KH6JRM's Amateur Radio Blog

An easily transportable vertical antenna for 20 meters collapsible to 4 feet

Able to cover all frequencies between 3.5 and about 10 MHz, the loop described here is directional, does not require a radial system, and stands just 1.8 metres tall. Most parts needed can be purchased at a hardware shop. The antenna can be put together in an afternoon and requires only hand tools to assemble. It should cost less than sixty dollars to build. […]

An Easy Dual-Band VHF/UHF Antenna from QST September 1994

W5GI Mystery Antenna is a multi-band wire antenna that performs exceptionally well even though it confounds antenna modeling software. This antenna covers 80 to 6 meters with low feed point impedance and will work with most radios, with or without an antenna tuner. It is approximately 100 feet long, can handle the legal limit, and is easy and inexpensive to […]

An Attic Coaxial-Cable trap dipole for 10, 15, 20, 30, 40, and 80 meters

Last week, the ARRL announced that the introduction of the new TQSL 1.14 software for Logbook of The World (LoTW) would be available on May 20. Upon further testing, three defects -- now corrected -- were reported after that announcement. Before publicly releasing a corrected version of TQSL 1.14, the software must be thoroughly retested by the Trusted QSL S […]

ARRL Headquarters will be closed Monday, May 27 in observance of the Memorial Day holiday. There will be no W1AW code practice or bulletin transmissions that day. ARRL Headquarters will reopen Tuesday, May 28 at 8 AM (EDT). We wish everyone a safe and enjoyable holiday weekend! 

Hamvention Sunday saw the beginning of the exodus from Hara Arena, but for those who remained, there was still a lot to see.Of course, one of the major attractions was the traditional "last minute bargain." There were quite a few of these to be had in the fleamarket, but Sunday sales were prominent indoors as well. Early feedback from several vendo […]

Hamvention Saturday got off to a rousing start. By late morning the aisles in the indoor exhibitor areas were crowded to the point where movement was difficult at best.ARRL Member ForumAmong the first forums of the morning, the ARRL Member forum was filled to capacity. After an introduction by Great Lakes Division Vice Director Dale Williams, WA8EFK, Ohio Se […]

Hamvention Friday opened in the midst of dense fog. Fortunately, the fog burned off before noon.Attendence seemed high for a Friday with indoor exhibits swamped with amateurs soon after the doors opened at 9AM. The ARRL Expo area drew a substantial crowd with popular activities such as the W1AW 75th anniversary exhibit, the Youth Lounge and spectral purity t […]

The 2013 Dayton Hamvention is here   D-Star and kids become an important part of Hamvention  Russian Radar invades the 75 and 80 meter bands Ham seeks signatures for petition on public warning legislation Hurricane Watch Net says it could use more Net Control Stations Registrations for International Lighthouse  Weekend ramp up  Newly developed self healing i […]

New 24 GHz EME record between Australia and the Czech Republic  New life for ham radio in Tunisia NASA and ham radio assemble a PhoneSat image of Earth An in-depth preview of the 2013 Dayton Hamvention THIS WEEKS NEWSCAST      Script      Audio   

  Region One of the International Amateur Radio Union meets in Vienna Groups announces attempt to arrange a DXpedition to North Korea  Ham exemption remains as part of Hawaii’s new distracted driving law  Lots more news on the upcoming Dayton Hamvention 2013 NASA rockets to study Equatorial electric storm propagation THIS WEEKS NEWSCAST      Script      Audi […]

I was in Hobby Lobby this weekend and noticed Duck Tape in sheets of about 10 x 10 inches or so.  The colors were bright (and I like bright colors) so I begin to think that I surely must have a use for this particular tape. Then it hit me, how about covering my Small [...]

  Some of you may have seen my video review of the TenTec R4020.   While the R4020 is a very fine rig and a fantastic value it needs an external tuner and external key or paddle. Enter the Elecraft KX-1.  After waiting for a couple of months, a really nice KX-1 was posted on QRZ.com [...]

So I decided a while back to try for my WAS (Worked all States) from the RV in Texas using CW as my only mode. Within a couple of weeks, I was halfway toward my goal.  Within a couple of months I just about had all but a handful of states. Then success stopped, and [...]

A simple 40 through 10 meter delta loop. One of the quietest and most versatile antennas I've used over the past few years has been a 40 through 10 meter delta loop fed with 450-ohm ladder line.  Used with a 4:1 balun, an antenna matchbox (i.e. "tuner), and a few feet (meters) of 50-ohm coaxial cable, this easy to build antenna will give you hours […]

A multi-band half-wavelength sloper antenna. This has been another beautiful, slightly windy day on Hawaii Island--a perfect time to build another antenna for DX adventure.  Although I've been happy with my 40 meter vertical with tuned counterpoise, I wanted to experiment a bit with another antenna I used frequently in my novice license days almost four […]

KH6JRM's Amateur Radio Antenna Topics: A 20 meter vertical antenna with tuned counterpoise. This weekend has been outstanding on Hawaii Island.  Weather conditions were partly sunny and a bit cooler, thanks to the return of gentle trade winds.  Most of the vog (volcanic smog) has been blown off and most of us can finally breathe normally.  In other word […]

KH6JRM's Amateur Radio Antenna Topics: A simple inverted vee dipole that doesn't require a tuner. Hawaii Island has been enjoying some excellent, if somewhat voggy, weather the past few days--a perfect time to design and build a simple antenna for my favorite amateur radio bands.  Although I enjoy working 10 and 20 meters, I've found plenty of […]

KH6JRM's Amateur Radio Antenna Topics: A tuned counterpoise antenna for 40-10 meters In my last post, I related the experience of making a segmented inverted v dipole antenna covering the 20, 15, and 10 meter bands.  The antenna required some adjustment, particularly in the 20 meter segment, which was cut a bit short.  With all the segments connected to […]