Tag Archives: Hacks and Hints

Guest Posts, Hacks and Hints, How To, News, Portable, QRP

W7UDT: “Velcro, ergo; ergonomics…”

February 3, 2024 Thomas Witherspoon 5 Comments

Many thanks to Rand (W7UDT) who shares the following guest post:

Velcro, ergo; ergonomics…

by Rand (W7UDT)

Velcro is amazing. It’s so handy. There are so many uses, and creative solutions it provides us. It’ll stick this to that, and that to this. As field operators, it should be part of our kits.

Below are some examples of how I’ve used Velcro.

Question: How do you keep a Android tablet, a 3aH 12v DC pack, a QRP Labs QDX LoBander, all its cords & patches, plus an EmTech ZM2 tuner all nice and tidy? Velcro!

Here’s the old QDX kit…

Here’s the new (velcro’d) QDX kit, complete with EmTech ZM2 tuner, neatly attached on the back of the Tablet, with the QDX and DC Pack. It all fits in a zippered pouch, along with the EFλ/2 antenna, perfect for the QDX.

The new QDX kit even sits at a nice viewing angle, with all of the cords hidden from view. Ergo, ergonomics.

Question: Where & how do you safely place your transceiver on a rugged SOTA/POTA activation, so it won’t get damaged?

How? Velcro! What makes more sense? A precarious rock, or the Molle patch on your pack?

This is my QCX Mini ~ Forty, Velcro’d with two horizontally applied 1” strips, with short cords channeled between them. It secures the perfectly mated 3aH 12v TalentCell battery, to which I applied another velcro strip to hold fast the Palm Pico paddle. Also note the ‘D-shaped’ earpiece/speaker, on the BNC jack. It’s hung and velcro’d just above the paddle.

Since this photo, I’ve added three 2×4” (cut to fit) patches to the front, back and bottom of the QCX Mini & TalentCell, which neatly bundles this little QRP contraption and transforms it into a QRP wonder! Now it all fits in my hand, or attaches firmly to my pack. Dit dit dit daw! Velcro!

A view from Zion NP, in the backcountry… late last Spring. Where my little transceiver tried to commit suicide.

Just sayin’… Velcro may be just the answer you’re looking for.

72 de W7UDT ID (dit dit)

Hacks and Hints, Morse Code, News

CW POTA: Steve’s simple clipboard mod for super-stable field keying

September 2, 2023 Thomas Witherspoon 8 Comments

Many thanks to Steve (W4JM) who writes:

Here is what I use for POTA activations to keep the key stable.

A clip board, carpet tape on the back to hold a carpet pad in place.

The Begali I put two slots in the clip board on either side of the traveler where then I could use a tie wrap to pull it secure to the board.

On the CW Morse I just used two screws with locking nuts to secure it to the board.

Your right hand holds the pencil while sending and your wrist weighs down on the clip board and I printed some POTA logs on excel to fit to the left of the key.

I hope this helps some of your readers with key movements. I now have my left hand to drink my coffee.

Steve W4JM

Clever and simple! I love it, Steve. Thanks for sharing!

Field Reports, Hacks and Hints, Kits, Portable, Skills

Are you prepared for Radio First Aid?

May 18, 2023 Vince VE6LK 10 Comments

by Vince (VE6LK)

(As is Vince’s usual, this article has a bunch of links – click on as many as you wish for the full experience)

Before I go too far into this topic, I wish to first offer hearty congratulations to Thomas Witherspoon for having one thousand posts on QRPer.com! Woo-Hoo!

Do you pack a Radio Field First Aid kit?

On my recent trip to VE3-land I had a few opportunities to practice set-up with my gear–away from the safe place that is my truck–to ensure I’d brought everything for my trip to Hamvention and activations along the way. I did forget an audio cable, however a visit to a local dollar store solved that problem inexpensively.

So, unless you pack two of everything -because two is one and one is none– you should expect that something’s going to fail or break along the way. What you never know is when or how that’s going to happen. I wouldn’t be writing this story if it had not happened to me before.

This time it was on a Sunday outing to VE-1512, the McLaughlin Bay Reserve Wildlife Area in Oshawa Ontario and far away from the comforts of my shop at home. Tucked away not far off of the 401 Highway, this nature reserve is a calm and peaceful oasis just minutes from urban life. I saw kayakers, hikers and trail runners during my visit.

Setting up my Comet HFJ-350M, I added the jumper cable to set the antenna for 20m and then I started to push the antenna down into the ground onto the stake. And that’s when my hand slipped and I broke the jumper cable connector, busted off in the hole.