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trunk and revealed a Boehme sending machine of the utmost sophistication. They told me it was a used machine but in working condition and they would be glad to leave it with me if I would use it for the purpose stated. I readily agreed and signed a "memorandum receipt" which amounted to an indefinite loan and made it legally possible for the government to reclaim the item. The armed services were distributing much surplus wartime equipment to amateurs, through MARS, on this basis, and I was assured that the prospect of its being reclaimed was absolutely nil. Followed many long hours of tinkering. There was no instruction book or tech manual with it. The thing weighed about 75 pounds, was built like a battleship and included a ten-tube cir cuitry far beyond anything I had ever seen, totally unlike any of the machines I had seen back in college days when we had visited AARS at the Munitions Building in Washington. This machine used photo-electric cell tubes to produce code using the same kind of 2-hole Wheatstone tape as used at WlAW aeffi&GleF A Golf Shirt (light gray) with a handsome reproduction of our classic Logo in Yellow and Black. This is a prominent way to identify yourself as a QCWA member at meetings, hamfests and conventions, or great for wearing at your local radio club. The shirt has an embroidered QCWA logo and pocket on the left side. Your name and call can be added to the right side. The shirt fabric is 50/50 cotton/polyester blend and is made by Jerzee. The price includes prepaid delivery to your door. SIZE CONVERSIONS: 34-36=Small 38-40=Medium 42-44=Large 46-48=XL 50-52=XXL 54-56=XXXL PRICES: Small, Medium, Large, Xtra Large XX Large XXX Large XXXX Large (special order) Name and call, per shirt $28.00 $3o.oo $:z.oo $34.00 $6.00 Name Call and perforated by the McElroy-Creed perforator there. lf only I could figure out how it workedl I managed to get a tech manual from the Boehme Company, which was still operating in New York City, and some replacement tubes. The tech manual (l think they charged me for it because the PE.C. keyer was an obsolete model and they had to dig the manual out of their old files) was very detailed and it helped me a lot in understanding how the beast was supposed to work, but I still couldn't get it golng, so I took it to New York and visited the Boehme labs. They treated me quite courteously but seemed a Iittle, just a little, amused at my enthusiasm to get it to work. Nevertheless, after I explained the symptoms to one of the older employees he made some adjustments and said the keyer would now work perfectly if I followed the manual's instructions, but he had no tape to try it out. I hadn't brought one along, thinking surely they would have one. Modem technology moves fast and obsolescence creeps up on you. Goll Shirt wirh Emhroidered Logo Cotton€olyester Made by Jerzee Gol{ Shid Size (Please circle proper size) Small/ Mediu m / Large/ Xtra 1arge........... ..... $25.fi9 /rX 1ar9e......................... .........$sfi.90 XXff Large... $32.AA XDfr Large (Available 0n special 0rds0....... $34.99 Number of Shirts To include y0ur name and CaI1..........,............$6.00 per shi11. TolalAmount (lncludes shipping) Qnaiter Century Wireless Assn.lne . PO Box li247 Framingham. MA t)1705-1247 Phone: 506-405- i 930 lrax: 508-40-i- I 965 e-mail: qcwagm@rcn.con liome Page: ri/u,w.qcwa.oag 4a QCWAJournal . Winter 2OO7 o w\ /w,qcwa,org
'::. ::1' Back home, lfinally got the keyer to operate from a tape made on the WlAW perforator. lt was still a little shaky, the adlustments were very touchy, but at least the darn thing would now send code. The speed range, much to my astonishment, was from 10 to 700 WPM in two ranges. lcontemplated a high speed of 60 WPM, so operatron would be on the low speed range. Then I measured the speeds at the different settings and found that the settings were not accurate enough to sult me, so I made a chart to show what settings I should use for 15 to 60 WPM in 5-WPM intervals. Then came the business of preparing tapes. I had no perforator, but Ed Handy had given me permission to use the WlAW perforator and their supply of 15116" blank tape -provided only that I did not at any time interrupt the station's normal operation. "Cutting" the tapes was a long, difficult process requiring a lot of time and effort. The procedure was to prepare enough continuous tape to provide ten minutes of practice at f ive speed sequences for each session. When I knew I made a typo lwould leave three "blank" (12 center holes) spaces. Later, after the whole tape was cut, I would go through it and correct the typos or other errors by punching a corrected piece of tape, scissoring out the erroneous part and pasting the correct part in its place. I soon found that rubber cement was no good for this purpose, it wasn't strong enough or long-lasting enough. I found Elmer's White Glue to be the best for the purpose. Once all the known errors had been corrected, lmeasured out tape for each speed, using a chart I had made for the purpose, and between each speed change pasted in a WlNJM lD and announcement of speed change. Then, to complete the job, I played the whole tape on the machine and stopped it every time an error occurred, cutting out the erroneous part and pasting a corrected piece of tape in its place. Unfortunately, not being a {ast or very accurate typist, this whole process took several hours, at the end of which the tape had dozens of splices in it. lstill have many of those tapes and daresay they would still work on the old Boehme machine. lused each tape 6 times, at least a year apart each time. I must have over a hundred of those old tapes stored in my basement. Just think, if I had 100 tapes and each one took me three hours to prepare, that's 300 hours, or about 12 112 days.lt was a labor of love, but it was definitely labor, QCWAJournal o Wnter 2OO7. w\ wqcwa.org Punchrng the tapes was by no means the only labor connected with the program. ln sending the code practice on the air lhad to attend the machine, ride the fine adjustment controls when necessary and change the machine's speed at every speed change indicated. The first HSCP session took place in late 1957, probably November. I used the output of the Boehme to directly key a polar relay which keyed my homebrew 807 exciter onto which was tacked a homebrew PPS13 amplif ier, running about 900 watts input. What the output was I don't know, but lknew Ihad a strong signal, and this was evident from the number of calls I received afterward expressing delight at the program. The practice sessions continued once a week, then twice a week, and continued almost without interruption until May of 200'l The first certificate test took place in March oi 1958. lt was a little ragged, despite the many long hours in preparation, but I received about 40 submissions in the mail. By that trme I had started using the callWlEIA, the CWA club call, with the club's permission and blessinq - but I still did 99'/a of the work on the program, which took so much of my spare time that occasionally my wife would complain, but not often enough or emphatically enough to cause any interruption jn marital bliss or lack of famrly attention and care. Iestimate about 6 hours of labor preparing the certificate tests, in contrast to about 2 hours preparing tapes for the ordinary practice runs. The reason the certificate tests took so much longer was that I was determined to make them as precise as possible with the equipment on hand. The tape for each test speed was carefully measured by a count of centerholes; that is, for example, the length of the tape for 20 wpm would take exactly 5 minutes to send if the sending speed was precise. Since the Boehme wasn't quite that accurate, I allowed myself 5 seconds leeway and usually kept within this tolerance, besides which, I always completed the last word, even if it went over the 5-second tolerance. The copies received were graded on the basis of one minute of consecutively solid copy of any of the five minute speed transmissions. The first certificates were personally typewritten on standard 8-1/2by 11 paper (not counted in the 6-hour estimate above). ln retrospect, the amount of time lspent on this program seems incredible. I used WIElA because the club, after the first two FD's using it, reverted to WlTX and, since we had no club station as such, I decided the club call should be used for something. Using it for NAME WAYEN FLICKINGER RALPH HASSLINGER CHAPTER 89 CHAPTER 32 HONORING 't ., W4OCH w6FQ' K4GMV KzDZS *Pleaqe sQe,page..43 fory.gur QC,IIIIA Memorial ScholaFhip fund Update! 4g
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Page 3 and 4: ;nu.ir:i:!riiti::,'::!:t:rr:lijr::r
Page 5 and 6: Winter 2OO7 Greetings membersl lt's
Page 7 and 8: Winter 2007 GENERAT Chuck Walbridge
Page 9 and 10: The Foundation lor Amateur Radio, l
Page 11 and 12: -.1:.r.r ..:.:.r'.,rr,:r:-raa::r.ra
Page 13 and 14: Allison Dryer, KDSIVO Deanna Tucker
Page 15 and 16: position. tn this context, good ama
Page 17 and 18: QCWA Journa o Winter 2aa7 . w\ \ /,
Page 19 and 20: Choprer lO, Michigqn (Ml) As 2OO7 d
Page 21 and 22: Dallas Chapter 41 member Ken Norvel
Page 23 and 24: Bob discussed the modestly priced K
Page 25 and 26: FLoyd Martin seated Bill Leavitt la
Page 27 and 28: .:.: not knowing onyone there. I mu
Page 29 and 30: feei. The poylood contoined hod o c
Page 31 and 32: .3t1, t@ ?8ry K. ' -'aa., :*;t{t ;i
Page 33 and 34: ls their permonent home now, trovel
Page 35 and 36: Three new members, Bill Becks, WASW
Page 37 and 38: Your Antenna RF and Safety Ground _
Page 39 and 40: ligure 2 Antenna System .. Simple G
Page 41 and 42: Figure 4 Single Point Grornd Protec
Page 43 and 44: SO CALIF CW SUN FL SSB SAT OCWA SSB
Page 45 and 46: New Members continued Bt24t2A07 812
Page 47 and 48: ,rt3 a- ,*r, ?, *.8 **..*-*,. t3, >
Page 49: : :l .': li .:r l: ' l..r i. I i ir
Page 53 and 54: December of 1978, was intended to l
Page 55 and 56: Your Officlal QCtllrA Badge DON JO+
Page 57 and 58: ' JOIN THE AWA ANTlOUE WIRELESS ASS
Page 59 and 60: I CERTIFICATES Membership Certifica

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