Weekend #2 for the 1929 Bruce Kelley QSO Party found propagation even poorer than the first weekend.



With the 'K' index rising to level 4 along with the arrival of high speed solar winds, it was an uphill battle once again. And as usual, the terrestrial winds were relentless at 60-90km/h here for the entire event ... the worst winds I have experienced during any previous BK's.

The new MOPA did not suffer from the same level of frequency jumping as my previously used Hartley or TNT oscillators but the high winds were still able to cause some melodic pulling of the oscillator. Apparently there is still enough trickle-down coupling from the PA to the oscillator when high winds cause sudden shifts in impedance or resonance of the antenna ... but generally I was much happier with the new BK transmitter.

This year's BK QSO total was the lowest I have had, with just 29 QSO's. A few more were added on Saturday night as well as early Sunday morning, including one QSO on topband.

KK7UV, Steve in Montana, can always be counted on for a clean-sweep and working him on 160m completed that task again this year. Steve's extensive fall antenna work has really payed off as his '29 signal was always impressive up this way. His 160m Hartley signal was a solid 579.

KK7UV - Hull Hartley

I later heard Steve working KBØROB who always has a nice topband signal as well, but there was nary as much as a whisper from Harold this year ... indicative of the very disturbed conditions.

Hats off to Bill, K4JYS in North Carolina, as once again his signal seemed to be the one most consistently heard here, on both 40m and 80m. Bill runs a single-wire off-center fed Hertz at 40', as described in December 1929 QST and it seems to work very well.

K4JYS - 210 Hartley

I arose at 0400 local time to try and catch any sunrise enhanced propagation from back east on 80m and was rewarded with four new contacts.

George, N3GJ in Pennsylvania was worked along with Larry, W2LB in New York. Larry's 5W Hartley signal was an amazing 559 and solid copy. His breadboard '29 rig is proof that it doesn't have to be pretty to do the job and join the fun!

W2LB - 227 5W Hartley

A few minutes later, KØKP and KØKCY, both in Minnesota, were added to the log before I shifted to 40m for a few minutes. It was there I found N2BE in New Jersey and W2LB once again.

Another one of the night's highlights was working Lou, VE3AWA, on 80m, who I had missed the previous weekend. So far, Lou and I have never failed to work each other on 80m but it was looking rather dire until his signal suddenly popped-up shortly before 8PM, keeping our record intact.

VE3AWA - 210 TNT

I wasn't sure if this year's smaller log was a result of very poor band conditions or just lower activity levels, but after reading a few summaries from eastern stations, it seems that activity was as high as usual. Hopefully next year conditions will be back to the undisturbed levels that have been so enjoyable during past BK events.

These stations were worked on weekend #2 ... Hartley oscillators having the edge once again.

       40m

       W7LNG  TNT  10w  OR
       W8KGI  MOPA  10w  NM
       N2BE  Hartley  10w  NJ
       W2LB  Hartley  5w  NY

       80m

       VE3AWA  TNT  10w  ON
       N3GJ  Hartley  9w  PA
       W2LB  Hartley  5w  NY
       KØKP  Hartley  10w  MN
       KØKCY  MOPA  10w  MN

       160m

       KK7UV  Hartley  10w  MT

Please do consider putting something together for next year's BK Party as more new activity, particularly from the western side of the continent, is always wonderful to see and adds much more excitement to the party.

You might find the three-part 'Building '29 Style' links on the right sidebar of some interest should you be planning on joining the fun and ... if you are looking for help, you will find many '29 ops willing to do what they can to get you BK-ready on Yahoo's AWAGroup. Everyone would love to work you next year!

'29 BK QSO Party - Night #1

Harold - KB0ROB

This past Friday night's wonderful propagation during the ARRL 160m CW Contest, pretty much went into the dumper for Saturday night's 1929 Bruce Kelley QSO Party, sponsored by the Antique Wireless Association.




In spite of the auroral-like conditions, with the K-index reaching level '5', the melodic tones from many of the old (and new) clunkers could be heard pounding out their annual 'CQ AWA' invitations.

Among my 19 contacts (8 on 40m and 11 80m), the highlight of the night was working W2ICE/1 in Maine on both 40 and 80m. In reality, this was Paul, N1BUG, operating Bruce Kelley's original 10 watt TNT, which rose to almost S9 levels on 40m, once the sun had set. The Kelley transmitter is moved to various locations each year, a new AWA tradition.

As well, Larry (NE1S), also in Maine, was worked on 40m with  his 10W TNT.

A new station for my '29 logbook was George (N3GJ), in Pennsylvania. George was managing 8 watts input to his version of a 1929 TNT.

When I first tuned-in, several years ago, to hear what these 1929 signals sounded like, two of the best sounding signals were coming from KBØROB (Harold), shown at the top, and KBØMM (Burt), both in Minnesota. I could hardly believe they were using era-appropriate rigs as their signals sounded as good as many modern rigs. Thankfully nothing has changed, as these two stations continue to hand out 'MN' using their well-built 'MOPA'-style time machines.

Scott, WA9WFA, the BK score-keeper in charge of logs, faded up briefly with his fine-looking Colpitts.

Here is a list of the '29ers worked so far, along with their rig style and DC power inputs.

       40m

       KK7UV     Hartley    10w    MT
       W2ICE/1    TNT    10w     ME
       NE1S    TNT    10w    ME
       VE7BDQ    Colpitts    8w    BC
       K7SF    Hartley    10w    OR
       K4JYS    Hartley    10w    NC
       WB2AWQ    Hartley    10w    NV
       N3GJ    TNT    8w    PA

       80m

       KBØMM    MOPA    8w    MN
       KBØROB    MOPA    9w    MN
       W7LNG    TNT    7w     OR
       K4JYS    Hartley    10w    NC
       W2ICE/1    TNT    10w    ME
       WA9WFA    Colpitts    20w     MN
       KK7UV    Hartley    10w    MT
       W9TFC    Hartley    10w    WI
       N2BE    Hartley    10w     NJ
       KIØDB    MOPA    10w    MN
       WØLGU    MOPA    10w    MN

As you can see, 'Hartley' construction takes a slight edge. Vintage 'handbooks' and magazine articles from the era, have always promoted the TNT as the best 'beginners' rig but in reality, the Hartley is much easier to build and to get working with a good-sounding signal. The TNT requires some finicky tweaking of the grid coil in order to have an equally stable-sounding note.

I'm happy to report that in spite of the very high winds (as usual), my new MOPA's tone remained virtually unmoving ... for the most part! This was its first real workout and after my first QSO on 80m, my frequency began making large jumps and suddenly sounding very unstable, along with fluctuations in power output. My initial thought was that one of the old original mica caps was starting to breakdown.

After disconnecting one lead of each capacitor (one at a time) and temporarily clipping in a modern substitute, I was no further ahead. I had originally isolated the frequency instability to the amplifier stage and there was only one thing left ... the amplifier's grid-leak resistor. It appeared to be slowly failing, by increasing resistance in jumps. The 12K resistor was now measuring ten times that value and quickly rising. A new 12K, temporarily clipped in place, cured the problem but it had cost me over an hour of operating time ... probably the best prop of the night as by the time I got back on the band, signals were weak and auroral-sounding.

Hopefully the bands will have mended themselves by next Saturday night, allowing some of the smaller eastern stations to make it back to the west coast for some memorable '29 'transcons'.

ARRL 160 CW / '29 QSO Party

'29 MOPA

I spent about five hours last night in the ARRL 160 CW contest, working 321 stations in 74 sections. Conditions were excellent, with my 150W sustaining long runs and big pileups. It reminded me very much of the old F2 days on 6m, running huge pileups of JA's. Unfortunately I'll not be able to continue tonight because of the conflict with the '29 QSO Party.






In reality, I may not be in that one either, as right on schedule the winds have picked up once again, with gusts to 83 km/h predicted throughout the day ... I'll be lucky if the power stays on for the QSO Party tonight. As well as doing their best to blow my antennas around and make my already shaky '29 signal sound even worse, these high winds all too often result in long power outages here in the Southern Gulf Islands ... my fingers are crossed, as they are every year at this time.

courtesy: http://www.theweathernetwork.com/weather/canada/british-columbia/mayne-island-6

If I'm lucky enough to still have power, this will be the inauguration of my newly-constructed MOPA '29 rig ... a two-tube, Master Oscillator Power Amplifier. This rig will be much more 'wind-proof' than my previous mainstays, a single-tube TNT or the Hull Hartley. Both of these self-excited oscillators sound overly 'melodic' when directly coupled to an antenna swinging, or more often, blowing like crazy, in the wind.

If you ever wondered what the ham bands may have sounded like back in 1929, have a listen this Saturday as well as next Saturday night. You will hear some amazingly good signals being generated by these '29 state-of-the-art transmitters as well as some pretty awful sounding ones. It was the pretty awful-sounding ones that led to the crackdown for amateur radio in 1929 as hams were forced to clean up their act or suffer the consequences.

Activity will gather around 3550-3580 kHz and 7100-7125 kHz ... the second weekend will see some meet on the very low end of 160m for an hour, probably around 0400z. I hope some of you will be joining the fun as well, with your newly-constructed 'old' rig!

The 1929 'BK' QSO Party

The month of December will soon be upon us and that means it's 'BK' time once again! The Bruce Kelley 1929 QSO Party is the annual two-weekend event celebrating the sound of amateur radio as it was in 1929.


At no other time of the year can you tune across the bands and hear the melodic sound of radio as it once was ... before the days of crystal-control, when most hams were using self-excited one or two-tube transmitters.

With antennas blowing in the wind, these directly-coupled oscillators often make the band sound like a musical symphony gone wrong ... the wonderful whooping, chirping, buzzing, clicking, drifting, swishing, swaying, warbling, and other interesting sounds of '29, when amateur radio was in its infancy.

If you've ever considered joining-in on the fun, then you still have a few weeks to slap something together for the party ... it need not be 'pretty', but it must be 'compliant'. That is, the tube (or tubes) that you use, must have been available in 1929 or earlier. For receiving, use anything you like ... modern or vintage, as there are no restrictions.

I've penned several blogs on popular circuits and tubes that are commonly used among the BK regulars and they can be viewed here:

Building '29 Style

Building '29 - What To Build? - PT.1

Building '29 - What To Build? - PT.2

More BK Building

With the usual propagation of early December, it is not surprising that many transcontinental QSO's are made every year, even with the little two or three watters. Considering the 10 watt power input rule, it is surprising how strong some signals from across the country can become on the lower bands, especially on 40m.

Please consider rolling-up your sleeves, heating up your soldering iron and putting something together for the BK fun, especially if you are on the left coast ... and don't be the least concerned about how it looks!

For a gallery of inspiration from individuals that were too weak to resist the temptation, have a look at some previously built '29 time machines.

For the first time, I'll be using my newly constructed MOPA, a two-tuber that will hopefully reduce my annual BK windstorm angst. It seems that every BK weekend, I have gale-force winds here on the island, making my signal a little bit 'too musical', although some '29 diehards still claim to love the sound ... for them, there is no hope.

New MOPA Completed

Well ... my new 1930's style MOPA transmitter is finally finished after several months of construction. I have also put together a page on my website describing the project.

For many years, December's high winds here on the coast, have always arrived coincidentally with the start of the annual 1929 QSO Party, making my signal dance around even more than usual! With the new MOPA, I'll no longer have to worry about high winds upsetting signal stabilty ... although many of us do enjoy hearing these musical sounds of '29!

By the way, there's still plenty of time for you also, to put something together for this annual fun event. You can see a whole page-full of inspiring '29 homebrew magic here (scroll to the bottom half) ... and there is plenty of help available for your project in the AWA Yahoo Builders Group ... we are always looking for more new activity, particularly here out west.

courtesy: natubes.com/

The new MOPA uses two type '10 tubes (like many, I use the war-time type '10 equivalent, the more affordable VT-25), one as a Hartley oscillator and the other as a Class-C final amplifier.

I'm looking forward to working many of you in the next '29 QSO Party ... in the meantime, I'm thinking hard about what my next project might be!