Signal to Noise - KQ2RP

I try not to duplicate what other QRP bloggers are posting.  Sometimes it’s not easy with current news.  I had this in the queue for this morning, but  I see ‘QRP brother’ Larry W2LJ posted it last night.  :-)  I think it’s worth posting anyway, just in case someone missed it.  Some great new offerings from QRPKits.com

From Doug Hendricks KI6DS:

“Hendricks QRP kits will be at Dayton again this year, and we will be in a
new location.  Our booth numbers are 459 and 460, located right across from
the ARRL in the Ball Arena.  And we have 9 new products, yes, you read it
right, 9.  Here they are:

1. The Weber Tribander designed by Steve Weber, KD1JV.  This is a 3 band CW
Transceiver and you get to pick your bands from the following: 15, 17, 20,
30, 40 and 80 Meters.  Digital display, Custom Case, DDS Vfo, and Encoder
Tuning.  If you have wanted a PFR on other bands or with rotary encoder
tuning, this is the radio for you.  Price: $200.

2. The Tuthill 160 designed by Dan Tayloe.  Finally, a cw transceiver kit
for 160M.  We have expanded the popular Tuthill series to now include 160M
with a full 5 Watts of output.  Basic Kit is $100 (show special), optional
Digital Display, $35.  Now is the time to get this kit so you will be ready
for 160 in the fall.

3. SMK-2.  The popular surface mount 40M CW transceiver designed by Dave
Fifield is back.  And it is improved!  The SMK-2 comes with 2 Frequencies,
and is complete with case and connectors.  Plus there is an optional
Crystal Board available for switchable frequencies.  The Transceiver is
$40, Optional Crystal Board is $10.  Frequencies are 7.030, 7.040 and
7.122MHz.

4. 41dB Step Attenuator.  We have kitted the popular design that has been
in the ARRL handbook for years.  Ken Locasale designed a great looking
case, and everything is included.  Great for working low power and for
transmitter hunts.  $50.

5. Rock Hunter Chassis for the DCxxB series.  We now have a case,
connectors and an addon board to give 2 additional frequencies for the
DCxxB series of transceivers.  We have had many, many requests for a case
for the DCxx series of transceivers, and now we have it.  $20 for the case,
connectors, controls and addon frequency board.

6. Red Hot 40 Transceiver.  We will have a special price on the Red Hot 40,
the high performance 40 Meter CW Transceiver designed by Dave Fifield.
The show special is $200, which is $50 off the regular price.

7. Repackaged Tayloe SWR Meter.  Ken has come up with a great little
chassis for the SWR Meter designed by Dan Tayloe, N7VE.  $25.

8. Sota Tuner.  This has been one of our best sellers since we introduced
it in September.  The Sota is an End Fed Half Wave Tuner with a metal case,
stainless steel hardware, and only weighs 2.5 ounces, and the price is $30.


9. Two Fer Transmitter.  The Twofer is a great little transmitter.
Available on 40 or 30 or 20 Meters.  Show special at $30.

We will also have show specials on the Tenna Dipper, with a price of $70,
MMR40 at $175, NADC40 basic kit w/out digital display, $100, Ft. Tuthill
15, basic kit no display, $100.

Stop by the booth and say hello to Steve Weber, KD1JV who will be in the
booth on Friday and Saturday, plus Dean Davis, Darrel Swenson, Ken and
Karen Locasale.”

This just in from Larry, W2LJ —

The NJQRP Club is announcing a new summertime operating event - “The Skeeter Hunt”. The objective is to get QRPers out of their shacks for the day; and into the fresh air and sunshine, to spread their wings and fill the airwaves with “Skeeters”.

While commercial equipment can certainly utilized, bonus multipliers will be awarded for those who personally home brewed their own or kit built their own equipment (equipment not built by the operator would not count as either home brewed or kit built - it would be considered commercial equipment). The inaugural event is to be held on Sunday August 12th. It will be a four hour sprint - from 17:00 UTC to 21:00 UTC (1:00 TO 5:00 PM EDT).

The theme for this year is “My favorite outdoor place”. You are encouraged to operate from your favorite outdoor place and tell us about it in your Soapbox comments.

Stations who wish to be designated as “Skeeters” can get a Skeeter number by requesting one by sending an e-mail to w2lj@arrl.net Skeeter numbers would be issued from May through the day before the event.

Station Classes and Multipliers
X1 Home stations - commercial equipment
X2 Home stations - home brewed or kit built equipment
X3 Portable station - commercial equipment
X4 Portable station - home brewed or kit built equipment

Portable stations cannot use permanent antennas, i.e you can’t work from your backyard, hook up to your dipole or tower and yagi and be considered a portable station. Also, portable stations cannot be connected to the local power grid - alternative energy sources must be used - solar, battery, wind, etc.

Exchange -
Skeeter Stations - RST, S/P/C, Skeeter number
Non-Skeeter Stations - RST, S/P/C, Output power

Mode - CW
Power - 5W max

Scoring -
Working a Skeeter Station - 2 points
Working a non-Skeeter Station - 1 point

Total score equals the number of QSO points times the number of S/P/Cs worked on all bands (stations can be worked on multiple bands for QSO points and S/P/C credit) times the multiplier for station class.

Bonus points - design and home brew a key or paddle specifically for the event and earn an extra 1000 points.

Suggested frequencies:
The QRP “Watering Holes
80 Meters ~ 3.560 MHz
40 Meters ~ 7.040 and 7.030 MHz
20 Meters ~ 14.060 MHz
15 Meters ~ 21.060 MHz
10 Meters ~ 28.060 MHz

These are suggested starting points, of course. Feel free to spread out and give your “Skeeter” wings a chance to do their thing.

Logs, photos and soapbox comments can be sent to w2lj@arrl.net no later than 30 days after the event. Certificates will be issued to the top scorers of each category as well as others to be determined.

A table of call signs and issued “Skeeter” numbers will appear on a page at http://w2lj.blogspot.com/.

Hope to hear and work all of you during this new event. Special thanks to the NJQRP club for their sponsorship!

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

The Four States QRP Group has released a new CW filter kit, called the Hi-Per-Mite.  It looks to be a great value at $19 ppd!

(Click photo for link)

Specifications and Design Features
Bandwidth:  200 cycles at the -3 DB bandwith points.
Center Frequency:  The center frequency in the passband is 700 HZ
Signal Gain:  0 dB to 50 dB, user selectable
No Ringing or Buzz:  Nice, smooth audio - care has been taken in the design to eliminate ringing.
Versatile:  Drives speaker, earbuds, or headphones. Use standalone or install inside rig.
Audio Power:  500 mW into 8 ohms, from 9v supply
DC Power:  5 to 13 VDC at less than 15 mA
NO SMT Parts:  All through hole parts..
NO Toroids:  There are no toroids to wind, special circuits simulate them.
PCB:  High Quality, silk screened, two sided 2.2”x1.5” printed circuit board.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Morse

“Four State is pleased to announce the release of the second run of our
very popular QRPometer. We are now taking orders via the kit’s web
page http://www.wa0itp.com/qrpom.html

Please note that at no extra cost, two RCA to BNC adapters are now
included in the kit to facilitate connections for those builders using
cables with BNC connectors.

Thank you for your patience and also for supporting Four State”

———————————————

I love this radio stuff !
72, 73 Terry, WAØITP
wa0itp@wa0itp.com
www.wa0itp.com
www.4sqrp.com
www.qrpspots.com

W8WTS

I’ll be operating at W1AW today from approximately 1500-1600Z and 1700-2000Z.  Will try to get some time in as W1AW/QRP and will make a special effort to look for QRP ops around the QRP ‘watering holes’.