KF2MR/R - Rochester VHF Group · Same small 5GHz setup on both sides –WiFi antenna and ~200mW....
Transcript of KF2MR/R - Rochester VHF Group · Same small 5GHz setup on both sides –WiFi antenna and ~200mW....
KF2MR/RTHE NEVER ENDING JOURNEY OF BUILDING A ROVER
9/23/2017
“Focus on the journey, not the destination. Joy is
found not in finishing an activity but in doing it.”
HISTORY – WHERE I HAVE BEEN – ROVER 1.1 (2015)
• IC-7000 for 6m (100W), 2m (50W), 70cm (30W)
• Elecraft 222XV @25W driven by IC-7000
• TYT 4-band FM used on 6m, 2m, 70cm FM
• TYT 223.5 FM
• IC-1271A for 1296 MHz All Mode
• TK-981 for 927.5 MHz FM
• Powered from 12V deep cycle battery with DC-DC
trickle charger plugged into lighter outlet
• Several manual coax switches
• No external amplifiers
LOTS OF EARLY LESSONS LEARNED
January 2015
ROVER 2.1 – 7 BANDS – SORT OF…
902 and 1296 end
mount yagis pointed in
opposite directions.
Tripod for 2304
antenna (not mounted)
Coax management a
big problem.
Telescoping mast
means different
lengths for different
antennas and a rats
nest of coax soon
forms.
January 2016
ROVER 2.3 – 9 BANDS
“MODULAR” DESIGN - GETTING VERY COMPLICATEDSETUP TIME ~10 HOURS
ROVER 2.3 –
902/903 MODULAR SHELF
DEMI XVTR AND 40W AMP
ROVER 2.3 – 9 BANDS
FIBERGLASS MAST WAY OVERLOADED. GETTING HEAVY AND DANGEROUS !
FIRST 5G SETUP
January 2017 – Rover 2.5 - 10 Bands
PATH PROFILE FROM WB2BYP TO KF2MR/R
This path uses scatter over Baker hill
Very repeatable up to 10GHz (24GHz not yet attempted)
Same small 5GHz setup on both sides – WiFi antenna and ~200mW
MY WISH LIST FOR THE SUMMER 2017 ROVER 3 REBUILD:
• Rotor for 432-3456 (minimum)
• Reduce setup time to 4 hours or less
• Reduce weight of push up mast (or eliminate altogether)
• Add more power to 1296, 2304, 3456, and 5760 MHz
• Stabilize DC voltage
• Improve human factors and operating “comfort”
ROOF RACK DESIGN AND BUILD
ROOF RACK
• Aluminum from Online Metals.com
• 6061-T6 Aluminum used for good strength to weight ratio without the cost of
aircraft grades.
• Stainless steel hardware.
• Yaesu thrust bearing used to transfer most of the stress to the structure
minimizing wear on the rotor.
• Yaesu G-1000 DXA rotor selected. (Lots of margin left to use in other
applications – Like Field Day).
PORTABLE 12U RACK – TRYING DIFFERENT LAYOUTS
SKB-12U Roto Rack
902 AND 1296 SHELF CONSTRUCTION
902-915 MHz
MINI-CIRCUITS
FILTER
W6PQL
Sequencers
DEMI Amps
SG Labs Transverters
BUILDING OPERATING CONSOLE– CHECKING FIT & LAYOUT
50 – 3456 available from
operating console. Single
switch for PTT/IF switching.
Everything for these bands
within easy reach.
IC-7000 allows liaison on 2m
or 70cm while trying for
microwave contacts.
5G and 10G still operated
external to rover system. In this
setup, 5G is operated from FT-
290R by standing outside
passengers window. Not
convenient, but necessary for
antenna aiming.
ROVER 2.1 ROVER 3.0
This so called wireless hobby is not so wireless. While nothing has
really changed, the packaging is much neater now and the mess
is out of sight.
2304 AND 3456 SHELF CONSTRUCTION
Re-Learned how to tap metal for threads Microwave shelves use DEMI LED Indicator Kits. These
help with “At a glance” verification
Spectrian 30W driver board (eBay - Pyrojoseph) with heat sink and mounting angle
added. 3456 Amp is a 20W Stealth Microwave WiMax 3.5G amp also from eBay
Club member
recommending addition
of control power
indication to 2304/3456
shelf (Red LED) after
undersized control power
fuse blew in 902/1296
shelf. Plan is to retrofit
902/1296 rack
someday…
Green LED shows relay is
energized. Easy “at a
glance” checkouts during
setup.
3456 Amp has forward
and reverse power
detectors.
Struggled to finish before the 222+ contest. Certainly doesn’t look pretty, but works great!
CURRENT ROVER RADIOS
• IC-7000
• 6m @100W
• 2m @ 3W into a Mirage Amplifier
150W out
• 70cm @ 30W into a 100W RF
Concepts Amp
• FT-290R (Unmounted)
• 5GHz Kuhne Xvtr into 4W Kuhne
Amp
• 10Ghz Kuhne Xvtr into 2W Kuhne
Amp
• FT-817
• 222 Elecraft Xvtr into TE Systems 125W
amplifier
• 902/3 SG Labs Xvtr into 40W DEMI
Amplifier
• 1296 SG Labs Xvtr into 25W Kuhne Amplifier
• 2304 SG Labs Xvtr into 30W Spectrian
Driver amp
• 3456 Kuhne Xvtr into 20W Stealth Microwave
Amp
CURRENT ROVER ANTENNASFrequency Model Rated
Gain (dBi)
50 PAR Moxon 5.8
144 M2 7-Element Yagi 12.3
222 M2 5-Element Yagi 10.3
432 Cushcraft 11-Element Yagi 13.5
902 Directive Systems – 19-Element Loop Yagi 16.5
1296 Directive Systems – 25 Element Loop Yagi 17
2304 Directive Systems - 45 Element Loop Yagi 20
3456 Laird WiMAX Grid 20
5G L-Com Wifi Grid
L-Com Wifi 24” Dish
23
29
10G ARR Horn
Procom 18” Dish
17
29
“SINGLE SWITCH” OPERATION
• One 2P6T rotary switch addresses PTT and IF relay switching
• Current build requires manual switching of FT-817 to address various IF frequencies
• 28, 29, 144, 145, 434 MHz for various transverters
• Arduino controller design has been tested to send CAT commands to adjust frequency
based on switch position (more on this later…)
Elecraft XV222 Transverter
70cm - RF Concepts 4-310
(100W)
1.25m - TE Systems (125W)
IC-7000 Body
2m - Mirage 2210G
(150W)
Power Switch &
Aux. IF connections
For Future Use
DC POWER SYSTEM
2 x 6V 216Ah
Golf Cart
Batteries
System Fuse
TG Electronics 40A
Battery Booster
Blue Sea
6 – position
Fuse Block
Shunt for
measuring
current
#8 Cable to
vehicle battery
#10 Cable
For op. console
& inverter
ROVER 3.0 (JUNE 2017) – NOT QUITE FINISHED YET
Worked long into the night and
early morning to put a station on
the air for June 2017. Working
on 50-1296 MHz.
Moxon used on 2m – Could not
find mounting hardware for 7-
element yagi !
ROVER 3.1 – 2017 UHF/222+ DISTANCE CONTEST
Roof rack now contains 222
through 3456. Very little
difference (if any) noted
between longer yagis on
222/432 and shorter yagis.
I anticipate keeping this
setup for the roof rack for
the foreseeable future.
New 5G setup with 24”
WiFi dish (left)
10G setup with 18” dish
(right)
CURRENT TESTING PROCESS – AFTER LEARNING…
• All bands from 50-2304 tested for SWR and Power Out
• Daiwa 144-432 200W meter
• Daiwa 900-2.3G 20W meter with 3dB 50W attenuator
• One band at a time tested and then antenna reconnected
• Local beacons on 50,144,222, and 432 heard from driveway. 1296 beacon
heard from rover locations.
• Lesson learned – Connect EVERYTHING needed while still home (Power cords,
PTT lines, Key, antennas, whatever...)
STORED READY FOR USE
STATUS - MY WISH LIST FOR THE SUMMER 2017 ROVER 3 REBUILD:
• Rotor for 432-3456 (minimum) – COMPLETE 222-3456
• Reduce setup time to 4 hours or less – NOT YET – 4.5 Hours – Should be able to
complete by pre-sorting and labeling coax and pre-mounting 6m/2m antenna to
mast
• Reduce weight of push up mast (or eliminate altogether) - COMPLETE
• Add more power to 1296, 2304, 3456, and 5760 MHz – COMPLETE
• Stabilize DC voltage - COMPLETE
• Improve human factors and operating “comfort” - COMPLETE
OK, BUT HOW WELL DOES IT PERFORM?Band QSOs Grids
50 44 12
144 68 17
222 45 14
432 52 13
902 24 11
1296 25 11
2.3G 17 10
3.4G 12 7
5G 2 2
10G 3 3
Grids Activated 4
Total 292 104
Score 61,256
September 2017 VHF Contest
Best total grid count ever
OPERATING PRACTICES
• Magnetic signs help to eliminate most
attention and questions.
• Use known rover locations. Word of
mouth, old N2MH roversites, web
research
• Learn and use CW (30% of my grids)
• Use good headphones
• 500Hz CW filter
• Have Fun – Rover Lunch, Multi-Op Visits
• Voice/CW keyer for calling CQ
ASSISTANCE I USE
• Internet Based / ON4KST
• Despite great elevations, cell coverage for data is NOT guaranteed
• Requests can easily become overwhelming
• Only used after calling CQ, several minutes of S&P, and local activity dried up
• Logout when busy so that others don’t get frustrated when I don’t respond
• All locations I use can send and receive text messages
• Excellent for known serious contesters who are in the seat 14 hours a day. Not always immediate, but
skeds setup within 15 minutes.
• Also good for club members or locals who want to help but don’t want to spend much time
• Setup time and liaison frequency
• Phone is not monitored normally and random text messages not heard/seen for many minutes
• APRS and APRS-IS attempted for > 1 year – Discontinued. No evidence it was helping.
• Phone calls do not work well in a rover – Not recommended for liaison unless no other choice
STRATEGIES I USE
• Establish a route that ensures paths to other microwave capable rovers in grids that I do not
visit
• Analyze past logs, contest results database and line scores to see who has microwave capable
stations, who the big guns are, and who is consistently active
• Personally ask club members and friends to get on the air
• Setup “Target” list of stations, bands available, grids, calling frequency, bearings for the big
stations – Use VHFContesting list to help add to this.
• Be able to move quickly – 10 minute setup, 5 minute teardown.
• Use FM – Dedicated FM rigs and vertical omnis for 50-1296 MHz – Call CQ on 146.55 MHz
• Site conflicts happen – Communicate to local rovers in advance and have a contingency plan
• Leverage contacts after Rover Lunch – 50-1296 MHz FM for quick contacts – Loaner HTs
• VHF/UHF/Microwave contesting is all about experimenting, building, learning,
and growing in a competitive environment. WINNING should be the
consequence and not the goal.
• Compete against yourself and use others as motivation to do better
• Make it a goal to recruit just one new person per year to try it out, then
support that person with all of your effort in at least one contest, even at the
expense of your score. Even if just half stick with it, they will pay you back
x10 those points you may have lost.
• Stay positive when talking about the contest, highlight things that went well.
Remember that someone listening to the net or reading your posts, emails, and
soapbox will be influenced (for better or worse) by what you say publicly.
THANK YOU