Julian Chilvers
MM - Contraption - The Cat's Whisker
This is the cat's whisker on my grandfather's crystal set which he would have used in the 1920's. If it didn't seem like a contraption then it certainly does today. Using the holder on the left the cat's whisker had to be moved across the germanium crystal on the right to find a diode for detection of the radio wave. My father said that once set, the slightest movement could disrupt reception and it would be necessary to find another diode. The terminal at the front right connected to a 100ft wire aerial and tuning was achieved using the white slider in conjunction with the blue waveband selector. The three terminals at the rear were for headphone connection. To my grandfather who was born in 1870 it must have seemed like magic although around the same time he also bought a Ford Model T delivery van.
MM - Contraption - The Cat's Whisker
This is the cat's whisker on my grandfather's crystal set which he would have used in the 1920's. If it didn't seem like a contraption then it certainly does today. Using the holder on the left the cat's whisker had to be moved across the germanium crystal on the right to find a diode for detection of the radio wave. My father said that once set, the slightest movement could disrupt reception and it would be necessary to find another diode. The terminal at the front right connected to a 100ft wire aerial and tuning was achieved using the white slider in conjunction with the blue waveband selector. The three terminals at the rear were for headphone connection. To my grandfather who was born in 1870 it must have seemed like magic although around the same time he also bought a Ford Model T delivery van.