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Thank you for stopping by. I invite you to browse
through my site.
It is not glitzy, but I believe you will find it informative and
interesting!
Featured This Month...
Cover to
the August 1924 "Popular Science Monthly"
"Just
For Fun"
or "Why Didn't I Think of That?"
Real inventions and Articles from 1920-1930
Popular Science Monthly...
with a few "Soapbox Comments" by yours truly.
The history of radio and technology in general is very
interesting. Though I poke fun at a few of these
inventions, I certainly respect the creative nature
of the men and women who continued to try to
find new ways to solve problems.
No matter how many of these old magazines I read, I am
always amazed at how truly ingenious many of these
creations were.
Take a look and see if you don't agree.
From time to time I will add or replace the articles, so stop by
again.
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NOS TUBE SALE... Check "Tube
Sale List" I have surplus tubes that I am offering
at excellent prices. Many are TV tubes. Note: Sold to USA
Addresses Only.
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How Does
One Become "Afflicted" With Antique Radio Collecting ? |
Often
it's that first old radio that gets you!
In 1993, my
then 77
year old father gave me a restored
1939 Silvertone table radio as a Christmas gift. That's how it started for me. And though he passed away
at the age of 90 in December of 2005,
he had the opportunity to see the more than seventy-five radios I have
restored...
because HE lit the fire! Thanks, Dad.
I purchased
a couple of books, checked the Internet for information...
the more I learned, the more I
wanted to know.
I bought more books...everything I could find on the topic.
I joined the
AWA ( Antique Wireless Association), the New England Antique Radio Club,
and subscribed to
the
Antique Radio Classified...
my condition "worsened"
I went to a few radio swap meets... I bought tools to
equip my repair bench.
(I call it a "repair bench" even though
sometimes it should be called an "I give up bench")
I built
shelves in the basement...storage space is vital for any collection...
lots
and lots of storage space.
No room? Time to organize a Yard Sale...I now have
about 70 radios...
I am hooked... and I love it...but I need more storage space! |
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Here
I am ( in the blue shirt) checking out a truckload of radios at
one of the
New England Antique Radio Club Swap Meets (This one was called the
"Annual Barbecue Meet" and it was
a lot of fun... )
This event was held in Canterbury, NH
....at the Charlie Fox Farm (Charlie has since passed
away)...
decisions...decisions... so much to choose from...so little money to choose with...but
that's the challenge...getting the best deal for the least money... and
after
all it is an investment.*
*
This is a great line to use on your wife when justifying your purchases! |
When you think about it for a moment,
the process of sending an electromagnetic wave
through the air and having a device that
will "decode"
it into intelligible sound is pretty amazing...but it didn't
happen overnight.
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A wooden cabinet, glowing tubes,
the crackle of static...
Countless families gathered around their radios in the 1920's-50's. What
historical events were carried through the speakers? Did the oratory of William Jennings
Bryan or the folksy humor of Will Rogers inspire and entertain on a Sunday evening? Did
the Fireside Chats of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt comfort this family in the midst
of a depression? Did newsman Edward R. Murrow's, "This is London..."
short-wave broadcasts bring information that was at the same time sad and joyful? The
answer is probably "Yes!" to all the questions for radio was and still continues
to be a binding and unifying force in our culture. |
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Certainly the historical aspect of
"what" was broadcast over the airways holds
a mystique for many involved
in this hobby. But as antique radio enthusiasts,
we have great respect and admiration for the pioneering work of the inventors,
engineers, and technicians of the
"Golden Age of Radio" and what they accomplished
in laying the groundwork for
today's and tomorrow's advances.
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Although
Edison is best remembered for his light bulb, phonograph, and motion picture
camera, he also conducted important work on wireless transmission but later
ignored it for other projects. |
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I wonder if today's transistors and
microchips will still be functioning in 60 or 70 years?
Many vacuum tubes are still
working today! They were the electronic marvels of their time
and they are still
pretty darn interesting... and they were Y2K
compliant...remember that scare?
 
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The Fleming Valve
J. Ambrose
Fleming
invented his two-element (diode) valve, the Fleming Valve while he worked with Marconi in
1904.
The two elements consisted
of a cathode (negatively charged) and an anode (positively charged). The operation
of the vacuum tube or valve was based on the fact that a signal could be amplified as
electrons streamed from a heated element called the cathode to a positive anode
Though the Fleming Valve
was significant, the invention did not last long because in 1907 Lee DeForest developed
the three-element (triode) valve, which later became known as the audion tube.
This tube featured a grid element which was used to control the flow of
electrons between the cathode and anode.
It has been said that the
audion tube was the most significant invention in radio history. |
Though there are still
many applications for vacuum tubes,
the era of widespread use of this incredible device is
pretty much over.
(In a recent
display of tube radios to high school students, most of had never seen a
vacuum tube!)
But, for those of us who restore the radios of yesteryear,
they are still very much a part of our lives.
Ask my wife... we have
2500 of them
residing in our basement!
Creative geniuses like
Tesla,
Hertz, Edison, Marconi, Armstrong, DeForest, Herrold, Kent, Sarnoff,
and many others advanced the art of
radio transmission and reception from "discovery"
to the "Golden Age of
Radio" in the 1930's and 40's.
The pace of electronic advancement was and continues
to be astonishing...
and if you are reading this, you already know that!
When
I am successful, and that is not always
the case, in restoring an antique radio,
I feel that in
some small way,
I am helping to preserve a piece of history that might otherwise be lost.
One thing is certain though, as a self-taught "restorer",
the more I
learn, the more I realize how much more there is to learn
about these marvelous pieces of
technology.
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As a
retired professional
educator of 35 years,
I have really come to appreciate how very important it is
that we never stop learning and experimenting.
It doesn't really matter what we study, we just need to keep
our "neurons" active.
Learning about the past, present, or
playing a role in the development of the future...
there is so much to learn and so little
time to learn it!
Check out my
button to explore more about antique radio.
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