Vertical Dipole Array for 20-17-15 Meters
Antennas/Portable
This article explores the evolution of antenna choices for DXpeditions, focusing on the shift from mono-band VDAs to a multi-band solution. It details the design and construction of a lightweight, versatile 20-17-15m VDA, utilizing readily available materials like fishing rods and IKEA breadboards. The author discusses challenges, adjustments, and offers guidance for replication.
TX7W Raivavae, Austral Islands
DX Resources/DX Peditions/2024 DXpeditions
DX Pedition Austral Islands by Jeff Martin – K5WE, Craig Boyer – W5CCP April 2024
Top Amateur Radio Websites - Issue 2415
Telescopic Fiberglass Antenna Pole Support Method, Full size 80m End Fed Half Wave Antenna, 4m Tall Vertical Dipole for 20m , ShortwaveDB Map, MorsePractice, LogConv, FISTS Log Converter,
Active Hurricane Season Predicted for 2024
Colorado State University (CSU) hurricane researchers predict an active Atlantic hurricane season (June 1 to November 30) in their initial 2024 forecast. ARRL Director of Emergency Management Josh Johnston, KE5MHV, attended the National Hurricane Conference in Florida in late March, where the CSU prediction was issued. "The common discussion at the National Hurricane Conference this year was the...
JA1BBPs Weblog
VDA Antenna for 30m
Antennas/30M
This project documents the construction and enhancement of a 30m Vertical Dipole Array (VDA) antenna inspired by Remco 7QNL article. Initial design utilized an 18m Spiderbeam pole and a 4m boom. Improvements included a lighter boom structure using fishing rods and a revised coaxial arrangement for enhanced mechanical stability.
ARRL Audio News April 12, 2024
ARRL Audio News April 12, 2024
Ham Radio Active During Eclipse
Millions of people across the United States got to see a rare solar eclipse on Monday, April 8, 2024. The path of totality -- the line of darkness where the moon fully occluded the sun -- stretched through the South Pacific, Mexico, central Texas, the Ozarks, the Midwest, the Rust Belt area, and to New England through the Maritimes. In all, 14 ARRL Sections were impacted directly and several mor...
Amateur Radio Saves Family in Death Valley National Park
Death Valley National Park is in a remote desert in southern California, where mobile phone networks are spotty at best. On Saturday, April 6, a radio amateur and his family were enjoying the park when their vehicle became stuck in mud in a dangerous area. Without access to a cell network, the ham called for help on the 10-meter band. According to a news release from the Black Swamp Amateur Radi...
Maquina do Tempo
Amateur radio site from Brasil
A portable 3 element 6m Yagi
Antennas/6M/6 meter Yagi Antennas
A small Yagi antenna for camper van. It is made of aluminum tubing, breaks down for storage, and works well for communicating with others. He built it in an afternoon and it gets good signal. The antenna is lightweight and can be packed up to fit inside his van while traveling
QRP Cluster
DX Resources/Clusters
QRP self spotting Cluster, where every QRP broadcasting enthusiast can announce on which frequency they are working, in which mode, or with what equipment and power they are working.
QSL Card creator
Software/QSL
This webpage allows you to create custom QSL cards (confirmation of radio contact) as PDFs for printing. You can personalize them with images and information. The cards are standard size (5.5" x 3.5") but can be adjusted slightly for easier printing on regular paper. You'll need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view the PDFs. There's also an option to create a free account to save your information for future cards.
K4SWL Antenna Plus
Antennas/Portable
This project details building a multi-band antenna for park activations. The author constructs a random wire antenna with a 9:1 UnUn for improved performance. Winding the toroid core proved challenging, but the completed antenna shows promising results in initial tests with an analyzer. Further field testing is planned for a future activation.
Beverage Remote Switch
Technical Reference/Antenna Switch
The author describes building a remote switch box to control the direction of two reversible Beverage antennas. The switch uses a buried cable and relays to select the desired antenna direction from the shack. The design is simple and uses common components.
2024 ARRL Field Day Poster Released
A poster promoting 2024 ARRL Field Day has been released on the Field Day web page, www.arrl.org/field-day. The two-sided informational poster features this year's theme "Be Radio Active". It includes a space for clubs to fill in information about their planned activation so that members of their community can come visit the site. More resources for promoting 2024 ARRL Field Day are being develo...
An Overview of Beverage Receiving Antennas
Antennas/Beverage
This article explores Beverage antennas, a type used for low-frequency radio reception. Despite the mystique, they are relatively simple wire antennas placed near the ground. Their key benefit is improved signal-to-noise ratio by rejecting unwanted signals. While lengthier antennas offer better reception, even shorter versions (around 200 feet) can improve DX reception compared to traditional antennas.
Top Amateur Radio Websites - Issue 2414
DIY EMC/RFI Mains Filter for a Clean Shack, G4WIF End Fed Half Wave Antenna , Antennas for QRP Operation, Innovative 2m to HF Converter, Exploring the Spectrum From HF to UHF Frequencies, Boondock Echo 2 way ham radio recorder, Building an Enhanced APRS IGate with Debian 12 and Raspberry Pi, CB0ZA Robinson Crusoe Isl DX Pedition,
Register Now for the 2024 ARRL Youth Rally!
As part of the fun at Dayton Hamvention®, youth attendees are invited to participate in the 2024 ARRL Youth Rally on Saturday, May 18. The day will include a special agenda of activities and presentations intended to engage and inspire young hams and young newcomers to amateur radio. The Youth Rally is intended for students who are 11 to 21 years of age. While Hamvention offers free tickets for ...
ARRL Seeking Applicants for Assistant Education and Learning Manager
ARRL is working to engage the next generation of radio amateurs right in the classroom. Many young people have become active hams because of the ARRL Teachers Institute on Wireless Technology. This donor-funded effort brings teachers from across the United States together to get them excited about radio through hands-on experiments. The Institute then trains them on how to take that excitement b...
Repairing a dead Kenwood TS-850S
Radio Equipment/HF Transceivers/Kenwood TS-850
The author fixed a friend's Kenwood TS-850S radio, which suffered from Capacitor Plague, a common problem in 1990s electronics where capacitors leak and damage circuit boards. The CAR board, responsible for generating signals, was especially affected. The author cleaned the board, replaced the capacitors, and repaired a broken trace. Although the radio mostly functioned afterward, the "Slope Tune" control behaved abnormally. The cause seems to be a software issue, not a hardware one.
ARRL Audio News April 5, 2024
ARRL Audio News April 5, 2024
Ham Radio's Many Roles During Solar Eclipse
In one of nature's most spectacular visual displays, on April 8, 2024, the sun will align with the moon and the Earth, casting a shadow that will transit much of North America. Spectacular Display and Gathering Millions will gather along the path of totality - the section where the sun is fully blocked by the moon - to witness something that happens, on average, once every 375 years for any place...
Multi-Band End-Fed Antenna Design for Limited Space
Antennas/End-Fed
This document details the construction of a multi-band end-fed antenna, suitable for situations with limited space for larger antennas. The design utilizes a 1:49 to 1:60 impedance transformer to match a half-wave wire antenna fed at one end. Compared to a traditional dipole, this antenna resembles a highly unbalanced Windom antenna with one very long leg and a virtual short leg. The design eliminates the need for radials but relies on the coax cable shield for grounding. The document recommends using at least 10 meters of coax and installing a common mode filter at the entry point to the shack for improved performance.
Reversible 40 Meter Moxon
Antennas/40M
The author wants a compact, switchable antenna for 40-meter ham radio. They compare 3 designs: rectangle, short-tipped W6NL, and T-hat. All work well electrically, but mechanics matter for a large antenna. The rectangle needs strong support, while the T-hat is sturdier with slightly longer elements. The T-hat design wins for now, but the author will focus on its mechanical details next.
Reducing RFI from PoE Devices
Technical Reference/Radio Frequency Interference/Noise Reduction
Hams can be annoyed by noise from PoE cameras and access points. These devices and their long cables act like antennas, picking up and spreading unwanted radio signals. By wrapping ferrites around the cable will reduce this noise. It won't silence it completely, but it can make a big difference.
Beverage Lightning Protection
Antennas/Beverage
The article describes adding lightning protection to Beverage antennas, which are long wires susceptible to lightning strikes. The author reviews common lightning protection circuits and discusses their components. They then detail their design based on existing methods, highlighting choices for components and reasoning behind them. Finally, the author presents the completed design and its implementation on their Beverage antennas.
The Reversible BOGs
Antennas/Beverage
The author struggled with receiving antennas on his property. After a standard Beverage on Ground (BOG) antenna failed, he built a Reverse Beverage on Ground (RBOG) using telephone cable. He details construction and testing, finding the RBOG outperformed other antennas in noise level, signal strength, and reception pattern. Software modeling helped optimize the antenna length. Unfortunately, the project ended when telephone cable from the second RBOG was stolen.
40 meters band beverage antenna
Antennas/Beverage
The author describes his experience building and using a Beverage antenna for the 40-meter band. Despite encountering some challenges, the antenna offered some improvements in receiving stations compared to a 3-element inverted Vee antenna. The Beverage antenna showed a significant daytime signal-to-noise ratio improvement and received signals better than the Vee antenna. However, the front-to-back ratio was not ideal, and the transmit power seemed to affect the Beverage antenna. Overall, the author concludes that the Beverage antenna might be more suitable for locations with higher noise levels. The total cost of the antenna was around 30 Euros.
Beverage Transformers for HF Receiving Antennas
Antennas/Beverage
This FAQ covers building and buying transformers for loop-on-ground and Beverage antennas. Building one uses ferrite cores and thin wire. Buying is an option, with the DX Engineering BFS-1 being recommended. These transformers isolate the antenna from the cable to prevent unwanted signal pickup.
FunCube Dongle HF Upconverter: Expanding Reception Range
Operating Modes/Satellites/CubeSats
This article describes an HF upconverter for the FunCube Dongle Pro. Designed for radio amateurs, the converter extends reception capabilities to lower frequencies (0 Hz to 30 MHz) by mixing them with a higher oscillator frequency (100 MHz). This translates the desired signal into a range detectable by the FunCube Dongle (64 to 1,700 MHz). Key components include a double-balanced mixer and a low-pass filter to suppress unwanted signals. The project provides schematics, filter specifications, and design considerations for construction.
Creating a Custom IC-705 Paddle Mount
Radio Equipment/HF Transceivers/Icom IC-705
This article describes a DIY paddle mount for the Icom IC-705 radio. Dissatisfied with the high cost of commercial options, the author builds a mount from sheet metal and scrap materials. Construction utilizes hand tools and readily available supplies. The final design offers adjustable paddle placement and tool-free installation/removal. Initial testing shows promise for improved field operation.
QLog
Software/Logging
QLog is a free log book program for Amateur Radio users that works on Linux, Windows, and Mac OS. It's made with the Qt framework and uses SQLite for storing data. QLog tries to keep things easy to use while offering all the features you'd need in a logbook. It's not meant specifically for contests at the moment.
Top Amateur Radio Websites - Issue 2413
Budget-Friendly 5-Element Quad Antenna Design, Budget-Friendly QRP T-Tuner and SWR Bridge, A Guide for Seamless FT8 Operation - Time Sync, Building a Robust PL519 Tube HF Amplifier, GMA Maps, Adapting Standard Headset Mic for Yaesu FT-8900, Portable Efficiency: Building a KX3 Go-Box,
ARRL Audio News March 29, 2024
ARRL Audio News March 29, 2024
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