Monthly Archives: December 2013

I Finally worked Vietnam

Posted on by February 4, 2014
3W1T QSL Card

3W1T QSL Card

I have been trying for the past several months to work Vietnam.  For some reason it has been alluding me.  The signal strength of the Vietnamese stations I have heard have typically been barely  above the noise level.  Yesterday, I saw that someone had worked 3W1T on long-path on 10 meters.  I tuned to his frequency and rotated my 8 element log period to the South and was amazed to hear 3W1T’s S9 signal.  I tuned across the pile up until I found the station he was currently working.  Fortunately, he was having great difficulty getting the correct call of the station so they went back and fourth several times before they completed the QSO.  I tuned about 500 Hz above that stations transmit frequency and gave a call after 3W1T thanked the other station.

He picked me up on the first try, but we also went back and forth a couple of times before he got my call correct.   What a nice feeling to hear your call from a rare (to me) DX station!  The next step will be to get a card.  Hopefully, this will be pretty straight forward since he has a QSL Manager.

Now it is on to the next ATNO (All Time New One).  The one advantage of not having worked the entire DXCC list is that I still have 60 or so DXCC entities to still work.  I am not a rabid DXer, but I do enjoy working new entities as they come along.

73,

Fred, KC9QQ

Has the USA Lost its Spirit of Adventure ?

Posted on by May 21, 2014
Chinese Rover on Moons Surface

Chinese Rover Yutu on Moons Surface

China has greatly advanced their space program by soft-landing a spacecraft and rover on the moon.  This is a significant step towards placing men on the moon for the first time since the USA abandoned its Apollo moon exploration program in the 1970’s the result of financial pressures created by the Vietnam war and the War-on-Poverty.

I don’t know about you,  but I find the news of a Chinese moon landing to be bittersweet.  I am pleased that the Chinese are inspired to develop the technology to put men on the moon, but I’m am disappointed that we (the US) have placed our space exploration aspirations on the back burner and now find ourselves in the position of having to pay Russia to transport our astronauts to the International Space Station with a replacement for the Space Shuttle still years away.

During the 1960s, the  America’s space program was my inspiration to study engineering.   From the the 8th grade on, I knew I wanted to be an engineer.  I graduated from high school in 1966 and started my engineering studies at Purdue University that fall.  While I was studying Mechanical Engineering at Purdue several of my professors had worked on various aspects of the Gemini and Apollo programs.  Some of our homework assignments even dealt with design aspects of the Apollo program.

Unfortunately, by the time I received my mechanical engineering in 1970 the US was drastically scaling back spending on space exploration.  Therefore,  I didn’t get a chance to work on the space program when I graduated.  By the time NASA received the funding to move forward with the Space Shuttle and International Space Station I was already well entrenched in my career at Carrier Corporation (a Division of United Technologies).

I know I was not the only engineering or science student at Purdue that had been inspired by the US space program.  The same thing that inspired me and tens of thousands of others to pursue degrees in science and engineering is now happening in China.  Hundreds of thousands of Chinese school children will one day graduate with engineering or science degrees because they were galvanized by seeing their Lunar Rover, Yutu, exploring the surface of the moon.

What is our country doing to inspire the next generation of scientists and engineer?  I fear we are not doing enough.  Have we lost our ability to dream?  Are we doing an injustice to our children and grand children by not having a realistic strategic plan for space exploration?  It seems that NASA funding  moves up and down with the whims of the politically elite in Washington.  They seem more focused on spending tax dollars to buy votes than they are on maintaining our technological leadership.  A couple of bright spots in our current space program are the Hubble space telescope and the Mars Science Laboratory, Curiosity, both which were planned over a decade ago, but I don’t believe we are doing enough now to capture the imaginations of our young people.

We need to find some way to get our kids and grand kids away from their video games, text messaging, cell phones and the non-redeeming entertainment from Hollywood and motivate them to dream, explore and design new things.  

shanghai-chinaPerhaps a legitimate NASA space program could help to capture the imaginations of the next generation of US scientists and engineers.  Otherwise, I fear that in the near future we will just become the consumers of technology generated by China, India and other developing countries which understand that their future depends on motivating their young people to pursue technical degrees which ultimately benefit their entire population.  All one has to do is visit China to see the significant impact this approach has been having on their country over the last two decades.

Just my thoughts,

Fred, KC9QQ

KX3 Is Here

Posted on by December 17, 2013
IMG_0441

Elecraft KX3
As Delivered

Well yesterday, UPS delivered a small box clearly marked as a factory assembled KX3.  After I signed for it, my wife commented: “You’re not going to open that before Christmas are you?”.  Pack your bags, we’re going on a guilt trip!

Now I have a brand new KX3 still in its sealed box sitting under the tree calling–“open me, open me!”.

The un-boxing and initial perceptions will have to be delayed until Christmas.  Until then, I’m still reading all the write-ups I can find on the KX3.  I have also found a lot of good YouTube videos describing how to operate and configure the KX3.  Hopefully, I can hit the ground running on Christmas day.

Fred, KC9QQ

ARRL 10 Meter Contest Fun

Posted on by February 4, 2014

It was nice to spend a little time on 10M this weekend.   I couldn’t put a lot of time in because I had a Christmas Party and other distractions but at least I was able to make some contacts and work one ATNO, All Time New One (Monaco).  It was also an opportunity to practice my CW.  I am noticing some improvement, but I’m still not as skilled as many of the other contesters.  I still have not tried to RUN stations because I don’t yet have the confidence  that I can copy call signs coming back at me at 30 to 35 words per minute..  Therefore my contesting activity is primarily Search and Pounce.

I probably would have put in a little more effort but I was distracted because my new Elecraft KX3 was supposed to arrive on Monday.  I can’t wait to get it on the air.  Of course my wife will probably make me wait until Christmas to open the package!!

I operated Mixed mode but most of my contacts were CW.  It seems that 10M was closing down sooner than last years CQ WW.  I worked a few Japanese stations, but last year they were much stronger and easier to work.
Fred, KC9QQ
Here is my summary:
               ARRL10M Summary Sheet
        Band  Mode  QSOs    Pts  Mul
          28  CW      315    1260  100
          28  USB    100       200    39
       Total  Both  415     1460  139
            Score : 202,940

Elecraft KX3 on the Way

Posted on by December 17, 2013
Elecraft KX3

Elecraft KX3

After finding myself spending more and more time operating CW I decided to add an Elecraft KX3 to my shack.  My first exposure to the KX3 was at the Bedford, IN hamfest this fall.  Since then I have spent several hours reading the many glowing reviews of this rig on eHam.com.  I also downloaded the manual from the Elecraft site and spent a several more hours studying the manual.

I decided to purchase the KX3 pre-assembled with the internal antenna tuner.  I decided not to build the kit version because for me the mechanical portion of the assembly of my K2 was the least enjoyable part of assembling the kit.  Since the KX3 kit is only mechanical assembly, I decided to just go ahead and purchase it pre-assembled.  Unfortunately I will not have the KX3 in time for this weekends 10m contest which promises to have outstanding propagation (SFI 160+).

I should have the new rig in a few days and will post my initial observations.   Later I plan to put together a more thorough review of the rig.

73,

Fred

Homebrew Portable Power Pack

Posted on by December 13, 2013
Completed Power Box

Completed Power Box

I recently constructed a portable power pack that would serve a dual role: operating our telescopes during observing sessions and running my ham equipment on camping trips.  By coincidence, ham radio transceivers and telescopes have similar power requirements (12V @ 1-10 A).  Most amateur astronomers use either car or motorcycle batteries, auto JumpStart devices or expensive power packs sold by telescope manufacturers.  CelestronPowerPack

The power packs sold by telescopes manufacturers are basically automotive jump starters having one or more female cigarette lighter plugs that are used to power the telescope and accessories.  Not only are these power packs expensive they sometimes  do not have enough capacity to run a telescope and dew heaters for a whole night of observing in the humid midwest.

Motor cycle and automotive batteries have sufficient capacity, but pose a significant safety risk when stored and charged indoors.  A safer alternative is the sealed AGM lead acid battery often used to power security systems and uninterrupted power supplies (UPS).   After a bit of research I determined that a 28 amp-hr AGM (absorbed glass mat) battery would provide enough energy to power our telescope for a weekend of observing and that the same battery would easily power my Elecraft KX3 for several days of QRP operation.

RigRunner4005

I made the decision to utilize Anderson Power Poles for connections because of the reliability and flexibility they provide. I purchased a RigRunner Power Pole panel to provide a connection point for the telescope and its accessories.

For a case, I considered the Pelican cases, but was turned off by their high price and weight.  I didn’t need a case that was 100% waterproof or one that could survive the airport baggage handler gorillas.  I considered using an RV battery box, but they are awkward to handle.  While walking through the Walmart fishing section the other day I stumbled across the perfect box or my application.  It is made by Flambeau Outdoors.  It is  ( 15″W x 9″H  x 8″D  ),  water tight, has a strong handle, a hinged top and a large lockable latch.  The box was large enough to hold the 28 Ah battery, charger and the charger power cord.  There was some room left over to hold other accessories: female cigarette lighter plug to power pole adapter, a power pole Ah meter, spare fuses and a power pole extension cable.

BatteryTender

I used a Battery Tender Plus 1.25 A charger to charge the battery.   These chargers are the ultimate trickle chargers for lead acid and AGM batteries.  They have a number of features:

  • Temperature compensated to ensure optimum charge voltage according to ambient temperature.
  • Automatically switches from full charge to float charging mode.
  • Battery Tender® at 1.25 amps will charge as fast or faster than any 3 amp charger available.
  • Reverse Polarity Protection to ensure user safety. Red & Green Lights Alternately Flash in this condition.
  • Complete 4-step charging program (Initialization, Bulk Charge, Absorption Mode, Float Mode).
Completed Power Box

Completed Power Box

Here are some photos of the finished power pack.  The first photo is of the exterior of the power pack.  Some of the features are the integral voltmeter which shows the current state of the battery charge.  The case has a very strong handle which is important because the finished power pack weighs in at nearly 25 lbs.  I incorporated a three position switch which selects the Operate, Off and Charge positions.  During Charging I the switch disconnects the Power Pole panel from the battery to eliminate any chance that  a failure of the charger could result in a over voltage condition on the Power Pole panel.

IMG_0435The next photo shows the interior of the Power Pack.  The battery is a 28 Ah AGM battery.  The         Battery Tender charge is attached to a Aluminum “L” bracket with a heavy duty wire tie.  I used the “L” bracket to support the Battery Tender for two reasons: so that it was flush with the top of the case so that it is easier to see the charger LEDs and to provide a space below the charger where I could wire tie the extra Battery Tender wiring.  The AGM battery is held in place by 4 pieces of Aluminum “L” channel (3 around the base of the battery and one which captures the batter at the top.  The brackets hold the battery snuggly against the back of the case.  All of the fasteners are stainless.  I also placed 4 rubber feet on the bottom of the case so that the fasteners inserted into the bottom of the box would not scratch any surface the box is placed on during storage.

IMG_0437

 

This photo shows the small compartment in the top of the power pack case which can be used to store cables, spare fuses and the Volt/Amp/Watt-Hr meter I use to check each device I connect to the power pack.

 

 

 

Power Pack with Amp-hr Meter attached

Power Pack with Amp-hr Meter attached

 

The Amp-hr meter can also be used to monitor the total Amp-hrs consumed from the battery by placing it inline between the input to the RigRunner and the Power Pole connection coming from the battery (shown at right).

After building the first power pack I have since built two additional power packs–one for a friend and another to run my wife’s Celestron telescope.  I think my Power Pack will also see a lot of use running my new KX3 on summer camping trips.

Best 73,

Fred