QST Product Review
Contents
1. Product Review and Short Takes from QST Magazine May 2008 Product Reviews Yaesu FITM 10R Dual Band Mobile Transceiver StepplR 40 30 Meter Upgrade Kit Short Takes Hendricks QRP Kits Long Wire Antenna Tuner Copyright 2006 by the American Radio Relay League Inc All rights reserved PRODUCT REVIEW Yaesu FTM Mobile lg Reviewed by Howard Robins WIHSR ARRL Contributing Editor The FTM 10R is a rugged weatherproof addition to the Yaesu VHF UHF mobile product line According to the ads it s aimed at outdoor motorsports enthusiasts The water proof control head can be separated from the main radio unit and is shown mounted on mo torcycle handlebars see sidebar The main unit which is not waterproof could be stored in a saddle bag or mounted under a seat The radio has many features includ ing some that distinguish it from the pack For starters it has a built in AM and FM broadcast band receiver wideband receiver coverage weather band with alert and 500 memory channels Transmitter power is 50 20 5 W on 2 meters and 40 20 5 W on 70 cm The FTM 10SR is similar but with 10 W on 2 meters and 7 W on 70 cm There s a microphone built into the control panel and it can be PTT or VOX activated The FTM 1OR is the first mobile radio I m aware of that can work with Bluetooth wireless headsets There s also an intercom feature that lets two Bluetooth headset users talk to each other I will get into det2. against the 40 2CD Yagi on contacts over moderate distances around the US On DX contacts more often the beam would have a slight but not dramatic edge Obviously the dipole has no front to back ratio Both 7 05 7 10 7 15 7 20 7 25 7 30 Frequency MHz Figure 5 Here s the 40 meter SWR with the driven element set to 7 05 MHz blue trace and 7 2 MHz red trace antennas are mounted at about 50 feet less than and too low for a Yagi to develop much of a pattern If the antennas were high er the difference might be more significant On 30 meters slightly over 2 A up there was little difference of note between the SteppIR element and the full size dipole The SWR on 40 meters was tunable to around 1 2 1 in any part of the band as shown in Figure 5 As shown for two settings in the band it can operate within a segment without retuning if desired On 30 meters the straight dipole element has an impedance of about 50 to 70 at resonance depending on height Because of the 2 1 transformer needed to match the lower impedance on the other bands on 30 meters the antenna has a resonant SWR of about 1 5 to 2 1 anywhere in the band On all bands except 30 meters the SWR was easily tuned to 1 2 1 or better while on 30 meters the internal antenna tuner in the FT 1000MP MkV transceiver used at the station had no trouble bringing it to 1 1 Changing between 40 and 30 meters takes about 10 seconds Changing from 40 mete
3. hotel room with a window that can be easily opened you can set up a station with little more than a discreetly dangling wire in the fresh air and another wire tossed onto the floor the counterpoise Other than occasional inquiries from suspicious housekeeping people the only problem you may encounter is matching the output of your transceiver to antenna The RF output circuitry in your radio expects a 50 Q impedance at the antenna jack but a long hunk of wire swinging in the breeze can present almost anything other than 50 Q at the feed point That s where an antenna tuner comes into play It acts like a variable impedance transformer to provide the match you need to deliver the full output of your transceiver to the antenna We tend to think of antenna tuners as bulky boxes but they don t always have to come in large packages If you re only running 5 W output you don t need a tuner rated at 1 5 kW At QRP power levels a tuner can do a fine job without large robust components The Hendricks QRP Kits SLT antenna tuner is a prime example At only a couple of inches across it is specified to handle up tc 10 W of RF power without break ing a sweat Unlike most antenna tuners you can carry the SLT in your pocket although it might raise eyebrows during an airport security screening It s called an antenna tuner Really The best part of the SLT aside from its performance and price is the
4. May 2003 pp 67 69 might better be viewed as a group alerting calling system in which all members use the same tones Note that if you are using a frequency that is shared with other users who are not part of your group you could inadvertently interfere with them when you transmit If the other users are not using your ECPS tones their signals won t open your squelch and you won t know they are using the frequency Messaging This feature allows you to program and send text messages of up to 16 characters to a group of up to 20 members The received message scrolls across the display on the receiving end All members must be using the same club frequency and have the same group member list IDs could be names or call signs Up to 20 messages can be stored and the same preprogrammed messages must be in the same slots in all of the group member radios Messages are not sent through a repeater and messaging cannot be activated when CTCSS DCS or Pager are activated Wireless Cloning The FTM 10R can transfer settings and data to other FTM 10Rs so that they are all set up the same This fea ture uses the Club Channel which must be set in the 70 cm band for this function Weather band weather alert The FTM 1OR is factory programmed with the 10 NOAA weather channels The severe weather alert monitors for NOAA s 1050 Hz tone alert After turning this feature on there is no indication of it on the LCD Intercom Wit
5. aside these parts can be reincarnated as a SteppIR dipole The parts discrepancies were resolved dur ing assembly As it turned out we were expected to use hardware from the original driven element This wasn t mentioned in the instructions possibly because this was one of the old timer original models The upgrade kit is sold for two three and four element Yagis plus there are the two ver sions of the three element Yagi Instructions to upgrade all four models www steppir com files 40 30manual pdf are combined in a single workflow This requires some very very careful reading before beginning the project Understand the entire procedure and don t rush Make sure you understand exactly where and how each new bracket and hole will go before drilling or cutting Mea sure at least twice and do a walk through If things don t look right stop and figure it out Dimensional drawings are easy to misread at first until making careful comparison with the actual antenna The instructions would have been much better with separate steps and checklists for each model I found that a two person team makes it a lot easier to figure out how to do things properly After mounting the motor housing and brackets and reconnecting the control cable we were instructed to perform the test func tion on the controller to extend and retract a few inches of tape The motors fired up and copper beryllium tape spewed forth from the housings with n
6. fact that you get the pleasure of building it yourself This is strictly a fe WA orpkite com 0 MATCH 01M OUT OPERATE CAPSgemAMCE WAVE TUNER single evening kit that even a beginner can handle What s Inside SLT stands for Switched Longwire Tuner It s an L network coupler built around a polyvaricon tuning capacitor and five toroid coils The toroids are switched in and out of the circuit with a row of toggle switches If your transceiver has a built in SWR meter that s fine If not the SLT provides a clever alternative thanks to an LED SWR indicator developed by Dan Tayloe N7VE The bright red LED glows when mismatch conditions are high and dims or goes out altogether when a 50 Q match is achieved The SLT kit contains just a handful of Internal view of the SLT parts The five toroids are of the single wire variety and simple to wind There is one bifilar toroid transformer but the winding is straightforward The downloadable PDF instructions show you how to go about it The only potential diffi culty involves the aluminum case There is a downloadable drilling template on the Hen dricks QRP Web site You have to print the template at the proper size to fit the case and then mark and drill the holes very carefully The board components are packed tightly and there is little room for error Take particular care with the holes you drill for the wire binding posts and the BNC coa
7. some guidance from SteppIR They suggested that before completely assembling the element prior to reinstallation of the antenna fold the end of one tubing section back toward the motor housing and hold it with tape as in Figure 4 Once mounted on the mast the tubing could be installed in the coupler and assembly completed This proved to be easier said than done and is highly dependent on the circumstances of the installation On the tubular crankup tower Mark uses it s not easy to work on the antennas and rotator Reaching out far from the tower and exerting any significant leverage is difficult The crew managed to complete the job with some tipping and tilt ing and improvisation My advice is to plan this step very carefully Take it slow and if things aren t working out stop and revise the plan Don t get frustrated at this last step and compromise the assembly Once assembled we tested the element and it was good to hear the tape rushing through the tubes as we Selected different bands Mechanically all was well Performance What s most important is of course How does it play and Does it screw up the rest of the antenna The answer to the first question is Fine and to the second No Operation on 20 through 10 meters seemed to be completely unaffected SWR and front to back did not exhibit any notice able difference from the original version The 40 meter dipole seems to hold its own
8. QST ARRL ADAM KOCZARSKI KA7ARK and Adam installed them for the summer 2007 riding season Adam installed his transceiver body under the seat Figure 1 Along with other electronic accessories it s pow ered from an auxiliary fuse panel and noise filter The control head is ona swivel mount on the handlebar Figure 2 The antenna a Comet CA 2x4SR dual bander mounts on a bracket at tached to a luggage rack at the back of the bike Inside his full face helmet Adam uses an Autocom headset The Autocom com munications system is a popular acces sory for riders equipping their bikes with cell phones MP3 players GPS receiv ers FRS transceiv ers or other audio communications equipment The only real dif ficulty encountered during installation was connecting the FTM 10R to the Au tocom control box At the time of instal lation no connector cable or information from each other and from the BH 1 So you need to consult the instructions that come with devices for their respective codes and how to get them into pairing mode The FTM 10R defaults to the code for the BH 1 The FTM 10R can be programmed to al low Bluetooth devices to work with VOX or with a PTT switch on the Bluetooth device If you do not use VOX you must push the PTT button on the BH 1 headset to transmit I found this uncomfortable because pressing ADAM KOCZARSKI KA7ARK about the FTM 10R s mic jack was available Re
9. ail about many of the special features later in this review Good Things Come in Small Packages The radio body is compact measuring about 1 5 x 4 25 x 5 5 inches height width ORebual Band Key Measurements Summary 0 16 0 25 0 14 0 1 Receiver Sensitivity 12 dB SINAD uV 96 10 MHzt Receiver 3rd Order Dynamic Range dB Ihe 60 79 10MHz 90 62 20 kHz 40 59 20 kHz 70 N Receiver 3rd Order Dynamic Range dB Ry 62 59 90 Adjacent Channel Rejection dB depth and the detachable control panel is 97 just over 1 inch deep The body serves as a massive cast aluminum heat sink so there is no cooling fan The FTM 10R comes with 105 135 hardware to support several mounting ar E Ri eon lE rangements and a 3 meter long separation 136 T cable An optional 20 foot separation cable is available for those bigger vehicles The control panel has a built in mic so a traditional hand mic is not necessary and not included with the radio Yaesu offers two optional hand mics one with a 16 key DTMF dual tone multi frequency keypad and one without You can connect the microphone to the rear panel of the main unit or to the control panel with an optional adapter that M connects to the bottom edge Note that the Off Scale V FTM 1OR uses a special microphone connec 70 cm tor so you ll need one of the optional Yaesu mics or adapters if you don t want to use the built in micropho
10. al was obviously writ ten in another language and translated into English I found some of the instructions confusing and needed to contact Yaesu for help Customer service was responsive and helped me through my questions Some errors we found have been corrected in the downloadable manual available from the Yaesu Web site A newer version is said to be provided with new radios There is no programming software or computer interface available or planned Once I got used to the procedures manipulating features was fairly easy With 500 memory channels and so many special features I think that programming software would help with keeping track of stored parameters and make updating more efficient to implement It is clear that Yaesu had motorcycles boats recreational vehicles and other non traditional mobile installations in mind when they developed this rig The receive audio is powerful enough to be useful in noisy environments The addition of Bluetooth and hands free operation is something that I think we will be seeing more of in mobile ra dios Use of VOX on repeaters is questionable in my opinion but for on the road simplex operation along with Bluetooth headsets it should be a welcomed capability Manufacturer Vertex Standard 10900 Walker St Cypress CA 90630 tel 714 827 7600 www yaesu com Kit aren t familiar with the SteppIR technology the elements of this Yagi are adjustable in length A special beryllium br
11. de to the basic 14 54 MHz design in 2006 that adds rotatable dipole performance on 30 and 40 meters This is accomplished by folding the SteppIR conductive metal tape element back toward the boom through a trombone esque bend at the end of the element The overall length of the element is about the same and it just looks like a pair of trombone slides connected end to end as shown in the lead photo The new element adds little ad ditional visual impact For 14 MHz and higher frequencies the tape is straight just as in a regular Yagi At the low end of 40 meters the ends of the two tapes are nearly touching in the middle From May 2008 QST ARRL H WARD SILVER N AX Below 20 meters the reflector and director elements are retracted and are not part of the antenna The fixed 6 meter element has no effect at these frequencies When ARRL asked if I would be interested in reviewing the new SteppIR 30 40 Meter driven element as an upgrade to the beam I jumped at the chance My former station and the SteppIR are now owned by Mark Aaker K6UFO and he quickly signed on to the adventure The station would offer a unique chance to evaluate the 30 and 40 meter capabilities of the upgraded antenna because about 70 feet away are a Cushcraft 40 2CD two element 40 meter Yagi and a full size 30 meter rotatable dipole at the same height 50 feet on another free standing tower Mark placed the order and we were on our way The 30 40 mete
12. e supplied hanger bracket or magnetic mount lend themselves to this method of operation On air testing demonstrated that the default mic gain setting was a bit too hot and when dialed back a bit provided perfect audio For the most part the FTM 10R menu programming is straightforward Pressing the VOL SEL key for 1 second gives access to 49 functions that are selected by turning the DIAL knob Another button is used to ac tivate or deactivate the selected function So 49 functions are adjustable using the same three buttons in the same way In traditional Yaesu fashion the menu items are numbered but also in alphabetical order which makes scrolling through them to find what you are Table 1 Yaesu FTM 10R serial number 7G030319 Manufacturer s Specifications Frequency coverage Receive 0 5 1 8 76 222 300 999 MHz cell blocked transmit 144 148 4380 450 MHz Power requirement Receive 0 5 A transmit 8 5 A max 11 7 15 8 V dc Modes of operation FM Receiver AM sensitivity 10 dB S N 0 5 1 7 MHz 5 pV 108 137 300 336 MHz 0 8 uV FM sensitivity 12 dB SINAD 137 150 420 470 MHz 0 2 uV 150 174 336 420 MHz 0 25 uV 800 900 MHz 0 4 uV 900 999 MHz 0 8 uV WFM 76 108 MHz 2 uV 174 222 MHz 1 uV 470 800 MHz 5 uV FM two tone third order IMD dynamic range Not specified FM two tone second order IMD dynamic range Not specified FM adjacent channel rejection Not specified S mete
13. ent was noise limited at the value indicated Volume control is stepped this is the closest step to 10 THD looking for somewhat intuitive In addition buttons on top of the control head are used for what is called the Smart Menu There are UP DWN buttons that scroll through functions such as squelch level and transmit power level that are used more rou tinely A third button labeled F changes the setting of the selected function There is also a Memory Set Mode with 13 memory channel items that can be manipulated This is where you can set the transmit power level for each channel add al phanumeric tags reassign channel numbers and so forth The clock also has its own set mode with six adjustable parameters It also functions as a timer or stopwatch Bluetooth and VOX Operation In recent years a lot of attention has been paid to developing tools for hands free cell phone operation With the inclusion of VOX and Bluetooth features operating the FTM 10R can be hands free too We ordered and installed the optional BU 1 Bluetooth adapter the BH 1 Bluetooth headset and the CAB 1 charger sleeve to charge the battery in the BH 1 headset After installing the adapter and charger sleeve the radio must be paired with the headset so that they recognize and communicate with each other I found that the pairing instruc tions were incorrect in the printed manual that came with this radio You must powe
14. h Bluetooth enabled riders and passengers can communicate with each other using Bluetooth headsets This can be useful while wearing helmets or while in environments with high levels of ambient noise Public Address Attach an external speaker and select PA from the Smart Menu and you have an 8 W public address system While in this mode the PTT opens the mic but does not key the transmitter WIRES Yaesu s Wide Coverage Inter net Repeater Enhancement System is sup ported in the Sister Radio Group SRG and Friends Radio Group FRG modes ARTS This feature uses DCS digital Bottom Line SteppIR s upgraded driven element provides rotatable dipole performance on 40 and 30 meters without compromising 20 10 meter performance coded squelch signaling to alert users when they are within simplex range of each other When activated a subaudible DCS code is transmitted for one second every 25 seconds or whenever the PTT is pushed If another radio with this feature activated is within range an audible beeper sounds if enabled and the LCD reads IN RANGE Polling signals continue until the ARTS feature is deactivated Three beeps sound if you go out of range for more than one minute and OUT RANGE is displayed I had only one FTM 10R to test for this review so was unable to actually test the unique features that require two or more radios paging messaging cloning and ARTS Final Thoughts The User Manu
15. ime Club Channel This is an enhanced call channel that can be programmed to any frequency in the 2 meter or 70 cm bands When Club Channel Monitor is activated the preset club frequency is watched every 3 seconds You can listen to broadcast radio an external audio device or another amateur frequency while keeping an eye on the club channel You can set an option to remain on the club channel after a signal is received there or to go back to watch mode m Paging The Enhanced Paging and Coded Squelch EPCS feature uses two stored CTCSS tones to open the receiver squelch and encodes two other tones that are sent when you key the transmitter When ac tivated a ringing bell sounds when the tones are received and the squelch is opened EPCS is intended to keep the receiver quiet unless you re called by someone transmitting the correct tones presumably a friend or fellow club member Each receiver in your group could be programmed with its own unique set of squelch tones but doing so would require you to maintain a list and manually select those tones each time you paged an individual From a practical standpoint EPCS otepplR 40 30 Meter Upgrade Reviewed by H Ward Silver NOAX OST Contributing Editor In February 2003 I had the opportunity to review one of the just introduced three element SteppIR Yagi antennas For those of you who 1H W Silver NOAX SteppIR Three Element Yagi Antenna Product Review QST
16. me that tilts the control head up or down This might improve viewing the display and operating the controls in some installations I decided to separate the control head and main unit To do that I had to remove four little screws and unplug the short connecting cable The mounting frame one screw and the rear panel cover four more screws were removed to attach the longer separation cable and install the BU 1 Bluetooth adapter to the control panel Doing this reminded me of changing a battery in a waterproof watch there is an O ring gasket around the inside of the rear panel cover The interface cable is physically locked into place inside the rear cover with a bind ing plate that slides into grooves that are cut into a waterproof grommet molded onto the cable Once physically secured to the rear panel cover the cable end is pushed onto pins on the panel s printed circuit board I am sure this complex assembly arrangement is necessary to preserve the water tightness of the control panel The Bluetooth unit is also pushed onto a PC board connector You can mount the control head with a supplied hanger bracket or magnetic mount Yaesu also offers an optional multi angle bracket and the motorcycle handlebar bracket mentioned earlier Menus and Controls One of the buttons on the top of the control panel is the PTT button The control panel is small enough that you can handle it like a microphone or a handheld radio Th
17. moving the element from an optional hand mic allowed a make shift connection using the radio s VOX feature Yaesu has since introduced the CT M11 accessory cable and an infor mation sheet for connecting the trans ceiver to external headsets Before next season Adam and Allan plan to rewire their bikes using the CT M11 cable and to hook up PTT through the Autocom system How does it work Fine says Adam KA7ARK The ability to listen to FM or my MP3 player and have the ham band audio cut in when receiving a signal is nice There s plenty of audio The split system with the lightweight head on the bars is nice The radio works well on 2 m and 440 and the FM band stereo receiver is good adds Allan VE7SZ I have not used PTT but found the VOX to be excellent using the headset It took a bit of adjusting but get great VOX response and few false trips at spirited motorcycle speeds When I change to the CT M11 cable l Il look forward to adding PTT to have the ability to select either way The control head has been weatherproof as advertised and the controls can be adjusted with gloves That was the reason purchased the radio and am happy with it For more photos see Adam s Web site at koczarski com Motorcycles Other motorcycle mobile re sources include Chap ter 4 in ARRLs book Amateur Radio on the Move order no 9540 see your local dealer or www arrl org shop and the Motorcycli
18. ne The front of the control panel is fairly simple with four push buttons one twist knob and a brilliant easy to read blue LCD There are five additional push buttons on top All push buttons are back lit for easy visibility in the dark and are large and well spaced for easier access by gloved fingers I will get into how these buttons are used later in this review The radio body has an RJ 45 jack on the front for connection to the control panel The rear panel has an SO 239 RF connector rs Image Rejection dB Measurement noise limited at value shown Bottom Line Weatherproof compact and rug ged Yaesu s FTM 10R offers a num ber of features for motorcyclists and other nontraditional mobile operators With VOX and Bluetooth capability it brings hands free mobile operation to the amateur marketplace Mark J Wilson KIRO Product Review Editor From May 2008 QST ARRL k1ro arrl org external speaker jack mic connector and dc power cord There s also a LINE IN jack for an external audio source such as an MP3 player There is an internal speaker in the radio body and another in the control panel Setting it Up The FTM 10R comes with the control panel attached to the main unit and can be operated this way if you like There s a mounting frame between the control head and main unit and out of the box it s set up so that the two units are parallel Yaesu supplies an angled mounting fra
19. ng Amateur Radio Club www marc hq org Mark Wilson K1RO Product Review Editor the PTT switch also presses the earphone into your ear That can be improved with a menu setting that changes the PTT mode so that you don t have to hold the PTT button press it once to transmit and again to return to receive The manual describes this func tion in the context of the PA feature but it also applies to transmitting with Bluetooth or control panel mic I do not usually use VOX It does work but for me it took some getting used to There are three VOX sensitivity settings available VOX seemed to work well with the cell phone devices too With VOX you need to be careful about your verbal reaction to the usual travel an noyances such as an idiot cutting into your lane on the highway Other Features m AF Dual With this feature turned on you can monitor any covered amateur fre quency while listening to the built in AM FM broadcast radio or an external MP3 player connected to LINE IN You can also choose to listen to a programmed Club Channel see below while monitoring another ama teur frequency When signals appear on the amateur frequency the radio automatically switches to 1t While in AF Dual mode the display flashes between the two frequen cies being monitored This feature probably would be better called RF Dual since it monitors two radio frequencies while you listen to the audio of one at a t
20. o sign of stopping Mark hold it The tape was retracted and tried again with the same results We decided to retract the tape and proceed This proved to be correct as the instructions were unclear about the test function Installation The remainder of the trombone ele ments were assembled and then a new and interesting problem came up On the three element Yagis the new element is intended to encircle the mast as in Figure 3 Um How is that supposed to happen up on the tower If the SteppIR mounts on a short stub mast if it s the only antenna on the rotator and a sufficiently long gin pole is used setting the antenna down over the mast is easy For crank up towers as at Mark s station or for installations with long masts this could be a problem Since it was getting dark so far the process had taken about four hours we de Ue C New 40 30 Meter Dipole Loop QS0805 PRO3 Director Driven Element Reflector Figure 3 For three element antennas the completed driven element encircles the mast requiring some installation ingenuity Coupler Install on Mast Driven Element QS0805 PR04 Figure 4 Temporary configuration for installation on the mast Bend one unconnected tubing tip towards the motor housing and secure with tape Once it is mounted on the mast release the tip and install in the coupling to complete the assembly cided to call it a day and get
21. onze perforated tape is extended and retracted inside hollow fiberglass tubes by stepper motors thus the name There s also an optional fixed element a director near the center that s used for 6 meter operation only In the shack a microprocessor in the From May 2008 QST ARRL antenna s control box keeps track of how many steps have been pushed out or pulled in and thus the element length The control box stores models for the dimensions of three element Yagis for all of the ham bands from 20 through 6 meters plus a generic model for general coverage use anywhere between 14 and 54 MHz As the frequency of operation changes so does the length of all three elements The control box can receive frequency information from the radio s data interface too The operator can also reverse the antenna electrically the 180 feature or have the antenna beam power to both front and back the Bi directional feature at the touch of a button The original three element design has been extended to include two and four element versions and the frequency range expanded to 7 MHz in an aptly named version called the MonstIR The SteppIR s excellent performance ability to tune any frequency from 20 through 6 meters and the extremely useful Bi directional and 180 features proved to be a winning combination in a run of top contest finishes from the Pacific Northwest Adding Bands SteppIR introduced an upgra
22. r dipole options are proving quite popular and the weeks dragged by before our shipping notice finally appeared Assembly Even though it was mid winter in Seattle the weather cooperated as Mark and I began the retrofitting project First the SteppIR had been up in the weather for five years How did it look Aside from one bit of the self vulcanizing tape at a fiberglass tube junction unraveling no mechanical wear and tear was visible The antenna had never misbehaved forgotten its models jumbled up its sliding tape or failed to follow the controller s orders The sun had taken its toll on the coating of the fiberglass tubes however The green paint was completely gone in several spots Close inspection revealed no serious damage to the tubes however SteppIR says that any good marine paint for fiberglass will work fine to make repairs of the finish Two boxes were received from SteppIR A big one had the necessary tubes mounting bracket and motor housing A smaller box contained the hardware instructions and new controller firmware chip Mark upgraded the firmware and did an inventory of the received materials The big box s contents were com plete and agreed with the parts list The small box s contents did not apparently we were short a few bolts and nuts We decided that we could obtain anything missing at a local hardware store and so pressed on The original driven element was discon nected unbolted and set
23. r sensitivity Not specified Squelch sensitivity 0 16 uV Receiver audio output 4 W at 10 THD into 4 Q Spurious and image rejection Not specified Transmitter Power output H M L VHF 50 20 5 W UHF 40 20 5 W Spurious signal and harmonic suppression 60 dB Measured in the ARRL Lab Receive and transmit as specified Receive 0 49 A transmit 7 2 A at 13 8 V normal operation at 11 7 V FM AM receive only Receiver Dynamic Testing AM 10 dB S N N 1 0 MHz 1 5 uV 120 MHz 0 2 uV For 12 dB SINAD 144 MHz 0 16 uV 440 MHz 0 14 uV WFM 100 MHz 1 1 uV 20 kHz offset 146 MHz 62 dB 440 MHz 59 dB 10 MHz offset 146 MHz 96 dB 440 MHz 79 qB 87 dB 20 kHz offset 146 MHz 62 dB 440 MHz 59 qB Max indication 146 MHz 8 4 uV 440 MHz 8 0 uV At threshold 146 440 MHz 0 13 uV 4 2 W at 18 THD into 4 9 First IF rejection 146 MHz 97 dB 440 MHz 105 dB Image rejection 146 MHz 136 dB 440 MHz 70 dB Transmitter Dynamic Testing 146 MHz 51 19 4 2 W 440 MHz 39 19 4 9 W VHF 65 dB UHF 63 cB Meets FCC requirements Size height width depth 1 5 x 4 4 x 7 inches weight 2 9 pounds Price 360 BH 1 headset 90 BU 1 Bluetooth adapter 75 CAB 1 charger sleeve 10 MH 68B6J hand mic 40 CT M11 headset cable 24 Note Unless otherwise noted all dynamic range standard spacing of 20 kHz measurements are taken at the ARRL Lab Measurem
24. r up From May 2008 QST ARRL Motorcycle Mobile with the FTM 10R Hams have been installing mobile radios on motorcycles for years but the FTM 10R is the first one we ve seen that s specifically designed to be bike friendly To find out more we checked out the installations of Adam Koczarski KA7ARK of Bellevue Washington and Allan Buckshon VE7SZ of Langley Brit ish Columbia Adam and Allan both ride Honda ST1300 sport touring bikes The ST1300 has luggage carrying capability and is comfortable for long distance touring yet is suitable for spirited riding on twisty back roads Allan picked up a pair of FTM 10Rs at Dayton last year and he E Figure 1 The FTM 10R main unit is small enough to fit under the ST1300 s seat Figure 2 The FTM 10R control head mounts on the left handlebar of Adam s bike sharing the cockpit with a GPS receiver and other accessories to make long distance travel more enjoyable the radio while pressing the VOL SEL button in order to get into the mode required for pair ing I downloaded an updated manual from Yaesu s Web site and with the new instruc tions everything worked as expected In addition to the BH 1 I tested two commercially available cell phone Bluetooth devices with great success Bluetooth devices come with codes that need to be programmed into the radio in order for the pairing to work My cell phone devices had codes different From May 2008
25. rs to one of the higher bands can take a while 15 seconds from 40 to 20 for example This is not an instant QSY antenna Summarizing the 30 40 meter driven ele ment upgrade does exactly what it claims It gives you rotatable dipole performance with out affecting performance on the higher bands The upgrade process was comparatively easy a couple of hours to take it down an after noon of assembly and a couple of hours to reinstall Material quality was excellent and the mechanical design appears to be robust The instructions while somewhat con voluted and in some need of reorganization were sufficient for the careful builder to get the job done If your station is limited to a single Yagi and multiple fixed wire antennas are not an option you will be satisfied with the upgrade s performance Manufacturer SteppIR Antennas 2112 116th Ave NE Suite 2 5 Bellevue WA 98004 tel 425 453 1910 www steppir com Price 490 plus 19 for an additional bracket needed for older antennas OSF From May 2008 QST ARRL SHORT TAKES Hendricks QRP Kits Long Wire Antenna Tuner One of the great pleasures of low power QRP hamming is how easy it is to enjoy on the road You can pack a transceiver and a battery or power supply in your luggage along with a roll of antenna wire and still have room for nonessential items like clothing and personal hygiene products If you re fortunate enough to have a
26. x jack If you make a mistake you may find that you don t have enough interior space between the connec tors and the circuit board How Does It Work In one word easily You simply flip all the toroid toggle switches to OUT the TUNE OPERATE switch to the TUNE position apply power and twist the tuning capacitor knob until the LED dims or winks out If the LED won t extinguish toggle the right hand most toroid to the IN position and repeat Still no joy Add another toroid Keep it up until you achieve a match and then flip the S1 T TUNE OPERATE switch to OPER E That s it The SLT is an absorptive bridge ith hefty resistors to keep your ansceiver happy as you find the ght impedance You don t have to vorry about frying your finals I ve used the SLT in hotels during hikes and at home With the SLT to match my QRP rig to a 50 foot wire and an equal length counterpoise wire attached to the grounded antenna post I ve worked stations all over the country and some DX to boot Manufacturer Hendricks QRP Kits 862 Frank Ave Dos Palos CA 93620 tel 209 704 3522 www qrpkits com 40 ISF Steve Ford WB8IMY QST Editor sford arrl org From May 2008 QST ARRL
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