XPost: rec.radio.amateur.moderated

Amateur/Ham Radio

///////////////////////////////////////////
First POTA activation

Posted: 15 Jan 2022 04:54 PM PST https://www.reddit.com/r/amateurradio/comments/s4z9ox/first_pota_activation/


Well I went to the club eyeball QSO and breakfast this morning. A newer
visitor (soon to be member most likely) was there and wanting to learn some radio so to speak. I asked one of the other members if there were any hf contests or events going on this weekend as I havent looked. He said he
didnt know of any but "Why dont yall run down to Lee State Park and try a
POTA activation."
Well I had relatively recently built a portable gobox type kit and had been wanting to try my hand at soMe POTA activations. So we loaded it an 20m vertical kit I put together and my lifepo battery up and headed down the
road.
We got set up next to the horse show ring and I went to power things up and realized my battery was "dead", I think the bms may have tripped in
hindsight, but dead for all practical purposes. Not one to miss an
opportunity or discourage a prospective new ham I realized I had a
powerpole jumper with me so I pulled the driver door off the Jeep and
pulled it up as close to my operating table as I could and ran the jumper
to the power connector for my 2m rig and ran the activation off Jeep power.
All in all we made 40 contacts, 2-3 park to park contacts and made a
successful activation. If any of yall happen to have been some of those
QSOs today thank you again!40 contacts also made for my largest # of
contacts in one sitting / day to date. The new guy is hooked now.
Thank you for listening to my rant / bragging 73! KK4MQN Russell
submitted by /u/FlyFreak
[link] [comments]

///////////////////////////////////////////
Noob trying to set up family emergency communication

Posted: 15 Jan 2022 03:33 PM PST https://www.reddit.com/r/amateurradio/comments/s4xjsl/noob_trying_to_set_up_family_emergency/


Good evening! Im a noob trying to get the hang of amateur ham/radio, with
the intent of setting up emergency communications that arent dependent on power/cell networks. Ive been watching Ham Radio Crash course and other
videos and am starting to understand things (I think), but before I start spending money, I want to see if Im on the right track.
Disclaimer: Ive tried to get basic grasp of the material before posting,
but Im sure Ill get something wrong.
Use Case #1: talk to my parents, who are a bit under 7 miles away (as the
crow flies) in a somewhat wooded/suburban area (no large hills or
buildings). Theyre open to radio, but budget isnt massive (ideally sub
$300) and I cant see them setting up any sort of permanent radio station or roof antenna.
Use Case #2: talk to my fiances parents who are a bit over 20 miles away.
No mountains or anything, the city isnt in between us, but the range and terrain is more substantial. I think her dad would be interested but havent brought it up yet.
Additional detail: Considering the emergency nature of the primary use
cases, I dont want to be dependent on repeaters which (presumably) will be offline in such a scenario as widespread power/network outages.
Current plan: using 50watt mobile radios, with external antennas that can
be placed on the roof, and using cars for power.
Again, I dont see my parents being willing to have a permanent radio
station and antenna, or investing in a base station + power source. A
mobile radio seems like it offers good power, and I get them up to speed
with using it/set up a plan for establishing communication in an emergency,
and then they can store it.
My preference is for my dad and I to get our Technician licenses, and *potentially* digital radios/DMR for the improved range and capabilities
over analog (text messaging over radio would be nice). However, Im somewhat considering 50 watt GMRS radios for the simplicity and lack of a test. Id rather not limit myself to GMRS, even if Im not primarily approaching radio
as a hobby, but it might be easier to sell/teach my dad on.
So, in conclusion: is this 1) a viable plan for communicating with my
parents and 2) is there a realistic change of communicating with my fiances much further away parents without getting into HF radios or relying on repeaters?
Additionally: is GMRS even equivalent in capability to analogue UHF/VHF
mobile radios, if I cant talk my dad into getting his Technicians license?
All responses/corrections/education is appreciated! submitted by /u/TheThreeLaws
[link] [comments]

///////////////////////////////////////////
Building a new PC for my station. Spec/parts suggestions?

Posted: 15 Jan 2022 01:52 PM PST https://www.reddit.com/r/amateurradio/comments/s4vb38/building_a_new_pc_for_my_station_specparts/


As the title says, I am putting together a new PC for my station, and I
would like your input regarding what minimum specs or I should have, etc.
This will be a Windows machine. I already have a Linux machine, but given
the amount of Windows-based ham software out there I would like a Windows machine. Any minimum processor recommendations?
I know that Ham software isnt typically super demanding, but I dont want to exclude any particular activities. At the same time, I dont want to build a high end gaming PC.
My thoughts right now are leaning towards a mini-ITX build so that it wont
take up much room and also will be somewhat portable. I dont want a laptop. Thank you all for any input or suggestions. submitted by /u/Ironring1
[link] [comments]

///////////////////////////////////////////
Mag Loop Concerns

Posted: 15 Jan 2022 02:32 PM PST https://www.reddit.com/r/amateurradio/comments/s4w85e/mag_loop_concerns/


Hi Im trying to figure out if there is any other dangers of being around
mag loop antennas. As I live in a duplex with a porch, and a mag loop is my only real option but to keep it simple Im thinking of putting the variable tuning capacitor knob with in arms reach. Besides the risks of high voltage variable capacitors, RF burns, if touched, and RF exposure limits, is arms reach to close? Is there anything else that I have to worry about. Also Im planning on operating on 20, 30, and the voice end of 40 meters with voice
and digital modes, pushing at most 20 RF watts, closer to 18 when coax
losses are factored in. Any advice would be greatly appreciated
PS, copper tubing vs aluminum tubing is there anything gained by having a bigger diameter but a worse conductor or not submitted by
/u/Independent_3
[link] [comments]

///////////////////////////////////////////
Library for the Dorji DRA818X

Posted: 15 Jan 2022 01:55 PM PST https://www.reddit.com/r/amateurradio/comments/s4vd44/library_for_the_dorji_dra818x/


Within the scope of my diploma thesis (a amateur radio) I have developed
this library for the Dorji DRA818X which is a radio module for 2m (DRA818V)
and 70cm (DRA818U).
https://codeberg.org/rene.schaar/Dorji-DRA818X
Feel free to use the library as giving me feedback or even proposing some optimizations submitted by /u/reneschaar
[link] [comments]

///////////////////////////////////////////
T2TL antenna orientation

Posted: 15 Jan 2022 06:57 PM PST https://www.reddit.com/r/amateurradio/comments/s51psa/t2tl_antenna_orientation/


Just a quick noob question - can a T2LT antenna be mounted in orientations other than vertical without degrading the signal?
Im wondering about 45° or horizontal mountings - what would be the
impact? submitted by /u/DifferentOffice8
[link] [comments]

--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: fsxNet Usenet Gateway (21:1/5)