I put together a radial system for my 5 band trapped vertical antenna. I’m using (32) 16.25′ radials, soldered to a 10 gauge bare copper wire. The copper ring will connect to the 3 bolts at the base of the vertical. For wire, I purchased a 500′ roll of underground dog fence wire at Home Depot. Each wire will be buried just below the surface in a star burst pattern. I used the ARRL antenna book to calculate the optimal radial system for the amount of wire I have.
Category: B’s Blog
-
5BTV radial wire system
5BTV radial wire -
Blue Sky Marathon 2013
Erin and I helped with the Indian Summer North aid station at the Blue Sky Marathon for our 4th consecutive year on Sunday. Erin was the race photographer, and I helped with radio communications. It was a fun day, with great weather. I made a time-lapse movie that covers roughly 7am to 1pm, looking West from our aid station.
-
Homemade shock cord whip Part 1
I decided to try making my own shock corded whips for my Buddipole system. There are a couple of good reasons to do this. So far I’ve purchased all parts at 13″ or less to keep the Buddipole good for travel. The Buddipole whips look nice, but they’re 22″ long and are expensive.
For about $50 shipped from quest outfitters in Florida, I purchased (18) 13″ Easton 0.340″ tent poles. My plan is to machine brass adapters for a tight slip fit between sections, and a 3/8-24 brass adapter for the versatee. All parts will be held together with 1/8″ shockcord. This will give me a set that can be used as a dipole, or as a vertical with my RAK. More updates once I start turning metal!
-
2013 North American Summits on the Air Weekend
September 7th & 8th is the annual SOTA Activity Weekend
North America SOTA Activity Weekend is a casual event involving tiny battery-powered radios on mountain summits. It is not a contest but is intended to introduce “Summits on the Air” to newcomers with home stations who try to work summit operators during one or two days. There are no rules regarding power levels, modes or number of bands worked, but please be courteous when more than one station is trying to talk to a SOTA operator on a summit. The SOTA operators have just climbed mountains as high as 14,000 feet; they use low power; and they don’t receive on split frequencies.
Check SOTAWATCH.org to spot who is on which mountain. Summits are numbered, and you can hover your cursor over the number to see the name and point value for each summit. Expect that website to show activity near 7.032, 7.185, 10.110, 14.342, 18.095, 18.155, 21.350, 24.905, 24.155, 28.420, 146.52, 446.00, and 61 Khz up from the bottom of 20, 15 and 10 meters CW. Participants are invited to collect points toward certificates and trophies offered by the eleven-year-old international SOTA group (SOTA.org.UK). As we learned in past years, this is a barrel of fun for both hill climbers and home operators. See you then.
-
Honda Element Ham Antenna
Installation of a NMO mount in a Honda Element:
Removing the upper console. Pry out the 2 light covers, then use an 8mm nut driver to remove the bolts.
The A pillar trim pops off without any tools. The coax can be tied to the wire bundle behind the panel.
Lay a tape measure on the roof. Line up the end of the tape with the black edge of windshield. This could vary depending on your windshield. On mine I measured 9″ from this point for my 3/4″ hole, made with a step drill.
Here is a larsen 2/70 antenna installed. I am going to order something shorter that will clear the garage door.
-
Gulf Hagas
Paul and I took the Blue Bird of Happiness to Gulf Hagas this year for the annual bus trip. We had trouble at the gate. They told us we were too big for the active logging road. Our solution? The moto! Nope, that’s too small she exclaimed.
So, we found a camping spot out an unused logging road. The next day we searched for a secret road into Gulf Hagas on the moto, but found it does not exist. We hitched a ride from the gate.
There are more photos at Smugmug! -
Road Trip!
I got to spend 2 weeks camping with the dogs between California and Colorado. We hit up Zion, Bryce, Moab and the Dixie National Forest. Great trip!
-
High Park Fire photos
Here is a gallery link to the photos I’ve taken (and will take) of the High Park Fire burning near Fort Collins, CO. This fire apparently started from a lightening strike that smoldered for several days, then roared to life early on Sunday morning, 6/10/2012. I’ll continue adding photos to this gallery as I take them.
-
Element Bed, part 2
I am about finished with the construction of my bed, and it turned out as good as I had hoped for! It can be installed or removed in less than 15 minutes, and it retains all original functionality.
The rear legs support the bedframe against the floor of the Element. They need to be removed to get the frame in/out of the car, and can be easily removed with a 7/16″ wrench. I used Nylok nuts to keep them from vibrating loose.
I added Unistrut spring loaded nuts to the Honda strut rail where the original seats attach. I did need to grind a tiny amount off the strut nuts to fit the metric rail. These nuts can stay installed when the bed is removed.
Photo of the bed rails installed with the original seat trim.
Photo of the bed installed, before being wrapped with faux leather.
Bed frame before paint and plywood.
Full view of bed frame. The plywood is attached with #10-1″ self-drilling metal screws. They fit the 3/4″ light-gauge square tubing very well.
Frame with plywood, getting ready to staple on the faux leather. I used automotive headliner as the backer for the leather, to add a little cushion. It turned out to be very comfortable to lay on.
Bed with front section folded back for travel. The plywood measures 47″ Wide. The rear section is 48″ long, and the front section is 24″ long. I used a piano hinge for the joint.
I stapled continuously along the bottom edge. I plan to make a lighweight aluminum trim strip for the visible section on the front folding section.
