Weekend Update Feb 24

Its amazing how much can or can’t be done with only two days off…I was able to get the FT2400 (2m mobile radio) installed in the Pickup truck along with a Larson 5/8w 2m magmount antenna.  The testing of the truck was so far a success with acceptable gas mileage (for a full size pickup truck at least) and nothing that looks serious in the repairs catagory.  There is the need for some cosmetic work but not that much and once that has been done then some serious antennas will be installed and along with my FT 857 this could be the vehicle that goes to VE8Land in 2009.

As far as the rest of the radio weekend goes….Made lots of contact on 40 and 80m on Saturday and Sunday….A few contacts were also made on 20 although I was in Embrun at my daughters home and missed the Trans Canada Net on 20m on Sunday afternoon so I will have to wait till next week to make my VE7Sked…

 The pothole 40m net on Saturday was an OUTSTANDING SUCCESS with 13 checkings including VA3MHB Matthew who just passed his advanced test to get access to HF.  I was the NCS for Saturdays net and my furthest checkin was VE3UK Bob from the Windsor area.  This was not really DX but given the recent poor conditions on 40m….Not Bad!!! 

Sunday’s 80m net with VA3CMD Patrick as NCS (operating from VE3JW) was also a great time but I don’t have his totals for the net. 

The only bad side for the weekend was a “miserable so and so” who tossed an iceball and broke my front window at home on Saturday evening.  Filling out the police report and waiting for the on call property management representive to arrive to arrange repairs took us to the early hours of Sunday Morning and that messed up my plans to operate from Brewer Park on Sunday am…..Oh well just my luck that when the WX was good…something would mess me up!!!1

73bob

Mobile Operations

Part of this weekend will be installing some Antennas on a Vehicle that I am testing out in preparation of some amateur radios events planned later this summer….

The Truck is a 12 year old Ford F150 Pickup truck in really fantastic condition and if I like it the price is definately right….

This week the Yaesu 2m and magmount antenna will get installed and I will drive it for a week…..If I like the truck after the first week then it will be in for an “E Test” and a “Safety Check” both are required to change the Title on a vehicle purchase here in Ontario and then we install the Yaesu FT 857 with the usual antennas for HF and VHF/UHF and its back to business as normal….

If I don’t like it after the first week then its back to the search…..The Pickup is replacing the old VA3QV/m which was a Cadilliac that served me well until it ran into electrical issues with some of the any electrical toys that you find such as power windows, electric seats, heated seats, air conditioning and many more into the Cadilliacs.  It makes you think of the the famous quote my LCDR Montgomery Scott from Startrek when he said “The more complicated the plumbing the easier it is to block the drain…”

The new to me pickup is in good shape with less options and therefore less things to break down….

More on the mobile operations and more on the Radio Operations in general will be found on my next few posting here

73bob

Weekly Update

The past week was just to darn busy to get much time spent in the shack warming the airwaves with RF.  A busy time at outside interests means that the shack time seems to be pushed to the background….

The main issue was my neighbor having a sewer pipe block and when the “Drain all/Roto Rooter” style company came in with the high pressure hoses and blew out his blockages some of his blockage came down the line and through my floor drain which is in the laundry room beside my shack….

I got my shack torn down and all the radios moved along with the computers before any damage was done…..

It was deemed that all was now good on Thursday evening so on Friday morning the shack was re stocked and this time I took the time to hide more of the coax runs and wiring from the two emergency batteries….Friday night was now upon me and I did make a contact on the 3808 round table net with Rich KI4LKP down in the sunny south (although any place south of Ottawa I would concider to be the sunny south ….More details on this actual weekend operations will follow!!!

73bob

A great weekend for Amateur Radio

I finally found the time to sit in the shack and play radio….Saturday am was the 40m Pothole net on 7.095….

I dropped back into the shack around 11:30pm and ended up in a roundtable discussion on VE3TWO that lasted until 1:30 am…..

It seems I had just woken up on Sunday morning and it was time for the North Bay Net on 3.768 at 9am.  A quick checkin to the ONTARS Net on 3.755 preceeded the Ottawa Valley Mobile Radio Club Pothole Net at 10am. 

Sunday afternoon brought the Emergency Management Ontario net at 1400 hrs and the day has progressed nicely so far.  There also have been local 2m contacts on several of the local repeaters and as the weather is lousy….It makes it even nicer to sit in the shack and warm up the airwaves….

“Radio can be an outdoor sport” but today its been snow, followed by freezing rain with a threat of rain for the remainder of the night and into the morning…..Today “Radio is better as an indoor activity”!!!!

No rare DX but plenty of fun

73bob

Is it a DXPedition if???

Here is a question for all out there and your opinions are welcome….

Background: Liz (my XYL) and myself are starting to plan a Cross Canada Vacation in the summer of 2009 to find any flaws with our Camper before we attempt the big retirement trip in the summer of 2010.

We are planning to head out west from our home QTH in Ottawa and spend about a month on the road.  As its “our trip” she is planning to allow me to stop in several locations accross our great country and play radio for several events and contests.

The primary time would be for Field Day and the Canada Day Contest and for that time period we are planning to be in the Calgary area.  She has offered to stay in Calgary with some of our friends and let me head north into the NWT (VE8Land)and play radio from there for Field Day and the Canada Day Contest then head back to Calgary,  pick her up and then continue on with our trip.

Now I concider VE8 fairly rare as if you look at the call book there are not that many callsigns assigned as VE8 but about 50 of them are in the Yellowknife area.  After looking at a few maps the campground I was thinking of operating  from is also in the Yellowknife Area.

So the question I ask is…..If I travel to a location that has 50 Amateurs living there, could I call it a dxpediton or am I just camping and playing radio???

I know that if the band conditions are good the call VA3QV/portable VE8 should cause a bit of pile up as to be honest I have never yet worked a VE8 Station on any band and that is the case of most south eastern stations with modest home stations….

  My other 2 dxpeditions have been to islands and as we were the first logged operators from those locations they did qualify for the dxpedition title….

Maple island dxpedition-(http://www.sunim.plus.com/maple/index.html)

Bate Island dxpedition-(http://va3rcs.tripod.com/bate.html)

 73bob

A new late night net

I found a new source of conversation on 80m last nite…..

Check out 3.803 (LSB) at 2300 hrs eastern time.  The pre net to hold the frequency seems to start around 2245 with stations checkin in all along the US Eastern Seaboard…

The one good thing about this net for us here in Canada is that with the band conditions on 80m being very long these days we are able to hear the NCS as well as most of the participants….

Well worth the listen if you are up late (like I am)

 bob

Yes….There is also my website

After thawing out after this mornings excursion in the park I decided to update my website:

http://va3rcs.tripod.com

For those of you who did not know I also hold the amateur radio callsign VA3RCS which also happens to be my initials (Robert Charles Sharp)

The website will not be changing till I get some new radio toys but some might find it interesting

Radio can be an outdoor sport

I took my FT 817 backpack setup out to Hutton Park today for the OVMRC PotHole Net on 80m this morning.  3.760 at 10am EASTERN.  The setup uses the 817, 80m hamstick along with a 60foot counterpoise and the battery is an 8ah sla.  The band was not the best but local contacts were made and I got some fresh air….Sorry no Pics as my daughter did not show up with her digital camera….Maybe next time…..

I’m here

Kicking and screaming I enter the world of new technology and now am the proud owner of a blog….