AmateurRadio.com

Anyway, I digress.....back to the cluster.  What I have really come to like about DX Heat is everything is on the home page. You can filter what you see on the cluster with convenient options on the home page. For example, you can choose to see only CW, on a certain band and from spotter only in North America (all other continents also available)  Holding your mouse and clicking on the spot you are given 3 options QRZ lookup, very interesting stats on the spotted contact or be taken to a Web SDR to tune in and listen. 

There is also the commonly found UTC clock, propagation forecast, call sign lookup and call sign spot features common to most clusters. But there is also a handy and accurate band activity, and you can select the continent you want to look at. I chose NA and you can see a visual of what bands according to the cluster spots are open and how hot the band is. This I have found has given me some surprise openings on 10m and 6m. 

So check it out and see what you think? 

Anyway, I digress.....back to the cluster.  What I have really come to like about DX Heat is everything is on the home page. You can filter what you see on the cluster with convenient options on the home page. For example, you can choose to see only CW, on a certain band and from spotter only in North America (all other continents also available)  Holding your mouse and clicking on the spot you are given 3 options QRZ lookup, very interesting stats on the spotted contact or be taken to a Web SDR to tune in and listen. 

There is also the commonly found UTC clock, propagation forecast, call sign lookup and call sign spot features common to most clusters. But there is also a handy and accurate band activity, and you can select the continent you want to look at. I chose NA and you can see a visual of what bands according to the cluster spots are open and how hot the band is. This I have found has given me some surprise openings on 10m and 6m. 

So check it out and see what you think? 

If you were wondering why you hadn’t seen any more about the Iler 40 transceiver kit I bought then here’s the reason. First I was distracted by making contacts using the new JT9-1 mode. But I also decided to get a solder fume extractor so I have been waiting for that to arrive.

It’s probably a bit late in the game to start worrying about the carcinogenic effects of flux and lead solder fumes. But as the price of peace of mind was only £20 on eBay, I thought “better late than never” and decided to get one.

I was a bit surprised by how big it was. I was expecting something more the size of a 12 volt computer fan. But it sits nicely on the filing cabinet next to my drop-down workbench. I just have to think of somewhere to put it when it is not in use!

A couple of weeks ago Jeff KO7M wrote that he had acquired a binocular microscope for the workbench to enable him to work with SMT components. Although I have no particular desire to do SMT work at the moment I do have trouble with close-up work due to my eyes’ limited focal range and becoming very far-sighted. So I thought a binocular microscope would be a good addition to my workbench too.

Jeff wrote that his binocular microscope was not cheap and from the look of it I would imagine the cost ran well into three figures. The one I got was £30 from a firm that disposes of liquidated stock on eBay. I’m sure it isn’t as good as the one Jeff got but hopefully it will be useful. If not I can always start another hobby looking at plants and insects or growing bacteria!

OK, regardless of what many “old hat” hams think, there is a lot of kit building and homebrew activity going on in our little “geek” subculture.  I don’t bother with the discussions with many of my friends, as they don’t go anywhere to see the truly neat projects people are developing.

To that end, many hams have asked me over the past few months about scopes (even a recent topic on “the zed”).  Basically, you can go one of four routes.

1: Buy a super expensive scope

2: Buy a decent used scope for a couple hundred

3: Buy a USB/computer based scope

4: Buy a brand you may not be familiar with, hack it, and get double what you paid for (in the $400. range).

I’m a fan of 2 and 4.  Both have their merits.  A used O’scope (not really Irish either) is a bargain, you can get a name brand and will cover most of what you need in our hobby.  Used scopes are also great to learn on as well until you figure out what you really may need.

That leads us to a “no name” brand.  The Rigol is truly a neat scope.  I used one on my last job for about 9 or so months and it really had some neat features.  It is portable, can store images to a USB drive, can connect via USB to a computer, the list goes on, but here’s a few:

Not a bad scope for the $400. range on ebay.

But…… (think Vince from “Slap Chop”)…… if you act now, because we can’t do this all day………

Dave Jones over at the EEVBlog has a neat video on Youtube on how you can double some of the specs…. for nothing.  Be wary of some google searches on the topic, some want you to hack into the scope and do all sorts of nonsense.  This is a simple first start and many people have had great results with it.

If you would like to go to the actual Rigol page and look up the specs and download the manual, go here:

http://www.rigolna.com/products/digital-oscilloscopes/ds1000e/ds1052e/

Finally, if you’re still not sure what you are looking for, you may be able to try a scope at a few places.  Some trade schools, community colleges and such will let you come down and just take a look (or attend a workshop).  There is also a growing number of “hackerspaces” around the globe.  A “hackerspace” is a place to explore and learn technology in all it’s facets.  Some vendors (Tektronix for example) have some really good resources on their websites as well.