October 10, 2016–Small Package; Lots of Power

My brother, Wil, who is also ham radio operator AI4QT sent over a couple of Gamma Research Power Supplies for me to experiment with and use.  This power supply is amazing considering its small size.  In fact, the footprint is less than a QSL card yet has enough power to run a 100-watt transceiver.  Click on the link to the video for a review and see how it was adapted to use Powerpoles for DC output.  I plan to use this little guy for a month or so of portable use then give a review on its field performance.

Click her to view YouTube Video

Hope to meet you on the air soon.

73 de John/W5CYF

For more interesting videos concerning ham radio, Morse code, kit building and QRP Portable operations, check out my YouTube Channel:  http://www.youtube.com/user/johnrob281?feature=mhee

June 9, 2016 – A Review of CW Academy

I often get questions about how my CW progress is coming along and do I have any tips for learning CW so I decided to capture my thoughts in a video.

As for my progress, I’m virtually 100% CW and enjoy QSOs in the 15-18 wpm range…comfortable for either a straight key or using my paddle.

I contribute my progress to two things. One my desire to learn CW and the other to CW Academy.  This video covers the concepts taught in class, what to expect, how to prepare and tips for getting the most out of the class.

If you are considering learning CW or improving your skill/copy I highly recommend CW Academy. Check out the video for the complete story.

Click Here to View Video

Hope to meet you on the air soon.

73 de John/W5CYF

For more interesting videos concerning ham radio, Morse code, kit building and QRP Portable operations, check out my YouTube Channel:

  http://www.youtube.com/user/johnrob281?feature=mhee

June 1, 2016 – UnUn Project Progress

In a previous blog post I mentioned I was building a 9:1 unun for a long-wire antenna.  I just complete the project and the results were a little less than I had hoped for. The SWR was a little high on several bands…in the 2.5-3.2 range.  That’s a little too high for me to feel comfortable when using my QRP rigs.

The video will be out later this week with the test results shown. I want to solicit comments from other builders out there who may have suggestions on how to get better results.

Stay tuned.

Hope to meet you on the air soon.

73 de John/W5CYF

For more interesting videos concerning ham radio, Morse code, kit building and QRP Portable operations, check out my YouTube Channel: 

http://www.youtube.com/user/johnrob281?feature=mhee

May 26, 2016 – Mail Call

From time-to-time subscribers to my YouTube channels send along items that may be of interest to me or to my viewers. The past two weeks have been bountiful to say the least.

In fact, I can see a :how-to” video using Buck Converters on the near horizon.

Thanks to Preston, Joe and George for sending along the much appreciated gifts.

Click here to view video:

Hope to meet you on the air soon.

73 de John/W5CYF

For more interesting videos concerning ham radio, Morse code, kit building and QRP Portable operations, check out my YouTube Channel: 

http://www.youtube.com/user/johnrob281?feature=mhee

May 22, 2016 – Antenna Analyzer Back From MFJ Repair

Happy days are here again.  My MFJ 259C just returned from its round trip back to Starkville, MS for repair. The entire repair process took just 14 business days.  Not bad, especially considering one of those weeks was Dayton prep where MFJ travels the crew to Hamvention.

I know MFJ gets lots of grief over its “Quality Control” and in my opinion much of that is undeserved.

I’ve got several pieces of MFJ gear and yes, I’ve had to go back and make a solder repair on a QRP Wattmeter after years of bouncing around for portable use.  Is that a fault of MJF?  Or was it my use and even abuse of the item? Either way, three minutes with the soldering iron and I was back in business.

If we could only have a perfect world my lawnmower (made with LOTS of plastic) would not suddenly quit running when one of those plastic gadgets gets loose. Or my Jeep heater core would not leak. Or my microwave door would not have broken even though it was just out of warranty. Or…well you get the picture.  Even things costing many hundreds or thousands of dollars more have problems, defects and aggravations.

So perhaps MFJ is not that bad, considering the myriad of items they provide to the ham community and the jobs they provide to Americans.

Oh, the meter works flawlessly once again…be watching for more QRP antenna videos.

Hope to meet you on the air soon.

73 de John/W5CYF

For more interesting videos concerning ham radio, Morse code, kit building and QRP Portable operations, check out my YouTube Channel:  http://www.youtube.com/user/johnrob281?feature=mhee

May 21, 2016 – Quick Tip Video: Easy Way to Count Toroid Windings

As I get older and the eyes get a little weaker, I sometimes have trouble counting turns or windings on a toroid, especially the smaller ones.

Here is a quick tip that may help make the job easier just by using your Smartphone or tablet.

Click the link below to view the brief video:

Click Here to Watch Video

Hope to meet you on the air soon.

73 de John/W5CYF

For more interesting videos concerning ham radio, Morse code, kit building and QRP Portable operations, check out my YouTube Channel:  http://www.youtube.com/user/johnrob281?feature=mh

May 19, 2016 – UnUn in Progress

I recently attended the Four State QRP Convention (OzarkCon) in Branson, MO.  While this was my first trip it surely won’t be my last. The event was great and meeting fellow QRP operators even more so!

One thing I’ll do differently next year is bring along an antenna suitable for operating from a hotel room.  I suspect a long wire with the ZM-2 tuner will do just fine; all I need is a UnUn to make it work so I’m getting the parts together for the next video.

The UnUn is very easy to make requiring little skill, money and time.  A perfect combination if you ask me.

Here is a picture of the workbench as I’m getting ready to build.  Watch for the complete YouTube video coming out in a couple of weeks.

Hope to meet you on the air soon.

73 de John/W5CYF

For more interesting videos concerning ham radio, Morse code, kit building and QRP Portable operations, check out my YouTube Channel:  http://www.youtube.com/user/johnrob281?feature=mhee

May 12, 2016 – Grandson of Zerobeat a Success

As mentioned in a previous post I was building the Jackson Harbor Press kit; Grandson of Zerobeat.

Yesterday I completed the kit, dialed it in and was quickly using it to tune in stations.  This thing works great.  Highly recommend this kit if your rig does not have a spot button.

Take a look at the video for more details. While you’re looking at the clip, don’t forget to subscribe so you won’t miss future videos.

Click Here to View Video

Hope to meet you on the air soon.

73 de John/W5CYF

For more interesting videos concerning ham radio, Morse code, kit building and QRP Portable operations, check out my YouTube Channel:  http://www.youtube.com/user/johnrob281?feature=mhee

May 8, 2016 – Storage for Rolls of Hook Up Wire

While at the workbench the other day, I realized that I had not shared a very easy to build and very inexpensive (less than $2) holder for rolls of hook up wire.

Quickly grabbing the camera I shot a very brief video of what I did to make it.  Often the most useful projects are those that take little time, effort or money…this is one of those projects.

Take a look and you might get an idea or two.

Click Here to View Video

Hope to meet you on the air soon.

73 de John/W5CYF

For more interesting videos concerning ham radio, Morse code, kit building and QRP Portable operations, check out my YouTube Channel:  http://www.youtube.com/user/johnrob281?feature=mhee

May 5, 2016-Next YouTube Project: Zero Beat

Grandson of Zero Beat (Complete Board)

A few years ago I built a very useful addition to my shack called the Son of Zero Beat.

Over the past two years some improvements have been made and this generation kit is called Grandson of Zero Beat

The purpose of this thing is to make sure you are spot on frequency when sending CW.  As you may know, the CW offset us usually around 600 KHz which means what you are sending and what you are hearing are separated from each other by those 600 or so KHz.

While most modern rigs do the offset for you it can be difficult to know when you, the operator, are on the correct frequency.  There are really only two ways to do that. One is having a rig that has a spot button to match the sound of the pitch sent (my rig, an Icom 7200 does not) or you must have an ear good enough ear to match pitch (which I also don’t have).

Enter the Grandson of Zero Beat.  This little device allows you go tune until the green light comes on and you’re done.

You can purchase the kit from Jackson Harbor Press. While this kit may not be ideal for the first kit a beginner tackles, it is definitely within the realm of being successfully built if the beginner takes his/her time.

Stay tuned for the upcoming YouTube video and learn how easy it is to tune spot on the sender frequency.

Hope to meet you on the air soon.

73 de John/W5CYF

For more interesting videos concerning ham radio, Morse code, kit building and QRP Portable operations, check out my YouTube Channel:  http://www.youtube.com/user/johnrob281?feature=mhee