Welcome to the Group!!

     There are some smart folks here. Everyone has different needs, locations and conditions. Don't try to invent the wheel, just see what works for others. This weekend I will help teach a radio "blitz" class at New Mexico Tech. All hams need to encourage new amateurs every way they can. If we don't help build new amateurs, there will be no future for amateur radio.

73'S  KA5SIW

Sunflower,
     Some of the best fun I have had at Field Day was before I had my license. Field Day is total fun for me. I truly enjoy stretching out antennas, helping to set-up stations, all the visiting with people and cooking the food.

     Guess after 30 years I am more of a helper than an operator.
     ON FIELD DAY THERE ARE PLENTY OF THINGS FOR EVERYONE TO DO, LICENSE OR NOT.
     ENJOY ALL THE FUN, 73's  KA5SIW

     Got my HF Packer amp kit. I already had one HF packer amp but it is dead, now I have a full kit to build and all the tech info to repair the first amp. In the past I had camped with my TenTec ArgosyD. If this works out I can take the Icom 703 and Packer amp and get the job done. I will keep the Icom 7200 for Field-Day or heavy-duty portable use. The Icom 7200 is a great radio after you throw away or mod the HM-36 mic.
     Already looking forward to Spring weather and doing some camping. For over 30 years I thought doing Field Day using a pontoon would be a blast. Talk about something that would be total fun for a 2 operator Field Day group. Yes, just pass the hot dog and coke, and don't get mustard on the logsheet.
73'S  KA5SIW

Start with the basics. Are your coax jumpers good?
Lots of hams don't solder the shield when they assemble PL-259 connectors.
Next put a dummy load at the end of the coax opposite the radio and make sure you see a good SWR through the coax to the dummyload.
Ground? Any antenna tuner needs a good ground.
I have T/S an antenna tuner only to find the tuner good and the coax jumper the ham was trying to use was bad.
I hope this helps,

It was darn cold and dry near Socorro,  New Mexico. We sure could have used some snow from that last storm. I understand there was a shortage of natural gas in Socorro. There was also a statewide shortage of propane too. I got all my propane tanks filled before this last storm hit. My Wife and I are ready for much worst. If we lost electricity that would cause problems, but we are set for a week without power (if needed). Sure could use some bad weather days off work to mess with radios.
73'S  KA5SIW

Hello,
     Well, my interest in QRP has peaked again and now I am going to try one of the TenTec (China) QRP rigs.
Talk about a lot on my plate, working on a license upgrade, CW skill rebuild and going to try some HF digital also.
     The Albuquerque Winter tailgate is 1/26/2013, I am cleaning out the shack, what to sell and what to keep???

     What are your plans for the new year?
     73'S  KA5SIW

Very similar to scanner antennas I have seen. A basic elbow to connect a wire 1/4 wavelength antenna to a receiver.

73'S  KA5SIW

Bob,
     Good info, The 1/4 wavelength ground radial helps, as a counter-poise on a hf station or a rat-tail on a HT. Be sure and keep your SMA or BNC connectors clean. Do not over tighten SMA connectors. The rated torque for SMA connectors is 10oz/in. Guess I am old fashion, I still prefer the BNC connector. It easier to add the rat-tail to a BNC connector.
     Take Care, 73'S  KA5SIW

There is nothing wrong with a bit of prepping. The other day a water main broke near our home and we were without water for 36hours. I was driving back to the house after work and my Wife called and said to pick-up some water. Stupid me, I went to the only con. store in the small town and paid $1.50 per quart of water. Learned my lesson.
I have lived through two brain tumors. Take this time to value life and the quality of time together. God Bless,  73'S  KA5SIW

Hello,

     You might want to get a TenTec Corsair instead of an Omni-C. It is much easier to rebuild the VFO on a Corsair than an Omni-C. Both radios are good and can hold their own to the new stuff. I like the older TenTec because they can be worked on and unless someone has badly trashed them, they are repairable. The TenTec rigs work great with Shure or Electrovoice mic's. Remember on the Omni-c the noise blanker was an option, on the Corsair is was standard. If you want to buy the additional filters they will cost you about $50-75 each. Both the Onmi-C and Corsair are kind'a big for mobile but great for field day rigs. I have an Omni-C and 4 Corsairs, great radios. I plan to put 2 Corsairs up for sale in the next 3-6 months.
Take Care, 73'S

Paul, Good point, you fine tuned what I wanted to say. E-bay has many rigs that were "tuned-up" by people that had no business inside a radio.

Mitch, Even with older analog rigs it was not uncommon for hams to mark the face of the rig to note different controls "sweet spots". Some operators I know even record that info in a notepad.
Most of the newer digital rigs have a factory reset command, is case someone adjusts a control, out of range.
With digital rigs, unless you know what you are doing and have an ESDS workstation, you should never open a rig. PERIOD!!!
On some rigs just a simple mic miss wire can cripple a rig and cause costly repairs.
Take Care,  73'S  KA5SIW

Just from my experance, I don't care for all-in-one radios. I prefer a stand along hf or hf/6meter rig and then a 2meter/440 HT. That way I have a 2nd option if one radio is broken. Also since I may go months without using a radio, the menue thing is hard for me. I like the more simple to use rigs like the TenTec Corsair and older Icom HF rigs.
Take Care, 73'S  KA5SIW

My solar system will use 2 6v golf cart batteries in series.  That is more cap. than 4 12v deep cycle batteries in parallel. The inverter is 1500watts. Since I don't go into my radio shack everyday I can use lower output solar panels. I plan to use about 300 watts of panels. Everything is already purchased except the batteries and I hope to put the system on line by the end of the year.
     The power company charges me $30.00 a month base charge as this is a stand alone building. Many months I don't use 2KWatts of energy. I built this system on a shoe string and plan to be money ahead after 2 years. By the way, I use propane for heat and in the Summertime, I am too busy to do radio work. The only shortfall, I can't power my HF amps with this system. I plan to sell the AC powered HF amps and buy a solid state amp. Will keep you posted. 73'S  KA5SIW

Some good points here. If you live someplace where people drill water wells, you can find out how deep the sub surface soil moisture is. If you don't want to use salt to decrease soil conductivity you can use copper sulfate, but it costs more money.
Someday when I put my tower up I plan to use one vertical and one angled ground rod for each tower leg. Keep all ground connections in good cond. either solder them, cad-weld them or use pentatrox to stop corrosion.
73'S  KA5SIW