[Elecraft] NPOTA NP51 Activation (KX3 and K1)

[af4b at att.net]

84' with 17' counterpoise = W3EDP, not an oddball thingy!

Bill af4b

Sent from my iPhone

> On Jul 20, 2016, at 1:56 PM, Detrick Merz <detrick at merzhaus.org> wrote:
> 
> Results are in!
> 
> Test #1: dummy load connected directly to the antenna analyzer
> Result: 1:1 SWR
> 
> Test #2: dummy to PL259 barrel to coax to antenna analyzer
> Result: 1:1 SWR
> 
> The coax ain't bad.
> 
> The "odd ball thingy" is an 84' "random wire" with a 17' counterpoise. The
> use of coax was an attempt to separate our antennas a bit more than we had
> done during FD, since we had experienced a bit of interference from each
> other. No interference for the NPOTA activation so maybe the separation
> helped something.
> 
> I think I (still) like that K1 almost as much as Kev likes his KX3.
> 
> -detrick
> KI4STU
> 
>> On Wed, Jul 20, 2016 at 11:52 AM, Kevin - K4VD <kevin at k4vd.net> wrote:
>> 
>> Detrick (KI4STU) with his K1 and I with the KX3 took off work on Monday and
>> headed up to Dickey Ridge on Skyline Drive in the Shenandoah National Park
>> (NP51). We were both on battery power. CW was the mode of choice. The
>> antennas were end-fed - Detrick's some odd-ball thingy and mine an LNR
>> EF-40/20 (no counterpoise). Basically the same setup we used on FD but
>> trimmed down significantly for mobility and quick setup.
>> 
>> We were able to activate NP51 with 12 CW QSOs in about 2 hours.
>> 
>> There were some tricky parts.
>> 
>> The end-fed thingy Detrick had would not tune until we swapped out the
>> coax. The guess is either the original coax is bad or the length of the
>> coax was contributing to the high SWR. Waiting to find out the results.
>> Detrick normally runs the antenna directly to binding posts.
>> 
>> Checking the weather in the morning it all looked clear. Then came the
>> dangerous wind and hail alerts and it was all we could do to get everything
>> back to the cars before the downpour. Weather changes quick!
>> 
>> I uploaded the QSLs to LoTW and hope I did it right, creating a new
>> location for the park. eQSL is all kinds of messed up but I'm losing my
>> patience with that service anyway. I'm not sure if I should expect
>> something back from the ARRL concerning the activation or just assume all
>> went well.
>> 
>> GNATS, GNATS and damn GNATS!
>> 
>> Then we went to Spelunkers for some Cavern Burgers and all was good in the
>> world again.
>> 
>> I'm absolutely enjoying the KX3. My go-bag is a little Nikon camera bag
>> containing the KX3 with side panels and cover, Begali Adventure paddles,
>> mic (unused), EF-40/20 antenna, Sony in-ear phones, spool of mason line,
>> short coax, mini-log and notepad, pen, pencil, 15Ah LiFePO4 (not used for
>> this trip). There's also copy of my license in a pouch. It is freedom in a
>> bag.
>> 
>> Next trip... bug spray.
>> 
>> To top off the good news, our new little crew - Barred Owl Radio Club
>> (BORC) was just issued W4OWL. We named our group for the fledgling begging
>> call that kept us away all night on FD (yep, we slept). You can find that
>> wonderful sound of nature right here:
>> https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Barred_Owl/sounds. Scroll on down to
>> the bottom for pure listening e​​njoyment. If you don't get the impression
>> of a spike being driven into your ears you don't have the volume high
>> enough.
>> 
>> 73,
>> Kev K4VD
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