Congrats on two sats in one day with multiple QSOs.  Sounds like you're on a roll there.


It's called track by post-it note.  Just mark down the upcoming pass times for AOS, LOS, and highest elevation with the AZ/EL measurements on a post it note and stick it to your radio.  All you need to do from there is keep an eye on the clock so you know where to aim based on your notes.  It gets you pointed close enough to hear something and then you can fine tune your aim by signal strength.

73,  Scott.

Sorry I don't have any current leads on a new down-converter.  Most of the ones I've seen for sale were old ones floating around at a hamfest so shop around and you might get lucky.  The most popular use for them theses days is as a way to get around a birdie on the TS-2000 that's in the middle of SO-50's downlink frequency.  I used one once to hear FO-29 on my HF receiver so they do work, but I never owned one as I eventually went and bought a 70cm rig.

As for my SO-50 problems, I've listened for it on a different antenna setup with good copy so it might be something with my location or antennas.  The downlink is less powerful than some of the previous FM sats so it's a more challenging target to hear than AO-51 was, but it's not like you need an EME setup to hear it.

Ah, all this talk of broadcast radio is bringing back memories of my time as a DJ on the college radio station.  Fun days.

But back on the subject of satellites, I'll vouch for ARR's preamps as that's what I'm using (10m & 70cm).  Not too expensive and work incredibly well.

I'd almost say go for the linear sats (VO-52, AO-7, and FO-29) rather than SO-50.  I never had any problem getting the 70cm downlinks on AO-51 or AO-27, but even with the preamp, I have always had an awful time trying to hear SO-50. 

Another potential option if you're getting antsy to make contacts would be to see if you can find a 70cm-10m downconverter to put on your HF rig.  Between that and your TR-751A, you could work Mode J (V/U) in the interim which would cover both FO-29 and SO-50.

Finally, one more link for rotors.  Norm's Rotor Service, which carries the old Alliance U110 rotors http://www.rotorservice.com/press3-alliance.htm

Unless you live in a concrete block house, operating indoors is not too bad for 2m & 70cm.  My shack is in the sunroom in the corner of the house and I don't notice much difference between aiming out the window, through the roof, or going through the rest of the house.  I usually need to let the satellite get up about 10-15 degrees before I hear anything, but I'm good from there.  As far as transmitting, I can hear myself on CW with just 5-10W, but I need to crank it up a bit more for SSB.  Moving the antennas up and outdoors would let me work down closer to the horizon, but it's been functioning well enough that I haven't been in a hurry to move the yagis outside so far.

The camera tripod setup evolved out of giving ARISSat-1 a try and getting hooked on chasing satellites.  I had the 2m yagi strapped on to the tripod with a shoelace so my arm wouldn't get tired.  From there, I picked up a 70cm radio and antenna, upgraded to the TR-751A for 2m all-mode, and after juggling two radios and an antenna for a while, the 70cm antenna was tied to the 2m antenna to free up an arm.  I've been running this configuration for a while and so far nothing has fallen over (the 2m antenna is horizontal with the 70m yagi sitting vertically).  The nice thing with camera tripods is they have a tilt/pan head on them which makes aiming easy.  Just make sure it's nice and sturdy (something rated for a medium format camera, for example) so it won't tip over with an antenna or two hanging off of it.

Considering your setup, I'd say the next thing to get is a 2m antenna with some gain, either commercial (4-element 2m antennas seem to go for around $100) or just build one.  It should be enough to let you start listening for the Mode B downlinks on VO-52 and AO-7 or the telemetry signal on UO-11 (145.825 MHz FM, when it's on).  I'd save the preamp for after you get a 70cm radio and antenna.  I picked up a 70cm preamp to hear FO-29 better, but I've been able to get by without one on 2m so far.

The other thing that might be worth looking in to is see if you can hear AO-7's 10m downlink when it's on Mode A.  It's more challenging to hear than the 2m or 70cm downlinks, but since you were able to work RS-12/13 it might be worth a try.  Check the satellite status page http://oscar.dcarr.org/ to see what mode AO-7 is in as it alternates between Mode A and B on roughly a 24-hour cycle.  It doesn't seem to be as active as Mode B, but if you have the 10m setup, it can't hurt to try.

73, Scott.

Considering I have the same radio (TR-751A), I'll describe my satellite setup as it sounds like something that may fit your requirement of keeping it all in the shack.

In addition to the TR-751A, I have a TS-811A for 70cm, a pair of yagis (Cushcraft 4-element 2m, M2 6 element 70cm) strapped to a camera tripod, and a ARR 70cm preamp.  I tend to listen to the linear sats (AO-7, FO-29, and VO-52) and it works remarkably well for an indoor setup.  I usually leave the antennas at a fixed tilt and just give them a spin as the satellite goes by.

Even if you're not interested in the linear sats, try and see if you can hear VO-52's beacon (145.860 MHz plus or minus for doppler).  That will probably answer the question of whether your current antenna will work.  It's probably the strongest signal up there right now (unless you catch the ISS during a school contact) so if you can't hear it, you'll be better served with a stronger antenna.

If you're wanting to work FM, check to see if your Kenwood has the board for sending PL tones installed as you'll need them for SO-50.

Hope this helps.

JSatTrack: http://www.gano.name/shawn/JSatTrak/

It's Java based so it works on a variety of platforms (Mac, Windows, Linux) and it can download new keps off the Internet.

I run two radios full manual and here's how I learned it:

Start with CW.  Even if you don't know Morse or want to work SSB, the doppler correction is the same either way.  And for a beginner, it's a lot easier for your ear to focus on a carrier tone than it is to listen for yourself on voice.  You can hear the pitch change with the doppler and if it sounds distorted, you're probably putting too much power in to the transponder. 

Most of the activity on the linear birds is focused around the middle of the passband.  If you tune about 10 kHz in from the top or bottom of the band, it's usually a nice empty space to practice in without needing to worry about drifting in to anyone if you get it wrong.  In the case of VO-52, 435.270 MHz will usually drop you in around 145.880 MHz on the downlink.  Start sending dits and adjust your downlink frequency until you find your signal.  From there, keep sending dits but now adjust your uplink frequency instead to keep the pitch constant.  Once you get the hang of it on CW, switch your transmitter to LSB and give SSB a try.  Receive will always be USB.

Hope this helps and have fun!

Is the satellite hobby in decline?  From a construction standpoint, I find that hard to believe with all the new groups sending up a satellite for the first time.  It may not be as exciting as getting another AO-40, AO-51, or VO-52, but I'm sure that for all those hard working people who manage to get a satellite built, launched, and in orbit in an operational state, that has to be quite a thrill, even if it is as simple as a CW beacon.  AMSAT started that way with the early Oscar satellites so hopefully the successful ones will come back with more ambitious satellites capable of two-way communication that we all love.

And speaking of transponders, it's interesting to see how everyone has their favorite one:

Linear - Probably the "classic" one due to it's long history and is currently the best represented in terms of operational satellites (AO-7, FO-29, and VO-52).  It may be more challenging to operate than the FM sats and requires a SSB/CW capable radio, but the advantage is it can support multiple QSOs at the same time.

HEO - The Phase 3 satellites were a much more ambitious project.  They were more challenging to operate than the LEO linear birds, but the reward was a huge footprint and a pass that could be measured in hours instead of minutes thanks to their elliptical orbit.  Sadly, fate has not been kind to the Phase 3 project ranging from the loss at launch of P3A to the problems that led to the early demise of AO-40.  And it sounds like AMSAT-DL is certainly having to deal with plenty of challenges with P3E be it ITAR restrictions or finding a launch for a large satellite weighing several hundred pounds that doesn't cost a fortune.  Hopefully their luck will improve and P3E will see orbit someday soon.

FM - Probably the easiest satellites to work with a less expensive hardware requirement and a simpler mode of operation than the linear or HEO birds, it's easy to see how these are very popular satellites with the rapid fire stream of contacts that I always heard on AO-51.  We're down to SO-50 as the sole remaining FM transponder but Fox-1 should give some relief those longing for another FM sat.

Of course, everyone has their favorite and going by some of the comments here, it's with a passion that rivals a Ford vs. Chevy debate to make the automotive analogy.  Some enjoy the frantic pace of the FM sats while another group may prefer the more laid back linears.  Then there are others that long for the DX opportunities which were available on the Phase 3 birds.  It just shows what a diverse groups we are.  Thankfully, it sounds like we have something in the works for everyone, be it P3E, Fox-1, or KiwiSat.

Until then, have patience, enjoy what's up there now, and support your favorite satellite-in-progress!

You're probably going to get a different answer from each person who replies this, but here's my two cents.

I think the first question is will you be going after just the FM birds (AO-27 & SO-50) or will you be attempting the linear satellites (AO-7, FO-29, and VO-52) at some point in the future?  This will have the biggest impact on what radio(s) you go with.  If you want to work the linear satellites, then you'll need something that supports SSB and full-duplex operation (either as a function of a dual-band rig or two radios) so you can find yourself on the transponder.  If you're just interested in the FM birds and want to be ultra-portable, then you can probably get by with a pair of HTs or a mobile if you want more flexibility.  Either way, you'll need something that supports both 2m and 70cm (ex. AO-27, FO-29, and SO-50 uplink on 2m, downlink on 70cm).

Cost was something of an issue for me as well so I went with a pair of old Kenwoods (TR-751A & TS-811) which let me listen to both FM and linear sats, gave me full-duplex operation, and cost way less than a new TS-2000.  Of course buying used gear can have its hazards (sometimes you get a perfect rig, sometimes it needs some repairs), but it's one way to keep the price down when you're just starting out.

Hope you keep trying on the satellites as well.  Practice and persistence does pay off.

Hang in there and keep practicing.  VO-52 was a tough one for me as well.  It was easy to hear, but I had a really hard time figuring it out when it came time to find my signal (by comparison, I heard myself on FO-29 on the first try).  Your offsets sound about right as I tend to use 435.270 up which comes in around 145.880.  The other thing that helps is slow your tuning down as much as possible as it's real easy to overcorrect and lose track of yourself.

I'm still a newbie at this myself, but I'm slowly getting the hang of it through practice.  Not easy, though, as I'm running full manual operation and rapidly running out of limbs to run the station with.  CW is working pretty well for the practice as I can usually key and tune the transmitter with the same hand.

If you were running 50W, that certainly explains the bad signal.  You were probably overloading the transponder and FM-ing.  Drop your power down to 5W and see if your signal quality improves.  And sorry to ask the obvious, but were you transmitting LSB or USB?

For reference, I'm using a M2 440-6SS 6-element yagi indoors for my uplink and it only takes about 7W for me to get in to VO-52.  As for orientation, I have the 2m antenna horizontal and the 70cm antenna vertical.

Were you trying again today?  I think I heard N5TEN on VO-52 this morning (about 9:40AM PST, 9 Sept).

Okay, I'm going to join the conversation here and tell the story of my shack as an example of a satellite setup on a relatively small budget.

When I was studying for my license last year, I never expected to get into the satellites.  But then I heard about the ARISSat test transmission on Yuri's night and decided to give it a go.  At the time all I had was a Kenwood TM-2530A 2M FM and a mobile whip to listen to the repeaters, so I picked up a Cushcraft A124WB 4-element yagi from HRO to up my chances of hearing something.  Sadly, the night was a bust (not my fault), but the gauntlet was thrown.  I picked a new target, UO-11, loaded up JSatTrack for tracking, and tried again.  This time, it worked, and I proved to myself that a small antenna strapped to a camera tripod with a shoelace could hear a satellite from indoors.  The big outdoor antennas with an AZ/EL rotor was optional.

Since then I've added a M2 440-6SS antenna for 70cm and picked up a TR-751A for 2M all mode and a TS-811 for 70cm so I can hear the linear birds.  All together, I've spent less than the cost of a new TS-2000, and I've had countless hours of fun challenging myself to see what I can do with my little setup in the sunroom at the back of the house.  I've heard ARISSat, UO-11, AO-27, AO-51, VO-52, the ISS, and have heard myself on AO-7 and FO-29. 

I will admit, it's not an ideal setup for transmitting since I'm running "Mode Octopus" where I'm juggling two antennas, two radios, a mic, etc. but for something to learn how to listen for the satellites, it's been great.  With two people running the setup, we managed to get a good QSO going on AO-7 once so it's more than capable of getting a signal out from indoors on just 5-10W.  Once I get the antenna situation improved (move the antennas to the roof with a rotor at some point), I should be able to get transmitting down to something a little more manageable, but I'm still enjoying myself in the meantime.

So my advice is take it one step at a time and use each success as the incentive to justify the next piece of equipment.  Maybe get a good yagi like the Arrow, Cushcraft, or M2 and put it up with a cheap TV rotor at a fixed 20 degree elevation as the next step.  From there the Yaesu G5500 becomes a lot easier to justify when the funds free up, and so on until you eventually reach the satellite setup you've been dreaming of.

Good luck.

Scott/K7WDO

Why do I feel like you're describing my ham shack?

Trying to hand aim my 2m antenna got old fast so I wound up strapping it to a camera tripod with a shoelace.  Gives me full azimuth and elevation movement.  If you're using a compact dual band antenna this may be a quick and easy way to give your arm a rest and allow you to enjoy working the satellites a little bit more.

Scott, K7WDO