Morse Code Oscillator Kit Directions

Since 2013, the Valley Radio Club has helped middle school students at Hamlin Middle School in Springfield, Oregon, build Morse code oscillator kits.  Now they’re helping the Eugene Science Center build them.  They’re based on the One-Hour, No-Solder Code Practice Oscillator by Mark Spencer, WA8SME and Dave Hassler, K7CCC.

Below are detailed directions on how to build it:

Start:

  1. Put a washer on each screw
  2. Put one screw with a washer in the metal strip that will be a switch (goes on the right)
  3. Screw the metal switch in the top right hole and end the other end up a little
  4. Put a screw in each remaining hole
  5. Twist each screw down so there is only a little space to put wires under the washer. Don’t screw them down all the way yet.

Wires (put ends under the washers)

  1. Put the shortest wire under the part of the key you press and the nearby screw
  2. Put the other remaining smaller wires where they go in the middle of the board
  3. Put the long wires where they are marked on the board
  4. Twist down complete the screw under the metal key onto the wire

Speaker and battery holder

  1. Put the speaker wires under the screws near the speaker picture:
  2. Put the red wire of the battery holder under the washer of the
    top speaker wire
  3. Put the black battery holder wire under the washer on the metal strip and tighten it down completely

Transistors (small 3-pronged black parts)

  1. Bend the transistor wires to match the pictures near where the circles are on the board (inside them are the letters C,B and E). Each transistor is bent differently.

  1. Put each wire of the transistors under a screw near each letter (B,C,E)
  2. Tighten completely the two screws next to the “E” label for each transistor

Matching resistors w/ orange, white, & red stripes

  1. Gently bend the resistor with the orange-white-red-gold stripes over the top of the wires on the right
  2. Finish tightening down the screw holding down the right resistor, speaker wire, black wire and red wire.

  1. Gently bend the other resistor with the orange-white-red-gold stripes over the top of the wires on the left

Capacitors (blue or tan parts)

  1. Separate the wires of the blue capacitors and put them under the two screws on each side of the –) |-  symbol

  1. Finish tightening those 4 screws

Final Resistors

  1. Bend in a “U” shape the resistor with brown-black-brown stripes
  2. Put those wires under on the right side

  1. Put the resistor with brown-black-red stripes on the left side of the board

  1. Finish tightening down those 2 screws
  2. Make sure all the wires are snug under the washers by tightening the screws

Plug the battery onto the battery holder and enjoy doing Morse code!

 

Interested in doing your own?

Download instructions
Download the parts list and schematic

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