My DX QSO map for 2011

Guess what I got for Xmas!

I guess I was good this year, because I found a Tigertronics Signalink USB interface under the tree this year! I have been playing with it during the holiday break, and have made several PSK31 contacts across the US, Canada and in Russia!

I did shop around for the right digital mode software to use. I settled on a fairly popular package that is pretty much plug and play - Ham Radio Deluxe with Digital Master 780 (DM780). The DM780 application interface is quite nice with a very dynamic frequency waterfall display and TX and RX windows. A very capable macro interface as well - highly recommended! Oh, did I mention it is free? Donate to support the great development here!

Anyway, the Signalink USB interface connects seamlessly between our netbook and the CAT port on my Yaesu Ft-897. Set up for digital mode and we are ready to rock and roll!

I have to say this mode is really interesting. The waterfall display allows you to pick and choose digital "conversations" that are all happening concurrently. You can also easily find an open "spot" from which to start your CQ call. I think I will be using this mode a LOT going forward!

To catch a satellite

I have started to play around with packet radio (again). The last time I messed around with this was in college. During that time, I used a dedicated terminal node controller called a PK-88, hooked to an ancient VT100 data terminal.

We're a little more advanced today.

Digital apps like MixW and DigiPan will modulate the outbound data via the speaker jacks, and demodulate the incoming data via the microphone jack. No dedicated TNC required!

A reason why I wanted to get into packet again is that many of the satellites flying around the planet are fitted with APRS nodes, and should be easy to pick up on their dedicated packet frequency... when they fly over me. That's the trick, and that's what Orbitron is good for. It's a freeware app that tracks (and more importantly, PREDICTS) the location of APRS satellites near your lat/long location, and gives you a date/time to start checking for the fly-by.

Here is a screenshot:

So, using this as an example, I should start checking for the UARS satellite tonight around 9:56pm. I happen to know its packet TX/RX frequencies are both 145 MHz, so I'll be monitoring with MixW around that time!

This is so cool!

Just logged a contact with Nick (RA3QPY) out of Moscow, Russia. Signal strength 5-9 (STRONG) both directions. Still no amplifier used on my side, only running 100A SSB. He could have been nextdoor! Very long reach with this antenna.

So, how's it doing? You be the judge...

I steered the beam to 15 degrees this evening and made a QSO with LY5A, a fellow named Jonas out of Lithuania. He reported reading my signal at 5-9 (for you non-hams out there, that is a strong signal report). Very cool!

And it's up!

The mast was the hard part, believe it or not! It took me about 10 minutes to foist the hexbeam onto the roof (myself) and mounted it on the pipe. Here is a picture:

Putting up the mast and rotator, part 1

The chimney mount and rotator showed up yesterday, so I started in on the rooftop mounting project. The rotator tested out okay, and I spent Friday evening putting the mount straps up. Not an easy task, especially with a large, tall chimney like ours. Here are some pics of me doing my thrillseeker installation:

Part 2 will be to load the antenna up onto the roof and onto the mast. It weighs about 20 lbs total, so hopefully this won't be too hard - it's just hella bulky at 20 ft across.

Steer... QSO... Repeat

I found a nifty circle map site to help me steer my beam to interesting parts on the globe - http://www.qsl.net/vk9ml/2002/beam_vancouver.htm

Vancouver is close enough to work. Just this evening I oriented to 250 deg line and caught VK3AKK out of Victoria, Australia. Couldn't navigate the pileup (I blame my antenna height), but even at 6 ft off the ground I was receiving his signal at 5/4. Pretty cool.

I will try some other bearings tomorrow.

Ready to do some laundry

The telescoping mast I had in mind was not strong enough, so I had to settle for a 1" steel pipe to get the antenna up. Not exactly optimal! The recommended height for this antenna is at least 20 feet, and I have it at 6 feet. Oh well. I will fashion a base mount this week so it can rotate freely to steer the beam.

At this height it does look a lot like those laundry drying racks you used to see in backyards everywhere!

Spider

The construction of the hexbeam started in earnest this weekend.

Here is the base with booms attached, no wires yet:

First, I brought in the tension cords to pull each rod in and up. Then I measured and attached the 10m, 15m and 20m driver & reflector wire sets. Here is the final product:

Weatherproofed and tested continuity - all checked out!

Now the trick - mounting on a base. I can lift the whole antenna with no trouble, but PVC as a base is out of the question because of wobble - here is my first mounting try.

I think a steel 1-inch pole will work nicely here.

Hexbeam construction starts!

The base for my hexbeam antenna arrived today from hexkit.com. Here are the parts:

After construction, this is what it looks like:

The six 3-meter fiberglass booms will extend from this piece, and the center mounting flange can tighten down on a 1-inch PVC post which will serve as the center anchor to connect to each boom.

HF beam results - found my new project!

Here are my options for a directional HF antenna:

Multi-element Yagi - can't, too LARGE!

Butternut HF5B - smaller, but requires a minimum of 30 feet elevation

Spiderbeam - great name, but expensive/complex

Hexbeam - small, performs like a 2L Yagi, easy to build. WINNER!

I found a great set of build instructions for my first hex beam antenna:

http://www.leoshoemaker.com/hexbeambyk4kio/broadhexgeneral.html

And a supplier for the parts:

http://www.mgs4u.com/hexbeam-kit.htm

Very exciting!

First of many...

I wanted to start this blog to detail the results of my radio experiments. The reason I got into amateur radio many years ago (over 30 years now) was to learn about the application of radio physics, especially regarding how to optimize excitation of radio energy, which equates to longer distances of travel, stronger signals received, etc.

I passed my Technician class exam way back in high school during the 80's in CA, at which point I received the callsign N6GFK. I have since reignited my interest in ham radio, because I wanted to start making some serious DX (distance) contacts. I tested through the Amateur Extra class, and set up a new ham shack. Here is the equipment I am running with:

Yaesu FT-897 HF/VHF/UHF 100W Transceiver

AL-811 600W Linear Amp

G5RV jr. omnidirectional dipole antenna (a wire hanging in the trees behind my house)

Drake MN-2700 Antenna Tuner

My contact list is doing well - I am routinely making HF contacts around the US on 20M and 40M bands. But of course I would like to take this performance up a notch. I can sometimes pick out signals from other continents, but they are pretty weak. I know what this means - I need an antenna upgrade to a directional beam antenna.

An extra constraint - I do not have a lot of space in my backyard, so an HF beam needs to stay within a 30 ft maximum lateral dimension. Time to do some research.