Hi all, Last weekend I had the privilege of being invited as a guest to the Northwest FOC gathering in Seattle. The invitation came from my friend Shin, JA1NUT, who was in attendance. It was wonderful to meet this fine fellow after so many years of having chatted with him on 40 and 20 CW. I also got to meet a number of other fine folks with whom I have been enjoying lots of good contacts on the air. I will tell you that this group sure knows how to put on a superb event. Lots of things to do, great food to eat, and, of course, a lot of very interesting conversation. Even the spouses have a great time.
Anyway, at our hotel we had a hospitality room in which Steve, W7QC, had set up his K3. We were on the top floor, and they had temporarily installed a multi-band vertical on the roof which performed very well. If anyone had a QSO with K7FOC last weekend, that was "us"! One of the more interesting highlights of the operating part was provided by Tof, DJ6ZM, who was also in attendance. He has his station in Munich remoted, and we even had a contact between Tof, in one room, and K7FOC, in the adjoining room! Tof uses the Remoterig system, and only has to bring one of the two pieces of the Remoterig system, plus the remote head from his TS-480--and a paddle, of course! Tof's setup in Munich is rather elaborate, in that he can actually control several different operating positions, and several different antennas. all of which are very substantial. However, the system doesn't need to be so elaborate in order to communicate effectively. Nonetheless, his is an awesome system. This wasn't my first exposure to a remote setup, as Paul, W9AC, had also shown me his remote setup a couple of years back when we were all at FDIM in Dayton. Paul uses the TS-480 also, but with a slightly different method of remote operation, which involves having twin K1EL keyers, one at each end. That system worked very well also. In any event, I'm getting very keen on being able to set up some sort of remote system of my own. As most of you know, Elecraft now has its own remote system using the "K3/0" remote module. I've not seen that one in operation, but I'm sure it works equally well. So, you have several commercial options available currently. If you are a K3 owner, the K3/0 may well be your preference since it gives you pretty much complete duplication of all the K3's capabilities from your remote location. This is particularly attractive if your remote location is some place where you can establish a somewhat "semi-permanent" setup, like a summer home, etc. As a portable, traveling unit it might be somewhat less attractive due to size, but perhaps not. We tend to view the K3 as a reasonably portable unit, and the K3/0 is no bigger. You still need something like the Remoterig devices, but it only adds a small additional amount to what you have to transport. Alternatively, however, you could use a rig like the TS-480, and only have to transport one side of the Remoterig setup plus the 480's remote head--a somewhat smaller, more convenient package for traveling. I'm still sorting out in my mind all the requirements for operating in this fashion, but it is most intriguing. It's also pretty impressive when you have something like W9AC's system, or DJ6Zm's system, as to what you can do and how effective it is. I'm currently up here in Oregon for the rest of the summer, and something like this would be very useful. I can set up a modest station here, but antennas are an issue. I have an extremely limited space in which to erect anything. I am getting close to deciding that remote operation may be my best option. I can still use something like my KX3 for "local" operation, but a remote system tends to eliminate complexities with various locations I might find myself in as we travel. Anyhow, just thought I would pass on my impressions from my recent observations. It's just another way to have fun with ham radio. Dave W7AQK ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
