Many Hams use wire antennas, and most Hams use them at least for the HF Bands below 10 MHz. I have used Dipoles and ZS6BKW antennas for several years. I try to design the antennas for use with my Rig-internal Antenna Tuners, which mostly are able to match SWR mismatches up to 3:1. While it... Continue Reading →
ICOM IC-7600 (or 7610) Wiring for use with Elecraft KPA/KAT-500 Power Combo
Note - While this Post documents my IC-7600 setup, I believe this will work equally well with the IC-7610 but I do not have one to test. If anyone can provide confirmation or feedback, it would be appreciated. I have had the IC-7600 for about 4 years and have now added the Elecraft KAT-500 Antenna... Continue Reading →
FT8 – A “Different” Mode for me
I have been operating some FT8 over the past few months. Technically, I find the mode very interesting as I have worked in Digital Communications for many years. But it sure is a change for Ham Radio. The only thing close to this that I have worked is probably RTTY, and I dabbled in some... Continue Reading →
Antenna Damage from Tornado Near-miss
On the morning of August 4th 2020, a Tropical Storm passed through the Northern Neck area in Virginia. The storm sent an EF-2 tornado through our area in White Stone, starting in the Windmill Point area and traveling about 15.5 miles, passing by Kilmarnock. The tornado missed our house by about 1000 feet, but put... Continue Reading →
160 Meter Inverted “L” Antenna – Updated 12/30/2020
I have a need to get on 160m occasionally for a contest, but have limited space. I tried a dipole, but it was just too much trouble. I had to bend the ends all around to fit my small lot. I keep hearing that an Inverted L is a decent antenna, but have never been... Continue Reading →
Loop-on-Ground, the simplest Receive-Antenna you will ever Build, and it Works
I have been experimenting with some Receive-antennas for the Low HF bands (80 and 160 meters is "low-band" to me). I discovered these popular antennas from other Hams at the Contesting Club (Potomac Valley Radio Club) I belong to. Nearly all the serious Contesters in PVRC, and all of their Superstations, have Receive-only Antenna options... Continue Reading →
Your Elecraft KAT-500 Tuner Protects your KPA-500 Amp – until it doesn’t – UPDATED 10/30/2019 and 10/19/2020
I have been using an Elecraft KPA-500 linear amplifier and a KAT-500 Antenna tuner with my Icom radios (mostly the IC-7600 and briefly with the IC-7300) After much research and discussion, I figured out what I thought was the best way to interconnect the IC-7600 with the KAT/KPA-500 so that the Amp would be protected... Continue Reading →
Can’t Use TUNE Button on IC-7300 with KAT-500 Tuner
When I initially connected my IC-7300 to my Elecraft KAT-500 Antenna Tuner, I was unable to get the Tuner to start Tuning the KAT-500 from the TUNE button on the front panel. Here is what I discovered: I was using separate 12 volt power from my Station power supply for the Tuner. Only the Tune... Continue Reading →
LOTW now has 1 Billion QSOs!
I just saw that the ARRL Logbook of the World (LOTW) now contains records of over 1 Billion QSOs. That is impressive. When it started, I wondered if it would survive. It went through a period of slow-response, although I am not aware of any actual lost QSO records. Now it is mainstream. If you... Continue Reading →
Using the KAT-500 and KPA-500 with Icom Radios: Part II – Updated 2 AUGUST 2020
I have continued to investigate the various ways to connect my Icom IC-7300 or IC-7600 to the Elecraft KAT/KPA-500 Tuner and Amplifier. I have received some very helpful communication from a number of other Hams using Icom Radios with the Elecraft KPA-500 Amplifier and KAT-500 Tuner. It appears that there are several different ways to... Continue Reading →
