2 <title>CODE Rover Report - 2000-08 </title>
7 <center><h1> August 2000 ARRL UHF </h1></center>
10 A New Divison Rover Record Score!
13 <h2> Bdale's Report </h2>
15 This contest represented simultaneously both a strong desire on my part to
16 have a very laid-back weekend, and a definite attempt to beat our record rover
17 score in this contest last year. When it was all over, I felt pretty good
20 My big last-minute burst of energy was getting the system integration of the
21 Down East 2304 transverter finished. I've had it put together for quite a
22 while, but two items were pending. First, the 1W GaAsFET power amplifier
23 wasn't working, leaving me with only 20 milliwatts or so. Second, the kit
24 does not include T/R switching on the antenna side... that's left as an
25 exercise for the builder. I had stalled on both issues.
27 Somewhere along the line I decided to punt worrying about the power amp, and
28 just see what I could do with the low-level output. So, that left me with the
29 T/R switching. I had acquired some Transco SMA relays, but they needed 28VDC.
30 To make a very long story (that finally ended at 4:30am on the contest morning)
31 much much shorter, I ended up designing and building a switcher to make 28V
32 from nominal 12 using some Linear Technologies parts I had samples of in my
33 pile of parts, and then swiped the relay from the unassembled 3456 transverter
34 kit's IF switch board to switch it on PTT. It all works wonderfully.
36 Somewhere on the Down East Microwave web site, I read about a new board they've
37 designed to replace the older PINK board, that provides the 28V power supply
38 to switch relays like this. I'll probably invest in one for the 3456 kit, and
41 John was getting ready to head to Venezuela on business. Steve showed up at
42 about 9am on Saturday morning, and we started putting things together. I was
43 dragging from the lack of sleep, so we were running a bit late by the time we
44 headed out. One change from previous roves is that I had the back seat out
45 of the Trooper, and instead of putting it back in, we decided to just put the
46 radios inside the rear door, and cross our fingers for good weather. The last
47 time we ran that way was the first time we went out, in September of 1998.
48 It turned out to be a good choice...
50 After a quick stop at the Safeway in Falcon to snag some lunch materials, we
51 were in DM89 at our usual spot somewhere around 1pm local,
52 an hour into the contest. From there, we dropped south into DM88, and then
53 called it a day in time to get home for late dinner. Steve called Sunday
54 morning early to report a death in the family, so I ran
55 the rover solo for the first time ever in DM78 and DM79. Fortunately, with
56 the radios inside the back door, it was possible for me to drive the radios
57 with one hand and rotate the antennas with the other. It was hard to hold
58 the antennas steady, but since there wasn't much wind, it worked out ok.
60 The highlight this time was, without doubt, my first four contacts on 2304.
61 With the 20 milliwatts, about 20 feet of Andrews heliax in an assembly bought
62 at Dayton this spring, and a 45-element loop yagi, I was able to work W6OAL
63 from each of the four grids. What a kick in the head!
67 It's also really neat that, if my claimed score holds up, this year's effort
68 resulted in more than twice the points of last year...
72 The biggest frustration, other than Steve having to stay home on Sunday, was
73 an odd source of very strong noise on 222 somewhere in the Colorado Springs
74 area. John WD0FHG talked about having serious trouble making any contacts at
75 all from Palmer Park during the 222 Sprint this spring, but this was my first
76 experience with it. Working N0KM from DM78, and K5RHR from DM79 were both
77 extremely difficult because of this noise. By turning the antenna, I could
78 watch the noise floor go from about S1 to S8+ on the meter in John's IC-735.
79 Pretty amazing, whatever it is.
82 I really like this contest. As always, it's tempting to say that it'd be more
83 fun if more folks were on... and since I worked everyone I heard and heard
84 almost everyone that I heard about being on, there's some truth to it.
85 However, one of the nice things about fewer people being on, most of whom have
86 worked each other before, and in an environment where we're not all crazily
87 busy every instant trying to snag one more contact, is that we actually take
88 time to chat some. I'm not much of a rag-chewer, but it's good to communicate
89 a little more than just callsigns and grid squares, and until I make some
90 major changes at the QTH, these roving expeditions are the only real chances
91 I have to talk with friends on the microwave bands.
95 I bought a new digital camera earlier this summer, and went a little crazy
97 Excuse the repetition, but I took various views of the vehicle hoping to end
98 up with one that might make a good start for a new QSL card, now that I've got
102 <li> <a href="vga01.jpg"> Operating position </a> at the rear of the Trooper.
103 <li> <a href="vga02.jpg"> In DM89 </a>, with Steve admiring the antenna stack.
104 <li> <a href="vga03.jpg"> Closeup </a> of the antennas against the clouds.
105 <li> <a href="vga04.jpg"> Front top </a> view of the rigs.
106 <li> <a href="vga05.jpg"> The mess </a> of wires making it all work.
107 <li> <a href="vga06.jpg"> Another view </a> of the operating postion. Note
108 the back seat not present in the Trooper.
109 <li> <a href="vga07.jpg"> Another shot </a> of the vehicle in operating stance
111 <li> <a href="vga08.jpg"> From the front </a>, just another angle.
112 <li> <a href="vga09.jpg"> Another similar </a> view.
113 <li> <a href="vga10.jpg"> Steve KC0FTQ </a>, taking a break and beating the
115 <li> <a href="vga11.jpg"> Bdale KB0G </a>, at the operating position in DM88.
116 <li> <a href="vga12.jpg"> Steve </a> "assuming the position", also in DM88.
117 <li> <a href="vga13.jpg"> Another with Steve </a>, who was intrigued at the
118 mix of linear and loop yagis we were running.
119 <li> <a href="vga14.jpg"> Another </a> shot of the vehicle.
120 <li> <a href="vga15.jpg"> Close up </a> of the antennas.
121 <li> <a href="vga16.jpg"> Rear view </a> of the mess in the back of the
122 Trooper. Note the 2304 transverter sitting loose, I had to swap it
123 in for the 902 since the TIB only supports one transverter at a time.
124 <li> <a href="vga17.jpg"> Looking back </a> from the front seats.
125 <li> <a href="vga18.jpg"> Sunday morning </a> in DM78, with Pikes Peak in the
127 <li> <a href="vga19.jpg"> A different angle. </a>
128 <li> <a href="vga20.jpg"> This time </a>, with the antennas broadside. Note
129 the callsign tags with the old callsign... I have the forms in hand
130 to request new ones, but haven't sent them in yet... /o\
131 <li> <a href="vga21.jpg"> Cables </a> on the roof ready to move, I was more
132 casual this time around, just looping them over the roof rack and
134 <li> <a href="vga22.jpg"> The secret </a> to how we have so much fun. The
135 mast which is 15 feet of Radio Shack antenna mast gets preloaded and
136 then just set on the roof and duct-taped to the 2x6. That allows us
137 to set up or tear down in a minute or two. And yes, there is an inch
138 or three of clearance between the ground and the bottom of the 432
139 and 1296 antennas! We have to be careful off-road, but on the
140 highway it just works! Just before leaving DM78...
141 <li> <a href="vga23.jpg"> Same shot </a> but a slightly different angle.
142 <li> <a href="vga24.jpg"> In DM79 </a>, on a ridge just south of Franktown.
143 <li> <a href="vga25.jpg"> Antennas </a> in the sunlight. The stack from the
144 bottom up is 11 elements on 432, 24 elements on 1296, 10 elements
145 on 902, 8 elements on 222, and 45 elements on 2304 at the top. I'd
146 center-mount them all if I were doing this from scratch, but we use
148 <li> <a href="vga26.jpg"> Operating position </a> on Sunday morning in DM79.
149 <li> <a href="vga27.jpg"> Proof </a> that we really don't quite scrape the
150 ground while in transit...
158 ----------------------------------------------------
159 | 222 MHz | 17 | x 3 | 51 | 6 | 306 |
160 ----------------------------------------------------
161 | 432 MHz | 30 | x 3 | 90 | 7 | 630 |
162 ----------------------------------------------------
163 | 902 MHz | 8 | x 6 | 48 | 1 | 48 |
164 ----------------------------------------------------
165 | 1296 MHz | 17 | x 6 | 102 | 3 | 306 |
166 ----------------------------------------------------
167 | 2304 MHz | 4 | x 12 | 48 | 1 | 48 |
168 ----------------------------------------------------
169 |Grids Activated--Rovers Only | 4 | |
170 ----------------------------------------------------
171 | TOTAL | 76 | | 339 | 22 | 7458 |
172 ----------------------------------------------------
175 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
176 DATE TIME STATION EXCHANGE NEW
177 FREQ MODE (UTC) WORKED SENT RCVD MULTIS PTS
178 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
179 1 446. FM 20000805 1855 WD0HHQ DM89 DM78 DM78- 1 3
180 2 432. SSB 20000805 1913 K0RZ DM89 DM79 DM79- 2 3
181 3 432. SSB 20000805 1914 KC0COU DM89 DN70 DN70- 3 3
182 4 432. SSB 20000805 1915 W6OAL DM89 DM79 3
183 5 432. SSB 20000805 1916 WA7KYM DM89 DN71 DN71- 4 3
184 6 222. SSB 20000805 1919 K0RZ DM89 DM79 DM79- 1 3
185 7 222. SSB 20000805 1920 WA7KYM DM89 DN71 DN71- 2 3
186 8 222. SSB 20000805 1923 W6OAL DM89 DM79 3
187 9 1296. SSB 20000805 1927 K0RZ DM89 DM79 DM79- 1 6
188 10 1296. SSB 20000805 1928 W6OAL DM89 DM79 6
189 11 1296. SSB 20000805 1931 WA7KYM DM89 DN71 DN71- 2 6
190 12 1296. SSB 20000805 1931 KC0COU DM89 DN70 DN70- 3 6
191 13 902. SSB 20000805 1934 K0RZ DM89 DM79 DM79- 1 6
192 14 902. SSB 20000805 1939 W6OAL DM89 DM79 6
193 15 222. SSB 20000805 1942 K5RHR DM89 DM65 DM65- 3 3
194 16 2304. SSB 20000805 1953 W6OAL DM89 DM79 DM79- 1 12
195 17 222. SSB 20000805 2146 W6OAL DM88 DM79 3
196 18 222. SSB 20000805 2150 K0RZ DM88 DM79 3
197 19 432. SSB 20000805 2151 K0RZ DM88 DM79 3
198 20 432. SSB 20000805 2152 W6OAL DM88 DM79 3
199 21 432. SSB 20000805 2152 KC0COU DM88 DN70 3
200 22 1296. SSB 20000805 2154 K0RZ DM88 DM79 6
201 23 1296. SSB 20000805 2155 W6OAL DM88 DM79 6
202 24 1296. SSB 20000805 2157 KC0COU DM88 DN70 6
203 25 902. SSB 20000805 2201 W6OAL DM88 DM79 6
204 26 902. SSB 20000805 2202 K0RZ DM88 DM79 6
205 27 2304. SSB 20000805 2212 W6OAL DM88 DM79 12
206 28 432. SSB 20000806 1430 W0AH DM78 DM89 DM89- 5 3
207 29 222. SSB 20000806 1431 K0RZ DM78 DM79 3
208 30 432. SSB 20000806 1430 K0RZ DM78 DM79 3
209 31 902. SSB 20000806 1435 K0RZ DM78 DM79 6
210 32 1296. SSB 20000806 1433 K0RZ DM78 DM79 6
211 33 222. SSB 20000806 1444 W6OAL DM78 DM79 3
212 34 432. SSB 20000806 1446 W6OAL DM78 DM79 3
213 35 902. SSB 20000806 1505 W6OAL DM78 DM79 6
214 36 1296. SSB 20000806 1454 W6OAL DM78 DM79 6
215 37 2304. SSB 20000806 1502 W6OAL DM78 DM79 12
216 38 1296. SSB 20000806 1454 KC0COU DM78 DN70 6
217 39 446. FM 20000806 1516 K6LS DM78 DM79 3
218 40 446. FM 20000806 1519 KB0CY DM78 DM79 3
219 41 446. FM 20000806 1520 KC0AMO DM78 DM79 3
220 42 432. SSB 20000806 1525 N0POH DM78 DM79 3
221 43 222. SSB 20000806 1538 N0KM DM78 DM67 DM67- 4 3
222 44 432. SSB 20000806 1529 N0KM DM78 DM67 DM67- 6 3
223 45 432. SSB 20000806 1545 N0UGY DM78 DM79 3
224 46 222. SSB 20000806 1558 W0KJY DM78 DN70 DN70- 5 3
225 47 432. SSB 20000806 1548 W0KJY DM78 DN70 3
226 48 1296. SSB 20000806 1550 W0KJY DM78 DN70 6
227 49 222. SSB 20000806 1646 K0RZ DM79 DM79 3
228 50 432. SSB 20000806 1642 K0RZ DM79 DM79 3
229 51 902. SSB 20000806 1654 K0RZ DM79 DM79 6
230 52 1296. SSB 20000806 1652 K0RZ DM79 DM79 6
231 53 222. SSB 20000806 1645 W6OAL DM79 DM79 3
232 54 432. SSB 20000806 1642 W6OAL DM79 DM79 3
233 55 902. SSB 20000806 1655 W6OAL DM79 DM79 6
234 56 1296. SSB 20000806 1650 W6OAL DM79 DM79 6
235 57 2304. SSB 20000806 1658 W6OAL DM79 DM79 12
236 58 222. SSB 20000806 1647 WA7KYM DM79 DN71 3
237 59 432. SSB 20000806 1644 WA7KYM DM79 DN71 3
238 60 1296. SSB 20000806 1652 WA7KYM DM79 DN71 6
239 61 222. SSB 20000806 1646 W0KJY DM79 DN70 3
240 62 432. SSB 20000806 1645 W0KJY DM79 DN70 3
241 63 1296. SSB 20000806 1651 W0KJY DM79 DN70 6
242 64 222. SSB 20000806 1647 N0POH DM79 DM79 3
243 65 432. SSB 20000806 1702 N0POH DM79 DM79 3
244 66 432. SSB 20000806 1719 KC0COU DM79 DN70 3
245 67 1296. SSB 20000806 1720 KC0COU DM79 DN70 6
246 68 446. FM 20000806 1705 KI0QM/R DM79 DM78 3
247 69 432. SSB 20000806 1710 WD4MUO DM79 DN70 3
248 70 432. SSB 20000806 1712 W1XE DM79 DM79 3
249 71 1296. SSB 20000806 1716 W1XE DM79 DM79 6
250 72 222. SSB 20000806 1730 K5RHR DM79 DM65 3
251 73 446. FM 20000806 1743 KC7GOL DM79 DM78 3
252 74 446. FM 20000806 1743 KI0QM/R DM79 DM79 3
253 75 222. SSB 20000806 1752 N0KQY DM79 DM98 DM98- 6 3
254 76 432. SSB 20000806 1752 N0KQY DM79 DM98 DM98- 7 3
259 For 222, we ran John's IC-735 and DEM transverter, and his K1FO yagi.
263 For 70cm, we ran Bdale's Kenwood TS-790, a Mirage amp making about 100 watts,
264 and a Landwehr preamp mounted near my Rutland Arrays K1FO yagi.
268 On 33cm, we ran the TS-790's 2m section through a DEM TIB to a DEMI
269 transverter making about 10 watts into a homebrew Kent Britain-style yagi.
273 On 23cm, we ran the TS-790 making about 10 watts into a 24 element loop yagi.
277 On 13cm, we ran the TS-790's 2m section through a DEM TIB to a DEMI
278 transverter making about 20 milliwatts, through Andrews half-inch heliax to
279 a 45 element loop yagi.
283 Unless otherwise mentioned, cables were a mix of RG-8 sized cables with mostly
285 Power was from a 27DC-form-factor deep cycle battery for everything.
289 I logged on paper, and post-processed the logs using VHFTEST. The beta
290 version of VHFTEST I tried had some problems, but I worked around them well
291 enough for this time. The fundamental logging interface isn't bad, though,
292 and since it runs on DOS and claims to do monochrome screens moderately well,
293 I may have to try logging on computer next time using an Omnibook 425... they
294 handle sunlight better than most of the newer color displays. We'll see. My
295 paper logging system works well, but typing it all in afterwards is a pain.
299 <a href="http://www.gag.com/~bdale/">Bdale Garbee</A>,
300 $Id: index.html,v 1.3 1999/12/23 04:08:14 bdale Exp $
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