Ham To Ham #5 - February 1996
73's Ham To Ham column
c/o Dave Miller, NZ9E
7462 Lawler Avenue
Niles, IL 60714-3108
I'll begin this month by saying a hearty "thanks" to all who have been sending in their suggestions, modifications, tips, techniques and favorite easy-to-build circuits. The amount and the quality of input has been very gratifying and if it keeps up as it has been, the column will indeed go on for a very long time to come. This tells Uncle Wayne that it's a needed addition to 73 Magazine and encourages me to put even more of your ideas to work via these pages. So keep those ideas coming in, we can never have too many.
Let me just take a moment to briefly outline once again what I'm looking for in the way of ideas. Basically anything that will help your fellow hams in the way of tips, suggestions or short-cuts is fair game. Things that you've discovered that perhaps you wish that you had known about earlier on in your own ham radio career are always helpful. The idea can be technical in nature, an operational short-cut or convenience, a new use for a tool that has ham radio applications or an innovational way of doing something that might otherwise be a real chore. Equipment modifications are sometimes worthwhile, but please make sure that you've thoroughly tested the mod, that it's not going to cause any unwanted side-effects and that it's easily reproducible by others with the same piece of gear, not just a fluke. It's impossible for me to test each idea, especially if it involves an item of equipment that I don't own, so be completely sure that there are no "gotchas" hidden away.
Also, I'm not looking for extremely complex circuits or new and involved concepts, they're best left for full-length articles, or perhaps a doctoral thesis. Preferably, I'd like to receive ideas that can be understood and implemented fairly quickly by all of our readers, and ones encompassing just two or three paragraphs of column space. That allows for more ideas to be published per month, since there are obviously limitations on space within each issue. I'd like to see Ham To Ham eventually be the first column read by 73 subscribers...after Uncle Wayne's editorial of course! The greatest compliment to the contributors will be when a number of readers begin to make a file of the tips and suggestions published here, saving them for future reference. That's pretty much our current goal, let me know whether or not that corresponds with the direction that you'd like to see the column take.
Please don't send me ideas that have been submitted elsewhere and are still pending acceptance by other publications, or ones have even been previously published. Only new, original, unpublished ideas are usable.
I'll try my best to respond as quickly as possible to each legitimate idea sent to me, since I'm sure that you'll want to know if it's what we're looking for or not. So far, by the way, the vast majority of submissions have been right on the mark of what we're intending for the column. This is your column, echoing your ideas and technical suggestions to make our hobby more fun for each of us.
Putting "sparkle" back into your ham gear
Probably nothing looks less impressive to "the visiting dignitaries" to your ham shack than dusty, dingy-looking equipment. You can put that new-look sparkle back into almost any piece of gear by simply applying a small amount of Armor All Protectant R to the equipment's exterior surfaces. The Protectant, in 16 oz. pump spray form, is made by Armor All Products Corp. of Aliso Viejo, California 92656, and is mainly intended for automobiles, boats, outdoor furniture, vinyl coverings, etc., but it also does a beautiful job on amateur transceivers, tuners and the like. It comes in both glossy finish and dull finish formulas, and is usually available at automotive supply stores as well as other retail outlets where automotive waxes and finish-protecting products are sold. In addition to restoring a like-new look, it also protects the finish to which it's applied from the tarnishing effects of the surrounding atmosphere, indoors or out. It additionally makes the coated surface much less susceptible to dust buildup...and it really seems to work!
You needn't use much, just a small amount of the liquid on a piece of cotton or soft cloth will go a long way. For getting into all of the little nooks and crannies on a piece of equipment, I use a very small cotton-ball held by a pair of shop tweezers or hemostats. There is no need for dried polish removal or buffing afterward as with many liquid wax products, just apply Armor All Protectant and it's done. It's safe for most painted surfaces, vinyl, rubber, plastic, etc. I've not found anything yet that it adversely affects. The job goes amazingly quickly , the results are impressive; the lack of the need for as much future dusting and exterior cleaning are all very strong selling points for me. Give it a try for yourself sometime. NZ9E
An HT's "power-up" message idea
From Bruce Tennant, KE6PZW: Since some of the newer handi-talkies offer a programmable, customized message upon power- up, here's a tip that might save some grief for your repeater group as well as enable a stolen HT to be returned to it's rightful owner.
The manufacturers of these HT's suggest in their manuals that the owner's name and call sign be programmed into this "power-up message", but by doing that, you may be playing right into the hands of an illegal user. How? Well, should your HT fall into the "wrong" hands, especially those of a non-ham, then not only would they have your HT, but immediately upon powering it up, they would have your call sign too! The temptation for such unscrupulous thieves to not only use your HT, but your call as well, may be just too great.
My tip would be to not program in your name or call, but rather your driver's license number or other form of state identification, identification that could possibly place your HT back into your rightful hands, should the police or other agency find it as part of the "loot" of a captured thief. Law enforcement officials have suggested engraving a driver's license number, along with the state's initials (such as CA for California), into valuables for years now. State and local police have access to the legitimate holders of these numbers and have been able to relocate stolen goods back to many people by this method. Another plus is that an unauthorized user probably wouldn't have the sophistication (or the manual to tell him how) to delete your power-up message from the HT's memory, and it would make him all the more reluctant about using or selling it.
Bruce Tennant, KE6PZW
P.O. Box 7325
Long Beach, CA 90807-0325
Moderator's note: Excellent suggestion, Bruce, perhaps the manufacturers should market the feature in this manner, ie., as an anti-theft "plus". It also makes us all think twice about putting our calls on our portable or mobile equipment in any form. A driver's license number would be a much better thing to do, whether it's in electronic form or otherwise.
A Sticky Subject
In case you haven't tried it, a good all-purpose adhesive that comes from Canada and has numerous potentials in the arts, crafts and hobby areas, is a product with the trade name Weldbond R. It's made by Frank T. Ross & Sons, 6550 Lawrence Ave. East, Scarborough, Ontario, Canada M1C 4A7 and is often available in the U.S. in craft and hobby stores. The manufacturer publishes a very comprehensive 10-page Product Guide that you can obtain by writing to them at the address above, it's well worth the effort. Weldbond is usable with a large number of different materials including wood, tile, plastic foams, plastic laminates, glass, china, porcelain, carpeting, non-ferrous metals, cloth and canvas, leather...even cement, plaster and stone!
With that sort of line-up of compatible materials, there are no doubt many uses for this product in our ham-radio construction and repair "adventures" too, so if you're already familar with this adhesive and know of any particularly interesting ham applications, why not write to me and I'll let the rest of hamdom know about them via this column...plus Uncle Wayne will send you ten bucks to buy some more Weldbond! By the way, Weldbond is also usable as a filler when mixed with the correct "powder" or as a protective coating when thinned. The Product Guide tells all about it. It's available in 2, 4, 8, 12 and 21-ounce container sizes, all the way up to 5-gallons and even industrial drum-size. Apparently for people with really big problems!
It's a water-based adhesive so thinning with plain water is acceptable; this also makes for easy clean-up. A nice feature is that the bond remains slightly flexible when cured, which in my experience, has better impact resistance than adhesives that become hard and brittle after curing or with age, and it's guaranteed to keep that slightly flexible trait over the long term. Interesting products like this one are always welcomed additions to most ham's workshops, I know they are in mine. Know of any others? NZ9E.
Easy Up, Easy Down
From Bryon "Paul" Veal, KB0SJX: Living in an area with a home-owners covenant banning permanent outdoor antenna structures, and wanting to operate ten-meters with my new Tech-plus license, while honing my CW skills on 40-meter CW in preparation for the General exam, I was faced with a not-so-unusual modern dilemma...how to accomplish all of that while keeping a low profile with the home-owner's association sleuths! Here's hoping that my answer may help a few other hams in the same or similar situations.
I purchased a multi-band 1/4-wave vertical that I felt had a good reputation for ease of installation and use, the Cushcraft AP8A. My plan...to temporarily mount the AP8A on a permanently installed pipe that extends out of the ground about three feet and into the ground about five feet. Cushcraft's recommended ground radial system was also installed beneath the sod and securely connected to the same pipe, along with a 14 ft. commercial-grade gound rod. A good grounding and radial system can not be overstressed for any 1/4-wave vertical antenna installation. The outside diameter of this ground pipe is such that the AP8A easily slips right down over it, rests on a ring clamp, tightens with a second clamp, and provides a sturdy support for the remainder of the antenna for the time it will actually be up in the air. Remember, it doesn't stay up at all times, only when I want to operate for for a while.
The coax back to the indoor radio room in my home is buried beneath the turf about 4 to 6 inches, for both protection against damage and for appearance purposes. Make sure that the coax you use is rated for underground applications and that the outer jacket is free of any "nicks" that might allow the entry of moisture into the shield of the inner cable. A quick-disconnect fitting on the coax itself completes the job, but remember to protect this fitting from direct exposure to the weather when not in use.
My "temporary" antenna mount is in back by my property's rear wooden fence, so when my operating time is over, I can simply disconnect the coax, loosen the bottom clamp, lift off the AP8A, and hang it from supports attached to the fence itself. The operation takes less than a minute or two. The antenna alone is very light in weight, about the same as a heavy-duty, deep-sea fishing pole...including the bait! The "stored" length along the fence ends up to be 18 feet long in my case. The photos give you a much better idea of the arrangement that I'm describing. The entire scheme is virtually invisible to the association "sleuths" for the 90% of the time that I'm off-the-air.
Bryon "Paul" Veal, KB0SJX
5855 E. 124th Way
Brighton, Co 80601
Moderator's note: Paul has a nice, neat arragement here, with many possibilities for others in similar circumstances. His photos tell the story best. A hinge and lock arrangement might also be helpful - for us older folk - so that the antenna could be "walked" up and down instead of lifted into place, yet it could still be "hidden" behind the fence when resting in the horizontal "down" position. Such an arrangement might also be used with some of the popular half-wave verticals using a similar design. Lot's of "custom" possibilities here, thanks Paul. By the way, Paul wrote to tell me that he did receive his General...congratulations!
"Green" is good!
Here's another tip about an interesting product that's available at most local hobby shops, it's called Squadron Green Putty R. Green Putty is a very quick-drying filler that can be used around the ham shack to fill unwanted holes in panels or cases, or to make a chip or crack virtually disappear in a plastic front panel escutcheon.
It is actually "green" in color, so you'll probably have to repaint or touch-up whatever item of equipment that you might use it on, but it's both plastic and metal compatible, sets-up very quickly - almost too quickly at times - and is easily carved or sanded to the final shape desired. It's a Toluene-based product, so good ventilation during use and set-up is a must, but it's also very effective at what it does. Green Putty is made by Squadron Products, 1115 Crowley Drive, Carrollton, TX 75006. Has anyone found any other unique ham radio uses for it? NZ9E
That's all for this month, please keep the ideas rolling in to the address shown in the masthead. And remember, this is your column, where all of the ideas are from one ham to another, which is always the best way! And it doesn't matter how long you've been in the hobby, Paul, KB0SJX has been licensed less than one year, yet he saw a very workable solution to an often common problem. Let's hear from you next month!
DE Dave, NZ9E
Note: The ideas and suggestions contributed to this column by its readers have not necessarily
been tested by the column's moderator nor by the staff of 73 Magazine, and thus no guarantee of
operational success is implied. Always use your own best judgment before modifying any
electronic item from the original equipment manufacturer's specifications. No responsibility is
implied by the moderator or 73 Magazine for any equipment damage or malfunction
resulting from information supplied in this column.
Please send all correspondence relating to this column to 73 Magazine's Ham To Ham column,
c/o Dave Miller, NZ9E, 7462 Lawler Avenue, Niles, IL 60714-3108, USA. All contributions used in
this column will be reimbursed by a contributor's fee of $10, which includes its exclusive use by 73
Magazine. We will attempt to respond to all legitimate contributor's ideas in a timely manner, but
be sure to send all specific questions on any particular tip to the originator of the idea, not to this
column's moderator nor to 73 Magazine.