I admit it, I’ve given up on antenna building– it’s not that I can’t hack up a dipole, because I do know how to do that. I’ve given up because it’s just too much work. Call me a card carrying member of the internet generation if you like, I just don’t have the motivation and time anymore. So when it came down to it, I got online and ordered a MFJ 6m twinlead jpole from AES and had that puppy shipped to my QTH.

As always, antenna placement is a problem. Today, I said to heck with it and nailed the end of a spool of string to a softball, pulled out a bunch of said string, tied one end to the jpole, and threw it up into a pine tree in front of my apartment building. I probably could have placed it higher, but my front yard is apparently a breeding ground for mosquitos who think Deep Woods Off! is just yummy. I had no problem getting to the local repeater, and after scanning for a few minutes I could hear a repeater on 53.73Mhz that wasn’t on my WAR listing.

After listening a bit, I discovered that the repeater I was hearing was the KQ2H repeater system in New York. I was able to get into the repeater, but so was the eastern half of the US at the time. I also made a few calls on 52.525 simplex; although I could hear that someone else was there, I couldn’t make out who. Which is OK– now I know the antenna works and I have a means for getting it into an operational position. Next time, I’ll see if I can get the jpole into the top of the tree instead of only halfway up.

Which brings up a few thoughts I’ve had rattling around about amateur radio in general– the first being, why does “everyone” say that the first radio you buy should be a 2m(/70cm) radio? I know, there are way more repeaters on 2m and 70cm, but that doesn’t mean you talk to more people. I’ve taken my dualband HT to work and let it scan the local repeaters for days. 80% of the time there’s just nothing there. I drop my callsign out, and no one responds (even though I know there are people who scan the local machines all the time). Yes, I use 2m for ARES/RACES, and I used 70cm for storm tracking when I was doing that– so having that radio isn’t a wasted resource. But that radio (lately) is just a tool for doing something, rather than something to have fun with.

I didn’t buy a 6m radio to talk on the local repeaters. I bought a 6m rig for those days and nights when the band, due to -insert propagation type here- just freakin’ opens up. I don’t wish 6m was congested (like that’s gonna happen), but I do wish more of the techs in the world would check it out– part of the mystique of ham radio (for me) is that you can talk to people in far away places. I’m wondering if maybe we should be selling new hams on the 10m and 6m bands more, and the 2m and 70cm bands less– higher VHF and UHF are used for things like public safety because they provide reliable communications, which is a good thing– but it’s not usually all that exciting.

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Okay, so I don’t have a microphone working for my IC-735 yet, and I have all but given up on the code for now.
I’ve had my eye on the Alinco DR-M06 6 meter rig for a while now, Okay, so it’s not Alinco’s newest model, I like it anyway– it was also slightly cheaper. Since I don’t have a base antenna up yet (here we go with getting antennas airborne again), it’s going to live life as a mobile for a while. I did some Googling about 6 meters, and discovered that WBAY-TV 2 in Green Bay WI has a well written FAQ article about how propagation affects their low VHF signal (they transmit on 55.26mhz). Also found a list of modifications for 6 meter rigs, including the extended receive unlock for the DR-M06T. Didn’t even have to void the warranty.

Yeah, there’s a lot of stuff I could have bought that would be a lot more practical in an emergency. Oh well, this radio’s about fun.

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I have a new toy^H^H^Hpiece of amateur radio equipment, an Alinco DJ-V5T. I love the radio; the manual, however, has some issues when it comes to programming memory channels. Here are the steps I’ve been following to get amateur radio repeater frequencies and settings programmed into the radio. (These steps replace the right column of page 21 in the manual.)

(NOTE: If you are looking for repeater frequencies, check the Wisconsin Association of Repeaters listing.)

To store an amateur radio repeater’s frequency and settings in a memory channel:

1. Look at the bottom row, left corner of the LCD screen.
   • If the bottom row of the screen is blank, skip this step. If you see “M” followed by C1, C2, or a two digit (01) number, look for the key labeled “A V/M MW”. It’s the button in the upper right hand corner of the keypad. Press it once.
2. Using the keypad, enter the frequency you want to store in the memory channel. (For example, 4 4 4 */. 3 7 5)
3. Set the power output level for this frequency by following the “Setting Transmission Output Level” steps on page 20 of the manual.
4. Set the repeater shift for this frequency by following the “Repeater Shift” steps on page 30 of the manual. If you are unsure of what the shift should be, check the Wisconsin Association of Repeaters Band Plan [PDF].
   • Look for the output frequency of the repeater in the band plan first.

   • If the input frequency is lower, the offset is -.
   • If the input frequency is higher, the offset is +.
5. Set the tone encoder/decoder frequencies by following the steps in 5-1 “Tone Squelch Frequency (CTCSS)” on pages 36-37. Most repeaters in south central Wisconsin use 123.0hz for both encode and decode (you’ll need to set both).
6. Press FUNC/LOCK once. You will now see a memory channel number in the lower left corner of the screen.
7. Rotate the Dial knob to select the memory channel that will receive the frequency you are storing. Memory channels are numbered 00-199, and C1 and C2.
8. Press V/M MW once. The memory channel number will disappear. All of the information (frequency, power output, tone squelch, offset) that was entered in VFO mode is now stored in the selected memory channel.

   Hope this makes things a little easier; if you have any additions, corrections, or questions please let met know in the comments.

   Steve, KC9JMF

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Merry Christmas!

Made a trip to AES this weekend, and picked up a new MFJ-1422 2m/440 dualband mobile antenna– so one more piece of the mobile operating puzzle is in place. I’m able to reach the 2m repeaters in town, the wide area repeaters in Baraboo, and out as far as Cambridge and Hollandale. KC9JME also got the same antenna for Christmas, and she was able to reach the MARA repeater going south past the Dane/Rock County (Wisconsin) line. We’re both using the same radio (Alinco HT, ~5 watts).

Since she was coming back the same way today, Danielle and I decided to try getting in touch on simplex on her return trip. We weren’t able to meet up on simplex though. I was able to hear someone at one point (although couldn’t copy callsigns), and she was able to hear them a little better (but still unreadable). So I suspect that if we had each been running enough power, or if I had been on higher ground, we might have been able to make it. Maybe.

It’s cold on Christmas in Wisconsin. My equipment performed well, even though we didn’t make contact on simplex. After 45 minutes I was starting to get chilly; but based on today I’m sure I could deploy myself to a parking lot and operate from the car in emergency mode for a while, perhaps even all day if I had somewhere to go inside and get warm. A gas station parking lot worked pretty well. I think a rest area, truck stop, or office/medical building parking lot would work equally as well. We’ll definitely be doing more experimenting with the new antennas, and I’m working on a list of potential operating locations that are on higher ground.

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From ARRLWeb:

The Eighth Annual SKYWARN Recognition Day (SRD) special event will take place Saturday, December 2, 2006. SKYWARN Recognition Day is an event co-sponsored by the National Weather Service (NWS) and the American Radio Relay League. It is the National Weather Service’s way of saying “thank you” to Amateur Radio operators for their commitment to helping keep their communities safe. During the 24 hour special event, Amateur Radio operators will visit their local NWS office, set up Amateur Radio stations and work as a team to contact other hams across the world.

I’m a trained spotter, although I have been limited in my spotting activities this year due to my being limited to 2m (the local Skywarn net in my county is on 70cm). So this looks like fun, especially with contacts through repeaters being allowed. I’m going to try to contact both the nearest NWS office in Sullivan WI, and the NWS office in La Crosse  WI via 2m, and possibly others via Echolink. If nothing else, it’ll be good operating experience.  I’ll post a report next week.

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