Category Archives: QRP

News, Portable, QRP, Videos

Hike and Talk: Using best practices

9 Comments

Last month, I recorded another “Hike and Talk” session before a POTA activation at K-4861. If you’re not familiar with my “Hike and Talk” series, these are long-format, unedited videos where I hike (camera in hand) and cover a topic that’s not easy to encompass in an email reply or even blog post.

This particular topic was even difficult for me to title–!

I receive a lot of questions and feedback from readers about my field deployments and choice of antennas, feedline, power output levels, etc. Most of the time, these are readers who are genuinely curious why I’m not using “best practices” in my POTA/SOTA activations; deploying the highest efficiency antennas, using more counterpoises, running 100 watts, etc. etc.

Truth is? It’s all about context!

My field radio station, for example, isn’t set up to the same standard as my home or QTH station…for good reason, actually! The “best practices” I use at my home station aren’t always the same as the ones I use during a POTA activation.

I hope you enjoy this video and would welcome your constructive comments.

Video

Click here to view on YouTube.

Antennas, Field Reports, Morse Code, Portable, POTA, QRP

Lakefront QRP and Bags Galore!

7 Comments

by Vince (VE6LK)

(As is my usual, this article is full of hyperlinks – click on as many as you wish)

The days leading up to my first Hamvention trip were a bit scattered to say the least. While I was pretty sure I remembered everything and even documented most of my gear on Twitter, I would only discover that the bag I intended to carry my gear around in was too small once I arrived in VE3-land. The very next morning I was shopping in several big box stores trying to find the perfect bag only, hours later, to discover an Army Surplus Store across the street from my activation and after the activation concluded.

Holey Moley lookit all the molle and backpacks!
Thomas’ reaction upon seeing this photo was predictable 😉

Anyways, the short summary on the shopping trip was that I figured out a way to get me through the trip without spending a fortune.

The day’s goals were to make a simple activation at a park near the family where we were visiting east of Toronto. Before travelling I scoped out POTA entities that were nearby and had not yet received a CW Activation thus putting me closer to my CW goal for the year.

I landed up at Lakefront West Park VE-1480 in Oshawa Ontario.  A recreational trail winds along the waterfront of Lake Ontario about 100m away, and eight baseball diamonds are the central feature here. Given the lack of trees at the park, and that I do not have a small mast on this trip for my EFHW -although I may remedy that at Hamvention- I chose to deploy my Comet HFJ-350M with some simple ground radials. With the solar reports showing SFI 149, SSN 134, A 19 and K 2, I chose 20m as the band for the day. 5W on my KX3 into a ground mounted vertical with one each 66′ and 33′ radial wires would have to be enough.

DX Toolbox on iOS – click for App Store link

I have the full Comet HFJ-350M kit including the bag to carry all the pieces in. I also have a ground stake from eBay that comes with a 90 degree SO-239 adapter allowing me to attach feedline on the side and the antenna on the top. Not including the ground radials, the whole kit rolls up reasonably small, about 3″ in diameter and 12″ long. Continue reading Lakefront QRP and Bags Galore! →

Field Reports, Morse Code, News, Portable, POTA, QRP

Postcard Field Report: Pairing the Elecraft KX2 and Packtenna 9:1 Random Wire at Holmes Educational State Forest

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Well, I’m off to Hamvention in two days and trying to prepare for the trip. There’s so much to do!

If you are attending Hamvention this year, I’d love to meet you. Stop by the Ham Radio Workbench/Halibut Electronics table (#3011) and introduce yourself.

Since my travels this week are imposing on my field report time, I’m going to share another, shorter, Postcard Field Report. I hope you enjoy it:

Holmes Educational State Forest (K-4856)

On Friday, April 21, 2023, I had a short window of time to fit in an activation while my daughter was attending her high school robotics class.

Her robotics class lasts nearly two hours, but it’s 30 minutes away from all parks and summits, so traveling to/from a site takes about one hour.

I didn’t care because I had a particular park in mind: Holmes Educational State Forest (K-4856).

It had been one year almost to the day since I last activated Holmes.

I arrived on site around 13:30 local, and there were only a few other people floating about.

I walked up the main loop path in search of a good picnic table that was out of the way and with ample trees about.

In a pinch, any of the picnic table sites would have sufficed, but since I practically had the whole park to myself, I could afford to be picky!

The sign above reminds me that Educational State Forests in North Carolina have hours that vary by season and truly cater to school groups, thus are primarily open during the school day. Always check those hours before embarking on a journey to this type of park.

One great thing about our Educational State Forests is that they almost always have a nice covered picnic shelter for school groups. If they’re not occupied, they’re perfect for POTA activators who’d like to escape heavy rains. You can see the one at Holmes off in the distance in this photo:

I ended up choosing the same picnic table I used last time–it had more room around it to set up an antenna without crossing the path.

I didn’t have a lot of time to set up and operate, so I chose to use one of my speedier deployment combos: the Elecraft KX2 and PackTenna 9:1 Random Wire. Continue reading Postcard Field Report: Pairing the Elecraft KX2 and Packtenna 9:1 Random Wire at Holmes Educational State Forest →

News, QRP, QRP Radios, Surveys

Survey 2: If you could only own one HF QRP radio, which one would it be?

45 Comments

I’m asked a variation of this question several times a month (no kidding!):

“Thomas, if you could only own one QRP radio, which one would you choose?”

If you’ve asked me this question, you’ll know I have a pretty canned response because I feel it’s a very subjective question–one that’s all about one’s own personal preferences–thus the radio I choose may not be the radio you would choose. Since others’ might use this choice to make a purchase decision, I’m uncomfortable providing a simple answer.

I need to better understand the operator before making a suggestion.

Survey #2

The last survey we conducted was so much fun and quite insightful! I’ve a number of surveys in store for the next few weeks. As with the previous, Survey #2 also focuses on HF QRP transceivers.

In this survey, I’d like to explore the topic above. In fact, another future survey will as well, but the case use will be more specific, so please read this survey question carefully:

Imagine, for a moment, that money is no object and that you could own any QRP transceiver in the world. Which one would you choose for all of your various radio activities?

In other words, you can own any QRP radio in the world, but you must use it for all of your radio activities (POTA, SOTA, QTH, Field Day, travel, etc.). Some of you may need a radio that can do all of these things. Some of you may only use it for Field Day, or travel.

In addition, some of you may only use one mode, while others use SSB, AM, CW, and various digital modes!

It’s all about you and how/where/when you might operate!

Please use the form below to make your selection. It’s okay to add a radio that isn’t listed in the “Other” selection, but make sure it’s a QRP (20 watts or less) transceiver, else the entry will be  removed because this particular survey is all about QRP radios.

The survey has no place for comments, but please let us know why you chose what you chose in the comments section of this post!

I will plan to share these results later this week. Thank you!

Hacks and Hints, News, QRP, QRP Radios, QRPer Notes

QRPer Notes: Phil’s Field Antenna Survey Results, Gripping the Palm Pico, and 70’s/80’s Vintage QRP Radios

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Because I receive so many tips from readers here on QRPer, I wanted way to share them in a concise newsletter format.  To that end, welcome to QRPer Notes, a collection of links to interesting stories and tips making waves in the world of radio!

Field Antenna Survey

Many thanks to Phil (KA4KOE) who shares the results from an informal survey he conducted on the POTA Facebook group. Phil writes:

Tom

I’ve let the survey run for about 3 days on the POTA Facebook group. Sample size was 658 votes. I opted to do a “type” survey and not by manufacturer.

Results:

    1. End Fed Half-wave: 25%.
    2. Shortened vertical with loading coil: 20%.
    3. Full-size vertical antenna / Hamstick style vertical with helical coil:12% each.
    4. Full-size dipole/doublet, etc.: 10%.
    5. End Fed Random Wire: 9%.
    6. Screwdriver motorized coil antenna: 3%
    7. Something tossed in tree and just hoped it would work: 2%

Total: 93%.

Remaining obscure types cut-off below 2% accounted for 7%.

Again, like the poll I conducted previously on radio types, not surprised by the No. 1 spot.

What DID surprise me was #7: I put that selection in the poll types as a joke but 2% of hams throw a wire up in a tree or other support with no forethought and hope it works.

The Palm Pico: Getting a grip!

Many thanks to Terry (N7TB) who shares the following tip:

Hi Thomas,

I was looking at your post re: the Pico Paddle.

I have both the single and double Pico paddle and the KX3 mount. After watching you hand hold your paddles, I came up with a way to make small paddles easier to hold. I have attached a photo. It is a small piece of 3/8 ID pipe insulation to make holding the Pico paddle easier.

Have a great trip to Hamvention.

73,

Terry
N7TB

QRP Radios from the 70s and 80s

Many thanks to Ron (W6AZ) who shares the following video from Mikrowave1 on YouTube:

You asked for it! Here is the birth of QRP and a whack at revealing the top 10 QRP Homebrew Projects and Commercial Radios that started it all. What is all the fuss about low power?

Field Reports, Morse Code, News, Portable, POTA, QRP, Videos

Postcard Field Report: Pairing my new-to-me Palm Pico with the TX-500 at K-6856!

8 Comments

I finally snagged one.

In the world of lightweight, super-compact QRP radio kits, there is one key that is, essentially, a legend: the venerable Palm Pico.

The Palm Pico has a stellar reputation because it’s super lightweight, can retract into its housing to protect it in transport, and can be directly attached to various radios with a specific mounting assembly or via Velcro or magnets.

The Palm Pico has been out of production for some time now and, they’re so highly desired, they often fetch the original purchase price or even higher on the used market. Truth is, so few Pico owners are willing to sell that very few of these keys ever enter the used market.

I was very lucky, indeed, when a long-time Patreon supporter reached out and offered to sell me her Palm Pico and Palm Mini paddles along with a KX2 mounting assembly. She had noticed how my eyes lit up when Josh (KI6NAZ) showed me his Palm Pico paddle on an HRCC Livestream in February.

The price she offered was amazingly low. She told me that she favored some of the other keys in her collection and wanted to give me the opportunity to own them. They were like-new with all original boxes and accessories.

How could I resist? I’m so grateful.

I really look forward to using the Palm Pico and Palm Mini this year. I’m especially eager to hook up the Palm Pico directly to the KX2 with its custom mounting bracket.

I decided to take my Palm Pico on a maiden POTA activation at the Vance Birthplace on April 18, 2023.

Postcard Field Report

I’ve got a load of videos in the pipeline and to keep from falling behind publishing them, you’re going to see more of my slightly shorter “Postcard Field Reports” for the next couple of weeks during my travels.

These postcard reports contain all of the core information, just less wordy.  (In theory!)

Zebulon Vance Historic Birthplace (K-6856)

I arrived at the Vance Birthplace and checked in quickly with the park staff. There were no picnic shelter reservations that day but there was a family with children eating a picnic lunch when I arrived. Continue reading Postcard Field Report: Pairing my new-to-me Palm Pico with the TX-500 at K-6856! →

News, QRP, QRP Radios, Surveys

Survey #1 Results: What QRP transceiver do you turn to the most in the field?

30 Comments

This past weekend, I posted the first of several surveys on QRPer.com asking:

“What QRP radio do you tend to use the most in the field?“

The responses started flowing in immediately and within the first day we had already accumulated over 400 votes.

I turned off the survey this morning at 5:00 EDT with a total of 696 responses.

Survey Results

Here’s a pie chart showing the top 26 results in the survey. To see detail, you will need to click on the image below (or click this link) to enlarge it in a new window:

The top choice was the Elecraft KX2 which received 131 votes. I’ll admit, this was my top choice, too.

The KX2 is the most compact, full-featured radio currently on the market. I know of no other radio that weighs less and is smaller in size that also sports options for an internal battery and internal ATU. It’s also one of only about five radio models on the market that has a built-in microphone.

The KX2 is one of the pricier QRP transceivers on the market, so in that sense, it did surprise me that it was number 1.

The Yaesu FT-817 and FT-818 series transceivers took second place with 105 votes.

Since this radio enjoyed one of the longest production runs in the history of amateur radio–and the price floated around $650 US new–we shouldn’t be surprised. It has so many good things going for it; click here if you want a deep dive into why I think the 817/818 is a fantastic field radio.

The Icom IC-705 took third place with 101 votes.

The IC-705 is an incredibly versatile radio as well and it packs some serious performance! It’s also one of the priciest QRP radio on the market at around $1,400 US. Click here to read my full review of the IC-705.

These are only the top three radios–check out the full results below to see how the top ten ranked among a total of 48 entrants.

Full Results…

If you would like to see the actual number of votes for each of the 48 radios in this survey, click the link below to load the rest of the page:
Continue reading Survey #1 Results: What QRP transceiver do you turn to the most in the field? →

Field Reports, Guest Posts, News, Portable, POTA, QRP, QRP Radios, SOTA

A Triple activation and why I switched from a KX3 to Icom’s IC-705

25 Comments

by Thomas (DM1TBE)

Intro

The last weekend was pretty nice and just like an invitation to operate outdoors. As I wrote in one of my previous posts, I often activate summits on the Swabian Alp, a high plateau, which falls with steep cliff-like edges and many SOTA summits to the northwest. If you approach it from the foothills where I live, the sharp edge is clearly visible.

On the way to the ascent, you came along old, picturesque villages. If you look closely, you can see the “Maibaum”.

The tradition of erecting a “Maibaum” (Maypole) is a long-standing custom in Germany, particularly in the southern regions. The Maibaum is a tall wooden pole that is decorated with colorful ribbons, wreaths, and symbols of the local community. It is usually erected on May Day or the night before and is a symbol of spring, fertility, and community spirit. In some regions, it is also accompanied by folk dances, music, and festivities.

It was my third activation of the summit Römerstein, and every time I used another transceiver.

My transceiver history

When I started with ham radio, I used an old Icom IC-706.

The lack of modern features such as DSP and filters, and the current consumption made it not the first choice for portable operators. I soon switched to an Icom IC-7300 at home and got used to a waterfall and spectrum display.  After two activations with the 706 I bought a Xiegu G90.

During the time of my first activation of the Römerstein, I operated only in SSB. So, I was happy with the G90. The display was small, but way better than my old 706. I was satisfied and used the G90 until I started with CW. In CW, I prefer using headphones until today. The sound of the G90 was uncomfortable for me. The lowest volume was too loud, a lot of loud cracks annoyed me, and I was never happy with the filters. Continue reading A Triple activation and why I switched from a KX3 to Icom’s IC-705 →

Field Reports, Morse Code, News, Portable, POTA, QRP, Vintage

Postcard Field Report: Pairing the Elecraft KX3 and Tufteln Random Wire

3 Comments

Believe it or not, the 2023 Hamvention and Four Days In May is only ten days away at time of posting.

Where in the world did the time go–?

If you’re going to Hamvention, I hope to meet you there. When I’m not floating around, I’ll be hanging out at the Ham Radio Workbench/Halibut Electronics table: 3011.

I’m super excited about attending, but I’ve so much to prepare in advance. Every day between now and then is planned out to the max with family activities and projects.

That, and being an introvert (this might surprise some of you), I have to mentally prepare myself for hanging out with 30+ thousand other human beings. I’ll need ten days for that alone. If I appear tired at Hamvention or FDIM, you’ll know why! Ha ha!

Postcard Field Report

I’ve got a load of videos in the pipeline and to keep from falling behind publishing them, you’re going to see more of my slightly shorter “Postcard Field Reports” for the next couple of weeks during my travels.

These postcard reports contain all of the core information, just less wordy.  (In theory!)

Tuttle Educational State Forest (K-4861)

On Wednesday, April 5, 2023, I had a bit of time in the early afternoon to do a POTA activation. Tuttle Educational State Forest was low-hanging fruit as my errands that day took me within a stone’s throw of the park.

I arrived a bit before noon and took some time to record a Hike and Talk video (which will be published in the next couple of weeks).

After the hike, I set up my Elecraft KX3 and paired it with my Tufteln End-Fed Random Wire antenna. Continue reading Postcard Field Report: Pairing the Elecraft KX3 and Tufteln Random Wire →

Field Reports, Morse Code, News, Portable, POTA, QRP

Picnic Blanket POTA on a beautiful spring day at South Mountains State Park

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Monday, April 10, 2023, was a spectacular day weather-wise. Spring was out in all its glory making it impossible to stay indoors.

That day, I was driving back to the QTH and made a little detour to the Clear Creek Access of South Mountains State Park.

According to my calculations, I had about one hour to play radio. I did have a firm deadline to hop off the air because I needed to take my daughter to a tennis lesson that afternoon. Couldn’t be late to that!

South Mountains State Park (K-2753)

As I pulled into the Clear Creek Access parking area, I noticed a family of five grabbing picnic supplies from their car.

For the first time ever, there was going to be competition for the one single picnic table at the Clear Creek access!

Actually, there would be no competition at all because there was no way in the world I’d ever take over the picnic table when a family could use it. 🙂

They had a much better reason to use a picnic table than me. Frankly, I was super pleased to see someone else besides a POTA activator using that table. I get a real thrill out of seeing families enjoying our public lands.

Plus, I don’t need a table to play POTA so it was a brilliant excuse to pull the picnic blanket out of the car and set up under a beautiful antenna support…I mean, tree.

For this activation, I decided to use my Penntek TR-45L and, for an antenna, two 28 foot lengths of wire.

Continue reading Picnic Blanket POTA on a beautiful spring day at South Mountains State Park →