Category: K6ARK Portable Radio

Trying to those last few states, grid squares, or DXCC entities? Want to make a contact with a particular station half-way around the world? VOACAP is an incredible tool to help plan your contact and maximize your chance of success.

As part of the YouTuber’s Hamfest – 2021, I’ll be spending 30 minutes presenting what I’ve learned about VOACAP and how to use it to maximize your odds of that elusive DX contact.

I took the homebrew QRP 1 m diameter small transmitting loop out to a local summit for some fun and was surprised with some fantastic propagation, on 40 meter nonetheless. This was one of my first DX contacts on the band, and with a small compromise antenna and QRP power, nonetheless.

Small transmitting loop antennas are relatively simple and fun to build. Here’s a little helpful info to get you on the right path to building.

https://www.66pacific.com/calculators/small-transmitting-loop-antenna-calculator.aspx
http://webclass.org/k5ijb/antennas/Small-magnetic-loop-K5IJB.htm

Also check out @Amateur Radio VK3YE’s videos here on YouTube – he has done lots of work with small transmitting loops.

Here’s the hardware I use to make the larger part of the loop. Pretty simple bar-stock aluminum folded out straight and then bent into a circle. Works great!
1/16" x 1/2" Flat Aluminum Bar: https://amzn.to/3trTdAX
Mini project box: https://amzn.to/3h8FeNP
6-32 x 1/2" Stainless Screws: https://amzn.to/3tmqI7G
6-32 Nylock Nuts: https://amzn.to/33lLnyj
#6 Flat Washer: https://amzn.to/3h9YJWy

Feeding and matching a loop takes a bit of trial and error, and some specific electrical components – primarily variable and potentially also switched capacitors that can handle very high voltage and currents. Study up before you build to optimize your design.

If there’s interest, I can create some videos that go more into my strategy for building and matching these types of antennas. It’s a fun build!

A local SOTA activation offered a great opportunity to test out a newly purchased solar panel while having a little fun. Spoiler alert: I’m impressed. This panel is sold. It packs small, puts out lots of power, and is decently light. And the icing on the cake is that the price is reasonable.

Here’s the panel I’m using: https://amzn.to/2PlWhR4

It’s made by a company called "Topsolar," undoubtedly produced in China, but the quality seems solid and the features are great. The panel has a full-voltage output, USB, and most interestingly, a 14.4 V output that should work well charging LiFePO4 cells directly through a balancing BMS.

The Powerfilm solar panels are the cream of the crop, but I’m just not sure I’m willing to shell out 5x the price of this panel for one of them. So this was my pick, based on a bunch of digging through options online in the $2/watt range.

As a bonus on top of testing some new gear, the activation was a blast, with about 85 contacts in the log.

Topsolar folding panels on Amazon
100W Solar Panel: https://amzn.to/3nlsiVT
60W Solar Panel: https://amzn.to/3aEDOGT
30W Solar Panel: https://amzn.to/3tTLyMD

I regularly utilize a Coaxsher chest pack for SAR, and sometimes for recreational use (front-country and backcountry skiing, mountaineering, peak-bagging, etc.) and I wanted to give a walk-through of what I carry in it. Perhaps you’ll find some of these ideas useful for your use, whatever that
may be.

@Ham Radio Crash Course recently did a video review (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EILFg0RPyOY) comparing the Coaxsher RCP-1 chest harness to a similar Abree model. I primarily use the slightly smaller Coaxsher RP-1 Scout (https://amzn.to/2Ojyukl) which is a bit smaller and more comfortable to wear. It still carries everything I need.

Packs:
Coaxsher RP-1 Scout: https://amzn.to/2Ojyukl
Coaxsher RCP-1 Pro: https://amzn.to/39FOUei
Similar Abbree chest harness: https://amzn.to/39FbC62

Other Gear:
Wouxun KG-UV9T Plus: https://amzn.to/3cKqYID
Smiley Antenna (great amateur radio antennas too!): https://www.smileyantenna.com/default.asp
Kenwood SMC-34 Speaker-Mic: https://www.dxengineering.com/parts/kwd-smc-34
Compass – Suunto MC-2: https://amzn.to/3duTPjb
Signal Mirror: https://amzn.to/2QTqK9t
Mini Duct Tape rolls: https://amzn.to/31GEDtQ
Trauma Shears (Madison Supply): https://amzn.to/3mpFgle
Medical Gloves: https://amzn.to/3uxyIUz
Headlamp – Zebralight: My favorite model – https://amzn.to/2PRxgxc. (Many others available with different battery types (AA, CR123, 18650), beam styles, colors, etc.)
Ivy-X Wipes: https://amzn.to/2PUx0gC
Rite in the Rain Notepad: https://amzn.to/3uirsLP

So let me know what else you would add to your chest pack that I might have missed.

Thanks for watching.

The respite of a peaceful night on a desert summit was a much needed break from a hectic work week. To sweeten the deal, I knew "Radio Runner", Chris (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOHCTGeSGqt1r76DvVJH_ww) would be on a summit, and propagation conditions were looking good for a potential Summit-to-Summit contact. So we packed up the gear, met up with a friend, and set out for the desert. Hope you enjoy coming along for the journey.

If you have any questions about the gear I use, post in the comments below. You can also find a bunch of my favorites in my amazon store: https://www.amazon.com/shop/k6arkportableradio. Amazon gives me a few pennies on the dollar for purchases through that link, but it doesn’t cost you any more.

Beautiful weather in the mountains of Anza Borrego were too tempting to pass up, so Johnnie and I headed out to a beautiful part of the park with a fun SOTA summit. A little hiking, SOTA, and rock climbing made for a fun day. Hope you enjoy coming along for the adventure.

I have to say, I’m a pretty lucky guy to have a better half who loves the outdoors as much as I do, and is willing to spend a little extra time on a summit a summit while I play radio.

QRPVer Radio – https://qrpver.com/transceivers/qrpver-1-v-2-jt65-psk-bpsk-fsq-qrp-transceiver.html
QCX Mini Kit – https://www.qrp-labs.com/qcxmini.html

If you’re interested in my gear and projects, I am constantly adding items to my Amazon store which makes it easy to find the goodies that I like to use. I do make a few pennies on each purchase through these links for sending traffic to Amazon, but there’s no extra cost to you. https://www.amazon.com/shop/k6arkportableradio

When old man winter brings you the gift of snow, you take advantage of it. In SoCal, it doesn’t last long, so you might as well.

Although the radio operating wasn’t anything to write home about, the adventure and beauty of the SoCal mountains certainly was. Hope you enjoy joining me for the adventure.

—–

I’ve amassed some of my favorite gear in an Amazon store for those who may be interested. Amazon gives me a small kick-back on any purchases through the store. https://www.amazon.com/shop/k6arkportableradio

For the January VHF contest, I decided to have some fun from a SOTA summit. I set up as a 3-band station and operated for about 5.5 hours. Lots of activity on the bands, and many contacts. Enjoy the show!

#MNHR Playlist: -coming soon-

I will certainly be making build videos for the 6m yagi and the Extended Double Zepp. The 2m/70cm yagi already has a build video: https://youtu.be/a4XIgYD-d1k

I created an Amazon store with a bunch of the goodies I use to build antennas and play radio. Check it out: https://www.amazon.com/shop/k6arkportableradio

Amazon gives me a small kick-back from any purchases through that link.

Here’s a run-through of how I optimize my low-power Windows tablet for portable FT8 use. These little low-power computers struggle with difficult tasks, but with the right settings you can make them work well enough for portable FT8 use.

This tablet is a HP Pro 608 G1 purchased in December 2020 for about $80 on eBay. Here’s how I set it up for portable use on FT8.

Here’s the summary:
00:00 Intro
00:45 Uninstall all unnecessary applications.
– Search: "Add or remove Programs." Uninstall what’s not needed.
01:15 Disable unnecessary Startup Applications
– Search: "Startup Apps." Uncheck anything that’s not absolutely needed.
01:45 Turn off Tablet Mode
– Settings – System – Tablet mode
– "When I sign in" – "Use desktop mode"
02:42 Touch Keyboard
– Settings – Devices – Typing
– Touch Keyboard
– "Play key sounds as I type" OFF
– "Show the touch keyboard when not in tablet mode and there’s no keyboard attached" ON
03:03 Turn off Notifications
– System – Notifications and Actions
– "Get notifications from apps and other senders" OFF
03:23 Optimize for Performance
– Search: "Adjust the appearance and performance of Windows"
– Select "Adjust for best performance"
03:59 Power Performance Settings
– Click "Battery" icon in system tray
– Use higher settings for better performance at a battery cost
04:34 On Screen Keyboard Shortcut
– Search "On-Screen Keyboard"
– Right click, pin to Task Bar.

WSJT-X Website: https://physics.princeton.edu/pulsar/k1jt/wsjtx.html
Dimension 4 Time Sync: http://www.thinkman.com/dimension4/

What other settings would you tweak to optimize performance? Let me know in the comments below.

I finally found a portable FT8 solution that I’m satisfied with, and it doesn’t involve a Raspberry Pi. Pi computers are great, but they require a separate power supply and the use of your phone as a VNC viewer to control the computer. Phone screens are tiny, and controls are difficult.

So rather than using a Pi and a phone or tablet, I thought, why not just use a small windows tablet? So I did.

I found a slew of Windows 10 capable laptops on eBay for various prices. I settled on the HP Pro Tablet 608 G1 Tablet which can now be had for about $80-90 in good, refurbished condition. I picked up one of those and paired it up with a cover and stylus.

From when I used a FT-817, I have a WolphiLink adapter that acts as an audio and VOX keying circuit. Unfortunately, these were recently discontinued. The manual with schematic are on the website and a creative ham could likely build a similar device.
http://www.wolphi.com/interface/

For audio output from the tablet, I have found that a USB-C audio output adaptor works best: https://amzn.to/2LX3MMg

How do YOU operate digital modes including FT8 in the field? Tell us in the comments below.