AmateurRadio.com

A couple of weeks ago I came across FreeTrak, a PIC based APRS tracker developed by N0QBH. I have wanted to build a small ‘grab-and-go’ tracker for a while now. The FoxTrak works fine but is too big and bulky by the time it is paired with an HT. The TH-D72 is too much hassle as I need strong reading glasses to see the LCD screen and inevitably go out with some essential menu option disabled. Consequently these days I rarely bother taking APRS with me when Olga and I go for a walk around town.

I sent off for a couple of PIC 16F628A microcontrollers, thinking that I could program them in my EasyPIC5 development board. But when I tried, I immediately hit a snag.

My PICFlash programmer detects a PIC 12F508 instead of a PIC 16F628A.

I don’t think I’ve been sold a fake MCU. If I remove the 16F628A so there is no micro plugged in at all I still receive the same warning. So I don’t know what to do. I’ve bricked too many PIC chips by programming them with the wrong settings to try crossing my fingers and clicking Yes. So it looks like my FreeTrak project is not going to get off the ground.

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

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

• 1st Interplanetary CubeSat Workshop
• New HF shortwave radio station callsign
• 13cm threat in Sweden
• Bahrain 70 MHz beacon A92C/B
• Open Mission Control software
• Craggy Island Dxpedition Group
• MIT offer free online electronics course
• G0KYA's February HF Propagation
• Android App for UK Band Plan 2012
• D-Star in Namibia V53W
• Radio Amateur to command ISS
• Field day BBQ cookbook published

Your feedback, Steve Nicholls, G0KYA Progation Report, and our 100th episode roundtable discussing the past and future of Amateur radio.

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

I just came across some info regarding a replacement for the road warrior FT-817 it's the mystery FT-818? I have read some comments on blogs that wrote about the FT-818. Some seem to be drooling while others see it as wishful thinking. I did try a link on one blog that boasted of a Yahoo group for the FT-818 but it did not exist. The "up coming rig" sure does boast of some very impressive improvements.

• All mode, all bands 1.8-1296MHz with 5MHz and 70MHz
• 5W RF (2W 1296MHz)
• 3.5AHr Li-Ion battery pack (2hr charging)
• Built in random wire and whip auto-ATU
• Full colour OLED display
• Multi-function DSP noise reduction
• RF Speech processor

BUT Yaesu has not even hinted about this rig...nothing at Dayton....and well check out the Icom IC-7000........seems to me the FT-817 has had a photo shop crop job done to it! What do you think is the the FT-818 fact or fiction?
Mike Weir, VE9KK, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from New Brunswick, Canada. Contact him at [email protected].

Just back from a few hours spent at the annual field day at Wyong hosted by the Central Coast Amateur Radio Club. This has to be the big day out for Australian radio amateurs. People came from near and far. It’s a good barometer of the health of the hobby and the local industry supporting it.
I was delighted to see – as the first exhibit as you enter – a full display of the Elecraft K-line presented by Gary VK4FD. Only thing missing was a KX3. Gary of course is an enthusiast, not an employee of Elecraft. A pretty good indicator of the passionate support the company enjoys.


The flea market became pretty busy as the morning progressed, but maybe not as many stalls as previous years. One stall that stood out for me at least was Stephen VK2SPS’s which included his offering of keys and bugs, surplus to his collection as he focuses on homegrown Australian manufactured keys. Eagle-eyed visitors will spot the McElroy bug (top, centre) and an interesting wooden based French military key towards bottom right.


Brilliant sunny weather, but not too hot to spend some time wandering about looking for a bargain or three. Also saw an impressive display of homebrew gear from members of the ARNSW Homebrew group.

Stephen Rapley, VK2RH, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from New South Wales, Australia. Contact him at [email protected].

My family sure was nice to me on my birthday this past Wednesday! One of the gifts I received was something I’ve wanted, but I couldn’t bring myself to cough up the cash for it: the 2012 edition of The ARRL Handbook for Radio Communications, graciously given to me by my daughter. Since the most recent copy on my shelves was several decades old, I was glad to get my hands on it.

I can see why this is a required textbook for the classes my friend Scott has been taking. He is a Signalman with BNSF Railway and periodically travels to Kansas City for training (no pun intended). The ARRL Handbook is a great resource for more than just ham radio operators. It is well-written and comprehensive — so comprehensive that I felt like an ignoramus as I paged through it on my birthday! I may have my Amateur Extra Class, but now I see more clearly than ever how little I really know.

But don’t let that scare you away from this book, Technicians. There’s still plenty in this book that you will find accessible, and anyhow we’re never going to learn if we don’t push ourselves.

One thing that isn’t covered in this book is the topic of operating procedures. But I can see why this topic has been relegated to a book of its own. The ARRL Handbook is quite a hefty tome as it is.

As with most of the ARRL library, you’ll find this book cheaper over at Amazon.

Todd Mitchell, NØIP, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from Minnesota, USA. He can be contacted at [email protected].

Yesterday I wrote that I was shelving the Propeller beacon project after discovering that the frequency stability is unacceptabe. Eldon WA0UMH persuaded me to try some tests to identify the cause of the drift. My conclusion is that it is a combination of factors.

The major factor causing the drift is the power supply voltage. Whilst developing the beacon using just the Gadget Gangster board I was powering it with a 6V supply – the minimum needed. After adding a PA I needed to increase the supply voltage to 9V. The drift is greater with 9V, regardless of whether the PA is actually connected.

Looking down on the Propeller board

 If you look down at the Gadget Gangster Propeller USB board there are two SMT chips to the left of the Propeller and its clock crystal which appear to be voltage regulators. There is a 5V regulator a few millimetres to the left of the 10MHz crystal and a 3.3V regulator below it. The greater the supply voltage, the more heat the 5V regulator has to dissipate. Plugging the LCD UI board on top of the Propeller board traps in more of that heat making the drift even worse. This is not the first time I have discovered that voltage regulators and crystal oscillators don’t go well together.

Whilst it is useful to know what is causing the drift, my discovery has not indicated an easy solution. Either I use a temperature compensated 10MHz crystal oscillator as suggested by one of my readers, or I use the Prop to control an outboard and more stable synthesized oscillator. The first option looks the easiest, but the TCXO is not an inexpensive component.

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

For many who follow this blog, you’ve known me for about as long as I’ve been licensed (almost 5 years).  Unfortunately, during a large portion of this time I’ve been talking about the work I’ve been doing on my new ham shack, home office and man cave.   If memory serves me, I began framing the unfinished portion of the basement in 2008. 

I worked pretty much every weekend (and some evenings) and managed to get the 2×4 framing done in about 4-6 weeks.  Then a few more weeks I had all the electrical, network, coax for CATV and telephone all done.  I also had to do some plumbing work to move the washing machine hot/cold lines and drain down a foot or two.  Then I stopped working on the project.

Weeks turned into months and months turned into a few years.  Some of these delays were trying to decide what sort of wall material to use (sheetrock or paneling).  The decision was made on sheetrock but then we kicked around whether we would do this ourselves or have it done.  Finally we came to the conclusion we would continue with our plans of doing all the work ourselves. 

So just after the new year I began working on the project once again.  I had a few more items to do before I was ready for the sheetrock.  All these final items where checked off the checklist and last weekend we placed an order for the drywall material.  The drywall was delivered today.

Many of you have asked for photos along the way and well I finally snapped a few showing the stud walls.  The picture below is one corner of the main room that will make up my ham shack, home office and man cave.  The room is 16 feet by 16 feet.  (I’m actually finishing out a much larger area than just the ham shack/office area) This corner will be my main operating position.  The wall to the right is 8 feet and the wall to the left is 16 feet.  I will install cabinets above and some below with countertop for the desk surface. 

I’ve been working in a corner type setup for the past several years and actually prefer it. To my right will be my Yaesu FT-950 for SSB operation and to the left will be my Yaesu FT-897 which is setup for digital modes.  My LCD computer screen will be positioned in the middle.

The picture below shows the above mentioned 16’ wall (this wall to my left).  Again this will have some cabinets above and some above with work surface to the end. 

I’ve tried to think of everything I would need not only today but in the future.  Again this space will serve both as my ham shack and my home office.   I also plan to have a nice TV and surround sound setup for when watching those action movies and sporting events.   So I’ve pulled extra coax for CATV as well as extra network cables. 

I plan to start hanging the drywall tomorrow (Saturday) after I move it down into the basement area.  My rough goals are to have the drywall done by the end of March and perhaps painting done by end of April.  We’ll see…

Until next time…

73 de KD0BIK

Jerry Taylor, KD0BIK, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from Colorado, USA. He is the host of the Practical Amateur Radio Podcast. Contact him at [email protected].