Orlando Hamcation 2012

I enjoyed the trip from Panama City to Orlando for the Hamcation. I was traveling with Marv KK4DKT who is an excellent navigator. We arrived on Friday afternoon. Marv headed straight to the Buddipole booth to buy a Buddistick. Instead he bought the Mini Buddipole which gives you many more options and packs in a small bag. The booth was staffed by Budd W3FF, Chris W6HFP, Dan WZ1P and Steve WG0AT. I actually did not realize it was Steve the "Old Goat" until it was over. Next, I got a real good look at the Elecraft KX3. I like that radio!

Friday night Marv and I setup a buddistick in our third floor room at the La Qunita. I checked out 20 meters which was dead, 30 meters had a few stations and the 40 meters which was packed. It was an underdog effort considering at 40 meters the Buddistick efficiency is reduced and our counterpoise was inside the room. So it was a joy to have a solid QSO with W9UK in PA. I was using the HB1B at 5 watts.

The highlight for me was meeting Kelly K4UPG and friends at lunch on Saturday. I also sat across from Rex Harper from QRPme.com who sells the tuna tin QRP kits. Kelly and I have a lot in common of course with QRP. We read each others blog His is K4UPG.com He hopes next year they will have some QRP specific activities. I took my Miliwat "Pixie" like transceiver in the sandwich container for show and tell.

My best find at the Hamcation was a French Jardiller Miniature key. According to the web, they were made in Issy, Les Moulineaux, France and were manufactured for the French military and the French Post Office. The key was also used by the South African military and possibly the French Foreign Legion. The key is old new stock. It looks like it will just the right size for portable ops.

We were exhausted (spent the money) on Saturday afternoon and returned to the hotel. In the parking lot Marv setup his new Buddipole. He setup for 10 meters initially. The SWR checked good on first try. He heard some strong DX from Chile. But did not squeeze in a contact. Then he setup on 20 meters and worked North Dakota. He was pleased how easy it was to switch bands. He is going to get a lot of use out of the Buddipole for Portable Ops.

All went well. Saturday was my birthday after all. Marv QSOed with several hams on 146.520 on I10 heading back to Panama City.

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Cheap Thrills

I took up Ebay seller JoeBird66 on the  MiniWat QRP CW Transceiver  for $21.99 which was $24.99 shipped.  It is a pre-assembled 200 milliwatt rig which runs off of a 9 volt battery and is crystal controlled at 7.030. It is easy to hookup, just antenna, audio and key. I used a sandwich container to house it. Upon power up It had significant broadcast interference. I used my BLT tuner to get some filtering. The BCI is still audible but I consider it a bonus feature. I was able to work my friend Tom WD0HBR across town in Dothan, AL on Sunday. It was a minimal QSO as there was QRM drowning me out. However,  I later worked WB4AQL in Alpharetta GA about 250 miles from Dothan. He did not seem to have any trouble and gave me a 459. He was running a HW-101. Well it shows you don't have to spend a lot of money to have fun. That QSO was equivalent to 1250 miles per watt. Bear in mind this type of rig requires some luck and a dose of patience. I did really enjoy using it and look forward to more QRPp.

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St. Andrews State Park Portable & Pedestrian Mobile

St Andrews State Park on Panama City Beach was a great opportunity for QRP Portable. I met there with other members from the Panama City ARC. I started out with the You Kits HB1B transceiver on 40 meters. I used a 66 foot half wave wire supported by 20 foot crappie poles. It was end fed with the SOTA tuner. The first QSO was Corpus Christi K5LYT. The second was interesting as it was AB4CT Patricia in Montgomery AL. She said it was her first CW contact.

Then it was time to suit up for pedestrian mobile and walk out on the pier. The PM rig is a 3 watt Wilderness SST and a Hendricks BLT tuner. The antenna is a 13 foot wire supported by a crappie pole, a Buddistick coil and a counterpoise drag wire. It went well. I was assisted by Bob and Linda Dunkin and Mike Retherford local hams. I was able to work K3Y/3 in PA and VE3GNS in Toronto. Of course pedestrian mobile leads to a few questions and most were pretty interested when they found out what I was doing.

I later went back to the HB1B and a 33 foot wire for 20 meters. This wire was sloping up to a 20 foot crappie pole. I had four contacts including a solid one with Joe KD2JC in Howell NJ who happened to also be using a HB1B. So I had a good day outside in the park. The sun was out and the temps in the 60s.It was good to see and hear the surf. After all living in Panama City, FL I should do this more often.

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K3Y/4 Ops Second Day

I continued as a K3Y/4 op Monday for about five hours. A local ham, Bob WB4BLX, found me first thing on 40 meters. I worked eight more there. On 20 meters I had a string of 14 contacts. The last one was a DL9 from Germany. Contacts were rounded out with two on 30 meters, six on 17 meters. The last QSO was on 40 meters was with Kelly K4UPG a fellow QRPer and Polar Bear Club member in the Orlando area. The total for the two days was 54 contacts in 20 states and one DX country. All contacts were at 5 watts. My participation was a very small part of the month long Straight Key Century Club Sixth Anniversary Event. SKCC members are working on various awards including sweeping the ten call areas with K3Y contacts. If you are interested in CW join the fun. Membership is free. The club has over 8700 members. The SKCC website is http://www.skccgroup.com.

K3Y/4 Ops First Day

I operated as K3Y/4 for six hours Sunday from my Dad's workshop in Dothan, AL. I have an Off Center Fed (OCF) dipole pretty high in the pines. The antenna has had light use to date and this was an opportunity to prove it out. I used my IC 703 and was pleased to find I can tune up all bands within the range of the internal tuner.

I began the morning session on 80 meters hoping to snag at least one contact and no luck. Then I moved to 40 and picked up a couple. I think Sunday AM there are just fewer station out there. I was pleased to work my friend Thomas WD0HBR across town. I then picked up one contact on 30 meters. Moving on to 20 meters yielded a half dozen. The afternoon started with a contact on 17 meters my first in a long while for that band. Then a good run of nine on 20 meters. I was running out of time and decided to revisit all the bands. On 40 meters I was called by Mike K4MTI in Panama City. Then I worked Vermont on 15 meters. One of my notable contacts was John N8ZYA in WV on 20 meters. He was using an indoor Isotron and we both were QRP.

So this was a confidence builder for the OCF dipole and lots of fun. All contacts were at 5 watts. I am looking forward to my second day tomorrow. I will be operating from Panama City.

Greg N4KGL

My Pet Rock Talks

Well my pet rock is a one watt Michigan Mighty Mite one transistor QRP transmitter. The rock refers to the crystal that controls the frequency. The three hour Pet Rock Event sponsored by ARCI QRP was an opportunity to put the MMM to work.


Being rock bound is a different way of operating if you are used to the usual rig with a Variable Frequency Oscillator (VFO). My Crystal is stamped 7.030 MHz but it tunes up closer to 7.029. So you can call CQ or answer a CQ that happens to be close by in frequency. No chasing contacts up and down the band.


Any one watt contact will make you feel lucky. So I was pleased to work Allan W4MQC in Bokeelea, FL. That is on Pine Island near FT. Myers FL.  Allen was running 5 watts with a FT-817.


The next contact was with my buddy Thomas WD0HDR in Dothan, AL. When I heard the call I copied W D 0 ok a zero call area and then the H gave it away. He did have an email tip that I was going to be on. I was weak there but good copy. Tom is running 5 watts with a MFJ 9040 with a modest long wire from his HOA neighborhood.


The last contact was Jim in W4QO Roswell GA. Jim was running a K3 to a loop. He said he also had a Rockmite on 7.040 working the Pet Rock event. It just turns out Roswell is on a direct line thru WD0HDR's location


You will see in the photos I was using a HB-1B for the receiver and using a manual T/R switch. My antenna was my 135 foot doublet. I did have a surprise as I checked the Reverse Beacon Network to see where I as being picked up by the CW skimmers. I was being picked all too well at 21.087. That is the third harmonic of 7.029. I guess that is why they have a few more parts in most transmitter designs.


It was a fun event!

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N4KGL to WD0HBR QSO  click Movie

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New Year's Day Pedestrian Mobile

I got no further than the backyard. I was testing some refinements to my PM setup. First, I am using the ALICE frame without the pack. Second, I am hanging the rig from the shoulder straps and Third, I am sticking the key to the top of the BLT tuner. Last, I have a clipboard attached to a shoulder strap for logging copy. Contacts today included:

K4REB Joe NC
K4MTI Mike Panama City, FL SKN
AB0TO/QRP  Dave St. Louis MO
K3Y/2 Dave NY SKCC Anniversary Station
VE1BA/QRP John NS

All were 3 watts using the Wilderness SST. Thanks folks. Looking to go on a hike soon.

Greg N4KGL

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