"Drip, drip, drip, beep, the last time just now, it was twelve o'clock Beijing time, and this is the Central People's Radio", at that time, whenever I heard the voice of the Central People's Radio, I felt very cordial and excited.
"Drip, drip, drip, beep, the last time just now, it was twelve o'clock Beijing time
The years are long, the steps are hurried, time flies so fast, fifty or sixty years of time pass unconsciously. Recalling the days of tinkering with the production of radios in that era, it is really memorable and full of emotion.
In the early to mid-60s, I was obsessed with tinkering with semiconductor radios. At that time, all kinds of information materials were still quite scarce, and at that time, if anyone had a semiconductor radio, it was quite a face-saving thing, just like now there is a luxury car, which is very awesome.
However, at that time, there was a lack of funds and technology, but the children at that time were highly innovative and able to use their brains and think of solutions. If you don't have the funds, you can do some labor by yourself to make money (as mentioned earlier, mowing the grass to sell it for money, cutting the grass to make money, etc.), and you don't have the technology, so you can ask people who know how to do it.
At first, I was a rookie about radio semiconductors, I didn't know anything, and I didn't even know the various components of radio. However, the children of that period were more persistent, delved into it, and the things they decided must be done. Gradually, I began to understand resistors, capacitors, diodes, transistors, transformers, potentiometers, tuners, horns, etc., and learned the circuit principles of making semiconductor radios, and thus began to make radios.
At that time, there were no raw materials for making semiconductor radios in our ancient town, and they all went to the county seat to buy them. I remember that there was a store in Fenyang that sold radio semiconductor raw materials, which was located in the north of the road about fifty or sixty meters east of Fenyang Taiheqiao Street, which was the two stores of Fenyang Hardware Jiaodian Chemical Company, a store in the west was slightly larger, operating hardware and electromechanical, chemical paints, etc., and a slightly smaller store in the east was engaged in radio semiconductor raw materials.
At that time, I remember that semiconductor raw materials are not cheap, capacitors are about 1 yuan, triodes are more than 1 yuan, diodes are only a few cents, resistors are also a few cents, and there are a few cents, that is, the horn is more expensive, it seems to cost about 3 yuan. The potentiometer and tuner switch are also about one or two yuan, and it will cost about a dozen yuan to buy a radio. More than a dozen yuan is nothing today, but you must know that at that time, a baked cake was only two taels and five cents of food stamps. How many baked cakes could I buy for a dozen yuan at that time! I went down to other circuit boards, machine cases, and so on, and I didn't spend money to find some substitutes to make them. I also created the tools myself.
After the semiconductor raw materials are purchased, it can be soldered according to the circuit production.
At that time, I was looking for a small plywood board to replace the circuit board, and inserted transistors, diodes, capacitors, resistors, etc. according to the circuit diagram.
When soldering, we should also pay attention to the electrodes of various components, especially the base, emitter, and collector of the triode. So you have to be very careful when welding. After soldering, connect the potentiometer, tuner switch, horn, antenna, ground wire, and connect the battery, and then you can debug the end. Often after the production is completed, it is necessary to debug the left and right, adjust the antenna, ground wire, potentiometer, switch tuner and so on.
Ore radio
I remember that when I first started making it, I made an ore radio, and although the ore radio was simple, the reception effect was not good, and it could only receive signals from nearby radio stations. So later, one tube and two tube semiconductor radios were made one after another, but the effect was not ideal.
In the end, I made a three-tube semiconductor radio, this radio was ideal, and when it was about the same time as the commissioning, I had to make the radio housing, and I remember that I was looking for some plywood to make at that time, and I cut it, sanded it, glued it, sanded it again, painted it, and varnished it. In particular, the installation of the speaker is more elaborately carved, imitating the radio panel sold by others, with a fine white cloth glued inside, hollow carved outside, and the orange color of the paint, after the potentiometer and switch tuner are installed on the panel, it looks very beautiful and beautiful.
After installation and commissioning, the effect is very good.
You can listen to all kinds of information from the Central People's Radio, Shanxi People's Radio, and the people's radio stations of several nearby provinces, especially at night, and you can listen to the broadcast of Taiwan's Central Radio Voice of Free China, which is as depicted at the beginning of the article, but the interference is too strong, and the sound is clear for a while, and not very clear for a while.
Sometimes you can still listen to the Voice of America, and the Soviet Union's Moscow Radio at that time broadcast to China in Chinese, but the interference is also very strong, and the signal is strong for time and weak for time. However, the radio mainly listens to the programs of the Central People's Radio and the Shanxi Provincial People's Radio.
Whenever the hour came, the radio came out, "Drip, drip, drip, beep, the last time it was 12 o'clock Beijing time, and this is the Central People's Broadcasting Station," I felt very excited, and I was very pleased that the radio I had worked so hard to make was finally able to listen to the radio, and I was very relieved, and there was also a trace of pride.
At that time, I used to listen to all kinds of news and information, cultural revolution songs, and later revolutionary model plays, all of which I watched and sang on semiconductor radio.
At the same time, my stepmother likes to sing some little songs, and at that time, "The Old Two Learn Mao Xuan", "Visiting the New Town", and many revolutionary model plays, my stepmother learned it on my little semiconductor radio.
It seems that in 1975, six years ago, my homemade radio was still there. Later, there was a better radio, and a cassette recorder, a television, and that radio slowly became obsolete. Later, after several moves, there was no trace.
Now Tecson radio
Recalling the era of making semiconductor radios at that time, I was full of thoughts and was very emotional, although the material life of children at that time was poor. But spiritually energetic, with the spirit of daring to think and dare to do.
Thinking of today's children, how much homework there is, and they still have to cram this and that, where they have time and energy to do something they like to do!
Therefore, give children more freedom, give them more time, let them do some things they like to do (of course, parents and teachers should give children some correct guidance), whether it can play a role in their learning and growth?
I miss you, my homemade semiconductor radio, I miss you, my era of tinkering with semiconductor radios!