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Topics - KK0G

#21
Technical Corner / KX1 Antenna Binding Post Mod
November 10, 2013, 12:48:35 PM
Since the addition of the ATU in my KX1, and the fact that when operating portable I use an EFHW antenna fed directly with no feed line, I've been wanting to install a set of binding posts to eliminate the need for a BNC adapter. Anyone who's built a KX1 knows that it's a very tight fit inside it's case with minimal room for anything else. After lots of measuring and calculating then re-measuring and re-calculating, I think I've located the spots for the posts. Since I put a fair amount of work into it I though maybe someone else might benefit from it. I figured these dimensions for the smallest binding posts I could locate: Radio Shack #274-661.


CAUTION!!: I have not yet drilled these holes and installed posts, I'm still waiting on nylon shouldered washers to insulate the posts from the case, this is simply the results of my measuring. Obviously none of these rigs are mass produced and each builder may build his slightly different so verify before attacking your case with a drill. Oh, and I could have made a mistake........ use at your own risk.
#22
Radio Reviews, Questions and Comments. / Tecsun PL-380
November 09, 2013, 11:10:18 PM
For years I never 'needed' a SW radio because I always had an amateur HF rig with general coverage receive of one model or another as my main shack rig. Now that that role is being filled by my new Elecraft K2 which does not have general coverage receive and tends to attenuate signals outside the amateur bands (which is a good thing by the way), I find I'm in 'need' of a dedicated SW radio. So off to research I go and.......

 


http://www.amazon.com/TECSUN-stereo-Receiver-Display-Function/dp/B004H912FC


This thing has lots of excellent reviews all over the interwebs and at only $45.10 shipped to my door how could I go wrong!? The only feature it doesn't have that would have been nice is SSB reception, but truthfully I very rarely ever listen to any SSB SW stations so it's not a feature that will be missed plus I still have that capability with my amateur rigs, just not all bands and with some attenuation.


Should arrive in 5-8 days, I'll give a review after it does.

#24
Digital Modes / Low Current Draw Netbook
October 28, 2013, 10:29:48 PM
Rays thread on e-mail over radio got me to thinking (dangerous 8) ) about powering a computer of some sort when the SHTF. Obviously most all desk tops are out of the question, the lack of inputs/outputs on tablets makes them a pain in the ass, laptops are at least feasible, but my guess is that a netbook of one flavor or another might be ideal. So of course I tried my Google foo and came up with about 16 gazillion hits when I searched "low current draw netbook". The problem is two fold; first very few manufacturers publish specs on current draw and second; most of what I do find is out of date since any computing device is obsolete about 2 nano seconds after it hits the market. The Raspberry Pi sounds like a possibility but it would require at minimum a separate monitor and keyboard which is just more stuff to break, get lost, left behind etc.


So who has good intel on low power, cheap netbooks?
#25
General Discussion / Bitcoins
October 16, 2013, 11:24:50 PM
Anyone here using Bitcoins? I've done enough research to at least understand the concept and the general framework of how it works, sounds like they have some intriguing advantages over traditional currency but of course there are disadvantages also.
#26
General Discussion / EBT Outage
October 13, 2013, 11:47:44 AM
http://www.kwwl.com/story/23676104/2013/10/12/ebt-card-outage-prevents-purchases-in-iowa-and-other-states-contingency-available


I think most of us here are aware of the significance of an EBT outage. This time it was down for only 10 hours, what happens when if it goes down for days? Weeks? When people with a "government owes me" attitude are facing starvation, things can get real ugly real fast.
#27
General Discussion / SWL Guide Websites
October 12, 2013, 11:59:39 PM
I've been monitoring SW broadcasts quite a bit lately and I thought I'd pass along a website I've found very helpful in navigating around all the S-meter pegging, fire and brimstone, religious stations here in the US - no offense if that's your thing but it's definitely not my cup of tea.


It's very versatile in that you can specify any combination of language, radio station, time, etc and it will spit out what's on the air, when, where on the dial and also display the transmitter location on a gray line map. I normally listen to Radio Habana Cuba, Radio Romania International, Radio Australia International and China Radio International; this site makes it easy to figure out which one of the multiple transmitters the stations have are using and at what time.




http://www.short-wave.info/
#28
Technical Corner / Aoyue Temp Controlled Solder Station
October 11, 2013, 10:32:08 PM
My Weller 40 Watt soldering iron that I built into a makeshift soldering station (switch in a rectifier to cut the voltage in half) has served me well over the years doing many repairs, homebrewing projects and building kits. Even with my 'sort of' temperature control set up I'm constantly fiddling with it chasing that perfect temperature that is hot enough to flow solder into a joint almost instantly yet is cool enough not to destroy the tip while idling. With my upcoming Elecraft K2 project I'll be doing a lot of soldering and I've decided it's finally time to step up to an actual temperature controlled solder station.


Hakko and Weller stations are a little out of the price range I'm willing to spend but I've been eyeing these Aoyue stations for several months now and they look promising. The 936B model gets excellent reviews on Amazon and is priced at $48 but I can get it on E-Bay for only $40. Either place has the usual free shipping typical of most Chinese merchandise.


http://www.amazon.com/Aoyue-936-AOYUE-Soldering-Station/dp/B000VINMRO/ref=sr_1_12?s=power-hand-tools&ie=UTF8&qid=1381542980&sr=1-12&keywords=solder+station


http://www.ebay.com/itm/936B-ESD-Iron-Soldering-Station-SMD-Desolder-Welder-Welding-w-Stand-Sponge-1-Tip-/390635897189?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5af3b6c165


Anyone have any experience with them?
#29
WOO HOO! I just sold my TS-2000 so I'll be ready to place an order for my K2 very soon.


I need a little advice from some experienced K2 CW ops - I know there's at least one guy here that fits that description.  ;)


My plan so far is to first of all order the Rework Eliminator Kit from unpcbs.com so that future upgrades will be much easier. The things I know I'm going to order is the K2 kit (of course), the RS-232 Interface kit, and the 160 meter kit (mainly so I can listen to MF AM broadcast and at $40 it's cheap anyway). I will not be ordering the 100 watt PA deck and likely never will. I seldom ever used the internal ATU in my Kenwood and see no reason why I can't live without it in the K2 so it's out for now also. The internal battery kit is also out since I already own a KX1 which is far more suited to portable operating.


That leaves three options that I'm still debating on, if I had the money I'd just order all the options but I don't so.............


1 - Audio filter (standard or DSP)
I'm assuming the standard crystal filtering is at least as good and probably better than the filtering in        my KX1 which is excellent. I'm not sure this the best bang for the buck so I'm leaning towards eliminating this option.


2 - Noise blanker
I've never missed a noise blanker in my KX1 and seldom used it on other rigs I've owned, of course on some of those rigs the noise blanker wasn't very effective. I'm leaning towards dropping this one also.


3 - SSB module
This is the one I really can't decide on. As everyone is probably aware I'm a CW op through and through, SSB just holds no interest for me any longer. I've stepped away from digital modes also. I'm assuming that just like my KX1, the stock K2 will receive in SSB simply by opening the filter wide enough, this is important to me since I sometimes listen to SW broadcast. If the SSB module is required to even receive then this one may be decided for me already.




Keep in mind that since I'm building it from the start using the Rework Eliminator kit, adding options in the future will be a piece of cake.


OK, the floor is open for questions, comments, concerns, cussing and name calling.
#30
Batteries & Solar / Portable battery capacity spread sheet
September 29, 2013, 04:36:07 PM
http://www.wa0itp.com/


The spread sheet is the 13th link down from the top. I played with it a little bit, interesting to calculate how long your batteries will last under different conditions and also the inverse of how much battery is required to last under different conditions.
#31

*SOLD*




As many of you are probably aware I've mentioned selling my TS-2000 to fund the purchase of an Elecraft K2. I want to give all my RadioPrepper friends first shot at getting it so this is the very first ad I've placed and I'll knock $100 off the price to any members here. I'll wait a few days before placing ads on QRZ and eHam............... don't you feel special being in an exclusive club? ;D


Included is TS-2000 S/N 80900035, original shipping box, owners manual, schematics, hand mic, acc. connectors and power cord - in other words everything that it came with when new. I'm also throwing in a Heil headset adapter. I replaced the display lamps with blue LEDs but other than that it is bone stock. It shows some minor wear from normal use but is in very good shape, everything is fully functional on this rig. I'll be asking $1100 + shipping on other sites but for RP members I'll take $1000 + shipping via money order/cashiers check.
#32
Technical Corner / TS-2000 Blue Display Light
September 27, 2013, 09:20:18 PM
Just finished reassembling my TS-2000 after replacing the burnt out display lamps with blue LED's (why oh why would any manufacturer in this day and age install incandescent lamps hard wired to the board that requires an hour of disassembly to access!?!? >:( ).  Doesn't look too bad if I do say so myself and the real beauty is the LED's I replaced the lamps with should last almost indefinitely.


So why Blue? Because I think it looks cool and I was tired of looking at an amber display all these years.  8)  Of course I was more tired of looking at a display with half the bulbs burnt out more than anything.
#33
Technical Corner / IC-735 QRP Radio
September 24, 2013, 09:33:05 PM
While I have my TS-2000 tore apart on my bench waiting for parts to arrive so I can replace the burnt out display bulbs, for old times sake I placed my old Icom IC-735 in the main operating position normally occupied by the Kenwood (although I've been using my KX1 as my go to rig for several months now). Even turning the RF gain control down to minimum it still wouldn't reach QRP levels, 12 watts was as low as it would go.......... so I "fixed" it 8) .


Turns out there are separate internal high and low adjustment pots on the main PCB. Now it transmits 4 watts minimum and 40 watts maximum. I suppose I could have left the high power setting alone but it was just begging to be reduced also and if I ever want full power again it's only a twist of a screwdriver away.


This old pig still sucks current like it's going out of style even on receive, and it has no narrow CW filter so it's wide as a barn door but it's still fun to play with.
#34
General Discussion / Armchair Survivalist program
September 22, 2013, 06:43:30 PM
I decided to scan around the SW bands today and discovered an interesting show at 9.480 MHz; The Armchair Survivalist. I checked the website they announced on air and from what I can tell it plays every Sunday from 2100-2300Z. I didn't necessarily agree with everything he discussed but he did have some good ideas and it sure as hell beats the usual fire and brimstone garbage so prevalent on the SW bands.
#35
Technical Corner / Broke my QRP rig today
September 12, 2013, 09:58:04 PM
I broke one of my QRP rigs today >:( . As I was climbing out of a motor grader my iPhone fell out of my pocket a landed on hard concrete shattering the glass covering the screen................ technically it is a QRP rig 8) . Fortunately I was able to find a replacement screen kit with tools on eBay for only $25. Not my usual QRP homebrewing/repairing project but I'll give it a shot.
#36
General Discussion / Backpacks
September 06, 2013, 01:39:52 PM
A recent Facebook discussion I had brought up an interesting question; what do you use for a backpack? Now I'm not talking about a little day pack, I'm referring to a fullsize, multi day if not multi week backpack. Several guys stated they love their ALICE packs, owning two of them - both medium and large - and having used them, I said an ALICE pack beat carrying your gear by hand in a suitcase but not by much 8) . They're definitely tough as nails being government issue but in my opinion they're the most unergonomic, uncomfortable, back and shoulder killing contraptions I've ever had the displeasure of packing.


I use an old school external frame pack that is very comfortable for packing many miles over rough terrain. Internal frame soft packs are all the rage these days but the two I tried on short trips were not to my liking, they were too hot having full contact against my back which also necessitated very careful loading to avoid hard pointy things in your back. The soft packs were also difficult to get the center of gravity high enough for my tastes.


So what do you guys use and why?
#37
General Discussion / Flying Lesson
August 18, 2013, 10:47:25 PM
I've wanted to learn to fly for longer than I can remember and I always said 'someday', well I took my first flying lesson today and had a blast. Today was more of a more of a motivator than anything else because I still don't have all the money saved up that I want before I get serious about flying lessons. I don't want to make the mistake of getting started and running low on funds half way through but it was nice to be able to apply a little of the knowledge I've learned while studying ground school.


After relaxing my death grip on the yoke I started to get a feel for straight and level flight then I made some beautiful uncoordinated turns 8) . Reading how it's done from a book is one thing but obviously applying the skill in real life is something else. I am glad I had studied beforehand though, that way I at least had an idea what I was doing wrong even if I didn't really know what the hell I was doing LOL.


Hopefully I can work some overtime and save up over this winter to hopefully be ready by spring. In the meantime............... study, study, study.
#38
General Discussion / Illegal Numbers
August 08, 2013, 04:05:42 PM
As usual the technical aspect is way over my head but the concept and it's implications are very interesting none the less.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wo19Y4tw0l8
#39
Batteries & Solar / Free power!!
July 28, 2013, 05:07:35 PM
The abundance of sunshine today motivated me to drag out my old homebrew solar panel. I charged all of my shack batteries including a 5 AH gel, a 4.6 AH battery made from two 6 V gel cell lantern batteries and the homebrewed NiMH pack in the photo. I know you're not really supposed to directly charge NiMH's like this but thought I'd try it to see how well it works or not, at worst I let the smoke out of them........... so far so good. I could have fired up the battery charger to top all these batteries off for probably less than $2 worth of electricity from the power company but where's the fun in that? 8)