Where can I sell some foxhunting gear - a 2m HT, handheld yagi, attennuator and fox programmer?

Don't buy the MFJ!  I had two, neither were pre-drilled correctly.  The Cushcraft is decent quality for under $100.  Hope that helps.

MarkF
K1MKF

Just cuz there is a contest every weekend does not mean everyone competes in every one.  Some pick and choose.  Some operate for an hour here or there.  Baseball teams play 81 home games in a season.  I go to 3 or 4.  If they only played 4 home games they would be overcrowded and I wouldn't have a choice.  I think of contests the same way

He had a kit years ago.  The PSK transciever was the off spring of this kit and then he stopped offering the SSB kit.  He never offered it assembled and tested because he said it would be priced to high to be attractive.

At one time he was designing some type of low band SSB transciever for an overseas market.  Dave was considering a 75m version which I thought would have been great for portable NVIS ARES use.  I've have never seen it offered.

Now, I think Dave could adapt that design to the new 60m band and it would be a HUGE success.

MarkF
K1MKF

I have a strange problem with my Yaesu FT-2600 mounted in the vehicle.  The pwer is attached directly to the battery.  First the radio would not power off.  You turn the volume counterclockwise until it clicked but the power stayed on.  I used it for a couple months like this relying on the auto power off to shut it down.  Now I can't turn it back on.  Anyone run into a similar problem and how did you fix it?

Thanks,
Mark, k1mkf

I have a FT-817, as a second, portable, QRP rig.  I would never recommend it as a first or primary rig.  I had the FT-840 and it is the perfect first rig.  (The Icom IC-718 or other discontinued models are also good)  If you are looking for a QRP only rig and don't care about VHF/UHF or weight then the new Icom IC-703 offers a little more power, dsp and an auto antenna tuner.  Nice radio!  A good choice as a primary radio if you want a QRP radio.

Mark F

Certainly a greenstamp, two or three is fine for DX.  I believe a $1 will cover Canada, Mexico and most of western Europe.  $2 the most of the world and $3 for the south Pacific.  Of course some countries are more than others.  Also, are you just covering return postage or are you helping to offset the DX QSL printing costs, too?  When there is a US QSL manager I usually send a SASE with no GBs.  I'm not sure how well that is received.  Many QSL managers are managing several DX calls.  They also distribute mailings with the QSL for other prodicts or services.  This makes one wonder if it is a business or if the business is supporting his being a QSL manager.

Worked them and agree it was a first rate operation.  Did the QSL direct route with an SAE and a few greenbacks.  I got my card in a couple weeks.  A great experience for a newcomer to the DX world.

As for procedure, we could argue all day about which is faster and what is technically legal.  Bottom line for me is to have a QSO.  In all I've read a QSO consists of exchange of callsigns, acknowledgement and one additional bit of info, like "59".  That's what I look for.

with most contests you can send in just a log of contacts, written on a piece of paper or a print out from your logger, and it will be used as a check log.  Your score won't be computed and published.  But, you call will be listed for check logs and you'll help out with the contest log verification.

I felt the same way you did.  Even though I had a computer I started logging in a paper log.  Several years later when I started chasing paper I had to input all those past QSOs into the computer.  I still haven't logged them all and I don't know which ones I've QSLed and which ones I haven't.  My advice, start out with a simple logging program and when out of the shack use a notebook and input them when you get home.  I use and recommend the Amateur Contact Log by N3FJP.  http://www.n3fjp.com/  It works fine for me and you can't beat the price, $19.

Mark

I don't understand the rules governing echolink, etc.  Can any licensed HAM set up a 2m radio interfaced to the internet then leave it running, unattended, 24/7?

Also, does a 2m rig parked on a simplex frequency, IDing every so often mean that frequency is occupied?  Does good amateur practice prevent me from using that frequency for a good old fashioned simplex QSO?

why not try a loop or if you have the space a pair of phased loops.  A beam would have to be turned while a pair of loops can get you gain and omnidirection at the same time.  There where plans on this website not long ago.

how does one match an end fed 1/2 wave dipole to coax?

From my readings I understand that a full wave loop antenna (L=1005/freq in Mhz) is a good antenna.  I understand the larger the area (more sides) the better but 4 sides is good enough and 3 sides is minimum.  The parts I don't understand, because many authors conflict, are two fold.  1) Can it be fed directly by coax (no Balun, no Tuner, no Ladderline)?  2) Is it also reasonant on all multiples of the designed frequency?  i.e. an antenna cut for 7.125 will be good on 14.250, 21.375 and 28.5 Mhz.

Personally, for SSB I recommend a small (3 el) yagi.  The long booms have great gain but require more work to point and the nulls can totally kill a signal off to the side.  On 6m I prefer to hear them all.  I have no first hand experience but have heard than loops, halos and the like are great for omni coverage and you can stack a couple for gain.  Of course if you are doing FM work you need to buy a good vertical like Diamond or Comet.