Portable Ops

Camping at Baja Dam , Bronkhorstpruit Dam

(Great opportunity for some portable ops)

Had a great long weekend away, i managed to make following contacts , ZS6DX Rudi, ZS5DM Derek , ZS5BBW Moh and ZS4SF Monk and then one SSB contact on 20meters using my Budipole VA0ADX Siberia.

Also had a chance to try out my HB-1B rig , very impressed with the little rig, the variable IF is absolutley outstanding.

Bluetooth to Yaesu FT857

PLAYING AROUND WITH BLUETOOTH

Something i have been wanting to try out is Ham Radio Deluxe, the problem is you need some kind of serial connection between the PC and RIG for it to work. I am not a great fan of connecting RIGS up directly to PC, so i decided to see what i could find on the internet to create a wireless connection from my Laptop to my RIG.

I found this Bluetooth device on the internet and ordered one, looks like it would do exactly what i want.

Specifications as follows

Spec

● Bluetooth protocal:  Bluetooth Specification v2.0+EDR

● Frequency:  2.4GHz ISM band

● Modulation:  GFSK(Gaussian Frequency Shift Keying)

● Emission power:  ≤4dBm, Class 2

● Sensitivity:  ≤-84dBm at 0.1% BER

● Speed: Asynchronous:  2.1Mbps(Max) / 160 kbps, Synchronous: 1Mbps/1Mbps

● Security:  Authentication and encryption

● Profiles:  Bluetooth serial port

● Power supply: +3.3VDC 50mA

● Working temperature: -20 ~ +75 Centigrade

● Dimension: 26.9mm x 13mm x 2.2 mm

Very simple to setup , no programming etc to do, all this thing needs is 3.3v and then serial RX/TX tot he CAT converter on the back of the RIG.

The RIG i used is the Yaesu FT-897D which has 13.8 Volts on the CAT connector as well, which very nice and convenient.

Picture of the RIG i use.

This is what my unit looks like below  to the right of the picture is the 8 pin male connector going to the CAT port on the RIG and on the left is the small box with blue tooth module inside and 3.3 volt regulator. I have a high bright LED which shows when the module is paired with another device. When the LED is flashing then it is waiting to pair with another device, when the LED stops flashing this shows that the unit is paired with another device.

Below is the pin outs of the CAT port on the back of the RIG

The schematic I followed

Pinouts Of the HC-06 Module

DDS VFO

Project : DDS VFO

Construction of my DDS VFO has started 

Below is the front panel with LCD display in place

Below is front panel from behind

Below is every Tuning knobs output and power switch in place

What the back looks like for now , DDS not connected up yet. Just the arduino board and display connected.

Testing software program in the Atmega 328 is working and showing frequency on LCD, so far so good.

Arduino board and ad9850 board in place

Side and back covers on , power switch wired up

Looking good so far, software is working

Nice output level 5.60v Pk-Pk , should be good to drive the ade-1 and SBL-1 mixers

K12 Electronic CW keyer

K12 Electronic CW keyer

Got my Electronic CW keyer all built up and tested.

I ended up using the K12 keyer chip, which is a very versatile little chip. The application circuit is very easy to put together as below.

Chip Feature List Below

Command Listing

Some Pictures of my keyer (Keyer + Paddle + Practice Oscillator)

Finished Box and i love it, works very well indeed.

SWR Bridge

LED SWR BRIDGE FOR QRP PORTABLE OPERATIONS

Captains Log , star date 08032014, Act 1 Scene 1

I finally got around to some bench time and managed to build my LED SWR Bridge for Portable Operations.

WHY!

1.) Well its smaller and lighter to carry around in a Go Bag . 

2.)  I don't fancy the idea of using my AV-601 SWR meter in the field and risk damaging or scratching the instrument in the field.

3.) Its a great feeling home brewing my own ham radio gear and using in the field.

4.) I need to be able to check that my MFJ Antenna Matching Box has in fact matched to my Long Wire Antenna , with as little as possible VSWR on my feed line.

THE DESIGN

Criteria : Simple easy to use lite weight

The design used was gathered from information on the internet. 

A Hand Drawn Schematic

Components  used were as follows:

3 x 50 Ohm 15 watt 1% Thick Film Resistors

1 x 10 Kohm Resistor 1/4 watt 5 %

1 x 1N4148 Signal Resistor

1 x High Bright (Blue) LED Clear Plastic

2 x 0.01uf Capacitors Ceramic

1 x Toggle Switch 

Some PCB Board to make up an RF Shielded Box

Picture Taken From Top Showing UGLY Style Construction

Tune /Operate Toggle Switch

Transmitter Side Connection SO239 (Going to Output of RIG)

Antenna Side Connection SO239 (Going to Antenna or MFJ Box)

How does it work , one word "GREAT" , so far i have tested on 40 meter band as well as 20 meter band and i can get  the LED to extinguish nicely , indicating a match.

Now to try it in the field and see if i can see the LED in sunlight and see how it performs on a portable setup.

Portable OPS at the terrain

QRV At the "Terrain" In Centurion

So today I decided to do some portable radio work with my Ham Radio Gear, something I have never really done before. My inspiration for doing something like this coming from my good friend Dick (ZS6RSH) and guys like Eddie Leighton (ZS6BNE) and his RADAR setup.

Myself and the Family went to the Terrain in Centurion only about 2 km away from where we stay.

We arrived at 11:30am and setup a picnic spot under a shady tree.

The picnic area has plenty of sky hooks to hold antennas up.

Top right of the image is the bottom of the tree we were under , you can just see the thin wire going up into the tree and then up towards the tree in the center of the image. The length of the wire(Normal Rip Cord) was 21 meters.

List of Gear taken for portable station as Follows:

1.) Yaesu FT-857D Radio

2.) SWR Meter 

3.) MFJ 16010 Match box (Antenna Tuner)

4.) 40 meters of rip cord , cut down to 21 meters.

5.) A set of RG58 cables 2off , for connecting from radio to SWR meter and then to MFJ Antenna tunner.

6.) 10 meters of nylon rope

7.) Short 10cm PVC pipe used as insulator from antenna wire and nylon rope.

8.)Side cutters and set od jewelers screwdrivers

9.) 12volt 12ah SLA Battery

10.) Straight CW key

11.) A pen and paper 

A picture of the actual station setup. 

A fallow dear popped in to see what was going on.

Actual Experience of the Day and Observations

Well the day was a success I think, lots of fresh air and fun picnicking with the family , who enjoyed the day immensely.

Actual deployment of the station was less than 5 minutes, which we can trim a bit since i don't have to make up an antenna again, i have kept the antenna as is a labeled for outdoor usage from now on wards.

I was able to make 3 contacts , ZS5LP (Louis) from the bluff in Durban, gave me a solid 59 signal report, and even commented on the great audio.Mode worked SSB, 15 watts, Louis was running 80 watts. Next was ZS6MO (Lloyed) in Hoedspruit.Gave me a 59 signal report aswell.

Got my Straight CW key out and tried calling CQ on 7015 khz and then 7020 khz, didn't get any response went back up the band to 7070 khz to see if i could get a response there, no luck there , went back down to 7020 khz and heard OM ZS6RSH (Dick) calling CQ, responded to the call and we had a short QSO , Dick was booming through 599 and dick reported a solid copy 599, from me. Initially I was running 10 watts but I turned the power down to 5 watts as I was running low on juice on my SLA Battery. Note to self , take a small Solar panel along next time to keep power levels up when not transmitting.

Actual tuning up of the antenna was easy, I was able to get a 1:1 SWR no problem on the 21 meter length of wire. Listening to the CW bands on 15 meters and 10 meters was amazing, lots of strong signals coming through. I also observed a very low noise floor which I don't have the luxury of at my shack , I suspect to much electronics going on at the QTH causing EMI.

Anyway a great day , look forward to another portable station setup.

Thanks to all those who responded to my CQ calls.

   

QRV 10 Meter band contest

QRV AT THE QTH OF ZS6DLL

15/12/2013

My good friend Dick (ZS6RSH) and i decided to setup a temporary station in my back garden to take part in the ARRL 10 meter band contest on Saturday 15/12/2013

STATION SETUP

Dick attaching the poles to the base plate

HOMEBREW MOXON ANTENNA USED BELOW

ANTENNA ATTACHED AND GETTING READY TO HOIST INTO THE AIR

DICK CHECKING THINGS AT THE STATION

DICK OPERATING CW WITH HIS ELEKRAFT K2 RIG RUNNING 5 WATTS QRP

SOME INFORMATION ABOUT THE CONTEST

Contest Details and Objectives

1. Object: For Amateurs worldwide to exchange QSO information with as many stations as possible on the 10 meter band.

2. Date and Contest Period: Second full weekend of December. Starts 0000 UTC Saturday; ends 2359 UTC Sunday (December 14-15, 2013)

2.1. All stations operate no more than 36 hours out of the 48-hour period.

2.2. All off-times must be a minimum of 30 consecutive minutes (see General Rule 3.15)

2.3. Listening time counts as operating time.

3. Entry Categories:

Note: Mixed-mode entries - read rule 6.5

3.1. Single Operator (use of spotting networks is NOT PERMITTED):

3.1.1. QRP (5 watts or less)

3.1.1.1. Mixed Mode (Phone and CW)

3.1.1.2. Phone only

3.1.1.3. CW only

3.1.2. Low Power (150 watts or less)

3.1.2.1. Mixed Mode (Phone and CW)

3.1.2.2. Phone only

3.1.2.3. CW only

3.1.3. High Power (1500 watts or less or your country's maximum power limit, whichever is less)

3.1.3.1. Mixed Mode (Phone and CW).

3.1.3.2. Phone only.

3.1.3.3. CW only.

3.2. Single Operator stations that use spotting networks will be entered in the Multioperator, Single Transmitter category.

3.3. Multioperator, Single Transmitter (use of spotting networks is permitted):

3.3.1. Low Power (150 watts or less)

3.3.2. High Power (1500 watts or less or your country's maximum power limit, whichever is less)

3.3.3. Includes single operators using spotting networks.

3.3.4. This category is mixed-mode only.

4. Contest Exchange:

4.1. W/VE stations (including Hawaii and Alaska) send RS(T) and state or province (District of Columbia stations send signal report and DC).

4.2. DX stations (including KH2, KP4, etc) send RS(T) & sequential serial number starting with 001.

4.3. Mexican stations transmit RS(T) and their state.

4.4. Maritime mobile stations send RS(T) and ITU Region (R1, R2 or R3).

5. Scoring:

5.1. QSO points:

5.1.1. Two points for each complete two-way phone QSO.

5.1.2. Four points for each two-way CW QSO.

5.2. Multipliers: (counted once on phone and once on CW).

5.2.1. Each US state and the District of Columbia.

5.2.2. Canada: 14 provinces - See Appendix A at bottom for complete list.                  

5.2.3. Mexico: 32 states - see Appendix B at bottom for complete list.

5.2.4. DXCC countries (except US, Canada and Mexico).

5.2.4.1. KH6 and KL7 participate and count as US states, not DXCC Entities.

5.2.5. ITU regions (maritime mobiles only).

5.3. Final Score: Multiply QSO points by total multipliers (the sum of states/VE provinces/Mexican states/DXCC countries/ITU regions per mode).

OVERALL EXPERIENCE OF THE DAY

Well this is the first contest i have participated in since i took a break from Ham Radio for something like 10 years. I don't consider myself to be a serious contestor but it was great to take part ,talk to and make contacts with other Ham radio Operators around the world. The two modes of operation we used in the contest were CW (5 watts) which Dick was operating and SSB (phone) which dick and were operating initially at 30 watts and then stepping up to 80 watts off my Yaesu FT-857D rig. Disk was running an Elekcraft K2 QRP rig. The antenna we used was a Home brew "Moxon" antenna, first time i had used one of these antennas so it was a nice interesting experience to learn about this antenna and use it in the contest. The antenna is a directional antenna with a driven element in front and a reflector element on the back , in addition to that the antenna exhibits a high front to back ratio as well as a nice low signal to noise ratio on the rigs.  Overall i found the antenna was very effective and we were able to make contacts quite easily on CW as well as Phone when we had the antenna pointing in the right direction.The rotation of the antenna was done by pulling a guy rope attached tot eh top on the antenna and pulled to what ever direction we wanted to work "Armstrong Style" Hi Hi.

Overall a great day in the sun enjoying the great hobby of "Amateur Radio". 

Contest Log Sheet