985 Workbench: 2025-01-03

My Week in Radio

KC3TMZ, Matt:
- 3d-printing and building antennas is great
Trying to build a tactical delta loop
- 4:1 balun
- 2 17 ft whips
- 25 ft wire for the top
- 3d-printed base
- not great so far
- will be using the 4:1 with other antennas, like rybakov
ISS pass with APRS
- decoded relayed packets from Pittsburgh PA, Smyrna DE, Atlanta GA.
Bluetooth control of a radio is pretty convenient, big phone screen

Others

KC3TMZ, Matt:
- ordered a bunch of ferrites, enameled wire,
- 3d printing some antennas
KC3NZT, Harvey:
- met up with KD3AIS
KC3RFG, Jim:
- organizing the shack
NA3CW, Chuck:
- PMA AM Net on 75m
  - it’s moving later due to propagation: 5pm
- working on Joe’s tower project
KC3OOK, Bill:
- drywalling the hamshack
- working on Joe’s tower
  - almost all bolts installed an tightened
  - guided tower with rollers, aligning
WA3KFT, John:
- nets: Packrats, DelVa, Weather
- spoke to David in Texas on 15M
- Bob on 10M in Virgin Islands
- nice band openings
KC3TYX, Vic
- VE accreditation.
- helped with first VE session.
  - all computerized
  - worked with WA3VEE
KC3SQI, Wayne:
- chasing POTA
  - West coast, 20M
K3YVQ, Jack:
- working on go-box for crossband repeater
- relay from HT on a hike to car with 50 watts
KD3AIS, Tim:
- visited KC3NZT
W3QP, Tim:
- preparing for some SOTA activations
WA3VEE, Ron:
- worked a VE session
- organizing the shack
- working on lesson plan for technician review to prep for general
  - short videos / presentations
  - can arrange to do some teaching up here instead of just in delaware
N3CRE, Charlie:
- trying to hook a headset to FTM-500
W3EMF, Jerry:
- originator of the Workbench Net
- new 2M rig in vehicle to access 985 more

Questions

KC3TMZ, Matt:
- Purchased a new antenna that may want ground radials. What’s the best way to connect temporary radials to an antenna?
- KC3NZT, Harvey:
  - is removable a requirement?
- KC3TMZ, Matt:
  - radials can stay, stapled to the ground
  - he wants to remove the vertical element, so dogs don’t tangle leashes
- KC3NZT, Harvey:
  - terminate all radials to 1 ring terminal and screw that right to a ground rod
  - it’s a 20/15/10M trapped vertical (he sold it to him)
    - doesn’t need guyed
- KC3TMZ, Matt:
  - liking the idea of a metal pipe into which he can just drop the antenna
- WA3KFT, John:
  - worked in a AM broadcast
  - drive a pipe into the ground to slip antenna into or onto
- NA3CW, Chuck:
  - drive a pipe into the ground, flush
  - has a PVC pipe that holds up an inverted-v
- KC3NZT, Harvey:
  - copper braid with ring terminals, inexpensive on amazon
  - be careful to not short feed with ground in metal pipe socket
KC3NZT, Harvey:
- magmonut often comes with a length of coax. is there a magmount wiht an SO-239 so you can do use whatever coax you want?
- W8CRW, CR:
  - make your own.
- WA3VEE, Ron:
  - make your own.
- KC3SQI, Wayne:
  - there is a bulkhead mount with SO-239 for the antenna that could be added to the magnet
- K3YVQ, Jack:
  - there’s an empty magnet mount
KC3WWC, John: I have a talent, how do we avoid doubling during checkin?
- AF3Z, Jim:
  - don’t worry about it
- NA3CW, Chuck:
  - silent “this is”. grab carrier, drop it, then give call.
- KC3SQI, Wayne:
  - some nets use “this is” protocol. that lowers the chance
  - net host resolves it
- KC3NZT, Harvey:
  - click method, and it doesn’t matter
- AF3Z, Jim:
  - bigger issue is digital link people and leaving enough space
- WA3VEE, Ron:
  - pulse/click method, silent “this is”
  - net control watches for doubles
  - net contral asks for checkins
K3YVQ, Jack:
- Can I combine 2 batteries of different capacities in paralllel on a bus to get larger capacity?
- WA3KFT, John:
  - yes, it’ll work.
  - has a bus with power supply and battery on a bus of banana plugs
  - ok if they’re the same voltage
  - plug the batteries on the ends, and radios in the middle
- KC3NZT, Harvey:
  - batteries are sometimes limited on max current
  - lithium batteries’ voltage drops very late in discharge
  - a deader battery could be a strong current draw
- K3YVQ, Jack:
  - they have BCM, so they protect themselves.
  - may look into 12V cigarette lighter to power pole charger.
N3CRE, Charlie:
- Having trouble pairing a wireless BT headset with FTM-500.
- K3YVQ, Jack:
  - check that the bluetooth protocols are compatible
  - maybe a firmware upgrade will fix it

After Party

KC3NZT, Harvey:
- when we lack questions, we should present little lectures on testing and equipment.
- WA3VEE, Ron:
  - has demonstrated diagnosing feed line problems
- NA3CW, Chuck:
  - some things can be explained verbally, others more visual
- KC3NZT, Harvey:
  - a list of resourcse and videos could live on 985 website
- WA3VEE, Ron:
  - lots of zoom practice with document camera, etc in his shack
- KC3WWC, John:
  - I’ll bring my balun around for diagnosis on video
  - I have watched a video on using nano vna to test filters and baluns
  - I like to optimistically use it first, then dig in more if needed
  - I think that keeps me doing stuff that I might otherwise not realize to be possible
  - document my beginner experiences on a blog for my reference and others
- W3EMF, Jerry:
  - echolink in the mobile
  - calling from Elizabethtown

My Week in Radio

Others

Questions

After Party

See also