In reply to G8ADD:
Hi Brian,
Do you know Brian I never thought of that.
I have a circuit somewhere of a QRP portable
spark transceiver which would be ideal for
SOTA! It used a common tuned circuit for TX/RX,
with a crystal type detector for RX, and a
battery and relay with its contacts in series
with the relay coil for TX. What a pity spark
was finally outlawed from emergency standby
transmitters in 1966!
But ICW wasn’t Brian, now there’s a thought.
Kind regards
Dave
Would anyone like to try Hellschreiber on an activation some time?
73,
Walt (G3NYY)
In reply to G3NYY:
Would anyone like to try Hellschreiber on an activation some time?
I have the kit! But no, done PSK31 from a summit so that box is ticked.
Real Hell machine would be cool to use. A Hell program is souless. Just like running RTTY on computers. There’s no feeling to it. Not like watching a Teletype Model TTY15 or TTY28 printing. Or even better, watching the amazing TTY14 typing reperforator which was available in both chad and chadless variants. I grew up playing with teletypes at school in the electronics/radio club. The smell and noise of one runnning on song is electrifying.
Copying RTTY with a computer is tedious especially with a modern receiver that doesn’t drift. Doing it with a CR100 or an AR88 and a Navy CV89 FSK where you needed to be an octopus to massage all the controls to keep the print clean was an art. With a computer… just email the data to your QSO partner, it’s as much fun.
And so AM, doing it with a big boatanchor and it’s fun, fun, fun. Yes, there’s a place for AM (up here that’s 145.800 especially when the ISS downlink is running!). With a modern rig, I’m sorry, but it’s pointless.
Andy
MM0FMF
In reply to MM0FMF:
Copying RTTY with a computer is tedious especially with a modern
receiver that doesn’t drift. Doing it with a CR100 or an AR88 and a
Navy CV89 FSK where you needed to be an octopus to massage all the
controls to keep the print clean was an art. With a computer… just
email the data to your QSO partner, it’s as much fun.
Ah yes! This is drifting 'way off topic, but in the sixties I was QRV with a Creed 7E on HF RTTY, using an AR88LF receiver. In those days, we used 850 Hz shift! I still remember the smell of hot oil, and the clicking of the Carpenter relay! I used punched paper tape (5-hole) for sending CQ calls. (I had a keyboard perforator to make the tapes.)
there’s a place for AM (up here that’s 145.800 especially when the ISS
downlink is running!).
Tee hee hee! 
73,
Walt (G3NYY)