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Homebrew is an Amateur radio slang term for home-built, noncommercial radio equipment.^[1]

Contents 1 History 2 Practices 3 QRP homebrew 4 Homebrewing with vacuum tubes 5 See also 6 External links 7 Notes

In the early years of amateur radio, long before factory-built gear was easily available, most hams built their own transmitting and receiving equipment, a process that came to be known as "homebrewing." In the 1930s, 40s, and 50s, hams hand crafted reasonable quality vacuum tube based transmitters and receivers which were often housed in their basements, and it was common for a well-built "homebrew rig" to cover all the high frequency bands (1.8 to 30 MHz). In the 1950s and 60s, some hams turned to constructing their stations from kits sold by Heathkit, Eico, EF Johnson, Allied Radio's Knight-Kit, World Radio Laboratories and other suppliers. Today, only a minority of hams exclusively operate completely homebrew or kit-built amateur stations, however, there are many new ham radio kit suppliers, and the "art" of homebrewing is alive and thriving.^[2]

Homebrewing differs from kit-building in that "homebrew" connotes the process of constructing equipment using parts and designs gathered from varied and often improvised sources. Even the most skilled homebrewer may not have time or resources to build the equivalent of modern commercially-made amateur radio gear from scratch, as the commercial units contain custom integrated circuits, custom cabinets, and are the end result of multiple prototypes and exhaustive testing. However, constructing ones own equipment using relatively simple designs and easily obtainable or junk box electronic components is still possible. Homebrew enthusiasts say that building one's own radio equipment is fun and gives them the satisfaction that comes from mastering electronic knowledge. ^[3]

QRPers are ham radio enthusiasts known to use a power output of five watts, sometimes operating with as little as 100 milliwatts or even less. Extremely low power -- 1 watt and below -- is often referred to by hobbyists as QRPp. Commercial transceivers designed to operate at or near QRP power levels have been available for many years, but some QRPers prefer to design and build their own equipment, either from kits or from scratch. Many build miniature transmitters and transceivers into Altoids boxes and operate using battery power.^[4] Popular QRP kit models include the Elecraft K2 ^[5], and those produced by NorCal, Small Wonder Labs, and others. QRP activity can often be heard on 7.040 MHz.

"Glowbug" is a term used by US amateurs to describe a simple home-made tube-type radio set, reminiscent of the shortwave radio-building craze of the 1920s and 30s. Classic glowbug designs from that era include the famous twin triode Doerle regenerative receiver and single-tube Hartley, TNT and TPTG transmitters. "Glow" refers to the glow of the vacuum tubes and "bug" to the gear's relatively diminutive size. Generally, any small, home-built tube-type transmitter or receiver may be referred to as a glowbug. The majority of glowbug transmitters are designed to be used in the CW radiotelegraphy mode.

As late as the 1960s, glowbugs were part of many beginner ham stations, and the ARRL Radio Amateur Handbook for those years exhibited a number of such simple, tube-based designs. Today, glowbugs are enjoying a resurgence of interest among QRP enthusiasts and others with a penchant for constructing their own equipment. A growing number of hams are "getting back to their roots" by assembling glowbugs on steel chassis, tin cakepans, and wooden boards, and putting them on the air. Amateur radio glowbug enthusiasts can often be heard communicating on the shortwave bands via CW using Morse code. A popular frequency to hear glowbug contacts is 3.579.5 MHz.^[6]

• Amateur radio
• QRP
• Vintage amateur radio

• Over 280 Ham Radio Homebrewing Articles

1. ^ http://www.dxing.com/radioterms.htm
2. ^ http://www2.arrl.org/news/features/2002/12/27/1/
3. ^ http://www.qsl.net/k3pd/chap02.pdf
4. ^ http://www.qrpedia.com/wiki/Rock-Mite_Series
5. ^ http://www.elecraft.com
6. ^ http://webhome.idirect.com/~griffith/gb.htm

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