Here we go again. Time for ARRL Sweepstakes CW (SSCW) 2014. Same plan as always - main objective is to get a personal high score. Secondary objective is to get that elusive "clean sweep" - all US and Canada Sections in one weekend. I have been within 1 or 2 sections the last several years,... Continue Reading →
Mobile Antenna Testing
I was doing some testing of mobile antennas on my F-150 this weekend. I had a mag mount on the roof, and a door-edge mount on the rear door. Both had NMO mounts, so I could easily move antennas between the mounts. Here is what I found: I had an HT (Kenwood TH-F6A) connected to... Continue Reading →
Sweepstakes Results for 2012
Well I kept up the time-honored tradition of missing 1 or 2 Sections in the CW SS contest this year. Had about 575 QSOs (a personal best) and all but 2 Sections - MB and NNY. I never had trouble with a New York section before. I guess the monster storm Sandy may have been... Continue Reading →
ARRL CWSS 2012 – Preparation
Well, hurricane Sandy did no damage to my Chesapeake Bayside QTH. I am thankful for that and I wish a quick recovery to those that were ravaged by this nasty storm. The winds did leave one of my antennas needing attention. The winds pulled my anchor for the center of my ZS6BKW antenna out of ... Continue Reading →
ZS6BKW Antenna
The ZS6BKW Antenna is one of many HF multi-band wire antennas. It is similar to the famous G5RV antenna, which can cover multiple HF Bands but requires an antenna tuner on most bands. The ZS6BKW follows the design of the G5RV, but makes improvements. These improvements allow it to be used on more bands, and... Continue Reading →
Antenna Design: 20 meter 4-element Colinear
After looking at articles in the ARRL Antenna Book and on L.B. Cebick's web site, I thought a 4-element colinear wire antenna might be useful for my station. I currently use only wire antennas which work fine on 40 and 80 meters, but on the higher Bands, I need some gain. My main goal is... Continue Reading →
20 Meter Colinear Antenna Project
I like to try a new antenna every year for one of my favorite contests. A year or two ago I had great hopes for a 20 meter Colinear wire antenna in the ARRL CW Sweepstakes. I ran out of time and threw one together quickly. It did not do much for me, but I... Continue Reading →
IC-7600 Antenna Tuner Testing
I did a bit of testing with 2 wire antennas this weekend. Here is a summary of the results, which I also posted to the IC-7600 e-mail reflector: The antennas: 1 - A "long" 80m Dipole, ladder line, 4:1 balun, then a long coax run to the rig 2 - A fan dipole with 80/40/20... Continue Reading →
Icom IC-7600 Added to the Shack
I have been looking to purchase a new rig for some time and finally decided to go with the Icom IC-7600. I was torn between this rig, the Elecraft K3, and the Yaesu FT-2000 (because I can not afford the FTDX-5000). For my needs, this is the best of the three. and I will maintain... Continue Reading →
ARRL CW Sweepstakes 2011 Diary – Preparation
Preparing for CWSS this year mainly consisted of antenna work and integration of the SO2R (Single Operator Two Radio) setup in the Shack. I use mostly wire antennas (no Yagis) but one, a "Fan Dipole" (one design example found here) for 80/40 meters had been hanging for several years. I took it down to check... Continue Reading →
Kg3v Ham Radio Blog 