I took a break from amateur radio for a bit and have just recently become active again. I've been working on getting the station put back together and I started by picking up an ICom IC-735 from the QRZ swapmeet that I really like a lot. I originally had the Icom set up on low power so that I could work QRP but recently changed it back to normal 100 Watt output since I started working 60M. I also picked up a Collins 30-L1 linear amp which is in very nice shape. I typically run about 25 watts on all bands and about 200 when I have to turn the linear on.
The main HF antenna here is a home-brew 6 band inverted V. The apex is at 40' but has a wide angle of about 135 degrees. That puts the legs of the 80M ends at only about 25' above ground level but the ends of the 20M section are almost exactly a 1/2 wavelength above ground level. The legs of the V are pulled a couple of degrees to the East of the apex as the mountains are pretty close and I feel like it gives a little better takeoff angle. I imagine we pay for it on the West a bit but it's hard to say with the propagation being as it is right now. I have had a 50' Rhon free standing tower here for the last 30 years but can't climb much any more so I climbed up to 40 foot long enough to mount a pulley and ran a 1/4 inch stainless cable down to another pulley at the bottom so that I can pull the V up and down without having to climb when I want to tinker with it. Hopefuly I won't have to climb again for a while unless the UHF/VHF or TV antenna up on the top of the tower acts up.
It's nice that I don't need tons of room for the shack anymore. The station I had before taking a break was a complete Collins S-Line station that also included a KWM-2a as well as the Heathkit HW5400 system that I built. I needed a 20 foot, three tiered bench with all of that and the newer station is pleasantly sized in comparison and fits nicely in the den although I did have to build an extension to my desk for that heavy ole Collins.
My first real exposure to amateur radio was in the late 1970's when part of my Air Force job was to maintain the HF equipment used by the command post and the MARS folks at Spangdahlem AB, Germany. When we transferred to Holloman AFB in 1980, my interaction with AF MARS while working on the equipment there peaked my enthusiasm and I got my Technicians ticket in 1982 as KA5MOV and then upgraded to Advanced and KD5OH in 1983. I became a certified electronics technician in 1974 and then moved on to get my degree. After the Air Force, I became self employed and have spent the last 30 years working on all kinds of radio systems as well as computer/networking systems and just recently retired. I enjoy rag chewing and tinker with the digital modes occasionally.
My other hobbies include music, photography, reloading and computer programming.
We live a few miles South of Alamogordo, New Mexico, the home of Holloman
AFB, the White Sands Missile Range and the White Sands National Monument. We
are situated in the Tularosa Basin of the Chihuahuan Desert at an elevation
of 4038 ft. There are mountain ranges to our East and to our West. You can
jump in the car and drive East for 30 minutes and be in the Sacramento
Mountains at an elevation of over 9500 feet and within a couple hours of the
house you can head up to the ski resort and be at 11,500 ft. The climate
here is nice with temps in the cold part of winter time typically being in
the 20's at night and warming up to the 40's and 50's in the day. The hot
parts of the summer months will get into the 100's and typically cool down
to the 70's at night but with the exception of the monsoon season in July
the humidity stays low in the teens or less.
Last Modified 10/2018
Links to assorted fun stuff