August2013 Field Day

What?

An outing of the merry band of LHS amateur radio people, either licensed or otherwise.

This is an initial outing so we can familiarise ourselves with what's required to setup a /P radio station.

Interesting events:

• 3rd August: 2m backpackers contest
• 4th August: 70cm lower power contest
• International Space Station passes (seem to all be at inconvenient times of day)

When?

2nd-4th August 2013 (Friday->Sunday).

Where?

Dominic has offered a field in Dorset, near Rampisham. This is *just* a field - but it is over the valley from the old Rampisham HF transmitting station, so is a good location to work from.

Who?

• tgreer - M6LRS
• Paul Lettington - M0PLL (coming Saturday to Sunday, can't make Friday)
• Samuel - 2E0SKF
• Nigel Worsley
• Dominic Cleal - M0DLX
• Vic - M6BOK
• Jon Fautley - 2E0XEN
• Ian Henderson

Required Equipment (radio)

• A power source
  • Batteries can sort of work, but we need to assume our operating location has no available power. Can we borrow a generator from someone?
    • Apparently Aden and plett both have generators we can borrow.

Required Equipment (non-radio)

• Tent
• Sleeping equipment
• Folding tables/chairs

Available Equipment

We should make a list of what we need, and what we have available.

Dominic has available:

• IC-706, HF/2m radio, suitable for an HF contest or VHF low power contest
• Yaesu something, HF radio, suitable for an HF contest
• VX-5R handheld
• 2m lightweight beam (10-ele IIRC)
• few bits of wire + bits to make a small (20m?) dipole
• 3.7kVA petrol generator

Wiggler has available:

• Icom IC-R2 Scanner
• 2x wouxun kg-uvd1p dual band radios
• Sky Scan Mobile Scanner Antenna

Filbert has available:

• Yaesu FT-857 w/digimode kit (to interface to a laptop, for data)
• BuddiPole portable HF antenna (dipole)
  • This has a ~5m mast, which I plan on attaching the Arrow and the Buddipole to. There will be space for additional wires as well.
• Arrow II Satellite Antenna
• A couple of handhelds (including 70cm D*Star)
• MFJ 259b Antenna Analyser (this does HF to ~170Mhz)

Paul Lettington has available:

• Yeasu FT-450D HF/6m radio
• multiband 80m-6m wire dipole (will need a mast/tree to tie it to)
• ProWhip fibreglass HF vertical resonant on 40m, will tune elsewhere, doesn't tune on 20m at home.
• A couple of handlelds (Icom T8E (6m/2m/70cm), Baofeng UV-3R (2m/70cm))
• Icom IC-R5 scanner
• "Pro User 850" generator. Outputs 240v mains at a nominal 650W sustained, 850W peak. On tests at home, it will drive a HF radio transmitting a 50W constant tone, but not 100W
• spare tents
• "the internet" (A Tooway 20Mb/s satellite broadband link)

tgreer has:

• Yaesu FT-8100R 2m/70cm mobile
• Powermite PSU
• (loan of) Yaesu FT-817
• Wouxun UV6D
• 12m telescopic mast (need to get guy ropes for it)

The Space has:

• A bunch of Westflex 103 terminated with N connectors at each end
• A bunch of RG213, probably needs terminating
• A Diamond 2m/70cm co-linear antenna
• A half working 40m dipole w/balun
• Lots of wire for making "random wire" antennas
• A few handhelds