Radio World article

03-08-2024 email: I just got to my March 2024 QST Magazine. I loved the cover… antennas are cool, but every now and then you need some hardware. Like you I figured if Harris can use relays in an AM rig… so can I. I have never had one get dirty and need dressing. However, now I feel inferior as my plans have these in the open… but it’s hard to shield ladder line, and I have a bunch of that… so a box doesn’t add much. I admire the extra screws and braid. Guess I need to up my design. I had considered that…. But thought “who would do that?” Now I know, and I guess I have too also... Fred Bomgartner K0FMT, Elizabeth, Colorado.

03-01-2024 email: Hi Mark, I got a kick out of seeing the cover of the March 2024 "QST" Magazine. I began my training as an industrial electrician in 1974 and that was when I began working with these kinds of relays, mostly made by Square D and also Allen-Bradley.. When I became a Novice in 1981, I had bought a used pair of Hallicrafters rigs - an HT-32B Transmitter and an SX-115 receiver. I made my own antenna changeover relay, using a relay similar to the one pictured on the cover of "QST." The relay that I used was a single-pole, double-throw Square D relay and it used 120 VAC control voltage from the HT-32B's relay. It worked FB! In my work as an industrial electrician, I "graduated" from relay & limit switch control to control using PLCs (programmable logic controllers). I am now retired, after working as an industrial electrician for 40+ years. Take care...73 de Brad, N9EN