Evening journal., 1923-01-08
Heard 5000 Miles Array
West Coast Radio Ham Tells How He Did Ii.
BY JACK JUNGMEYER.
ia slaff Corresnondent.

Los ANGELES. Jan. S-A few
nights ago Thomas r. Nikirk helped
rock the babies 10 sleep. called his
wife TO his side. rolled up his sleeves
| tapped his radio key here and sent
! out a message that was heard in
I France.
Nikirk. who is % years old. thus
| spanned the air farther than any
other ham" or amateur operator
some 5000 miles as the waves fly.
Today from all those little gray
messages OF congratulation are com
.ng TO his door, 6KA. as it is official
ly known.
SKA is one Of those little gray
homes in the west such az pioneers
built for themselves. II snuggles
almost Insignificant under the tower
Ing aefials he and his young wife
constructed Most OF ita furnishings
these two have built, Including the
apparatus which enables NilSirk to.
reach ethereal fingers half way
round the world.
Florence, my wife, deserves tullv
half the credit" he said in modest
admission OF his acclaimed exploit.
Without her helping hands and her
treless enthusiasm. probably
wouldn't have been able TO set this
new record"
For IL years Nikirk. an employe
Of Southern California electrical
company. has been experimenting
with radio. He was one OF 325 from
the United States and Canada 10
qualify for tho recent transatlantic
radio test sponsored by the American
Radio Relay League. So far az
known ne is the first and only sender
west Of the Rockies 10 be heard in
France feat regarded amazing
for an amateur.
"A late type transmitter. together /
with knowledge how 10 use Il was
responsible for my success" he said. /
Following is Nikirks description |
OF the homemade set which has
many times tingled the ears Of New I.
England. Florida. Honolulu and I
other remote places. aS well as those .
across the Atlantic:
81 use 25O-watt vacuum tube
with pancake inductances. The
power transformer furnishes power
n
between 5000 and 1000
THE high voltage alternating cur
rent is modified by a synchronous
rectif1er OF the disc type. This was
designed by V. NJ. Bitz. whose trans
mitter symbol is SID. and myself. A
bypass condenser OF glass plates
withstands the high voltage.
-Four audio-frequency chokes and
two radio-frequsncy chokes are used
In the high voltage lead 10 prevent
kick-back, to smooth the AC hum
and 10 give as near DC ss possible to
obtain under these conditions.
AN antenna current from u 70
Ia ampeers was obtained, depending
upon the lighting line voltage.
The antennae are 73 feet high
md 81 feet long. OF the TYPE. The
ist-top consists OF wires on IA
DOT spreaders. with a cage lead-in.
counterpolse 40 feet wide and 20
eet long is suspended on insulators
uch as are used IN high line con-
truction work Of electric light com
,anies-something not generally
lsed in amateur radio devices. II is
Of wires. 10 feet above
he ground. with "a inch brass rib
IONS for the lead-in.
For the 20O-meter work. a modi-
led Hartley circuit. inductively
oupled, seems to give excellent re-
ults
The receiver is OF my own con-
tructiOn. OF special design. using
ormally four vacuum tubes. with
.hich signals from the Atlantic
'oast and Honolulu have often been
card all over the house.
Everything l use except the
meters and tubes, are home con
tructed"