Handy Gadgets of

VK3BJM.

 

I’ve collected a number of useful aids to my portable and mobile radio endeavours over the last few years.  These are the ones I’ve found most useful; some may seem obvious, and others less so.

 

1)                     GPS:  There are plenty of all singing, all dancing models about; I wanted a nice simple one that would give me location, height above sea level, beam heading and distance to locations stored in the memory.  I chose a Garmin eTrex, as it did that; was a nice compact size; and didn’t require me to sell my son into slavery in order to buy it.  Get accurate latitude and longitude data from the stations you want to work back to; at the very least one in each major population centre, in order to know what direction to point your Yagi in.

2)                     Compass:  Use in conjunction with the GPS to accurately point the Yagi.  Get one even if your GPS is high-falutin’ enough to include a magnetic compass function; a bog-basic compass doesn’t suffer from flat batteries.  But don’t use the ones found in those cheap Christmas crackers… (Quiet, all Goon Show fans)

3)                     Handheld Voice Recorder:  This I use mainly when mobile; to record time, frequency, call sign, signal reports and location information for contacts I make.  But it can also be very handy for making notes when out portable, especially if you intend to write up a report on your trip.  I use a micro cassette recorder – but only because it was a gift.  I’d love one of the new digital recorders; but, again, selling my son presents some ethical dilemmas.

4)                     CW Beacon Generator:  This is probably the most useful addition to my arsenal, and I use one both when mobile and out portable.  Mine was built from a PIC-based kit developed by Jeremy and Russell Lempke (VK3ZQB).  It stores 8 different call sequences, which can be sent as CW in tone form, or directly key the transmitter.  When set-up for the tone generator, it is inserted into the microphone line to the radio.  The call sequence I use the most sends “CQ de VK3BJM K”, followed by a 10 second receive period (during which I listen for responses) after which the cycle repeats.  This quick sequence means I don’t spend too much time transmitting, to the detriment of listening for replies.  Some propagation modes (MS and AEP) can have very brief useable periods – say a 30 second meteor burn, where there is enough time to complete a contact if you’re on the ball.  But if your beacon is locked in transmit for 30 seconds…  Well, stations listening for you will get a good dose of your beacon, but no cigar.

5)                     Head Lamp:  Battery-powered torch which, sitting on your head, leaves your hands free.  Use a halogen globe for the best light.

6)                     Post Level:  These are sold in hardware stores, and are used by the “Normals” to make sure fence posts are truly vertical when they are embedded in the ground.  I use one to make sure that my portable antenna mast is vertical – if it is not, and your antenna is not perfectly balanced, it makes it more vulnerable to the wind blowing it off the desired direction (generally just before you complete that vital record-breaking contact…).

7)                     Coffee Plunger:  It’s 5am in the Flinders Ranges, late July, and you’ve just dragged yourself out of your ice-encrusted swag for a meteor scatter “sched”.  You have a choice: rush off into the scrub, grab and kill a kangaroo with your bare hands and sup on its warm blood; or make yourself a nice cup of coffee.  I know which one leaves me feeling more human…

8)                     Folding Leg Saw Horse:  Very handy for when assembling the portable mast and Yagi.  I found a lovely one that folds its legs inside itself, making it very easy to store in the back of the vehicle.

9)                     1:250,000 scale Australian map CD ROM:  Available from GeoScience Australia and good map shops – all of Australia mapped at 1:250,000 scale, which is a good starting point for picking operating sites and planning trips.

10)                 Telescoping Squid Pole:  Available from fishing tackle shops, made from fibreglass tube and used by the “Normals” (if fisher folk qualify for that title) for squid fishing.  Collapsed it measures less than a metre long, it expands out to 7 metres long and is an excellent support for HF wire antennas.  Helps a lot if you are in an area without trees that can be used as supports.  What would you want a HF antenna for?  HF makes a very useful alternative to mobile phones, for liaison – especially in remote areas without cellular coverage!

11)                 Camera:  ALWAYS TAKE A CAMERA!

12)                 Hat and Sunscreen:  Reasonably self-explanatory – but an absolute necessity.

13)                 Fly/Mosquito net:  Nothing worse than being bitten by mosquitos until midnight (which is when they generally knock off), or eating your own body weight in little black bush flies…

14)                 First Aid Kit:  ALWAYS TAKE A FIRST AID KIT!

 

  

 

  

 

   

 

 

 

 

Updated 5/9/2005

 

 

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