At the weekend I noticed that the CQ WW WPX phone contest was on. I’m not a fan of phone contests – hollering your call into a mic over and over again is not my idea of fun – but I thought it might be interesting to see what I could hear or work on 10m when so many stations were on.

In the end I only made a handful of contacts. It was just too manic for my current state of mind. I couldn’t remember the serial numbers I was given before typing them into the log, so I would have to wait for the station I worked to make another contact and see what the next serial number was. I much prefer CW contests using a code reader to print up the exchange so that I can just double-click the information to enter it error-free in the log.

I’ve just started my final cycle of chemotherapy and it has knocked me back a bit. So I think I’ll stick to pastimes like WSPR and JT65 that have a more relaxed pace until I’m feeling better.

Julian Moss, G4ILO, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from Cumbria, England. Contact him at [email protected].

I registered with RS Components for a Raspberry Pi board (when they get released) and whilst I’m not expecting one this side of the summer it was nice to get an update from them. If the truth be told I’m having too much fun activating summits in at the moment. Especially now as we seem to have a warm spell. It certainly makes a change from hail and snow I had on Scafell Pike a couple of weeks ago. Anyway see below for the update from RS:

Welcome to the latest Raspberry Pi update from RS Components!

Much has been happening behind the scenes since you received our last update, not least the start of compliance testing on the Raspberry Pi.

Why are we doing this? Compliance testing is an essential part of bringing any electronic product to market. The Raspberry Pi is being tested to make sure it conforms to all the regulations that apply to electronic devices around the world. This means that we can be sure the Raspberry Pi we deliver to you meets the correct standards and is as safe as you would expect any electronic device you purchase to be.

We’re working with the Raspberry Pi Foundation to manage the testing process as quickly as possible, while ensuring all tests are carried out to guarantee safety. More information is being posted on the Raspberry Pi website , as well as on our own FAQ pages rswww.com or DesignSpark. We’re also regularly tweeting updates on progress. Follow @RSElectronics on twitter to catch the latest news.

Alongside this, we’ve also been contacting the first group of people who registered for a Raspberry Pi from RS, to help us plan delivery of the initial batch of boards. In next week’s update, we’ll provide more information on how we’re managing the queue and the order process.

RS Components

Alex Hill, G7KSE, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from Cumbria, UK. Contact him at [email protected].

Series Five Episode Seven of the ICQ Podcast has been released. News Stories include :-

• RAFARS AOTA event
• London 2012 Games Final Update
• VO-52 to return soon
• 'Birthplace of Radio' awarded City status
• BBC highlight problems with PLT
• Complete collection of QRPp Journal is online
• DXCC Online
• Special Callsign for Naval Social Event
• HMS Collingwood Amateur Radio Special Event station
• Ham moves to 'ideal' North Dakota

Martin M1MRB gets ready for Spring with his Radio Spring Cleaning tips and Ed Durrant, VK2ARE provides an intro to the HF bands.

Colin Butler, M6BOY, is the host of the ICQ Podcast, a weekly radio show about Amateur Radio. Contact him at [email protected].

My antenna…

 

…didn’t wake you up at 3 AM last night with loud music.

…doesn’t mind it when you leave your curtains open and walk around naked in your house.

…doesn’t rev up its engine for two hours like Joe does down the street with his old Mustang on Friday nights.

…won’t pollute your water well.

…didn’t mess up your TV yesterday, but the signal coming out of it may have.  Sorry about that.  I can fix that if you’ll let me.

…won’t drive up over the curb and over your flowers and shrubs.

…doesn’t belong to a gang.

…isn’t as cute as the woman next door, but my antenna didn’t call the township office like the woman next door did when you didn’t get a building permit.

…will never be on a sexual predator list.

…doesn’t bark at everything that moves.

…is a technological sculpture…well, to me, at least.

…is a gathering place for birds, when they’re not over at your bird feeder.

Come to think of it, my antenna is a pretty good neighbor.

I really enjoy kit building I find it to be a nice pass time when the propagation is not co-operative and the bands are slow. With kit building it's a learning curve starting out with basic kits and moving up to kits that
contain SMT components....I have yet to dive into that pond. There sure is a reward when you have spent time

Replacing a cable

assembling a kit and then to see it work is  a great feeling.
Recently I had to open up my Elecraft K2 to add an internal antenna tuner and battery. I had not had the top off the K2 for some time.....I was amazed at all the components to which I thought..."I actually put all this together" For those of you who build kits like me you have run into times when things just don't go as planned. I have soldered components in the wrong  place. There has been solder run onto two pads instead of the one the solder was intended for and so on. I would bet there are a lot of kit builders out there who have their own stories.  As kit builders we all have our "tools" from soldering stations to multimeter's

Hakko at work

and everything in-between. One tool I purchased about a year ago and really don't use all that often but when used it sure has gotten me out of many binds. The "magic tool" as I call it is the Hakko 808 desoldering tool. In the past I have used the hand pump, hand bulb and soldering iron and bulb combo. These did an ok job but at times all had failed me. The Hakko 808 is very efficient at removing soldering mistakes and at the same time saving the component if placed in the wrong location. The Hakko heats up very fast, the vacuum pump is powerful, maintenance is minimal lastly its very user friendly for filter changes. I know that solder mistakes only happen now and then but it's sure great having the right tool for the job at hand.

The finished product

Mike Weir, VE9KK, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from New Brunswick, Canada. Contact him at [email protected].

As I was driving home last night, I was looking around on 28MHz SSB as I usually do. In addition to the ‘usual’ South Americans that I’ve been hearing for a few weeks there were a couple of fairly weak French stations. This interested me as I suspected I was hearing them via Es propagation. If that’s true, then with any luck we will start to hear more Es on 28MHz and then hear it rising in frequency towards 50MHz and beyond.

This afternoon, in celebration of the gorgeous weather, Julie and I decided to go up White Horse Hill, which is about 10 miles to the south of where we live. Although it was a little misty up there, we had a great time walking, listening to the skylarks, watching the buzzards and picking out some of the local villages. I took my Icom E-92 handheld and had a tune around on 145 and 433MHz. I was particularly pleased to have a nice 145MHz simplex contact with Mike 2E0YYY/P who was on the Long Mynd in Shropshire. I suppose the distance between us was around 80-90 miles.

Tim Kirby, G4VXE, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from Oxfordshire, England. Contact him at [email protected].

This sounds like a great kit at a fantastic price, for what you’ll be getting!

Dubbed the QRPometer during development, this useful accessory is a highly accurate and easy to use power and swr indicating meter. Unusual in any pwer meter, the range of accurate power measurement extends down to a low 100 milliwatts. It has a large digital display and boasts an accuracy level that few, if any, similar meters on the market can match. A unique design feature is that 2 circuit boards are included in the kit, they form the front and back of the enclosure. The boards are shiny black so there is no need to buy, build, or paint an enclosure.

This kit was conceived to fill a need within the hobby for an inexpensive, highly accurate VSWR and RF power meter for QRP power levels. The QRPometer uses simple analog signal-processing circuitry to provide a set of essential measurement features not previously available in a single unit. High quality, double sided, printed circuit board construction is used, with solder mask and silk screened component reference designators. All components are through-hole for easy assembly. NO toroids are required. All controls and jacks are PCB mounted, and a single, four conductor ribbon cable is the only wiring necessary. The QRPometer can be constructed by beginners as well as experienced builders. Construction time is approximately 3 hours, depending on experience level. The only equipment required for calibration of the QRPometer is a digital voltmeter, and a QRP transmitter.

First time builders please note: This kit is not difficult to build. All parts are thru hole parts, there are NO SMT parts. The parts are wide spaced on the board making installation easy, and all connectors are board mounted which eliminates point to point wiring. Also note that there are No TOROIDS to wind – none.

Specifications and Design Features
Power Range: 100 mW to 10 Watts
Accuracy: Power, 2% Typical
VSWR, 5% Typical
Large Digital Display The digits are .52″ in height.
Sensitivity: Direct readout on 3 1/2 digit LCD display. Minimum resolution 10 mW.
Enclosure: Silk Screened PC boards create the enclosure, no need to purchase one.
No Toroids: There are no toroids in this kit.

The price?  Only $50.00 (US).  Wow!

For all the details; and to order ………  http://www.wa0itp.com/qrpom.html

Please note that I am not a member of the 4 State QRP Group and have no “interest” in this kit, other than seeing great stuff get into the hands of my fellow QRPers!

72 de Larry W2LJ

Larry Makoski, W2LJ, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from New Jersey, USA. Contact him at [email protected].