Club Call G4HRS Est. 1938
The Journal of
Horsham Amateur Radio Club
June 2020
Sponsored by: Affiliated to:
1 Contents In this issue
3. Notes from the Editor Welcome, congratulations and entertainment maker
4. News round Amateur radio hits the headlines
5. One year with low power G8CKT tells of his travel gear
17. Picture this A trip to Wales, a plug in device, a bit of tech, a starry night and “our survey says”
24. Diary of events Full listings for the month
Cover photo: Sky at Night presenter Maggie Aderin-Pocock
Published by Horsham Amateur Radio Club HARCNEWS is produced at home by G4JHI
2 Editorial
We have another new club member Zoltan Berces and may I welcome you to HARC. Although not licensed yet Zoltan is looking to study starting with the Foundation License. I have already made the acquaintance at the March Club Junk Sale.
Steve Padwick who was mentioned last month as a new club member is now the proud owner of the Foundation License call M7PWK. Well done sir and I’m sure we all look forward to having a QSO with you in the future. Although I haven’t been active on the airwaves for a few months I understand that in some areas 2 Metres has become busy and in some cases many channels are already occupied which is a good sign.
David 2E0NKC informs me that the additional nets mentioned last month are quite popular. Whilst we continue in lockdown all the regular events are still cancelled until further notice but there are still the various contests that one can take part in. Last month I mentioned the remote coffee meetings that I take part in with some of my work colleagues each morning.
I have now ventured outside ‘broadcasting from my balcony’ via my laptop. In the future I will no doubt include the kitchen, living room and radio shack! I also ‘played’ the ukulele with the aid of a wooden barometer to my work colleagues! Well, all these frivolities makes life a bit more interesting in these unusual times………
David G4JHI
Amendment
An error occurred in HARCNEWS May 2020 page 11.
Richard G3ZIY advises that the correct frequency for The Voice of Korea is 13760 kHz.
Copy deadline for emailed items for July edition 20th June - For written items the deadline is 12th June.
For items sent by email please send to this address:
3 News from HARC
Keep in touch
An interesting article appeared in the news about the way amateur radio is connecting people during the lockdown. It follows several individual operators and one family explaining their regular radio activities. The full article can be read on the BBC web site: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-52442553
Amateur Radio
“CQ Serenade” is a new programme about amateur radio produced by the Southgate ARC and includes a report called “Amateur Radio Newsline” with news from the UK and around the world. It can be heard on Sundays from 20:05 to 21:00 BST on Channel 292 from Germany on 3975 kHz / 75m.
Beacon News
2E0NKC noted a new beacon on 1650 kHz in an area dominated by Dutch “pirates”. Research by G4LRP & G8CKT found that the CW call was PPZK an ocean going tug in Amsterdam or Rotterdam harbour. The beacon has now vanished so the tug has presumably sailed (or sunk!). 2E0NKC following a “tip off” by the British DX Club has been listening to a CW beacon on 6607 kHz. Can be heard evening. Its call is 4XZ and is a military beacon near Haifa in Israel.
Contributions from 2E0NKC, G4JHI, G4LRP, G8CKT
4 A year “off-grid”
Mike, G8CKT, gives an account of his year of portable QRP operation
As we are now ending a period of lock-down, and in the hope that we might soon get back to some semblance of normality, I thought that it might be useful to share my experience of portable operation over the last 12 months. Having previously used my trusty FT-817 when away from home I decided that it would be fun to put together a more modern portable set-up based on a recently acquired KX2 transceiver.
I was keen to develop a complete station that could be carried as hand-luggage on an aircraft or just popped into a rucksack for a walk on the downs. Extended portable operation away from a mains supply was to be a prime consideration with a choice of batteries and a solar panel for true ‘off-grid’ operation. The station comprises a KX2 transceiver together with a variety of accessories, power supplies and antennas, as shown in Figure 1.
Figure 1 The portable QRP station
A Home-brew 2.8Ah Li-Po battery pack (see later) B Elecraft KX2 transceiver with internal ATU C SideKar keyer/message generator/electronic logger D Microphone E Bluetooth keyboard
5 F Paper logbook G Nifty™ spiral bound handbook H Headphones I 9:1 balun (for use with end-fed half-wave antennas) Antennas
The importance of having an efficient, compact, and rapidly deployable antenna for portable work can’t be emphasised enough. I first experimented with a simple end- fed wire antenna. This was wound onto a modified laundry-line (see Figure 2) and could be deployed as a simple half-wave end-fed (high-impedance at the feed-point) on amateur bands from 7MHz upwards. Performance relied heavily on the ATU but it was possible to work most of Europe on QRP last summer but nothing much further.
Figure 2 Laundry-line winder used with the end-fed antenna
To find a more effective antenna suitable for multi-band operation I acquired a Band Springer from SOTA Beams. This enabled operation from 60m to 10m but it does rely on the KX2’s internal ATU to achieve a match on some bands. The Band Springer is supported by a 7m pole and three nylon guys (see Figure 3).
The Band Springer consists of two wire elements, both are made of high-quality stranded wire, insulated with a yellow PVC (making it easy to spot when deployed!). The Band Springer’s elements approximately 42 ft (12.8 m). One element is the radiator the other acts as a counterpoise (see Figure 4).
The wire elements are supplied wound on a wire-winder (see Figure 5). This makes deployment and recovery very straightforward. In addition, I use a separate set of guy-lines when necessary (see Figure 6). The Band Springer’s radiating element has a braided nylon cord extension to make it easy to use. The extension is attached to the wire at one end and has a pegging loop at the other end. Connection to the
6 radio is via a BNC adapter with 4mm plugs terminating the radiating and counterpoise elements. Figure 6 shows typical deployment.
Figure 3 Band Springer on test in the author’s garden. The complete station fits into the grey shoulder bag.
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Figure 4 Band Springer antenna prior to deployment
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Figure 5 Spare guy lines
Figure 6 Typical antenna deployment (note the grounded counterpoise)
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The wire elements are supplied wound on a wire-winder (see Figure 5). This makes deployment and recovery very straightforward. In addition, I use a separate set of guy-lines when necessary (see Figure 6). The Band Springer’s radiating element has a braided nylon cord extension to make it easy to use. The extension is attached to the wire at one end and has a pegging loop at the other end. Connection to the radio is via a BNC adapter with 4mm plugs terminating the radiating and counterpoise elements. Figure 6 shows typical deployment.
For the upper HF bands (21MHz and above) I also use a loaded vertical antenna with a 2m radiating element. This is mounted on a modified camera tripod and works with a home-brew tuning unit (see Figure 7). This arrangement has also been used on frequencies as low as 3.5MHz but efficiency is rather poor.
Figure 7 Tripod mount and home-made tuner for use with a loaded vertical antenna. The counterpoise is connected via the two 4mm terminals and is tuned to resonance.
10 Power supplies
Arguably the most important component in a QRP station is the power supply since even the most expensive transceiver won’t work if there’s no power available! Although the KX2 has its own internal battery this typically limits period of operation to around four hours. For anything longer, one or more external batteries are essential. To save on cost, I decided to build my own battery packs based on low- cost Lithium Polymer (Li-po) batteries. These combine many of the advantages of Li- ion batteries but in a more flexible form factor. Li-po batteries can be easily fitted into a very small space while offering capacities and energy densities that are similar (but not quite equal) to those of conventional cylindrical Li-ion batteries (see Figure 8). Note also how sealed lead acid (SLA) batteries compare rather unfavourably with their more modern counterparts!
Figure 8 Comparison of the energy densities of various types of battery (note the relationship between energy, size and weight, and how Li-ion batteries are superior in both respects)
The high energy content coupled with the low internal resistance of Li-po batteries demands extra care in their use. Rapidly over-charging or over-discharging this type of battery can result in a very real risk of fire and explosion. Because of this, it is essential to treat Li-ion and Li-po batteries with care. To reduce these risks, many batteries are fitted with internal battery protection circuitry. This limits the battery current and voltage during both charge and discharge. A typical Li-ion cell protection circuit is shown in Figure 9. Note how separate charge and discharge MOSFET
11 switches (Q2 and Q1 respectively) are used to cut-off the battery if an over-charge or over-discharge condition is encountered.
Figure 9 Each Li-po cell has its own integrated charge/discharge protection circuit
Figure 10 Each Li-po cell has its own integrated charge/discharge protection circuit
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Figure 11 Three low-cost Li-po batteries with form factors used in the author’s home-built KX2 battery packs
Figure 11 shows three 2800mAh Li-po batteries used in my home-built KX2 battery packs. The three series-connected realise a nominal 12V 2.8Ah battery. The author’s completed battery pack is shown in Figure 12 together with a similarly rated 12V SLA battery. Note how the Li-po pack is very much more compact than the SLA alternative! The discharge characteristics for the C/2 and C/10 discharge rates for the author’s constructed three-cell Li-po pack are shown respectively in Figures 12 and 13.
Figure 12 Similarly rated Li-po (2.8Ah) and SLA (3.2Ah) batteries. The author’s battery pack is considerably more compact and much lighter than the SLA battery.
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Figure 13 C/2 discharge characteristic for the author’s three-cell Li-po battery pack
Figure 14 C/10 discharge characteristic for the author’s three-cell Li-po battery pack
14 Operation The QRP portable station has been in use on half a dozen occasions over the past twelve months with periods spent in East Anglia, Isles of Scilly, and the Isle of Wight. Unfortunately, at the bottom of the sunspot cycle, propagation has been rather poor and so operation had to be confined mainly to the MF/LF bands. Despite this, many hundreds of contacts were made using only 3W of CW.
Figure 15 QRP log summary sheet (best DX in this period was FR4 at 9711 km)
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Figure 16 Operation by band (50% of operation was below 14MHz)
Figure 17 Operation by mode (60% of operation was on CW)
Summary As a result of my year “off-grid” I have come to a number of realisations. Firstly, QRP portable operation can be great fun. Indeed, it can be a revelation when carried out in a noise-free environment away from the unwelcome noise floor that we have all had to become used to. As long as the antenna is efficient, there’s no real need for high power and a great deal can be achieved with less than 10W. So, if you’ve not tried QRP before, this summer might just provide you with an opportunity to get out and about when at last we regain our freedom!
16 TV Addict
by David Miller G4JHI
The Tuckers
If you like a bit of comedy to keep you entertained in these unusual times then check out The Tuckers a six part series evolving around a family of chancers. They run a catering business which is not always successful and a few things on the side. In the first episode Peggy’s son Glyn finds his wing mirrors have disappeared and he’s out for revenge. As the series goes on we find out how not to install a TV satellite dish! The show is set in Wales and was first shown on BBC Wales and you can find it on BBC iPlayer until early in 2021 so you’ve got plenty of time to watch it!
The Tuckers family https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000d4w4
17 Google Chromecast
You may have noticed that many TV broadcasters of recent have been actively promoting their streaming services. Channel 4 have for a while been showing episode 1 of a particular series and if you want to watch the rest you need to use their All4 service. Even the BBC are doing this now so they could be showing us what TV will look like in the future with most programmes available on demand.
Personally I frequently record shows to view at a later date of my choice but on the catch up services there is often a limited timescale before they are removed or go to one of the pay options. At the spring junk sale last year I picked up a Google Chromecast device as I wanted to see what one of those does. Initially setting up was pragmatic and I put it aside until recently.
Chromecast device
It can be plugged into either an HDMI or USB socket in your television and came with a USB power source adaptor. After boot up and selecting the correct input source a setup screen appears and one is asked to connect your smartphone or tablet to the device by WiFi. Then you can follow the on screen prompts to perform the setup. At one point it did ask for Bluetooth to be switched on but I am not convinced that it was necessary.
18 You will need to download the Chromecast app although in my case on an Android phone it is in fact called ‘Home’. The final part of the setup involved connecting the Chromecast device to the same WiFi access point as the smartphone or tablet. In my case I had difficulty with this part due to a setting in my router which was isolating the two devices! Having turned that feature off I was in business.
At this point it should be mentioned that a good WiFi signal is required between the devices or it will refuse to display a picture on the TV. In action one can send various supported material to your TV and a cast icon appears to do that. I have recently used this setup to watch a TV series from All4 and found that the streaming worked extremely well. I can get All4 programmes on my Sky Q box but only one episode was available unless you have the box sets option of which I don’t.
Another streaming service Rakuten TV which features films and TV series not only has a pay platform but also hosts a whole stack of movies for free! You can even watch the trailer first to see if this is something for you. In this particular case as well as casting to your TV one can also watch on any computer through your favourite web browser in high quality. https://www.channel4.com https://rakuten.tv/uk
19 BBC Click
A special edition of the BBC technology show Click was aired recently to celebrate 20 years of the programme. In the early days it was called Click Online and was only broadcast on the satellite channel BBC World and presented by Stephen Cole. After a period of time it was also shown in the UK on BBC News 24 now the BBC News channel and the main host who took over from Stephen is Spencer Kelly who still presents it today.
The short version can be seen on BBC One during BBC Breakfast although I cannot see the point of watching only half of a show but I guess they use it as a fill in and I just found it by accident once but never watch it on there! All the presenters now operate from home in stunning HD and all the guests appear through Internet video chat. In recent times they dedicated one episode looking at how technology is helping to fight the Coronavirus across the world.
Lara Lewington and Spencer Kelly presenting from home https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006m9ry
20 The Gadget Show
Channel 5’s The Gadget Show series 31 has been delayed due to the Coronavirus pandemic so instead to keep viewers entertained have been producing short episode clips each week on YouTube. If you subscribe like I have (free) to The Gadget Show YouTube channel you will find all the clips that have been produced during the Coronavirus outbreak and once again all the presenters appear from home. There are various gadget tests as always, news items and game reviews.
The latest tech news with Ortis, Jon and Georgie https://www.youtube.com/user/thegadgetshow
21 The Sky at Night
Chris Lintott and the team recently presented a special 800th lockdown edition of the show from their homes and back gardens. Pete Lawrence advised us all to look out for the planet Venus very bright in the night sky and the programme ended with some classic clips including a few with Sir Partick Moore in.
Sky at Night presenter Pete Lawrence https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006mk7h
22 TRP Surveys
On the TRP Surveys website one can subscribe to daily surveys giving an opinion of TV and the media. All you need to do is click on the link in each email that arrives and select an answer to each question based on viewing habits. It doesn’t take long at all and every now and then there are bonus surveys. So what benefit does one get for doing these surveys?
When you sign up and have agreed to the terms and conditions there will be a choice of six options for your reward based on the number of credits you have earned. One is a gift voucher and the others are for charity and community groups. The choice is yours! I find that the surveys are best viewed on a PC or laptop but I have tried my smartphone and it was fairly easy on that and of course last but not least a tablet. https://trpsurveys.com
23 Diary
Jun 1st, 80m Data Club Championship 20:00 - 21:30
Jun 4th, Club Night: ***CANCELLED***
Jun 6th-7th, HF NFD ***CANCELLED***
Jun 10th, 80m CW Club Championship 20:00 - 21:30
Jun 11th, Committee meeting Dec 12th ***CANCELLED***
Jun 18th, Social Evening: The Royal Oak - Wineham ***CANCELLED***
Jun 25th, 80m SSB Club Championship 20:00 - 21:30
Jun 26th-28th, Ham Radio Friedrichshafen ***CANCELLED***
For details on the above contests use this link and follow to the appropriate section https://rsgb.org/main/radio-sport/what-is-radio-sport
RSGB Hope QSO party https://www.rsgbcc.org/hf/rules/2020/rhqp.shtml
All above times are BST
Committee/Club Meetings and Socials start at 20:00
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