Following on from my article about my QO-100 Satellite Ground Station Complete Build, this article goes into some detail on the Node-RED section of the build and how I put together my QO-100 Satellite Ground Station Dashboard web app.

The Node-RED project has grown organically as I used the QO-100 satellite over time. Initially this started out as a simple project to synchronise the transmit and receive VFO’s so that the SDR receiver always tracked the IC-705 transmitter.

Over time I added more and more functionality until the QO-100 Ground Station Dashboard became the beast it is today.

Looking at the dashboard web app it looks relatively simple in that it reflects a lot of the functionality that the two radio devices already have in their own rights however, bringing this together is actually more complicated than it first appears.

Starting at the beginning I use FLRig to connect to the IC-705. The connection can be via USB or LAN/Wifi, it makes no difference. Node-RED gains CAT control of the IC-705 via XMLRPC on port 12345 to FLRig.

To control the SDR receiver I use GQRX SDR software and connect to it using RIGCTL on GQRX port 7356 from Node-RED. These two methods of connectivity work well and enables full control of the two radios.

The complete flow above looks rather daunting initially however, breaking it down into its constituent parts makes it much easier to understand.

There are two sections to the flow, the GQRX control which is the more complex of the two flows and the comparatively simple IC-705 section of the flow. These two flows could be broken down further into smaller flows and spread across multiple projects using inter-flow links however, I found it much easier from a debug point of view to have the entire flow in one Node-RED project.

Breaking down the flow further the GQRX startup section (shown below) establishes communication with the GQRX SDR software via TCP/IP and gets the initial mode and filter settings from the SDR software. This information is then used to populate the dashboard web app.

The startup triggers fire just once at initial startup of Node-RED so it’s important that the SDR device is plugged into the PC at boot time.

All the startup triggers feed information into the RIGCTL section of the GQRX flow. This section of the flow (shown below) passes all the commands onto the GQRX SDR software to control the SDR receiver.

The TCP RIGCTL -> GQRX node is a standard TCP Request node that is configured to talk to the GQRX software on the defined IP Address and Port as configured in the GQRX setup. The output from this node then goes into the Filter RIGCTL Response node that processes the corresponding reply from GQRX for each message sent to it. Errors are trapped in the green Debug node and can be used for debugging.

The receive S Meter is also driven from the the output of the Filter RIGCTL Response node and passed onto the S Meter function for formatting before being passed through to the actual gauge on the dashboard.

Continuing down the left hand side of the flow we move into the section where all the GQRX controls are defined.

In this section we have the VFO step buttons that move the VFO up/down in steps of 10Hz to 10Khz. Each button press generates a value that is passed onto the Set DeltaFreq change node and then on to the Calc new VFO Freq function. From here the new VFO frequency is stored and passed onto the communications channel to send the new VFO frequency to the GQRX software.

The Mode and Filter nodes are simple drop down menus with predefined values that are used to change the mode and receive filter width of the SDR receiver.

Below are the HAM band selector buttons, each of these will use a similar process as detailed above to change the VFO frequency to a preset value on each of the HAM HF Bands.

The QO-100 button puts the transmit and receive VFO’s into synchro-mode so that the receive VFO follows the transmit VFO. It also sets the correct frequency in the 739Mhz band for the downlink from the LNB in GQRX SDR software and sets the IC-705 to the correct frequency in the 2m VHF HAM band to drive the 2.4Ghz up-converter.

The Split button allows the receive VFO to be moved away from the transmit VFO for split operation when in QO-100 mode. This allows for the receive VFO to be moved away so that you can RIT into slightly off frequency stations or to work split when working DXpedition stations.

The bottom two Memory buttons allow you to store the current receive frequency into a memory for later recall.

At the top right of this section of the flow there is a Display Band Plan Info function, this displays the band plan information for the QO-100 satellite in a small display field on the Dashboard as you tune across the transponder. Currently it only displays information for the satellite, at some point in the future I will add the necessary code to display band plan information for the HF bands too.

The final section of the GQRX flow (shown below) sets the initial button colours and starts the Powermate USB VFO knob flow. I’ve already written a detailed article on how this works here but, for completeness it is triggered a few seconds after startup (to allow the USB device to be found) and then starts the BASH script that is used to communicate with the USB device. The output of this is processed and passed back into the VFO control part of the flow so that the receive VFO can be manually altered when in split mode or in non-QO-100 mode.

The bottom flows in the image above set some flow variables that are used throughout the flow and then calculates and sets the RIT value on the dashboard display.

The final section of the flow is the IC-705 control flow. This is a relatively simple flow that is used to both send and receive data to/from the IC-705, process it and pass it on to the other parts of the flow as required.

The IC-705 flow is started via the timestamp trigger at the top left. This node is nothing more than a trigger that fires every 0.5 seconds so that the dashboard display is updated in near realtime. The flow is pretty self explanatory, in that it collects the current frequency, transmit power, SWR reading, PTT on/off status and S Meter reading each time it is triggered. This information is then processed and used to keep the dashboard display up to date and to provide VFO tracking information to the GQRX receive flow.

On the left are the buttons to change band on the IC-705 along with a button to tune to the VOLEMT on the 60m band. Once again there two memory buttons to save and recall the IC-705 VFO frequency.

The Startup PTT Colour trigger node sets the PTT button to green on startup. The PTT button changes to red during transmit and is controlled via the Toggle PTT function.

At the very bottom of the flow is the set transverter IF Freq function, this sets the IC-705 to a preselected frequency in the 2m HAM band when the dashboard is switched into QO-100 mode by pressing the QO-100 button.

On the right of the flow there is a standard file write node that writes the 2.4Ghz QO-100 uplink frequency each time it changes into a file that is used by my own logging software to add the uplink frequency into my log entries automatically. (Yes I wrote my own logging software!)

The RX Audio Mute Control filter node is used to reduce the receive volume during transmit when in QO-100 full duplex mode otherwise, the operator can get tongue tied hearing their own voice 250ms after they’ve spoken coming back from the satellite. This uses the pulse audio system found on the Linux platform. The audio is reduced to a level whereby it makes it much easier to talk but, you can still hear enough of your audio to ensure that you have a good, clean signal on the satellite.

As I said at the beginning of this article, this flow has grown organically over the last 12 months and has been a fun project to put together. I’ve had many people ask me how I have created the dashboard and whether they could do the same for their ground station. The simple answer is yes, you can use this flow with any kind of radio as long as it has the ability to be controlled via CAT/USB or TCP/IP using XMLRPC or RIGCTL.

To this end I include below an export of the complete flow that can be imported into your own Node-RED flow editor. You may need to make changes to it for it to work with your radio/SDR but, it shouldn’t take too much to complete. If like me you are using an IC-705 and any kind of SDR controlled by GQRX SDR software then it’s ready to go without any changes at all.

More soon …

I get quite a few emails from readers of my blog asking how my QO-100 satellite station is put together and so, I thought perhaps now is a good time to put together an article detailing the complete build.

My QO-100 satellite ground station is built around my little Icom IC-705 QRP transceiver, it’s a great little rig and is ideal for the purpose of driving a 2.4Ghz transverter/up-converter.

Of course all the software used for the project is Opensource and freely available on the internet.

The station comprises of the following building blocks:

• Icom IC-705 Transceiver
• DXPatrol 28/144/433Mhz to 2.4Ghz Up-Converter
• DXPatrol GPSDO Reference Oscillator
• DXPatrol 2.4Ghz 5/12w Amplifier
• Nolle Engineering 2.2 turn 2.4Ghz IceCone Helix Antenna
• 1.1m (110cm) Off-set Dish
• Bullseye 10Ghz LNB
• Bias-T to feed 12v to LNB
• NooElec SmartSDR Receiver
• PC Running Kubuntu Linux Operating System
• GQRX SDR Opensource Software
• Griffin Powermate USB VFO Knob
• QO-100 Ground Station Dashboard developed using Node-RED
• LMR400-UF/RG58 Coax Cable

To get a good clear view of the QO-100 satellite I have the dish mount 3.2m above the ground. This keeps it well clear of anyone walking past in the garden and beams the signal up at an angle of 26.2 degrees keeping well clear of neighbouring gardens.

The waterproof enclosure below the dish houses all the 2.4Ghz equipment so that the distance between the feed point and the amplifier are kept to a minimum.

The DXPatrol amplifier is spec’d to run at 28v/12w or 12v/5w, I found that running it at 28v produced too much output for the satellite and would cause the LEILA alarm on the satellite to trip constantly. Running the amp at 12v with a maximum of 5w output (average 2.5-3.5w) is more than enough for me to have a 5/9+10 signal on the transponder.

The large 1.1m dish gives me quite an advantage on receive enabling me to hear the very weak stations with ease compared to other stations.

The photo above shows the 2.4Ghz equipment mounted in the waterproof enclosure below the dish. This photo was taken during the initial build phase before I rewired it so, the amplifier is shown connected to the 28v feed. To rewire the amp to 12v was just a matter of removing the 28v converter and connecting the amp directly to the 12v feed instead. This reduced the output from a maximum of 12w down to a maximum of 5w giving a much better (considerate) level on the satellite.

It’s important to keep all interconnects as short as possible as at 2.4Ghz it is very easy to build up a lot of loss between devices.

For the connection from the IC-705 to the 2.4Ghz Up-Converter I used a 7m run of
LMR-400 coax cable. The IC-705 is set to put out just 300mW on 144Mhz up to the 2.4Ghz converter and so it’s important to use a good quality coax cable.

Once again the output from the 2.4Ghz amplifier uses 1.5m of LMR-400-UF coax cable to feed up to the 2.2 turn Icecone Helix Antenna mounted on the dish. This keeps loss to a minimum and is well worth the investment.

The receive path starts with a Bullseye LNB, this is a high gain LNB that is probably one of the best you could use for QO-100 operations. It’s fairly stable frequency wise but, does drift a little in the summer months with the high temperature changes but, overall it really is a very good LNB.

The 12v feed to the LNB is via the coax and is injected by the Bias-T device that is in the radio shack. This 12v feed powers the LNA and associated electronics in the LNB to provide a gain of 50-60dB.

From the Bias-T the coax comes down to the NooElec SmartSDR receiver. This is a really cheap SDR device (<£35 on Amazon) based on the RTL-SDR device but, it works incredibly well. I originally used a Funcube Dongle Pro+ for the receive side however, it really didn’t handle large signals very well and there was a lot of signal ghosting so, I swapped it out for the NooElec SDR and haven’t looked back since.

The NooElec SmartSDR is controlled via the excellent Opensource software GQRX SDR. I’ve been using GQRX SDR for some years now and it’s proven itself to be extremely stable and reliable with support for a good number of SDR devices.

To enhance the operation of the SDR device I have added a Griffin Powermate VFO knob to the build. This is an old USB device that I originally purchased to control my Flex3000 transceiver but, since I sold that many moons ago I decided to use it as a VFO knob in my QO-100 ground station. Details on how I got it working with the station are detailed in this blog article.

Having the need for full duplex operation on the satellite this complicates things when it comes to VFO tracking and general control of the two radios involved in the solution and so I set about creating a QO-100 Dashboard using the great Node-RED graphical programming environment to create a web app that simplifies the management of the entire setup.

The QO-100 Dashboard synchronises the transmit and receive VFO’s, enables split operation so that you can transmit and receive on different frequencies at the same time and a whole host of other things using very little code. Most of the functionality is created using standard Node-RED nodes. More info on Node-RED can be found on the Opensource.radio Wiki or from the menu’s above.

I’ll be publishing an article all about the QO-100 Dashboard in the very near future along with a downloadable flow file.

I’m extremely pleased with how well the ground station works and have had well in excess of 500 QSO’s on the QO-100 satellite over the last last year.

More soon …

Many thanks to Shane who writes with the following question: I really need some advice. I know you have produced many videos on the Icom IC-705, and I am wondering if there is a way to directly enter frequencies on this rig, without using the touchscreen. Being totally blind, I really need to know this … Continue reading Eternal Keypad for the IC-705? Shane is visually-impaired and seeking advice. →

A Long Weekend

I had the opportunity to take Friday off, so I did. And with a day off and no commitments until much later, I headed out to The Octagon at Cuyahoga Valley National Park – US-0020. I just couldn’t think of a better way to spend a few hours in the quiet before a weekend of things and stuff.

A brief diversion? The summer has arrived, so my Jeep has its summer outfit on. This is a rag top with no windows save the front windshield and its safari doors. Look, I’m not made of sugar and I live in a place that is grey and cold for a decent chunk of the year. When I get the chance to enjoy the wind in my face, I take it. That does come with some risks. When it rains, well, I get wet. And to be absolutely clear, I expect it and embrace it!

The forecast for the day did NOT include rain. I tossed my clamp-on umbrella into the Jeep simply to keep the sun off as that can heat up the radio and get in my face. It’s a nice thing to take along for contingencies. Ya know, sun or…rain.

Halfway to the park, the skies opened up and it rained cats and dogs for about 25 minutes. I pulled over and looked at the weather radar. It was going to pass quickly enough so I kept going. Arriving at the park, I was met with some “jokes” from others in the parking lot. I smiled and grabbed my gear. They’d come back sweaty and gross while I was just freshly showered!

Getting to the picnic tables did show me that I had some obstacles. The table was wet and so was the bench. No worries! I brought my tarp (always do!) and I set up the umbrella to keep the water that was falling out of the trees off of my gear. I deployed the AX1 and hooked up the IC-705. I was ready to go!

Solar Goodness

Friday was great for solar weather. The conditions were good on 40 and 20 and I was able to grab enough contacts to call it an activation in relatively short order. It was so much nicer than the prior activations when the local star was blowing its top and making things difficult. It was great to pull in the contacts!

For a bit of extra fun, I tossed my Surface Go 2 into the bag and grabbed some FT8 while I was at it. It’s been quite a while since I did any digital work during a POTA activity.

QSO Map

With it turning from rain to clear skies I’d been on the air long enough and was feeling refreshed. Here’s what the QSO Map looks like.

Fun While It Lasted

Saturday rolled around and it turned out that we had a graduation party to attend and a few errands to run. What would normally have been a trip to CVNP on a bicycle turned into a quick drive out to play a little radio while the things that needed doing and didn’t involve me were done. I was very pleased to get two opportunities to get into the field in one weekend.

The wonderful solar conditions from Friday DID NOT flow into Saturday. The earth was spinning into all of the fun that comes from yet another CME. This was causing all kinds of problems. The bands would open for a bit and then go silent. As usual, I parked my IC-705 on a portion of the band where I could see the FT8 signals on the waterfall and watched them ebb and flow as I tried to nab enough CW contacts for an activation.

It didn’t work out that way. I managed to get 7 CW contacts in an hour. That’s not great. But I did bring along my computer and flipped over to FT8 to pick up an additional 4 contacts and validate the activation. I don’t know that I would have made it without moving to a digital mode.

The IC-705

It is not a secret that I am a huge fanboy for the IC-705. The switch from operating CW to FT8 was as simple as turning on my little WiFi router that I carry for these occasions and launching wvfiew and WSJT-X on my computer. That’s it. It took maybe 2 minutes and I was on the air and calling CQ on FT8. It’s brilliant and frictionless. Sure, I’ve been using it for years now and have figured out a workflow that makes things very smooth, but wow is this rig a dream for multi-mode portable. Which, again, is not a surprise as that’s kind of its purpose. It’s just amazing to me that it feels so simple when everything else (like the sun) is making things complicated.

QSO Map

Here’s what the activation looks like.

Final

As we get closer and closer to the solar maximum of Cycle 25 the conditions are going to get weird. I’ve decided that when I head out to do an activation I’m going to toss the computer into the bag just in case. More modes make a successful activation more likely. While activating isn’t the goal – being outside and playing radio is – it’s still nice to check it off as DONE. It also keeps me fresh on my digital operating skills. It’s probably time to play a bit more with fldigi so I can get some other modes in the log. Time for some more experimentation!

It might also be time to take the Hardrock-50 into the field with The Big Battery. We’ll see what happens if and when the mood strikes!

Thanks for reading and 72!

Gorgeous Weather

It was sunny and the temperature was darned near perfect for June in NE Ohio. My wife and I got on our bikes and cycled out to Cuyahoga Valley National Park – US-0020 so that we could enjoy the day. The plan was to spend a little time at The Octagon shelter area so I could play a little radio and then head into Peninsula to grab some lunch. I figured that I could get the park activated in about an hour while my wife did a little reading and we’d be on our way.

Well. Yeah. The thing is…

Sensing A Pattern

We’re heading toward the high point of Cycle 25 and it seems that conditions on HF are getting less and less reliable. I know very little about solar weather and I’m certainly not an expert on our local star. I know what I’ve read and I can compare that with my observations. I’m definitely not alone in observing that activations are harder and harder to complete and that makes me feel less like it’s a “Me Problem” and more like it’s a “Giant Ball Of Gas Problem”. That works.

When I set up my Go-To gear (IC-705 with the AX1) and I’m struggling to get it done, I start to doubt myself. Should I toss my EFHW into a tree? Should I have brought the SuperAntenna? But the truth is, if I’m sitting there and RBN is picking me up but I’m not hearing much, it’s very possible that there’s no one out there to hear me or conditions are worse than I thought.

In any case, it seems that budgeting an hour for an activation is not as likely to bear fruit as it was just a few months ago. Not that it matters. Being outside with my radio is the point. Relaxing and getting on the air are the ends.

QSO Map

Here’s what it looked like on the QSO Map:

Final

QRP seems to be about patience these days. Could be that all radio activities are going to involve more patience than they have in this solar cycle. There are still plenty of exciting times ahead. There are months of long, warm, bright days ahead and I plan to spend as many of them as I can in the field playing radio.

Thanks for reading and 72!

You Read That Right

It was a dessert activation. Monday nights are Scout meetings so I figured I could sneak out to Cuyahoga Valley National Park – US-0020 and get an activation in after dinner. I thought of it as a bit of mental sorbet to cleanse the pallette after a long day. It worked out very well!

The past few times that I’ve been out at the park, the local star has been a royal pain. When the sun throws a tantrum, things get crazy for all of us radio folks – not just the QRP operators! As a result, the past couple of activations have been ones that I barely got over the line. Having taken a good look at the conditions for the day in question, it seemed like I might be hitting the right time in terms of solar weather which I normally don’t check at all. My approach is usually one of “Sure, they say the conditions are bad but what does that mean to me in the spot where I’ll be sitting when I’m sitting there? Best test it to find out!” After a few solar tantrums, I at least check to see how much water or coffee to take along.

Tried And True

The gear was predictable. I took the IC-705 and paired it with the AX1. I had my tarp out and everything set up in about 5 minutes. I have this kit down to SOP levels of repeatability. With everything deployed, I didn’t really take any chances. I went straight to 20-meters and I was rewarded.

Moving Around

I managed to get enough contacts for the activation rather quickly on 20. That’s not a shock, but it was nice to get them in the bag. I decided to move to 17 and see what I could hear. It was really, really quiet. I managed to get a contact in Idaho and one in Utah. A friend from Mastodon said I could be heard poking my head out of some serious QSB in Colorado. I can usually tell how well things are going by the number of other activators on the band. I was the only one, so I moved on to 40 to get the local crew. I was not disappointed.

Refreshing

Getting outside on a warm, sunny evening is a beautiful thing. Even if the bands hadn’t cooperated, it was still nice to be the only one at The Octagon. The field around the structure had just been mowed and there was still the smell of cut grass in the air. The birds were busy – including a few crows that were quite disruptive with some QRN (see what I did there?) while I was trying to copy.

The truth is that radio is one of those things where you can only focus on the activity at hand. Careful listening requires attention and when it’s done right all of those other thoughts from the day disappear. After a good hour or so on the air I almost always walk away feeling refreshed and reset. Every thing is cleared out and I can move on to whatever is next without any mental clutter.

QSO Map

With three bands in play, I managed to get 26 contacts. Here’s what it looked like on the QSO Map:

Final

I get the sense that I need to do more of these “Dessert Activations” this summer while we still have the daylight. As has been mentioned to me a few times recently, we’re hitting the solstice and that means that The Long Dark is slowly turning in our direction. I definitely want to make radio hay while the sun shines.

Thanks for reading and 72!

Weeks Without POTA?

The past couple of weeks have been very busy and kept me away from my beloved parks and activations. Life is like that sometimes and we have to muscle through it. When I saw a break in the action on Sunday morning, I knew that I had to jump on it. The weather was going to be great and I didn’t have any commitments for a stretch. I knew that I could grab about 90 minutes or so for an activation at Cuyahoga Valley National Park – US-0020.

Tried And True

I’ve been putting together some resonant wire antennas lately and really wanted to pull one of those out, but I knew that with it being Memorial Day Weekend the park was going to be crowded at all of my normal spots and getting a wire in a tree or a mast set up was going to be a hassle. I fell back on my reliable AX1 paired with the IC-705.

It’s fun to experiement and I do love to try new things, but when time is short we have to reach for what we know will provide results. This combination has rarely left me skunked in the field and it’s very quick and easy to put up and tear down. Given that time was a concern, this was really the only kit to take.

The Bands…Again

The good news is that the bands were not complete garbage like they have been of late. But not being bad and being good are two different things. I would put it all at a solid medium for performance. It didn’t help that there was a contest going on, but the day before the bands had been far worse. It took about an hour to land 11 contacts. One of those in there was a park to park. That always adds a little spice to the mix.

I felt a little rusty. I’ve been practicing my copying at the computer on and off during most days, but being in the field is different. It’s all a surprise. There’s no telling when that call will come breaking through the noise or how hard you will have to listen to copy it. It was nice to get back in front of my rig and paddles.

The QSO Map

It’s a pretty good spread given that it was 40 and 20-meters all day long. Here’s what it looks like on the QSO Map:

Final

There are days when all that matters is that I get myself outside and into the field with my rig. Sitting there in the quiet and playing radio is a very peaceful way to spend a bit of time. It’s very intentional and almost meditative. The time flies by and I always head back feeling refreshed. Here’s hoping that I’m able to sneak out a bit more as we hit the long summer days.

Ever since my QO-100 ground station has been operational I’ve been using my NodeRed QO-100 Dashboard to control my IC-705 and GQRX SDR software to drive my NooElec SmartSDR receiver. This gives me a full duplex ground station with both transmit and receive VFO’s synchronised.

This solution has worked incredibly well from the outset and over time I’ve added extra functionality that I’ve found to be useful to enhance the overall setup.

The latest addition to the ground station solution is a Sennheiser Headset that I picked up for just £56 on Amazon (Much cheaper than the Heil equivalents at the HAM stores!) and have found it to be excellent. The audio quality from both the mic and the headphones is extremely good whilst being light and comfortable to wear for extended periods.

To incorporate this into the ground station the headset is connected to my Kubuntu PC and the audio chain to the IC-705 is sent wirelessly using the latest version of WFView. This works extremely well. The receive audio comes directly from the GQRX SDR software to the headphones so that I have a full duplex headset combination.

Audio routing is done via pulse audio on the Kubuntu PC and is very easy to setup.

Since I no longer have a mic connected to the IC-705 directly I found that I needed a way to operate the PTT wirelessly and this is where the latest addition to my NodeRed QO-100 Dashboard comes in.

Adding a little functionality to the NodeRed flow I was able to create a button that toggles the IC-705 PTT state on and off giving me the ability to easily switch between receive and transmit using a simple XMLRPC node without the need for a physical PTT button.

The PTT state and PTT button colour change is handled by the Toggle PTT function node shown in the above flow. The code to do this is relatively simple as shown below.

The entire QO-100 Dashboard flow has grown somewhat from it’s initial conception but, it provides all the functionality that I require to operate a full duplex station on the QO-100 satellite.

This simple but, effective PTT solution works great and leaves me hands free whilst talking on the satellite or the HF bands when using the IC-705. This also means that when using my IC-705 it only requires the coax to be connected, everything else is done via Wifi keeping things nice and tidy in the radio shack.

The image above shows the QO-100 ground station in receive cycle with the RX/TX VFO’s in split mode as the DX station was slightly off frequency to me. The PTT button goes red when in TX mode just like the split button shown above for visual reference.

As you can probably tell, I’m a huge fan of NodeRed and have put together quite a few projects using it, including my HF Bands Live Monitoring web page.

More soon …

Something New-ish?

Cuyahog Valley National Park – US-0020 is a massive park. It stretches a good way between Cleveland and Akron. There are over 100 miles of hiking trails scattered throughout the park and there are many nooks and crannies. On Saturday morning, I headed out to do an activation. I had some time and I wanted to go down to the Quarry area to work. But as I was driving, it occurred to me that going down into the valley after a couple of weekends of Less Than Stellar Propagation might be adding another layer of difficulty to something that had the makings of a rough day for the bands anyway.

Driving along, I came upon the Shady Knoll picnic area and pulled off there. It’s nothing more than a couple of parking spots and a few picnic tables. There was no one around and as I set up I could tell that the traffic zipping by not to far away might be a reason that more people don’t frequent this area. No matter! I got set up and got to work!

New Fangled Picnic Tables

The tables at the picnic area are the newer ones that I have seen in the park. They are quite thick. In fact, they are far too thick for the clamp mount that I have for my AX1 (more on the mount below!). I had wondered about this because I couldn’t recall if the Quarry area had those tables as well, so I tossed my mini-tripod in the backpack just in case. I’m glad I did!

Slow

I deployed the IC-705 and my Begali Traveler. I was set up for 40-meters and got to work. It was very slow going. There was the activity on the band, but contacts were few and far between. I stalled out after 3 contacts on 40. It was just a lot of calling CQ and a lot of silence coming back at me. Time to move to 20-meters!

The last time I was out, I sat on 14.069 and not for nothing. The waterfall on the IC-705 puts the 14.074 on the far right of the screen if I’m centered on 14.069. That means I can see the FT8 and FT4 traffic. This was very, very useful. As I was calling CQ and listening, I could see the bands fade in and out as I watched that traffic ebb and flow. It’s a handy little trick that I plan to use more often when things are questionable.

As one might imagine, it was slow. The time between QSOs was long. The bands were coming and going. When they were up, things were great! When they were down, I couldn’t hear a thing other than the occasional crash. After about 90 minutes, I had my 10 contacts. 10 minutes more and nothing heard. It was time to go QRT and get lunch with my son.

QSO Map

Here’s what my patience got me on the QSO Map:

A Note On The AM1

I mentioned my antenna mount above. I have the AM1 Portable Antenna Mount System from ProAudio Engineering. It is a wonderful mount for the AX1. It attaches well to normal picnic tables and even to the cargo cage of my Jeep. I take it everywhere. But I did notice something about it early on. It seemed that I got much better results attaching the counterpoise of the AX1 to the ground lug of my IC-705 rather than the lug on the antenna mount. I didn’t give it much thought because I found a setup that worked and I stuck with it. On Friday, I got an email from ProAudio saying that there was an issue with the lockwasher on the unit that wasn’t allowing a connection between the BNC connector and the lug. I got out the old meter and, yup, that was the case. A couple of moments with a file around the edges where the BNC connector passes through to remove the thick anodized coating and BOOM the meter confirmed that things were flowing where they ought to flow. I wasn’t able to play with that this weekend as the table was too thick for the mount, but I’m confident I will have improved results in the field.

Final

Another “struggle” of an activation with the bands being less than helpful. I still got to sit outside with my radio and enjoy The Big Blue Room. It felt good and it was far better than being indoors for sure. I’m not sure I will hit that spot again as the traffic noises kept a lid on the outdoor vibes, but it’s a place to remember when there are crowds elsewhere.

Thanks for reading along and 72!

Many thanks to Conrad (N2YCH) who shares the following field report: QRP POTA & SOTA on Killington Peak, Vermont By Conrad Trautmann (N2YCH) Peter (K1PCN) and I decided to travel from Connecticut to Vermont to view the solar eclipse that occurred on April 8, 2024. We got an early start on Sunday morning April 7th to … Continue reading SOTA, POTA, and a Total Solar Eclipse Adventure: Conrad and Peter Pack It In! →

Setting up a Microsoft Surface Go for Portable Ham Radio Data Modes.

Getting Out To Support The Parks

One of my favorite things in amateur radio is obviously getting out to the parks and participating in POTA as an activator. It’s also pretty clear that I really love hanging out at Cuyahoga Valley National Park – US-0020. There’s really not much better on a Saturday than to bike out to the park and enjoy a couple of hours in the sun making contacts. Well, the thing is…

April Showers? No… Just More Grey Cold

My wife and I were planning to bike out to the park. We were slowly getting ready and started to look at the weather. The temperatures were in the 40s, it was overcast, and the winds were around 18 mph with 32 mph gusts. We looked at each other for a bit and realized that this was totally doable, but probably not much fun. So we changed plans. I would go out to the park on my own and activate for a bit and come home.

I moved my gear from my pannier to my backpack and headed out for the park. The sky was grey and there was a pretty stiff breeze. I went with the AX1 and set up my TR-35 to give it another go now that I had changed a ton of settings on the ATU-10. I was hoping to get a random wire in a tree if I had time.

With everything set up, I got on the air.

Anybody Home?

I started on 20-meters because I did want the activation to move along today. It was a bit cooler than I wanted it to be and with no sun, being outside felt like a continuation of winter. As I called CQ and even spotted myself, no one came back for a long, long time.

The band was crashing. There were flashes of static and a very high noise floor alternating with dead silence. It was enough to make me question the rig and the antenna. I did what I did last time and swapped the TR-35 for my IC-705. No dice.

At this point, I was giving the AX1 some serious side-eye. I reached into my bag and pulled out my 40-20-10 EFHW and my throw line. With no one around, I picked a branch in a tree that was perfectly positioned and got the line over it on the first try. This was a Batman level throw and there was no one to see it. Such is the life of a POTA Activator, I suppose.

This antenna is really the best in my collection in terms of efficiency. It never misses. So why were the bands still crashing and quiet? Why was 40-meters fading like I’ve never heard before? Oh, ya know, just luck. Later on Mastodon I would have my complaints confirmed by a panel of experts who were also frustrated by conditions.

Finally…

I did get my 10. I walked away with 12 contacts total in about 2 hours of activating. Not the worst Support Your Parks Weekend story I heard about Saturday, but not my favorite by far. By the time it was all said and done, my fingers were cold and I was pretty tired of sitting outside in the grey. I guess my mind really believes that April should be warmer and more inviting. I forget where I am sometimes.

QSO Map

Here it is. From the looks of it, it wasn’t too bad. But it didn’t feel that way getting there.

Final

Yes, any day outside is better than one spent inside. I’m just impatient for REAL SPRING and some more time with that elusive yellow orb in the sky. I know it’s coming. And I know that my TR-35 will continue to get a workout until I get a full activation with it. The conditions will change. Things will improve. Next weekend looks good so far.

Thanks for reading and 72!

Amazing Weather!

The entire weekend was about picture perfect. The sun was out. There was a nice breeze. It was warm but not hot. We did have a little work to do with some plumbing on Saturday, but it got done and that made time for Other Things. And you know that means POTA!

Too. Many. Variables.

I decided that I’d go to my most local park which is the Cooperrider-Kent Bog State Nature Preserve – US-9401. It’s just down the street and seemed like a great idea since I had some Dad Taxi duties floating around with unknown timelines. The truth is that this park is a boardwalk look around a bog. There are no picnic tables and no space to sit, really. Thus I was consigned to the Jeep. I’ve shared many times that this is not my favorite setup. This was the first variable in play.

The second was the Penntek TR-35. I’ve been itching to get this little guy into the field, so I tossed it in my bag. I don’t know this transceiver very well, but the only way I learn is by doing.

The third variable was the one that might have wrecked things but I’m not really sure just yet. I recenly received an ATU-10 automatic antenna tuner as designed by N7DDC and built by a reputable seller to whom I shall not link until I have determined if I have a problematic unit or the dreaded Operator Error. I was planning to use this little guy to give the AX-1 that little bump that it needs to work with the TR-35. I’d measured the SWR on the AX-1 a few times in experiments earlier in the week and it just needed a touch of tuning. So little, in fact, that getting it right on the z-match tuner was a total pain. Why not try the ATU-10?

Lots of new stuff in a new place in an operating position I don’t love. What could go wrong?

This Looks OK…

I got everything set up. The AX-1 was clamped to my Jeep’s cargo bar. The tuner was set up on the dash. The TR-35 was hanging out on my speaker in the phone holder (not at all precariously!). Everything looked good. I hit the tuning cycle on the ATU-10 and things settled in at about 1.1:1. Cool! So I started calling CQ.

And I kept calling.

I spotted myself.

And kept calling.

The RBN heard me! That was good! But it was a very long time before I got a call. It came in at 599 for sure. The signal indicator on the TR-35 was lit up nice and bright. It was a perfect signal from Maine. No fading, no nonsense. It was impressive!

And then nothing. Some static. A few crashes on 20-meters. No other calls.

It was time to pack it in.

I wasn’t too phased by not getting the activation. It was a Saturday at about 3 PM and the weather was amazing. It was nice to sit there in the sun (in the Jeep) and play with my new toys. I had the nagging feeling that I get with a new rig that I did something wrong, but I don’t believe that there was anything to do wrong. Sometimes, the magic simply doesn’t happen. And that’s OK! Besides, as soon as I pulled out of the parking lot, my daughter requested pick up and food for her and her friends. Dad Life!

QSO Map

Here is what my QSO with Maine looked like:

Sunday Will Be Better

It is well known that my wife and I love to bike out to the Cuyahoga Valley National Park – US-0020. We do that most weekends in the summer and I always take my radio along to do a little POTA while we eat lunch. I figured this would be an easy win! Once again, I set up the TR-35 and the ATU-10 with the AX-1 and got to calling CQ. This time, I even used the message memory in the TR-35. Good stuff!

Lots of crashing on 40-meters. I got one contact with Michigan and then moved to 20-meters. More crashing. Maybe our local star was trying to wreck my flow, but it could also be that, again, I was using new stuff. This time, I was prepared. I reached into the bag and pulled out the IC-705.

And I got nothing.

It was almost 20 minutes until I got a contact. It was a Park To Park with an operator in Kansas. The crashing on the bands didn’t let up. There was a lot of fading. After about an hour and a half, I had 7 total contacts and a lot of band noise. I’m not going to give any side-eye to the new gear as I really do believe the bands were hot garbage. I also noticed that the POTA site didn’t pick me up on the RBN though I was getting picked up by the RBN. In fact, all of the activators only had spots from hunters. I wonder if there was a technical difficulty there. Not that it would have helped. You can only work what you can hear and there’s no hearing anything over that kind of noise.

QSO Map

Here’s what the map looked like for Sunday in the park.

Final

What’s does all of this mean?

Nothing. Playing with new toys is learning what they’re good at and where you have to give to take. I plan to take the TR-35 out with a resonant wire antenna in the near future and give it a chance to shine in some backyard portable. I also plan to take this week and mess around with the ATU-10. It seems to want to kick into tuning cycles at odd intervals. Maybe I just need to tune it and turn it off. I was pretty sure that I consumed all available documentation on the device and given that it only has 3 button press commands, it’s hard to imagine that there is a lot of user error here. I will report back with findings.

Also, it’s important to note that there’s no getting skunked in POTA. Sitting outside in the sun with a nice breeze on a Sunday afternoon is fantastic with or without contacts. It’s about playing with a radio outdoors. And that, my friends, is hard to screw up.

P.S.

I didn’t take pictures while I was out on these activations for no really good reason. So you get a picture of Bella the Rottie after a very, very muddy hike where she rolled in everything that she could. You’re welcome!

72!

Since I’ve been using my Icom IC-705 on the QO-100 satellite I’ve been getting no end of unsolicited great audio reports with one Op even saying I have the best audio he’s ever heard on the satellite.

Most people are surprised when I tell them that I am using the stock fist mic that comes with the radio. It’s nothing special, in fact it’s rather cheap and plastic, not particularly good quality however, it does seem to have a good sounding mic insert.

The other great thing about the IC-705 is that it has a two channel parametric equaliser built into the radio. Many people don’t realise this and miss out on the massive improvement they can make to their transmitted audio with just a few simple adjustments.

The stock fist mic has a very flat response across the audio frequency range out of the box and doesn’t sound particularly inspiring. Many see this as a negative and often just replace the mic with either a headset (probably from Heil), a boom mic (again probably from Heil) or another, better quality fist mic. All of these options cost varying amounts of money when in reality none of them are necessary.

Starting from a flat audio response is actually a good thing as it makes the equaliser adjustments more pronounced, making it easier to adjust the settings to suit your voice.

We all have different voices but, there is one thing that is pretty much the same for everyone and that’s the frequency range in which the articulation of the words and sounds we make can be found. It’s this part of the voice that is often lacking when we struggle to understand what the DX station is saying.

It’s become common place on the HAM bands these days for stations to boost the bass frequencies and reduce the mid and high frequencies with the net result of a horrible bass ringing sound and muddy mid range often making it very difficult to understand what is being said.

Having spent some considerable time watching the great videos on audio from the late Bob Heil, K9EID it’s clear that the most important frequencies to enhance are those around 2.5khz as this is where all the articulation is in the human voice.

To this end I set about setting up the audio on my IC-705 QRP radio so that my voice sounded such that it is easy to comprehend even in the most difficult of situations on air. This doesn’t mean that it has to be very harsh and overly bright, quite the opposite in that to be heard clearly in all conditions on air one’s audio needs to be balanced across the frequency range with an enhancement in the 2.5Khz frequency range.

To reduce the unwanted, muddy bass the first thing to do is change the transmit bandwidth for the “Wide” setting to 200-2900Hz. This will cut off the bottom 100Hz from the voice reducing the overall bass output from the standard fist mic that comes with the radio. This will ensure a 2700Hz wide SSB signal, the recommended max for QO-100 operations and the preferred bandwidth on the HF bands.

On top of this I made a further reduction of 2dB on the TX Bass setting to help balance out the overall audio response of the mic insert.

Next I set about enhancing the higher frequency response of the mic insert and found that it required an increase of 4dB to bring out the articulation of my voice. This enhanced my audio considerably compared to the standard output from the fist mic and improved the intelligibility of my voice considerably, especially in difficult band conditions.

To complete the setup I set the compression to 3 and mic gain to 35 so that the overall drive level is increased slightly giving a greater average output from the radio.

Once I’d got the audio setup correctly I enabled the configuration by setting the Transmit Bandwidth (TBW) to the “Wide” config in the IC-705 Function menu so that the correct settings were made active.

Ever since making these relatively easy changes I have had no end of unsolicited great audio reports from stations asking me what mic I am using and how I’ve managed to get such good audio from the IC-705. Many are surprised that I am using the OEM fist mic that comes with the radio and I’m sure there are those who don’t believe me!

Of course all voices are slightly different and these settings may not be perfect for your voice but, all those that have tried these settings have told me that their audio sounds better than ever and that DX stations often comment on how good their audio is.

I also went through the same exercise with my Yaesu FTDX10 with it’s standard fist mic and again achieved excellent results with it’s 3 channel parametric equaliser. I’ll go through the somewhat more complicated setup for the FTDX10 in another article soon.

What Are We Doing?

This blog exists for me to catalog sucesses and failures. The other thing it does is provide me with a place to put things so that I can get to them no matter where I am assuming – an internet connection. The topic for today is a refresher on my setup for my portable digital operations.

The Gear and Software

This discussion centers around the use of the IC-705 and the Microsoft Surface GO 2. I have no reason to believe that changing the computer will make any difference as I have gotten this working on other laptops, but the operating system will require some attention.

I’m running Ubuntu as my Linux distro on this device. There is pre-reading required to make this all work and we’ll get to that in a second.

Software includes the following from the Ubuntu repository:

• wfview
• fldigi
• WSJT-X
• Pat

I am currently using the fork of ardop known as – ardopcf from pflarue on GitHub. New and exciting things are happening here in the world of ardop.

The Pre-Work – wfview

There is a great set of instructions on how to get ALSA loopback devices set up appropriately for wfview in their well-written user manual. Start here:

Audio Configuration

With all of that done and in place, there are a few things to look at in wfview for rig control to make life a little easier. At the bottom of this page of the wfview manual there is some good information on setting up wfview to do what flrig would do. That’s what I do. Why? Because it’s working and keeps things simple. The important thing, in my experience, is to set the port number to something other than 4532 which is the flrig default. I set it to 4533 because that’s a safe port number.

Here is what my wfview External Control tab looks like:

It should be noted that I’m using the Virtual Serial Port. This is a mapping to /dev/pty/NUMBER and it takes care of itself once set up.

fldigi

With wfview up and running, setting up fldigi is relatively simple. The following configurations for audio and rig control are currently working.

The rig control settings are set on the HamLib segment of the Rig Control section in the configuration dialogue.

Use hamlib is selected.
Rig is set to Hamlib NET rigctl (stable)
Device is set to 127.0.0.1:4553 (as found in wfview)
Baud rate is set to 115200

All other settings are defaults.

With this complete, save and initialize the connection and then go to the main fldigi window to tune or send a station ID. Rig control and audio should function as expected.

WSJT-X

WSJT-X is the odd duck. My dad and I have the rig control configured differently, but it still works for both of us. What does that mean? There might be more than one successful configuration so maybe find what works and don’t touch it after that. What I use is listed here.

The Radio settings tab is configured as follows.

Rig: Icom IC-705
Serial Port: /home/jcw/rig-pty-1
Baud Rate: 115200
PTT Method: CAT
Data Bits: Default
Stop Bits: Default
Handshake: Default
Mode: Data/Pkt
Split Operation: None

The Audio setup matches the devices that are set in wfview but in reverse.

Note: I find the labeling in wfview to be counterintuitive. It’s probably just my broken brain, but I have to remind myself to flip things around and think about it as source/destination pairs. It’s probably just me.

The Audio tab is configured as follows.

Input: plughw:CARD=Loopback,DEV=1
Output: plughw:CARD=Loopback_1,DEV=1

With this configuration in place, one can test the rig control on the Radio tab or by going to the main window and changing frequencies. Running a tuning cycle briefly will test audio output.

ARDOP – ardopcf

ardopcf is available on GitHub as a binary. Simply download it and put it in /usr/local/bin, run a quick chmod+x on it, and it should be good to go. That’s all that it required of me.

With ardopcf in place, lauching ardop is fairly simple. I put it in a little script so that I don’t have to type out the arguments each time. I named the script “startardop.sh” and dumped it in my home directory. Creative, huh? Here’s what it looks like:

ardopcf 8515 plughw:CARD=Loopback,DEV=1 plughw:CARD=Loopback_1,DEV=1

When you start ardopcf, you should start to see pairs of numbers in the terminal showing you audio input levels. If you’re getting a lot of 0,0 then you might have a problem or wfview might not be running. Maybe your rig is off? Check your signal chain. If, on the other hand, you’re seeing numbers pop up every 4 seconds or so, then you’re in good shape.

Pat

Pat requires some homework and I’m just going to dump some output here. There are instructions for configuration here: https://github.com/la5nta/pat/wiki/The-command-line-interface

The crux of the matter is configuring ~/.config/pat/config.json. Your mileage is going to vary here, but my config looks like this:

{
"mycall": "KC8JC",
"secure_login_password": "NOTPUTTINGTHATONTHEBLOG-HAHAHA!",
"auxiliary_addresses": [],
"locator": "EN91hd",
"service_codes": [
"PUBLIC"
],
"http_addr": "localhost:8080",
"motd": [
"Open source Winlink client - getpat.io"
],
"connect_aliases": {
"telnet": "telnet://{mycall}:CMSTelnet@cms.winlink.org:8772/wl2k"
},
"listen": [],
"hamlib_rigs": {
"my_ic705": {"address": "localhost:4533", "network": "tcp"}
},
"ax25": {
"port": "wl2k",
"beacon": {
"every": 3600,
"message": "Winlink P2P",
"destination": "IDENT"
},
"rig": "my_ic705",
"ptt_ctrl": true,
"beacon_interval": 0,
"cwid_enabled": true
},
"serial-tnc": {
"path": "/dev/ttyUSB0",
"serial_baud": 9600,
"hbaud": 1200,
"type": "Kenwood"
},
"ardop": {
"addr": "localhost:8515",
"arq_bandwidth": {
"Forced": false,
"Max": 2000
},
"rig": "my_ic705",
"ptt_ctrl": true,
"beacon_interval": 0,
"cwid_enabled": true
},
"pactor": {
"path": "/dev/ttyUSB0",
"baudrate": 57600,
"rig": "",
"custom_init_script": ""
},
"telnet": {
"listen_addr": ":8774",
"password": ""
},
"varahf": {
"host": "localhost",
"cmdPort": 8300,
"dataPort": 8301,
"bandwidth": 2300,
"rig": "",
"ptt_ctrl": false
},
"varafm": {
"host": "localhost",
"cmdPort": 8300,
"dataPort": 8301,
"bandwidth": 0,
"rig": "",
"ptt_ctrl": false
},
"gpsd": {
"enable_http": false,
"allow_forms": false,
"use_server_time": false,
"addr": "localhost:2947"
},
"schedule": {},
"version_reporting_disabled": false
}

Wow. That’s a lot of stuff. That is the configuration that is currently working for me for sending Winlink email using ARDOP or telnet.

What a lot of people seem to miss is that Pat has a web gui that will run on localhost:8080. It makes using Pat a lot easier and gives a fresh, modern GUI to Winlink email. And yes, it handles forms and everything. It’s pretty darned cool!

To get that up and running, I use yet another creatively named script: startpat.sh. The contents of that are:

pat-winlink --listen "ardop,ax25,telnet" http

What does that do? It starts up Pat listening for connections on ardop, ax25, or telnet. I didn’t detail ax25 here because, well, I’m not done playing with that just yet. And telnet should always be there so that you can use Pat if you have a good internet connection and NEED to check your Winlink email. The http argument starts the application listening on 8080 for the web UI. With Pat running, all you have to do is go to https://localhost:8080/ui and you’ll see the web UI. You’re now free to explore Pat and send/receive Winlink email.

Final

This is the setup that is currently working for me. I will update this as I add other modes, etc.

As I mentioned in this previous field report, my buddy Mike and I spent the third weekend of March at Gorges State Park (US-2732) in Sapphire, North Carolina. We had a great weekend of hiking and just hanging out. Of course, I fit in a few activations! On the morning of Sunday, March 17, 2024, … Continue reading Cabin POTA with the IC-705 and MC-750 at Gorges State Park! →

Vacation Time!

The kids hit Spring Break for the last week of March and I took the week off to hang out with them. Of course, that means a little bit of camping because as a family that’s what we do. This time around, my wife, daughter, rottie, and I were the attendees for the camping portion of the week off. My son wasn’t feeling it and if he was going to be home, it made sense to leave the Old Man Dog aka Nacho home as well given that it was going to get cold and he’d likely not have a great time with it.

We packed up our camper and headed out into the far flung reaches of…Ohio?

We picked a private campground near Hocking Hills State Park – US-1958. Our plan was to set up and hang out and get over to the park to do some hiking as weather and mood permitted.

This trip was less about radio and more about learning bits and pieces about our camper. We used the heater for the first time and it was amazing! I had a lot of doubts, but the team at Opus has really thought it through. Well, that was until we turned on the water and the water heater started spewing water into the back compartment of the camper. This required some field maintenance which turned out to be field discovery of the comings and goings of the plumbing. Let’s just say I learned a lot and we’ll have water for our next trip, but we were using a kettle to pour water from the Jerry Cans for this trip. Live and learn, right?

The Park

Hocking Hills is known as one of the most scenic parks in Ohio. There are massive caves and waterfalls. It’s all very carefully laid out as to be accessible for everyone (in most places) and that’s great! This does attract crowds and I find that it’s harder for me to relax in nature with 300 of my closest friends.

The crew hiked to Ash Cave and then split up. The ladies and pup went onward and I headed back to the parking lot to attempt an activation.

Super Stealthy Ham Guy

This parking lot was loaded. I didn’t take any pictures because there were constantly people coming and going. I didn’t want to creep anyone out, so I only snapped a quick shot of my setup. It’s the stealth combo of the IC-705 and AX1.

I picked a picnic table that was off in the mud so that it wouldn’t be Prime Real Estate and got set up. It was interesting in that there was a tree to blind it from cars turning into the parking lot, but otherwise, I was in plain sight about 20 yards from the lot. No one even so much as looked at me. The low profile of the AX1 was doing its thing. I had my headset, so I was silent. I was sure someone would say something, but no one did. Weird!

I got to work an put 27 CW contacts in the log before I was rejoined by the ladies and the pup.

QSO Map

Propagation was good to me on 20-meters with my meager 5 watts. Here’s what the QSO Map looks like.

Final

That was the only radio I was able to work in while we were camping. But more happened later in the week when we returned home. Stay tuned for more excitement and thanks for reading along! 72!

The Weather Isn’t Why I Live Here

That’s not an entirely true statement. I’ve lived in places where the weather was far, far worse but there is something about having a bright, sunny, gorgeous looking day (as seen through the window of a house) and walking out into high 30s / low 40s temperatures. Not horrible, but when one is sitting still, not as comfortable as I might like.

Yes, I was back out at West Branch SP – K-1999 this past weekend. I’m chipping away at that kilo and I’m in the last 200 contacts. If there were to be a day where it was sunny and in the 60s, I’m sure I’d sit there until I got it done. But with high wind and cooler temps, well, an hour or so is just about enough time sitting still.

Saturday With The TR-45L

On Saturday, I decided to take the Penntek TR-45L out with me. I left any other options at home so that I’d force myself to get re-acquianted with this rig. I’m glad I didn’t have a fallback position as it forced me to reckon with some things.

Initially, I paired my Sunday Driver rig with the AX1. I don’t have a lot of practice with the Z-match tuner and I fiddled with it for quite a while. The rig wasn’t happy with the SWR. I didn’t have my QRP SWR meter with me (tactical error) so I couldn’t tell if the rig was really unhappy or just enjoyed blinking the angry red light at me. I know that we’re talking about less than 5 watts here, but I really like this radio and I don’t want it to be sad. It felt like a good idea to change it up.

My backpack always has my end-fed half-wave tuned to 40-20-10 and a random wire antenna along with my throw line ready to go in a single pouch. Why? Because in a pinch, the random wire will do what I need it to do and the end-fed has never failed me.

Note: I’m not saying the AX1 failed me. I’m saying I need more time with the tuner to figure out how to keep everyone happy.

I pitched the end-fed up into The Tree on The Branch and got back to it. This was a place where plugging the end-fed into the clamp mount I have for the AX1 was really handy. It keeps everying nicely positioned. I’m sure I’ll hear about some law of antenna physics I’m breaking here, but stuff worked. Everything was just over 1:1.

Working… Working…

I nabbed 14 contacts on 40-meters in about 30 minutes. It was pretty steady until it wasn’t. When 40 felt depleted, I moved over to 20-meters and picked up 16 more in short order. I did get a surprise contact from Alaska! NL7V was doing the heavy lifting on that contact for sure, but it’s in the log! It was a good spread of contacts and, as usual, the end-fed gave a stellar performance.

QSO Map

Here’s the QSO Map for the Saturday activation.

Sunday With My Buddy

Having been a bit humbled by my experience with the TR-45L and the realization that I’m going to need to do some backyard portable hunting to get a better feel for this rig, I took my old buddy the IC-705 out with me this time around. I decided to stick with the end-fed antenna just to see what I could see. I was not disappointed.

Setup took a little longer. On Saturday, I got the throw line up in one shot. Sunday, I looked like a blooper reel. There was a lot of throwing before I had the antenna in place. It got where it needed to be and things were set up and ready to go shortly thereafter.

QRN? What’s That?

I’m not re-opening the discussion. I’ve decided that QRN is all natural phenomena include geese and, in this case, really loud winds. I was set up and running along on 40-meters and about 15 minutes or so into my activation, the wind started howling. The trees were swaying. There were whitecaps on the water. I zipped up my coat and put on my watch cap and got back to it. It became a challenge to hear over it, but I kept going.

It’s probably an important thing to say yet again, but the average activator probably isn’t relaxing on a beach somewhere. At least, not if they are activating a park in NE Ohio in March. I appreciate the patience of the hunters who have no idea that they’re competing with the environmental noises at an activation site. Thanks for playing along! And yes, I do know more than CQ, my callsign, and “?”.

Surprise!

After depleting 40 and 20, I decided to give 10 a chance before I packed up. It was pretty quiet on that band. And when the IC-705 isn’t hearing something, it’s probably not able to be heard. But just as I was about to give up, I heard a very, very faint call. After much back and forth, I made out DL3AZ. Germany. On 5 watts into a wire in a tree. That’s the wild magic of radio. I got a 519 and I’ll take it all day long. After that contact, it was dead air and time to pack up before my fingers got too cold to function.

QSO Map

Here’s what the QSO Map looks like.

Final

I’m really looking forward to better weather, but until it gets here, I will keep heading out to the park 90 minutes at a time to enjoy some therapy in The Big Blue Room. It’s sometimes hard to remember what warm activations felt like – or ones where I would sweat! I know that they happen, but they feel like distant memories. They’ll be back soon enough.

Thanks for reading along and 72!

Radio enthusiast details QSO with GW4OZU using Icom IC-705, demonstrating JS8Call's efficacy in low-power HF communications.