Almost all radio listening can be improved with the use of an outside antenna. A radio antenna grabs radio wave energy out of the air, then relays it to the radio receiver which amplifies the signal to an audible level.
AM radio reception usually relies upon an antenna built into the “innards” of the radio. Although [...]

Tags: AM, Antena, FM, Pipe, Radio, Receiver, TV, Wire
Filed under: Communication, Education, Technology

The voice from the radio was clear, yet was speaking in an unknown language. Tuning in another frequency brought the staccato ditz and dashes of a Morse code transmission. A little more tuning brought in an understandable yet noticeably foreign English broadcast. If you can recall the first shortwave radio broadcast you ever heard, you [...]

Tags: AM, FM, Radio
Filed under: Communication, Education, Radio, Technology

Learning the Morse Code was once a major barrier to getting started in amateur radio. Understanding Morse Code remains a requirement by International agreement for border hopping radio communicators. But today, you can enter domestic ham radio through a code-less Technician license class that only requires you to pass two written tests with a total [...]

Tags: Code, Morse Code
Filed under: Education, Information

When disaster strikes, amateur radio frequently plays a pivotal role in restoring communications. Ham radio has a long history of being first to report earthquakes, major fires, storms and floods, and to fill in when local phone systems or power lines go kaput. Practice for such emergencies often takes the form of public service communication [...]

Tags: Radio, Tool
Filed under: Education, News and Events

Speaking of antennas, you should note that in almost every case, shortwave reception will be substantially improved if you can attach an external antenna to your set. The familiar telescoping antennas which are standard equipment on most portable radios will do a very good job, but a simple external antenna can do a lot to [...]

Tags: Antena
Filed under: Communication, Education, Technology

If sophisticated metal-working equipment is available, then building a steel forge makes sense. You could build it using a drill and a hacksaw, but you’d go through plenty of elbow grease in the process. An arc or gas welder/cutting rig, a portable grinder, and a metal shear or chop saw will make the job much [...]

Tags: Drill, Forge, Pipe, Solid, Steel
Filed under: Education, Information, Material, Nature

Ancient blacksmiths devised the first forges which were just clay-lined pits in the ground. The blast (or air supply) was provided by the lungs of several apprentices, or later with crude bellows (those included at the end of the article were devised in the Dark Ages). This arrangement works: I’ve used a wood fire in [...]

Tags: Rock, Solid
Filed under: Education, Information, Material, Nature

The requirements for the homestead forge are simple, having changed little since Colonial times. Some of the tools you’ll be using are called “new” because they were developed during the Dark Ages; a smith returning from the dawn of the Iron Age would instantly recognize your forge. You’ll be pursuing a craft that was ancient [...]

Tags: Forge, Glass, Metal, Steel
Filed under: Business, Education, Information, Material

The kids have quieted down, the day’s chores are completed, the fire curls lazily, the TV is boring and the night is yet young. What a great time for a little armchair adventuring! You might meet up again with Uri who taught you how to pronounce Severd Sibirskaya Nizmennost, and sent you to your atlas [...]

Tags: Alternative, Radio
Filed under: Communication, Education, Radio, Technology

Now that you’ve decided that you want to tune in the world, which radio do you want to buy? A good quality portable radio can do double duty, serving as your AM-FM receiver to receive regular commercial radio broadcasts, as well as picking up shortwave broadcasts. The small portable set which I have does just [...]

Tags: AM, Antena, FM, Radion, TV
Filed under: Communication, Education, Technology