I’ve been struggling to get HF working for me. I replaced the Yaesu FT-818nd’s internal battery, and figured out that there is a 11.5V threshold to get the full 6Watts out (more info can be found in my previous blog post: https://m7isy.rootfs.net/2024/12/06/yaesu-ft-818nd-the-11-5-volts-that-nobody-told-you-about/). I attempted to check my propagation by using the reverse beacon network and… Continue reading Building a 1/4 wave ground plane for 20m
SOTA Activation report G/SE-002 (Leith Hill)
We decided to try to activate Leith Hill, as after checking the SOTLAS map https://sotl.as/map this was the easiest for us to get to. The tallest hill in Surrey, the summit is 295m high, with car parks taking you quite close to the top, meaning that is a fairly accessible peak. This was ideal for… Continue reading SOTA Activation report G/SE-002 (Leith Hill)
YAESU FT-818nd – The 11.5 Volts that nobody told you about
As stated in other posts, I started my amateur radio experience on a YAESU FT-818nd. A portable radio with an internal battery and an advertised max output power of 6 Watts: Four power levels are available on the FT-818: 6 Watts, 5 Watts, 2.5 Watt, and 1.0 Watt. When using Alkaline batteries or the supplied… Continue reading YAESU FT-818nd – The 11.5 Volts that nobody told you about
Quansheng UV-K5 / UV-K5(8) / UV-K5(99) / UV-K6
— UPDATE 2026: Quansheng has released a new version of their radios. While they look exactly the same, they do contain a different processor. Be careful when flashing custom firmware to it and only use firmware built for your hardware version. Flashing the wrong firmware can brick your radio! — It was time to pick… Continue reading Quansheng UV-K5 / UV-K5(8) / UV-K5(99) / UV-K6
Using the Yaesu FT-818nd microphone as a CW keyer
As part of our mission to figure out why we did not have any luck with HF on the Yaesu (see my previous post for more info: Why we bought a battery pack for our Yaesu FT-818nd), we decided to attempt to reach the reverse beacon network. The beacons are in ‘reverse’ because, unlike normal… Continue reading Using the Yaesu FT-818nd microphone as a CW keyer
Why we bought a battery pack for our Yaesu FT-818nd
Whilst my Dad was visiting, we decided it was time to have a go transmitting on HF bands. Well, to put it more accurately, I decided that he needed to trasmit on HF bands! (As whilst I am still in Germany, I cannot transmit). Although we had previously set up the end-fed antenna and mast,… Continue reading Why we bought a battery pack for our Yaesu FT-818nd
Using a repeater for the first time
Whilst my Dad (G8DUK) is visiting, we decided to try the 2 metre repeater located in Blankenese. This meant that we needed to configure the yaesu for duplex operation for the first time. This was actually very trivial, as we just needed to activate repeater operation, and the defaults were exactly what we needed (a… Continue reading Using a repeater for the first time
Trying out ARDF!
ARDF stands for Amateur Radio Direction Finding, a timed event, where you need to locate a certain amount of transmitters (also known as foxes) in a given time. You basically get a map, compass, and a reciever. As I used to do orienteering, I was fairly confident in my map reading skills, but I hadn’t… Continue reading Trying out ARDF!
First time guying the SOTA beams tactical mini
Previously, we had been leaning the SOTA beams tactical mini against nearby trees, but today we decided we would practice pegging it out properly, with the multi-functional guying kit. This means that we can be more confident, and prepared for the next (potentially tree-less) summit! The SOTA beams Multi-function Guying Kit (https://www.sotabeams.co.uk/multi-function-guying-kit/) comes with pegs,… Continue reading First time guying the SOTA beams tactical mini
CQ SNOWTA 2024-09-13
During the final days of our stay in Garmish-Partenkirchen, we awoke to discover that whilst we had rain down in the valley, the mountain tops had been dusted with snow, and we immediately decided to go up the closest summit, in order to enjoy it. Unbeknownst to us, this was Storm Boris, heralding it’s arrival… Continue reading CQ SNOWTA 2024-09-13