POS

I've owned several of the Midland-produced weather radios with SAME functionality - the ones where you can program in your county code, and you'll receive over-the-air alerts specific to your area. None of these radios worked particularly well. I'm not saying they didn't work, I'm saying they didn't receive very well. I live in an area that sits between two NWS weather radio broadcast towers. Neither of the two stations comes in very strong to my location. This is as much a factor of my physical location (on the side of a hill), and the two broadcast stations in relation to my location. Still, I can normally receive one or both of the signals reasonably well with a general coverage receiver with a built-in antenna.  

As general weather radio broadcast receivers, these Midland radios are poor performers. Considering their purpose in life - to receive NWS signals and trigger alerts - they just don't do their job very well. Several folks I've brought this issue up to say, "Brian, just fiddle with it a bit. Move it to a new location, hook up a better antenna, get a new power supply..." To all that I say, bullshit. Here's why - a weather alert radio is a piece of life-safety equipment, like a fire extinguisher or a defibrillator. You expect it to work right out of the box, no fiddling or tweaking necessary. 

I know radios, and I'm willing to experiment a bit to get these Midlands working as they should, but even I've had little success. Plus, think of Midland's target market for these radios - the average consumer who lives in tornado alley. They want a radio they can trust to wake them in the dead of night and tell them to get to shelter. They want to put it on a table, plug it in, pull up the antenna, power it on, and feel safe. In my experience, unless you live right next to an NWS broadcast tower, you are likely not going to get what you expect out of these radios - they are at best middling receivers. 

The Midland's a piece of s**t, a lousy receiver. And it's not just this particular radio.
I've found the whole range of Midland receivers to be underwhelming.
The Sangean weather radio is a far better receiver. What's the difference between the two?
The Sangean will receive weather channels 5 & 7 with no problem. The signal is a bit
scratchy, but otherwise clear and strong. The Midland, in the same location (upstairs bathroom),
is deaf to any NWS frequency

Save up your money. Buy something better.

W8BYH out

Ticking Along

We're back to clocks, and time. While I've slowed down (just a wee bit) on accumulating clocks and watches and assorted timing devices. my fascination with time is still strong. The past week I had two clock-related issues converge, and I thought I'd show you what's going on.

First, batteries. Huh? What do batteries have to do with a clock? Everything. All time keeping devices need power. Whether it's a hand-wound mainspring in a ridiculously overpriced Rolex, or the solar charged batteries that power the atomic clocks on a GPS satellites, they all need some form of power. For most quartz watches, the small button batteries they use provide a lot of power density and can run your wristwatch for years. For larger wall or mantle clocks, it's usually the plain old 1.5 volt AA battery. The AA battery has the capacity to power a modern quartz movement for over a year. That's where my problem started. I've got larger (8") desk and mantle clocks scattered around the areas of my house that I spend a lot of time in - my ham radio shack, my computer room, etc. Since my XYL doesn't share my affinity for timepieces, especially ones that look like they were just ripped off the bulkhead of a WWII battleship, I keep them out of the common spaces of our house. 

I have two Chelsea quartz clocks sitting almost side-by-side down in my computer room. One is intended to go into my shack, but I'm doing some re-configuring down there, so I placed it next to it's brother. They have different faces, but the movements in both are the same - a pretty good US-made quartz movement that Chelsea has used for years.

With these two clocks side-by side, I can take both in with a single glance. Yesterday I noted one was running 5 minutes slow. Hmmm... must be time for a battery change. I popped the clock open, looked at the movement, and let out a stream of words my grandkids should never hear. The alkaline AA was leaking. Not a lot, but enough to cause some minor corrosion on the contacts. I'm surprised it was still providing enough voltage to keep the clock running; I must have caught it early in its failure cycle. Alkaline batteries have been on the market for over 60 years. Why the hell can't the manufacturers figure out how to make them so they don't leak?

Two Chelsea 6"Patriot clocks. Same quartz movements, different faces.
These are intended to 'hearken back' to the mechanical clocks Chelsea made by the
thousands during WWII for the Army & Navy.
The clock on the left suffered the leaky battery, but both are running on lithium cells now.
So far they are staying in pretty good sync (focus on the minute hand, not the second hand).
Yeah, I know, I need to dust...

Many of the clocks I own are not expensive, but were hard to find. This includes several 24 hour wall clocks made for the US military, and small 3" or 4" diameter military  communication center clocks. The latter show up very rarely on auction sites like eBay. In fact, it's far easier to find a good condition WWII era mechanical communications center clock or Navy deck clock made by Chelsea or Seth Thomas, than it is to find these small communications center clocks with quartz movements. So, it's worth the effort it to take care of them. These make pretty neat ham shack clocks. They are true Army surplus, and were designed during the Cold War for use in mobile communications vans, bolted to a bulkhead. Plus, with clock faces between 3 1/2" & 4", they are an ideal size to sit on a desk next to a radio.

The Franklin clock (right) is all plastic with a simple friction fit housing.
The Timecrafters (left) is a very sturdy and complex aluminum housing and mount.
Franklin is still in business, but Timecrafters is long gone, and there's no info
about the company on the web. I suspect it was connected in some way to Timex

It's interesting that these two clocks carry the same National Stock Number  (NSN), but their cases are completely different designs. The Franklin is all plastic, with a simple friction fit mount. The Timecrafters is a delightfully Rube Goldberg-ish contraptions that includes a machined twist-fit mount with a spring loaded keeper, and a small aluminum billet that holds the AA battery in-place when the clock is bouncing around in the back of a comms van. It also has instructions on the mount that aren't just stickers, they are curved, stamped aluminum pieces with what looks to be silk-screened text. Well designed, well executed, and probably overkill for the intended purpose, but who cares. I love it! Both clocks utilize German made movements, and both keep excellent time. I've run the Franklin for almost a year, and it keeps time to within 2 seconds per month. 

The Timecrafter's off its base. Note the details on the base, including the brass spring loaded detent
for locking the clock to the base, and the aluminum billet that holds the AA battery in place. 
Unnecessarily but delightfully over-built!

The Timecrafters movement. This is the only quartz clock movement I've seen that incorporates
a 'hack' feature - the Stop - Start switch. I wish other quartz movement manufacturers
incorporated this in their movements

What about the wooden stands these two clocks are mounted to? They are just appropriately sized bookends I got off of Amazon. They look good and work well as clock stands. 

I'll wrap this up by answering the question many of you may have - do they glow? Why yes, they do! Each of these clocks have hands and numerals that have been painted with lume. I'm assuming it's not radioactive, since these fade out fairly quickly after being exposed to light. But the fact that 40 year old clocks can still glow is neat.

What's next? Well, I'd like to find at least one spare, either a Franklin or Timecrafters. Each of these are the only ones I've ever seen come up for auction on eBay, so I'll continue to haunt the auction sites and on-line dealers to see if I can score at least one more. If anyone out there knows where I can find one of these, or a similar design, I'd love to hear from you!

W8BYH out

This 'n That

It's been somewhat quiet on the home front, radio-wise. I've been distracted by things that take my attention away from the microphone - website development for our church, visiting relatives, dealing with computer issues, and wrapping things up at work as I get ready for retirement (yeah!). But, there have been a few interesting tidbits to talk about.

First, computers. If you read any of my blog posts you'll soon realize that I've got a strong interest in computers. I'm not a gamer, and I don't write code. I just find computers, and their applications in the real world, somewhat fascinating. My involvement with computers goes back to the time of the introduction of the earliest 8-bit processor units, and I've been working with, or on, computers since the early 1980s. What fascinates me today is the application of form factor to function. I really like things such as lightweight tablets, ruggedized field systems, and special purpose devices. Over the past several years I've tested, and acquired, a number of Microsoft Surface tablet computers, both the Surface Pro and Surface Go models, and a small range of Panasonic and Dell ruggedized computers. 

I really like the Microsoft Surface format, and as long as I'm not paying for them (my employer does) I'm delighted to use them. It took until the release of the Surface Pro 7 for Microsoft to get the design 'right', but with the 7 they got it really right, and I've enjoyed using both the Surface Pro 7 & 9 models for a number of years. Sadly, both of those devices have developed issues that will have them headed to the recycling center soon. The Surface Pro 7 has suffered the inevitable fate of all Surface devices - the battery is dying. Since it can't be replaced, off to the shredder it must go. Sad, because it really is a good little tablet.

The Surface Pro 9's issue is altogether different, and unique in my experience. It's developed a hardware issue (I think with the system memory) that causes frequent Blue Screens of Death (BSOD). In my experience the BSOD is a rare event with Windows 11, so the fact that this thing blue screens about every 10 minutes tells me it too just needs to head to the shredder. Again, a sad fate for a pretty good piece of hardware.

BTW, the new(ish) Surface Pro 12 looks like a very good little tablet. I think it would make a great replacement for its older siblings, but the memory and storage specs are way too low for the asking price. Plus, Microsoft nickels and dimes you with the accessories, like the detachable keyboards, which aren't really accessories, but must-haves.

Now on to some older Dell systems. I've got a few of the Dell rugged laptops and tablets, and they are great devices. I mean, they are REALLY good. I'll say this - Dell does rugged better than Panasonic, which invented the market for rugged computers. Unfortunately for me, most of what I bought was released when Window 10 was at about mid life-cycle. This meant that they were crackerjack Windows 10 machines, but when Windows 11 came out they were not eligible to upgrade due a 'hardware compatibility' issue - either the CPUs couldn't handle Windows 11 or a the units had missing our outdated a hardware devices known as the Trusted Platform Module, or TPM. I was OK with this for a time - Windows 10 was perfectly fine for what I did. Then late last year Microsoft announced it was sunsetting support for Windows 10. While Microsoft doesn't give a damn about the average computer buyer, they do pay attention when their large corporate and government customers start complaining, and complain they did. Many were sitting on large installed bases of perfectly fine Windows 10 hardware that couldn't be upgraded to Windows 11. They told Microsoft, either you continue Windows 10 support, or provide an upgrade path to Windows 11 for this older hardware. Microsoft miraculously found a way around the 'hardware compatibility' issue, and released versions of Windows 11 that run just fine on older hardware. Funny how that happened, eh?

Earlier this week I pulled out two of my older Dells - my Latitude 5404 laptop and a 7210 tablet running on an i3 processor. I had tried updating both of these to Windows 11 earlier in the year, but with no luck. Microsoft told me repeatedly that my hardware was not compatible with Windows 11. Since neither computer had been turned on for months, I figured it was time to grab the latest (and perhaps last) Windows 10 updates available. I was surprised to find an authorized Windows 11 update package waiting in the update queue for both computers! 

My old Dell 5404 can run Windows 11!
This is easily one of the best laptops I've ever used, rugged or not, so
it's great that I can keep it going with a new OS.
This computer taught me that Steve Jobs was dead wrong about laptops with touch screens

What changed in Redmond, I don't know. All I know is that I'm delighted that these Windows 11 installs have extended the useful life of these fine computers for a few more years.

Last, a failed POTA activation, but still some success. Last week I traveled to Philadelphia to spend some time with my sister. She lives in a 31 story condo just south of Washington Square, which itself is just a block behind Independence Hall. Washington Square is also a part of the Independence National Historical Park. This means a POTA activation in Washington Square counts as 'activating' the Independence National Historical Park (US-0738). The square is really more of a regular city green space, and on any given day is filled with local retirees feeding the squirrels and bitching about Donald Trump (some of the conversations are hilarious - I strongly suspect a TDS cocktail is added to Philly's drinking water along with the fluoride), kids riding their scooters, folks walking their dogs, bums and homeless people passed out under the trees (really charming), and the occasional tourist group that wanders over from Independence Hall to view the memorial to the Unknown Revolutionary Soldier in the park. It's rare to see a park ranger or a Philly cop, unless there's demonstrations or a medical emergency. I figured if I activated the park I would be pretty safe from unwanted scrutiny from the law. Well, I did, and I was right. I activated the park at noon on Sunday, and only park visitors that showed any serious interest in me were some passing dogs. In fact, considering the bums, the dope smokers, the panhandlers, the tattooed gay lovers playing slap and tickle under one of the trees (really guys, you didn't think anyone could see you?), and the guy in rainbow tights roller skating around the park with a boom-box, I was the least weird thing in the park that day.

Unfortunately, I had zero contacts. Even though I spotted myself twice on the POTA website, I had no luck making any contacts. Of course my setup didn't help. There was no way I could have gotten away with setting up a 100 watt rig and a wire, or even large vertical antenna. I would have been either robbed or arrested, or both. Instead I was using my Elecraft KX2 in it's 'pedestrian mobile' configuration - handheld, with a 20 meter whip antenna (the Elecraft AX1), a drag line for a counterpoise, and some earbuds. Don't laugh - I've talked from Georgia to Indiana with this exact setup. The problems I faced were poor band conditions and operating from an urban canyon. Yes, I was disappointed, but I learned some good lessons. Next time I try this (and there will be a next time), I'll be using a better antenna setup. I can't get away from a 20 meter whip, but I can set it up better.

Now to the successful part. The night before the activation I decided to test my equipment by going up to the roof of my sister's condo and doing a test run. The roof holds a swimming pool and cabana area. I set up on one of the tables, clamped the 20 meter whip to a lounge chair, and started listening for people calling CQ. I was delighted when WD6T out of northern California answered my call. Philly to California on 10 watts with a seriously compromised antenna. Hey, I'll take that! I then added the 40 meter extension coil to the whip, and contacted W9ISF, the Indiana State Fair ARC station. Not too shabby. The night was cool and clear, with a light breeze. It was wonderful to be able to sit 31 stories up, by myself, and spin the dial. A wonderful night all-around.

My roof-top poolside view, looking south towards Delaware.
Note the whip antenna clamped to the lounge chair. With this setup I was
able to contact California and Indiana on SSB. A wonderful night!

A KX2, a wonderful night at a great location, and some neat contacts

This clamp by Pro Audio Engineering is extremely well made 
and perfect for the task of holding small whip antennas

I'm now in a downhill slide to retirement (scheduled for November). I'll be plenty busy until then, so I'll have limited in radio time. But after November, let the radio fun begin!

W8BYH out