The Weirdest Thing My Dad Made

Clean out your home and you’re likely to unearth old dishes and dusty albums, perhaps a few uncomfortable family photos. You probably don’t expect to receive a 16-inch

encased in wire, looking like something from a Cold War experiment.

I was rifling through my dad’s record collection — primarily classical stuff — when I came across this giant disc with “So Well Remembered” written on it. This one, unlike the rest, had wire tightly spun across its top, split down its face much like a pie chart. Two wires hung from the center label, as if waiting to be plugged into some sort of mysterious appliance.

At first, it looked kind of like a strange antenna. But the symmetry was too perfect. The wire too neatly wound. And that’s when I saw: it was a basket-weave

made out of a vinyl record.

What, Exactly, Is a Basket-Weave Inductor?

Engineers commonly used a basket-weave inductor—a flat coil inductor—in radio circuits, especially at low frequencies such as audio, LF radio, and RF. The design keeps the windings far enough apart to minimize self-capacitance, which is said to help the radio lock in on a frequency, preventing any drift. It is a high-efficiency coil and works well in the design of regenerative and shortwave radios.

The style of coil was popular in DIY electronics kits, ham radio setups, and military uses. It’s design for performance, not decoration.

Why Use a Vinyl Record?

My father’s 16-inch transcription disc wasn’t lying around for just any reason. These are cut for radio use and are much thicker and heavier than LPs. Flat, sturdy, already have a hole in the middle — how convenient for building a coil.

The damage wasn’t the “pizza slice” scoring on the surface. It was a guide. They then used those marks to evenly space the windings, ensuring a consistent layout that minimized interference and preserved a high Q.

My Dad, the Quiet Builder

Ah, I never knew anyone like that. He didn’t talk about it. I always thought the workbench in the basement was for repairing furniture or tools. Instead, he was hand-building radio components with the skills of an engineer.

This wasn’t just some weekend project. The build was well created, thought out, and technically executed.

What Do You Do With It?

Right now, it’s in my office. Not connected to anything. It’s only sitting on a shelf — part sculpture, part enigma. It is the kind of thing that isn’t just a piece of electronics history. It’s a labor of hope and curiosity and talent.

I might donate it. Or hang it. But I’m definitely preserving it for now.

Memory and Signal

Discovering that basket-weave inductor vinyl record was like finding a letter. Not a broadcast miles away — but years. From one person who knew how it worked and had the patience to build something other than buy it.

If you come across something odd and wired in an old “junk” box, look at it again. There is likely more going on that you know.