[VHFcontesting] Why are no VE1s on 222?

[David Olean]

You are correct sir! The 500 watt unit has two FETS (2 X 250 watts) 
while the 1500 wattt units have six devices for 6 X 250 watts = 1500 
watts. There is also a 1000 watt unit that you have, with 4 X devices. 
The only thing needed to make them "good" is a harmonic filter and a 
robust protection circuit to protect it from hamster mistakes. I 
documented my actions in the Northeast VHF Conference and Microwave 
Update Proceedings for 2023. I think the writeup will be in the CSVHFS 
Conference book later in July or August.

I made up a 500 watt unit to use with a 12 volt PV/battery system at my 
shack and was very pleased with the results. It consumes 48 volts at 23 
amps. It puts out a bit over 500 watts with about 50% efficiency.

Dave K1WHS

On 4/24/2023 5:59 PM, k3sk at buckwalter.co wrote:
> Dave,
>
> I am curious about your Larcans as you mentioned 500W and 1500W units.    I wasn't aware there were 500W versions.   Mine has 4 devices and with 25W drive I get just over 800 watts output, so I always assumed it was a 1KW unit.   I've found very little info in things to be done to them for 222MHz other than what Terry W8ZN has published.    I run mine at 50V and what ever the "stock" bias voltage was/is.
>
> Are the 1500W units 6 devices and 500W only 2 of them?
>
> de K3SK
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: David Olean <k1whs at metrocast.net>
> Sent: Friday, April 21, 2023 9:44 AM
> To: Paul N1BUG FN55mf <paul at n1bug.com>; vhfcontesting at contesting.com
> Subject: Re: [VHFcontesting] Why are no VE1s on 222?
>
> Hi folks,
>
> I realize that any action on a VHF band is now a labor of love and not a source of instant gratification. There is no getting around it. You cannot justify getting on any band based on the economics of it either. Back a few years ago, old yagis were freely given away or hauled to the dump. Today a corroded and pitted 7 element 144 yagi will set you back $150. It is hard and I cringe every time I have to purchase anything.
>
> Our bands are under constant attack. Political leaders are not going to listen to you or me. Their decisions are cash based and I see the writing on the wall for ham radio. If we are not using the bands they will be gobbled up whenever there is a buck to be made.  My approach is to try as hard as I can to justify the allocation.  That requires regular activity and, unfortunately, it demands that you put together a very good station so that you can be heard.  It also demands commitment.
> The only way to get noticed on 222 from the hinterlands is to have meteor scatter, aurora, or EME capability. I was discouraged with the lack of any activity on 222 MHz here, and decided to do something about it. It is not easy. During the big March aurora, I could have been having a ball on 50 MHz with my 1.5 KW amp and antenna, but I stayed on
> 222.100 CW calling CQ in hopes of attracting attention.  I only worked a few stations, but I did work some, and I heard N4PZ in Chicago very well. It was a bummer that we could not complete, but I did send in a report to the CQ and QST VHF editors so that maybe someone will get out of their comfort zone and try something a bit more difficult the next time.
>
> W1GHZ has a nice 222 MHz transverter PC board available.  When he mentioned it to me, I decided that I would try to make one as I am a good candidate at 78 years of age and tremors in my right hand.
> Apparently Mouser has the parts list and ordering is a snap, plus I am learning the ins and outs of surface mount work. I hope to use my toaster oven to reflow the solder paste.  I have already built up 12 W6PQL surface mount directional couplers the old fashioned way with tweezers or toothpicks. It was a struggle with shaky hands, but I did succeed and I am proud that I never lost a part. A few flew off on the bench, but I found them!  I will report back when the transverter project is completed. WW1M is helping me with that project.
>
> I checked the amplifier pallet status here and there are three 500 watt amp pallets and 11 of the 1500 watt units. It would be nice to plop a
> 1500 watt unit down in New Brunswick or PEI, or Nova Scotia. I started ripping apart the first of the 1500 watt units yesterday with some metal work and am hoping to have a bunch of them done by mid summer. They will go to homes where there is scant activity. VE1 and VE9 do qualify!!  I sure miss working Bernie, VE1UT, guys in FN95 on VHF.
>
> Paul, I hope you get the upper hand with the exhaustion issues. I miss the big signal out of FN55!  K1PXE is the voice of Milford, but N1BUG IS the voice of Milo for sure!
>
> To finance my ham radio habit, I have been selling off old vacuum tubes on EBay. Who knew?  Ruggedized 6SN7s go for $100. Anything that says Western Electric is expensive.  My old stash of 417As is a gold mine.
> Two or three  audiophool tubes will finance a UHF transverter.
>
> Dave K1WHS
>
> On 4/21/2023 6:43 AM, Paul N1BUG FN55mf wrote:
>> Hi Mike and all,
>>
>> I have never seen 222 gear for sale at swap meets or the like here
>> either unless you count the very beat up, broken CushCraft yagi (11
>> elements?) I found at Hosstraders/Deerfield back in the late 1990s. I
>> rescued that poor thing from ending up at the scrap yard for $10 which
>> was probably more than I should have paid but after replacing several
>> elements that were snapped in half I had a lot of QSOs with it.
>> Admittedly I haven't been to any in a few years but used to go to most
>> of them. I did find a Microwave Modules transverter on Craigslist New
>> Hampshire in 2016 or 2017 and managed to find a way to obtain it with
>> lots of help from the VHF community. It is now for sale, but I suspect
>> shipping to Canada would cost enough to make it pretty uninteresting.
>>
>> Activity here in Maine is down for the same reasons. Some have gone
>> silent key, some have given up as QSOs have become harder and fewer.
>> I'm trying to avoid joining either group for a while longer!
>>
>> Sadly I am getting more and more discouraged with VHF. I want to love
>> it like I used to but the relationship has faded.
>>
>> I am still struggling with chronic fatigue (more like chronic
>> exhaustion) and have not managed to be on for a single 222 Activity
>> Night in many months. I tried extra hard for the 222 Sprint but it was
>> a no go.
>>
>> VHF contests are a real slog here now. If I run for 24 hours the 2
>> meter QSO rate runs around one per hour. I imagine that's probably
>> more than the VE1/VE9 guys got back in the VHF heyday. If so I don't
>> know what kept you guys interested! I have a much more capable station
>> now than I did back when 70 to 100 QSOs was the norm. Obviously 222
>> and 432 QSOs are fewer in number.
>>
>> Bill seems to do well from FN54 but I think superior QTH plays a big
>> role in that. Being 50 miles closer to most of the stations probably
>> doesn't hurt either.
>>
>> I don't want to give up, but I don't know how to put the fun back in
>> it. Back in the day there was EME to take up the slack and keep the
>> spiders blown out of the HV (literally! Yikes!) but now there's not
>> that and stuff just gathers dust. The bald eagles enjoy sitting on the
>> 2m antenna as it is the highest lookout spot around by some 30 feet
>> and they have a nest nearby.
>>
>> I am reminded of something Dave, W5UN (SK) told me when I tried
>> returning to 2 meter EME in the early 2000s. He said the bloom came
>> off the rose some years before that in terms of activity. I would say
>> the same of VHF terrestrial activity now, at least in terms of what
>> can be worked from here.
>>
>> Sorry about the long winded commentary.
>>
>> 73,
>> Paul N1BUG
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On 4/20/23 19:57, Mike Smith VE9AA wrote:
>>> Dave asked, so here's one possible explanation.
>>>
>>>
>>> Probably at one time there were 1 or 2 VE1's(Ve9's as well) on 222
>>> but the reasons are likely many why there is little to none now.
>>>
>>>
>>> Equipment is more expensive in Canada as a rule and not as plentiful
>>> on the
>>> used market, especially out East where
>>>
>>> there are way less of us guys (especially now).  For example, I have
>>> never,
>>> in the last 45yrs, ever seen a used 222MHz rig or transverter at a
>>> swap shop
>>> or on our local Internet (or Telnet/Packet back in the day), swapshops.
>>> Never, as in not even once!
>>>
>>> (If I had, I would've bought one by now.even if only to give Dave,
>>> Bill/DY
>>> and Paul/BUG a Tuesday night Q, hi hi)
>>>
>>>
>>> There used to be a healthy (for our area) amount of guys on 144MHz CW
>>> and
>>> SSB and a few also on 6m and 70cm, but the truth of the matter is
>>> most of
>>> them are now SK.  When I came on the VHF CW/SSB scene around 1988 I
>>> was one
>>> of the youngest VHF allmode guys around(I had already been on HF CW for
>>> 10yrs prior to that-since 14yrs old).  Fast forward 35yrs, and I am
>>> now 59
>>> and all those guys who were active or mentors are long since SK. Back
>>> in the
>>> late 80's/early 90's I could count on around 12-13VE QSO's on 2m in a
>>> VHF
>>> contest and I could always get WA1T and sometimes K1WHS to hear us
>>> "off the
>>> back" so now, for me to be QRV in a VHF contest on legacy modes means
>>> working several Maine and NH stations for an entire weekends worth of
>>> work..and virtually nobody in VE1/VE9/VY2...so I simply don't bother
>>> most of
>>> the time.
>>>
>>>
>>> Even the VHF repeaters, their sysops and packet networks have mostly all
>>> gone silent so many don't even have FM equipment (or antennas), let
>>> alone
>>> all-mode gear.
>>>
>>>
>>> So it's a bit of a convoluted answer but a lot of it is the fact
>>> there just
>>> weren't/aren't a lot of hams here to begin with and what there were are
>>> largely no more, sadly. (or if they are still alive, have moved QTH..for
>>> example, VE9CB once very active on HF and VHF is now VE3KG, who I
>>> think is
>>> QRV on 222MHz from his place in Eastern Ontario.)
>>>
>>>
>>> Sorry for the long winded reply Dave !
>>>
>>> -Mike
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