Antenna Maintenance and other things

It's that time of year, at least in Texas where I live, the flowers start to bloom, the temperatures start to rise and antennas need some work. This past weekend a friend of mine, Hector, AD6D/XE2K, came to help me (he did most of the work) with some tower climbing, element straightening, rotor fixing and antenna building. In a addition to the antenna/tower work we completely reorganized my shack, so it was a busy weekend. I am now greased and gassed and ready to go for while. I found some things in the shack that I hadn't seen in a while, so I will be getting reaquainted with some of my toys.

I also received my new Yaesu VX8-GR with the build in APRS/GPS capability. I was up on APRS in a matter of minutes, pretty cool. There are various applications of APRS, but for a hiker/climber it is a nice safety device so that you location is known in case of emergency and if you are activating a summit, chaser can follow your progress up the mountain.

I also managed a QRP QSO with EY8MM, so the new restored antennas are working great.

After I recover from the weekend, I will write about some more interesting topics.
Mike Crownover, AD5A, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from Texas, USA. Contact him at [email protected].

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