Going For The GROL

Yes, in a couple of weeks will be sitting for the US FCC General Radio Operator License test. Have spent a good chunk of the past couple weeks studying for the test, especially Element 3, which covers a lot of formulas that I studied in the Marine Corps, college, the studied again for the amateur Extra certification. However, the GROL Element 3 takes it to the next level by covering just about every angle of every formula related to AC electronics out there. Not only is this a good intellectual challenge, it is a very good review of the basics that will provide a solid foundation of ‘understanding’.
A couple of people have asked about what I am going to do with such a certification….. well, in the IT world and in the related security issues that surround such a world, I do not think that the technology is going to get less wireless. In fact, I see wireless connections further propagating the corporate environment, including further use of satellites, greater use of microwave links between buildings, and greater wireless LAN implementation as the protocol security improves.
Have been fairly lucky with call sign assignments in that I have liked the call signs that get assigned – NH2GX and JG1FXZ, but was wondering what kind of call sign gets assigned when one becomes a commercial operator. Whoa! Study for the test and past the exam first…. don’t count your chickens before they hatch…. and all that.

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The Portable Windom – JP6VCH

On Saturday I went by one of the local ham shops to pickup a small SWR meter and some coaxial cable for QRP operations. I managed to get my whole QRP setup down to just about 10 inches of required storage space, but wanted to push the envelope a bit more, so I purchased some RG-58 cable to make things ’smaller’.

Then I noticed another thing that affected operations, I am lugging around a dipole setup, but where I often operate at the top of mountains

Fuji sunrise from Kitadake at about 5:15 a.m. on 2009/09/22

My tent is the yellow one on the far left toward the cliff.

The rig part - MFJ Cub - 40 Meters

The windom

The Windom Tie-Up

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Another Weekend Antenna Project

This weekend I put together a couple of components – PVC pipe and aluminum pipe – as outlined in this article. The design is based on the micro vert that was published some time in Antennex, but of course, with a few tweaks. I decided to build one for 40 meters that would be useful for mountain climbing, hoteling, or just about anywhere I would be limited to a lighter load and other antenna restrictions.
I found in the micro vert design document that a specific coaxial cable length has to be calculated to form a counterpoise for the radiating system. Furthermore, he suggests an adjustable end-piece for the antenna to adjust the capacitance. Well, through experiment and investigation that suggests the coaxial feed cable may be a part of the radiating component, I’ve also found that design to be heavier and needless. Most people would stop and walk away from the design once it is suggested that the feed line would radiate, but I am more open minded. If we are only delivering 5 watts to the system, for some reason (to me exclusively) it makes sense to have the feed line help with radiation…. for some reason I can’t explain. So, if RG-8 coaxial cable with a velocity factor of .66 is cut to 6.9 meters (same length for RG58) – the electrical length of a quarter wavelength for 7.05 MHz – and the antenna is placed in free open space on the ground with one 18 inch loop formed in the coaxial cable as a balun, all analysis points check out to be an efficient antenna. At 7.05 MHz the antenna has 1.0 SWR with zero reactance!

Now the real part: does it get any QSO’s? Well, after spending the morning and early afternoon working on my design, I grabbed the keys to the car and packed all the tools, the antenna analyzer, a tripod stand, headphones, a quick dinner – I packed everything except the most important parts – and headed for the Yamanashi mountains. Barreled down the highway and exited at Otsuki, then cut up a mountain road toward Okutama Lake. After arriving, setting up the antenna, and getting settled, I decided it was time to sit down and listen/send some morse. That is when I realized that I forgot the transceiver, keyer, and iambic key! I turned everything upside down looking for it… to no avail. Going to give a try next weekend and post some pictures. If you read Japanese, this guy also has some interest micro vert assemblies.

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JG1FXZ…. Ham Fair 2009 In Tokyo

Last Friday, after exactly six weeks had past, I finally received my Japanese call sign. So now in the US I can operate as NH2GX and in Japan, can operate as JG1FXZ. So, of course, I get on the radio first thing Saturday morning and not a soul is broadcasting. Read a couple emails and find that the Japan Ham Fair. It was a great event! Here’s a picture of the Yokohama DX Club booth. A lot of new and used equipment for sale, different clubs with booths. I personally am not much of a ‘club’ kinda guy – Japanese love moving in groups, waiting in lines, and not enjoying privacy and solace. I do things like mountain climbing and experimenting with electronics/radio to break away from people; not to meet more of them. All that said however, going to the Ham Fair was very interesting since it is refreshing to see what other people are up to and exchange ideas when possible.
  
Here is a picture of yours truly. I picked a small used element holder that I turned into a 50 MHz dipole yesterday, but may find it’s way to a driven element of a bigger yagi antenna over the next couple weeks.
   

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Morsing….

Late last year I had an idea about a gadget that would be a GPS trail/path logger and an emergency locator. There are a plethora of circuit diagrams and DIY project blogs on the web that cover a GPS logger based on a PIC microchip, but none offer an option to send of a Lo-Jack type of signal that sends the current location. This could be a low power CW signal sent on a certain frequency that identifies the exact GPS coordinate of the device. There are a few snags from a testing perspective that concern some of the technicalities of remote automatic control, however, there are also some great possibilities here. Kind of like a Lo-Jack for hikers…. which I know already exists.
If anybody out there knows why Lo-Jack has not been implemented in Japan, please comment.  

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The New Shack

This weekend has been an exercise in downsizing my home office into something more manageable in limited space that life in Japan requires. After a bunch of scratching my head and deep thought on the subject, have decided to eliminate a lot of old electronics accumulated after nine years of life here. First, get rid of the old dual 450 MHz server that I shipped from Guam when we moved in July of 2000. That particular item has been a color laser computer stand for the past year – and did not use it for five years before that. Then the numerous cellular phones that I have adopted and so coldly abandoned for the next great fad. Then the Handspring, Palms, and Sony Cleo that at one point I clinched to for information has long been laid to rest for the smart phones. The first and greatest of which I owned, the Nokia e61 that after two years of use, was replaced with an iPhone this time last year.

Then there are the little sniffer gadgets, transmitters/bugs, RFID experimental stuff, the medium collection of electronic components, and other stuff that has to be organized…. along with the camera equipment.
After all that is done, then the books. The answer to that is another shelf and not a hard one to fix. You get the picture…. I am now downsizing and growing up! You can only have so much stuff! As shown in the picture, I now have everything I need organized in my own little corner, and now have to abide by the new rule that dictates nothing gets added to the collection until something is removed.
After cleaning up over the weekend, on Sunday I managed to pickup several slow scan television (SSTV) transmissions. This is an interesting way to exchange QSO cards. Going through the DX Clusters, have found a couple niches on the spectrum to pickup some of these images – albeit, not all are received in high resolution.

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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.

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