Side Benefit of FTA - New Hobbies

[linuxman]

Well as an outgrowth and by-product of acquiring a Short-Wave radio to use with my BLSA, I got the bright idea to do some exploring on the radio just for listening.

I couldn't get anything with my little rinky-dink circle antenna here inside the building, so I read up on making my own "long wire" antenna.

Bought 50 feet of 14 guage insulated stranded copper wire, and read up about using coax to bringing the signal into the house. So I made up the wire and coax, and had my son help me take two "stands" that I already had and modified them with some PVC pipe and put on insulators to string the wire.

End result, I am right now listening to the sweet Christian sounds of WRNO Short-Wave at 7.505 Mhz. I don't know where they are transmitting from, but it is coming in with a great signal and good sound on my Kenwood R-600. Just heard they are broadcasting from New Orleans.

Stopped by Radio Shack today and picked up the parts (they actually had them there ) and pieces to build my very first electronics project, a static zapper.

I have read where they are a must especially using a DX-440 which should be here in another day or two.

I need to put a center support on the wire. It is drooping pretty bad, and there is a good bit of strain on the PVC pipes screwed onto the pipe stands.

Here are the pics of the home-brew antenna I made.



So there are all kinds of hobbies that can come out of FTA. We scan the skies for satellite signals. We can also scan the airwaves for radio from everywhere.

 

[Anole]

Careful ! -

This could lead to . . . ham radio ! -

. . . and ham call-sign plates on your car . . . - :up
I've had 'em since the early 70's...

 

[goaliebob99]

Careful ! -

This could lead to . . . ham radio ! -

. . . and ham call-sign plates on your car . . . - :up
I've had 'em since the early 70's...

DOH! I missed this warning! K9SAT

 

[linuxman]

Careful ! -

This could lead to . . . ham radio ! -

. . . and ham call-sign plates on your car . . . - :up
I've had 'em since the early 70's...

Yes, I know! :yikes:

My Ham buddy in our Linux UG has been gently tugging at my sleeve for about 5 years now, and he is thrilled that I got the Shortwave radio. He says that is the first step.

Course he knows me pretty well in that I can't just stop at enjoying the listening, but have to know everything there is to know about it and how it works.

So, who knows!

 

[linuxman]

DOH! I missed this warning! K9SAT

I have been warned.

 

[Cadsulfide]

Way cool, you two have too much ambition!!! LOL

 

[linuxman]

Way cool, you two have too much ambition!!! LOL

The ambition is there, just wish my body could keep up!

To quote my best friend from high school who passed away in August (same age as I am), "If I knowed I was going to live this long, I'da took better keer of myself" .

 

[turbosat]

new hobby

Sounds like fun! I hope I don't get the bug for that too lol. I have been curious about listening for 'noise' from space, like SETI, never did anything about it though. Yet, haha. Read an article somewhere once about rigging up a c-band dish, with 2 actuators and computer software that would move the motors/dish across the sky at night to listen for sounds of the stars that emit that type of energy.

 

[cracklincrotch]

With something like that in your back yard you could tell people that you're not just spying on your immediate neighbours.

 

[DiscoLoveGrapes]

Watch out -- that just means that Gene and Melissa Scott can get to you from both the radio and the TV now....

 

[linuxman]

Watch out -- that just means that Gene and Melissa Scott can get to you from both the radio and the TV now....

I didn't know they were on the radio too. WooHoo!

Built a center support for the long wire and got it in place this morning. It took a lot of strain off the PVC end posts.

Started making my "Static Zapper". It wasn't as hard as I thought it might be. This is my first start from scratch and build something useful electronics project. I used a 400v capacitor because that was what the Rat Shack had. I also used a different neon bulb 120V AC or DC same reason.

That differs from the design plan a little. I am sure someone here will tell me if I need exactly what the plan calls for.

It is hooked up, and I think the radio is actually working better than yesterday. Don't know if that is possible, but what the heck!

Got my DX-440 in today, but haven't hooked it up yet. I wanted to compare apples to apples before and after with the zapper.

Before Anole asks, here are the pics. I need a lot of practice if I am going to get better at soldering.

 

[ACRadio]

Well as an outgrowth and by-product of acquiring a Short-Wave radio to use with my BLSA, I got the bright idea to do some exploring on the radio just for listening.

Not a lot of people in today's world of shortwave knows what an interval signal is...

Interval Signals Online

I have some shortwave recordings I made from the 60's and early 70's. Whenever I want to get nostalgic I go to that site and spend some time...it brings back some really good memories...

 

[Inno]

Before Anole asks, here are the pics. I need a lot of practice if I am going to get better at soldering.

Your soldering looks fine, certainly more than "good enough".

I started to learn a bit about HAM in high school as my electronics shop teacher was into it. There was a club that met at lunch time. He had donated an old Yaesu that he had and we did some DXing(I believe that is the term). The high school was VE3FHS (Fort High School) as I recall. I didn't stick with it but shortwave (and HAM) is certainly a logical offshoot from satellite............or vice versa. My Dad was interested in shortwave but mostly 'cause he wanted to find broadcasts from "the old country". He lacked the practical knowledge to make it work well. Oh well, he tried.

 

[rv1pop]

Careful ! -

This could lead to . . . ham radio ! -

. . . and ham call-sign plates on your car . . . - :up
I've had 'em since the early 70's...

Oh Oh -- the warning got to me too late.... by 50 years... (got my call letter plates in 1961).

But that hobby led to broadcasting then railroad telegraph which led to money, cars, and college, then girls, which led to wife and kids. Then kids grew up and moved away so I could watch the TV I wanted which led to satellite TV.

Now I have more dishes working than ham antennas. Guess I am going to have to correct that real soon --- well, as soon as I get about 6 more dishes set up.

Got a J-pole on 2M and .75 M. A vertical for 40M and up HF. need to get a wire dipole up for 160 M and 80-75M. Oh well. Hey, where is the Ham Radio forum? (Maybe I should join the ARRL again.)

 

[Anole]

more, More, MORE !

So there are all kinds of hobbies that can come out of FTA.

Yes, and friendships.
I've had the pleasure of many conversations with the members here.
Both in public threads, in PMs, via Email, and on the telephone.

There are too many to mention, and I fear forgetting someone, so I won't list 'em all.
But I couldn't ask for a finer bunch of friends.

FTA and the forum have been the catalyst to transcend the distances between the folks here.
While ham radio can do the same, technology moves on.
The challenge today, is to use the most modern methods to keep in touch with the friends we find.
Wherever we find them.
Sometimes that's an email.
Sometimes it's a cell phone call.

 

[SatPhreak]

I have a shortwave radio, but I rarely use it unless I'm camping. It has an attached antenna and no input for an external one. I've thought about modifying it to use an external but have never got around to it yet. The attached antenna doesn't quite cut it for weak signals. Not too many am/fm stations around here once you get out of town and the shortwave gives me something to listen to.

Inno, I used to belong to my highschool ham club too. Very similar to yours it was set up by the electronics teacher and I used to hang around there most lunches. Ours was VE3 SEC (Selkirk (high school) Electronics Club), and it was fun dx'ing and talking to people around the world. The most interesting one I remember was a guy in the USSR that I talked to a couple times. We even swapped cards with him, I think he was from Leningrad (St. Petersburg now). I never got my licence because I was horrible at morse code, but I just found out that's not needed anymore so I've been thinking about getting it now.
It kind of was the start of the addicion for me and I used to go up on the roof on cold clear days and turn the tv antenna to try and get the Duluth channels. Sometimes they would come in, sometimes they wouldn't but it sure was exciting when I got them crystal clear for an hour or two before they faded out. I tried for Marqette a few times but I only got 1 channel once and it was really snowy. The signal was better for Duluth because they used to have a repeater tower in Grand Marais to send them up here for the cable company. You needed a big parabolic VHF antenna to get them reliably but my parents wouldn't splurge for one.

 

[Inno]

It kind of was the start of the addicion for me and I used to go up on the roof on cold clear days and turn the tv antenna to try and get the Duluth channels. Sometimes they would come in, sometimes they wouldn't but it sure was exciting when I got them crystal clear for an hour or two before they faded out. I tried for Marqette a few times but I only got 1 channel once and it was really snowy. The signal was better for Duluth because they used to have a repeater tower in Grand Marais to send them up here for the cable company. You needed a big parabolic VHF antenna to get them reliably but my parents wouldn't splurge for one.

That's funny, that's exactly what I used to do........and yes, it was to get the Duluth channels. From where I grew up we were too far from the UHF repeater in International Falls to get the signal that way. When the weather was just right we'd get signals I'm guessing directly from Duluth on VHF, we never had a UHF antenna as there were no UHF signals to be had. In hindsight, with a really big tower, a good booster and a deep fringe antenna we might have been able to watch more than just CBC on a regular basis. I did have a nice FM antenna with booster and rotator, from where I was I could get many stations from the Iron Range of Minnesota, Duluth on occasion, Winnipeg and Thunder Bay would come in but were pretty staticy.
The house we bought last year has one of the big UHF parabolic antennas on it which I've hooked up and it's still receiving the Duluth channels via the I. Falls repeater. Although come January that's all going to come to a halt. No word if they're planning on going digital here.
Sorry for hijacking the thread........just realized I wrote a small novel.

 

[linuxman]

Thanks for all the great stories and links!

Anole is right, FTA has so many side benefits, they are too numerous to count.

I got the DX-440 hooked up, and all I can say is WOW!!

Works very well!

I must have gotten very lucky making my "Long Wire", or have it pointed just right or something because I am getting a lot of stations from everywhere. I have the wire pointed about NE to SW and it is 4 feet off the roof deck which is metal under the asphalt with my satellite dishes all around it. That puts the wire about 18 - 20 feet off the ground.

Locally I can get the Hannibal AM and FM stations. That's about 75 Miles to my N/NW. Pretty far for FM I would think, but used to live there so knew what to dial in. Still getting WRNO at 7505 right now, and got a station out if Kissemme, FL. Got a station in what sounded like German.

Get WWV for time at 10.000 MHz and also got Canada time at 3.330 Mhz. I love the scan feature. It works really well and inputting frequencies is way too cool.

I could get hooked real easy.

 

[rv1pop]

And that is not a true communications receiver, but it is a good one. I loaned mine to my kids when they got stationed in Japan. It got corroded in the salt air, so I did not get it back!

My favorite is any Collins receiver 75A2 or newer.
POP

 

[schlever]

All this talk about shortwave has me wanting to pull out my radio again But at the moment .... too many projects too little time