Just got my long promised Yaesu 450AT

Started by Andywragg, March 28, 2018, 11:05:27 AM

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Andywragg

Hi Guys,

Finally I have a decent HF (+6m) base/portable radio system to use. I picked up a used FT450AT from the radio club last night. One of the old members has been silent key for 6 years and the surviving family have been meaning to clear the shack ever since. I had been told it was just a FT450 but on collection from the family it turned out to have had the AT fitted as well. It's in great condition as it hasn't been used much since 2007 (it wasn't used for nearly 2 years before the poor chap went SK). I've paid £250 for it in it's original box, with power cable and standard mic.

Just need to sort out a permanent place for it in my shack now, plus create a cable duct trough the outside wall, and install an RF earth link to the patio outside. Going to use a piece of RG8 shorted at the earth end with a 0.02uf 1KV capacitor at the other end to prevent the earth link radiating. I also need to put up a horizontal delta loop to use as the antenna. Going to be a busy easter weekend.
Once a 'STAB in the Dark'
M6UAW

gil

Nice find, and for a good price! It would be interesting to measure the minimum current on receive...

Gil.

Andywragg

Cheers Gil,

I'm so happy. I've just spent the last 3 days engineering the shack for the ft450. I've installed a cable duct through the wall, an RF ground system (using rg-8 coax and a capacitor as I'm on the 1st floor) and just today put up a horizontal delta beam (with a dipped nose) and got my first HF contact from the QTH to a station in Russia RW1F.

Once I get my server psu commissioned for use i'll be able to tell you as it will have a watt meter built in.
Once a 'STAB in the Dark'
M6UAW

RadioRay

Andy -

That's superb news ! Congratulations on the purchase and it also helps the SK's family as well. 
Who knows, but you and Gil might link-up on the air sometime.

de RadioRay  ..._  ._
"When we cannot do the good we would, we must be ready to do the good we can."  ~ Matthew Henry

Andywragg

A fellow club member has loaned me a data cable and I was using FT-8 for the first time last night. I only managed to QSO once in 2 hours but my reception report shows my signals were making it across the pond as far as Tampa FLA to the west and Novgorod, Russia to the East. I was heard in the Azores and the Canaries as well.

The down side is that even on 10W my TX is knocking out my VDSL connection - The teenage gamer (my soon to be 16YO son) was jumping up and down livid.
Once a 'STAB in the Dark'
M6UAW