November 18, 2005

Kerosene Radio (Jun, 1956)

Filed under: Radio, Useless Tech — @ 4:03 pm
Source: Popular Science ( More articles from this issue )
Issue: Jun, 1956
| Buy on Ebay

“Hold on ma, let me go light the radio!”

Made in Moscow for use in rural areas, this all-wave radio is reportedly powered by the kerosene lamp hanging above it. A group of thermocouples is heated internally to 570 degrees by the flame. Fins cool the outside to about 90 degrees. The temperature differential generates enough current to operate the low-drain reciever. Regular listeners may want fur lined union suits, though: it works best in a room with open windows.

16 Comments »

1. Estimados señores, les ruego me envien información relacionada con el radio a kerosene, me interesa mucho conocer de que forma se producía la energía a partir del combustible mencionado.
   gracias.

   Comment by marco vidal — August 4, 2007 @ 2:07 pm

2. En el Museo tenemos una y funcionando.
   Saludos!!

   Comment by Evelin Rau — September 25, 2007 @ 11:20 am

3. I work for a museum of old radios and related, i have very interest on how work this radio, what tubes use and how energy produce the thermocouples. if you can apport some information i will be very thanks.
   Les agradeceria mucho si pudieran aportarme alguna informacion sobre esta radio como que lámparas usa y cuanta energia producen aproximadamente las termocuplas, ya que trabajo en un museo de radios antiguas y objetos relacinados.
   Cualquier informacion será bienvenida. Desde ya muchas gracias.

   Comment by Ruben Minutta — September 25, 2007 @ 6:27 pm

4. I’m sorry, that’s all the information I have.

   Comment by Charlie — September 25, 2007 @ 7:03 pm

5. It looks like an early 50’s Grundig Radio, made in Germany. I have a simelar one sitting in my living room, and to this day it still gets better recception and sound quality then some of my transistor based radios. The fact that its german made may lend some credence to this particular radio being found in Russia at that time.

   Comment by Avery Montembeault — November 5, 2007 @ 9:06 am

6. There’s a better picture of the kerosene lamp on this web page. .

   http://www.dself.dsl.pipex.com.....ectric.htm

   Comment by Bruce Richardson — January 7, 2008 @ 8:25 am

7. HOLA , EL QUE QUIERA UNA LAMPARA NUEVA , COMPLETA Y CON SU MANUAL ORIGINAL EN CAJA PUEDE MANDARME UN MAIL

   Comment by carlos r di rocco — January 30, 2008 @ 2:08 pm

8. PERDON MI MAIL ES rafaeldirocco@hotmail.com

   Comment by carlos r di rocco — January 30, 2008 @ 2:14 pm

9. Amazing. I’m sure it will surface soon as a new product with a lot of glory from NM labs.

   Comment by Ruben Yitzak Goldsteig — February 22, 2008 @ 2:03 pm

10. 05rlx7m2nm9ztyio

    Comment by Barton Brooks — November 12, 2008 @ 11:37 pm

11. [...] http://blog.modernmechanix.com.....ene-radio/ [...]

    Pingback by » Rádio a querosene (junho de 1956) - Glúon /blog — November 26, 2008 @ 7:51 am

12. hi..im fascinated by the use of thermocouples…can anyone direct me anywhere in india where they are produced? have a wild idea to put one in my bike helmet to cool off the hot weather in india…:-)

    Comment by johnson — May 28, 2009 @ 10:54 am

13. More info on the Russian generator. But let’s post in English from now on, OK?
    http://www.dself.dsl.pipex.com.....ric.htm#rl

    Comment by Firebrand38 — May 28, 2009 @ 12:47 pm

14. Hmmm…I guess Cyrillic doesn’t come through on comments.

    Comment by Tim — September 25, 2009 @ 12:22 pm

15. Johnson…
    I think you want the reverse of a thermocouple if you want to put one in your helmet.

    Wiki for Thermoelectric cooling

    From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (Abridged)

    A Peltier cooler, heater, or thermoelectric heat pump is a solid-state active heat pump which transfers heat from one side of the device to the other side against the temperature gradient (from cold to hot), with consumption of electrical energy. Such an instrument is also called a Peltier device, Peltier diode, cooling diode, Peltier heat pump, solid state refrigerator, or thermoelectric cooler

    Comment by jayessell — September 25, 2009 @ 4:31 pm

16. Johnson…
    Google for ‘refrigerated helmet’.
    There’s a 22 year old magazine article describing it!

    Comment by jayessell — September 25, 2009 @ 4:37 pm

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