SOTA QRP | VK3ERW

VK3PF 2m SOTA Yagi

During a SOTA activation in October 2014 I was lucky enough to use VK3PF's light weight 2m Yagi which is based on this design by DK7ZB.

80 meters is very difficult band to take on the road as a portable dipole (inverted V) due the long wires (40mt), the horizontal space required to erect a dipole and the height at which the dipole needs to be supported.

However, my vehicle HF antenna (Bushcomm Highlander 8 multi tap) covers the 8...

First SOTA with Yaesu FT-857D

On this activation I logged contacts on 10, 20 and 40 meters. As I had the necessary battery power (4.2Ah LifePo) and 100W TX power I spent a bit of time working DX on 20mt in the afternoon - unfortunately none of them were SOTA chasers.

This was the first time that I completely drained my batter...

MacBook interface for digital modes

Modern Apple computers such as MacBook Pro and MacBook Air do not have a "Line In" or "Mic In" to connect conventional radio interfaces.

Although the 4 pin "Headset" connector does have audio in and out (technically speaking), it will accept audio in only from a genuine Apple headset, connecting a...

QRP operation March 2014

QRP operation conducted from Keegan's Bridge on 8-9 March 2014

First SOTA activation

On 13 April 2014 I conducted my first SOTA activation on Huon Hill VK3/VE-237