How to upgrade Hammarlund HQ-100 Tube shortwave receiver audio plus repair Power supply & more tips

A very nice Hammarlund receiver in need of maintenance. This unit was donated to D-lab by a fellow Ham operator (Elmer, KA0HRF) He lives near me and wanted to contribute to the D-lab mission. Very much appreciated. The receiver turned out to be a top performer and super KZbin showpiece. In this video, I will demonstrate installation of a new grounded power cord, SO-239 coax jack, 1MHZ crystal calibrator with front panel activation push button, and best of all improved AM audio update. If you search my videos you will also see this receiver having a modern muting system installed. All of this may have exceeded the value of the radio, however the opportunity for sharing was delivered to my door! A very big thanks to Elmer thinking of me. The receiver is now being enjoyed by a Ham operator in Ohio.

[@greggaieck4808]

D lab Electronics your utube videos are awesome

[@greggaieck4808]

D lab Electronics your vintage Hammarlund HQ 100 shortwave receiver is cool

[@vinniegrosso3521]

Found the HQ-100 on top of a garbage can left for dead in 1980. Speaking of headphones, the headphone jack switches the speaker output terminal, and was bent and stuck, thus no audio to the speaker. It was a quick fix. Very temping to try this refurb now, but haven't turned it on in over decade -- and you how many new surprises can be lurking ! Thanks Terry !

[@stevefoudray487]

I was looking for the audio mods for the SP600, and I found this episode. Your HQ 100 sounds great and I expect the sp600 has a similar circuit for the mod.

[@ElPasoTubeAmps]

That is some mighty good sounding AM. I recently got back into AM on 40M with a James Millen 90881 RF amplifier running PP 812A, driving it with a Collins 310-B, modulating it with PP 4-125A and separate PS for RF and modulator. I recently installed my R-390 back in the rack but this little HQ-100 sounds magnificent. I had a HQ-110C and Apache as my first station in 1963 and wish I had kept it. But in 57 years passing, life goes on. I agree with the comment below - great introduction with WWV. Thanks for posting. You might like the pictures I post on my QRZ page. 73 WA4QGA

[@tombump6946]

Thanks for posting! I just ordered a HQ-100C on Ebay. I had one back when I was 15. Now 55 years later will finally have another. Looking forward to getting it up and running!

[@jeromegrzelak8236]

sweet kg6mn

[@scottlee1211]

Nice to see some receiver and transceiver radio repairs! Thanks for posting D-Lab enjoy your videos!

[@michaelmacdonald3408]

You are the first guy i seen on radio repair to use a proper mains lead restrainer good job man.So easy to put in old radios you will have to open the hole bigger but never will pull out once installed.

[@skyboy2410]

Terry I am a 73 yo guy that has always been a tube receiver/transceiver guy. Everyone of your videos gives me some insight that at times adds value to my ever learning of this hobby! Keep it up love your videos!

[@TheRadioShop]

Nice job on the HQ-100 Terry. Beautiful audio. And remember, What happens on the bowl stays on the bowl......

[@bmh67wa]

I've always loved those Hammarlund receivers. The calibrator makes them such a joy to use too. Hopefully the new owner enjoys this one.

[@kornami8678]

Instead of just doubling the value of the coupling capacitor, you could improve it further by increasing the value to 10 times the value or 0.1uF. Also retaining the snubber caps wouldn't hurt the performance. Remember: they were added for a reason. Love your videos.

[@user-su5sq5ib3i]

I'll remember that when I get mine

[@rustyaxelrod]

Cool! I’ve watched a few of your videos on amplifiers and I bought one of these radios today. Nice to find this video of you doing some repairs. Mine looks about like yours (HQ-100 with no clock). The case has some light surface corrosion but the rest looks pretty good. I’m not a radio guy but have always found it interesting. My dad had a lot of CB gear when I was a young man. I plan to replace the cord and install a fuse before I power it up. If it works I’ll do the other mods you mentioned. I hope this is the beginning of a good learning experience. Thanks for the video, and ya got another sub! 👍 I also plan to see if you have any videos on antennas as I have nothing right now.

[@PapasDino]

My Novice HQ-100A had a built-in BFO which made it much nicer for CW & SSB.

[@LarryDeSilva64]

Wow you aren't kidding underneath had a forest fire. The underside of mine is all clean aluminum but mine is the HQ100A. At first glance mine looks like it is bone stock but on closer examination the wiring looks new. All good upgrades to the radio. Thanks for sharing.

[@dhpbear2]

Another upgrade would be to replaced the Headphone Jack with a stereo jack with L and R tied together.

[@dennisf4194]

Very timely indeed, I just picked a nice looking HQ-100 up today! I will implement your mods! Thanks and 73 -W4ZOR

[@hestheMaster]

Love that cord installation tool. It is a lifesaver! Z1 is an early couplate. Nice that the internal components are shown. Often it is not. Like all the improvements Terry. It sounds great!

[@kkristopher7413]

That into was killer! You have a legendary intro the way you did it with wwv and the dual meters. It fits perfectly. Congratulations

[@d-labelectronics]

Thank you my friend, Yes WWV has that vintage appeal!

[@billbaxter2914]

You did all that work without wine. Impressive.

[@d-labelectronics]

I'm sure there was a bottle floating around

[@mikebracey8832]

Thanks Terry, I'm really enjoying the radio videos.

[@joeburch9515]

Hi Terry - really enjoy your videos. I had 2 HQ-100'As, to both of which I added product detectors (6BE6) - details on my website (K3JLS.net). Made a really big difference copying CW & SSB. Once calibrated, the manual displays were very accurate. I used a Hallicrafters SX-99 as a Novice in 1958, and this receiver would have been significantly better, especially with the internal Q Multiplier and the added product detectors. I added the same product detector to an HQ-145 and to an SX-99 a while back - both worked very well afterwards. One HQ-100A came equipped with the same crystal calibrator and the B plus was switched to it by pulling out either the RF Gain or AF gain (can't remember which one). Maybe the new gain control was provided with the crystal calibrator kit - dunno. Had an HQ-110 and an HQ-170 - both drifted a lot, but I used them. Working on these old radios - and I've repaired many of them - brings back a host of extremely pleasant memories. Currently working on a DDS VFO for the Drake TR series - also on the website. Again - really enjoy your work! 73's - Joe - K3JLS PS - always wanted a Johnson Navigator when I was first licensed. Used to read the Allied Radio catalogs after I did my homework and drooled all over the pages - hihi.

[@Backtothefutureradios]

Great video! Thanks for sharing….Take Care-Larry W4PJP

[@edwardhannigan6324]

Interesting Receiver Terry..You sure know your stuff..!

[@Homer19521]

Nice. Thanx for the couplate mod.

[@d-labelectronics]

Yes Sir, I am not a big fan of those devices, They seem to pinch up audio

[@didierstarkeundehre4027]

Beautiful radio traffic station

[@jeremiahlyleseditor437]

One of your radio buddies sounds like the voice of Schnozaramus.

[@elkabong6429]

Great job, as usual, Terry! I love watching you do your thing and explain as you go along. Are you going to label that new calibrate switch?

[@bertproeme4535]

My father PA0MMA had this receiver with a companian transmitter of hammarlund

[@alanmrichards]

Terry, what type of antenna are you using? Those signals are just booming in. I have an HQ100 and an HQ105, but never have I had signals like that. Alan WA2EGA

[@Denvermorgan2000]

Nice 😁

[@tubeDude48]

At 10:30, Z1 is I believe a couplet-- back in the days!

[@vtradio]

My Hallicrafters S-120 had a couplate. Fortunately, someone replaced it with discrete components before I got ahold of it and recapped it. kzbin.info/www/bejne/pX7Ikqp3p8x1ZpI 73 Paul AA1SU

[@williamjackson5942]

The grommet pliers look similar to the spark plug wire puller pliers.

[@32251]

Enjoy your videos. Can you do a video on adding a fuse to old receivers?

[@vtradio]

Great recap and mod video of the HQ-100. Where did you get the Drake shirt? I'll need one to wear when I fire up my Drake TR-7. 😎

[@steadfast666]

nice work 73 de Erwin HB9GNK and KB9GNK

[@srtamplification]

I hate those couplets. They were using those all the way up into the '70s, even in solid-state audio gear. What's bad about them, most schematics don't give you any indication as to the discrete components that are in it.

[@nixraff7802]

Hi Terry, wunderful video. Is the D-Lab XCU-1M still available anywhere? Can't find it in your store.

[@johnroccaro5491]

Great vid, thanks! What type of fuse did you use (current rating, fast/slow)?

[@mackfisher4487]

Nice job Terry, the audio on AM was good how did the rig do on SSB?

[@stephen1711]

Hi Terry nice work on the sweet receiver. Where did you buy your Drake T-Shirt?

[@martyyoung598]

Have you abandoned your tube socket/heat shrink method of recapping the p/s capacitors?

[@billyrey9679]

What about wrapping the calibrator Xtal with foam tape to stabilize the temperature?

[@stephen1711]

Hi Terry, some of your subscribers have asked where you found your Drake shirt. Can you tell us all where we might buy one. Thanks es 73

[@d-labelectronics]

I purchased the shirt at a Hamfest years back

[@stephen1711]

@@d-labelectronics Oh well.. guess thats, that. 73

[@umajunkcollector]

I like Hammarlund and Drake tube stuff. Lucky Larry just got one too. BTW Terry, do you have an Ebay store? Perhaps you might link to it below in future vids, if something is for sale.

[@d-labelectronics]

Nope, I stopped selling on ebay years ago. The percentage was just too high

[@Wizardofgosz]

What is the part number for these grommet pliers?

[@greggaieck4808]

D lab Electronics my hobbys are painting pictures and lisining to shortwave and ssb iam thinking about getting my ham license I have 4 shortwave receivers

[@geraldcroissant8835]

All i have to say on that radio i look super nice and sound nice and YES it was nice to hear the old bowl is still alive with the old bye bye ppl and all the mush mouth still running the mouth and the know how to say is numbers and bye bye and you and you nice wife marcia to stay safe and warm today in the pennfield from down town bc

[@capndavey1]

Just picked up a 110a need to go thru it fix whatever is broken

[@capndavey1]

update it was missing the jumper plug 110 style who came up with that? also the detector tube was missing it was rolling around inside with the shield bam it works hehe

[@srtamplification]

So Terry, I've got a question for you. Like I said, I am really wanting to get into Ham Radio. My question is this: How do you know when people are through talking? I have seen several of these videos you have posted in which you are having conversations with people and I have no idea when you knew to come in and not cut someone off. I am just so used to military comms where you enter the net each time with your call sign and the call sign of who you want to talk to and then let them know that your transmission is over at the end, so that they know that you are done. See these are the things that I don't know. I think all of the technical stuff is pretty straight forward (at least in my mind), but the procedural stuff is what has got me baffled.

[@ElPasoTubeAmps]

I know you ask this to Terry but maybe I can help (?). Many people either give your call and then theirs at the end of their transmission, or jus say, "over", or "go ahead" or "QR Zed?" or some slight indicator not so much different than a person-to-person conversation that you will quickly pick-up on that they are about to quit transmitting and it is your turn. You do not have to give call letters each time you start or stop talking - just once every few minutes is plenty sufficient. You meet people that are more "formal" than others but you develop your own style and can sometimes carry on a QSO as if you are in the room with them. On the other hand, there are those that just quit talking and you are not sure sometimes... I get what you are asking and it can be a little confusing but in any case, it's no big deal if you "double". It happens rarely and each QSO is different. Just get on the air and it will all come natural. Once you get your license you have as much right as the other fellow to talk and make blunders and no one will criticize it. Hope this helps. 73

[@srtamplification]

@@ElPasoTubeAmps Hey this helps a lot thanks. By the way love your videos. Keep them coming.

[@towerman75]

I am envious of Terry. He lives in an area that is surrounded by AM'ers with stations running as litlle as 25 watts, we as here in Mississippi there is no Amateur AM activity to amount to anything, yet we have CB'ers running 25KW. There is one here in Yazoo, Mississippi that just upgraded his CB station to 75KW. It's a crying shame that they get away with it being that Jackson (our state capitol), is just 28 miles away, and has a central office for the FCC there. Talk about not doing your job.....

[@hayseed5467]

A question, Terry. There's two different can-caps used in the HQ-100/110 (and A's). The early one is 20-20-20 uF @ 450-450-25V, the later is a 60-40-25 uF, same voltages. They don't appear to correspond to the "A" vs. "non-A". I don't see anything different in the rest of the power supply. Can a guy assume that the latter was an improvement over the former, and should be used during a recap?

[@bart99gt]

I recapped one for a customer last night, and used a pair of 22uF caps. There is no audible 120Hz hum and it is easier on the rectifier tube. This one certainly needed recapping, there was electrolyte oozing from around one terminal and apparently had stressed the rectifier tube as it was testing weak on both of my tube testers. Note, the 3rd section of the can capacitor is used for the cathode bypass of the 6AQ5, via a really long wire that runs from one side of the chassis to the other. I just elected to use a small axial cap mounted directly to that tube’s socket and dispensed with the long wire.

[@hayseed5467]

@@bart99gt Thanks, Bart. I appreciate your reply! I'm beginning to think that the reasoning behind going to the 60-40 may well be lost to the mysteries of time and engineer's trivia. 73, Tom

[@DAVIDGREGORYKERR]

Has anyone modernized one of those units to a HAMMARLUND SSHQ-100? (Solid State HQ-100) using SO42P DBM mixer chips and MC1350 IF Preamp chips and MC1496 for SSB demodulation duties and using a Bridge Rectifier for AM demodulation?

[@greggaieck4808]

D lab Electronics what is your hobbies?

[@Paul-ow6of]

Channel 6

[@jeromegrzelak8236]

Check out the bfo mod jerry kg6mn