Tag Archives: HRWBOTA

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

Ham Radio Workbenches On The Air Field Report: Part 2

April 11, 2025 Thomas Witherspoon 1 Comment

As promised, here’s Part 2 of my extended HRWBOTA activation report from March 16, 2025!

As I mentioned in Part 1 of this activation, I’d planned to operate for the full four-hour window of the March 16th Ham Radio Workbenches On The Air (HRWBOTA) event—a rare luxury for me. Most of my field activations typically last anywhere from 30 to maybe 90 minutes at most. So, sitting in one spot and operating for four full hours definitely stretched me a bit—but in a good way!

After two hours of non-stop CW with the Elecraft KX3, I took a brief break, swapped radios, and continued the activation with my Penntek TR-45L.

This portable rig is one of my favorite minimalist CW transceivers, and I thought it was a perfect fit for the second half of the HRWBOTA event. I used it to work 20, 30, and 40 meters in CW (in that order).

One nice bonus of using the TR-45L is that mine has a built-in Z-match ATU, which allowed me to easily find a match on 30 meters, even though the Spooltenna EFHW isn’t resonant on that band. The antenna was the same excellent 40-meter EFHW prototype from Rob (KO4HUI) that I featured in Part 1.

The only other minor change during this segment of the activation was behind the camera. Since I was filming in real-time for four straight hours, I had to pause at one point to connect my action camera to a portable battery pack which then limited my ability to use wireless microphones with wind screens. The gusty wind will be more noticeable in this portion of the activation video as a result—but, hey, it’s all part of the field experience!

Now, let’s dive into Part 2 of the gear and activation details…

Gear

Note: All Amazon, CW Morse, ABR, Chelegance, Spooltenna, eBay, and Radioddity links are affiliate links that support QRPer.com at no cost to you.

Radio

Penntek TR-45L with built-in rechargeable battery and Z-Match antenna tuner (discontinued)

Antenna System

Spooltenna 40 Meter End-Fed Half-Wave
Spooltenna 25′ RG-316 Coax With 5 Ferrites
- Please note: Spooltenna is now offering QRPer.com readers free shipping by using the coupon code “qrpswl” at checkout!

Battery

Bioenno 15 Ah LiFePo Battery (Model BLF-1215A) please note that while I used a 15 Ah battery, a 3 or 4.5 Ah battery would have sufficed.

Key and Accessories

Logging

N3FJP AC Log
Microsoft Surface Go

Packs/Cases

GoRuck GR1 USA

Camera and Audio Gear

DJI OSMO 4 action camera with Sensyne Phone Tripod
DJI Wireless Microphones

On the Air

As I mentioned in Part 1, this was a longer activation, and since I needed to submit electronic logs to HRWBOTA admin Mark (N6MTS), I skipped paper logging—a true rarity for me.

Instead, I logged directly into AC Log on my Microsoft Surface Go, just as I would during Field Day.

During this second part of the event, I started on 20 meters and spent a little over an hour working a steady stream of contacts. Continue reading Ham Radio Workbenches On The Air Field Report: Part 2 →

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

Ham Radio Workbenches On The Air Field Report: Part 1

April 4, 2025 Thomas Witherspoon 6 Comments

Many of you likely know that I’m on the crew of the Ham Radio Workbench podcast and that, in December 2023, we hosted the first Ham Radio Workbenches On The Air (HRWBOTA) event.

Unfortunately, I had one scheduling conflict I couldn’t change, which meant starting the event with my KH1 in a downtown Asheville parking lot before heading to Lake James State Park for a couple of hours of solid pileups with my Icom IC-705. I posted a field report and video of the event—it was a blast! Click here to check it out.

On March 16, 2025, we held our second HRWBOTA event, and this time, I was better prepared with a clear schedule and a plan to operate for the full four hours!

Zebulon Vance Birthplace (US-6856)

Of course, even the best-laid plans can run into hiccups, and mine did. I was delayed due to some chainsaw work I wanted to complete before leaving home. As a result, I arrived at US-6856 just as the event was starting (14:00 local).

No worries, though! I turned on the camera and wasted no time deploying my antenna and setting up my radio gear.

The Spooltenna!

For this activation, I used a prototype of the Spooltenna, designed by Rob (KO4HUI).

Rob, a fellow North Carolinian, had been in touch with me about his antenna idea for months. Back in February, when my daughter interviewed for a scholarship at NC State University (which she was later awarded!), I met up with Rob on campus, and he handed me an early prototype of the Spooltenna. He had just completed the build that very morning.

It’s a unique design based on his own needs for a field antenna. From his website:

SPOOLTENNA is a compact, lightweight antenna designed for portable amateur radio operations like Parks on the Air® (POTA) and Summits on the Air™ (SOTA). Its innovative spool form factor is intended to ensure efficient deployment, teardown, and storage, providing a frustration-free operating experience that doesn’t compromise performance.

The design is also Open Source under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

The Spooltenna he gave me is a 40-meter end-fed half-wave (EFHW). Before this activation, I had only set it up at home to check resonance on 40, 20, 15, and 10 meters. I deployed it as a sloper, with the transformer at the highest point.

The Spooltenna is quick to deploy–by placing a pencil, tent stake, or screwdriver in the center hole–and the spool design ensures a tangle-free wind-up. The components feel very high-quality. Rob is also producing high-quality cable assemblies, which were included in the package he gave me.

Rob has rapidly turned this idea into a side business involving his whole family. In just two months, his wife Christi has launched a website, ordered inventory, and—just a week ago—even set up an affiliate program and coupon code offering free shipping to QRPer.com readers.

Rob will be at the Raleigh Amateur Radio Society hamfest this weekend. He plans to attend FDIM and Hamvention in Dayton next month with inventory.

UPDATE: Rob tells me that he will have some inventory at RARSfest this weekend and will even temporarily open up his website for Spooltenna orders tomorrow (Saturday, April 4, 2025) during the RARSfest.

Again, I’m most impressed with all that he and his wife have accomplished in a few months.

Deploying the Spooltenna was easy, though I had to adjust my setup. I originally planned to support the transformer with a tree next to the picnic shelter, but that tree had been blown down during Hurricane Helene.

No worries! I set it up as a sloper with the transformer close to the ground—similar to many of my EFHW deployments.

My HRWBOTA Activation Plan

I planned to use two radios during this activation—first my Elecraft KX3, then my Penntek TR-45L on the lower bands.

To maximize the chance for HRWB listeners to work me:

I did not spot myself on POTA.app, even though I was giving all contacts POTA credit. I knew that if I spotted myself, the normal weekend POTA pileups might make it harder for HRWBOTA participants to contact me.
I started on 10 meters and slowly worked my way down.
If time allowed, I planned to work SSB on at least one band (spoiler alert: CW kept me too busy!).

First up was the Elecraft KX3! I set up the radio and wasted no time getting on the air.

Gear:

Note: All Amazon, CW Morse, ABR, Chelegance, Spooltenna, eBay, and Radioddity links are affiliate links that support QRPer.com at no cost to you.

Radio

Elecraft KX3 with SideKX Side Rails and Cover

Antenna System

Battery

Bioenno 15 Ah LiFePo Battery (Model BLF-1215A) please note that while I used a 15 Ah battery, a 3 or 4.5 Ah battery would have sufficed.

Key and Accessories

Logging

N3FJP AC Log
Microsoft Surface Go

Packs/Cases

GoRuck GR1 USA

Camera and Audio Gear

DJI OSMO 4 action camera with Sensyne Phone Tripod
DJI Wireless Microphones

On the Air

Since this was a long activation and I needed to submit electronic logs to HRWBOTA admin (Mark, N6MTS), I skipped paper logging. Instead, I logged directly to AC Log on my Microsoft Surface Go, just as I would during Field Day. Continue reading Ham Radio Workbenches On The Air Field Report: Part 1 →

News

Join Me for Ham Radio Workbenches On The Air — Sunday, March 16th!

March 15, 2025 Thomas Witherspoon 2 Comments

Tomorrow (Sunday, March 16th, 2025), I’ll be participating in the Ham Radio Workbenches On The Air (HRWBOTA) event from 1800 to 2200 UTC (2 PM to 6 PM Eastern).

I’ll be operating QRP and portable, weather permitting, from a POTA site. I’ll mostly be using CW from 10 to 40 meters.

If you’re learning CW and feeling a little shy about getting on the air, this is an absolutely wonderful opportunity! As long as you can send your callsign, and recognize your callsign when I call you back, just send me a signal report, and we’ll be all set! I’ll happily adjust my pace to match yours, giving you all the time you need. It’s totally okay if you want to pre-program your CW message memories with your call and signal report. The key thing is to give it a try! I truly believe you can do it!

Note that I may not share my POTA location on the POTA.app spots page so that Ham Radio Workbench listeners don’t have to compete with the weekend POTA hunters. Plus, if my plans change, I might operate from a site that isn’t POTA, so there’s that too.

The HRWBOTA exchange is a little unconventional (and fun):

Hosts give a serial number or standard POTA-style exchange.
Listeners can optionally share the number and brand of their favorite soldering iron, plus their state/province/country.

For example: “0 Weller, North Carolina”

That said, again, it’s perfectly fine to simply give a short exchange with signal report and state, province or country. This is all about the fun factor, so a simple contact is fine (in fact, you’l find we hosts often forget to give the serial number in our part of the exchange!).

You can find all event details — including a live host tracker showing frequencies and modes — at https://hrwbota.com/

Events, Field Reports, News, Pedestrian Mobile, Portable, POTA, QRP, Videos

Ham Radio Workbenches On The Air (& POTA): A short field report and a very long activation video!

December 15, 2023 Thomas Witherspoon 3 Comments

Many of you know I’m on the crew of the Ham Radio Workbench podcast. In fact, as of this month, I’ve been there a year now (my how time flies). Although it shows a certain lack of judgement on their part, I’m glad they invited me on board!

On October 9, fellow HRWB crew member, Mark (N6MTS), pitched an idea to us via email:

“What do y’all think about doing an HRWB On The Air event?”

We all agreed it sounded like a great idea. Things like this normally take a year’s worth of planning, promoting, and organizing. Not when Mark’s in charge, though.

Next thing we know, Mark had us sorting out the best date/time (December 3, 2023/1800-22:00UTC) for HRWBOTA and even reached out to some amazing volunteers who helped put together a website and spotting page.

Holy cow!

December 3, 2023

I planned to operate the entire four hour event period from Lake James State Park (K-2730) since it would be an easy detour en route to Hickory, NC (where I was staying that night). Of course, each contact would could for both HRWBOTA and POTA.

The previous day, however, I learned that one of my daughters had a meeting in downtown Asheville from 18:00-19:00 UTC. She doesn’t have a driver’s license yet, so I had to take her. Had it not been an important meeting in advance of her finals, she would have skipped.

This really threw a wrench in the works. I knew that by the time her meeting ended and I dropped her off at the QTH, the earliest I could be at Lake James was 20:15-20:30 or so.

How could I increase my on-the-air HRWBOTA time?

KH1 to the rescue!

Since the Elecraft KH1 was packed in my EDC bag, I decided to play a little HRWBOTA in the parking lot behind the meeting building.

I wasn’t sure what to expect to be honest. I wasn’t spotting myself anywhere but the HRWBOTA spotting page, and I was limited to the 15, 17, and 20M bands with the KH1’s 4′ whip antenna.

I spotted myself, hit the air and started calling CQ HRWBOTA!

In the span of about 45 minutes, I managed to log a total of 15 stations! Not bad considering I was standing in an urban parking lot, swimming in QRM, and going QRP!

I didn’t make a video of this part of the HRWBOTA activation–sorry about that if you worked me then. I needed every moment of on-the-air time I could grab. Here’s my log sheet:

Lake James State Park (K-2739)

I legged it to Lake James after my daughter’s meeting–in fact, to save time, I started my activation video while I was still in my car driving on I-40.

I arrived at Lake James, parked, plugged in the car, grabbed my gear and made my way to the picnic area next to the lakeshore. It wasn’t hard to find a site with a tree that might support my KM4CFT 30/40M linked EFHW antenna.