Happy New Year I went to a new layout Theme for this blog in the past couple days. The idea was to allow more articles on the Front Page at once, so you can easily scroll around and pick something, then expand it if you are interested. Also, this new Theme has more capability for... Continue Reading →
Rig Expert Antenna Analyzer
Got a new Antenna Analyzer to use in my continuing attempts to improve the antenna situation at KG3V. I have had a great run with my old MFJ analyzer but I needed to get something that could save measurements to a PC. I got a Rig Expert Unit that covers up to 230 MHz. Here... Continue Reading →
CQWW CW 2016 – A Contest and a Beverage
As I have become more interested in Contesting, I have met some top contest operators in my Local Contest Club, and have been looking for some antenna improvements for my modest Station at KG3V in White Stone, VA. My current antennas include an 80m half-wave dipole on all Bands (with an external Tuner), and a... Continue Reading →
Assembling Glen Martin Rt-424 Roof Tower
The RT-424 is a 4.5 foot tall roof-mounted tower for rotatable antennas. As I have heard, this looks like a nice product but the instructions leave something to be desired - something HUGE. Here are a few notes and warnings from my assembly process. Things you MUST know: There are 28 bolts, and eight of... Continue Reading →
DXDUSB Next Version with Custom PC Board – UPDATED
After using some DXDUSB prototypes with DX Doubler SO2R boxes for several months, I finally got around to completing the PC Board layout for the next version. This one will add some power conditioning and choice of operation from +5 or +12 VDC. It also should be able to survive use in a Mobile environment... Continue Reading →
Roof Tower RT-424
I have been looking at a way to get a Yagi on my roof. No room for a big tower at my QTH, but something on the roof is within reason. I have been looking at the Glen Martin Roof Towers, particularly the smaller Glen Martin RT-424 Roof Tower. It is a 4.5 foot tall,... Continue Reading →
DXDUSB – DX Doubler USB Interface Update
DXDUSB Development Status I have had some requests to provide DXDUSB prototypes to couple people. The latest prototype (Protot3) is still very rough. I have a couple in ongoing testing and they seem to be working well. However, these are very rough - assembly is hand soldered wires attached to the Arduino board. While I... Continue Reading →
A USB Interface for the DX Doubler – The Last DXDUSB Prototypes
I have been working on a USB-only interface for the Top Ten Devices DX Doubler for some time. I recently completed the 3rd generation prototype. This is still a prototype - it uses a very small Arduino board with attached wires, but it is shoved into a nice small Ethernet drop-box enclosue. This version has... Continue Reading →
VA QSO Party 2016 – Two for the Road
I went mobile again for the 2016 Virginia QSO Party, using the callsign KT4KA. I use that callsign so as not to confuse everyone when calling CQ (with my normal "3"call). The goal this year was to beat last year, and hopefully win the Mobile all-Band category. No matter what happens, this is always enjoyable.... Continue Reading →
It Really is all About Antennas
As I try to continually improve my Station, I keep coming back to the antennas. I have a couple very nice Radios, but I am still not very competitive in Contests, especially DX contests. I have always used mainly wire antennas and generally if I can hear them, I can work them. Now I know... Continue Reading →
Kg3v Ham Radio Blog 