N1MU/VE3/R June 2007 Page

Team

• Tom Mayo, N1MU Solo

Grids Activated

• FN36 - FN36gd Ste. Melanie, QC
• FN35 - Mobile
• FN25 - Mobile and FN25na, Long Sault, ON
• FN24 - Mobile and later FN24ad, Stone Mills, NY
• FN14 - Mobile and later FN14xc, Gunn's Corners, NY
• FN15 - Mobile and FN15tb, Perth, ON
• FN13 - Mobile

Highlights

• Canadian/US border was pretty smooth.
• New owners of the FN14 site are Amish and therefore have a real problem with operating there. I need a new site.

Ideas

• On IC-706MkIIG, to hear USB in CW mode, need to use CW-R with 800 Hz offset, i.e. 50.127.800. Also need to turn shift(?) all the way left or there is too much high cut. Need to check this on 2 radios to see if I need RIT too. Yuck.
• Also on IC-706MkIIG, the sidetone is SUPER loud by default. When I turn the radio all the way up to hear weak microwave signals, the sidetone is deafening. I lowered it.
• 50 MHz ok, but lots of noise. Halo must be raised to extended position for a good match, otherwise BIG SWR.
• 144 MHz ok, but PA seems busted. causes voltage sag on power bus? Didn't use. 13-elements is A LOT. Very narrow beamwidth.
• 222 MHz ok, but want to move 222 IF to IC-706, perhaps the microwave IF radio, but I have a diplexer for HF/VHF that should pass 50 MHz and 28 MHz through different ports. Have to check isolation to be sure 100 W is ok for 50 MHz and doesn't get into the 222 transverter. Need t/r switch in transverter. Is 222 RX gain ok? There's not a lot of takeover noise when you switch on the transverter.
• 432 MHz good.
• 903 MHZ good, great even.
• 1296 MHz really good! Always worked better than 903.
• 2304 MHz seems very busted. Maybe LO screwed up? fix 2304.
• 3456 MHz good.
• 5760 MHz RX busted? 5 GHz worked ok w/ IF at 144.877. VERY weak RX, but W2SZ asked for SSB, so TX must be good. Oops, I was using USB instead of LSB like I should have been, but this doesn't explain the whole problem because I still couldn’t hear anywhere near loud enough for SSB.
• Good: if single-op, voice keyer into low band radio, cw keyer into microwave radio.
• Better for next time: switch box for CW/voice keyers.
• The new vehicle setup is good and pretty quick to set up. I have to climb on the top of the car to raise 6m unless I can find a way to prevent the mast from falling off the push-up pole. This happened a couple of times and threatened to cut the 6m feedline so I quit using the pole and started climbing up on top. Maybe an eye at the end of the pole to grab the bolt?
• Leveling is important, and there is little play in this new setup. I brought wood blocks, and this was pretty good although some of the pieces got split.

Score

	Band	QSOs	Mults	Score
A	50 MHz	20	13
B	144 MHz	23	12
C	222 MHz	16	9
D	432 MHz	20	10
9	902 MHz	8	4
E	1296 MHz	8	4
F	2304 MHz	0	0
G	3456 MHz	5	1
H	5760 MHz	4	1
Grids			7
Totals		104	61	12,139

Photos

See My June 2007 gallery

Comments: tmayo1 at rochester.rr.com