First Dry Run of Portable HF Station

Putting it all together in the rear garden

9m tall Prowhip aerial erected in rear garden ~ tunes on all the Amateur HF ('Short Wave') bands.

Solar panels charging sealed lead acid battery ~ Yaesu FT450D HF radio on white folding table.  

This is my 6-year old sealed lead acid battery ~ used as a spare as the leisure battery is being charged.

The solar panels are working really well ~ allowing me to run 100 Watts output from the radio. The battery is being topped-up as it is being charged at 40 amps via the solar panels. 

Front view ~ note aerial coaxial cable off to the vertical antenna. Cable is 24 feet long, which helps with the tuning process for the vertical aerial on Amateur Radio HF bands.

Yaesu FT-450D radio ~ using a Heil Hand Mic for good audio response & driving of the rig (to get high power output ~ closer to 90W on peaks).

Even though the bands were not very good, due to a recent solar flare that knocked out HF communication to some extent, the radio did pick-up many Italian & German Radio Amateur Stations.

Winterising Aerials For The Harsh Weather Ahead

John (M1FEL) and I, a week ago, were taking down the main aerial pole in order to re-attach the full-size Windom HF Aerial ~ as the rope had finally perished.  It was last checked a year ago!

The main HF Windom attaches to the pole seen on the right-hand side

I took the opportunity to winterise the folded 4m band (70MHz) dipole, which you can see reaching out to the left of the main HF pole, to make sure that the internal balun would not see any ingress of water.  All the connections were great from last year but, to make sure, I replaced the rubberised self-amalgamating tape and cable ties.  At the same time, I attached a stainless steel 'Discone' aerial on top of the main HF pole.  Now I can hear the controller (and not just the aircraft overhead) at Lydd Airport & also at Laschenden (Headcorn) aerodrome.  Great improvement!


If you notice, there are other poles sticking up above the small flat roof that my wife & I have.  Looking at the white fibreglass aerial 'nearest' the TV aerial on the chimney, you can see my main 2m (145MHz) & 70cms (433MHz) aerial: 

X510HDN Base Antenna
Specifications:
Band:	2m/70cm
Element Phasing:	3-5/8l/8-5/8l
Gain (dB):	8.3/11.7
Watts:	330 (2m) / 250 (70cm)
Connector:	Type-N
Weight:	5 lbs.
Length:	17.2'
Max Wind Resistance:	90 MPH

It is really an effective aerial and the coverage is phenomenal from up here!  I am really pleased with this.

X510HDN Base Antenna is the white 'stick' on the right hand side.

The pole to the left of the X510HDN holds a 10m (28>29MHz) fibreglass aerial for DX and Ground Wave working.  When conditions are right, I use this aerial for 10m FM DX (long distance) contacts.  Very efficient, with no measurable reflective power ~ so all power from the radio is effectively radiated from the aerial itself.  All feeder cable to my aerials are 'top-notch' military UHF (Ultra High Frequency) 'spec' ~ which is overkill for the 10m band, but there is minimal loss through the cable!

Finally, the pole on the left-hand side of the photo above shows a 3-element 6m (50MHz) horizontal beam, on top of a rotator, allowing me to turn the aerial to face DX stations around the World.  Above it is a V2000A Tri-band Base Antenna:

Specifications:
Bands:	6m/2m/70cm
Frequency (MHz):	52-54/144-148/440-450
Gain:	2.15dBi/6.2dB/8.4dB
Impedance (nominal):	50W
VSWR:	1.5:1 (typical)
Power Rating:	150 watts
Element Phasing:	1/2l/2-5/8l/4-5/8l
Max Wind Rating:	112 m.p.h.
Mast Dia. Acceptance:	1.2 to 2.4 inches
Length/Weight	8.3 ft./2.6 lbs.
Connector:	SO-239 Female

This, again, is a very efficient aerial ~ one that I use for 'local' nattering on 6m / 2m / 70cms!

Hanging just this side of the Kent Cobnut Tree is the white centre balun of the HF Windom Aerial.

The other end of the Windom aerial is held aloft by the use of an ex-military high-grade aluminium telescopic mast.

The telescopic pole can be seen extended just beyond the white reclining seat.

You can see the radiating element, the vertical cable running down from the large white balun held aloft, running towards the pump house and then into the main property.  High-grade coaxial cable, again, but the distance from the 'Shack' (Radio Room) to the main feed point is only 30 feet. Nothing for the HF ('Short Wave') bands!


So there we have it!  Ready for the Winter ahead!  Here's hoping for some choice contacts on the Amateur Radio bands.