For me it was Conn, W4EBG, and his best drinkin' buddy Walt, WB4AOE, both of 
Kentucky, who provided the sloppy operator and trash mouth lessons on 75 
meter AM in the mid 60s.

I once met a guy who claimed to have visited Conn, and he swore that Conn's 
transmitter was built into a small house trailer, with only enough room left 
for an operating desk and a bathroom.

They were finally removed from the air in about 1968 simply by not having 
their license renewals granted. Walt, WB4AOE, died shortly afterward. I 
understand that Conn did get his license back just before he too passed away 
years later.

One of those W8 guys that Steve and Phil mentioned on 3895 was busted in the 
mid 80s for running "in excess of 25 kw" output on ssb. Can you imagine the 
rfi in his neighborhood?

I remember K6KPS and his eternal CQ followed by the line noise excuse. He 
was mostly on 20 meters, but I heard him a few times on 10 and 15 as well. 
He always had a strong signal into Mississippi.

My favorite loud west coast AM signal came from Fred, W6QS. He was a 
proponent of super modulation, and was part of a movement called the AM 
Rebellion in the early 60s. He conducted himself decently on the air. I 
would occasionally hear him on 40 or 75 meters talking with Hoisy, W4CJL, 
another super modulation type in Alabama, and another Fred, W3PHL, in 
Pennsylvania.

It took me a little while to figure out why my lowly Viking Ranger didn't 
take command of a frequency like those guys did.

Anyone remember the guys around Phoenix who ran the monster 12 element quads 
on 10 meters in the late 60s?

There were also a few guys running rhombics up there. The main one who comes 
to mind was Bill, ZL2BE, who would often be the only AM signal on the band 
using that big antenna and 10 watts.




Mike Duke, K5XU
American Council of Blind Radio Amateurs