Friday, August 23, 2013

Goin' places!

So...I had my first contact on my KX3 that was not a local net. It was with AG4HG in Tennessee, using bpsk31. Just before this I almost had a contact with a fellow in Spain, but it did not quite happen...I guess my signal was all wishy washy on his end. BUT...I was heard. :-)

Saturday, July 27, 2013

Learning the portable antenna dance.

Went out in the back yard today with the KX3, Buddistick and my new RigExpert AA-230Pro.

I grabbed 4 taps and set it up for 40, 20, 17 and 12.

Nothing much was active aside from 20m today. Apparently it's the IOTA contest this weekend.

The tuned up Buddistick was pulling in some nice stations, QRO, 100W and QRP.

Got a good workout setting up the counterpoise with tags.

Can't wait to try it out in the park during the week when things are a little calmer.

Monday, July 22, 2013

It's Alive!

So, I've had my first local contact with the KX3. I was having a hard time getting the Mic Gain and Compression set correctly. However it seems to be in the ballpark now.

My current issue is getting the TX EQ adjusted for my voice. Apparently I have some nasty lows in my voice that the radio is not liking.

In other news, I've ordered a nice antenna analyzer and a few other toys to make my portable setup shine.

I've also gotten a nice hand held GPS for Geocaching. Gotta get out there an work off this beer belly.

Saturday, July 06, 2013

The KX3 adventure begins!

Got my KX3 yesterday and built it today. Seems to be working OK so far. Gonna try some backyard fun tomorrow. Just waiting on my battery so I can go down to the park.

Tuesday, April 09, 2013

Makin' my way.

Got my study guides today. I'm very pleased with the quality and content. I can't wait to dive in. Won't be long before I'm ready for the advnaced test.
Also picked up a power cord for the FT-60R and a Diamond SRH77CA for the same.

Monday, March 18, 2013

Bitchin' net tonight.

GREAT net on 3730 tonight. Had a really good time. Had a contact out in Nova Scotia. Damn, can't quite remember his callsign. I think it was VE1UT. Sounds kinda right.

Asked that gang to get together to test out the bands on my radio. I'm keen to check as much out as a I can.

I think next weekend, barring nasty contest crap, I'll spend most of my time on the radio trying to get contacts.

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Khhhhk...Shhhuuuuuk....Fffzzzztttt.

OK so the sun was being a bit of a prick this morning and spit out some hash. Made for a crappy day on HF. Tried to hook up with the guys on 3730 and it just didn't happen. I had a noise floor of S7 and the best of them were coming in at about S7.5. It was harsh. Gave up after a while and decided to read eHam forums instead.