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As mentioned in one of my last posts, the lithium ion battery that I had acquired from eBay arrived. There was a “return receipt, signature confirmation” slip in the mail box and I went and picked it up from the Post Office this morning.

Batteries sure are getting lighter and smaller!

The battery to the left is the very first sealed lead acid battery that I’ve ever used for portable field operations.  I’ve had this guy for about eight years now.  It’s a 7.2Ah battery, probably about 5 pounds (a tad more than 2 kilos)- about the weight of a bag of sugar (roughly). It came out of an emergency EXIT light that was in the building that I used to work at.  I saved it from the dumpster and there was (and still is) absolutely nothing wrong with it. Only drawback for field operations is the weight.

The middle battery is the one I’ve been using for about the last three years. It’s rated at 5Ah and is roughly half the weight of the big battery (approx. 2.5 pounds or about 1 kilo).

“Little Boy Blue” to the extreme right is the lithium ion battery. 9.8Ah and I would say, the same size as a pack of cigarettes.  It weighs less than a pound (less than 1/2 a kilo).  It came with a wall wart (not pictured) for charging, it has both male and female 3.5mm connectors for output; and it has a little switch on the left hand side with a tiny red LED indicator to let you know you have turned the battery “on”.

More capacity in a smaller, lighter package.  How cool is that?

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!

Jim W1PID proves that it doesn’t have to be a long outdoor session in order to have success.

http://www.w1pid.com/quickie/quickie.html

I need to remember this.  There are times when I am guilty of being lazy, I guess.  I hesitate sometimes, to set up the station even with the fast mobile setup, because I convince myself that “there’s not enough time”.

Jim proves that if you know what you are doing, that even 15 minutes can be enough.  And that’s a good habit to get into.  In his case though (and I say this with my tongue firmly planted in my cheek) I have to admit the local scenery sure can make up for things even when the bands are dead.  Who wouldn’t want to spend time out in the New Hampshire countryside?  The QSOs are the icing on the cake!

As always, thanks for sharing, Jim.   Another FB job, OM!

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!

No it’s not what you might think.  I did NOT get an e-mail from Elecraft telling me that my KX3 is on its way.

But I did find a slip in the mail asking me to come to the Post Office to sign for a package.  I checked out the tracking number and it’s the Lithium Ion battery that I got via eBay.  I know I have to be very careful charging it and all; but the smaller size and lighter weight will be a whole lot nicer than carrying around that sealed lead acid battery.

There is also the provision for using the internal battery holders; but I always get the heebie jeebies about batteries leaking and making a mess.  I don’t use them in my PFR3A. I did have them in my K1; but ended up taking them out.  When using internal batteries in the K1, you had to use a different speaker other than the original stock one.  It was smaller to accommodate the space that the batteries took up and I didn’t like the way that it sounded.  My K2 is always used with an external source.

Yes, it would be a lot more convenient to use the internal battery holders while out on a day hike; but the idea just doesn’t sit right with me.  Silly, I know; but what can I say?  I have repaired too many circuit boards in my day where the copper traces were eaten away from leaky electrolytic caps.  My brain knows the likelihood of that happening inside a KX3 are probably close to nil; but I still feel that I don’t need to tempt fate.

So for in home shack use, I rely on my Astron RS-35 power supply.  Yes, I know that a 35 Amp power supply is way overkill for QRP.  But it’s a fantastic analog power supply and I’ve had it for years.  I’ve even repaired it myself a couple of times.  I like to think of it as an old car with a carburetor that I can service myself, if need be.  Way easier than dealing with a switching power supply. 

I had my fill repairing those back in the days when I was in the photo industry.  The Broncolor studio strobes that I used to repair had switching power supplies.  They were good; but did they ever generate RFI!  I suppose that switching power supplies are a lot better than they used to be; but I know for a fact that my Astron generates no RFI at all – period.  As long as it delivers stable DC Voltage, it will be at the bottom of my bench.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!

to the beautiful Spring that is upon us.  Celebrated with Amateur Radio by Jim W1PID:

http://www.w1pid.com/april/april.html

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!

But in the same vein as the last post, sort of, as we’ve recently passed another anniversary (April 14th) ………

I am currently finishing reading Bill O’Reilly’s “Killing Lincoln: The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever”.

It is an extremely fast reading book.  I started it Monday, while visiting my Mom, who has been in the hospital this week (hence the pandemonium).  I should be finishing it very soon.  I wouldn’t consider it to be the definitive book on the subject, but it is definitely interesting. I would heartily recommend it.

Having it on the Kindle makes it that much easier to carry along.

I know this topic isn’t radio related in any way; but the authors do mention that Mr. Lincoln was addicted to the Internet of his day – the telegraph.  He spent much time bothering the Signal Corp for as much “from the front’ war news as he was able to get.  I’m willing to bet that were he alive today, President Lincoln would have been an Internet and cable news junkie – and who knows, maybe a Ham, too?

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!

I don’t like to “steal” from my fellow bloggers; but I caught this on John N8ZYA’s blog. It is worth sharing with those of you who might not read his blog (You’re cheating yourself if you don’t! Just saying!)  This “independent movie” is about 45 minutes long.  It’s worth viewing to get an idea on how wireless was situated on seafaring vessels.

Now for the error as described in the post title. I didn’t work any of the Titanic Special Event stations due to some pandemonium that has been enveloping me over the past few days.  With this Saturday being a full week past the anniversary day, I doubt any of them remain on the air.  Oh well, centennial observances, like the tides, wait for no man.

Oh – before I close. This rule change to QRPTTF appeared on QRP-L today:

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Gang,
While QRPTTF is open to all QRPers, I have always seen it as a “QRP-L” function. This is where it is administered and the QRPers on this list are those I attempt to satisfy and respond to.

Response to having additional SOTA stations on the air for QRPTTF has generally been positive. However, I underestimated the desire of QRPers to go climb their nearby mountain or feature, whether a SOTA summit or not. A few want to make a camping trip out of it. SOTA began and is headquartered in the UK. There are numerous US chapters. Not all states/call districts have a SOTA chapter, mostly due to no or few summits to survey or activate over 500 feet high. SOTA guidelines state that the minimum “prominence” for a summit is 100M or 300 feet. Sounds good enough for me. Therefore, we will also use this definition.

RULE CHANGE
QRPTTF has been expanded from three to four categories and multipliers

STATION CLASS AND MULTIPLIERS:
X1 HOME station
X2 FIELD HILL station – operating on a hill from 3-300 feet above
average terrain
X3 SUMMIT station – operating from a “hill” or geological feature
300 feet or higher from the average terrain
X4 SOTA Summit – operating from a designated SOTA summit

I have received several emails from those wanting to operate from the largest darn “mountain” in their corner of the state, though not a SOTA summit, which in most cases will require a substantial effort. This rule change will allow you to do this and receive a X3 multiplier for the additional effort. In turn, operating from a designated SOTA summit is now X4.

This rule change has been updated on the website, rules and summary sheet
http://www.zianet.com/qrp/ or direct: http://www.zianet.com/qrp/QRPTTF/ttf.html

So for those of you who want to be a QRP “Mountain man” for the weekend, go
for it!

72, Paul NA5N

PS – Driving out to the VLA site today (54 miles from Socorro), it made me appreciate how we have to drive through or around three different mountain ranges, with numerous peaks from 9,000-12,000 feet. I always took them for granted. Not anymore. Average terrain here is about 4,700 feet, the VLA is at 7,000 feet.

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72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!

Hot off QRP-L:

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Gang,
The rules for this year’s QRP TO THE FIELD (QRPTTF) and Summary Sheet are posted at: http://www.zianet.com/qrp/

This year, we are teaming up with the Summits on the Air stations – or SOTA. SOTA stations will be operating from designated summits to participate in QRPTTF. SOTA stations are QRP – some QRPp, and operate on the usual QRP watering holes. This joint effort was designed to give us all more stations to work (since the sun isn’t helping us out much … solar flux for QRPTTF predicted to be 100).

Since we’re talking mountains and summits, this year’s theme is “Get high with QRP” … basically, operate from any old nearby hill or as high as you want to go.

SOTA stations will send the exchange, plus a SOTA designator they use for identifying the summit (this gives them credit for their awards as well). Many hike to the summits with a minimalist station, often QRPp, so may be a bit weak. Whether you work TTF or SOTA stations, they all go in the log for credit. However, you also get an extra multiplier for each SOTA station worked to reward you for your effort to boost your score.

Complete details and scoring on the website http://www.zianet.com/qrp/

There are also several SOTA members on QRP-L that will be participating in QRPTTF. If you have any questions regarding SOTA, or if you feel so inclined to operate a SOTA location, ask here and they will answer your questions.

None of us want to haul our gear to the field then struggle to find stations to work. Past few years, we have plenty of experience with that! This will give us more stations to work for more QSOs, higher scores, and of course, more fun.

72, Paul NA5N

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Thanks, Paul – remember folks, QRPTTF is Saturday, April 28th.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!