Weekend Satellite Fun

I've been itching to get out and start having some portable radio excursions all summer. I've been sitting on this Kenwood TH-D72 for a few months. I got it so I could work the amateur satellites in full duplex. Now that we have some cooler weather, its time to take this gear out and scratch that portable radio itch.

This past Sunday, I biked a couple of miles down to the park with my satellite gear. I use ISS Detector for Android and could see there we a couple of satellites I wanted to attempt. The AO92 was up first. There were lots of folks on there, but at some point, I think there can be too many people on a sat. And, that point may have been reached. It was pretty chaotic, and I had a hard time getting in.

The second satellite pass was the AO91 at about 23° starting SSE and ending NE. One of the first stations I heard was HP2VX in Panama. I made the call, and he came back to me on my second attempt. I heard WE4B and gave him a call. I eventually got him after a short pileup. I actually had several stations calling me. Within just a couple of minutes, I logged 5 QSOs on the satellite. As more people got on the satellite, I decided to just stand by and listen.  I could have kept going, but I let others have a chance.

It was a good day, and I really enjoyed it. I'll definitely be getting back in the satellites soon.

Here's the video:
https://youtu.be/oPVtwUur3YY

A QSO on AO-91 10/25/2019

Trying to make a QSO on the FM satellites can be difficult. There are so many users, it can become chaotic. I could barely hear HP2VX, but we made the QSO. Thanks to HP2VX for sticking with me.  

73! Bob KK4DIV

Some new satellite equipment

I've been wanting to get back into working the FM birds and wanted to tweak my equipment setup. My last time I tried to use my kenwood HT in duplex mode, it did not work well. So, I got a headset and a bunch of wires. Lots of wires.  And a few more wires. You'll see...

https://youtu.be/BYdJUcTKEOY

First Use of the SOTABeams Bandhopper 3+ 20 30 40 meters 082119

Today I got out and tried my new antenna.  The Sotabeams Bandhopper 3+ on 20, 30, and 40 meters is a fine antenna and will work well with my small QRP station.  It packs down small and gives great performance.

Antennas

Let me start by saying it's hot here in Florida...nearly unbearable.  So, needless to say, I have not been out playing ham radio portable in the past couple of months.  However, I have been looking for a new antenna system.  I have several options already.  I love the Chameleon F-loop antenna for the ease of deployment and the fact that there are no counterpoise requirements.  The Wolf River Coil and whip option is great as well.  I think it may perform better than the mag-loop, but it requires one (or many) counterpoise wires along the ground.   This becomes a trip hazard in high traffic areas in parks and such.

Those antennas are fine, but we know that in the world of antennas, the simplicity of a dipole rules. Now, I have a Windcamp 40M off center fed dipole I have used with my 100 watt FT-891, but I want something small and lightweight to use with my FT-817 or my newer Recent RS918 qrp rig. I would also need a way to deploy it. So, after seeing a local ham and friend using this antenna at a portable event, I decided on the Sotabeams 3 band linked dipole (20, 30, 40 meters) and the 10M telescoping mast.  I plan to run this in an inverted V arrangement.

Well, that's the plan. A new antenna to fill a niche that is currently empty. I look forward to the better performance I should get from a dipole. The antenna is on order and I look forward to getting out and getting on the air...once it gets a little cooler.

POTA Fail: Weather was hot, the bands were not 5/24/19

Ailunce vs Alinco Audio 5/18/2019

The Return to St Vincent Island with W4RYZ 5/11/2019

The Return to St. Vincent Island was a success and the group from the Panama City Amateur Radio Club had a great time. 

A new portable rig 3/31/19

So, a local ham and friend of mine recently shared an article about a new radio coming out, the Ailunce HS1 hf sdr transceiver.  Since I was so impressed with the Ailunce HD1 DMR radio, I felt I needed to try this rig out. A week or so ago, I was on the Retevis.com website and found the HS1 was on sale, I placed my order, and it was delivered today.

I was very excited about this rig. It was small, something the size of the Elecraft KX2 or KX3 at half the price. It reminded me of the Xiegu x5105.  I have a FT-817nd, but at 5 watts, it can be hard to make a contact...let alone hold a quality QSO. The HS1 has a maximum output of 15 watts. This should help make a few more contacts when out portable. It has FM, SSB, CW, digital, and FreeDV, and it is also much lighter than my 817.

As I said, I received this new rig today. I have an unboxing video on YouTube.  https://youtu.be/XHL7r2ltbFQ

An interesting fact I noticed was the radio had no Ailunce markings as in the pictures on the website. All other features look the same.  The box it came with is marked as "Recent" and instructions have a model number RS-918. A Google search reveals that this rig and the Ailunce HS1 look the same. I have to assume they are the same rig. Being from China, I figure one factory produces these and stamp different names on them. I'd like to know the whole story and why mine is not an HS1 when I purchased it from Retevis.com.

Whether an HS1 or a RS-918, I am still looking forward to trying the rig out.

-Bob

Today's Project

Howdy, folks.

I really do find enjoyment putting together different go-kits.  My latest is a new packet go-kit.  This new kit includes an Icom ID-880H that has been sitting in my shack hardly used for a couple of years.  I have temporarily commandeered my Bioenno 20Ah LiFePO4 battery from my HF go-kit.  I also have a RadioShack 19 amp power supply when I have shore power available.  Rounding out the kit is the Timewave PK-96 TNC.  I picked up a Pelican style case, an Apache 3800, from Harbor Freight to put it all in. 

Stay tuned for a video featuring the kit coming soon. 

73!
KK4DIV

Excercising the radios: portable ops with packet radio and PSK31 030319

Today I took a little of my portable gear out to the park just to make sure everything still works.  I believe it is important to exercise your equipment every so often to make sure it works when you need it and (as I found out today) to make sure you know how to use it.  First, I got my packet-in-a-box out and logged into my BBS a couple of miles away, then with my ft-817 logged a psk31 qso.

Parks-on-the-air: Weekend camping trip and activating K-4635