Ham Radio QSO Parties

Since this is a leap year day, let’s celebrate by making sure we don’t forget when Daylight Time begins. Remember last year they changed the dates…

From: http://aa.usno.navy.mil/faq/docs/daylight_time.php

Looking for an interface between your PC and your rig? Here is a comparison of my attempt to do exactly that between a laptop with no serial ports and an Icom 746 (not Pro).

The analytical approach used here is a classical way to analyze a variety of solutions in what’s called a “trade space.”

We take one particular make and model and then compare it with many other models on as many attributes as we desire to compare. The other models are either better, worse or the same as the base model.

A running total of the pluses and minues results in an integer number which reflects a relative better ness or worse-ness of the compared item.

During last year’s Virginia QSO Party I heard a few too many folks on the HF bands saying their exchange with plain letters. Hmmm wasn’t this the year many no-code technicians became no-code generals? Fresh meat on the HF bands. Most of you new generals did just fine. All the ones I know certainly did fine. However, for the few who insisted on using plain letters, your rookie, FMer, status is blatantly obvious.

While preparing for the Virginia QSO Party expedition class I decided to walk the halls of an office store and Dick’s sporing goods to see what gear may prove helpful to set up a semi-permanent Portable KX4O/P radio station. What I found was encouraging and may be helpful for two aspects: protecting and organizing the radio gear and provisions for shelter.

A new twist… This simulation places an additional wire underneath the previous 40 meter dipole up 6 feet.

As we continue are review of portable HF antennas we start to approach the bizarre. This post reviews a full half-wave antenna for 40 meters placed just 6 feet high. This is almost silly, but, like I said before, is it a whole lot more than nothing and did work.

This installment of our 40 meter antenna simulations takes our 26 foot Inverted V, described here, levels the conductors and lowers the elevation to 10 feet above ground level.

This installment of our 40 meter antenna simulations takes our 26 foot Inverted V, described here, and levels the conductors.

This is the first comparison done against our baseline 40 meter inverted V at 26 feet outlined here. The only parameter changed was increasing the height of the apex from 26 feet to 50 feet above ground level.

Continuing our look at how to make the most of simple wire antennas I am using EZNEC to compare the performance of a wire dipole antenna in various configurations. The goal here continues to be a simple to deploy antenna usable on the road for VAQP Expedition. Our initial focus will be a 40 meter half-wave design. Then we will compare this with other possible antenna geometries and also investigate whether adding a wire on or near the ground beneath the antenna helps radiate more power skyward. The baseline configuration will look like this…