Author Archives: depolorization

Airband Radio Build

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“From out of the clear blue of the western sky comes Sky King.” When I was a kid “Sky King” ruled Saturday morning television. For those of you too young to remember, Sky King was a radio show first, and then a TV show, about an Arizona rancher who owned a cool plane (the Songbird), had exciting adventures, and caught bad guys.

Last year, I could not resist buying a piece of nostalgia – I bought a Sky King model airplane. I also bought an airband radio, which picks up local aircraft to tower communications. Both are kits and I figured that they would keep me busy. I thought that it would be kind of fun to hang the model from the garage rafters, while listening to pilot-to-tower chatter.

Well, the model is still in the box, but I have taken on the radio. This is a $16.00 kit manufactured in China, so not a big investment. You have to put it together and figure out a few issues with the schematics as well. There are a number of these kits available for purchase on eBay.

I laid out my tools and the electrical components, and the build began.

Mostly, you just follow the layout diagram, solder, and hope that you have received all the parts. I was missing one from the kit, but was able to substitute from my own inventory.

I also had to consult the web for help. I found a radio tech who had done a video on the same build. There were a couple of tips in the viewer’s comments that helped me out. Always consult the web for help.

Here is the radio just about completed. The aluminum case does come with the kit. Actually, pretty nice.

I also consulted the web for an antenna design. You can’t pick up radio signals without an antenna…

… but that’s another build and post!

Fall Photo Shoot

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Finally, it’s fall! I decided this fall that I would dust off an old camera and do a photo shoot.

I chose my Dad’s Canon 135mm SLR, with 50mm lens. I think that he purchased it in 1975.

The camera is in really great shape, just needed a new battery for the light meter and some film. Surprisingly, both were pretty easy to obtain. If you’ve got a camera shop in your area, try them first. If not, you can order from the web.

I chose B/W film, as that is what I used to shoot. I was only able to obtain Ilford film at 200 ASA (film speed). This film should work pretty well in either sunny or cloudy conditions.

I took a hike in a local wilderness area. The camera seemed heavy and limited compared to using the camera on my iPhone. Anyway, I shot away.

Here is a picture of one of the sycamore trees from the park. I took this with my iPhone, as the film process will take some time to see the results. I also took the same picture with the 135mm camera for comparison.

I have not done so yet, but I will take the film to the camera store for development. I will ask for negatives only, no individual prints. This will take about 7 – 10 days for processing and return.

Once the negatives are returned, I will run them through this digital scanner. That will give me digital B/W images.

I’ve done this with some of my old negatives (and slides). Most of them turned out pretty well.

It was fun taking the old camera out for a spin, but back on the shelf it goes. Now where’s my iPhone?