Many thank to Bob (K4RLC) who shares the following guest post:
POTA with Blackbeard in Bath, North Carolina
de Bob (K4RLC)
While in Eastern North Carolina for the North Carolina QSO party, I decided to take a trip to visit historic Bath, North Carolina, the oldest city in our state and one of the original 13 colonies.
Bath, named after the English Earl of Bath, was founded in the late 1600s. It soon became the first port for the Carolina colony, then soon thereafter, the center for the colony’s government.
While I enjoy the wilder side of POTA, like state forests and game lands, and the mountains of SOTA, these historic sites often have a vibe that lets the mind wander back in history.
Additionally, two historic houses had recently been added to the POTA program: the Palmer-Marsh House (US-10388) and the Bonner House (US-10263). The Palmer-Marsh House was built in 1744 by Captain Michael Coutanch, the original governor who came from the Isle of Jersey. The house was sold around 1762 to Robert Palmer, then later to the Marsh family around 1805. It is deemed the oldest standing house in North Carolina. While this state historic/POTA site had been activated on SSB, it had not been activated on Morse code yet, and it was appealing to me to be the first CW activator.
Palmer-Marsh House
It was a quiet clear Saturday morning with beautiful Carolina blue skies and chilly temps when I arrived at the Palmer-Marsh House.
The house itself was closed and open only to guided tours, however there were large open grounds with pathways, benches, and a family cemetery for the Marsh family. I had my North Face RECON pack full of the Elecraft KX2 set up I’ve taken overseas, and ready for almost everything.
On the bench near the cemetery there were no overhanging ancient oak branches. I set up the KX2 and laid down the screen wire counterpoise. On top of that, I put a 17 foot Chameleon whip which is resonant on 20 M CW, without wire counterpoises, and running only 5 watts. The key was the CW Morse SP4 key.
Not knowing what would happen, I called CQ and was quickly answered by multiple stations wanting to work this new POTA site for the first time.
KX2 Setup in the Palmer House back yardPalmer Family Cemetery
This entire section of town is loaded with historic houses. If you walk a few blocks down Main Street to Bonner Point, turn left on Front Street, and turn left again on King Street toward the visitor center, you will cover over 300 years of history, in a few blocks.
While the visitor center in the old school building is a POTA site, I chose the other POTA site in Bath – the Bonner House, built around 1830. This is the second house on the site, as John Lawson, the founder of Bath, built a house there which no longer stands. The entire original town boundary is considered a National Register Historic District.
I walked down Main Street to Bonner Point and Bonner House. From the Bonner House, I was looking into the Pamlico River sound fed by Bath Creek, with its deep blue water.
It took a moment to process, but I soon decoded waveforms of a school of dolphins playing close to the shore. They were incredibly graceful and efficient breaking the water. My over analytic mind tried to discern a pattern – could they be responding to the sound of Morse code? Or, simply a highly evolved graceful sea creature at play.
Bonner HouseLooking at Pamlico Sound
In just a few hours, propagation seemed to have changed so it was difficult to make the requisite contacts still on 20 m CW with the same KX2 and antenna setup. My mind wandered back in history to the historical street sign to my right that said that Edward Teach had made his home here in 1713, while taking a brief break after the King’s pardon.
Most people know Teach by his more famous nickname of Blackbeard the Pirate. My mind time traveled, and I wondered what it would be like to have sailed with Blackbeard and his outrageous exploits in his time, or what he would’ve thought of the KX2 in our time!
Teach sign at Pamlico Sound
Not wanting to leave the site right away, I enjoyed the typical lunch my YL Alanna K4AAC makes for a me on sojourns away from home – a really good peanut butter and jelly sandwich with fruit punch Gatorade and a Reese cup. It’s great brain food for all the cognitive processing needed for Morse Code.
After a wonderful morning taking in Bath and being the first to activate the Palmer-Marsh house for POTA CW, I packed up my KX2 kit and headed off for nearby Goose Creek State Park (US-2731) where the other Dr. Bob , W4TTX and I were setting up as NC4QP, a bonus station for the North Carolina QSO party.
As there is still one more POTA site to activate, a return trip to historic Bath is on the list to take in its wonderful ambience, watch dolphins and daydream about Blackbeard playing radio.
Many thanks to Davey (KU9L) who shares a link to this news from John (WA3RN), owner, and designer of Penntek radios. John writes:
I have been considering for some time the future of the Penntek Instruments amateur radio products. This old man isn’t getting any younger and is in fact beginning to get tired. With the current production run of the TR-45L QRP transceiver getting close to being complete, I decided that this is a good time to finally retire at 77 years of age and maybe catch a breath. I have therefore chosen not to order parts for another run of these radios. As of late-March 2024, in-house parts remain for about 45 of the standard TR-45L units and about 70 of the “Skinny” version. The remaining TR-35 parts will allow for an additional 65 units, either kits or built radios. As I heard on a radio commercial, “Once they’re gone, they’re gone”. After these remaining radios are sold, I will remain available for repair and service of the Penntek transceivers. Thanks to all those who have purchased and enjoyed WA3RNC products over the years…
It’s no secret that I’m a big fan of Penntek transceivers, so this is sad news. But, I am also very happy for John to make this decision about retiring.
That said, if you’ve been on the fence about buying a TR-45L, TR-45L Skinny, or TR-35, I suggest you do so while John has new units!
These are brilliant radios with excellent audio characteristics, robust front-ends, and some of the best ergonomics you’ll find out there. Keying is smooth and provides proper QSK.
Plus, I think they’re one of the best-looking radios on the market (the TR-45L series especially).
Since all of the Penntek radios started out life as kits, they’re also easy to open and modify/repair.
I don’t have a crystal ball, but I’m willing to bet that once John’s inventory has been depleted, these radios will hold their own on the used market much like other beloved radio models (I’m thinking specifically of the KX1 and MTR-3B). It’ll be interesting to see where used pricing is in, say, 2026.
Again, if you’ve been on the fence, now is the time to make a decision, in my opinion. It looks like John will continue to provide support after his retirement, which is great news as well.
Here’s wishing John all the best in his retirement! Thanks for creating radios that bring so much QRP joy!
Those of you who purchased a fully-assembled and tested version of the QRP Labs QMX are, no doubt, patient people.
While you can order a kit version of the QMX and receive it fairly quickly (still, I believe), the assembled versions take more time as the QRP Labs crew is small and they build and test these by hand.
I ordered mine on June 5, 2023, and it shipped on December 27, 2023.
Truth is, I’ve had a QMX kit since Hans Summers announced it at Four Days In May (FDIM) prior to the 2023 Hamvention. I’ve been meaning to build it but, as many of you know, my life has been a tad crazy these past months and I never got around to it.
I purchased an assembled version of the QMX because I will be reviewing this one and wanted a factory-tested unit. I would have never guessed I’d receive the assembled unit before building it!
Familiar Form-Factor
The QMX looks so much like my QCX-Minis, I’ve gotten them mixed up in the shack! The menu system is very similar to the QCX, but there are some changes to accommodate band changes, modes, etc., as the QCX-Minin series is mono-band CW only.
The QMX, on the other hand, is a five-band, five-watt, multi-mode (CW, Digital, and likely SSB in the future) transceiver. It’s hard to believe you can purchase the QMX for as little as $90 (bare-bones) kit or $165 (fully-assembled and tested).
I initially thought I had an issue with my QMX because it kept shutting down the transmit function. Turns out, that was all user-error. I mentioned the issue on an episode of the Ham Radio Workbench podcast, and a couple of listeners wrote to tell me what I was doing wrong: I was feeding it too much voltage. The QMX doesn’t want more than 12V or so. If the radio detects even a temporary mismatch, it shuts down the TX to protect the finals, etc.
I was unintentionally triggering the QMX’s self-protection functionality!
Once I figured that out, I decided to simply pair my QMX with my Bioenno 3Ah 9V LiFePO4 battery. That would yield about 3 watts of output power and be a comfortable voltage for the QMX.
Vance Historic Birthplace (US-6856)
On Thursday, March 7, 2024, I finally took the QMX outdoors where it belongs! I had a one-hour window of time to complete a full activation. I decided to pair the QMX with my Chelegance MC-750 vertical.
My QMX is a “low-band” version that covers 80, 60, 40, 30, and 20 meters. I thought the top end of its band coverage would serve me best mid-day, so I planned my activation around 20 meters.
Setup was easy and simple. You can see the full set-up process in my activation video below.
Gear:
Note: All Amazon, CW Morse, ABR, Chelegance, eBay, and Radioddity links are affiliate links that support QRPer.com at no cost to you.
UPDATE: I reached out to the ARRL and they replied that even though this link is publicly available, it is actually intended only for those who purchase print copies of the Antenna Book.
Per their request, I have removed the links in this post. -Thomas
Many thanks to Alex (KR1ST), on Mastodon, who notes that the e-Book version of The ARRL Antenna Book 25th Edition is free on the ARRL website.
Simply go to this link, click on the format and add it to your cart. At checkout, the price will be free. Once processed by the ARRL, you’ll receive a download link.
I’m not sure if this is only open to ARRL members (I am one), or if you only need an account at ARRL.org.
The Antenna Book is a MASSIVE volume an amazing reference for any amateur radio operator. I highly recommend grabbing this e-Book version even if, like me, you have a print version! I’ve no clue how long this offer will last.
Yesterday, I posed the following question and asked for your input:
“Which aspect of a QRP radio holds more importance for you: its ergonomics (ease of use, comfort, display, size, etc.) or its performance (receiver test data, dynamic range, etc.)?”
Thank you to everyone who participated in my recent quickie poll, which has now closed. There were so many interesting points in the feedback. Here are the results from the 252 votes cast within a 20-hour window:
In essence, a slight majority preferred ergonomics, with 57.1% of respondents indicating it as more important, while 42.9% favored performance.
As I mentioned in my previous post, I’m well aware that this question paints with broad brush strokes. There’s not a give-and-take between the two: an investment in the user interface typically doesn’t mean performance is going to suffer. Indeed, I would say most of our modern transceivers sport decent ergonomics and decent performance.
If anything, the relationship between price and performance plays a proper tug of war. Even that’s nuanced, though!
I also received a number of comments and messages from readers who pointed out that my survey was flawed because it didn’t define what I meant by ergonomics and performance carefully enough. I agree that this wasn’t a carefully considered and properly worded poll.
That said, the way I wanted to present this was more like an informal raise of hands–something I often ask for during radio club presentations.
Selection of Comments
The comments from readers were excellent and what I would expect to hear from people who’d raised their hands in a club meeting.
Here are snippets from a few of them, (for all of the comments, click here):
From Scott (KK4Z):
A tricky question. I actually prefer a balance between ergonomics and performance. If you have a good performing radio with mediocre ergonomics, it might not be used to its full potential. A radio with good ergonomics and mediocre performance might be used to its full potential which may be above a good radio with poor ergonomics.
From Mark (NA4O):
My assumption is that performance would have to be good enough for the radio to be in the running. Likewise, ergonomics would have to be good enough for it to be considered usable.
From Nick (KC0MYW):
As I consider the radios that I have and have used and which ones I like better and why, I think that the performance of the radio can almost be considered an ergonomic characteristic with regard to how comfortable and easy the radio is to operate. While a radio with poor ergonomics is not a lot of fun to operate, a lower noise floor and smoother QSK can add as much to the enjoyment level as an easy to access RIT control.
From William (KR8L):
Difficult to say… Since my field operations are very casual affairs I suppose performance is a secondary consideration, although I don’t think I’d enjoy doing a POTA activation with my HW-8.
Ergonomics can be very important — for example, although my FT-817 performs well enough, the number of button pushes and knob twists required to change the keyer speed (or just about any other setting) can be very annoying.
The well thought out controls of my KX2 make it my favorite for field operating, but then it’s a good performer too.
From Brian (K3ES):
Tough question. I will say ergonomics, but what I really mean is easy access to the features I need. I don’t necessarily need contest grade performance, but I do rely on features like a tuner, cw speed adjustment, vfo, etc.
From Emily Clark:
I pick performance for a few reasons: I do contest QRP at times (most recently ARRL RTTY Roundup). I like the filtering, the clarity of the screen, the true FSK for RTTY, and the ability to put an IF spectrum out into N1MM+. I only have wire antennas, and with the AH-705 I virtually do entire contests on my 80m OCFD.
From Michael (N7CCD):
If taken to the extreme on both options, I think I would have to choose performance. I would rather operate a radio that can handle QRM (overloaded front end, etc.) with confusing menus, than the opposite. If not taken to the extreme, then I may choose ergonomics…
From Mark (W8EWH):
Ergonomics for me because I, like many, have many field portable radios and as I cycle between them I need to be able to use them without the need to consult a user manual or waste time fumbling around a menu system looking for a particular feature or setting.
From Shawn (WS0SWV):
Performance! As a retired design engineer, I learned that good design addresses the performance needs of the user(s) in an intuitive manner. If it is cumbersome or overly complex then users will tend to migrate away from it. Some communities have specific ergonomic requirements and for QRP field radios I would argue the primary ones are size, weight, current consumption there are others depending on mode of operation like keyer memories and narrow filters for CW but those are the big ones.
From Wlod (US7IGN):
Different people have different preferences and ideas about ergonomics and performance. It’s important to find a balance, or better yet, have different radios for different tasks.
From Andrew:
Ergonomics is nice, but without performance … it has no use, imagine a coffee mug; it may be hyperergonomical, but then it has a hole at the bottom…
From Dick (K7ULM):
Interesting question. It is interesting how the ergonomics of the KH1 over shadows the performance of the KX2 for some use cases. In some uses the KH1 is definitely the the choice due to its ergonomics. For other radios of its size it will be chosen because of performance and ergonomics. The specific use case is the controling factor IMHO. Performance slightly over ergonomics, generally for me, kind of?
My thoughts?
If there was one comment that reflected my thoughts most closely, it would be this one from John (AE5X):
There’s a lot of overlap between these two characteristics. Too little of one undoes the effectiveness of the other.
I find that most radios do have “good enough” performance (barring an outright flaw or deviation from legal requirements), therefore I pay attention to ergonomics more than to lab numbers of dynamic range and other electronic specs…if I need lab equipment to discern whether or not my radio’s performance is acceptable, it’s acceptable. I don’t like buried menus for commonly-used features.
John’s right. We’re lucky these days in that most of our modern QRP field radios have acceptable performance for our field activities like POTA, SOTA, IOTA, QRP Contests, and some even have the chops for the RF density of, say, Field Day.
If performance is acceptable, I tend to give more weight to ergonomics because it’s important to me that the radio be fun to use.
What makes this show of hands a hot mess, when we look at it under the microscope, is the fact that both ergonomics and performance are nuanced. Herein lies the challenge I find in writing radio reviews: I believe it’s important to explore those nuances so that the review can inform a potential buyer (who might not share my same point of view) in a meaningful way. Sometimes it’s difficult to do that within a print publication’s word count.
Closing thoughts…
As we often say, there is no “perfect” radio that will please everyone, so I think it’s important before we make a purchase decision that we’re realistic with ourselves and understand what we actually value.
Here’s one real-life example–outside the world of QRP transceivers–I’ll share from a friend who, sadly, is now Silent Key. Since I can’t ask for his permission, I won’t mention his name.
Back in 2010, he came to me for advice on buying an SDR (Software Defined Radio)–a PC-connected black box receiver.
Even though not that long ago, keep in mind this was still during the infancy of modern, high-performance, SDRs and most of the options were going to set you back $1,000 or much more. In other words, a substantial investment.
This friend was an avid SWL DXer and was considering an SDR that, at the time, had a slight performance edge over popular SDR models from manufacturers like Microtelecom, RF Space, and WinRadio. I’m not going to call out this SDR by name either, but I’m sure some of you can guess which one I’m referencing.
This particular SDR had fabulous receiver characteristics on paper, but it was well known that the proprietary PC application that controlled it was a bit of a nightmare to use.
My friend purchased it. I tried to help him set this SDR up and learn how to use some of the basic functions and features, but we both found it a struggle. The GUI (graphic user interface), one could tell, was likely designed by the hardware engineer, not someone with experience creating usable software applications, also, unlikely someone who was a DXer or SWL.
He ended up selling this SDR after having owned it for less than a month. He agreed that the performance was brilliant, but hated using the app that controlled it. In the end, he purchased the venerable Microtelecom Perseus and absolutely loved it.
Rob’s advice
This topic of our personal preferences is such a deep one; I think I might put together a club presentation, exploring some of the nuances.
Speaking of presentations, if you’ve never seen Rob Sherwood’s excellent presentation exploring transceiver performance, I highly recommend you check this one out. Rob will be the first to tell you that modern transceivers tend to perform so well that the operator should give weight to ergonomics and usability.
I’m in the midst of writing several radio reviews, and this process always brings up a few inherent dichotomies.
For example—and the point of this quickie poll—some operators seek, first and foremost, a radio with brilliant performance specs. This is especially the case when we’re talking about contest-grade, pricey transceivers. Dynamic range, sensitivity, filtering, and blocking? Yeah, those are looked at very carefully by contesters and DXers.
On the other hand, for some, a radio’s performance is less important than how enjoyable the radio is to actually operate. Are the ergonomics well thought through so that common tasks are easy to perform? Is the display easy to read? Is the encoder weighted correctly? Is the radio compact but useable, etc.?
Even though field radios are typically not thought of as “contest-grade,” many of them have superb contest chops and receivers that can handle RF-dense environments with ease (I’m thinking about my KX3 with roofing filter here).
However, some radios might lack precision filtering and a contest-grade receiver architecture but are designed with field use in mind interface-wise. The Elecraft KX1 and Penntek TR-45L come to mind, although there are many more. Both have great receivers, actually, but the designers obviously placed an emphasis on user a user interface that is field-friendly. I find both such a pleasure to use.
What’s your opinion?
I recognize fully that I’m painting with broad brush strokes here—there are so many other variables in evaluating a radio. I’m sure most of us want a good balance of both performance and ergonomics.
But if pressed for an answer, where do you fall? What do you give higher priority: performance or ergonomics?
If you’d like to cast your vote, please consider participating in the poll below:
Sunday, March 10th, my son had another Dungeons & Dragons session. I figured why not play QRP radio again on the north end of Skidaway Island at the University of Georgia Skidaway Institute of Oceanography. The weather appeared more conducive for radio than my previous visit. My friend Glenn W4YES accompanied me.
Skidaway Island’s Location in Savannah, GA area from Google MapsUGA Institute of Oceanography at north end of island as per Google Maps
I chose as my location the bluff behind the aquarium which contains picnic tables and looks out over the intracoastal waterway. There was a stiff breeze but what a pretty place to play radio!
My QTH on the bluff
The Straight Key Century Club (SKCC) was holding the Weekend Sprintathon (WES), a monthly event for members. As I mentioned in my previous Skidaway article, SKCC is an organization with 28,000 plus members that use mechanical keys (straight, cootie, and bug) for their QSOs. Participating in their sprints is a simple way (like POTA) for new ops to gain experience and build confidence.
I figured I’d accomplish several things at once today: get more QRP experience with something other than POTA, garner a few more QSOs on my march toward Senator for SKCC, and use the AX1.
In researching my upcoming summer POTA trip, I read a post by Bob Condor (K4RLC) on the W4SOTA groups.io about modifications to the AX1. I plan to attempt my first SOTA activations during the trip and want light, nimble antenna options.
Admittedly, the AX1 and I haven’t been on the best terms. Bob modified his by adding three 14’ radials instead of the counterpoises with which the antenna comes. He used this configuration during a trip to Greece and had good results. I figured, why not give it a try? It was easy to make the radials with a lug connector on each end to add them to the AX1 mount on my Joby Gorillapod (the only tripod I currently have).
While Glenn took a leisurely walk on the nature trail at the bluff, I began on 20 meters.
I engaged the ATU which dropped the SWR from 2.2 down to 1. There were a lot of stations on 20 meters but I finally found a place to settle. After 8 minutes calling CQ, Randy K8ZAA answered me and gave me a 579 in MI, a good signal report for the AX1.
Given the paucity of stations answering my CQ, I decided to move to 17 meters but realized the WARC bands are not allowed in the SKCC WES so I opted for 15 meters instead. After a few minutes calling CQ, Bob AF5Z answered me. He gave me a 449 in Texas.
It became quiet again after that QSO so I jumped to 40 meters, had no callers, and moved back to 20 meters. After 10 minutes calling CQ, Jerry WA4JK answered me and gave me a 559 in Alabama. By this point, the wind had increased and Glenn and I had enough of being buffeted by what felt like gale-force winds. However, I still had an hour and a half before my son’s Dungeons & Dragons session ended so this POTA Babe wasn’t ready to call it quits. Continue reading The POTA Babe and AX1 Make Up→
Do you remember the last time you arrived at a new vantage point on a hiking trail and all of a sudden you were stunned by a view that you didn’t expect at all?
“No kidding.” I said when I approached the summit of Mount Caroline Livermoore on Angel Island and “bang” there it was: San Francisco Bay showing itself from its best side all around and in beautiful sunlight. Wow what a moment to remember.
Is this CGI?
If you’re passing through San Francisco and you’re looking for the perfect ham radio-infused hiking day trip and a very hard-to-beat city panorama, Angel Island is your ticket to a heavenly experience. If you’re the fast type you could get an activation done in half a day even including the summit. My two cents though: Bring a little time and let it soak all the way in. It’s worth it and not just because you can log three references in one go:
Angel Island State Park is covered by the very large Golden Gate National Recreation Area. If you are eager to read about the history of Angel Island you can do so here or here (former immigration station).
A few hours earlier:
KX2 radio kit, sandwich, granola bars, water. The contents of my backpack on November 8th 2023. This was going to be a good day. I just knew it when I approached the dock at San Francisco Ferry Terminal (Gate B).
See ‘ya city life
I had a couple of minutes left so I enjoyed walking through the ferry building with all its nice shops, bakeries and cafes. Many options for advanced coffee-heads to get their fix before going aboard.
Yes please
The ferry takes you across the bay in just about 30 minutes, past Alcatraz Island and without noticing you’ll have left big city life behind and swapped it for a remarkable landscape. You can check out their service times here and make sure to keep an eye on the last departure from the island. Otherwise you’ll have to stay for the night. Also the only restaurant on the island was closed (for renovation?) and I am not sure what their plans are to open again.
Alcatraz
From the arrival dock at Ayala Cove I decided to start the hike towards the north-east side of the island via the North Ridge Trail. It takes the better part of an hour to get to the summit if you walk at a constant pace but of course depending on your level of fitness and also how much time you take to enjoy the views. The trails are in very good shape and there is nothing keeping you from finding your personal and comfortable rhythm up the mountain.
Yes I admit it – I am getting excited before an activation. Most likely it’s because I am looking forward to having fun on the airwaves but then it’s also about not knowing what to expect at the operating site and how to tackle potential challenges. So I usually try to get there fast.
At the summit:
I was still catching my breath from the not-so-difficult ascent and then I saw a demounted truss mast lying on the ground. Should I try to somehow get this up pointing towards the sky and use it as an antenna support? Tempting, but given the fact that I was alone and lacking proper guying material it seemed a bit mad. This brings me to an important fact: There are pretty much no usable trees inside the activation zone when it comes to hoisting a wire. So I do recommend bringing some form of a mast. A luxury I didn’t have due to luggage restrictions on my flight to the U.S.. So the trusty Elecraft AX1 needed to make do.
Should I or should I not?
There is however a very nice picnic area just below the summit and well inside the AZ. It doesn’t have a roof and it might get a bit windy but it sports a fabulous view and plenty of options to attach masts. Luckily, I was completely alone for the most part of the activation so I didn’t need to worry as much about someone tripping over the counterpoise wire. I used a second round of 50+ sunscreen on my central-European mozzarella body and got the antenna tuned up.
Downtown San Francisco and Alcatraz Island
A few seconds into calling CQ on 20m K6EL came in 599+ from a summit nearby and I was super happy to log him given the fact that we had completed an activation together only one day before. He was followed by many US operators almost all the way over to the east coast and then, of course, Chris (F4WBN) from France. Wait – which antenna was I using again in W6?
Dream operating location
I have “whipped out” this compromised whip so many times to complete an activation that it has become one of my favorite antennas in the arsenal. What fun to reach France from the West Coast with it.
40 QSOs on 20&17m later (yes including some S2S SSB via the KX2’s internal mic and even a contact on 15m thanks to the capable tuner) I had to go QRT because the sun was strong and I wanted to make sure I had a relaxed hike back down.
Testing the transmit and receive capabilities of a QRP dummy load
Because you get a couple of loop trail options you will also get a completely new perspective of the island and landscape while walking back to the dock which is nice. It is worth mentioning that poison oak is pretty common there and branches of these plants hang down across the paths. I actually touched a leaf accidentally with my arm but was lucky not to get a full load of the poison. The itching was already gone in about an hour.
At the dock I had a nice chat with some of the rangers and then hopped on the ferry back to SF. Thanks to all chasers and hunters for making this a truly special day.
You might recall a recent POTA activation where Jonathan (KM4CFT) joined me at the Vance Birthplace K-6856 US-6856–?
Jonathan used my Penntek TR-45L for his portion of the activation, and I was pleased he got to spend some time with this magnificent CW machine. You might also recall that it still had a buzz in the speaker audio–something inside the radio was vibrating.
KM4CFT working the TR-45L in late December 2023.
I tried to track down the buzz as Jonathan operated by tightening some of the screws holding on the speaker grill (yeah, I’m sure that was annoying, and he’ll think again before activating with me in the same space–!). I knew, though, it was something inside the chassis that was vibrating with audio.
As I also mentioned, my TR-45L was a prototype unit (I helped Beta test it)–it had a couple of mods and wasn’t exactly representative of the upgraded production model.
John (WA3RNC) at Penntek reached out to me after I published my recent field report and video; he offered to upgrade my TR-45L to the production chassis which would sort out the buzz. I was most grateful, of course!
He then asked if I would be interested in checking out the TR-45L “Skinny,” which is essentially a TR-45L in a much skinnier chassis. The Skinny model lacks the ATU and battery options but is lighter weight and more portable. I mentioned to John that I’d like to purchase one, actually. Since John was interested in sponsoring QRPer, we ended up working out a barter (at full market price) for ad space. I love this arrangement, actually, because I was going to approach him about sponsorship at some point anyway.
The Skinny!
Now keep in mind that the TR-45L is one of my favorite CW radios. I love the audio, the receiver characteristics, and the “Apollo era” aesthetic. I think it’s one of the best-looking and best-sounding radios on the market.
The Skinny is just like the bigger TR-45L, just roughly half the depth. I did have concerns that the audio wouldn’t be as good since the acoustic chamber would be smaller, but turns out, I had nothing to fear. The Skinny’s audio is on par with its bulkier sibling.
There was no learning curve with the Skinny because 1.) it’s identical in operation to my TR-45L and 2.) Penntek radios have super simple interfaces, and almost every function has a top-level direct control.
Zebulon Vance Birthplace (US-6856)
On Tuesday, February 27, 2024–the day after receiving the TR-45L Skinny–I packed it up and took it to the Vance Birthplace for its inaugural POTA activation!
That day, I had about 90 minutes to enjoy an activation, and I was looking forward to spending time with the new Skinny.
Vance was a great choice that day because the weather was moody; it was gusty, rainy, and I knew their picnic shelter would provide excellent cover.
The Skinny (in its padded bag), the MC-750 and my ABR cable assembly.
The TR-45L Skinny, unlike my original TR-45L, has no internal Z-Match ATU, nor does it have an internal battery. In fact, there’s no room for either in the Skinny, so it’s not even an option.
I paired the Skinny with my Chelegance MC-750, which is a resonant antenna when deployed correctly, so there was no need for a matching device. I supplied power via one of my 3Ah Bioenno LiFePO4 batteries.
Setup was simple and easy!
Gear:
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Many thanks to Brian (K3ES) who shares the following field report:
Molly is on the trail of a POTA activation. Temperatures are in the 40s, but there is still snow on the ground.
A Hike and a 2-fer
by Brian (K3ES)
When you live in northwestern Pennsylvania, and a February day shows up with the sun shining, moderate temperatures, and nothing pressing on the calendar, it is time to go and enjoy the outdoors.
One of the best ways to do that is to take a hike with your dog. Hopefully your dog is like Molly, who doesn’t mind taking a break mid-hike for a Parks on the Air (POTA) activation. So on Wednesday, February 21 we scheduled an activation and jumped in the truck for a drive to the trail head. The hike to and from the activation site would be a nice change from the short walks we had been taking to the pond behind our house in the colder weather, and from activating while sitting in the truck. And, to better share the joy with our POTA hunters, we would make this activation a 2-fer, giving them credit for both the North Country Trail National Scenic Trail (K-4239) and Pennsylvania State Game Land 024 (K-8725).
Molly is ready to go. She is not at all amused by waiting for me to take pictures.
Since I had hiked the planned route before, both solo, with friends, and with Molly, I expected that the route would be familiar. Some of it was, and some of it was brand new to us. You see, the North Country Trail volunteers had been busy since we last hiked as far up the trail as we planned to go. They had cleared and marked an entirely new route for one section of the trail, bypassing an old favorite activation site! So, we got to do some exploring, and we found a new favorite activation site. Bonus!
Finding a New 2-fer Site
One of the things that I enjoy about POTA is planning my activation.
Since days long ago as a Boy Scout, I have enjoyed outdoor navigation. Map and compass always fascinated me. Things have gotten much easier with Global Positioning System (GPS), online maps, and online satellite imagery. Still, I do most of my activation planning while sitting comfortably at home with a tablet or a computer. For this trip, finding the newly marked trail (that had not yet been transferred to the online map) presented a bit of a challenge. While I could follow the marked trail easily, I needed to be sure that I had entered Game Land property so that the 2-fer activation would be valid.
Thankfully, I had access to an app on my smart phone to help me solve this problem as we walked along the trail through the woods. The On X Hunt app combines GPS, topographic maps, satellite imagery, and tax office databases to identify land ownership (even when the owner happens to be the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania). Full functionality of this app is not free, but as the owner of a parcel of land, it is something I had elected to pay for. Once it became clear that the newly marked trail would not quickly rejoin the prior route, I set up the app to record our track on the map. After confirming that Molly and I had definitely crossed PA Game Land property line (there were no marking signs along the new trail), we went just a bit further, then found a promising spot to set up for the activation.
With a change to the K-4239 North Country Scenic Trail route, we found a new 2-fer site within K-8725, along the partially snow-covered Game Land road that carries this section of the Trail.
Setting Up to Activate
I chose to locate our station in the woods beside a Game Land road that provided the path for the North Country Trail in that particular area. We set up on the inside of a bend flanked by trees with long overhanging branches. I placed my chair in the woods on the inside of the bend, and tossed a throw line over a branch on the outside of the bend, then deployed my Packtenna EFRW with 71 ft wire as an inverted V across the road. I used the throw line to hoist the middle of the radiating wire up about 30 ft, and secured both the feedpoint and the far end of the antenna to nearby trees, about 6 ft off the ground.
Even though I did not expect traffic on this road (shaded areas were still snow covered, and the snow showed tracks only from woodland creatures), I try to deploy my wire antennas high enough that they are not a hazard to others who may travel through.
Temperatures were rising, but with the high only expected to hit 50F, I brought a blanket to give Molly some additional insulation (though she is a rough, tough POTA dog, as a Boston Terrier, her coat is not particularly thick). I laid out the blanket beside my operating position, so that it could provide both top cover and insulation from the ground.
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As there is still one more POTA site to activate, a return trip to historic Bath is on the list to take in its wonderful ambience, watch dolphins and daydream about Blackbeard playing radio.
