Hamming and Rigging

We’ve got the DX bug…. but are stuck waiting on a few things. All the rigs are set for myself and a friend. The friend went into the ham shop this past Saturday to buy a nice antenna for all the HF frequencies and 50 MHz, intending to at least get all of his scanning equipment setup to at least hear more than he has in the past. After almost three hours in the ham shop in Yokohama, we walked out of there with over $2,000 worth of gear. He picked up an IC-7400 while there, then of course, had to grab a power supply, extra SWR meter, cables, and the antenna he originally set out to buy.
Now he’s waiting to get his Japan station license, but wants to sit for the Extra examination this Sunday before going through the application process. At the same time, I will sit for the General exam, then apply for the Japan station licenses. We are all set in gear, now we need to legalize so we can transmit.
If you are looking for a cheap CI-V interface for an Icom radio, go to Sengoku in Akihabara and pickup a UP-12C cellular phone to computer interface cable for 570 yen, then pickup a 3.5 monorail plug for 40 yen right next door. Cut off the cell phone adapter end and splice. Solder the black wire and shielding wire together, then solder the green and white (send, receive) wires together. Then solder the shielding and black combined leads to the grounding outside part of the 3.5 connecter, and solder the green and white leads to the center 3.5 connector. Walla! A 610 yen CI-V interface. If you are using an IC-7000, do not worry about the PTT interface, since Ham Radio Deluxe will take care of that for you. If you cannot get to Akihabara or Sengoku, order on online here.
After sitting for the exam this Sunday, I’m going to head out to Okutama for a couple days of mountain climbing, serenity, exercise, and listening to clear signals with great line-of-site for the VHF bands.