I have been wanting to try FT8 on my ICOM IC-706 for quite some time. Recently my brother finally got his ticket and is a General Class. He also purchased a Yeasu FT-450 as his first HF rig. In the past I have done a few digital modes such as PSK31, SSTV, and some RTTY! But for the life of me I could not get FT8 to work with my ICOM IC-706. My brother did Read More …
For several years I have been using my HM-103 microphone on my ICOM IC-706 with no tab to lock the RJ45 microphone tab in place to the transceiver. In addition, I recently ordered a cable crimper from Amazon for about $19.00 that also came with a cable tester and 100 pieces of RJ45 connectors/plugs. After a little bit of some research on Youtube. I found some videos on how to replace network cables. I had Read More …
The Ararat Shrine Hambash was finally here. We had just got back the weekend before from the Green Country Hamfest in Claremore, Oklahoma. There was not too much on my list of this to get at a hamfest but we wanted to make a day trip up to Kansas City, Missouri anyway. This is the 3rd year in a row that we have attended this Ararat Shrine Hambash. This year it was PACKED. I mean Read More …
This year we decided to camp at the Expo for the Green Country Hamfest. They do have a small county run campground next to the Expo center. My wife and I left before the sun even thought about coming up from west central Missouri. We took nothing but back roads all the way to Bartlesville, Oklahoma. You say why Bartlesville? Well we actually had another event that we wanted to attend before the hamfest and Read More …
I never have tried WPX RTTY yet. I previously learned that there was a 2019 CQ WPX RTTY Contest the weekend I happened to be at my in laws. Yours truly setup an off center fed dipole in the backyard about 10 foot off the ground. Then I tuned around to see what I could find. This RTTY contest is all new to me. I tried to setup the software and macros is always cumbersome Read More …
I Got A Screw Loose! Yours truly was moving things around today and rearranging my shack trying out new configurations and such. I noticed that my LDG Electronics Z-100Plus tuner had a SO-239 that felt loose. I got out my screwdriver and opened up it case and peeked inside to see if I could remedy the problem. Sure enough a nut has come loose from the stud that is inside the housing. There are no Read More …
October and November of 2018 my wife and I went on our annual 6-8 week excursion out to North Carolina to the Overland Expo. During that time I operated from various place along our route and never had a problem making contacts with my friends in Missouri and Tennessee. Though I did find myself operating from Walmart parking lots on more than one occasion. 75%-80% of my operating is done either mobile or portable with Read More …
I got a late start on this years VHF Contest. As a matter of fact I did not start setting up till late Sunday morning. That is almost a whole 20+ hours after the contest had started. My wife and I went to Schell Osage Conservation Area near Schell City, Missouri. It has some camping areas and a fishing lake. This is also the place where we did the January VHF Contest in 2018. That Read More …
Another successful Warrensburg Hamfest 2018! Here are a couple of snapshots I took while there. I did get to visit with several friends while in attendance. Lots of goodies to look at and purchase…
Few days ago my ICOM 706 was getting bad reports on audio. I quickly checked all connections and double checked them again just to make sure. I changed out microphones and checked settings on RF power and microphone levels and still was get no good reports back. RF power is getting out to the meter. SWR is good. Changed coax cables. Checked all coax connections twice. Power supply is stable voltage. Changed microphones. Checked microphone Read More …