AmateurLogic.TV Episode 115 is now available for download.

Tommy, George and Emile visit the 2018 Acadiana Hamfest in Rayne, LA. Good food, good friends and good times in South Louisiana. We visit with vendors and attendees to find out what makes this event so special. Emile teaches Tommy and George the proper way to eat Crawfish.

1:14:21 of a Hamfest unlike any other.

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George Thomas, W5JDX, is co-host of AmateurLogic.TV, an original amateur radio video program hosted by George Thomas (W5JDX), Tommy Martin (N5ZNO), Peter Berrett (VK3PB), and Emile Diodene (KE5QKR). Contact him at [email protected].

Everyone needs a remote VFO from 1955

Note to self: Never browse eBay just before you go to sleep

The 1955 remote VFO was unique because it had a built-in power supply.  It's also interesting that its base oscillation frequency is in the 160m band.  Using harmonics from the base frequency means it doubles for each subsequent band (x2 for 80m, x4 for 40m, etc.)  That doubling means it also multiplies the drift.  Specified drift is 300Hz an hour.  That doesn't sound too bad, but multiply that by x6 up in the 10m band and holy-smokes, it's drifting 1800Hz an hour.

That's gonna make operating CW like a game of chase, or hide and seek after every exchange.

This is gonna be fun.

Surprisingly the big dial is actually operating the variable cap through a reduction gear and it's very smooth

Uses 4 tubes. Power supply up top, VFO circuits in the bottom to minimize impact of heat from the PS.

Power supply

old electrolytic power filter cap  must be replaced

10k 7watt resistor had failed

Replacement bits

The 450v electrolytic cap must be replaced for safety reasons. All the other components measured within 10% of specifications except for the 10k 7w resistor connected to the OA2 tube. It had gone up into mega ohms of resistance, which is likely when the VFO was taken out of use.

Handwritten notes inside the chassis indicated the VFO tubes had been replaced in 1977. Until I get the replacement parts for the power supply I won't know the condition of the tubes.

Plans

I plan on using this with a Homebrew transmitter that I may build sometime this summer.

Surprisingly, it outputs 10 volts of signal, so I may also build an output filter and use it as a QRPp transmitter on its own.


The possibilities are endless.

Update 3/21

Repaired

The replacement parts arrived from Mouser...  A 500v 47uF electrolytic capacitor and a 10k Ohm 7-watt resistor.  The new high wattage resistor is tiny compared to the giant, defunct resistor that was in there before, and of course the capacitor was about 1/3rd the size of the original.  I used some spaghetti on the capacitor leads since the lead lengths were so much longer with the replacement cap.  So the power supply section was now repaired.

I also replaced the 2-blade, non-polarized, ungrounded, un-fused 1950's power cord with a 3-pin grounded plug and added a 1-amp/250v inline, replaceable fuse.  So hopefully there's a reduced risk of death or fire now.  Electrical safety didn't seem to be foremost on the minds of kit builders 60 years ago. The size of the 3 wire power cable and it's much thicker insulation didn't fit the opening in the back of the VFO as both the power cable and the VFO output come through the same hole, so I had to remove the insulation and use heat shrink to get things to fit.  Additionally the large in-line fuse holder didn't fit well inside the VFO housing so the wiring is quite a bit more cramped in there than it was before.

After the components were replaced and the wiring was complete I plugged it in... no-smoke.  Then I flipped the repaired switch (the phenolic disc for the on-off switch was broken in half when I received it), and wallah! The indicator light lit up through its pretty little blue jewel eye.  So I knew the transformer was supplying 6.3v for filament.  I heard a low hum from the little transformer and then the tubes began to glow.  The OA2 was glowing it's pretty violet color, and no bad smells were emanating.  I was ready to button it up and begin calibration.

The sparse instructions directed me to back out the tuning slug for the 80m band nearly to the end and screw in the slug for the other bands all the way, so I did so.  I set the trimmer caps C1 and C2 to their fully engaged positions.

I carefully re-installed the front face holding the VFO and PS sections it in its heavy-duty case, taking care to get all the new power cord/fuse wiring inside the VFO section from binding up on the sharp edges of the case as it went in.  In screwed in the plentiful 10 screws that holds it together and Bob's your uncle.  Well, maybe Bob isn't your uncle but I just wanted to say that.

I had already attached an RG-58 coax to the output inside the VFO and run it out the hole with the new power cord, so I then installed a BNC connector on the end of the RG-58 to make hookup easy.  I like BNC connectors because they are secure and I have lots of adapters for different connectors.  I then connected the VFO output to my Elecraft CP1 RF coupler and terminated the other end with my ugly dummy load.  I connected the RF coupled cable to the Oscilloscope and turned everything back on.

Calibration

I let it warm up 20 minutes or so.  The cabinet does not get very warm, just about 15 degrees above room temperature.  That's actually a good thing, from what I've read.  If the VFO is at room temperature then it's more susceptible to the variations of that room temperature.  Having the case stabilize above room temp can make the VFO more stable.

I had my frequency counter attached to an output from the oscilloscope.  In the 80m band setting with the VFO dial set to 3.5 Mhz the freq-counter was reading around 1.75'ish.  The VFO primary oscillation roams around the 160m band and generates the first harmonic in the 80m band.  The freq counter had trouble tracking due to all the harmonics, and the output on the oscilloscope was not very pretty because it was showing the primary frequency with the first harmonic interfering.

I was unable to properly calibrate the VFO using a frequency counter, due to the interference from the harmonics, so I turned on my SDRPlay, software defined radio.  It can display up to 10 mHz bandwidth but for this test I was displaying 2 mHz bandwidth so that I could easily see the harmonic for the band I was calibrating.

That made quick work of calibration.  I adjusted the variable capacitor C1 (near the bottom left hand side of the VFO) for the 80m band and adjusted the one above it for the remainder of the bands.  I was able to verify that adjusting the VFO dial in the CW portions of the bands was extremely accurate with regard to frequency.

It appears to work like a charm.  I hooked up a key and even sent some test messages and listened to them on the SDR.  I'd been advised to not key the VFO directly because it tended to chirp but frequency stability was much better than I expected.  Over the course of an hour that I was calibrating I saw very little drift after the initial warm-up.

Here's a little video demonstrating the completed calibration...





That's all for now .

So, warm up your Tubes and spray some RF into the air.

73
Richard ,AA4OO


Richard Carpenter, AA4OO, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from North Carolina, USA. Contact him at [email protected].

courtesy: arrl.org

Well this year's NRR has come and gone, providing a full nine days of CW fun for those of us that love old radios.







Once again, the ether filled with signals spawned from the old classic Novice-class workhorses that many of today's 'seasoned' amateurs used in their first stations, way back in their teen years. In many respects, the NRR is as close to a real time machine that you'll find, allowing participants to experience the joys, and sometimes the frustrations, of operating CW with their favorite old rigs from the past.

For me, just like last year, the NRR once again provided many notable highlights over the nine day event.

Almost topping the list was just experiencing the variety of old classics and hearing how well almost all of them sounded. Numerous Knight T-60s, Drake 2NTs, Heath DX-40s, Johnson Adventurers and Eico 720s, along with a nice variety of homebrew MOPAs and one-tube power oscillators graced the nightly airwaves. These oft-forgotten shelf-queens always seem to develop super-powers, far beyond their expectations, when the NRR rolls around!

I was really surprised to work so many T-60s, a small and inexpensive 60 watt transmitter kit from 1962 using a popular 6DQ6 television  sweep tube ... one never expected to achieve such RF greatness! I was very impressed with every one that I heard.


What radio-struck pre-Novice teen, dreaming about getting on the air, could resist a clever ad like this.


Scott, KA9P's 80m T-60 signal sounded as sweet as it looks in his 2018 setup, paired with his Heathkit HR-10B inhaler.

KA9P 2018 NRR station with RAF Vulcan bomber Type 51 hand pump

Right up there with the plethora of T-60s was the Drake 2NT, another great sounding radio and also my choice for this year's event. My summer refurbishing project, described here, proved a worthy companion, although my much-treasured VF-1 VFO's short term drift probably had my 2NT getting red in the face whenever I took her off of crystal control to scurry around the band, seeking out the CQ'ers. I've had a love-hate relationship with the VF-1 ever since buying my first one back in '63!

VE7SL 2018 NRR with 2NT, VF-1 and my Original '63 Vibroplex

Yet another 2NT packed a powerful punch from West Virginia, keyed by Dave, W3NP, when we exchanged 579 reports on 40m, 45 minutes before sunset.

W3NP - 2018 NRR setup

This year's band conditions were excellent as both 40 and 80m sounded much as I remember them sounding back in the 60's ... loaded with strong North American CW signals almost every night. Unfortunately, Solar Cycle 24 has taken its toll on 15m and although the band appeared to often have daily though somewhat dicey propagation, there appeared to be few NRR stations using the band.

I made three contacts on 15m this year: W5IQS in Texas, K2YWE in Maryland and WN4NRR in Florida, whose S9 reply to my 'CQ NRR' just about took my head off ... what a nice surprise to hear the booming signal from Bry's 2NT powerhouse. Dan, K2YWE, was no slouch either, as his Globe Scout was music to my ears when his signal quickly rose out of the noise just long enough to make the coast-to-coast journey. If the predictions for future solar cycles become reality, there may be many more NRRs before we experience the magic of 15m once again.

K2YWE's Globe Scout and Adventurer were worked on all three bands!

My NRR exchanges with George, N3GJ (KA3JWJ) in Pennsylvania, truly demonstrated just how well the low bands were performing. More than an hour before my local sunset, I responded to his 569 40m 'CQ NRR' only to learn that his signal, now reaching a solid 579, was coming from an original Ameco AC-1! This one-tube crystal-controlled power oscillator has, over the years, reached Holy Grail status among many amateurs. Originals are guarded like precious jewels and handed down from father to son ... or in George's case, from uncle to nephew!

N3GJ and his all powerful original AC-1

I was astounded at the strength of his signal and before exchanging '73's added 'CUL on 80', not really thinking how low the chances of that might really be. Two hours later, his even stronger 'CQ NRR' was heard on 80m, as his 579 signal flirted with reaching S8 ... all emanating from just a low hanging inverted-V.  It's nights like this that remind me how I was bitten by the radio bug so many years ago and to have them coincide with the NRR was an added bonus. I've rated my contacts with George's AC-1 the highlight of this year's NRR for me!

Heathkits were plentiful too, with the DX-60 seeming to be the rig of choice, often paired with the matching HG-10 VFO. Both Mark, VA7MM and Gary, W8PU, packed a wallop with these fine examples.

VA7MM - 2018 NRR set-up

W8PU - 2018 NRR set-up

But it wasn't just DX-60s representing Benton Harbor engineering in the NRR. All of these neat old Heaths made it out to the west coast, sometimes on both 40 and 80. KN8RHM's (Rick) HW-16 made it here on 40m with a solid signal almost every night, while KE4OH (Steve) sported a modernized DX-20 in the form of Heath's HX-11. Steve even received the highly-treasured 'OO' report for his NRR chirp ... good job!

KN8RHM - HW-16 NRR set-up

KE4OH - HX-11 NRR station

Not to be forgotten was the ubiquitous DX-40, used by several, including this proud old warhorse, lovingly keyed by Doug, N3PDT.

N3PDT - DX-40 NRR transmitter

Rich, WN7NRR / AG5M operating in nearby Washington state put some of his 44 crystals to work with his HW-16 ... that's some collection!

WN7NRR - HW-16 NTT set-up

It seems that many NRRers are as adept with a soldering iron as they are with a hand key, as several homebrew transmitters were worked from here as well.

Howie, WB2AWQ in Reno, was using his homebrew pair of 807s, driven with a Millen 90700 swing-arm VFO from 1945. Most shacks worldwide, including the Novices, found plenty of use for the 807 as they were dirt-cheap in the post war surplus market. The filament has a beautiful illumination and if a bit gassy as most are by now, emit a wonderous blue glow with each press of the key.

WB2AWQ - 807s

Millen VFO from 1945 at WB2AWQ

KD7JG (Joe) in Oregon, sported a 12 volt version of the 807, a 1625, in his home brew rock-crusher. With 25 watts into his ladderline-fed 160m inverted-V, his 599 signal up here was hard to miss on both 40 and 80m.

KD7JG's 1625 NRR mainstay

K4IBZ down in Florida also utilized the magical 6DQ6 sweep tube in his homebrew rig for 80 and 40m. Bill was worked on both bands from here with his 10 watts receiving a 569 on both contacts.

K4IBZ's 10 watter

AA8V, Greg in Maryland, used an LM-13 war surplus frequency meter to drive a popular Novice pairing of the 6AG7 / 6146 at 90W input ... good enough for a 579 report on 40m, 30 minutes before my sunset.

AA8V's homebrew NRR stack

The runner-up highlight was my 80m QSO with Lou, VE3BDV / VE3AWA who flirted briefly with the Grim Reaper to work me on his Bare-Essentials 50C5 crystal controlled power oscillator at 7 watts. This thing is scary, being driven directly from the A.C. mains supply ... but he survived long enough to complete our QSO on 3568 kHz.

VE3BDV / VE3AWA - 50C5 Bare - Essentials power oscillator

There are many more stories to share and you can soon read them all on the NRR 2018 Soapbox page once it gets published. If you participated, be sure to post your station picture and tell us about your experience!

I finished up the NRR with 123 contacts, a lot better than last year's event when I was running the Longfeller at 5 watts.

If you think that you might enjoy participating in the next event then now is the time to start preparing ... just 353 more sleeps until the 2019 NRR begins!!
Steve McDonald, VE7SL, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from British Columbia, Canada. Contact him at [email protected].

I'm not really sure why I haven't blogged about this before now, but last November I went on an amazing expedition to Ashmore Reef , an island off the coast of Australia. I can't write a better story about the expedition than the expedition leader and planner, Craig, VK5CE, put together. Here is the link, https://vkiota.wordpress.com/past-dxpeditions/oc-216-vk9ar-ashmore-reef/ 

Going to Australia was a bucket list item for me and to check it off with such an adventure as the VK9AR expedition was a wonderful treat.
Mike Crownover, AD5A, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from Texas, USA. Contact him at [email protected].

Here is this week’s space weather and geophysical report, issued 2018 Mar 12 0049 UTC.

Highlights of Solar and Geomagnetic Activity 05 – 11 March 2018

Solar activity was very low throughout the period.

No proton events were observed at geosynchronous orbit.

The greater than 2 MeV electron flux at geosynchronous orbit reached moderate levels on 10 Mar with normal levels observed through the remainder of the week.

Geomagnetic field activity reached active levels late on 09 Mar and early on 10 Mar due to the combined influences of a coronal hole high speed stream and a weak transient solar wind feature.

Forecast of Solar and Geomagnetic Activity 12 March – 07 April 2018

Solar activity is expected to continue at very low levels throughout the outlook period.

No proton events are expected at geosynchronous orbit.

The greater than 2 MeV electron flux at geosynchronous orbit is expected to reach high levels on 18-25 Mar with moderate levels expected on 17, 26-30 Mar. Normal flux levels are expected throughout the remainder of the outlook period.

Geomagnetic field activity is expected to reach G1 (Minor) geomagnetic storm levels on 18 and 26 Mar and active levels are expected on 15-17, and 21 Mar due to the influences of multiple, recurrent coronal hole high speed streams. Generally quiet and quiet to unsettled conditions are expected for the rest of the outlook period as a nominal solar wind regime prevails.

Don’t forget to visit our live space weather and radio propagation web site, at: http://SunSpotWatch.com/

Live Aurora mapping is at http://aurora.sunspotwatch.com/

If you are on Twitter, please follow these two users: 1. https://Twitter.com/NW7US 2. https://Twitter.com/hfradiospacewx

Check out the stunning view of our Sun in action, as seen during the last five years with the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXN-MdoGM9g

= = = = =

BOOK SALE: Space Weather and Sun Science – get these from Amazon, and help us stay online!

NOTICE: When you buy this (or any item after starting with this link), you are helping us keep our SunSpotWatch.com and other resources “on the air” (up and running!). In other words, you are helping the entire community. So, check out this book:

Here is the link to Amazon: http://g.nw7us.us/fbssw-aSWSC

We’re on Facebook: http://NW7US.us/swhfr

Visit, subscribe: NW7US Radio Communications and Propagation YouTube Channel

Welcome to Episode 213 of Linux in the Ham Shack. In this episode, the hosts discuss the proper installation of HF antennas, the HF Voyager project, FT-8 DXpeditions, Ubuntu 18.04 and Discourse, picking OSS licenses, the new release of WSJT-X and much more. Thank you for listening!

73 de The LHS Crew

Russ Woodman, K5TUX, co-hosts the Linux in the Ham Shack podcast which is available for download in both MP3 and OGG audio format. Contact him at [email protected].

Amateur Radio Weekly is curated by Cale Mooth K4HCK. Sign up free to receive ham radio's most relevant news, projects, technology and events by e-mail each week at http://www.hamweekly.com.