Metal Fatigue [004]
Greetings from the shack...
HERE
I’m in the shack. But with eyes closed it could well be a wooden galleon at sea. It creaks and groans, cracks and moans. It’s all quite exciting.
I don’t think my Comet GP9 has ever worked this hard. I failed to single handedly lower the mast down last night. OK, I didn’t even try as it’s a two person job to do it safely.
My idea of securing it in anticipation for the storm was to re-attach the ZK6BKW that was acting as a guy line.
In this photo it is lying in the tree but just as it was getting dark I managed to get it up to the base of the GP9. Mostly by bending some of the laws of physics and flexing some health and safety protocols. At time of writing it is still in position.
THERE
You might remember that last week’s email was from a chalet in Spain. Work on the property will continue for a while but I am serious about Ham radio excursions. Or any trips away that might benefit from great food, wine and a pool in the sun. Playing with radios is just a bonus.
That’s not to say I haven’t been planning where to put the radio shack. Here is a satellite picture of the plot with a proposed 218m loop antenna. Or whatever length might work well.
The ‘radio shack’ pictured at the bottom is about four times the size of my current shack and although it will need to be used for other things I feel it’s ideally situated to be kitted out with some kind of radio station. The fridge, the pool and the shack would then make a perfect triangle.
Some of the trees in this shot have been cut down as the roots were causing a problem for the building. As soon as I get myself a drone i’ll grab an updated shot.
Also this week I had the pleasure of operating from a somewhat smaller shack.
While at a friends house in Leicestershire I borrowed their Covid Cabin with built in log burner to test out my freshly cut 21m length of wire on my 49:1 un/un. It works well. Love how all this gear fit in next to my clothes bag and wash kit.
GEAR
I have lots of handheld radios or hand held transceivers (HTs), also known as ‘handy talkies’. I also have a lot of walkie talkies. (Insert funny video).
The two radios I use most are the Icom ID52 and the Yaesu FT3D. Alongside my phone HTs they are my favourite kind of radio communication tech. Obviously my phone does so much more and is also chargeable via usb. But ultimately it relies on MASSIVE infrastructure to work. So in some ways I much prefer a handheld.
Here are a few reasons I prefer a pocketable, portable ham radio over a smart phone. If I was to set up my own comms on a personal island I’d not bother with phone towers etc. I’d hit the ground running with a bag full of HTs.
Firstly they can be used almost anywhere.
With clear sound and decent speakers they can be heard in most environments.
Once set up you have simple push to talk operation in an instant.
There are no issues with network availability if you are indoor, or in a remote place.
When the main networks go down, radio service is often maintained. In times of emergency it is much easier to set up a decentralised radio network.
Hand held radios are pretty robust and quite often waterproof.
Finally there are no monthly fees.
I’d also add that one to one, one to many, and many to one communications are easy to implement but this is also possible with a smart phone. As long as you have an internet connection.
The FT3D has great form factor and is very pocketable. I'm also pretty comfortable programming it. APRS is also a lot of fun and gets a lot of use. Due to the FT5D now being out the FT3D can be picked up pretty cheap right if you shop around. If you were looking to upgrade from a Baofeng then I think the FT3D is a huge leap for the money. I love mine.
So why did I buy the Icom ID52?
I’d had my eye on it for a while. I love the fact you can you can search for local repeaters with a touch of a button. This is great for someone like myself who is out and about a lot. One of the main selling points is that it can be charged with a micro USB cable. I hate all the proprietary cable nonsense (like the programming lead for the Yaesu).
Also although the FT3D is weather proof and I have used it in some heavy rain, the Icom ID52 is fully waterproof down to a meter for 30 minutes.
The main downside of the Icom is a fault with my particular handset that I talked about here…
So why after knowing that the screen steams up in freezing conditions do I keep hold of it? It’s just a bloody well made radio.
Yes I miss APRS and the small form factor but all the other stuff I struggle with I can learn. The thing that convinced me that the radio was worth the £500 happened in the kitchen.
I was making the morning coffee and listening to a net on GB3OV. I always wince when boiling the kettle as the halogen hob plays havoc with the FT3D. RFI from the hob blanks out any incoming signal.
But today the battery in the FT3D was flat so I had my Icom with me. And when I made my coffee there was no RFI. The Icom ID52 seems to be better shielded than the FT3D. So I tested the Icom in all the places that the Yaesu has issues. The Icom worked perfectly and ultimately better than the FT3D.
Now this is quite a niche issue I have and others might not have the same, but this, as well as the ID52 using the same batteries as my Icom IC-705 means i’ll not be getting rid of the radio any time soon. I just need to take a little more time getting to know how to use it. :-)
If you want a more in-depth look at the Icom ID52 check out this video.
I’m looking for a 12m mast to replace my home made scaffold pole set up. I have a 9m telescopic mast for my 4m antenna that works really well but the guy who was selling them did a runner with everyones money. I was one of the lucky ones it seems. So far I have only found this.
It would be £350 delivered and I’d need extra fittings, brackets, supports and guys to get it to work properly. If this wind today has taught me anything it’s that decent guying is the way to go.
For smaller fibreglass poles Sotabeams do this great little guying kit.
I bought a patch lead for £7.35 (about $10)
It’s Mini8 with two ‘gold’ PL259’s. It’s not badly made. In fact I was on eBay looking for plugs and if I bought this stuff from separate sellers it would probably cost me more to make it myself.
At time of writing the ebook of 52 Prepper projects is only £1.99.
ONAIR
Should you need them ever here are a list of…
UK Emergency Communication Frequencies
HF
80m 3.663 & 3.760
60m 5.2785
40m 7.110
20m 14.300
17m 18.160
15m 21.360
VHF/UHF
6m 51.650 FM / 51.750 FM / 51.770 FM / 51.790 FM
4m 70.350 FM / 70.375 FM / 70.400 FM
2m 144.200 FM / 144.225 FM / 144.625 FM / 144.650 FM / 144.675 FM / 144.775 FM / 144.260 USB / 144.800 APRS
70cm 433.700 FM / 433.725 FM / 433.750 FM / 430.800 FM Repeater / 432.775 FM Repeater / 434.375 FM Repeater / 438.400 FM Repeater
ELSEWHERE
These are quite US centric but perhaps you can take some inspiration from this list of the best power outage tools and supplies.
A new open source tool helps those interested to hunt down military radar. Via @WalkingRichard
We have had higher winds here in the UK than any of these on this forum are discussing.
The US seems to have all the best Ham Radio news. There is the Erie ham radio operator charged with broadcasting phony weather emergencies, bomb threats. and a new ham emergency service in Aroostook.
FINALS
I’ve started experimenting with video in this channel. First one was here for supporting subscribers. I’ll do some more soon.
If there is anything you think worthy of sharing here let me know. Supporting subscribers get to advertise any gear they wish to sell or radio services they might offer. I know it’s early days for this experiment but let me know if this might interest you.
Thanks for reading and I hope subscribing.
Please share this wherever you think it might resonate. At time of writing there are 23 subscribers to this email. You are some of the more curious people in radio ;-) And I thank you.
Over
73 de Christian G5DOC
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