[amsat-bb] Re: Two Questions

[Patrick STODDARD (WD9EWK/VA7EWK)]

Hi Mike!

> In the morning should be a 9:40ish am pass local time for me. So I might be on it
> sipping my coffee :). The big difference that you can show is, that the linear birds
> are not like a zoo at times (except for the 5 am passes during the weekends on AO-51)
> and you can have a real QSO for the entire length of the pass. Granted you may only
> collect one grid and you may already have that one but it's simply an addition.

It may be almost a month until that hamfest in Tucson, but I hope to hear you
on that morning.

I've done demonstrations on SSB satellites for the past couple of years, and
know that I may end up with a single QSO for the entire pass.  On some rare
occasions, I end up talking to myself for the entire pass.  Then I can pass the
time by demonstrating how I sound through the satellite as I reduce power from
5W to the lowest power setting on my FT-817ND transmitter (500mW).  I
usually can get more than one QSO on these demonstrations, thanks to those
reading the -BB and showing up on the passes I am working.

As for grids, the QSOs at demonstrations away from the Phoenix area don't help
my grid count.  They may help your grid count, depending on what you need.  :-)

> My current antenna setup is a AR-22 TV rotor with a 5 ele 2M and a 10 ele 70cm at
> 30 deg fixed elevation both horizontal polarized. Total cost approx. $200 plus cables.
> Next project will be to build a 2nd IOio and phase them together 90 deg off to see if
> that will help with the fading issue (mostly on FO-29) vs buying or building a complex
> RHCP/LHCP switchable setup.

If that's what you were using when I worked you last month on VO-52, it sounded
really well.  Good job!  Maybe we can hook up on FO-29 or AO-7 (mode B) sometime
soon.

> My IOio beats your Arrow or Elk in terms of price by leaps :). But then again it doesn't look
> as nice.

My Elk was a Christmas gift a few years ago, so it was free to me.
But yes, the cost
of the parts for an IOio or a WA5VJB "cheap Yagi" will beat the MSRP of my Elk.

73!





Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK
http://www.wd9ewk.net/