I might have bitten off more than I can chew(!) in the time-period I have set myself.. but the Quad is on track, the new field is still coming along and I’m half-way through a complete re-modelling of the shack. Tune in! Callum.
Category: DX Commander
Callum’s Videos
Not your normal review. I hate HT (Walkie Talkies). Correction. I love the IDEA of an HT but I’m too far away from a repeater to ever make use of one and I’m miles from anyone else with one.. However, if I had to buy one, this would probably be on the list. I phoned Mike M0MSN for his opinion.
Learn how to build this HexBeam on a budget. Callum.
Full Parts on Colins channel. This is his HexBeam playlist as discussed:
Parts list etc here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1ftLL1dIJ2aD1lRSk7CY7_P8sdURkuglZ
Tilt over towers can be very dangerous in the hands of inexperienced users – however I have experience of a falling derrick system to raise and lower an antenna mast. Of course, you can use self-supporting towers, hydraulic towers, wind-up towers, trailer towers etc but I need something that COULD be removed with very few moving parts and is fairly economical. This is my plan. What do you think? Callum.
The standard "UHF" PL259 RF "male" connector mates with a "female" SO239. N-Type is similar but they are not compatible with each other or interchangeable at all. I have ordered some SO239 connectors with a particularly long thread-body. I am interested in your opinion!
PS – Jim’s video was good in that it demonstrates that not all N-Typle connectors are the same. He got some really interesting results. Jim’s video is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-62aHGnSz8
I don’t normally repair things because I’m not a good repair technician. I would normally send this away for repair BUT it seemed an easy fix and I got lucky this time. Fluke 15B+ Fuse Replacement! Callum.
We formally have the go-ahead for the new Antenna Field! Let’s chat about progress on the Tower idea and the Cubical Quad antenna 🙂 Callum.
https://youtu.be/9M7bTWxlPHY – This is the old tower project with falling derrick
https://youtu.be/3r9ff32j9Yo – Original Cubical-Quad video
I show you how to calculate the right sized loading coil – and how to make your wire dipole or vertical antenna shorter by placing the correct loading coil in the right place on the wire. Links as follows:
https://www.66pacific.com/calculators/coil-shortened-vertical-antenna-calculator.aspx – Coil Placement
https://www.66pacific.com/calculators/coil-inductance-calculator.aspx – Coil Calculator
DX Commander Summer Open Day. 17TH Aug 2024, Holly Farm Business Park, CV8 1NP. 12 noon until 16:00. Meet the DXC crew and some other UK Creators.
SALE: 20% off EVERYTHING plus some special deals and we’re letting you buy all our old prototype components dirt cheap!
Please RSVP here: https://dxcommander.com/event/2024-dx-commander-open-day-17th-august/
In this video, I make a 40m delta loop out of Kevlar cored copper braid antenna wire, with strain relief and I attach the 4:1 balun that Mike and I made last year. Enjoy. Callum.
Here’s the article I found: https://practicalantennas.com/designs/loops/loop-sizes/
The 4:1 Balun with Mike https://youtu.be/CZf-dwWIUDo