W3gms

My Weeks in Radio

• got the Bluetooth TNC connection working even better between UV-PRO
  • clear the channel
  • now it automatically reconnects
• testing a new-to-me small-ish magnetic loop: alpha antenna
  • small and quick to deploy
  • park activation before this net
• repaired and re-tuned yagi
  • added a the hairpin patch to lower SWR
  • extra S-unit hearing 985
• last week, allstar node wouldn’t connect to 985 over phone network
  • connected to a parrot test node just fine
  • strange interference when the car shutoff that blocked any signal

Others

• W1RC, Mike:
  • got Allstar going with 985
• W8CRW, CR:
  • working on DTMF on Allstar
  • connecting phone to ethernet
• WA3VEE, Ron:
  • field day press release
• KC3RFG, Jim:
  • working through some RFI with a mic on HF
• W3MFB: Mike:
  • bands not great
• K3FHA, John:
  • organizing antenna switching on the desk
  • checking out some test equipment
• KC3TYX, Vic:
  • replaced fan in a power supply to be quiet
  • playing with 6m bazooka antenna for FT8
    • Connecticut, Nebraska, Minnesota, Florida, then it closed
• KC3OOK, Bill:
  • watching DXtracker, dxview and saw 6m openings
  • lots accomplished on Joe’s tower.
  • sketching next project
• KC3SCY, Luke:
  • acquired an AM radio kit to build
    • 7 transitor, superheterodyne, etc
    • soldering
  • PM/AM Net
  • listening to some CW
• WA3KFT, John:
  • mounted and using a Comet G9 right now
• N3CRE, Charlie:
• KC3SQI, Wayne:
  • having trouble using the wrong frequency
  • concrete base for a new tilt-over tower

Questions

• W3MFB, Mike:
  • On Simplex Net, he only hears a handful of people, so hard to tell when to jump in. Do others hear a bunch of people? What zone should he be?
    • WA3VEE, Ron:
      • Ron is way East, and doesn’t have a beam aiming West.
      • Rarely hears anyone but KC3OOK and W8CRW
    • KC3TYX, Vic:
      • wouldn’t hear anything for a while, but waited patiently for his section to get active.
      • notes changes in propagation and new people
    • KC3WWC, John:
      • good to note who you can contact simplex if you needed
    • KC3OOK, Bill:
      • what section? check-in with whomever you hear.
      • it’s expanded quite a bit beyond lancaster county
        • the name is actually now “central pa simplex net”
      • propagation varies quite a bit from week to week
      • nearby stations can hear very different sets of stations
      • Bill hears many of the stations now with current antenna
      • Good way to gauge antenna performance
      • just throw your callsign. maybe a relay can get it.
    • W8CRW, CR:
      • he can check-in with central or east, but propagation is very different.
• KC3OOK, Bill:
  • What’s a good depth for shelves and cabinets holding radios?
  • WA3KFT, John:
    • existing racks: 17-inches and 18-inches
    • try not to have too much protruding out the back of the chassis/rack: cables
  • W3GMS, Joe:
    • racks have no standard depth
  • WA3VEE, Ron:
    • ideally, you can get to the back of the equipment very easily
    • he finds 24-inches quite adequate
    • dual channel closetmaid is good for shelves/cabinets
    • give yourself as much depth as you can
  • KC3OOK, Bill:
    • looking at 18-20 inches
• KC3WWC, John:
  • Do others have trouble with allstar to 985 when tethered to a phone hotspot?
  • Differences controversy over HAMVOIP (closed source?) vs allstarlink v3 (open-source)?
  • W3GMS, Joe:
    • no complaints from anyone else
    • permission list is by node number, not network
  • KC3WWC, John:
    • I’ll need to continue to work on it myself.
• N3QNC, Joe:
  • What are people’s experience on 6M? What power?
  • W3MFB, Mike:
    • SSB, 70W
    • likes to run less power
    • FM repeater in honeybrook
  • WA3KFT, John:
    • runs 80-90W with a beam
    • SSB
    • used to use a 5W AM rig
    • antenna matters the most: height
  • N3QNC, Joe:
    • trying to do 6M for POTA, usually 5W
  • WA3VEE, Ron:
    • a number of nets on 6M. google or ARRL has a list: “south eastern pennsylvania”
• W3MFB, Mike:
  • Did anyone listen to shuttle missions? 120MHz, etc?
  • KC3WWC, John:
    • I’m pretty sure I used to listen to something in early 90s on scanner. Sounded like discussion of experiments, etc.
  • W3GMS, Joe:
    • Fort Mead, Maryland would rebroadcast on 75M.
    • Joe has a processor on display that was designed to process all audio from mission control.
    • He may have the only one that wasn’t used.

my week in radio

I did some FT8 at 1W while camping and activating some POTA. I compared a 41-ft EFRW with a 17-ft vertical whip. The resonant vertical was booming.

I also read that lots of CW contesters are using computers to send that fast.

Others

• W8CRW, CR:
  • helped take down an antenna
  • local nets
• AB3AP, Mike:
  • some CW contacts
• NA3CW, Chuck:
  • PM/AM pre-net and net
  • taking down that tower with CR, Joe, and gang.
  • reclaiming some of the antenna hardware
  • working on Joe’s tower
    • assemble to find the problems
    • very close
• KC3OOK, Bill:
  • helped with Joe’s tower
  • break from the simplex net
• KC3SQI, Wayne:
  • finding 15m and 17m open
    • Germany, Alaska, Florida, etc
• AF3Z, Jim:
  • intermod sounds like a spaceship
  • considered doing WPX and a QRP sprint, but missed them.
• W1RC, Mike:
  • configuring a new AllStar node
    • got a node number
    • downloaded the pi image
    • written to a card
    • named it allstar.local, but can’t get the browser to it.
• KD3AIS, Tim:
  • learning about noise on the waterfall from harvey
• WA3VEE, Ron:
  • testing sessions coming up
  • upcoming fox hunt
• W3JAM, Jeff:
  • assembling some spare masts for an OCF dipole
  • simplex net
• KC3YTD, Steve:
  • new Yaesu 991, working well for first HF

Questions

• AB3AP, Mike:
  • Is anyone successful running trustedqsl (tqsl) on Ubuntu 25?
  • contact Dylan, K3DCN, for help
  • KC3WWC, John:
    • I have it working on debian unstable, from the standard repo.
  • AB3AP, Mike:
    • got it working!
    • using the wrong name: trustedsql instead of qsl
• W1RC, Mike:
  • getting AllStar node booting, but can’t access it by its name, allstar.local.
  • W8CRW, CR:
    • mobaxterm, like putty, to setup through text, instead of web interface
  • KC3WWC, John:
    • I often don’t see .local network work either
    • try IP addresses near your computer
    • login to the configuration of your router to see the list of nodes

My Week in Radio

I ran APRS in the mountains past Carlisle and observed many of the same nodes, indicating a wide reach. I also installed and began testing the new R1CBU 0.30.0 firmware for my X6100 HF Radio. Additionally, I launched a new 80m EFHW antenna, and I’m seeing all the harmonic resonances near the right places, though it still needs some tuning.

Others

• WA3VEE, Ron: High schoolers are listening, so we should say, “Hi”. A new club might be forming.
• W8CRW, CR: Participated in regular nets.
• KC3SCY, Luke: Recommended getting a General class license for access to more frequencies. He failed to get onto the AM PM net.
• KD3ZIM, Bob (relayed by Ron): Advised getting licensed early and having fun.
• NA3CW, Chuck: Stated that the AM PM Net is shifting to avoid overly long propagation and interference. He’s still working on Joe’s tuner, and pieces are coming in for Joe’s tower as well.
• KD3AIS, Tim: Attended a ham group where he was considered a “young person” at 51! He attempted to participate in a 10M net but failed.
• WA3KFT, John: Building another 2M/440 antenna and making cables. He’s soon looking for help finishing up those projects.
• W3QP, Tim: This weekend is the SOTA North East meetup.
• KC3YIG, Dave: Working on a home-made vertical antenna.

Questions

• W8CRW, CR: He’s using lithium phosphate batteries in his car and lead-acid in the shack. Does anyone have experience trying to desulphate a battery that won’t take a charge?

  • NA3CW, Chuck: Has a charger that claims to desulphate a battery, and it seems to work. He “jumped” the battery with a power supply to get it started, then ran the desulphating charger for a couple of weeks.

• KD3AIS, Tim: He’s a Technician studying for his General license and is trying 10 meters. He visited the 10-10 org website, looking at propagation charts and nets, which showed poor propagation. Are these sites correct?

  • W3QP, Tim: Those charts provide good information but are not the final word.
  • NA3CW, Chuck: Ten-Ten is a good organization, but suggests throwing out a CQ, as everyone could be listening.
  • WA3KFT, John: Watching 28435kHz for DX chat and local nets.
  • KC3WWC, John: Check prop.kc2g.org for in-depth information.
  • KC3SQI, Wayne: Tune down through the digital parts of the band and looking for activity.
  • WA3VEE, Ron: Try Ham Clock and the DXView site, note that global conditions may not match local conditions.

• KC3WWC, John: Is there an easy way to do preset connections in Allstar 3.

  • W8CRW, CR: Look into Supermon.

My Week in Radio

I managed to get my 107-ft random wire a little higher in the tree before the leaves fully filled in. I also made some CW contacts in the 7-zone QSO Party and the Delaware QSO Party.

My Question

I’m contemplating an even longer wire for my antenna setup: an 80m EFHW, totaling 40M in length. I’m wondering if there are any downsides to this, such as a weird radiation pattern or needing more power.

• NA3CW, Chuck: Suggested that at certain lengths and frequencies, the antenna might start firing off the end of the wire.
• AA3LH, Leon: Shared his experience with a 135ft dipole, which he uses on 10, 20, 40, and 75 meters. It’s fed with 30ft of ladder line, 25ft of coax, and a 4:1 balun, and he says it works great. Consider a dipole with 600ohm ladder line.
• KC3NZT, Harvey: Recommended using a 9:1 unun for a random wire and looking into a resonant end-fed antenna. He also mentioned using an AH4 tuner at the wire and that a resonant antenna would be more sensitive. He suggested switching to a 49:1 unun.
• KC3RFG, Jim: He went from a 49:1 to a 71-foot end-fed long-wire with a 9:1 unun and found the 71-foot to be quieter. He also mentioned a 53-foot wire and that super-long wires can receive a lot, but also a lot of noise.
• KC3SQI, Wayne: Check the udel.edu for information on random wire antennas. He pointed out that as you extend the wire too far, you get too many harmonics and the antenna can become imbalanced. Palomar ununs are among the best.
• AF3Z, Jim: Consider what bands I want to use.
• KC3WWC, John: Is familiar with the 40m EFHW and is going to try a 80m EFHW. It’s encouraging to hear that the EFHW may offer better receive performance. I’ve used UDEL’s site for non-resonant lengths and will switch to a 49:1 for the EFHW. I’m also considering whether his 71ft EFRW was better than 107ft, noting that conditions probably changed.

My Week in Radio

• I’m using Allstar to avoid intermod.
• I added two more parks to my POTA list in Las Vegas. During my operations, I ran between 2-4W and made contacts with Brazil, Belize, and many stations on the East Coast. I primarily used digital modes but also tried some CW.

Others

• W3JAM, Jeff: Took down many antennas from his roof and is starting over with his shack setup. He might be unloading some gear and has an OCF dipole from Palomar Engineering ready to launch. He’s also building a large amplifier close to the legal limit.
• W3RJP, Bob: Getting started with Repeaterphone for Echolink.
• WA3VEE, Ron: Noted that a two-day hamfest is approaching. The Pottstown club is very welcoming, and he encouraged joining them this Friday night. Claymont has a VE session on Saturday, and Sunday will feature the Warminster hamfest. Last Saturday, at the DE hamfest, he met some high-schoolers from Felton, DE.
• KC3SCY, Luke: Listening to W1AW for CW practice. He observed that 10M is bad, and he’s restoring an old steel-wheeled wheelbarrow he found in the woods.
• KC3RFG, Jim: Experimenting with a magnetic loop in his yard. He upgraded to an aluminum loop, finding it more efficient on 10M but less so on 40M. Using his G90, he made a very strong contact with the Galapagos Islands.
• WA3KFT, John: Used 100W to break through intermod. He has a 2M 1K amplifier available for sale and is testing a Comet antenna.
• W3MFB, Mike: Testing a new radio in a new location.
• NA3CW, Chuck: Participated in the AMA PM net and is setting up a new Linux computer, having figured out how to transfer files between virtual machines.
• KC3OOK, Bill: Engaged in some regular nets and is continuing to build out his ham shack.
• AF3Z, Jim: Did CW at Cornwall Station and is practicing CW. Has an Astron linear 50A power supply, which weighs 47lbs.
• KD3AIS, Tim: Launching his EFHW for HF work with help from a neighbor.
• KC3TYX, Vic: Participated in various nets.
• W3QP, Tim: Is back from New Zealand, where he activated 20 summits (including Mount Doom) and made a 40M contact to France from NZ.
• W3DIB, Greg: Is running 100% Arch Linux.

Questions

• W3MFB, Mike: What are others’ experience with ground-mounted verticals for HF? What sizes, transformers, radials? Can it be on a tilt base? Is guying is necessary if they need a mast?
  • WA3KFT, John: At an old house, he drove a pipe into the ground next to a patio and used a cheap vertical with a loading coil, which was simple but single-banded unless multiple taps were used. His current 80M-2M vertical in the yard is multiband but a compromise.
  • KC3SQI, Wayne: Uses a random wire vertical for POTA, consisting of a single wire, radials, a 9:1 unun, and 35 feet of wire.
  • NA3CW, Chuck: Verticals in forests lose efficiency.
  • KC3WWC, John: Similar setup to Wayne’s: a 25-foot Rybakov antenna with a 4:1 balun.
  • AA3LH, Leon: Uses an Eagle 1 antenna, which is ground-mounted, has no baluns, uses radials in the grass, and is 40 ft tall.
  • KC3SQI, Wayne: Suggested loading up aluminum downspouts but noted the need for isolators to compensate for aluminum siding.

My Week in Radio

• I spent some time patching the open-source firmware for my HF radio. The original modification aimed to center and save the ATU network on the current frequency, which is effective for about 25kHz in either direction. The system saves the tuning network settings into both a cache and the database. However, it needs to update nearby saved tunings. I noticed the radio would click in new tuning networks within 1 kHz of each other. After digging into the code, I found the error in how it cached these networks.

• Unfortunately, intermod hits every Monday, so I had to jump to Allstar, even though I had tested RF earlier in the week.

Others

• WA3VEE, Ron: Discussed the Mud Mosey event.
• W8CRW, CR: Also mentioned the Mud Mosey.
• AF3Z, Jim: Had a CW sked.
• NA3CW, Chuck: Noted that the Mud Mosey operation sounded really good. Also discussed the AMPM net and propagation.
• KC3OOK, Bill: Participated in the Mud Mosey. Ron ran a net for people on their way in and out of the Mud Mosey service. Bill also served as net control for the simplex net and conducted a round table exercise to experiment with simplex.
• KC3YSM, Steve: Participated in the Mud Mosey for his first service operation.
• KC3NZT, Harvey: Listened to the roundtable.
• W1RC, Mike: Nearfest is coming up soon.
• AA3LH, Leon: Was on 10m last Tuesday, getting a 599 to Oregon, but then the signal dropped off completely. Later, he got a 599 to Los Angeles, but it also dropped off.
• KB3ZIM, Bob: Lots of mobile radio activity. Recent Chester County ARES/RACES meeting discussed revival of packet radio.
• KC3YIG, Dave: Struggling with building a vertical antenna.

Questions

• AA3LH, Leon: If flat straps are recommended for grounding, would they also be good for a counterpoise?
  • WA3VEE, Ron: Flat straps control inductance. An electrical ground is fixed, but a counterpoise is often deployed and redeployed in the field, making it hard to keep flat.
  • KC3NZT, Harvey: Probably makes no difference. He used a strap in his car because it’s cheap, and he’s used cheap wire shelves in the grass as a ground plane for a vertical, attaching to it with a strap.
  • AF3Z, Jim: Brought up the skin effect, where RF runs on the surface, not the middle. A strap may provide more surface area for RF.
  • NA3CW, Chuck: Frequency affects the depth of the skin effect. DC uses the entire conductor, 60Hz uses almost the entire conductor, but on VHF/UHF frequencies, it will stay in a copper coating on aluminum (like in LMR400).
• KC3NZT, Harvey: Are there any FCC issues with recording and replaying as a relay, especially for emergency communications (EmComm).
  • WA3VEE, Ron: ARRL started with “relaying” and that he records and plays back to demonstrate reception, so it should be fine.
  • NA3CW, Chuck: Advised to just be careful not to sound like you’re identifying as the other station.

My Week in Radio

• I have a blog of my radio notes, but I’ve fallen behind by over a month in posting.
• Tested a rybakov antenna with 4:1 balun and 25-foot wire out at a park.
• Btech UV-PRO (for APRS) has been seeing lots of beta firmware updates
• Attended a lunch with a Harrisburg 21 repeater group to learn about beacons and online tools for radio conditions
• My second 2M antenna (slim-jim) was performing badly
  • hanging next to the feed line of the higher antenna, and it was completely de-tuning it
  • pulled it up into the tree on its own line to provide space
  • still hangs lower than the other antenna to avoid interference
• contestcalendar.com has a google calendar feed, which i’ve imported to my calendar, so no more date math to figure out UTC

Others

• W8CRW, CR:
  • updated phone software, so allstar node is working.
• W3JAM, Jeff:
  • on digital to avoid connecting to anything on the roof in the storm
  • simplex net from the shack
    • always observing conditions on 2M
    • ducting
    • heard lots of distant stations, but not close
    • worked 50 miles across lancaster county
    • switched between vertical and horizontal: horizontal was better sometimes
    • new diamond antenna to install
    • swapping out everything on the shack
• NA3CW, Chuck:
  • hosting AWA pre-net
  • working on Joe’s tuner project: crimp connectors for components
• KC3OOK, Bill:
  • out in the truck to operate in the weather
  • mobile simplex net, south control
    • copied all but maybe 3 stations
• KV3JGB, Matt:
  • new parts, a choke, for the HF radio
• AF3Z, Jim:
  • visited a friend’s barn of parts for 1929 hartley oscillator
  • triton 4 didn’t turn on for CW sked: bad power supply, so switched to battery
• WA3KFT, John:
  • 100W RF to get through
  • new bracket on the tower
  • modifications for being able to tilt down the antenna.
• WA3VEE, Ron:
  • testing an IC-9700: working nicely
    • right on frequency
    • no harmonics
    • full power on every band
    • all configured
  • mud mosey for those helping, April 12, contact KC3TMT for info
• AA3LH, Leon:
  • back from weather events
  • in trailblazer, installed a new dual-band VHF/UHF radio
  • ran some 2M nets, but missed simplex net
  • 80M: rooster net and bible study net

Questions

• AF3Z, Jim:
  • AICO audio generator:
    • 2 tubes, precision resistors
    • wein bridge oscillator
    • siren like, but it varies on 15 second interval
    • what component failure causes the variation
  • WA3VEE, Ron:
    • check for a ripple from the power supply
    • sounded like a beating with the output
    • warble may vary with frequency
    • wein bridge oscillator was the first product of hewlett packard
  • WA3KFT, John:
    • check B+ voltage from the power supply and at the tube
  • NA3CW, Chuck:
    • looking at the schematic
    • uses a lightbulb to stabilize based on temperature
    • check the tubes and check that lightbulb
  • WA3VEE, Ron:
    • the lightbulb may not light, but it’ll use cold resistance of the tube
    • check continuity
    • if the power supply is giving ripple, the capacitor is bad

My Week in Radio

• 985 breakfast
  • chatted lots of Vic and Jerry
• pota
  • 2 parks: middle creek and state game land down the road
  • set up multiple antennas: efhw + tactical delta loop
  • telescoping antenna for CB walkie talkie
• observed some degraded propagation the next day or 2 over the weekend
• need to check and tune up my slim jim again

Questions

• KC3TYX, Vic: Tried to tune into WA3KFT’s 6M net, but could only hear 1 person. What kind of antenna should he have used for local contacts like that?
  • W3MFB, Mike:
    • PVC pipe with caps and made a rigid half-wave dipole and put it on a lightweight rotor to change direction of the horizontal broadside.
    • try an omni-angle antenna (circular)
    • you may also hear better in the summer.
  • WA3KFT, John:
    • used 2 perpendicular wire dipoles thumbtacked to the ceiling in an apartment.
      • single feed point
      • omni-directional
      • feed directly with coax
      • VHF frequencies have smaller antennas
      • thicker elements give wider bandwidth (copper pipe)
  • KC3SQI, Wayne:
    • built one that looked like a hula hoop: folder 6m dipole in a loop
      • omnidirectional + wide bandwidth
      • he can lend it
  • WA3VEE, Ron:
    • double bazooka design
• WA3VEE, Ron:
  • What’s the minimum to deploy in the field for HF, VHF, UHF?
  • KC3TYX, Vic:
    • radio, hamstick, battery
  • W8CRW, CR:
    • just his truck: it has everything for UHF, VHF, HF.
  • KC3YSM, Steve:
    • looking at plans for simple wire antennas.
      • KB9VBR pota performer on a camera tripod with elevated radials
      • going to try to build that one
  • WA3KFT:
    • handful of hamsticks
  • W3MFB, Mike:
    • for emergency in car: UHF/VHF radio, CB, G90, some hamsticks
    • tune anything with a G90

My Week in Radio

• launched the newly-tuned slim-jim antenna
  • tuned the antenna, soldered in a bit more wire at the top
  • hung right below my quarter-wave
  • compared both antennas simultaneously with the 2 quansheng HTs with dBm measurements
  • lower antenna is for the Btech radio running APRS
  • upper antenna for general scanning and local
• learned about 900MHz radio at the SPARC meeting
• learned about satellite work at 21 lunch in Harrisburg
• had the thru-window cable flake out during check-in

Questions

• W3JAM, Jeff:
  • Has anyone used delving or divining rods for finding water or power lines?
  • KC3WWC, John:
    • Tried it as a kid with copper wire rods to find water and wires around the house.
    • Seemed much like the Ouija board with wires. Probably just recognized it.
  • KC3OOK, Bill: Had some well drillers do it, but seemed like part of the show.
  • WA3VEE, Ron:
    • Can’t see how it would work, especially a wooden stick.
    • Would need quite the field to cause movements in the wire
    • Probably easier to attribute it to minute recognitions of the douser.
  • KC3SQI, Wayne:
    • Has known dousers for water to use Green Willow Stick.
  • N3OGF, John:
    • His Dad doused for water lots of times.
  • W1RC, Mike:
    • There’s a Dousers Convention in Vermont.
  • KC3OOK, Bill:
    • His well is 300 ft down.
    • Water doesn’t really “flow” underground.
  • NA3CW, Chuck:
    • Knew a custom home builder who was a douser.
    • If you drilled somewhere else, would there still have been water?
    • Stick would rotate up and back toward him near the water line.
    • Sister tried it and felt it, even though she may have tried to fight the movement.
  • W3JAM, Jeff:
    • Read an article, and he’s trying to find a conductor.
    • Doesn’t think it’ll work.
• KC3MAI, Joe:
  • QRM, HF Noise on low bands.
    • S5 noise on 40m
    • S3 on 80M and 160M
  • Is a certain amount of noise to be expected? Can it be remediated?
  • WA3VEE, Ron:
    • QRM vs QRN: man-made vs natural
    • Static from lightning
    • Static from wind
    • Solar panel noise
    • Man-made noise can be fixed if it’s in your house
      • Try running off battery
      • Eliminate electrical things to see if anything fixes it
      • Cut the whole breaker
      • A dead short across the antenna may still see noise: thermal noise
        • noise floor
    • Neighborhood noise might be hard to remediate.
  • NA3CW, Chuck:
    • Has nearby PECO, appliances, Amtrak
    • Searched and found bad wall wart power supplies
    • Neighborhood plasma TV that growls on 75M
    • Has tracked down bad power line hardware
  • KC3MAI, Joe:
    • Has several Rokus that might have unclean power supplies.
  • KC3KFT, John:
    • Pole insulators on power lines can arc depending on weather, humidity, contamination.
    • 6M AM is a good band/mode for searching for noise also 2M AM.
    • Hit the pole with a sledge hammer to see if the noise changes
  • WA3VEE, Ron:
    • Crackling on hot humid nights near high voltage lines.
    • Wide-band spark
    • Every wire is an antenna, so could be an emitter.
    • CFL or LED lights
  • KD3ZIM, Bob:
    • Had a noise problem several years ago.
    • Called PECO, suspecting power line noise.
    • PECO traced the noise and fixed it.
      • cool receivers and spectrum analyzers
      • checked his scope in his shack and got started.
      • found the line 100-150yds from the house
      • heard the buzzing like welding.
      • cracked insulator on the pole
  • NA3CW, Chuck:
    • AM transistor radio is a good sensor for the noise
    • W3GMS, Joe, has some experience working with PECO
  • KB3ZIM, Bob:
    • Call PECO or Bob or Joe to get Dennis from PECO to do the search.
    • Power lines can carry the “transmission” miles
  • KC3WWC, John:
    • I’ve seen videos on Youtube of people searching
    • Electric company is responsible for cleaning up those emissions
    • You can build a tape-measure yagi for searching
    • POTA can be low noise area
    • Hear and see the crackles of very distant lightning.
    • Check the radio power supply

My Week in Radio

• I attended the breakfast and heard a little about the National Traffic System from Vic. I’ve added some nets to my calendar.
• I’m in the logs for N4T, the DXpedition to Dry Tortugas with some locals.
  • CW and on FT8
• My favorite radios have new 3rd-party software:
  • Quansheng HTs got F4WHN 4.0 which includes a code fix I contributed
  • X6100 got R1CBU 0.29.2 which has fixes for handful of bugs I reported
• I continue playing with some mobile Winlink and APRS
• EFRW was being flaky with high SWR.
  • Cleaned all the connections outside.
  • It’s an unprotected temporary build with alligator clips.

Others

• KC3SCY, Luke: listening to some CW
• NA3CW, Chuck:
  • Led the breakfast.
  • 75M PM/AM Net
  • A professor of chemistry in CT liked our answer on the workbench about ice on the antenna. We never know who’s listening, so make it good.
• KB3ILS, Keith:
  • Straight key work since field day
  • POTA, State QSO Parties
  • 15-minute ragchew QSOs
  • Slower with the straight key, so people don’t “recognize” him.
  • ARRL DX contest: used paddles, boring exchanges.
  • Heard his own QSO in a youtube video
• KC3RFG, Jim:
  • Working on mobile antenna to clean it up.
• AF3Z, Jim:
  • Jumped up from 35WPM to 40WPM in weekly practice sked, and it was OK.
  • Working on heathkit project
• KC3TYX, Vic:
  • 2M nets
  • Breakfast
  • Another ARRL DX contest coming up this weekend, giving it a try.
• AB3AP, Mike:
  • Breakfast
  • Learning about direction of arrival for signals to locate signals of interest.
  • Some CW, but slower than Jim.
• W3QP, Tim:
  • Planning trips
  • Presentation for Pottstown Club
• K3FHA, John:
  • Repairing a 65-year-old radio.
  • Implementing a service bulletin to fix AGC.
  • Some HF nets
• WA3KFT, John:
  • Digging up lost gear
    • Halicrafters S38
    • Heathkit VF1 VFO
  • 6M and 2M work
• KC3OOK, Bill:
  • All the 985 activities
  • Simplex Net: 39 check-ins
  • Spending every day in the ham shack
• AA3LH, Leon:
  • Worked West Coast on 10m.
• KB3AIS, Tim:
  • Purchased ICOM 2730a for portable radio.
• KC3YIG, Dave:
  • Breakfast
  • Simplex Net
  • Building some shelves for the radio desk.
  • Contacted N4T on SSB on 20M and 40M.
• W3MOW, Mike:
  • Good to hear everyone’s favorite interests and achievements in radio.

Questions

• AF3Z, Jim:
  • NV102 SSB CW transciever
    • CW is working
    • SSB isn’t going out
    • He has the oscilliscope for tracing, 10x probe for attennuation, AC coupled.
    • Looking at all the parts, what is the best way to couple with the circuit without interfering with the circuit?
  • WA3KFT, John:
    • 10X probe should have helped
    • There is a 100X probe with very high impedance
    • Make a 2-3 turn coil of solid wire around a pencil, attach it to a bit of coax, poke around with that.
  • NA3CW, Chuck:
    • Put a little capacitance (2-3pF) in series on the end of the probe.
  • KC3SQI, Wayne:
    • Another way to make a “sniffer probe”: small wire loop on a piece of circuit board.
  • K3FHA, John:
    • Since SSB isn’t working, check that audio is getting into the modulator.
• AA3LH, Leon:
  • He has a 45-ft vertical antenna, end-fed from the bottom. It’s recommended to add an automatic tuner close to the antenna. Is 7-8 feet too far away? 14 gauge, 25ft, red/black twin lead to provide power. Is that too long?
  • NA3CW, Chuck:
    • power delivery is OK.
    • 7-8 feet is fine. It becomes part of the antenna.
  • KC3SQI, Wayne:
    • 14 gauge is fine for auto tuner
    • Agree with Chuck
• KD3AIS, Tim:
  • ICOM 2730A can hear the repeater, but no one can hear him.
  • W3MOW, Mike:
    • Thinking it’s a hardware issue, or is it programming?
  • KD3AIS, Mike:
    • Thinks the hardware is good, and the programming is good.
    • Has programmed previous radios for the repeater
  • W3QP, Tim:
    • Has a couple ICOMs.
    • Do you see the frequency shift while TX-ing? (It should.)
    • Try turning off the receive tone.
  • KD3AIS, Tim:
    • No receive tone programmed
    • Sees the shift
  • KC3SQI, Wayne:
    • Do you have RTSystems or other software to program it?
    • He could not program the same radio without using the RT-Systems software.
  • KD3AIS, Tim:
    • Has not yet used programming cable or software.
  • KC3SQI, Wayne:
    • There should be lots of indicators on the display for every little feature that’s enabled.
  • KC3WWC, John:
    • Debug from simplex, then use other repeaters, then check configs for 985.
  • W3MOW, Mike:
    • From reading the manual, 985’s split tones could be a challenge.
  • W8CRW, CR:
    • On ICOMs, the correct tone setting is T-TSQL / 100.
  • KC3RFG, Jim:
    • Had that radio years ago, and programmed it the first time with RT-Systems.
• N3RT, Jay:
  • Meritron amplifier, trying to hit Christmas Island on 15M CW.
  • He flipped it on and it popped the fuse on the 240V line.
  • Can he remove tubes to isolate and test the power supply?
  • Are the ceramic fuses slow blow?
  • NA3CW, Chuck:
    • Do you have HV experience?
  • N3RT, Jay:
    • Has replaced some things, but always operated with the cover on.
  • NA3CW, Chuck:
    • No problem turning it on with tubes removed.
    • Check manual about the fuse
    • Could be a complex interaction causing the pop of the fuse, like start-up resistor being blown.
• About my outside connections:
  • WA3KFT, John:
    • There’s a conducting grease for head bolts of an engine that he uses for outside connections, plus black plastic tape
  • NA3CW, Chuck:
    • Don’t get any on the dialectric (short)