Anyone DXing Tonight
 

Catching the skip tonight on my NC-46.Just a basic loop antenna working out well.Tube DXing at its best:yes:

Thunderstorm City here tonite...Fuggeddabout DXing...

Storms all around me as well, so the Trans-Oceanic and the DX-160 are off tonight.

nice little national :thmbsp: i havnt fired mine up in years.i do however have to hook up my alpha delta dipole before summer ends.

Listened to WBZ Boston on my trusty National NC-109, QTH about 60 miles NE of
Montreal. Plenty of other stations on AM as well on Tuesday night. Long live
analog AM!

Try for 630 kHz CHLT in French in Sherbrooke, Quebec. They will be going silent
anytime now as they complete their move to FM.

I did some AM DXing yesterday and I received a station broadcasting Radio Italy around 1540 or 1550 kc, give or take. Anybody have a clue who and what it is? I was using an 8 transistor Magnavox radio and it was coming in quite well although there was some fading. I'm assuming that a US or Canadian AM station could be rebroadcasting Radio Italy, I just can assume I'm picking up Italy directly. If that was the case, that was the best 3 bucks I spent at a garage sale for that old Maggie. Even if it is a Stateside station, that little radio has done quite well.

Cool stuff!!!!!!!!!

Heard the same on my car radio Saturday morning aroud 4:30 EDT (8:30
UTC)! It was 1540 kHz. It seemed to be a program about the history
of the Catholic Church. Still doing some research about that station.
Regards.

P.S.: most likely CHIN Toronto, see this link.

http://www.chinradio.com/schedule.php?sch2=1

I've been listeining to WBZ and Chicago, 780 am nightly for a few days. Chicago early in the morning hasold time radio shows so earlier in the week I get to listen to them on Toronto 740 and the Chicago. On SW Radio China in english. Interesting to hear the Chinese and Canadian/US versions of the Chinese news. Last Friday also got a lock on Japan but the station was just switching over to kid's music so I listened only for a couple of minutes.

I am using the Eton S350DL. I did try my old Candle am/fm/sw on batteries just to see if it could pick up China and it did a really good job in getting it but as the entire 4-12mc scale is about 6 inches, things get tight in the trying to get stations concentrated in the 5.5-6.8mc range. Also makes one remeber the old days of staying on the tuning knob as it does drift. The Eton has a 25" wire and the Candle only has the whip so I was really impressed by the Candle's performance. It also does well on getting WBZ and Chicago on AM.

Been listening to WBBN Chicago 780 and CHWO Toronto 740 tonight.Last night around 2AM picked up radio Havana Cuba on the A band(I think, it was late)viva the revolution. Analog AM is great,the only down side is the heat the NC 46 puts out after awhile.Need a better antenna what do you guys suggest.Using a square foot loop with four turns right now.

Lots of storm activity here, no decent reception, just static bursts. I do most of my good listening on my Philco 39-116, or believe it or not, the Onkyo 4500. I've found the AM section in it is fantastic, especially if I hook up my ouside antenna. Mind you this antenna is nothing special, its about 40 feet of cheap 22 ga speaker wire run out the window and tied to the clothes line at the other end. The antenna I use on the Philco is about the same length hung on nails under the eave out front where my workshop is. The Philco has a ground, the Onk does not.

I'm also a regular 740 CHWO listener. I was listening to their big band program last night. It just feels right listening to 40s era big band on a 1939 radio.

am 740! I like to tune into that one in the evenings if I can.

Hmmm, the program was all in Italian it seems and I heard Radio Italy a lot. That could be it. I know the little "Maggie" is a great radio, but pulling in Italy itself would be very improbable indeed. I did receive a 1000 watt station from Texas on it at one time.

I think I have heard this station myself. I think they had Mandarin on when I heard it. Wow what great reception! I was confused till I heard a station break. :-)

Sometimes I pick up Cuba on AM. I like to listen to George Noory and Art Bell when I can't sleep at night and in between jobs, I'm into the paranormal a bit. However, when the Pittsburgh Pirates play at night, Michael Savage (I'm a loyal Savage listener but I want to hear Noory at that time plus I do like to chill out) sometimes pre-empts Noory on our FM talker here so I go to AM. The closest affiliate I can get is Youngstown, but sometimes "Radio Reloj" in Cuba "walks over" WKBN-AM (570 kc) so I have to try for 800 in Sarnia, ON, 1100 WTAM, Cleveland or 1140 out of Richmond, VA. Actually 1460 in Ambridge, PA, across the river from me, has Noory/Bell too, but they put out like 33 watts at night (at that time I think) so it is tough. When I was in hospital for 5 days in 2003 with an infected left hand from a cut (I was in danger of losing all or part of my hand), I listened to that station since the hospital was right under the tower and it came in like really strong.

Mom likes that station when we are in Northwestern, PA. Sometimes when the skip is good, when I'm in the car, I do put it on for her. BTW, I do miss the CBC though, I remember in the 1990's, I had to commute 25 miles each way and in the winter, I would get home after sundown. I enjoyed the CBC on the ride home with Michael Enright and Alan Maitland (RIP, dude, yuns got me home many a winter night) on "As It Happens." Sometimes I think the CBC has a bunch of boneheads running it, sorry I get opinionated, because with the moved to FM, they lost a lot of U.S. listeners. I remember one time, during Christmas of 1996, they did a story on the huge runs of "Tickle Me Elmo" where one worker at a mall got trampled by a huge crowd. I'm glad the poor schmoe made it out OK with no major injuries but the way Enright and Maitland told it, I was laughing so hard that I almost had to pull over.

They actually broadcast in English also. I need to start a log so I can schedule when and where to look and listen and the results.

Won a Hallicrafters HR500 that is the same as the S120 Friday night and picked it up today. Pretty clean, switches are stiff as the seller bought it from someone who had it stored for quite a few years. As the seller already had it running worrying about bringing it up on a variac was mute. It came with a pair of hearphones in good condition with only very minimal wear on the cloth covered cord and original manual. I put it in the bedroom, removing the Eton and moving over the antenna to the 500. Just powered it up for a couple of minutes and very minimal hum, almost none. Got AM and a couple of stations in the 5.5-7.0 mhz range so tonight I'll play with it some more. May need a couple of bulbs and once I've played with it I'll open it up and see what is under the hood. 4 tubes and successor to the S38 series but not as well respected from the info on the web but only paid $25 for it with the phones and no shipping.

How about some pics. of some of these radios guys? Plenty of lighting & thunder last night so will DX tonight.Here is a picture of my NC-46.http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b7...D480/ry%3D320/ 1945 vintage

Listened to Radio Bulgaria in French this Sunday afternoon: very interesting and
thoroughly researched DX program, with dozens of reports.

http://www.bnr.bg/RadioBulgaria

Did a little DXing using an AM Silvertone and a 106ft outdoor antenna, picked up the usual available clearchannels (WSM 650 Nashville, WLS 890 Chicago, etc)

Here in Nashville i have been DXing last night got o n6.926mhz Dark Wolf radio on SSB.Poor audio with a bit of fade and noise(storms).Got 740 CAN.WBBM 780 WAOI 1200.Got radio Cuba 6.000 mhz Radio Bucharest on 9mhz band. Using a R-274 B/FRR a Hammarlund SP-600 JX-6.Today listening to local AM stations 1560 WMRO todays latest hits, 1270 WQKR,1200 WAMB,860 WTZX, 790 WQSB last two are oldies stations. Sprman55:thmbsp:

I'm a DX'ing nut. I have a kenwood R-500 by my bedside and a Zenith R-7000 that I listen to nightly when I fall asleep as the Kenwood can get warm if left on for a few hours. I also have an all tube Collins R-390A that is shown with some of my soda stuff, which is another one of my collecting obcessions. It really sucked in the stations but now needs a professional tune-up. I seem to have a DX machine in most rooms of my house that I spend any time in. Also shown is a photo of my Kenwood and Icom scanning receivers I listen to in what has become my radio and audio repair room. I DX more than I listen to my stereos and I DX the AM bands nightly...

nice setup vendo:thmbsp:love the cola stuff too.the r500 gets warm ?how about the icom?is that a r71a? i have a r71a and it runs warm also.i too have radios in every room that i inhabit.i keep a drake r8 and the national nc183d(see my signature)upstairs in my bedroom and the icom and various other tube receivers in the basement room (combo stereo room/listening post).at one point the s/w gear outnumbered my stereo gear but throughout the years its the opposite now.i've never had the oppurtunity yet to play with a r390a but before i pass on i swear ill get one.with the prices now i should of bought one years ago from fair radio sales when they were $400 :sigh: so what do you use for a antenna? i use a alpha delta dx ultra about 20 ft high.

Hi Radioactive..Thanks for the note. Sounds like you have the same addictions as me :yes: I'd love to get a R8..great radio. My Icom is a IC-R7000 which is a UHF/VHF general coverage receiver that tunes from 25-2000MHZ. I put a heat sink on the metal back as it got really warm.
I've always had allot of audio gear but 99% solid state. The last 5 or so years I've got the tube stuff to about 50/50 with the solid state. I had to get a storage unit about 7 years back as I have too much junk and it's almost filled. Problem is I collect antique jukeboxes and soda machines as well and they can take up allot of space fast. I'll never restore all the stuff I have and I should just sell most of it and buy restored stuff that I can use and enjoy :scratch2:
How do you like your Alpha Delta antenna? I've heard their really good and at 20 feet up it should perform great. I wish I could raise an antenna 20 feet. I have to keep them low and in my back yard as I have an association in my housing track. I use a Discone for the Icom, a long wire with traps for the bedroom Kenwood R-5000 and the Collins R-390A, and a rotating wellbrook loop for the other R-5000. The Zenith transoceanics I have all work surprisingly well for standard broadcast DX'ing with their internal antenna. If I hook them up to a long wire they pick up way too much AC noise. The R-390, when working well is an amazing DX machine. 30+ tubes and the most amazing mechanical and electrical tuning section I've ever seen. I got hooked on the Collins by a friend of mine that lives in Hawaii. He has 2 completely rebuilt and aligned R-390A's. He uses 2 separate beverage antennas spaced a certain distance apart. When he 's DX'ing a faint signal that drifts, he tunes both to the same frequency and the drift is greatly reduced by having 2 receivers and 2 antennas. One's clear when the others faint and vise versa. I had to have one when I saw his. Hawaii is a much better place to DX from. Lots of electrical noise in the city where I'm at.

You guys will make me get my R-391 dusted off and use it.Gota finish up on my R-274B first. I have R71a HP moded by EEB.Maybe i will fire up my SX-17 and see what drifts in.I use a 90 foot longwire up 20 feet runs north/south.My R71a has upgraded filters low noise preamp hi stability osc.better spike protection was played 48 hours burn i time then aligned.Try using a outboard ps it will let rx run much cooler.Sprman : )

Hi Sprman55..You've got some nice radios:thmbsp: Boy that SX-17 goes way back. Thats a great radio...I love the old military boatanchors. I'm in the process of getting a Collins R-388/URR. I've always liked the looks of it and they are suppost to be quite good performers. I'll send it and the R-390A off to get rebuilt and aligned later this summer..

R-274B ?!? Izzat otherwise known as a Hammarlund SP-600, or the ultra rare Hallicrafters SX-73 ? Either way, nice set up...

Has anyone experienced the Racal RA-17 triple conversion receiver? You see
several of those in the listening room in the 1962 movie Dr. No, (alright, you
see Ursula Andress as well!). What a receiver, especially when properly cleaned
up and restored (mine isn't yet).

Hi the 274B/FRR is a SP-600 JX-6 Navy .. The BFO is numbered from 0 to 10.Covers from 540kc to 54mhz. Yes SX-17 goes way back i have the R12 speaker for it to both work well.Ihave a SP-600 JX-17 to that i need to fix .Saturday night i will get my Radiola 18 hooked and my RCA model 100 speaker and see what i can hear with that. I use a 90 foot longwire. Hope you have a lot of 6082s they are getting harder to find now days.For solid state i use a 11 year old JRC NRD-535D reciver i bought new. Tiny sounds but it pulls them with the best of them.Will fire up the e h scott philharmonic 30 too and see what i get with it, this weekend. Best of DXing to all.Sprman55 : )

Hi Electroking...Yes my good friend in Hawaii has a unrestored Racal receiver. I remember asking about it as I had never heard the name. I'm not sure which one it is but I remember it looking similar to the Collins 388/URR I'm buying. I didn't hear it in action but I do remember him telling me that it is right up there with the best in what he collects.It must be nice as he only collects the best of the boatanchors.

I have an RA-17 that I had restored by Howard Mills in Maryland. Very good receiver, the tuning system takes some getting used to, though. Still prefer my Collinses. Another one to consider if you ever run across it is a Rohde & Schwarz EK-07. At 150 + LBS, it is a REAL boatanchor...But what a receiver it is ! It'll get stuff outta the mud that the R-390s just THINK they hear...And all the controls have that super-precise "Germanic" feel to them-Like the difference between a Mercedes & a Ford.. One thing I DO like about the RA-17 is the built in speaker...It ain't much, but it gets the job done...

Hi using the SX-17 i got WBBM 780,740canada,and 860 CJBC with nice music. :thmbsp:Using the Scott and a ant 6 feet long got a bunch of stations ,WLW,WBBM,CJBC,WAOI,local got WSM,WMRO.Signals on some had rapid flutter on them.Sprman55:smoke:

Hi using SP-600 JX-6.I got the following signals here are down with rapid flutter. 1630 Iowa City KCJJ, WRDW Augusta GA. 1640 WKSH WIS.. Radio Disney, WTNI Missiipi Espn radio. The AM bands are weak here using both longwires to get signals up.May be the meteor showers that peak on morning of the 12th,The Perseids showers.Sprman :smoke:

Opened the HR500 and 3 of 4 tubes are Lifetime Realistics. 4th is original. Dos not look like any repairs under the chassis. Careful cleaning of controls especially the band selector switch that must be silver plated as it was very tarnished. Damp cloth wipe down of the inside of the cabinet that still has the tube layout chart and used only a soft brush on the topside of the chassis, nothing else as it was so clean.

Did copy the values for the 4-section electrolytic.

I ran a ground wire to a screw on the ac outlet and hooked up the radio with the strung wire and turned the set on. The very low level hum is gone, probably the grounding. All switches are quiet and the scratching and intermittent selector switch now rock stable.

I think I may try to replace the cheap oem speaker to see if I can improve the fidelity. It has no tears and no scratchy but just an elcheapo resulting in typical shortwave radio limited sound quality. I'll also start looking for a set of replacement tubes for backup or 2 sets.

Can not wait to fire it up tonight.

Hello Brian,

Isn't this a hot chassis radio with no power transformer? If so, be careful
with grounding, or smoke may come out!

Just give me a listing of the tubes, this will let me tell you more about this
matter.

The design is the same as the S38 series so it is a hot chassis. I made sure I measured the AC cord for cahssis ground before plugging it in so I plugged it in correctly. No smoke nor "electrical feeling" as I touched the chassis. I'll get a list of tubes to you tonight when I get home. The only 1 I remember is the 50C5 off hand.

I did leak some WD-40 into the tuning and bandspread shaft bushings rather than trying to wash out the old dried lubricant hoping it would work and it seems to have, no squeaking last night and very smooth turning. Hopefully it will stay as I'd prefer not dismantling the shafts and having to restring the unit.

Was listening to Chaina reporting on the Olympics last night but sadly it was not in English, just enough English words and cheers to know what the subject matter was.