BLANDX TECHNICAL STUFF Edited by Christina Van Helder As many of you know, I make a habit of reading contributions to my column while in the bathroom. That way it's easy to appropriately dispose of the majority of them. This piece, by Tyler Williams of Hamburg, PA, however, was worth framing on my bathroom door. If you've been looking for a way to combine the modern convenience of scanning with the quality of old tube rigs like the R-390A, but haven't wanted to resort to an electric drill (as some DX publications have suggested), this article is sure to pique your interest! SCANDINAVIAN SCAN CONVERSION FOR THE R-390A By Tyler Williams The Scandinavian Scan Conversion (SSC) was invented by former German SS veternary experimenter Gerhardt Katt. Herr Katt, following his parole from Ft. Leavenworth federal prison for war crimes and his crimes against nature, defected to East Berlin in 1955. He was then inducted into the army of the DDR, and was stationed with the scientific experimentation unit in Dresden. Shortly thereafter, a large shipping crate arrived from Berlin. The contents of the box included 1) R-390A (Motorola) in original crate and a full set of operational and field maintainence manuals. Apparently, this prize had been acquired through the feminine wiles of a winsome E. German spy. Throughout 1962, different modifications and improvements were attempted. The most sucessful of these experiments was the SSC. As a matter of fact, Herr Katt was awarded both the Order of Lenin and the Aluminum Cross. His experiments had proven a reliable method of scanning could be accomplished by the use of Norway rats in an exercise cage. The rats had a 5 millisecond response time, only a 2 degree backlash figure, and the most important quality of longevity ... they outlived all other small animals by a factor of greater than 10:1. Their useful lifetime was calculated to be, on the average, three months and eight days. Only three minor design changes were instituted between 1962 and 1975. These changes were instituted in order to fine tune the manual override control. Field Change #1 consisted of installing a 1 kohm / 1 W resistor in the output of the 1.5 kv voltage tripler. In so doing, it was found that rat life was increased to slightly over five months with only a consequent loss of 1 m/sec in response. F.C. #2 was instituted to reduce power consumption and involved the substitution of a solid state power supply for both the Override and Up/Down controls. The third change completed the solid state conversion by replacing the buffer amplifier, converter, and tripler. The operation of the SSC is really rather simple. Scanning is begun by flicking the momentary switch below the cage. This discharges the photoflash condenser through either the "up" or "down" flash tube. The rat panics, turns, and runs. The gear reduction system properly conveys one complete rotation of the cage into exactly 10 3/4 turns of the kilocycle knob, which covers not only the complete megacycle band, but the overtravel zones both above and below. Upon the completion of one rotation, which requires only 5.6 sec (avg.), the tripbar strikes the momentary switch and trips the other flash tube, which, of course, sends the rat scurrying back from wence he came. A warning should be mentioned here: care must be taken not to choose a band for which propagation is poor or unuseable as this will greatly shorten rat life. Lock-up is accomplished through the use of the Manual Override Unit. This is the heart of the SSC. AVC voltage from the 3rd IF output is delivered to the buffer amplifier. Buffer output is then sent to the DC to DC converter, where it is rectified and used to control a stunning charge which is fed to the rat collar through a voltage tripler. The time delay control regulates the charge to be delivered and, thus, the length of unconsciousness of the rat. The sensitivity control sets a threshold level for the automatic actuation of the unit. And, finally, there is the manual override button which discharges the unit when depressed. Sensitivity is as low as 5 uv. The time delay is variable from 5 sec. to greater than 30 sec. WARNING: Setting the delay for lengthier times may seriously shorten the lifetime of the unit, and may occasion the failure of certain integral parts. Installation of the unit is accomplished by drilling two 10/32 holes and tapping accordingly. The black phenolic mounting panel is then mounted to the bottom of the R-390A front panel. The dial cords are strung and appropriate electrical connections are made. And, now you are ready to scan. All parts are available in kit form from Gestapo Electronics in Salem, Oregon. The cost is 955 Deutschemarks or $174.99 (U.S.) plus shipping. All credit cards accepted. Installation time is approximately two hours. Rats must be acquired locally. Full warranty is backed by Kattkits, AEG 7 Ottostrasse, Leipzig, Germany. No electric drill overtravel. No time consuming drill connect and disconnect. Full AVC control. A superior product. ------- Thanks, Tyler! Jack "Mr William" Bradbury has already tried this and notes that it can be a great way to exercise small household pets. He adds that Randy the DX Rat lost 3 ounces in just one week. Henry the DX Hampster is up this week. Muhammed Vesterborg III sends us this information on Bleene's latest offering. A REVIEW OF THE BLEENE JDG-1001 By Muhammed Vesterborg III For years, fans of Kenya's Bleene Receivers have speculated as to when their favorite receiver company would issue its first portable radio. This, of course, would be no easy transition for the company that is the world's leader in gasoline-powered tabletop SW equipment. But, Bleene fans can rejoice with the release of the new JDG-1001. Not only is it portable - it's the first Bleene receiver that doesn't require an oil filter!! A true portable, the JDG-1001 is just slightly bigger than a book: the Webster's Unabridged. At 25 pounds, it's the first Bleene that can easily be carried by just one person. It can be powered by either AC or 96 AA batteries. That's right - no messy gasoline! In the company's first portable, Bleene has made more innovative improvements than for any other receiver in the company's history. First, the little function labels have all been GLUED on to the receiver instead of taped on with transparent tape!! What's more, all the labels face the same direction, so there's no need to spin the JDG-1001 in circles to read them! That old DX disease "Bleene wrist" should now be a thing of the past! Secondly, the antenna input on the side of the receiver is now a standard 1/8 inch "female" jack rather than Bleene's special sharply pointed "male" plug. This should cut injuries while using the receiver by an additional 10%. And, let's not forget that the JDG-1001 comes with a clock: a Taiwanese digital watch has been conveniently taped over the speaker. It only rattles when the volume is turned up high. Oh yes, in view of the fact that this receiver is likely to be taken on picnics and camping, each one comes with its very own flyswatter. Attention to detail like that makes Bleene number one! How does the JDG-1001 work? Here's the biggest surprise - not only is the JDG-1001 a portable - it's fully digital!! It has no conventional tuning knob - just 30 keys, one for each letter of the alphabet (minus J) plus "Enter", space, period, comma, and question mark. The keys are conveniently arranged in alphabetical order in a 5x6 bank, with the extra keys in the bottom row. For this receiver, Bleene has developed its own special 9.6MHz intermediate personality-based microprocessor detector circuit (the IPBMDC) which allows the receiver to understand typed-in commands in either English or Swahili (with all J's omitted). To tune in the BBC on 5975, for example, one just has to type "Please tune the radio to five thousand nine hundred and seventy five kilohertz." and push Enter. About 90% of the time you will be rewarded with the BBC, but on occasion the receiver will respond "What's in it for me?" Obviously, DXing with an IPBMDC receiver can be both challenging and entertaining! Below is an example of one of the many entertaining "discussions" you can have with the JDG-1001: DXer: "Please tune to seven thousand and sixty five kilohertz." Rcvr: "You have insomnia or something? Radio Tirana's there right now." DXer: "No, I just want to make a report for a QSL." Rcvr: "Sure, and get on their mailing list for pinko propaganda, eh, Comrade?" DXer: "No, really, I just want a QSL." Rcvr: "OK, but use the earplug. I don't want my ICs to be brainwashd by those commies. As you can see, DXing will never be the same!! What a way to DX and improve your conversational skills at the same time!! Now for the bad news. If you want to add a JDG-1001 to your shack, you may have to wait a while. The US Air Force has just contracted Bleene for 10,000 JDG-1001s, which is about six months production. Apparently the USAF has decided to replace all their aircraft receivers with the JDG-1001. But, at least when Uncle Sam buys it you know it has to be good! ----------------- Sounds great, Muhammed! More great material next month. Sid Tivoli will describe how to make a beverage antenna with a long string of shopping carts and Les Bowers will look at "Why Are Inactive Antennas So Lazy?" .... Christina Van Helder ************************************************************** The above items were excerpted from the 1991 edition of BLANDX, the annual DX humor magazine. Contributions are currently being accepted for next edition of BLANDX. This file and other DX humor files from BLANDX posted to rec.radio.shortwave may be reposted electronically in their entirety and without changes anywhere provided a message is sent to me informing me where it is being posted to and by whom. Anyone wishing to use this material in a publication should contact me first, although permission will normally be freely given. ************************************************************ * * Don Moore * What were once vices * MOORE@tmu1.mcrest.edu * are now * 11434 140th St. * good DXing habits. * Davenport, IA * * 52804-9538 USA * BLANDX 1990 * * * ************************************************************