Thanks to all who responded. Will try the LPDA with LMR-600 through a Bird
switch, which is low loss.
Bands of op will be 6m, 2m, 222, 432, 1.2 and possibly 900. This antenna will
double as a listening antenna for my AOR 5000 wideband receiver.
I will device a mechanism to switch to vertical polarization.
Best 73,
Ed
> On Sep 14, 2017, at 6:01 PM, vhfcontesting-request@contesting.com wrote:
>
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> Today's Topics:
>
> 1. Re: Log Periodic ? (Patrick Thomas)
> 2. Re: BATTERIES (Steve Stahl)
> 3. Re: Log Periodic ? (Zack Widup)
> 4. Batteries (Rick R)
>
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Message: 1
> Date: Thu, 14 Sep 2017 08:45:43 -0400 (EDT)
> From: Patrick Thomas <p-thomas@mindspring.com>
> To: VHF Contesting <vhfcontesting@contesting.com>
> Subject: Re: [VHFcontesting] Log Periodic ?
> Message-ID:
> <11834128.2005.1505393143713@elwamui-milano.atl.sa.earthlink.net>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8
>
> Like all things in contesting, I think it depends on one's goals and
> circumstances. Sure, an LPDA will not perform as well as long (maybe even
> mid-length) yagis. But... it also will cost less, take up less space in the
> vehicle, take up less space/weight on the mast, take less time to set up
> (assuming you start from scratch), and will only require one run of heavy
> coax. Plus obviously AN antenna will outperform NO antenna! And as others
> have mentioned, you can use it for a backup "any band that failed" antenna in
> the future, if you later graduate to a higher-performing setup.
>
> Cheap surplus coax switches of good quality show up fairly often on ebay that
> can handle frequencies up to 1-2 GHz at a couple hundred watts, switching
> between 6-10 connectors, and these are easily controlled by anything from an
> automated arduino to a pushbutton control panel, so I would not be turned off
> by the need for a switch.
>
> Just my thoughts on the matter. I considered building my own LPDA as there
> are many good calculators out there, but ended up with a large van for a rove
> vehicle, which will happily swallow many large antennas. Now if it would
> just run reliably....
>
> Patrick
> KB8DGC
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 2
> Date: Thu, 14 Sep 2017 06:39:14 -0700
> From: Steve Stahl <ke7ihg@gmail.com>
> To: "Steve (K1IIG)" <stephen.tripp@snet.net>
> Cc: vhfcontesting@contesting.com
> Subject: Re: [VHFcontesting] BATTERIES
> Message-ID:
> <CAGyh3WPQdb5pfvOTmSpBiYR0G2XenGttf-7AzMWQYG_v3CUW9A@mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8"
>
> In my current rover setup I'm using 2 group 24 deep cycles that I tie into
> my truck with a rv charging relay.
> Then I use a battery booster (N8XJK )to draw from the deep cycle batteries..
> My main rover radio is a Yaesu 847 which is very voltage sensitive.
> This works great, I never have a issue as far as power goes during a
> contest.
> MURPHY on the other hand. ....
>
> On Sep 14, 2017 6:01 AM, "Steve (K1IIG)" <stephen.tripp@snet.net> wrote:
>
> Barry,
> FYI, Car batteries are not the best choice for Roving but will work. Car
> batteries are designed to be charged and discharge just like in the car.
> They also do not like to be float (trickle) charged. To get around this
> people use a smart charger that removes the charge when it reaches full
> charge and then kicks in when it drops below a certain level. Car batteries
> are designed for CCA cold cranking and not designed for reserve usage.
> Marine batteries are designed for that type of service and can be float
> charged with no ill affects hence are a better choice for Roving. Running 2
> car batteries in parallel might not be the best choice either. When not
> being charged, they will drain against each other if not disconnected. They
> do make a dual deep cycle marine battery that can perform as a car battery
> and reserve battery. I probably did not explain this clear enough so check
> out this site for a better description. https://marinebatteryguy.com/
>
> Years ago I was told there are only 6 manufacturers of wet (flooded) cell
> batteries, Gould, Exide and a few others. Here is an interesting cut and
> paste I found.
> How many car battery manufacturers are there in the world?
> As of May 1, 2013, there are three major automotive starting flooded
> battery manufacturers in the United States. There are four absorbed
> glass-mat (AGM) starting battery manufacturers and there are four flooded
> deep cycle battery/major deep cycle battery manufacturers in the United
> States.
>
> There are dozens of brands of batteries made to different specs. Interstate
> seems to be one of the most popular car battery.
>
> 73's
> Steve
> K1IIG
>
>
> Interesting battery discussion. Also interesting that the IC-910 seems to
> take significant d.c. power.
> I've recently acquired an Icom IC-9100 and I'm trying to choose the 13.8v
> portable power source. Last weekend in the Sept VHF contest the rig was
> set up for the first time with my SUV, and I discovered that my usual
> single automotive (Sears Diehard) sealed lead-acid battery is
> insufficient. This battery has worked well with an FT-897 and an IC-7100,
> but the larger power drain of the IC-9100 causes the rig to reset itself
> on xmit.
> Is there a way to calculate how long two car batteries in parallel would
> last?
> I already have a small Honda generator although I don't usually bring it
> along unless I'm using an amp.
> Thanks in advance,
> Barry K7BWH
> Seattle CN87us
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: VHFcontesting [mailto:vhfcontesting-bounces@contesting.com] On
> Behalf Of Alan Larson
> Sent: Wednesday, September 13, 2017 3:42 PM
> To: vhfcontesting@contesting.com
> Subject: Re: [VHFcontesting] The digital modes and the Sept contest
>
>> Hi Alan. That is useful info re the ic910. I'm just curious what
>> type of batteries are you using.
>>
>> I've had considerable success running my ic7300, FT736, multiple
>> Icom706MkiiG's, an icom 735 IF radio, 300 watt amps on 50 and 144 MHz,
>> transverter, etc.. from two 12 V 100 AH Agm style batteries.
>
> Over the years it has varied, but typically I would have 25 - 30 amp
> hours of sealed lead-acid batteries in parallel with the starting battery
> of the diesel VW. Solar would be attempting to hold that up.
>
>> I took another 100 AH battery with a solar panel with me during the
>> June contest and used it to run an inverter that in turn powered the
>> battery chargers for the computers and also powered another charger to
>> top off the two radio batteries. I had ample power for approx 6 to 8
>> hours of operation including some MSK144 at close to full power on 50
> MHz.
>
> When operating from a small motor home, I have used 200 AH of battery
> feeding an inverter feeding a switching power supply to run the rig. In
> the more space limited Volkswagen, a small Honda generator has proven to
> be the most convenient option. (This includes consideration of the
> difficulty of getting all the items inside the Jetta.)
>
> For low power operation, I would still choose solar if available, but I
> wanted full power from the rigs.
>
> Alan
> _______________________________________________
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>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 3
> Date: Thu, 14 Sep 2017 09:23:42 -0500
> From: Zack Widup <w9sz.zack@gmail.com>
> To: VHF Contesting Reflector <vhfcontesting@contesting.com>
> Subject: Re: [VHFcontesting] Log Periodic ?
> Message-ID:
> <CANJxhWg1PRQmEQa_yxG7_-Tdh+cnqNsE0TrTK8u78mHfUNSqcw@mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8"
>
> I think if you're close to a metropolitan area with a lot of people to
> work who are close by, the log periodic is the way to go. Some of the
> Rovers in the Chicago area I know use LPDA's. My favorite portable
> location is about 100 miles from the closest stations I work. I have
> found it's advantageous to use a separate, larger beam with more gain
> for each band.
>
> 73, Zack W9SZ
>
>
>> On Thu, Sep 14, 2017 at 7:45 AM, Patrick Thomas <p-thomas@mindspring.com>
>> wrote:
>> Like all things in contesting, I think it depends on one's goals and
>> circumstances. Sure, an LPDA will not perform as well as long (maybe even
>> mid-length) yagis. But... it also will cost less, take up less space in the
>> vehicle, take up less space/weight on the mast, take less time to set up
>> (assuming you start from scratch), and will only require one run of heavy
>> coax. Plus obviously AN antenna will outperform NO antenna! And as others
>> have mentioned, you can use it for a backup "any band that failed" antenna
>> in the future, if you later graduate to a higher-performing setup.
>>
>> Cheap surplus coax switches of good quality show up fairly often on ebay
>> that can handle frequencies up to 1-2 GHz at a couple hundred watts,
>> switching between 6-10 connectors, and these are easily controlled by
>> anything from an automated arduino to a pushbutton control panel, so I would
>> not be turned off by the need for a switch.
>>
>> Just my thoughts on the matter. I considered building my own LPDA as there
>> are many good calculators out there, but ended up with a large van for a
>> rove vehicle, which will happily swallow many large antennas. Now if it
>> would just run reliably....
>>
>> Patrick
>> KB8DGC
>> _______________________________________________
>> VHFcontesting mailing list
>> VHFcontesting@contesting.com
>> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/vhfcontesting
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 4
> Date: Thu, 14 Sep 2017 15:01:03 +0000
> From: Rick R <rick1ds@hotmail.com>
> To: "vhfcontesting@contesting.com" <vhfcontesting@contesting.com>
> Subject: [VHFcontesting] Batteries
> Message-ID:
>
> <BLUPR19MB0113CDA53E6C8591E2FCAF52FA6F0@BLUPR19MB0113.namprd19.prod.outlook.com>
>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
>
> As a rover for 25 years, I have had much experience with batteries and rigs.
> Here are some experiences and thoughts:
>
> Many rovers running multiple big batteries (generally deep cycle marine type)
> also use the TGE voltage boosters (see Tim's QST ad) or the Jacobs Accuvolt.
> That way, you can set the voltage (say ~13.5V) to be delivered to the rigs,
> even if the battery runs down to 10-11 volts. Yes, the batteries then need a
> recharge and the vehicle's alternator needs to be capable of recharging the
> batteries between rover location stops. A fully charged marine battery that
> has a 100Ahr rating can usually run a 100W output rig for about 3 hrs,
> depending on how much of the time you are transmitting, based on my
> experience. Remember that that 100w output requires about 25 amps of power,
> 20 for the amp, and likely 5A for associated electronics like the computer,
> lights, rotor, possible inverter, etc. My 375W TE 2m amp draws 53A on xmt.
>
> Some rigs will not operate well once the voltage starts dropping to 12V or
> below. Most were designed to operate at 13.8V optimally. I have had that
> problem with my trusty old FT736R. I get bad audio reports when the voltage
> sags. Sometimes the digital freq display goes down, and that's the signal
> that the voltage is too low. I see others have had that experience, and the
> rig internal computer wants to reset itself.
>
> How have I managed over the years? I run the engine almost continuously when
> I rove, using the alternator to boost and recharge the batteries
> continuously. I use 6 marine batteries, all rated at 100Ah. Two sets are in
> parallel and 1 set in series for two of my uW amps that run off 24VDC. I have
> a 100A solenoid to switch the automobile power to the batteries and I have a
> 50A fuse in the line, and I monitor the charging with a 50A ammeter and a
> 0-20V voltmeter. I only charge the 12V parallel banks, not the 24V series set
> as those batteries generally last an entire weekend, as the amps they run are
> for 903 and 2304, and although the amps on those bands are about 100W each,
> they are used for far less transmitting on the weekend than does my 375W TE
> 2m amp. I have an E-150 1994 Ford van for roving and there is very little
> electrical hash when it is running. I also have a Honda 2KW generator, but
> never used it on the road as I had the above the scheme. My rover ran 160w on
> 6, 300
+w
> on 2, 120w on 222, 100w on 432, 100w on 903, 120w on 1296, 80w on 2.3, 40w
> on 3.4 and a few watts each on 5, 10 and 24G. Rick, K1DS
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Subject: Digest Footer
>
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> ------------------------------
>
> End of VHFcontesting Digest, Vol 177, Issue 28
> **********************************************
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