AmateurRadio.com

After becoming very frustrated with this error I decided to re-format my hard drives. I dug up the XP install CD and all the drivers needed. I then transferred  all (so I thought at the time)  items from my drives before starting the re-format. The process went very smooth there was only one "are you kidding me" moment when the Win XP CD said there was an error loading a file. It was a matter of cleaning the CD and I was back in biz.
The error is now gone and most if not all of my ham programs have been loaded, now it's time to get them running the way I want them too. This is the part that takes time up to this point  my only trouble has been getting N4PY radio control program and N1MM contest logger to talk to each other via VSP manager!! I can remember having trouble with this in the past and I just can remember what I did for them to get along. Once the system was up and running it was then I had some "you can't be serous moments"....I did not save a backup copy of my log from DXlab, I did not save any of my contests in N1MM nor all my macro setups.........oh well at least the PC is healthy again........until that is another virus or malware decides to play games with me that is!!


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

News is just in that SOTA – Summits on the Air – starts in a number of new call areas tomorrow including my home state New South Wales, VK2. I understand that Queensland VK4 and Hawaii KH6 may also be launched tomorrow, 1st September.

The new VK2 association adds over a thousand summits to the SOTA database. I was part of the team that surveyed the 16 regions. Hats off to Andrew VK1DA/VK2UH who coordinated the widely dispersed team of surveyors. I should publish a post here soon about the things I learnt along the way, about the resources available for SOTA summit surveying and cracking the mystery of identifying the all-important saddle to ascertain the required prominence. Flooding Google Maps is the clue.

The news of the scheduled start has taken us a little by surprise. I’m not sure how many activators will have had time to properly plan activations for the first day. The other issue is that tomorrow, Sunday 1st September is Father’s Day.

For more news about the accelerating SOTA activity in Australia – it’s already active in VK1, VK3, VK5 and VK9 – you should follow the conversation on the SOTA-Australia Yahoo group and visit VK1NAM’s blog for a list of SOTA blogs from VK activators.

The WIA’s Amateur Radio magazine for September which arrived in letterboxes yesterday features a report on the mass activations on 11 August celebrating six months of SOTA in VK1 as well as three pages of regular SOTA news. It’s brilliant for SOTA that editor Peter VK3PF is also one of the top SOTA activators in VK.

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

I rode my bicycle about a mile and a half alongside the Pemigewasset River this afternoon. I worked Belgium, Slovenia, Belarus, Germany and England. The river is a beautiful place.

The Pemi flows through Sanbornton where I live. An old road that has been closed to traffic since the 1940s runs along the river. It’s perfect for hiking and bicycling. I stopped near the old bridge that went to Hill. The bridge is gone but the abutment is still there.

Here’s another photo looking down the river from the abutment.

Is it any wonder that I like to operate from here? I tossed a wire into an old oak tree and set up in the grass not far from the river. I used the KX3 powered by one of the Chinese LiPo batteries. I ran 5W to a 33 foot wire. Here’s my log:

30 Aug-13 2030 18.080 ON6KE CW 579 579 Belgium
30 Aug-13 2041 21.017 S51XA CW 569 599 Slovenia
30 Aug-13 2050 21.055 EW8DJ CW 599 599 Belarus
30 Aug-13 2110 21.015 DL1DGS CW 549 599 Germany
30 Aug-13 2115 21.001 M0DHO CW 559 599 England

A fellow and his wife rode by on an ATV while I was operating. He was curious about the wire in the tree. I finished the QSO with Belarus and showed him the setup. I wrote down the ARRL web page for him. He was concerned about surviving the end of the world and wondered if ham radio would be a good option for communicating.

When he left I worked two more stations: Germany and England. Then I packed up and rode back to the car.

I love these outings.

Jim Cluett, W1PID, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from New Hampshire, USA. Contact him at [email protected].

Say what you want about Facebook; but you can use it to keep abreast of new QRP gear.  LNR Precision, makers of the wonderful ENDFEDZ antenna series is announcing the availability a new tranceiver – the FX-4, which was first announced at Dayton.  According to their Website, it will be available soon for purchase, at around the $500 neighborhood.

Kinda resembles a small KX3, eh?  🙂

Here are some specs:

Transceiver size in inches.          4.10 length X 2.8 inches width X 1.5 inches in thickness.
Weight of transceiver                 12.8 oz.
Current Drain on receive             250-270 ma
Current Drain on transmit           1200 ma
Bands covered on receive           7.000.00 to 7.300.00 meters
14.000.00 to 14.350.00 meters
9.999.00 to 10.150.00 meters
18.068 to 18.168.00 meters
Bands covered on transmit        same as above
Frequency control                     75 MHz
Display type                             LCD-128×64
Transmitter Max output power    5 watts CW 5 Watts SSB
Spurious emissions                   -43dB at 5 Watts
Side tone pitch                          550Hz to 1500Hz adjustable
Receiver sensitivity                    0.3uV
Selectivity                                 -3dB/ 2.6K -40db/ 4.5K
Audio Output                            1 Watt with 8 ohm speaker
Keyer                                       Iambic A & B adjustable speed from 5 to 40 wpm.
Memory Storage                       10 per each Band total of 40
DSP filtering                             300Hz, 500Hz. 1.3Hz, 1.6Hz, 1.9Hz, 2.2Hz, and 2.5Hz.
VFO Drift                      <5Hz after 5 minute warm up at 30c (<10Hz after 30 minute operation @  40c)

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

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

Today I pulled off a hat trick during my lunchtime QRP session. A triple play, a trifecta, a triple crown ….. three QSOs, one each on three different bands, in about 15 minutes. One on 20 Meters, one on 17 Meters, one on 15 Meters. A lot of band hopping!

The first QSO was a domestic one, but was perhaps the contact that intrigued me the most of the three. On 20 Meters, I worked Mike AI8Z/8, who was on SOTA Summit W8M/UP-057. This is better known as Feldtmann Ridge on Isle Royale National Park. The park is technically part of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula,  but is actually an island in Lake Superior, very close to the Canadian shore. I did a Google search for images and have come away seeing that this is one very beautiful location.

Looks like a perfect place for a QRP vacation. This is exactly the kind of QRP adventure that I dream of and salivate over. Some day, I’m going to go on one of these! I wonder if Ken WA8REI has ever been there?

The next QSO happened on 15 Meters, which seemed to be open with a few signals today. I answered HC2SL, Alfredo’s CQ from down in Guayaquil, Ecuador and received the standard DX “TU 599” exchange. He did get me first time, no fills; but I’m pretty darn sure I wasn’t really 599. Alfredo really was 599 up here in New Jersey, however. His signal was really booming in.

From there, it was a jump on over to 17 Meters, where I answered another CQ. This one was coming from Andy DM5MU, from Leipzig, Germany.  Andy came back to me on my first call, also. Andy rewarded me with a 539 report, while I was able to send a 579 his way. The DX does not have to be 599+ in order to get a QSO. If you hear a DX station calling CQ, and they’re not making your eardrums bleed, don’t be afraid to throw your call sign out there, anyway. They might not hear you; but then again, they might. You’re never going to get a feel of who you can work and who you can’t if you only answer the loudest of the loud. Push the envelope – you will be rewarded many times over.

I would have liked to have stayed on longer, but after working Andy, I felt a buzz from my cell phone. A text message indicating that I had to cut lunch short and go back inside to handle a mini-crisis. Oh well ….. how do these crises seem to know when the bands are hopping?

On a “blog housecleaning” note, I have added one blog to the blogroll and have eliminated another.  First off, welcome to Jim Smallwood N7RCS and his blog, “Low-power, low-profile QRP from the Pacific Northwest!”  Looks like it’s going to be a good one.

Secondly, at the request of the blog owner, I have deleted the link to Smoke Curls by Jeff Davis KE9V. Jeff wrote me to let me know that he sold all his Amateur Radio gear and has retired from the hobby.  ‘Tis a pity, I will miss his word smithing – he is one very talented person.

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

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

 

One thing I’ve never done is build my own complete rig. There are a lot of choices to be made when considering this, including budget and complexity. I’ve always liked SDR as a way to go but building my own Hermes HPSDR is probably a little bit beyond me soldering skills. So next on the list is the Genesis G11 from down under. I think I’ll do a bit more investigation and then plump for a suitable design. The club has some good test gear if its required so that shouldn’t be limiting.
I’d love to hear your advice or comments

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