GQRP Convention 2010

Hello Folks,

Here's a basic report on another excellent GQRP convention held at Rishworth School. Members of Sands Contest Group attended the convention for different reasons not least to meet up with old friends, look around a good Radio Amateur based convention and listen to excellent talks in the lecture theater. It goes without saying that we all enjoyed Meat and potato pie followed by apple pie, and rumor has it that some even went back for seconds the food was so good.

One of the nice things about this convention is that its truly an amateur radio based event where the only time you see a computer working is in a supporting role to demonstrate a radio amateur based product.

Electromagnetica Replica Crystal Set.

Although I did not buy the item pictured below, it was beautiful to see and had I the money I would have been tempted.

(please note that you can increase the picture size by clicking on the image and in most cases increase again by clicking on the enlarged image)














This replica Crystal Set was made by an Amateur and it was being sold for a charity for £80














The set is housed in a nicely finished wooden box and a lot of time was obviously spent winding the coils.














Sadly I watched the set being boxed up at the end of the day unsold.

Alfred Vail Morse Key

I managed to pickup an Alfred Vail replica Telegraph key made by Kent Keys.











I have learned that my version of the key which has a satin finish, was only made until around Serial No. 250, from that time on the brass was given a highly polished finish. The key is still available along with information of its size etc on the link below.














http://www.kent-engineers.com/vailkeyinfo.htm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=neneOCKmcw0

The keys are well made and work surprisingly well but its always interesting to look back to the reason why the key was made in the first place and how it played its part in revolutionising communications in its day.


















Alfred Vail















This is a picture of the original key which is housed at the Smithsonian Institution Washington DC

Key and Telegraph
The Vail Register
Edited by John Casale, W2NI

"On Friday, May 24, 1844 at 8:45 a.m., the telecommunications era in the United States began with the successful receipt of the message "What Hath God Wrought." That message was received on a telegraph register designed by Alfred Vail.

The link below with give you access to the full article including pictures of the telegraph register invented by Alfred Vail

http://www.antiquewireless.org/otb/kt0501.htm

As with many things in the history of communications the road was not always smooth and its my personal feeling based on the link below that Vail has not received the recognition he should have for his part in history.

You may find the following link interesting.... Its informative and well worth your time.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oo0hSZ9R_Xk

Its fascinating to think that this was a time of innovation and a communications revolution was taking place when Morse, Vail, Marconi, Tesla to name a few dared to put their thoughts and theory's to the test...... A parallel in our time would be the advent of the computer and the internet. Below is an interesting film showing what are now vintage radio's being made at the Tesla Phillips Radio Factory.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpGYdgELqZo

Then of course there are all the scientists.....

GQRP Convention Speakers for 2010

Ian Keyser G3ROO Clandestine Radio around World War Two














One of the reasons I attended was to listen to G3ROO's talk on WWII Clandestine Radio and I was not disappointed. Ian had traveled up from Kent to give the talk and brought with him a number of exhibits. Ian explained the history of the famous suitcase sets used by SOE. He introduced details of the set itself starting with the (Mk1 Paraset) a little of the history, Ian believes there are only two Mk1 sets in the UK














B2 suitcase set designed by Major John I. Brown



























Ian took us through a number of circuit diagrams explaining the curcuity of the set

http://www.milradio.com/clandestine_gal.htm

Please click on the link for a short video of this set taken in the Science Lab just after lunch.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRcFG0w_Nzo&feature=mfu














A MkII Paraset














for more information on the Paraset take a look at the following sites they are well worth your time.

http://www.mines.uidaho.edu/~glowbugs/paraset.htm
http://www.qsl.net/ik0moz/paraset_eng.htm

The Paraset Project
How to make a replica Norwegian Style.
LA5MT - Asbjørn (Mike) Ursin

http://www.qsl.net/ik0moz/LA5MT_Paraset.htm

Mk 26 Receiver

Ian discribed finding the Mk 26 Reciever in the attic of a collector collector friend when he was looking around. Sadly nothing is known about the set apart from the fact that their are only three known in the UK. and the curcuit diagram is availabe.









Picture located on the site below

http://www.milradio.com/clandestine_gal.htm

MCR1 Biscuit Tin Set














MCR1 Biscuit Tin Set manufactured in 1943

Ian gave a good description of the Miniture Communications Reciever 1 and brought along his own set for people to look at. Ian said he would be happy to turn the radio on later in the Lab but it failed with grim regularity

For more details on this set including maker, overall size of the unit and frequencies of operation please look at the site below. go down to Spy Set and select UK in the index.
http://www.radiomilitari.com/r.html















1950's British Embassy Set

Although not a spy set Ian was able to show us a set that could be used in the Embassy or in the event that the embassy was over run, it could be transported easily to a safe house. Ian explained that the set was fully self contained with everything needed to operate found in the side pouches of the canvas carrying case. The set operated between 2 and 8MHz and Ian knows of some decent distances covered transmuting on 1/2w. The earlier types of this transceiver were housed in a wooden box. I have attached a link under the photograph to the VMARS site where details of this radio along with a good picture of the Transceiver on page 4 of the small pdf file.















The Embassy Set
SR128 (also known as Mk.128)

http://www.vmarsmanuals.co.uk/newsletter_articles/valve_manpacks.pdf

Thanks to http://www.vmars.org.uk/ for allowing a link to link their site, it's a great organisation and excellent resource centre.

Books & DVD's

If your interested in the work of the Y service then I can highly recommend "The Enemy is Listening by Aileen Clayton published in 1980"


















The book gives a personal insight into how the Y service worked not only in the UK but other countries during WWII. It's still available in both hardback and softback, however If you can't find it on line then you should be able to order it via your local library.












Enigma Symposium 1997

1997 edition of the highly detailed accounts of the histories and achievements of Y Unit. Major Hugh Skillen was a codebreaker and linguist who worked at Bletchley Park from D-Day to VE Day.

Although collated by Major Hugh Skillen the symposium is made up of talks given by individual speakers at the symposium/reunion of people who worked at Bletchley part and in the Y service and makes for good factual reading from firsthand accounts. The book is A4 sized and has 194 pages. You will need to pay p&p extra.

Contents:

• Y section in the field (No.2 Canadian SW/SW1 Section)
• Teaching Japanese Morse to the Royal Indian Airforce/German Naval Intercepts (Submarine warfare in Atlantic and Far East)
• Swiss Enigma's
• Collossus Revealed at last
• Enigma Still Lives
• Huts 11,11a,11b
• Working Collossus
• German Diplomatic Papers
• The Ultra Americans
• The US Converter 209
• SCUs and SLUs
• Comparison with the battle of France and the Battle of Kursk
• The Testery
• HMS Petard retrieval of documents from U-559
  

Appendix

• Hitlers Apologia 1937
• The History of WW2
  

Why am I going into so much detail?
This is probably the last chance people will have to buy a new copy of this book which is one of a series no longer available. When Major Skillen died a few years ago his wife donated the remainder of his symposiums to BP and this is the last volume available and at £1.99 its a steal of a price.

http://www.bletchleypark.org.uk/shop/index.rhtm/130825/cat.html

Other books by Major Skillen well worth looking out for are:

• Spys of the Airwaves 1989 ISBN 0 9515190 X
• Knowledge Strengthens the Arm 1991 ISBN 0 9515190 1
• Enigma & its Achilles Heel 1992 ISBN 0 9515190 26
  

These books are in Hardback standard size. You should be able to order a copy to read from your local library who will probably have to send off for it.

I can also recommend an excellent DVD by (Grindelwald Productions) "The Secret Wireless War" produced in 2002



















The DVD has two 1 hour documentaries "Beyond Bletchley Park" tells the story of the RSS in part One and "Black Propaganda" is covered in part 2. I suggest you shop around for the best price on this item because prices do vary. It is available from Amazon new at £13.99 which seems a reasonable price.

Roy Cavanagh GM4VKI Cold War Transceiver














A photograph of Roy's R-354 Spy Set.

Roy GM4VKI complimented the talk on Clandestine Radio's by introducing a cold war transceiver, Russian spy radio set (Bumblebee) . He explained how agents would buy a 35mm film..... nothing strange in that this was an everyday item sold worldwide in chemists and camera shops for SLR camera's. Roy went on to explain how this film could be used for more sinister use.

The film is pulled from its canister... there was no problem with the film being exposed to light because it was not going to be used for taking pictures. The film would be split down the middle in effect creating two 16mm strips each with sprockets on one side. Holes were punched into the film using a specialised cutter, each hole punched represented a coded part of the message.















Once the message was completed the film would be offered to a slot at the bottom of the keypad and loaded to a start point via two buttons seen on the left of the keypad.

This radio had a number of options available to the operator to help him/her get their message through.

Option One
Encode your message through hole cut into the film using the keypad. This can be done quickly because the information was passed at 300 wpm.

Option Two
In the event of the film jamming etc a message could be typed in directly via the keypad.

Option Three
If all other methods failed then an agent could use the small morse key located at the top of the keypad. This was the least favoured method because it made the agent vulnerable to detection.












Morse Key located above the keypad.

The link below is a very informative site for information about the set and its accessories
http://www.cryptomuseum.com/spy/r354/index.htm

Ian took a good number of radio's with him and both Ian and Roy had radio's in operation for everyone to see in one of the labs after his talk.

Roy Lewallen W7EL. A QRP Field Day














George introduced Roy Lewallen to a packed lecture theater at the convention.














Roy regaled us with stories about his introduction to the American QRP Field Day. He made the point that this was not a contest but rather a time where qrp amateur radio equipment could be field tested for use in local or national emergency's, not only the transmitters but also antenna's and masts Etc.

During his talk he showed us a number of antenna's he has used over the years, methods of getting antenna's over tree including a Slingshot, and he introduced us to his basic tool kit which covered most eventualities.

It was an interesting look at QRP Field in the USA

EZNEC
Although not mentioned during his talk Roy Lewallen is the creator of a very good program called EZNEC which allows you to create and test antenna's in a virtual environment. If you would like to see some screen shots and information about the program please take a look at the this link http://www.eznec.com/

Dave Starkie G4AKC
HF Bicycle and Pedestrian Mobile
Working DX whilst on the move














Dave Starkie gave an interesting talk on his passion of operating both Bicycle and pedestrian mobile. Dave described his stations pointing out the positives and negatives in operation. Dave counts himself lucky to live on the seafront in Blackpool.
































Dave demonstrated a few of the antenna's that he uses and how they are adapted for different bands along with Solar Power on one of his other stations.
































Battery Power Supply













ATU














Mobile Alinco Radio














Dave filled us in on his WORLD RECORD CONTACT LONGPATH BLACKPOOL ENGLAND TO CHRISTCHURCH NEW ZEALAND.
21,100Km on the longpath on 20 Metres SSB. To listen to the contact please click on the link http://www.youtube.com/user/G4AKC

If you would like to see a two page breakdown of Dave's equipment including photographs you'll find it published in the August 2010 edition of Radcom or on this link created by ZS1JHG for "Ham Radio Nation"

http://hamradionation.com/document.php?user=ZS1JHG&document_id=217&title=bicycle-mobile-by-g4akc-mr-bicycle

David Stockton GM4ZNX TECHNICAL FORUM

Sadly I was not able to stay for the final event of the afternoon although I feel sure it would have been an interesting Forum

Buildathon 2010














Photograph taken from the GQRP Website and taken by John G7NSN click on the link below to view other photographs in this series from the 2010 convention. http://www.flickr.com/photos/johnv2544/sets/72157625123120343/

Project: A Manhattan style CW Transmitter for 40 metres This could be a companion to the receiver of last year’s Buildathon or a useful little transmitter in its own right.

http://www.gqrp.com/rishworth.htm

Exhibits of Clandestine Radio in the Classroom














I am sorry to report that I have no information to relay on this set seen on the left of this picture.









































Para-set MkII















QRP Exhibits














Sudden 40m Surface Mount Receiver by G3WBB








































20m Receiver by Nick MW0NJP / ON4NIC



































































160m & 80M AM/SSB/CW Transmitter




























The Touch & Go 80m QRP Transmitter built in 2010 by G4UMB


















The Touch Keyer built by G4UMB














Pixie Set Construction Project built from a circuit in Sprat 1993



















The Clippy Dot Dash Keyer

Ever had a problem reading your FT-817 display?










FT-817 image taken from the internet

Then take a look at this little gem!













The FT817 External Display built by G6SSF with remote keypad option.














I should have photographed the Remote Control which if memory serves me correctly was a programmable one remote does all.... It certainly worked well in the demo I saw.

Unless otherwise stated photography by Brian G0RDH

Well that concludes my review of the 2010 GQRP Convention I hope you have enjoyed my ramblings..... If you have never been and live outside the area, get a few friends together to help share the fuel bill and pay a visit..... you will not be disappointed! Rishworth School, is on the A672 (Ripponden) road from junction 22 on the M62.

73 for now
Brian G0RDH
(The Reluctant Contestor)

CQ WW SSB Contest

As summer gives way to autumn the group sets to work preparing for the last major contest of 2010. Its always a time of uncertainty for us because the Wx is so changeable and we have to be prepared for a last minute change of venue in the event of bad weather, however the weather was kind to us and we were privileged to witness an autumnal mosaic of colour as the countryside and animals get ready for winter.

(Please note that if you click on the images they are enlarged for a better view)

This is the first contest we've been involved in since returning from a highly successful and enjoyable DX-Pedition to the Isle of Arran in September. Damien G0LLG has taken on the responsibility of Contest Manager and although not in the best of health, with the help and support of his partner Annette they have lead by example in so many ways.

Antenna's masts and accessories were collected from storage and we headed up to Oysterber Farm arriving in the early afternoon on Friday, the day before the contest. A small group of members set to work putting the masts and antenna's up for the 2010 CQ WW SSB Contest which once running lasted for a full 48 hours.














This picture shows Damien instructing the team on which of the guy ropes to either add or release tension on before tying them off. under his guidance the mast will have a good vertical length without sections bending out of shape. This is the mast that will support the nest of dipoles Topband, 80 and 40 metres.

A welcome place for rest and relaxation














Damien and Annette's Caravan along with the big tenty thing were sited in a fenced off paddock at Oysterber Farm for touring caravans. Whilst Damien and the rest of the team got busy with the antenna's, Annette set to work pumping the inflatable mattresses up ready for contest operators to get some much needed sleep away from the station. The Caravan was also a place where members could meet and socialise away from the contest. The antenna seen in this picture is our 20m phased vertical.

Technical and Antenna Team
Damien G0LLG, Faris M0ZFA, Martin M0ZIF, Paul M6PEW, and Hughie G4UME were joined by Ian G0VGS to set the antenna's up and many were just finishing off at 7pm. Faris set our internet link up and Ian made sure the computer was setup with the N1MM logging software..

We have found an effective way of adjusting ground-planes that can be seen in this picture. We purchased packs of electric fence posts from the internet. They are fairly cheap, offer a number of height settings for the wire and very lightweight.

Antenna's used for this event were:

• Nest of dipoles: Topband 80 and 40
• 20m Phased Vertical
  
• 40m Vertical
• 15m Vertical
  

One of the funniest things we saw whilst putting the masts up was Hughie walking down the field with a flock of sheep following behind in perfect pace.... if Hughie stopped, they stopped. Sadly I could not get the camera out in time to catch this. The picture above was taken the following day of our very own Dr. Doolittle.

Damien did a sterling job organising operating slots so that the event was covered, operators worked for two hours before another member took their slot. I started the ball rolling 1am till 3am....














Hughie arrived well before his allotted time, but he came baring a freshly made flask of coffee and biccy's that are never turned down. Damien took over from Hughie and later set too as QM for the event preparing breakfast.














Bacon, Irish Sausage, Tomatoes and Free Range Eggs. Ian has been very passionate about us using free range egg's and Damien and I learned why as Ian related his experience as a BT engineer.

Ian told us of visits he had to make to sites where battery hens were kept and how upset he became after each visit at the conditions these hens had to live. I'm not on any crusade in mentioning this but both Damien and I were touched by his sincerity and feelings as Ian relayed his experiences.














Looking back down the meadow towards Hancock's Hut..... The beam antenna was not in use by the group, but Barrie has enjoyed some good contacts on it over the last few months.














Hancock's Hut and a lovely holly bush overloaded with red berries.














Operators during the day were on Saturday:
Hughie G4UME, Brian G0RDH, Damien G0LLG, Ian G0VGS, Faris M0ZFA, Andrew G0LWU














A lovely view taken in the early morning from the front of Oysterber Farm. If you enjoy activating the SOTA summits you can see one in the distance behind the tree's many will have climbed.

Saturdays Evening Meal:
Barrie Kathy and Stephany treated us to a great 3 course meal on Saturday night. Ian stayed with the Station to keep the points coming in and I took over operating at 9pm.

Starter: Homemade Potato and Leek Soup














Potato and Leak soup made by Barrie with plenty of double cream. (Those bowls are larger than you think, there was no skimping on portions)

Lemony-garlicky lamb stew with a Greek influence


















Have you ever seen a happier man!

The link below shows the recipe Barrie used
http://www.mumsnet.com/Recipes?call=RecipePage&pid=2464














Barrie also gave me a few tips in area's he had modified from the original recipe seen below in a green font.

I also added a generous helping of Black Greek Olives, a tin of Tomatoes and of course a couple or three glasses of Wine, I used Red as I had no White, I have done it with both and it doesn’t matter.

The real secret is to marinade it at least overnight and if possible I like to leave it for 2 nights in the Fridge, of course stirring it regularly.

2 hours in the Oven is fine, I have also done it using the Slow Cooker, even better, there was too much on Saturday to do it that way though.

The rice was cooked by Barrie's wife Kathy and cooked to perfection complimenting the rest of the meal perfectly. Kathy works tirelessly behind scenes in the kitchen playing such an important part in making sure the evening is an event to remember.

Sweet: Apple and blackberry pie

This was made by Stephany with fruits she collected from the farms apple trees and hedgerows.

Barrie bringing our sweet to the table with Stephany wondering how she managed to make such a big pie.

The pie was served with double cream, much needed to keep the graveyard shift a little warmer in the night.

I can taste this sweet just by looking at it.... beautiful!

Whilst we were all enjoying the meal, Ian opted to stay with the station and get a few more points in the contest.

I took over at 9pm to allow Ian to get some food and rest. Ian returned at 11pm to give me a break.

I took over from Ian again operating into the Wee small hours of the morning when I was joined by Damien.














Damien worked the rest of the night until the daytime operators arrived.....














It's Breakfast time again!

Here's a few pictures of our vertical masts and antenna's



























Ian used a new pole bought the at the GQRP convention a week before the contest, this was broken by one of the sheep who thought it made a good scratching post. Around a foot was broken from the base but we were able to carry on. Since the event our Elder Statesman Hughie has modified the base of the masts with UPVC overflow pipe which works great.














Over night a few rams managed to get into the meadow which is fenced all round either by fencing or thick hedgerow.... Its a mystery how they got in and they were not all that eager to leave.

Back to the contest
Sunday was another good day for contesting operators for the day were:

Damien G0LLG, Ian G0VGS, Chris G4LDS, Martin M0ZIF, Andrew G0LWU, Kev G6FKE

This has been a good contest with many parts of the world worked, all the bands were good to us and Kev particularly enjoyed his time on topband which was new territory because the group have been working all the other bands.

Damien and Annette were good enough to treat the group to Steak Pie and Chips for Sunday nights meal.

Our thanks go out to Barrie and Kathy for hosting the event and supplying another feast for our Saturday evening Meal.

Damien and Annette for all the work they put into the event both as Contest Manager and hospitality.

And of course thanks to all the stations who worked G1T (Golf One Tango) during the contest.

And thanks to everybody who takes the time to read my ramblings during the course of the year.

This is the last major Group contest for 2010 but we will be active during the RSGB Sprints and other contests during the festive season.

The next Blog will cover the GQRP Convention

73 for now

Brian G0RDH
(The Reluctant Contestor)

Some final thoughts before "Sailing Home"

Hello Folks,

Its just over three weeks since we left the Isle of Arran after a DX-pedition filled with a mixture of good and bad weather and the odd disaster but a week that can truly be described as memorable.
































Paddy is leaning across the wing of Marks car as Mark frantically tries to take the St. Georges Flag off his mobile whip for fear of upsetting the locals.

On our final day I took Paddy and Mark down to the local pub in the village of Kildonan


















Nice picture by Paddy














Another of Paddy's pictures


















The propeller seen above was salvaged and hung on a barn wall close to the pub. I have done a little research on the propeller since arriving home and discovered that it's thought to be the prop from an American Wildcat aircraft. These aircraft were commonly used on aircraft carriers. Its thought that this prop had been ditched overboard from a carrier.

A major film you can see these plane in action is "The battle of Midway"












This is the second DX-pedition that we have had the pleasure of working with Steve, Paul and Mark from Workington and the first time with our CW operator Brendan from Ireland, each of whom brought their own expertise to the event that we were all able to learn from.

Over the course of the week we were able to run six stations and experiment with an array of antennas. We had a nest of dipoles for 160m, 80m and 40m at a height of 15m, fed with one coax for the ragchew station.

We used switchable 2 element vertical 1/4 wave phased arrays for 20m and 40m.

We used a 1/4 wave vertical for 30m on a 12m mast

We used a 5/8 vertical for 17m

We used 1/4 wave verticals for 15m and 10m

When the mast arrived, we erected a 1/4 wave vertical for 80m on an 18m mast. This had a coil at the base for matching.

We also used 2 unterminated 100m beverages, one running north/south and the other east/west which worked very well.

We also had small beams for 6m, 2m and 70cm

We had great food prepared and cooked by Paddy and Mark. This was our last evening meal and what a meal it was. Mark can be seen below just checking the Gammon Roast. The crackling was glazed with honey and marmalade.

























As the sun goes down on our final evening on the Isle of Arran we tucked into our evening meal.... Gammon and Veg followed by Chocolate Pudding topped with custard.











An army marches on its stomach and we were treated to many excellent meals. Full English breakfast, sandwiches for lunch and a two course evening meal served with white or red wine.





































Each of the Dx-pedition members took something home with them as they reflected on their personal experiences. The pictures above have Steve taking a little personal time before breakfast enjoying a Wainwright moment in the peace and tranquility that the Isle of Arran has to offer.













Ian G0VGS giving Smudge the farm cat a last fuss before breakfast.













Here's a picture of the DX-pedition members just after breakfast on our last morning on Arran










































We managed to get an earlier ferry than planned which saved us an hour or two, getting home just after 4pm. By the time we had unloaded all the equipment it was just gone 5pm.

Thanks to all the stations who worked us over the week and to everybody who made this DX-pedition possible.

73 Brian G0RDH
The reluctant Contester