And so everyone knows why I am up so darned late, I am waiting for the 02:22 ISS pass to download a stinking picture since I only have 2 more realistic shots at doing so :-)
On Tue, Dec 29, 2020 at 1:43 AM Ron Bosch <[email protected]> wrote: > Mark, > A few points that I couldn't make on the net, because of time. > 1. I wasn't saying don't do it, just don't expect a bunch of QSO's. You > will be limited to when the band is really open, and the noise floor is low > at the receiving antenna. That will reduce the number of potential > contacts by at least an order of magnitude. That being said, operating > anything is better than operating nothing. > 2. IMHO, and end fed antenna is not a good choice unless you also build a > matching bridge. You can't expect to maintain an exact 50-ohm load from an > end-fed with just a toroid, you also need some shunt resistors, and > variable caps, and such, and you will need to tune it depending on > conditions due to reactance unless you built-in a big enough reactance in > the circuit, and cut the end-fed to exactly 1/2 wave where you want to > operate, and the toroid with that much permeability probably ain't cheap. > A better approach to me would be a 20M 1/2 wave dipole trimmed at operating > height with an antenna analyzer. > 3. Doing this in the city, with the amount of interference, and the > antenna compromises we have to make seems to add a whole other set of > issues to making contacts. If I were to do it, I might plan to take the > rig out of the city to operate it, and get the advantage of using trees and > such to get my dipole at 33 feet up, with a low noise floor to increase my > chances of contacts. > 4. In any event, I suspect you are really going to need at least a Nano > VNA to make sure you don't smoke the finals, since I doubt seriously that a > QRP kit includes protection circuitry. That will add a minimum of $50 to > your build, although you would save a bunch on the antenna if you built a > 1/2 wave dipole instead. Heck, I have an extra 1:1 current balun I can > part with for the rock bottom price of $0.02, and since I am including my > $0.02 in this email, net due is $0.00 :-) > > Ron > KE4DRF > > On Mon, Dec 28, 2020 at 11:44 PM Mark Brantana via BVARC <[email protected]> > wrote: > >> I thought I had things all figured out. I originally wanted to get back >> on HF, and found I could get some great used equipment for about $400, not >> including antenna. Add a 10-80 m antenna from MyAntenna for around $165. I >> already have coax installed. Grand total: $565 >> >> Normally, this cost would not be an issue, but like so many others I am >> short on funds due to CV-19, so it is a bad time for this expenditure. I >> find I can buy a 20-m QRP Labs CW mini with case for about $90, and build >> an EFHW antenna for another $20 (including the matching toroid). Grand >> Total: $110 >> >> Everything has its advantages though. A ham since ’78, that’s 1987, I >> feel that >> 1. this would force me to improve my almost forgotten code without the >> inevitable distraction of voice alternatives, >> 2. this would give me a chance to build a full small project and antenna. >> >> Today, though, some felt that this setup would lead to disappointment on >> my part. I am fully aware there will be some limitations to QRP, but the >> generally negative comments form our net were as follows: >> 1. The band is poor at this time. >> 2. The 4-5 Watt QRP would not get in, and even a 100 Watt unit would not >> suffice, but needs to be about 500 Watts. This would lead me to need back >> to spending at least $565, and more for an amplifier. (So we are now saying >> that even a typical 100 Watt radio is insufficient?) (I would also note >> that QRP sells a 50 W amplifier for this radio as an add on. >> >> Experience counts. So, I am looking for my fellow hams with QRP >> experience to share their thoughts. I thought I had this all figured out, >> but if I am going down a wrong road, I need to know. What has been your >> experience with 20-m QRP? >> >> Mark >> N5PRD >> ________________________________________________ >> Brazos Valley Amateur Radio Club >> >> BVARC mailing list >> [email protected] >> http://mail.bvarc.org/mailman/listinfo/bvarc_bvarc.org >> >
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