{"id":7663,"date":"2013-10-27T08:05:36","date_gmt":"2013-10-27T12:05:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=7663"},"modified":"2013-10-27T08:06:57","modified_gmt":"2013-10-27T12:06:57","slug":"listener-post-ed-mccorry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2013\/10\/listener-post-ed-mccorry\/","title":{"rendered":"Listener Post: Ed McCorry"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ed McCorry\u2019s radio story is the latest in a\u00a0new series called\u00a0Listener Posts<\/em><\/a>, where I will place all of your personal radio histories. If you would like to add\u00a0your story<\/a>\u00a0to the mix,\u00a0simply send your story by email<\/a>!<\/p>\n

In the meantime,\u00a0many thanks<\/em>\u00a0to Ed for sharing his personal radio history:<\/p>\n

\n

Ed McCorry (KI4QDE & WDX2PNH)<\/h2>\n

How did I get my start in SWL\u2019ing? Well I suppose it was a lot like many other people way back in the 60\u2019s.<\/p>\n

\"Hallicrafters-S-120\"<\/a>As I remember, I was always a tinkerer with a keen interest in all things electrical, taking things apart and putting them back together, not always without modification or in working order. I was a freshman in high school (1962) and was working on a project with a classmate at his house one day and found out he was a ham. I had heard about this but this was the first time I had met someone who had radio equipment. He was new to the hobby and had a Hallicrafters S-120 receiver (didn\u2019t everyone?) and a Morse code transmitter. He showed me how it worked and we listened for awhile and I was hooked.<\/p>\n

Back in those days living in New Jersey, we had a black and white TV and received the three major network feeds and a few independents from New York. The stations went off the air sometime around two in the morning and there wasn\u2019t a whole lot to watch anyway so I was always looking for something to do. Shortwave radio was the answer!<\/p>\n

Like a lot of other families back then we had all the necessities we needed but there wasn\u2019t any extra money to go buy a radio (the S-120 cost $65.00, a weeks pay). Well by doing odd jobs and mowing lawns I was able to save up to buy a used 4 band shortwave radio for $25.00 (can\u2019t remember the brand). I threw some wire out of the window for an antenna and I was in business. I would listen for hours to places I had only read about. Little did I know then that it would still be a hobby when I was 65 years old!<\/p>\n

\"(Image:<\/a>

(Image: RFCafe)<\/p><\/div>\n

From there I started reading Popular Electronics where Hank Bennett had a shortwave column, registered SWL\u2019s and gave out call signs. Mine was WPE2PNH. From that column I learned how to send reception reports and get QSL cards. There were so many stations back then. I got a job after school and finally had the money to go buy that S-120. Meanwhile I was taking electronics in school and building some of the simpler projects from PE.<\/p>\n

After High School I was in the military for the next 8 years and had the S-120 with me when I was in the States but between going to Viet Nam and Thailand for 3 years and everything else going on there wasn\u2019t much time for SWL\u2019ing. However, I did build my first of around 30 Heathkits back then. It was a Q-Multiplier for the S-120.<\/p>\n

After I left the service I got back into listening and in 1978 I wrote Hank Bennett who had left PE and started his own SWL registration and he changed my call sign to WDX2PNH (still have the certificate on the wall).<\/p>\n

I was never interested enough in all those years to go get my ham ticket until I was on a Search and Rescue team in 1995 that required it. So I received my Technician license, KI4QDE, and until recently spent much more time listening than talking. I\u2019m pretty much 2 meters but I will probably upgrade to General in the near future as it seems that there is less to listen to month after month with the BCB stations cutting short wave.<\/p>\n

So here we are, many years, radios, antenna\u2019s and QSL\u2019s later, I consider myself lucky growing up when I did. Times were much simpler, (even though we were afraid of being blown up by an H-bomb) we were at the beginning of a technical explosion, and we made due with what we had. I wonder if I was 13 years old today if I would have the same enthusiasm about radio as I did back then. Probably not, I\u2019m sure radio seems old fashioned to the kids today with all the computer games, internet, smart phones etc. Sure there is more information available to the SWL on the internet but in my opinion it\u2019s also killing the hobby. It\u2019s to bad progress has to leave some good things in the dust\u2026<\/p>\n

73,
\nEd McCorry
\nKI4QDE & WDX2PNH
\nWillow Spring, North Carolina<\/p>\n

\n

Many thanks, Ed, for sharing your story!<\/em>
\n Click here to read our growing collection of Listener Posts!<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ed McCorry\u2019s radio story is the latest in a\u00a0new series called\u00a0Listener Posts, where I will place all of your personal radio histories. If you would like to add\u00a0your story\u00a0to the mix,\u00a0simply send your story by email! In the meantime,\u00a0many thanks\u00a0to Ed for sharing his personal radio history: Ed McCorry (KI4QDE & WDX2PNH) How did I […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[2262,305],"tags":[2282,2283,2284,4122,758],"class_list":["post-7663","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-listener-posts","category-nostalgia","tag-ed-mccorry","tag-ed-mccorry-ki4qde-wdx2pnh","tag-hallicrafters-s-120","tag-listener-posts","tag-radio-stories"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-1ZB","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":26800,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2017\/06\/to-gauge-listener-reaction-ckzn-goose-bay-goes-off-air\/","url_meta":{"origin":7663,"position":0},"title":"Action Alert: To gauge listener reaction, CKZN Goose Bay goes off air","author":"Thomas","date":"June 30, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"\"Is anybody even listening?\" \u00a0So said the powers-that- be at CKZN. \u00a0To find out, the relay was (temporarily) shut down. You, too, may have noticed that the CBC Radio 1 relay through CKZN on 6,160 kHz has been off air for several days. I'm traveling in Canada this summer, and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Broadcasters"","block_context":{"text":"Broadcasters","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/broadcasters\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/CKZN-Sony-ICF-SW100-Dial-1024x576.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/CKZN-Sony-ICF-SW100-Dial-1024x576.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/CKZN-Sony-ICF-SW100-Dial-1024x576.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":7669,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2013\/11\/listener-post-eric-weatherall\/","url_meta":{"origin":7663,"position":1},"title":"Listener Post: Eric Weatherall","author":"Thomas","date":"November 4, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Eric Weatherall\u2019s radio story is the latest in a new series called Listener Posts, where I will place all of your personal radio histories. If you would like to add your story to the mix, simply send your story by email! In the meantime, many thanks to Eric for sharing\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Listener Posts"","block_context":{"text":"Listener Posts","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/listener-posts\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"KA1102-300x189","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/10\/KA1102-300x189.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":43290,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2020\/06\/listener-post-mike-stutzers-love-of-radio-began-with-a-hallicrafters-s-120\/","url_meta":{"origin":7663,"position":2},"title":"Listener Post: Mike Stutzer’s love of radio began with a Hallicrafters S-120","author":"Thomas","date":"June 22, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mike Stutzer, who recently shared the following listener post: I started SWLing as a teenager. My favorite uncle gave me a Hallicrafters S-120. My dad hung a longwire under an eave and through a casement window frame into my bedroom. I marveled at all\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Ham Radio"","block_context":{"text":"Ham Radio","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/ham-radio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Hallicrafters-S-120.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Hallicrafters-S-120.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Hallicrafters-S-120.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Hallicrafters-S-120.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":13128,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2015\/05\/listener-post-greg-blair\/","url_meta":{"origin":7663,"position":3},"title":"Listener Post: Greg Blair","author":"Thomas","date":"May 6, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Greg Blair\u2019s radio story is the latest in\u00a0our series called\u00a0Listener Posts, where I place all of your personal radio histories. If you would like to add\u00a0your story\u00a0to the mix,\u00a0simply send your story by email! In the meantime, many thanks to Greg Blair who originally posted the following on the Shortwave\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "How To"","block_context":{"text":"How To","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/how-to\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"SP600Dial3","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/11\/SP600Dial3-300x182.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7932,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2013\/12\/listener-post-harold-woering\/","url_meta":{"origin":7663,"position":4},"title":"Listener Post: Harold Woering","author":"Thomas","date":"December 16, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Harold Woering\u00a0\u2019s radio story is the latest in our series called\u00a0Listener Posts, where I will place all of your personal radio histories. If you would like to add your story to the mix, simply\u00a0send your story by email! In the meantime, many thanks to Harold for sharing his personal radio\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Listener Posts"","block_context":{"text":"Listener Posts","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/listener-posts\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"KnightReceiver","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/11\/KnightReceiver-300x184.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7904,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2013\/11\/listener-post-karen-shenfeld\/","url_meta":{"origin":7663,"position":5},"title":"Listener Post: Karen Shenfeld","author":"Thomas","date":"November 16, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Karen Shenfeld's\u00a0radio story is the latest in our series called\u00a0Listener Posts, where I will place all of your personal radio histories and memories. If you would like to add your story to the mix, simply\u00a0send your story by email! In the meantime, many thanks to Karen for sharing this radio\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Broadcasters"","block_context":{"text":"Broadcasters","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/broadcasters\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"\" I was in fact singing \"The Hills are Alive With The Sound of Music\" at the time.... I am on top of a hill in the Hoggar Mountains outside of Tamanrasset, in the middle of the Sahara.\"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/11\/karen-sahara.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7663","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7663"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7663\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7663"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7663"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7663"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}