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Amateur Radio Weekly – Issue 187
30 December 2017 | by 
2017 Year in Review
For this last issue of the year, I pulled the most popular links from each issue and complied the top 10
as a ‘look back’ on the world of Amateur Radio in 2017. Enjoy! –Cale K4HCK
#10
End Fed Antennas – Where’s the other half?
I was shocked to say the least, a guy that’s been a ham for 20 years that’s never heard of the End-Fed antenna?
K5ACL (Issue 147)
#9
What pushed Radio Shack into bankruptcy?
After two years of unsuccessful turnaround efforts, RadioShack filed for its second bankruptcy, citing poor mobile sales.
The Christian Science Monitor (Issue 149)
#8
FT8
I was actually flabbergasted by the amount of signals I already received at the 20m FT8 frequency. Within a few moments I already worked HA6NN and A92AA.
PE4BAS (Issue 165)
#7
Teardown Tuesday: Baofeng UV-5R
This display driver has been around since the late 80s.
All About Circuits (Issue 148)
#6
A better way to put a PL-259 on RG-58 coax
This soldering technique simplifies assembly of PL-259s with RG-58 cable.
KB6NU (Issue 155)
#5
The future of Amateur Radio is not in the numbers
In truth, anyone of any age is a potential good candidate to ensure the future of amateur radio.
Off Grid Ham (Issue 170)
#4
First transceiver with built-in FreeDV
Chinese Ham Radio gear for HF with built-in FreeDV digital voice mode.
marxy.org (Issue 153)
#3
Millennials are killing Ham Radio
Despite being clickbait, the title isn’t wrong. Millennials are definitely killing ham radio, just like they’re killing everything else.
N0SSC (Issue 182)
#2
80/40 Meter Loaded Dipole Antenna
The plan for this antenna was to build a lightweight 80/40 meter antenna for field use (as part of my Go Kit) that wouldn’t overload my 21 foot telescoping fiberglass mast.
High on Solder (Issue 151)
#1
FCC revisions will affect GMRS, FRS, CB, other Part 95 devices
CBers will be allowed to contact stations outside of the FCC-imposed — but widely disregarded — 155.3 mile distance limit.
ARRL (Issue 156)
Bonus!
#11
µBITX general coverage HF SSB/CW transceiver kit
It works from 3 MHz to 30 MHz, with up to 10 watts on SSB and CW with a very sensitive receiver.
HF Signals (Issue 185)
#12
The “Slick Six” 6 meter horizontal dipole
This antenna is small, only about 9 feet 4 inches from end to end and is easy to adjust.
hamuniverse.com (Issue 145)
Amateur Radio Weekly is curated by Cale Mooth K4HCK. Sign up free to receive ham radio's most relevant news, projects, technology and events by e-mail each week at http://www.hamweekly.com.
Top Five Underrated K0NR Blog Posts
Normally at the end year, I list the five blog posts that got the most hits during the year. It turns out that this list does not change a lot from year to year. For completeness and consistency, these are the top five posts for 2017, in rank order:Choose Your 2m Frequency Wisely , Getting Started on 2m SSB , Can I Use My Ham Radio on Public Safety Frequencies? , DMR Hotspot from SharkRF and Introducing the Android HT
What I’m doing different this year is to list the five posts that I think readers should read but haven’t made the most hit list. This is based on my personal opinion but what the heck. You’ll see a theme of trying to make sense of how amateur radio fits into our modern world.We’ve Got Some Explaining to Do
Amateur Radio is Not for Talking
That’s Not Real Ham Radio
Is the Internet Destroying Amateur Radio?
Amateur Radio: Narrowband Communications in a Broadband WorldHere is a sixth bonus article…very interesting story about Prisoners of War building radios in World War II.
POW Canteen Radio73 and Happy New Year! Bob K0NR The post Top Five Underrated K0NR Blog Posts appeared first on The KØNR Radio Site.
Bob Witte, KØNR, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from Colorado, USA. Contact him at [email protected].
QRSS experiments: FSKCW and Slow Hell
These last few days I’ve been experimenting with my QRPLabs Ultimate 2 and Ultimate 3s transmitting on 7 MHz. In addition to WSPR, the modes transmitted have been FSKCW with 6 second long dots, and Slow Hell with 17 second long characters. The result as received this morning can be seen on the display from the grabber of Les, G3VYZ in Northumberland, UK. This is a stack of 6 consecutive 10 second frames as can be found on the QRSS grabber site of AJ4VD.
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| FSKCW and Slow Hell reception of LA3ZA at G3VYZ |
My signal is on 7,039.870 kHz and has been set up with a FSK shift of 6 Hz. Power output was 0.2 W and the distance is about 890 km.
It works but the reception is much less reliable than for WSPR, which is not so unexpected. At the same time the WSPR signal was received all around Northern Europe (G, GM, DL, OON, OE, LX, LA, OY, OH, PA, SM) as well as on the Canary Islands, 3930 km away.
Sverre Holm, LA3ZA, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from Norway. Contact him at [email protected].
FT8 anomaly or long delayed echo?
My friend Alf, LA2NTA, has sent med these screenshots from when he has been operating FT8. The first image is when operating 10 meters and took place early in November.
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| Two of LA2NTA CQs being received by himself on 10 meter (in red) |
It shows how his own CQ comes back to him at 10.54.00 and at 11.00.00 and is decoded in his own receiver.
The second example is from 20 meters and took place just a few days ago.
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| LA2NTA CQ being received by himself on 20 meter (in red) |
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| FT8 band on 10 meters showing some form of noise all over the band |
Sverre Holm, LA3ZA, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from Norway. Contact him at [email protected].
ICQ Podcast Episode 256 – Your Questions Answered
In this, our end of year episode, Colin M6BOY is joined by Martin M1MRB, Edmund Spicer M0MNG, Bill Barnes N3JIX, Ed Durrant DD5LP, Martin Rothwell M0SGL, Chris Howard M0TCH and Leslie Butterfield G0CIB to answer your Amateur / Ham Radio questions.
Colin Butler, M6BOY, is the host of the ICQ Podcast, a weekly radio show about Amateur Radio. Contact him at [email protected].
ICQ Podcast Episode 256 – Your Questions Answered
In this, our end of year episode, Colin M6BOY is joined by Martin M1MRB, Edmund Spicer M0MNG, Bill Barnes N3JIX, Ed Durrant DD5LP, Martin Rothwell M0SGL, Chris Howard M0TCH and Leslie Butterfield G0CIB to answer your Amateur / Ham Radio questions.
Colin Butler, M6BOY, is the host of the ICQ Podcast, a weekly radio show about Amateur Radio. Contact him at [email protected].
Amateur Radio Weekly – Issue 186
FCC penalizes marketer of Ham-band drone
The FCC has imposed a $180,000 civil penalty on a Sarasota, Florida, company that had been marketing noncompliant audio-visual transmitters intended for use on drones in violation of the Commission’s Amateur Service and marketing rules.
ARRL
Building a QRP Field Day Station
It helps to test the station set up in advance. The hub of my station is the Elecraft KX3 transceiver. A new addition is the Elecraft PX3 spectrum scope. Now add a computer and logging software, and you have a few things to integrate.
N4KGL
Homebrew LF Antenna
The main loop is made of 35 turns of enameled copper wire of 0.35mm diameter.
galvanix
Time warp: Simulated Novice FCC Morse Code exam
Novice Morse proficiency exam practice.
HamRadioQRP
Using a mixing console in the shack
If you have a few receivers kicking around in your radio shack, this is one way to hook them all together and send their audio on to your favourite monitoring speakers.
The SWLing Post
One of oldest U.S. radio stations to go dark
Unofficial accounts indicate that KQV started out as “special amateur station” 8ZAE, to be used by the Doubleday-Hill Electric Company primarily for two-way communication.
ARRL
Build a Nixie Tube power supply
I finally received a batch of 1n-14 nixie tubes that I purchased from ebay for a future clock project. The tubes need a power supply that can supply 170 volts DC, which I didn’t have, so I built one.
awsh.org
Is Amateur Radio still relevant?
For over half a century, the BBC has had its own amateur radio group. Now, after several years of planning, the group’s latest home has just opened in BBC Broadcasting House in London, UK.
BBC World Service
Why bother getting an Amateur Radio License?
The Federal Communications Commission provided US citizens with an amazing opportunity to experiment with and develop innovative technology when creating Part 97.
AmateurRadio.com
Video
Xiegu X108G HF Transceiver review and on-air test
This little gem is pretty awesome. An HF radio that covers 1.8-30mhz with USB PC rig control through Ham Radio Deluxe and other software.
HamRadioConcepts
Ethernet powered tower light
YouTube
Amateur Radio Weekly is curated by Cale Mooth K4HCK. Sign up free to receive ham radio's most relevant news, projects, technology and events by e-mail each week at http://www.hamweekly.com.
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