Author: Nathan Brindle - KC9YTJ

This net has been going on for some time, since last summer if I recall correctly, but I wasn't able to check into it until sometime around Christmas due to lack of a suitable 6M antenna.  It wasn't until a couple of weeks ago when I put up my Arrow Antenna GP52 that I was really able to get in to the net, and … yes, I've been bad … just last week I finally got my ground rod driven and my coax actually, you know, grounded before it comes into the house — with the result that I'm very nearly full quieting into the 6M repeaters around here.

At any rate, I felt like someone probably ought to be keeping notes for this net, which by the way is run by Tom N9CXI.  I'm sort of hoping that if there is something on the 'Net about the net, more folks in the Central Indiana area may try dusting off their 6 meter equipment and tuning into it.  The net meets Thursdays at 7:30 PM ET, usually on the 52.700 K9IPL repeater, and all are welcome to check in.

Tonight's net had to QSY to the 53.010 K9TNW repeater due to a technical glitch.  Since the net started late, there was no question propounded as is normal for this net, but the following check-ins were heard:

N9	CXI	Tom
N9	DOO	Don
WA9	FDO	Mike
WD9	JCE	James
K9	JWP	Jim
N9	QVO	David
W9	SOX	Matthew
KC9	YTJ	Nathan

 

Net control was Tom, N9CXI, and the net ran from 19:39 ET to 19:44 ET.  Thanks to Mike, WA9FDO, for his work with the K9IPL repeaters on which we normally meet, and Don, N9DOO, for keeping the K9TNW repeater on the air.

If you have 6 meter equipment, why not dust it off and give us a listen next week?

In the previous post I mentioned that I had recently replaced an incandescent floodlight over my shack desk with an LED replacement bulb.  Turns out it was a 100W replacement rather than a 60W replacement, but at any rate I thought I might note that it is a FEIT Electric brand BR40 High Power True Replacement LED (dimmable although I do not have a dimmer on the circuit) that was purchased at Costco.  It's Costco's item #795262.

I have three more of those ceiling fixtures in the room but I don't think I will be replacing them with these LED units.

Interesting little article on the front page of the WSJ today:

FCC Agents Trace Radio Interference to Doorbells, Videogames, Blankets

When Signals Interfere With Cell Towers or Radio Broadcasts, Agents Crack Down

These are all incidents that hams who pay any attention were likely already aware of.  I do think it is sad that the writer decided to end the article with this quote:

The lights at Perfect Cuts in San Antonio came from  General Electric Co., which in 2011 found some of its ballasts caused interference, a spokesman says. GE has offered to replace those ballasts free of charge.

Mr. Bethany says he initially declined GE's offer. But when an FCC letter after the agent's visit mentioned a possible $16,000-a-day fine, he swapped ballasts.

He still doesn't see why he needed to, given that his 18-year-old shop predates the cell tower. "I was here first."

Come now, Mr. Bethany.  Were you using that spectrum for any useful purpose?  Were you licensed to emit on that frequency?  No?  Then replace your damn illegally-emitting ballasts and be glad you didn't get slapped with a fine.  What makes it even more incomprehensible is that GE offered to replace them for free.  Other than being a jerk about it, what was your rationale for initially refusing that very generous offer?

The electromagnetic spectrum really ought to be viewed as a commons.  If everyone took the attitude of Mr. Bethany, and the FCC wasn't willing to enforce its rules regarding the spectrum, what we would end up with would be a tragedy of the commons, in which we'd be lucky to be able to use our GPS/cell phone/wireless internet or other radio-equipped apparatus.

People tend to blame hams first when they experience interference, but from what I've gathered over the short time I've been a ham, hams are pretty good about keeping their emissions clean and out of ranges where their neighbors would have a complaint.  The real problem today isn't hams using their licensed spectrum, but rather, it's the other way around, with unintentional and incidental radiators that for some reason have become a problem when they shouldn't be a problem (think all those "wall warts" you probably have plugged into your outlets that contain poorly-filtered switching power supplies), and intentional radiators like wireless phones that have for some reason encroached on bands outside of the ones they are supposed to be transmitting on.

Just last night I was wondering why I had S5 noise on 6 meters, and suddenly realized that I had probably screwed myself, because I'd recently replaced the 60W floodlight in the ceiling fixture over my shack desk with an LED equivalent unit.  Sure enough, I turned the light off and the noise backed down to S2…

Anyway, we all contribute in some way to what has become an extremely noisy electromagnetic spectrum.  Folks like Mr. Bethany who don't think they should have to come into compliance with legal restrictions on emissions don't seem to understand that if there weren't restrictions, the spectrum simply wouldn't be usable, and a lot of handy everyday tools that they've come to rely on would then become useless.  And that would be the tragedy of the electromagnetic commons.

I've replaced my horizontally-polarized 6M loop with a vertically-polarized 6M ground plane and my signal into the repeaters is MUCH better now.  I got the SWR down below 2 in range where our local 6M repeaters are (52.700 and 53.010 outputs) and don't even need the tuner.  Noise is only S3 where before it was so high I couldn't squelch it.

I used the Arrow Antenna GP52.  Great antenna for the price.  I'd like to get it higher in the air but for right now the best I can do is about 21 feet and the radials are scraping the shingles.  When it gets warmer I'll have the boy get up there and add an extension on the pole to get it up another three or four feet.

One caveat about this antenna:  It's a lot bigger than you think it is.

Broke down and bought an antenna analyzer (MFJ-259B) and figured out what blew the tuner.  The little 300W MFJ wattmeter, when connected in the line to the antenna, makes the SWR go through the roof.  Remove the wattmeter from the equation and everything is fine.

I'd have been better off buying the analyzer in the first place rather than the wattmeter, I suspect.  But live and learn.

I let at least some of the smoke out of my LDG YT-450 tuner tonight.  Will have to take it apart this weekend and see what burned, but there was definitely smoke coming out of it.

Since my last post (gee, maybe I should start a(nother) blog)*, I’ve installed an M2 Systems HO Loop in 6m on the roof out back — up about 20 feet is as far as I can get it at the moment — and connected it to the 450D.  It just works for the local 6M repeater with the external LDG tuner kicked in.  It’s really meant for SSB farther down the band, and it seems to work fairly well for that.

I also bought and installed last Sunday an End-Fed Matchbox Antenna from these folks and got it about 20 feet up in a tree sloping down to the side of the house at about 8 feet.  It tunes everything from 40 and up pretty well.  80 is problematic (likely just need more wire) and 160 is fuggeddaboudit (as I figured it would be).  It also works 6 in the repeater end of the band much better than the loop.  Sunday I was able to listen in to the Sunday INARES voice net on 3.900 LSB but I doubt I would have been able to check in as it was very fade-y.  It would be fun to get my hands on a 30′ push-up mast and see how well the end-fed works as a vertical.  I think most of my trouble with it right now is that it just isn’t high enough off the ground, and frankly it’s oriented in the wrong direction.

Sometime in the next few weeks I hope to have the boy down from Fort Wayne to help me get the G5RV in the trees.  And I really want to install a vertical in the back yard this spring after the thaw 🙂

______________________

* Which, as you see, I have now done.

I took and passed the Amateur Extra exam today at the Fort Wayne Hamfest. W00t W00t.  A big shout-out goes to Ham Test Online.  I easily passed the Tech and General exams by studying on my own from the ARRL handbooks.  The Extra was a different story.  I couldn't have done it without help.  Believe me, I tried.

I did go out to WD9BSA a couple of times this summer.  I am not sure how welcome I was.  Unfortunately this seems to be the normal experience of new guys in this hobby.

The radio stable now includes, in addition to the UV-5R, a Yaesu VX-8GR HT; a Yaesu FT-7900 (which lives on my desk but is destined for my car); and a Yaesu FT-450D sitting in the back room waiting to be connected to this G5RV antenna that I need to throw up in the trees.  I know people who spit through their fingers and make the sign of the Cross when the word Yaesu is mentioned, but the fact is that they're a lot less 'spensive than the corresponding Icom or Kenwood models and they seem to get reviews that are just as good.  There are people out there who have thousands of dollars to drop on the latest and greatest radio equipage, but I ain't one of them, and the Yaesu stuff puts enough of a crimp in my pocketbook as is.

I took and passed the General exam today. W00t.

I’ve recently started in the Amateur (Ham) Radio hobby, passing the Technician exam on April 13, 2013, and receiving my call KC9YTJ on April 18, 2013.  I’ve always had an interest in radio, but never acted on that interest until two things happened: 1) W9KIZ told me about these cheap Chinese handheld radios that you could buy on Amazon for $40, and 2) she also told me that the exam was stupid simple, only 35 questions out of which you could miss 9 and still pass, and only cost 15 smackeroos to take.

I am active (if you want to call it that) on 2 meters, primarily on the local 146.700 and 146.970 repeaters that are close enough to hit with what equipment I have.  Mostly I listen.  Throw my call out, and I’ll talk if I’m monitoring.

I have in mind to offer my assistance to the WD9BSA folks out at Camp Belzer but I want to get a little more of a feel for this thing before I do.  Plus I’d like to upgrade to General first, as well.  I’m planning to take the General exam in June 2013.