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YouKits TJ2B

Some post-Dayton additions have been made to the RadioKitGuide.  Rather than continue to paste the entire thing here I will link to it and list the changes only.

Changes  in Hendricks (2 new kits!), YouKits (1 new kit!), TenTec (New QRP rig coming soon), Four States QRP (1 kit retired, 1 coming soon), CR Kits (1 new kit!).

You can see the guide here:  RadioKitGuide.com

Today was fantastic. About 72F, sunny, with a stiff breeze. I hiked cross-country from Shute Hill to the Range Road running parallel to Hunkins Pond. The black flies were biting when I set up my gear, so I only made one quick contact with W5ZR in Louisiana before heading back.

Not far from the cemetery at the top of Shute Hill is a 5 acre beaver pond. I brought my APRS handie and transmitted my position as I hiked. You can see the beaver pond just above my call sign on the APRS map below.

After crossing the brook, the trail climbs steadily to the top of the hill. The trees along the trail radiate the yellow-green of new spring foliage.

This is an old logging trail, used mostly by snowmobiles now. I hiked about three miles to a spot where it runs into the old range road. Just across the old road is Swain’s north pasture. I set up under some maple trees along the stone wall. I thought I was going to operate on 15 meters, so I put up a 22 foot wire for that band. But 15 was dead and I switched to 20, even though the wire was a bit short. I was running about 4 watts with the ATS-4 and an Elecraft T-1 tuner. I called Bert, W5ZR in Louisiana when he called CQ. He was a strong 599, and he gave me a 559. The black flies were chewing on my ears and arms in spite of the repellent I put on. But who cares when the view looks like this…

After the quick QSO I packed up the gear and headed back up the trail. I reached my car in just about an hour. It was a perfect afternoon outing.

This afternoon I hiked to Knox Mountain. It was a beautiful spring day. I worked Croatia, Minnesota, the UK and Spain.

It’s been in the 70s for a more than a week. The trees are leafing out and the grass is high. Today the weather changed. It was 50F and windy. No matter, the trail was beautiful.

I crossed the first bridge and took a couple of snapshots of the brook.

Viburnum with its white flowers decorated the trail along the brook. The cool breeze kept the black flies away.

The second bridge has been removed. I placed a board between some rocks to facilitate a dry crossing a few weeks ago. I was glad it was still there.

The pond was full. It looks like the beaver have maintained their small dam at the near end. I tossed a line over a high branch on the cherry tree next to the cabin and pulled up a half wave wire for 15 meters. I used the ATS-4 by KD1JV with the Elecraft T-1 tuner. Here’s my log.

13 May-13 1916 21.018 9A4KW CW 599 599 Croatia
13 May-13 1922 21.013 KW7D CW 559 589 MN
13 May-13 1934 21.005 MI0VKO CW 449 579 UK
13 May-13 1951 21.011 EA8TL CW 599 599 Spain

This is the view of the pond from my operating position. After packing up, I made a quick trip back to the car. I was cold and ready for a cup of tea. Thank goodness spring is here.

Bob KK4DPN commented on my X1M review, and in addition to asking some questions about the issues I’ve had on some of the bands he states:  I’m looking to get into HF and this seems like a good thing to start out with, just to get a feel for it.

The Rocketeer, flickr

As a relatively new Ham myself, I went through what I have started to refer to as the standard Technician progression, or STP.  As a newly licensed Tech, I purchased an inexpensive HT.  Then, as I got a taste of being able to talk to people, but constant bad-signal reports, I got a mobile antenna for the HT.  More repeaters were now within my range, but I was still getting bad signal reports.  Next, came a mobile VHF rig, followed by a dual band one.  On the HF side, I purchased a 10 Meter mobile, and then a vintage Atlas 210X (as a General).

So many new Hams go through this same progression.  There’s a reluctance for some of us to invest $300 in equipment for a new hobby, until we play a bit.  For those of us that fit the hobby well, the HTs give us a taste of something better.  It’s the same with the HF side.  I bought the 10 Meter mobile used for about $100, because it was the only band I could use with my license.  Once I had some success with that (my first contact was trans-Atlantic!), I was motivated to get my General ticket.

I’ve mentioned before too, that I like to write about the frugal side of Ham Radio.  This is mostly because at this point in my life, I have collected several dependents  and obligations that take priority, and partly because, I’m Frugal! (There, I said it).  KD2 CHE is the same way with her sewing though.

Thinking along these lines, I’d like to explain why I bought an old Atlas 210X as my first multi-band HF rig.  After reading about them, it seemed like a good combination of size, power, cost, and ease-of-use.  A good working 210X can go for less than $200, and has a pretty small footprint.  Output is 200 Watts PEP (120 on 10M) on sideband.  People universally complain about the CW performance, but for now, I’m not using CW.  I’ve logged contacts all over Eastern, and Western Europe on the thing, as well as South America, and Western US.  Operation is VERY simple, and pretty forgiving of someone with little antenna tuning experience.

My recommendations for an HF rig for a new ham, who doesn’t want to spend a ton of dollars are as follows:

• Don’t buy a QRP rig as your first rig.  QRP operation requires some skill, and can be frustrating if you’re just looking to rag-chew, or even just log some interesting stations.  Wait until you have a more powerful rig first, and get a little more familiar with HF.  I think a QRP rig as your first rig may give you a bad taste of what it’s all about.  Don’t get me wrong though.  The challenge of QRP is great fun.  I guess the analogy is that it would be like going off on a wilderness survival weekend as a first camping trip.
• Go with a decent used rig.  There’s lots of great rigs in the $300-500 range at hamfests.  If you have some friends with more experience, ask around for recommendations, and look at the eHam reviews.  Plan on spending a little extra for a tune-up, and accessories (like a good antenna tuner).  100 Watts will get you started with enough power to talk all over the world.  My record so far is Namibia from Long Island.
• If you really want a new rig, there are a few sub-$1000 rigs that get decent reviews.  The Alinco DX-SR8T can be picked up for just over $500 from several of the online Ham retailers.  The Icom IC-718  runs in the low to mid $700 range, and the Yaesu FT-857D is in the mid $800 range.
• You CAN go even lower than $300 as I did, but your choices are limited.  In my case, I have a rig that doesn’t do the WARC bands, and is missing quite a few features that even the lowest priced radios have.  I love the simplicity of it though.   I can see continuing to use it even after I get something more sophisticated.

As more and more people discover this old pastime, I hope they discover all of the aspects of it.  Next for me is digital modes.  I’m really looking forward to getting that up and running on the Xiegu X1M, and a Raspberry Pi.  More to follow…

What is this strange disease that compels me to wander into the boonies on a beautiful day? I ventured out again… once more to the Pemigewasset River. I worked Russia, Sein Island, Giglio Island, Macedonia, a fellow QRPer in Spain, and Tennessee.

Today it’s 72F. The grass is absolutely turning green. Trees and plants are budding. I am in a polo shirt and shorts. It’s really spring.

I have ridden my bike about a mile and a half into the federal flood control area along the river. I stop along the trail not far from the old bridge that went over to Hill Village. I heave a line over an oak branch and set up the HB-1B on 20 meters with a half-wave wire. The band is active.

Right away I hear R5ZZ calling CQ and I answer. I must give my call twice, but the exchange is clean. Ken gives me a 569 from an area just beyond the North Sea.

In quick succession I work TM0SI an IOTA expedition to Sein Island, and IA5A, another IOTA station on Giglio Island. Both exchanges are quick 599s. Then I make a contact with Macedonia, Z320G.

I dial up toward the QRP calling frequency, 14.060. There I call Bill W4LVP in Tennessee as he finishes a QSO with another station. Bill is booming in and he gives me a 579. We have a wonderful chat. He tells me it’s 78F in TN, and he congratulates me on the QRP station. “GREAT QRP SIGNAL and FB SETUP.” As soon as we sign, I hear EA2LU calling me. Jorge is 579 from Spain. He is running a K3 at 5 watts into a yagi. He says I am peaking 589. I have worked Jorge several times over the years in QRP sprints, and it’s always a wonderful surprise.

I have only operated for a half an hour, but already I have worked a nice log full of DX. I pack up the gear and walk down to the bridge abutment.

The spring in New Hampshire is so much sweeter for having endured so many months of bone chilling cold. To be out here with the spring breeze soothing away the long winter’s freeze is remarkable… it’s no wonder we refer to the miracle of spring.

So,   I have now had the X1M since Friday.  I have to say that overall, I like it.  Friday night (as previously posted) I checked in to the

Xiegu X1M

Brothers Net, and was heard clearly in Virginia, and again on Saturday night, when one of the members in Virginia relayed my check in to the operator in Maryland.  Also on Saturday I logged 5 of the 7 Florida QSO Party spelling bee stations from my living room, as well as a couple of other Florida stations.  Reports ranged from good for QRP, to Wow!  Only 5 Watts?  Keep in mind this is in a much-less-than-ideal setup.

In our apartment, KD2CHE and I are extremely limited on space, inside AND out.  The X1M is attached to an L-shaped random wire in the front yard, by way of a Balun Designs 9:1 Unun, and an Emtech ZM2 tuner.  Emtech recommends not using an additional balun or unun, but it seems to perform a little better with this crazy antenna.

It tunes up on most bands, and appears to tune  up on 75, but signal reports were bad on 75, with a lot of RF feedback, and I can hear myself in the  speakers I have attached to our TV when I transmit.  17 meters seems to be an issue with the TV speakers as well.  I’d love to put up something better in the front yard, but we’ll see what the landlord and neighbors are willing to put up with.  160, by the way is a no-go, but I don’t think that’s a surprise.

I’ve gotten the hang of using the X1M pretty quickly.  I haven’t used the memories yet, but I use the dual VFOs quite a bit, as well all of the different tuning speeds.  Everything is fairly straight forward once you get the hang of it.  Audio is what you would expect for a radio of this size (this thing is SMALL!), and fine through headphones.  The receiver is very sensitive.  I’ll get some actual numbers next weekend.  I like that you can kill the display light to conserve batteries, which will help when portable.

I’ve tried battery power.  With 8 alkaline AAs the radio seems to perform OK, however, 8 LiIon batteries are not quite enough voltage for the rig, producing some howls and distortion with the volume above about 40%.  I guess I’m not too surprised at this, since 8 FULLY charged AA Eneloops only put out 9.6 volts.  I will supplement that with 4 more Eneloops in series for a max of 14.4 volts.  Later on, I can pick up something a little more sophisticated.  I also made a coax-to-powerpole cable for mobile use, so I can always just set up next to the car when needed.

A coax power plug for making your own power cord, and a 1/8″ stereo (3 cond) plug for wiring to a key/paddle are included.  The power connector is a very common size, 5.5mm OD x 2.1mm ID, or Radio Shack size M, which made powering the radio up easy, since I had a size M-to-tinned-leads cable already.  I wired a straight-key up to the 1/8″ plug, and had to set the keyer mode to manual, which was also not hard to figure out.  The instructions are in Chinese, but an English translated manual is available from Import Communications, or in the X1M Yahoo group.

I think the little X1M has a nice future in my collection.  It’s no KX3, but for about $300, it’s a nice little radio.

To be continued………..

This afternoon Dick N1LT and I headed to Profile Falls in Bristol for the annual QRP to the Field event. What a perfect day we had… lots of contacts… dazzling scenery, even a little break for tea and cake!

We set up right at the edge of the Pemigewasset River not far from where the Smith River enters the Pemi from Profile Falls. This year’s theme for the QRP to the Field event is historic trails. This spot fit in perfectly. There are TWO historic trails here. We were only several hundred yards from the old Northern Railroad route between Franklin and Bristol and just a little farther from the old road that ran between the two New Hampshire towns. Both have been out of service since the 1940’s when the Corps of Engineers took over the area for flood control.

We ran two separate stations. Dick set up about 70 feet from me. He operated in my VW camper with an FT-817 and a Par End Fed 40, 20, 10. I don’t have his log, but he worked a dozen or so stations on 20 meters in about an hour and a half of operating.

As shown in the first picture, I set up on a picnic table in front of the river. I ran a K2 to a 21 foot piece of wire (half wave on 15M) tuned with an Elecraft T-1 tuner. I operated almost exclusively on 15 meters. The band was sparse, but now and then a strong station appeared and I was able to work him. Here’s my log for the event.

Date UTC Freq Call Mode MY His QTH Name
————————————————————-
27 Apr-13 1753 21.023 RA2FF CW 599 599 Russia
27 Apr-13 1758 21.061 AA5CK CW 559 599 OK Ted
27 Apr-13 1802 21.062 N7KE(?) CW 439 559 WA
27 Apr-13 1808 7.034 W2M CW 599 599 NY Morse event
27 Apr-13 1820 21.037 AA4PP CW 599 599 FL
27 Apr-13 1825 21.060 WT5RZ CW 229 559 NM Ron
27 Apr-13 1828 21.009 HB9BMY CW 599 599 SOTA
27 Apr-13 1830 21.029 WD4AHZ CW 599 599 FL
27 Apr-13 1833 21.033 F6FEA CW 569 599 France Didier
27 Apr-13 1920 21.034 K4LQ CW 599 599 FL
27 Apr-13 1925 21.017 I2TAO CW 559 599 Italy
27 Apr-13 1930 21.057 DF2GN/P CW 559 559 SOTA Germany Klaus
27 Apr-13 1937 18.073 WT0S CW 579 599 ND Don
27 Apr-13 1944 18.077 TM0SI CW 599 599 Sein Isl

It’s a mix of DX, SOTA, FL QSO Party and a couple of QRPTTFers. My QSO with Didier F6FEA in France lasted more than 20 minutes and I received a very cordial email from Didier. He was most patient with my weak signal!

About three quarters of the way through the afternoon we stopped for a quick cup of tea and some lovely orange cake that my wife sent along with us. I had brought along a gas stove, a pot, and some cups and plates. What a wonderful treat.

Before packing up, we went across the road to Profile Falls. It’s a popular swimming hole in the summer. A bit cold right now!

Dick and I have operated this event together at least 4 years out of the last five. It’s something we look forward to each year with good reason. Thanks to Paul NA5N for putting the event together.