Re: [Elecraft] Hex Beam

[Matthew Cook]

I'd go and visit Leo K4KIO's webiste, there you will find much inspiration.

http://www.k4kio.com/gallery/#prettyPhoto[gallery]/28/

73

Matthew
VK5ZM

On 20 May 2017 at 23:35, Dauer, Edward  wrote:

> Recent posts on the hex beam sent me off to look further into it.  I found
> what I think is an  excellent discussion at http://www.karinya.net/g3txq/
> hexbeam/
>
> Anyone know a source for support construction notes or ideas for a
> portable application?
>
> Ted, KN1CBR
>
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Re: [Elecraft] BL2 -- Antenna Balun Usage

[Victor Rosenthal 4X6GP]

Balun ratings are for a 1:1 SWR. My experience has been that when the 
impedance gets very reactive, baluns heat up more. I had a 5 kW DXE 
balun get too hot to touch with around 1 kW in such a situation. 
Canceling the reactance on the open-wire line side of the balun made it 
run cool.


Measuring the impedance of an open line with an antenna analyzer is 
tricky. If you use a balun, it will act as an extra piece of 
transmission line and transform the impedance. I tried to do it without 
a balun with an Autek VA1 (battery operated) sitting on a plastic stand 
-- it was difficult to adjust and I didn't feel the results were reliable.


What you can do if you know the length of the feedline and the details 
of the antenna accurately is to use EZNEC to get the impedance at the 
feedpoint and then TLW or a similar program to compute what it will look 
like at the shack end of the feedline. This worked for me.


73,
Victor, 4X6GP
Rehovot, Israel
Formerly K2VCO
http://www.qsl.net/k2vco/


Vic

On 21 May 2017 21:00, Phil Hystad wrote:

I am assuming that a question about the Elecraft BL2 is On-Topic (OT)
as opposed to Off-Topic (OT)…

I am planning to use my BL2 to measure the impedance of my
antenna+feedline at the point of entry into my balun (DX Engineering)
which then feeds coax to my K-Line.

The feedline is 450 ohm ladder (window style).  The antenna is an
80-meter, 136 feet, antenna up in the air about 50 to 60 feet.

I have two antenna analyzers and I will likely use both of them to
see the difference.  I will connect the 450-ohm feed line to the
balanced side and a BNC to UHF adapter for attaching to my antenna
analyzer [ (1) MFJ 259B, (2) Autek Research VA1].

Questions:

(1) How much difference would I expect in using the balun verses
measuring the balanced line directly with my antenna analyzers
(actually, I plan to do both but wondering if anyone else has done
this with what results).

(2) I bought the BL2 for this particular purpose as it is switchable
between 1:1 and 4:1 transformations.  I wanted to figure out which
would be best to use, a 1:1 or a 4:1 balun (DX Engineering and I have
one of each).  Due to the location of the balun (DX Engineering that
is) it is easier for me to do this measurement first before
physically replacing the one balun with the other.  Right now, I am
using a 4:1 balun.

A third un-related (to above) question:  The BL2 is rated for maximum
of 250 watts.  What are the bad effects of pushing more than 250
watts through the device, I mean a lot more like double or triple.
My guess is that the ferrite transformer will overheat causing
possibly run-away thermal non-linear changes to the transforming.
What else will likely happen?

73, phil, K7PEH



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Re: [Elecraft] Hallicrafters HA-1

[Wes Stewart]

AFAIK, at the time I was looking, they were out of business.  I know that Ham 
Supply bought the product line. Now owning a K-Pod that finally works, I have 
less need for the memories in the Idiom unit, although the hand keying issue 
remains.  I was trying to downsize and really don't want another box on the desk.


Wes  N7WS

On 5/21/2017 6:44 PM, Kevin - K4VD wrote:
Is Idiom Press out of business? I thought they just changed their name: 
https://www.hamsupply.com. Hamsupply.com has the Logikey K-5 Electronic Keyer 
 with Accukeyer emulation. I use 
one - not so much any more - but still have it anyway. Wonderful keyer. Not 
sure if this is the one you're referring to though.


73,
Kev K4VD

On Sun, May 21, 2017 at 9:04 PM, Wes Stewart > wrote:


I'm approaching my 60th year in ham radio and have a confession; I learned
Morse with my Boy Scout Handbook (still have it) by sight not sound. 
Consequently, I've never been a very good CW op, although I have a 20 WPM

Extra license.  As a Novice I used a Western Electric "Pole-Changer"
straight key given to me by a non-ham retired telegrapher friend, (That's
still on the operating desk).  I never even tried a bug, but when I built
my first Accu-Keyer I finally had some help.  I used it with a number of
rigs and when the Accu-Memory came out I was in heaven.

I build two of them at first and gave one to my friend George Badger,
W6TC, who liked it too.  Then I built a third one for the heart of my
meteor scatter/EME station.  With several handfulls of TTL logic I added a
timer/sequencer that used the power line as a time base to automatically
control the station on the various sequences used for MS and EME. Preamp
switching/relay delay, TX delay, etc were all timed by the keyer and the
"canned" messages were in memory.  All I had to do was listen and select
the next message as the QSO progressed. (That one is still in my storage
building too.)

Among its wonderful ergonomics the TS870 that I had before buying a K3 was
an Accu-Keyer emulation.   I never had trouble sending CW with that rig. 
Enter the K3 (and now a K3S).  I can't even send my call gracefully.  I

was prepared to buy the Idiom Press unit when they went out of business.

I would love Accu-Keyer emulation in my K3s.

Wes  N7WS

On 5/15/2017 12:57 PM, GRANT YOUNGMAN wrote:

This is one of the things that has always bugged me about internal rig
keyers (Elecraft included).  And as as result, I’ve almost never used
them.  I’ve been using an Accu-Keyer (or emulator) for so long that
nothing else is comfortable.

I moved from my original home brewed Accu-Keyer (which I still have,
refuse to part with,  and occasionally use) to the enhanced
Accu-Memory version, to an MM-3 (with emulation — and still one of the
best stand-alone keyers ever made) to the Idiom Press CMOS 4 (with
emulation) because of its small form factor.

It seems that something as basic as Accu-Keyer timing with
auto-character (and even auto-word) space isn’t exactly “rocket
science”.  So how about it Elecraft?   Accu-Keyer emulation would make
a better than run-of-the-mill update!!  For the K3, KX3, KX2.  And I
wouldn’t have to carry the CMOS 4 in my KX3 bag or fiddle with more
cables on the table with the K3.  I’m probably not alone here, given
the popularity of the Accu-Keyer.  I can send better CW with a bug
than I can with paddles and an electronic keyer that lacks ACS.  Maybe
it’s my (old) age or just practice ...  :-)

But - it didn't have auto character spacing which came out with
the WB4VVF
Accu-Keyer (hint-hint - so it's not OT after all).

Grant NQ5T
K3 #2091, KX3 #8342


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Re: [Elecraft] K2/100 overheating?

[Don Wilhelm]

Ron,

My memory of the fan direction may be faulty, and I have responded.  I 
will check tomorrow.
I have just returned from Dayton (over 500 mile drive), so pardon me if 
I am a bit "groggy".  I will resolve all that tomorrow.


I did respond to George while I was at Dayton.  Yes, there are other 
situations that could produce those problems - usually those ate 
accociated with the T/R switch area.


73,
Don W3FPR

On 5/21/2017 10:44 PM, Ron D'Eau Claire wrote:

Don: I guess you never noticed my response to Ken that I posted last Friday.
The fan moves air INTO the K2, across the PA and it comes out around the
heat sink fins near the front of the K2, just as George said.

I suggested Ken contact you after he determined that he had in fact set the
bias current correctly and the fan was operating correctly because you work
on K2s quite often. It's been five years since mine was apart!

73, Ron AC7AC

-Original Message-
From: Elecraft [mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Don
Wilhelm
Sent: Sunday, May 21, 2017 6:19 PM
To: George Winship, NC5G; elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K2/100 overheating?

George,

I will check the fan air flow direction tomorrow because I am uncertain.
If you have the label out and the wires on the correct holes, yours is
likely OK.

There are 2 philosophies about the fan direction.  One is that you should
exhaust the heat and let the assembly draw cool air across the hot
components.

The other says to let the fan "blow" on the hot components.
The major difference between the two is that a blower fan adds heat to the
air (due to the work produced by the fan), but adds the benefit of directing
the air flow to the area to be cooled.
An exhaust fan does not add its work product heat to the air being moved,
but the cool air cannot be directed as well because it is spread over a
large area in the enclosure box.

73,
Don W3FPR

On 5/21/2017 11:26 AM, George Winship, NC5G wrote:

Interesting. I built my K2/100 about 17 years ago and the fan has always
drawn air into the cabinet and exhausted over the heatsink. So, I

rechecked

the manual and disassembled my rig to check for proper assembly. Fan label
is facing out and wires are soldered to the right pads(red=+, black=-).

Was

there maybe a change in later models?

73, George



Make certain the fan is mounted with the label out and that the red wire
is in the +hole and the black one in the -hole.
The fan should exhaust the hot air.  Cooler air flows in at the front of
the heatsink.







--
View this message in context:

http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/K2-100-overheating-tp7630828p7630883.ht
ml

Sent from the Elecraft mailing list archive at Nabble.com.
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Re: [Elecraft] Elecraft T1 doesn't tune nor read power levels

[Nr4c]

Motors?

Sent from my iPhone
...nr4c. bill


> On May 21, 2017, at 1:29 PM, IU6ASS <5battaglione.serv...@gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> Couple of weeks ago i got my hands on a used rig, an FT817D plus an Elecraft
> T1 tuner. The tuner worked fine until yesterday, doing the autotuning at
> band change and tuning when pressing the "tune" button.
> 
> But now when i press the tune button or switch between bands and transmit
> within the flashing green LED, the tuner stands still, not cycling thru the
> relays to find the best match, as like it's not connected to an RF source at
> all.
> 
> Thanks to the CAT cable, when i switch bands on the radio, the T1 it still
> does the same, and still retains the last stored SWR match saved on the
> various bands, but if i switch to another antenna and try to tune, as
> mentioned, it does not tune.
> 
> I tried tuning in CW, AM, FM, talking over SSB, but to no avail, the tuning
> does not starts.
> 
> I tried switching to a new battery, same effects.
> 
> I tried to listen to the slow CW Info, but not much information.
> 
> I decided to open the T1 and eventually check for cracked solder joints and
> aside from fatigue ones on the BNCs that i could solder easily, nothing out
> of the ordinary came out to my eyes.
> 
> Any idea from more expert minds?
> 
> 
> 
> --
> View this message in context: 
> http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/Elecraft-T1-doesn-t-tune-nor-read-power-levels-tp7630887.html
> Sent from the Elecraft mailing list archive at Nabble.com.
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Re: [Elecraft] Hallicrafters HA-1

[Ron D'Eau Claire]

Are you using Mode B? I believe the Elecraft rigs default to A which is the 
Curtiss system. It drives me nuts but Mode B works beautifully on this 
"Accu-keyer" operator. 

BTW, in the Boy Scouts I tried unsuccessfully to decode by sight. Guess I was 
no better than the guy on the Carpathia who was unable to decode "This is the 
Titanic. Come quickly. We are sinking". He finally decided the mast light was 
defective. 

73, Ron AC7AC



-Original Message-
From: Elecraft [mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Wes 
Stewart
Sent: Sunday, May 21, 2017 6:05 PM
To: elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Hallicrafters HA-1

I'm approaching my 60th year in ham radio and have a confession; I learned 
Morse with my Boy Scout Handbook (still have it) by sight not sound.  
Consequently, I've never been a very good CW op, although I have a 20 WPM Extra 
license.  As a Novice I used a Western Electric "Pole-Changer" straight key 
given to me by a non-ham retired telegrapher friend, (That's still on the 
operating desk).  I never even tried a bug, but when I built my first 
Accu-Keyer I finally had some help.  I used it with a number of rigs and when 
the Accu-Memory came out I was in heaven.

I build two of them at first and gave one to my friend George Badger, W6TC, who 
liked it too.  Then I built a third one for the heart of my meteor scatter/EME 
station.  With several handfulls of TTL logic I added a timer/sequencer that 
used the power line as a time base to automatically control the station on the 
various sequences used for MS and EME. Preamp switching/relay delay, TX delay, 
etc were all timed by the keyer and the "canned" messages were in memory.  All 
I had to do was listen and select the next message as the QSO progressed. (That 
one is still in my storage building too.)

Among its wonderful ergonomics the TS870 that I had before buying a K3 was an 
Accu-Keyer emulation.   I never had trouble sending CW with that rig.  Enter 
the 
K3 (and now a K3S).  I can't even send my call gracefully.  I was prepared to 
buy the Idiom Press unit when they went out of business.

I would love Accu-Keyer emulation in my K3s.

Wes  N7WS

On 5/15/2017 12:57 PM, GRANT YOUNGMAN wrote:
> This is one of the things that has always bugged me about internal rig keyers 
> (Elecraft included).  And as as result, I’ve almost never used them.  I’ve 
> been using an Accu-Keyer (or emulator) for so long that nothing else is 
> comfortable.
>
> I moved from my original home brewed Accu-Keyer (which I still have, refuse 
> to part with,  and occasionally use) to the enhanced Accu-Memory version, to 
> an MM-3 (with emulation — and still one of the best stand-alone keyers ever 
> made) to the Idiom Press CMOS 4 (with emulation) because of its small form 
> factor.
>
> It seems that something as basic as Accu-Keyer timing with auto-character 
> (and even auto-word) space isn’t exactly “rocket science”.  So how about it 
> Elecraft?   Accu-Keyer emulation would make a better than run-of-the-mill 
> update!!  For the K3, KX3, KX2.  And I wouldn’t have to carry the CMOS 4 in 
> my KX3 bag or fiddle with more cables on the table with the K3.  I’m probably 
> not alone here, given the popularity of the Accu-Keyer.  I can send better CW 
> with a bug than I can with paddles and an electronic keyer that lacks ACS.  
> Maybe it’s my (old) age or just practice ...  :-)
>
>> But - it didn't have auto character spacing which came out with the 
>> WB4VVF Accu-Keyer (hint-hint - so it's not OT after all).
>>
> Grant NQ5T
> K3 #2091, KX3 #8342
>

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Re: [Elecraft] K2/100 overheating?

[Ron D'Eau Claire]

Don: I guess you never noticed my response to Ken that I posted last Friday.
The fan moves air INTO the K2, across the PA and it comes out around the
heat sink fins near the front of the K2, just as George said.

I suggested Ken contact you after he determined that he had in fact set the
bias current correctly and the fan was operating correctly because you work
on K2s quite often. It's been five years since mine was apart!  

73, Ron AC7AC

-Original Message-
From: Elecraft [mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Don
Wilhelm
Sent: Sunday, May 21, 2017 6:19 PM
To: George Winship, NC5G; elecraft@mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K2/100 overheating?

George,

I will check the fan air flow direction tomorrow because I am uncertain.
If you have the label out and the wires on the correct holes, yours is
likely OK.

There are 2 philosophies about the fan direction.  One is that you should
exhaust the heat and let the assembly draw cool air across the hot
components.

The other says to let the fan "blow" on the hot components.
The major difference between the two is that a blower fan adds heat to the
air (due to the work produced by the fan), but adds the benefit of directing
the air flow to the area to be cooled.
An exhaust fan does not add its work product heat to the air being moved,
but the cool air cannot be directed as well because it is spread over a
large area in the enclosure box.

73,
Don W3FPR

On 5/21/2017 11:26 AM, George Winship, NC5G wrote:
> Interesting. I built my K2/100 about 17 years ago and the fan has always
> drawn air into the cabinet and exhausted over the heatsink. So, I
rechecked
> the manual and disassembled my rig to check for proper assembly. Fan label
> is facing out and wires are soldered to the right pads(red=+, black=-).
Was
> there maybe a change in later models?
> 
> 73, George
> 
> 
> 
> Make certain the fan is mounted with the label out and that the red wire
> is in the +hole and the black one in the -hole.
> The fan should exhaust the hot air.  Cooler air flows in at the front of
> the heatsink.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> --
> View this message in context:
http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/K2-100-overheating-tp7630828p7630883.ht
ml
> Sent from the Elecraft mailing list archive at Nabble.com.
> __
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Re: [Elecraft] Hallicrafters HA-1

[Kevin - K4VD]

Is Idiom Press out of business? I thought they just changed their name:
https://www.hamsupply.com. Hamsupply.com has the Logikey K-5 Electronic
Keyer  with Accukeyer
emulation. I use one - not so much any more - but still have it anyway.
Wonderful keyer. Not sure if this is the one you're referring to though.

73,
Kev K4VD

On Sun, May 21, 2017 at 9:04 PM, Wes Stewart  wrote:

> I'm approaching my 60th year in ham radio and have a confession; I learned
> Morse with my Boy Scout Handbook (still have it) by sight not sound.
> Consequently, I've never been a very good CW op, although I have a 20 WPM
> Extra license.  As a Novice I used a Western Electric "Pole-Changer"
> straight key given to me by a non-ham retired telegrapher friend, (That's
> still on the operating desk).  I never even tried a bug, but when I built
> my first Accu-Keyer I finally had some help.  I used it with a number of
> rigs and when the Accu-Memory came out I was in heaven.
>
> I build two of them at first and gave one to my friend George Badger,
> W6TC, who liked it too.  Then I built a third one for the heart of my
> meteor scatter/EME station.  With several handfulls of TTL logic I added a
> timer/sequencer that used the power line as a time base to automatically
> control the station on the various sequences used for MS and EME. Preamp
> switching/relay delay, TX delay, etc were all timed by the keyer and the
> "canned" messages were in memory.  All I had to do was listen and select
> the next message as the QSO progressed. (That one is still in my storage
> building too.)
>
> Among its wonderful ergonomics the TS870 that I had before buying a K3 was
> an Accu-Keyer emulation.   I never had trouble sending CW with that rig.
> Enter the K3 (and now a K3S).  I can't even send my call gracefully.  I was
> prepared to buy the Idiom Press unit when they went out of business.
>
> I would love Accu-Keyer emulation in my K3s.
>
> Wes  N7WS
>
> On 5/15/2017 12:57 PM, GRANT YOUNGMAN wrote:
>
>> This is one of the things that has always bugged me about internal rig
>> keyers (Elecraft included).  And as as result, I’ve almost never used
>> them.  I’ve been using an Accu-Keyer (or emulator) for so long that nothing
>> else is comfortable.
>>
>> I moved from my original home brewed Accu-Keyer (which I still have,
>> refuse to part with,  and occasionally use) to the enhanced Accu-Memory
>> version, to an MM-3 (with emulation — and still one of the best stand-alone
>> keyers ever made) to the Idiom Press CMOS 4 (with emulation) because of its
>> small form factor.
>>
>> It seems that something as basic as Accu-Keyer timing with auto-character
>> (and even auto-word) space isn’t exactly “rocket science”.  So how about it
>> Elecraft?   Accu-Keyer emulation would make a better than run-of-the-mill
>> update!!  For the K3, KX3, KX2.  And I wouldn’t have to carry the CMOS 4 in
>> my KX3 bag or fiddle with more cables on the table with the K3.  I’m
>> probably not alone here, given the popularity of the Accu-Keyer.  I can
>> send better CW with a bug than I can with paddles and an electronic keyer
>> that lacks ACS.  Maybe it’s my (old) age or just practice ...  :-)
>>
>> But - it didn't have auto character spacing which came out with the WB4VVF
>>> Accu-Keyer (hint-hint - so it's not OT after all).
>>>
>>> Grant NQ5T
>> K3 #2091, KX3 #8342
>>
>>
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Re: [Elecraft] Beam antenna question

[Ted Edwards W3TB]

Years ago in grad school I strung antenna of 22 gauge green enameled bell
wire, and it was so hard to see that I would go outside and look up to see
it against the sky to check it before operating.   Even I couldn't see
it... only ran 150 watts on it.

On Sun, May 21, 2017 at 15:42 Fred Jensen  wrote:

> Indeed!  Apollo 11 landed close to 2 km downrange from the center of the
> planned landing footprint.  This was the result of a lunar gravitational
> potential model that didn't exactly match the real world.  No one
> screwed up, the computer worked correctly, the potential model was fine
> except that it possibly applied to some other moon in the solar system,
> of which there are many, just not to ours.
>
> NEC-2 [e.g. EZNEC] is a good model but one has to be knowledgeable of
> its limitations.  It can, for example, return wildly wrong source
> impedance values if the source is connected to the end of a wire.
>
> 73,
>
> Fred ("Skip") K6DGW
> Sparks NV USA
> Washoe County DM09dn
>
> On 5/20/2017 10:18 PM, Jim Brown wrote:
> >
> > Brown's first law -- "if you think there's a difference between theory
> > and practice, you don't know enough about one or the other."
>
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-- 
73 de Ted Edwards, W3TB and GØPWW

and thinking about operating CW:
"Do today what others won't,
so you can do tomorrow what others can't."
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Re: [Elecraft] Finding an RS-232 port on the K3

[Don Wilhelm]

Phil,

A "Y" cable on the RS-232 path will do that for you.
The real physical connection place for the "Y" cable depends on whether 
you have the P3 or not.


If you do NOT have the P3, you may not need the "Y" cable - Plug the 
cable from your Microbit to the RJ-45 to DB-9 dongle that comes with the 
KIOXB (you may need a gender changer).


If you DO have the P3. connect the "Y" cable to the "PC" DB9 on the P3 
and connect the Mircobit cable into one side of the "Y" cable, and plug 
the CBLP3Y cable that normally would connect to the P3 PC connector into 
the other side of the "Y" cable.


73,
Don W3FPR

On 5/21/2017 1:03 PM, PHILIP GRAITCER wrote:

I have a K3, that has been upgraded with the addition of a KIO3B. I have a USB 
cable going from the K3 to my computer, and the RS-232 RJ45 jack has the 
Elecraft Y-type cable going from it to both connections on the P3.

I have a Microbit AS-1289, web based antenna switch with an RS-232 output. The 
manufacturer says that if I connect up this output to the K3 RS-232 port, the 
antenna switch will automatically follow the transceiver bandswitching. That 
would eliminate my need for manually switching the switch on the web. (I am in 
the process of remoting the station using remotehams.)


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Re: [Elecraft] K2/100 overheating?

[Don Wilhelm]

George,

I will check the fan air flow direction tomorrow because I am uncertain.
If you have the label out and the wires on the correct holes, yours is 
likely OK.


There are 2 philosophies about the fan direction.  One is that you 
should exhaust the heat and let the assembly draw cool air across the 
hot components.


The other says to let the fan "blow" on the hot components.
The major difference between the two is that a blower fan adds heat to 
the air (due to the work produced by the fan), but adds the benefit of 
directing the air flow to the area to be cooled.
An exhaust fan does not add its work product heat to the air being 
moved, but the cool air cannot be directed as well because it is spread 
over a large area in the enclosure box.


73,
Don W3FPR

On 5/21/2017 11:26 AM, George Winship, NC5G wrote:

Interesting. I built my K2/100 about 17 years ago and the fan has always
drawn air into the cabinet and exhausted over the heatsink. So, I rechecked
the manual and disassembled my rig to check for proper assembly. Fan label
is facing out and wires are soldered to the right pads(red=+, black=-). Was
there maybe a change in later models?

73, George



Make certain the fan is mounted with the label out and that the red wire
is in the +hole and the black one in the -hole.
The fan should exhaust the hot air.  Cooler air flows in at the front of
the heatsink.







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Re: [Elecraft] Hallicrafters HA-1

[GRANT YOUNGMAN]

Theoretically, you can still buy the CMOS 4 and other Idiom Press products from 
these guys:  https://www.hamsupply.com/cmos-4-keyer/ 



> I would love Accu-Keyer emulation in my K3s.

So would I.  In the K3 and KX3 (and KX2 since I’m thinking about purchasing 
one) 

Grant NQ5T
K3 #2091, KX3 #8342



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Re: [Elecraft] Hallicrafters HA-1

[Wes Stewart]

I'm approaching my 60th year in ham radio and have a confession; I learned Morse 
with my Boy Scout Handbook (still have it) by sight not sound.  Consequently, 
I've never been a very good CW op, although I have a 20 WPM Extra license.  As a 
Novice I used a Western Electric "Pole-Changer" straight key given to me by a 
non-ham retired telegrapher friend, (That's still on the operating desk).  I 
never even tried a bug, but when I built my first Accu-Keyer I finally had some 
help.  I used it with a number of rigs and when the Accu-Memory came out I was 
in heaven.


I build two of them at first and gave one to my friend George Badger, W6TC, who 
liked it too.  Then I built a third one for the heart of my meteor scatter/EME 
station.  With several handfulls of TTL logic I added a timer/sequencer that 
used the power line as a time base to automatically control the station on the 
various sequences used for MS and EME. Preamp switching/relay delay, TX delay, 
etc were all timed by the keyer and the "canned" messages were in memory.  All I 
had to do was listen and select the next message as the QSO progressed. (That 
one is still in my storage building too.)


Among its wonderful ergonomics the TS870 that I had before buying a K3 was an 
Accu-Keyer emulation.   I never had trouble sending CW with that rig.  Enter the 
K3 (and now a K3S).  I can't even send my call gracefully.  I was prepared to 
buy the Idiom Press unit when they went out of business.


I would love Accu-Keyer emulation in my K3s.

Wes  N7WS

On 5/15/2017 12:57 PM, GRANT YOUNGMAN wrote:

This is one of the things that has always bugged me about internal rig keyers 
(Elecraft included).  And as as result, I’ve almost never used them.  I’ve been 
using an Accu-Keyer (or emulator) for so long that nothing else is comfortable.

I moved from my original home brewed Accu-Keyer (which I still have, refuse to 
part with,  and occasionally use) to the enhanced Accu-Memory version, to an 
MM-3 (with emulation — and still one of the best stand-alone keyers ever made) 
to the Idiom Press CMOS 4 (with emulation) because of its small form factor.

It seems that something as basic as Accu-Keyer timing with auto-character (and 
even auto-word) space isn’t exactly “rocket science”.  So how about it 
Elecraft?   Accu-Keyer emulation would make a better than run-of-the-mill 
update!!  For the K3, KX3, KX2.  And I wouldn’t have to carry the CMOS 4 in my 
KX3 bag or fiddle with more cables on the table with the K3.  I’m probably not 
alone here, given the popularity of the Accu-Keyer.  I can send better CW with 
a bug than I can with paddles and an electronic keyer that lacks ACS.  Maybe 
it’s my (old) age or just practice ...  :-)


But - it didn't have auto character spacing which came out with the WB4VVF
Accu-Keyer (hint-hint - so it's not OT after all).


Grant NQ5T
K3 #2091, KX3 #8342



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[Elecraft] Macro Question

[Roger Meadows]

I have two macros. One to turn off MICBIAS and MIC BTN. The second to turn 
MICBIAS back on and set MIC BTN to Ptt UP.dn.

The first one works fine:
MN135;MP000;MN082;MP000;SWT09;
MN135 sets MICBIAS off and MN082 sets MIC BTN off. SWT09 exits the menu

When I go to set them back I use:
MN135;MP016;MN082;MP004;SWT09;
MN135, bit 4 sets MICBIAS back on. MN082, bit 2 sets Ptt UP.dn. SWT09 exits 
menu.

When I go to use the mic, it does not work. When I look at the menu items they 
are set correctly. To get the mic to work, I have to toggle MIC BTN manually. 
Once I do that everything is fine.

Anyone have any idea if I’m doing something wrong or I am missing something 
(probably something simple).

Thanks,
Roger
AE4RM


Sent from Mail for Windows 10

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Re: [Elecraft] BL2 -- Antenna Balun Usage

[Phil Hystad]

> Quoted from Fred (“Skip”) K6DGW…

> (1) The MFJ-259x series of antenna/feedline analyzers havean N coax 
> connector. Using the BL2, you can connect it to the balanced ladder line. How 
> were you planning to connect it without the balun?  As you state it, it does 
> not sound like a reasonable experiment design.

Not sure what you are saying above.  After the e-mail I sent, since the WX was 
so nice at 77 degrees, I went out to do the measurements.  I attached the 
450-ohm ladder line to the balanced terminals on the BL2 and the BL2 was itself 
attached to the MFJ and also the VA1 via my BNC to UHF (PL-259) adapter.  

I first did resistor checks at 3.5 MHz to find that all was working as it 
should in this setup.  With 200 ohm resistor on the BL2 terminals using 4:1 I 
measured 49 ohms with essentially zero X (reactance).  In 1:1 mode, I read 203 
ohms and 1 or zero on X (it was changing back and forth).

Then I measured with the actual antenna by disconnecting the ladder line from 
my DXEngineering 4:1 balun and connecting it to the balanced terminals on the 
BL2.  I was on a ladder doing this so I decided not to take too many 
measurements and focused on 80-meter band only.

Within a reasonable error factor, the numbers I found for 4:1 switch on BL2 
were consistent (close) to the Bypass SWR reported by my KAT500 for the same 
frequencies: 3.501, 3.6, 3.7, 3.8, 3.9, and 3.99.

Most of the 1:1 measures I made were too high SWR (~15:1 and above).
> 

> The MFJ-259x and VA1 are almost guaranteed to give non-identical results. If 
> they are large differences, youhave some other problem.  If they are small, 
> they are essentially meaningless for your application. Hope this all helps.

Yes, all of this helps.  Later this year I will be doing some experiments with 
the BL2 — not for ham radio, more for my physics interest.  I will be measuring 
the heating of the ferrite core on the BL2 using my Fluke Infrared Temperature 
gun.  I have already measured the time for the ferrite core to come to thermal 
equilibrium in two different heat baths.  An air conditioned room versus the 
overheated garage on a hot summer day.  That was the very first thing I did 
with my BL2 after I finished building it.

Yes, the MFJ and VA1 always give me different results but they are usually 
close.  The VA1 actually is useful because you can easily determine the sign of 
the reactance where as with the MFJ you need to change the frequency (like 
moving it up) to watch which direction the reactance term changes.

PEH
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Re: [Elecraft] BL2 -- Antenna Balun Usage

[Ignacy]

Just to add to one extra reply.
Z readings from 259B or VA1 are inaccurate. SWR measurement is pretty good,
though. 

BL2 balun is very good in transforming 200 to 50 or 50 to 50. It is hard to
figure out exactly what is does outside the range. 

When BL2 is not hot, it is good enough. Whether it is hot or not depends not
only on power but also on impedances to transform. I used BL1 with too short
wires and the balun was hot but I was making contacts. 

For precision measurements buy VNA that can be calibrated.

Ignacy, NO9E



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[Elecraft] News from Dayton

[Randy Farmer]

Just back from Dayton and catching up on zillions of emails. I haven't 
seen it posted, so perhaps I can be the first to publicize the fact that 
Bob, N6TV (he of the Y-Box and many, many helpful reflector  posts), was 
inducted into the Contesting Hall of Fame at the Saturday night Contest 
Dinner. Congratulations, Bob!


The new Dayton facility is a great improvement over the old venue. There 
were some teething problems, but my hat's off to the DARA crew for 
pulling off an extraordinarily difficult transition with excellent results.


73...
Randy, W8FN
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Re: [Elecraft] BL2 -- Antenna Balun Usage

[Fred Jensen]

Hi Phil,

(1) The MFJ-259x series of antenna/feedline analyzers havean N coax 
connector. Using the BL2, you can connect it to the balanced ladder 
line. How were you planning to connect it without the balun?  As you 
state it, it does not sound like a reasonable experiment design.


(2) The impedance ratio of both the DXE and BL2 is the square of the 
turns ratio.  Thus, the 4:1 DXE is a 16:1 ratio in complex ohms.


You can measure the complex impedance at the end of the balanced line 
using a very short coax jumper from the BL2 to the analyzerand then 
compute the impedance at the balanced terminal using the above. Be 
careful of BL2 ratios that give extreme results, they're likely not 
really valid.


(3) Transformers are rated for both power and breakdown voltage. My DXE 
balun was rated at 11 KV and 10 KW ... although cramming 10 KW into an 
SO-239 seems a bit unrealistic. [:-)  The transformer will have 
lossesmanifested in heat. If it gets too hot, it will do what everything 
else does whenit gets too hot.
Depending on the impedance ratio and the complex impedance you're 
feeding, the voltagecan exceed the breakdown voltage, creating 
well-known effects.


If the applied power saturates the transformer core, power peaks above 
saturation will be clipped creating a huge RFI generator. Balun cores 
are ferrite of various compositions. Each composition has a specific 
Curie temperature, above which the core loses it's ferrimagnetic properties.


The MFJ-259x and VA1 are almost guaranteed to give non-identical 
results. If they are large differences, youhave some other problem.  If 
they are small, they are essentially meaningless for your application. 
Hope this all helps.


73,

Fred ("Skip") K6DGW
Sparks NV USA
Washoe County DM09dn

On 5/21/2017 11:00 AM, Phil Hystad wrote:

I am planning to use my BL2 to measure the impedance of my antenna+feedline at 
the point of entry into my balun (DX Engineering) which then feeds coax to my 
K-Line.

The feedline is 450 ohm ladder (window style).  The antenna is an 80-meter, 136 
feet, antenna up in the air about 50 to 60 feet.

I have two antenna analyzers and I will likely use both of them to see the 
difference.  I will connect the 450-ohm feed line to the balanced side and a 
BNC to UHF adapter for attaching to my antenna analyzer [ (1) MFJ 259B, (2) 
Autek Research VA1].

Questions:

(1) How much difference would I expect in using the balun verses measuring the 
balanced line directly with my antenna analyzers (actually, I plan to do both 
but wondering if anyone else has done this with what results).

(2) I bought the BL2 for this particular purpose as it is switchable between 
1:1 and 4:1 transformations.  I wanted to figure out which would be best to 
use, a 1:1 or a 4:1 balun (DX Engineering and I have one of each).  Due to the 
location of the balun (DX Engineering that is) it is easier for me to do this 
measurement first before physically replacing the one balun with the other.  
Right now, I am using a 4:1 balun.

A third un-related (to above) question:  The BL2 is rated for maximum of 250 
watts.  What are the bad effects of pushing more than 250 watts through the 
device, I mean a lot more like double or triple.  My guess is that the ferrite 
transformer will overheat causing possibly run-away thermal non-linear changes 
to the transforming.  What else will likely happen?

73, phil, K7PEH



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Re: [Elecraft] Beam antenna question

[Fred Jensen]

Indeed!  Apollo 11 landed close to 2 km downrange from the center of the 
planned landing footprint.  This was the result of a lunar gravitational 
potential model that didn't exactly match the real world.  No one 
screwed up, the computer worked correctly, the potential model was fine 
except that it possibly applied to some other moon in the solar system, 
of which there are many, just not to ours.


NEC-2 [e.g. EZNEC] is a good model but one has to be knowledgeable of 
its limitations.  It can, for example, return wildly wrong source 
impedance values if the source is connected to the end of a wire.


73,

Fred ("Skip") K6DGW
Sparks NV USA
Washoe County DM09dn

On 5/20/2017 10:18 PM, Jim Brown wrote:


Brown's first law -- "if you think there's a difference between theory 
and practice, you don't know enough about one or the other."


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Re: [Elecraft] For Sale:

[Phil Hystad]

Those are pretty wide filters.  I presume you mean 500 Hz and 250 Hz filters.


> On May 21, 2017, at 11:51 AM, Paul VanOveren  wrote:
> 
> Elecraft K3, ser # 758, 100 w module, 2nd receiver, ATU w/2nd antenna
> input, DSP board upgrade, Digital Voice Recorder, KIO3 Digital i/O board
> w/receive ant input. 2 - 2.7 SSB filters, 2 - 5 pole 500 KHZ matching CW
> filters, 2- 8 pole 25KHZ matching CW filters. 15 factory performed hardware
> sofeware mods @ Elecraft.  $2400.00, will split shipping, insurance from
> 49302, Mi.  616, 868-7149 or paulnf...@gmail.com.  Pictures upon request.
> All manuals, cables, Fred Cady book included.
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[Elecraft] For Sale:

[Paul VanOveren]

Elecraft K3, ser # 758, 100 w module, 2nd receiver, ATU w/2nd antenna
input, DSP board upgrade, Digital Voice Recorder, KIO3 Digital i/O board
w/receive ant input. 2 - 2.7 SSB filters, 2 - 5 pole 500 KHZ matching CW
filters, 2- 8 pole 25KHZ matching CW filters. 15 factory performed hardware
sofeware mods @ Elecraft.  $2400.00, will split shipping, insurance from
49302, Mi.  616, 868-7149 or paulnf...@gmail.com.  Pictures upon request.
All manuals, cables, Fred Cady book included.
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Re: [Elecraft] Elecraft T1 doesn't tune nor read power levels

[IU6ASS]

@John-2

If for "motors" you intend the relays, they seems to work (I cycled them
with the diagnostic built in the T1), but during normal tuning operation,
the tuner does seems to not recognize that RF is sent to the T1 at all.

I tired to change the coaxial links between radio, T1 and antennas just for
good measure, but there is no change. 



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[Elecraft] BL2 -- Antenna Balun Usage

[Phil Hystad]

I am assuming that a question about the Elecraft BL2 is On-Topic (OT) as 
opposed to Off-Topic (OT)…

I am planning to use my BL2 to measure the impedance of my antenna+feedline at 
the point of entry into my balun (DX Engineering) which then feeds coax to my 
K-Line.

The feedline is 450 ohm ladder (window style).  The antenna is an 80-meter, 136 
feet, antenna up in the air about 50 to 60 feet.

I have two antenna analyzers and I will likely use both of them to see the 
difference.  I will connect the 450-ohm feed line to the balanced side and a 
BNC to UHF adapter for attaching to my antenna analyzer [ (1) MFJ 259B, (2) 
Autek Research VA1].

Questions:

(1) How much difference would I expect in using the balun verses measuring the 
balanced line directly with my antenna analyzers (actually, I plan to do both 
but wondering if anyone else has done this with what results).

(2) I bought the BL2 for this particular purpose as it is switchable between 
1:1 and 4:1 transformations.  I wanted to figure out which would be best to 
use, a 1:1 or a 4:1 balun (DX Engineering and I have one of each).  Due to the 
location of the balun (DX Engineering that is) it is easier for me to do this 
measurement first before physically replacing the one balun with the other.  
Right now, I am using a 4:1 balun.

A third un-related (to above) question:  The BL2 is rated for maximum of 250 
watts.  What are the bad effects of pushing more than 250 watts through the 
device, I mean a lot more like double or triple.  My guess is that the ferrite 
transformer will overheat causing possibly run-away thermal non-linear changes 
to the transforming.  What else will likely happen?

73, phil, K7PEH



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Re: [Elecraft] Elecraft T1 doesn't tune nor read power levels

[John]

Hello.

Open up the tuner and see if the motors are trying to turn.

They may be frozen/sticky.

73.

John.



On 21/05/2017 10:29 AM, IU6ASS wrote:

Couple of weeks ago i got my hands on a used rig, an FT817D plus an Elecraft
T1 tuner. The tuner worked fine until yesterday, doing the autotuning at
band change and tuning when pressing the "tune" button.

But now when i press the tune button or switch between bands and transmit
within the flashing green LED, the tuner stands still, not cycling thru the
relays to find the best match, as like it's not connected to an RF source at
all.

Thanks to the CAT cable, when i switch bands on the radio, the T1 it still
does the same, and still retains the last stored SWR match saved on the
various bands, but if i switch to another antenna and try to tune, as
mentioned, it does not tune.

I tried tuning in CW, AM, FM, talking over SSB, but to no avail, the tuning
does not starts.

I tried switching to a new battery, same effects.

I tried to listen to the slow CW Info, but not much information.

I decided to open the T1 and eventually check for cracked solder joints and
aside from fatigue ones on the BNCs that i could solder easily, nothing out
of the ordinary came out to my eyes.

Any idea from more expert minds?



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[Elecraft] Elecraft T1 doesn't tune nor read power levels

[IU6ASS]

Couple of weeks ago i got my hands on a used rig, an FT817D plus an Elecraft
T1 tuner. The tuner worked fine until yesterday, doing the autotuning at
band change and tuning when pressing the "tune" button.

But now when i press the tune button or switch between bands and transmit
within the flashing green LED, the tuner stands still, not cycling thru the
relays to find the best match, as like it's not connected to an RF source at
all.

Thanks to the CAT cable, when i switch bands on the radio, the T1 it still
does the same, and still retains the last stored SWR match saved on the
various bands, but if i switch to another antenna and try to tune, as
mentioned, it does not tune.

I tried tuning in CW, AM, FM, talking over SSB, but to no avail, the tuning
does not starts.

I tried switching to a new battery, same effects.

I tried to listen to the slow CW Info, but not much information.

I decided to open the T1 and eventually check for cracked solder joints and
aside from fatigue ones on the BNCs that i could solder easily, nothing out
of the ordinary came out to my eyes.

Any idea from more expert minds?



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Re: [Elecraft] Beam antenna

[Al Hanzl]

Maybe worth looking into Mosley mini beams if weight or wind load an issue. 
I installed one last year. 
I have enjoyed the results but antennas can turn into a religious argument. 
I have limited backyard space so I needed to compromise. Mine is on top of a 
33' telescoping aluminum mast attached to the side of the house. Rotator at 
base. 
The 4 element beam (3 elements on 10-15-20 and dipole for 12 and 17) weighs 
less than 16 lbs on 6 foot boom. I liked the idea of 5 band coverage. 
It's performs far better than my R7 but have not compared it to a hex beam. 
I have heard good things about hex beams but was bit concerned about potential 
maintenance issues. 
I do not run it on high power. So if you are QRO I would not recommend it. 
Just my 2 cents. 
Al
K2AL
Sent from my iPhone

> On May 21, 2017, at 12:15 AM, elecraft-requ...@mailman.qth.net wrote:
> 
> Send Elecraft mailing list submissions to
>elecraft@mailman.qth.net
> 
> To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit
>http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
> or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to
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> 
> You can reach the person managing the list at
>elecraft-ow...@mailman.qth.net
> 
> When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific
> than "Re: Contents of Elecraft digest..."
> 
> 
> Today's Topics:
> 
>   1. Re: Beam antenna question (Ted Edwards W3TB)
>   2. Re: Beam antenna question (Scott Mcdonald)
>   3. Re: Beam antenna question (Benny Aumala)
>   4. Hex Beam (Dauer, Edward)
>   5. Re: Hex Beam (W0MU Mike Fatchett)
>   6. Dayton Hamvention 2017 (Joe Stone (KF5WBO))
>   7. Re: Beam antenna question (Richard Fjeld)
>   8. Re: Beam antenna question (Terry Brown)
>   9. Re: Beam antenna question (Joe Subich, W4TV)
>  10. Re: Beam antenna question (Phil Hystad)
>  11. Re: Beam antenna question (Ron D'Eau Claire)
>  12. Re: Beam antenna question (John Nogatch)
>  13. Re: Beam antenna question (Vic Rosenthal)
>  14. Re: Beam antenna question (Ron D'Eau Claire)
>  15. Re: Beam antenna question (Joe Subich, W4TV)
>  16. Weighted CNC Knobs for K3 (w4sc)
>  17. Y box excess to my needs (w4sc)
>  18. Re: Dayton Hamvention 2017 (Wayne Burdick)
>  19. KX3 not responding (kg9hfr...@gmail.com)
>  20. Re: KX3 not responding (Don Wilhelm)
>  21. Re: KX3 not responding (Rick WA6NHC)
>  22. Tuneup, Rescue, Build your K2, K1, KX1, others (Alan D. Wilcox)
>  23. Re: Dayton Hamvention 2017 (David Orman)
>  24. Re: Beam antenna question (Igor Sokolov)
> 
> 
> --
> 
> Message: 1
> Date: Sat, 20 May 2017 06:42:29 -0400
> From: Ted Edwards W3TB 
> To: ua9...@gmail.com
> Cc: Elecraft Reflector 
> Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Beam antenna question
> Message-ID:
>

[Elecraft] Finding an RS-232 port on the K3

[PHILIP GRAITCER]

I have a K3, that has been upgraded with the addition of a KIO3B. I have a USB 
cable going from the K3 to my computer, and the RS-232 RJ45 jack has the 
Elecraft Y-type cable going from it to both connections on the P3.

I have a Microbit AS-1289, web based antenna switch with an RS-232 output. The 
manufacturer says that if I connect up this output to the K3 RS-232 port, the 
antenna switch will automatically follow the transceiver bandswitching. That 
would eliminate my need for manually switching the switch on the web. (I am in 
the process of remoting the station using remotehams.)

Has anyone on the list had experience creating a Y cable for the RS-232? Or is 
there some other solution? I had thought about using the AUX connector on the 
K3 for the band change signals, however, the manufacturer says what I need is 
an RS-232.


Phil, W3HZZ



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[Elecraft] [KX2] MFJ-1840T Whip Counterpoise Adjustment

[MaverickNH]

I've read some prior posts but don't quite see what I'm after. I'll use a
MFJ-1840T 40m Whip on my KX2 in HT format, and have a 30ft length of 18g
stranded copper wire with the min-banana plug soldered to it to use as a
counterpoise. I have some 20g wire on order - with Radio Shack all but gone
there is no "local" for such bits and pieces anymore :-(

The MFJ manual says 25'9" counterpoise length for bottom of band, which is
off from the 1/4WL for 40m of 33'5". I assume the 25'9" is based on
experimental data?

Based on the 1/4WL calculation there is about 1'5" counterpoise length
difference top-to-bottom on the 40m band, so I'm figuring that might be up
to 26'2" for the MFJ-1840T Whip.

What's a good way to start long and adjust shorter as needed - can I just
coil the excess length?

Bret/N4SRN



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Re: [Elecraft] K2/100 overheating?

[George Winship, NC5G]

Interesting. I built my K2/100 about 17 years ago and the fan has always
drawn air into the cabinet and exhausted over the heatsink. So, I rechecked
the manual and disassembled my rig to check for proper assembly. Fan label
is facing out and wires are soldered to the right pads(red=+, black=-). Was
there maybe a change in later models? 

73, George 



Make certain the fan is mounted with the label out and that the red wire 
is in the +hole and the black one in the -hole.
The fan should exhaust the hot air.  Cooler air flows in at the front of 
the heatsink.







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Re: [Elecraft] Beam antenna question

[Ted Edwards W3TB]

I really appreciate the answers to my question about further disguising the
Hex from neighbors -- thanks for those.

On Sun, May 21, 2017 at 7:59 AM, Joe Subich, W4TV  wrote:

> On 5/21/2017 12:45 AM, Vic Rosenthal wrote:
>
>> The TH11DXX that G3TXQ compares to the Hexbeam has at least 3 elements on
>> each band and is a modern design, no traps.
>>
> The TH11 has driven elements for 12, 17, 15, 12 and 10 (2) with
> reflectors for 20 and 17 and trapped directors for 10, 15 and 20.
> Element spacing is nowhere near optimum and, other than the DE,
> any 12 meter performance is nearly accidental.
>
> If someone found that the C3 (2 el on each band) outperformed it, I
>> would be very suspicious that something was wrong with the sample
>> tested.
>>
> You are welcome to argue with K7LXC/N0AX but their testing protocol
> is well documented and they do not indicate any abnormal behavior
> in the tested TH11 where they do note issues with other antennas.
>
> 73,
>
>... Joe, W4TV
>
>
>
> On 5/21/2017 12:45 AM, Vic Rosenthal wrote:
>
>> The TH11DXX that G3TXQ compares to the Hexbeam has at least 3 elements on
>> each band and is a modern design, no traps. If someone found that the C3 (2
>> el on each band) outperformed it, I would be very suspicious that something
>> was wrong with the sample tested.
>> I did look at the wrong picture and you are correct that the XR5 is 9
>> elements.
>>
>> Vic 4X6GP
>>
>> On 20 May 2017, at 23:28, Joe Subich, W4TV  wrote:
>>>
>>>
>>> Why do you think it will "significantly outperform the hex beams?"

>>>
>>> Based on the performance data (K7LXC/N0AX) for the original Force 12
>>> C3 and TH11 with comparisons of the broadband Hexbeam and the TH11.
>>> The K7LXC/N0AX field data shows the C3 outperforming the TH11 while
>>> G3TXQ's web page 
>>> shows the TH11 with approximately 3 dB advantage over the broadband
>>> hexbeam.
>>>
>>> I wouldn't say an 11 element yagi with capacity hats on the elements
 has an especially low visual profile!

>>>
>>> Neither the XR5 nor the Navassa 5 has 11 elements *or* capacity hats.
>>> The XR5 is a 9-element antenna and the Navassa 5 has 10 elements as
>>> documented in the two links I provided.
>>>
>>> 73,
>>>
>>>... Joe, W4TV
>>>
>>>
>>> On 5/20/2017 3:34 PM, Vic Rosenthal wrote:
 Why do you think it will "significantly outperform the hex beams?"
 The point about uv is well taken re fiberglass, but I don't know what
 the cords on all the hexbeam versions are made of. There are uv resistant
 materials available.
 I wouldn't say an 11 element yagi with capacity hats on the elements
 has an especially low visual profile!

 Vic 4X6GP

 On 20 May 2017, at 19:36, Joe Subich, W4TV  wrote:
>
> On 5/20/2017 11:32 AM, Terry Brown wrote:
>
>> These beams are not cheap,  I don't want to be taking the beam down
>> and replacing main structural components every 5 yrs.
>>
>> Can anyone with a hex beam comment on this?
>>
>
> Your concerns are well placed with antennas made of fiberglass and
> dacron/kevlar cords.
>
> Instead of a hexbeam, I would recommend looking at the Innovantennas
> XR5T:  /view/productdetails/virtuemart_product_id/435/virtuemart_
> category_id/55.html>,
> or the JK Antennas Navassa 5:
> 
>
> Both have boom lengths of 12 feet or less, cover 20 - 10 meters and
> have optional 6 meter add-ons.  Either should significantly out
> perform the hex beams and - since they are aluminum antennas that do
> not use UV sensitive fiberglass, kevlar and dacron components - should
> significantly outlast the hexbeam with significantly less maintenance.
>
> 73,
>
>   ... Joe, W4TV
>
>>
>>

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-- 
73 de Ted Edwards, W3TB and GØPWW

and thinking about operating CW:
"Do today what others won't,
so you can do tomorrow what others can't."
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Re: [Elecraft] Beam antenna question

[Joe Subich, W4TV]

On 5/21/2017 12:45 AM, Vic Rosenthal wrote:
The TH11DXX that G3TXQ compares to the Hexbeam has at least 3 
elements on each band and is a modern design, no traps.

The TH11 has driven elements for 12, 17, 15, 12 and 10 (2) with
reflectors for 20 and 17 and trapped directors for 10, 15 and 20.
Element spacing is nowhere near optimum and, other than the DE,
any 12 meter performance is nearly accidental.


If someone found that the C3 (2 el on each band) outperformed it, I
would be very suspicious that something was wrong with the sample
tested.

You are welcome to argue with K7LXC/N0AX but their testing protocol
is well documented and they do not indicate any abnormal behavior
in the tested TH11 where they do note issues with other antennas.

73,

   ... Joe, W4TV


On 5/21/2017 12:45 AM, Vic Rosenthal wrote:

The TH11DXX that G3TXQ compares to the Hexbeam has at least 3 elements on each 
band and is a modern design, no traps. If someone found that the C3 (2 el on 
each band) outperformed it, I would be very suspicious that something was wrong 
with the sample tested.
I did look at the wrong picture and you are correct that the XR5 is 9 elements.

Vic 4X6GP


On 20 May 2017, at 23:28, Joe Subich, W4TV  wrote:



Why do you think it will "significantly outperform the hex beams?"


Based on the performance data (K7LXC/N0AX) for the original Force 12
C3 and TH11 with comparisons of the broadband Hexbeam and the TH11.
The K7LXC/N0AX field data shows the C3 outperforming the TH11 while
G3TXQ's web page 
shows the TH11 with approximately 3 dB advantage over the broadband
hexbeam.


I wouldn't say an 11 element yagi with capacity hats on the elements
has an especially low visual profile!


Neither the XR5 nor the Navassa 5 has 11 elements *or* capacity hats.
The XR5 is a 9-element antenna and the Navassa 5 has 10 elements as
documented in the two links I provided.

73,

   ... Joe, W4TV



On 5/20/2017 3:34 PM, Vic Rosenthal wrote:
Why do you think it will "significantly outperform the hex beams?"
The point about uv is well taken re fiberglass, but I don't know what the cords 
on all the hexbeam versions are made of. There are uv resistant materials 
available.
I wouldn't say an 11 element yagi with capacity hats on the elements has an 
especially low visual profile!

Vic 4X6GP


On 20 May 2017, at 19:36, Joe Subich, W4TV  wrote:

On 5/20/2017 11:32 AM, Terry Brown wrote:

These beams are not cheap,  I don't want to be taking the beam down
and replacing main structural components every 5 yrs.

Can anyone with a hex beam comment on this?


Your concerns are well placed with antennas made of fiberglass and
dacron/kevlar cords.

Instead of a hexbeam, I would recommend looking at the Innovantennas
XR5T: 
,
or the JK Antennas Navassa 5:


Both have boom lengths of 12 feet or less, cover 20 - 10 meters and
have optional 6 meter add-ons.  Either should significantly out
perform the hex beams and - since they are aluminum antennas that do
not use UV sensitive fiberglass, kevlar and dacron components - should
significantly outlast the hexbeam with significantly less maintenance.

73,

  ... Joe, W4TV







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