I got my radio working okay yesterday after adjusting my antenna (can't do much in the yard with the mast down). I was able to listen to 14.300, the Maritime Mobile Service Network, but didn't participate -- reception wasn't too good, but was much better after I unplugged my battery charger.
Now, I need to work on connecting it up to my computer and other systems. I think the easiest route will be to use the Winlink software, however, I'd still like to examine it's configuration and adjust it if necessary. One of the issues with radios in general, and marine SSB's in particular, is that although they will normally receive on all HF frequencies, they might be set to only transmit on marine frequencies -- only approved marine SSB radios are allowed to transmit on marine frequencies, which makes them much more expensive.
These setting can be examined and adjusted via the CI-V interface, but it looks like you might need special cables in order to do that from a PC. My radio, IC-M700Pro, has both a cloning jack and a 9-pin serial port, and from what I've read, you can use either. Right now, it's all a black box to me, so I need to get souped up on the CI-V protocol and enough about the electronics to do this myself. I downloaded the program Icom uses to program the radio, ex2100, but still need a cable to connect it to the radio, either the cloning jack or serial port -- the cable for the cloning jack is between 30-50 dollars, so it's not cheap.
The programming shouldn't a problem, but since I don't have a good grounding in electronics, I want to spend some time getting up to speed before I connect anything up. I certainly don't want to burn up my new radio. But this is what hams do, so I'm excited to get started. Plus, since the boat isn't covered yet, I can't work on anything else, so I've got plenty of time on my hands to work on my radio.
My preference would be to write my own software and use the serial port to program the radio, but I still haven't figured out how I need to connect the Winlink software. Looks like that'll keep me busy and out of trouble for a while, especially tonight -- Happy New Year everyone.
31 December 2010
29 December 2010
Winlink
I'm still having trouble getting a good signal here in the yard, but I did make some progress with the radio and Winlink. My little dipole doesn't seem to be working very well. I can hear some stations, e.g., weather, but not really anything else. I'll work on it more tomorrow.
As I mentioned before, I have a Pactor modem, but would prefer to use my sound card and the new WINMOR and RMS Express programs developed by Winlink -- simpler, with fewer things to break down. I downloaded them today and was able to connect via telnet and send and receive messages. RMS Express is still pretty bare bones. It doesn't have built in position reporting or an automated GPS feed, so I had to figure out how to do that manually.
I tried to search the Winlink site and the web, but couldn't find an example. Finally, I searched the help file for Airmail, the older email client used with the Pactor modems, and found an example. Although I had to type it in myself, I was able to send in a position report and am now visible on the Winlink User Position Reports Map -- just open it up and look for my call sign, NV5L.
Btw, here's the message I sent:
Hopefully it won't be too difficult to make up a cable and connect my sound card to the radio. I'll work on that and the antenna tomorrow. It'll really be nice to get all this stuff finally working, and check off one more task.
As I mentioned before, I have a Pactor modem, but would prefer to use my sound card and the new WINMOR and RMS Express programs developed by Winlink -- simpler, with fewer things to break down. I downloaded them today and was able to connect via telnet and send and receive messages. RMS Express is still pretty bare bones. It doesn't have built in position reporting or an automated GPS feed, so I had to figure out how to do that manually.
I tried to search the Winlink site and the web, but couldn't find an example. Finally, I searched the help file for Airmail, the older email client used with the Pactor modems, and found an example. Although I had to type it in myself, I was able to send in a position report and am now visible on the Winlink User Position Reports Map -- just open it up and look for my call sign, NV5L.
Btw, here's the message I sent:
Message ID: X2V1MPMK1R6QI guess the secret was to send it to "QTH" and make the subject "POSITION REPORT." The body just has the appropriate fields. However, I think there are some I'm missing, e.g., course and speed, but I'll have to look up the syntax. I think this stuff is on the RMS Express "to do" list, but I'm not sure when that'll be. For now, I don't mind doing it by hand.
Date: 2010/12/30 01:34
From: NV5L
To: QTH
Source: NV5L
Subject: //WL2K POSITION REPORT
TIME: 30 Dec 2010 01:32
LATITUDE: 40-50.5N
LONGITUDE: 073-46.9W
COMMENT: On the hard at Consolidated on City Island
Hopefully it won't be too difficult to make up a cable and connect my sound card to the radio. I'll work on that and the antenna tomorrow. It'll really be nice to get all this stuff finally working, and check off one more task.
28 December 2010
Bronze Chainplates
I finally got around to crunching the numbers and found that the readily available 1/4" x 1 1/2" aluminum bronze flat bar stock will be plenty strong enough for my chainplates, and probably even exceed the original stainless steel ones. I'm mainly concerned with the yield strength. If you exceed that, the material will deform and not go back to it's original shape. It's called necking, and will actually reduce the area of the metal -- think of pulling taffy. The smaller cross section will be much weaker, so the next time it will break much easier, that's when tensile strength comes into play.
I used the old chainplates and bronze turnbuckles as a baseline and made conservative assumptions whenever possible, in order to give myself a margin of error. In all cases, even in the worst case scenario, the new aluminum bronze chainplates were stronger than the stainless steel ones I'm replacing and the turnbuckles to which they'll be connected. Now, I just have to order them and get the old ones off.
I actually found another guy on CF that has the same boat and recently did all his chainplates. I think he replaced his with stainless steel. He did the backstay one as well, but didn't take the old one out. He just mounted an external one and drilled through the entire mess, i.e., old chainplate and fasteners. I thought about that, but decided to try to get the old one out anyway. I may still go with an external one, but I want to inspect the hull and timber where it will be fastened and make any needed repairs while I'm at it.
Radio watch:
With all the wind, I didn't try to go back on deck last night. It was gusting well over 40mph. However, I spent some time this morning reading about how to hook up winlink using a sound card instead of the Pactor modem. I bought a modem, but would really prefer a simpler arrangement, so I'm going to try the sound card method first. If that works, I'll probably send the modem to Charlie. It's got an ethernet connection, so it's really more convenient for land use than on a boat anyway.
Zoe watch:
She had a lot of fun playing in the snow this morning. The wind died down and we've got a bit of sun, so it's really nice out. I'll take her out again this afternoon to play some more. I think we got about 2 feet, with drifts up to 4-5 feet high in places.
I used the old chainplates and bronze turnbuckles as a baseline and made conservative assumptions whenever possible, in order to give myself a margin of error. In all cases, even in the worst case scenario, the new aluminum bronze chainplates were stronger than the stainless steel ones I'm replacing and the turnbuckles to which they'll be connected. Now, I just have to order them and get the old ones off.
I actually found another guy on CF that has the same boat and recently did all his chainplates. I think he replaced his with stainless steel. He did the backstay one as well, but didn't take the old one out. He just mounted an external one and drilled through the entire mess, i.e., old chainplate and fasteners. I thought about that, but decided to try to get the old one out anyway. I may still go with an external one, but I want to inspect the hull and timber where it will be fastened and make any needed repairs while I'm at it.
Radio watch:
With all the wind, I didn't try to go back on deck last night. It was gusting well over 40mph. However, I spent some time this morning reading about how to hook up winlink using a sound card instead of the Pactor modem. I bought a modem, but would really prefer a simpler arrangement, so I'm going to try the sound card method first. If that works, I'll probably send the modem to Charlie. It's got an ethernet connection, so it's really more convenient for land use than on a boat anyway.
Zoe watch:
She had a lot of fun playing in the snow this morning. The wind died down and we've got a bit of sun, so it's really nice out. I'll take her out again this afternoon to play some more. I think we got about 2 feet, with drifts up to 4-5 feet high in places.
27 December 2010
Lots of Wind
It seems like we've had an awful lot of wind for about a month now. It's been blowing over 30 most of the day and gusting to well over 40. But other than the wind, it's a beautiful day. I was on deck a little while ago connecting up my antenna and almost got blown off by a sudden gust. Normally, that's not a big deal, but my decks are covered with ice and I don't have any to grab hold of other than my icy handrails.
We took a walk in the snow this morning, and Zoe loved it. I'm about to take her our again while the sun's still up. I'll just have to be careful neither of us gets blown off. The snow should cushion the fall a little, but it gets thin around the boats due to the high winds. It finally warmed up to a balmy 28 with a windchill of 12, so we better hurry and enjoy it while it lasts.
I sure wish I could have gotten out of here much earlier, but with similar conditions all the way down the coast, I'm happy to sit here now and wait till spring.
Boat watch:
The only boat work I'm even contemplating right now concerns organizing the cabin and hooking up my SSB. The saloon is livable now, and the SSB is ready to actually hook up and turn on, so I'll connect the GTO15 to my antenna wire and fire her up after our walk. I'll probably take a bunch of spare wire and experiment with counterpoise, but don't plan to get fancy. I mainly just want to see if I can tune HF frequencies, connect my laptop, and see if I can setup my winlink email account. I'll update as soon as I get her to work.
We took a walk in the snow this morning, and Zoe loved it. I'm about to take her our again while the sun's still up. I'll just have to be careful neither of us gets blown off. The snow should cushion the fall a little, but it gets thin around the boats due to the high winds. It finally warmed up to a balmy 28 with a windchill of 12, so we better hurry and enjoy it while it lasts.
I sure wish I could have gotten out of here much earlier, but with similar conditions all the way down the coast, I'm happy to sit here now and wait till spring.
Boat watch:
The only boat work I'm even contemplating right now concerns organizing the cabin and hooking up my SSB. The saloon is livable now, and the SSB is ready to actually hook up and turn on, so I'll connect the GTO15 to my antenna wire and fire her up after our walk. I'll probably take a bunch of spare wire and experiment with counterpoise, but don't plan to get fancy. I mainly just want to see if I can tune HF frequencies, connect my laptop, and see if I can setup my winlink email account. I'll update as soon as I get her to work.
26 December 2010
Heavy Snowfall
Though it's not quite whiteout conditions, it's close enough for me. It's blowing sideways and the visibility is down to a few hundred yards, if that. Not bad enough to get lost, but I wouldn't want to be out sailing in it, or driving for that matter.
I've been working on my SSB and went on deck a few minutes ago to stretch out the halyard antenna I'd planned to use, which is now my emergency antenna -- the mast is down, so I can't use the backstay. I figured I'd only be out for about a minute, so I didn't put on a coat or gloves. I got it strung, but need to go back out and adjust it. It was just too nasty and cold to stay out for too long, and boy, are my decks slick. An inch of snow makes them slipperier than an ice skating rink. The wind's blowing pretty good, and directly into the companionway too.
I was on the starboard side that doesn't have the canvas. Hopefully the canvas will help when I take Zoe for a walk on the other side. I think I'll go out and sweep it and stairs before I take her out. I have to carry her down, so I don't want to slip. That's why I rigged the lifeline and stairs yesterday. I'm not sure how much it will really help, but it makes you feel better having it there.
I've been working on my SSB and went on deck a few minutes ago to stretch out the halyard antenna I'd planned to use, which is now my emergency antenna -- the mast is down, so I can't use the backstay. I figured I'd only be out for about a minute, so I didn't put on a coat or gloves. I got it strung, but need to go back out and adjust it. It was just too nasty and cold to stay out for too long, and boy, are my decks slick. An inch of snow makes them slipperier than an ice skating rink. The wind's blowing pretty good, and directly into the companionway too.
I was on the starboard side that doesn't have the canvas. Hopefully the canvas will help when I take Zoe for a walk on the other side. I think I'll go out and sweep it and stairs before I take her out. I have to carry her down, so I don't want to slip. That's why I rigged the lifeline and stairs yesterday. I'm not sure how much it will really help, but it makes you feel better having it there.
25 December 2010
Blizzard Warning
It looks like Zoe will have a lot of snow to play in for the next few days. The forecast calls for accumulations of up to 16", so life's about to get interesting. The blizzard warning starts at 6am tomorrow morning, so hopefully we'll get our morning walk in before it gets too bad.
Since I don't have the cover on yet, I spent the afternoon preparing the deck. I spread canvas on the port side deck, and secured the stairs with a couple of lines. I ran one about 2 feet above the deck as a lifeline from the stair pulpit aft to my stern pulpit and another one from the stair handrail forward under the bow and to the foredeck cleat. Then I slipped a fender between the hull and the stairs and pulled the lines nice and tight.
I had to pull off the regular lifelines because they go outside the shrouds, and with the shrouds off, are slack and fall too close to the coach roof to walk safely on the side decks carrying Zoe. I got the rest of my decks cleared as well, but still want to re-tape up the hole where my chainplate pulled through.
We'll probably be stuck inside for several days, but I've got plenty to do in the cabin, so I'll concentrate on that until the weather clears.
Book watch:
As I mentioned before, I'm going to use my uninsulated backstay for my HF/SSB antenna, and run a bunch of lines under the deck for counterpoise. It should work fine, but I'd like to understand why, so I started reading the ARRL Antenna book. I also downloaded an open source antenna modeling program, but still need to read the book before I try to use it. I got souped up on all this stuff for my exams this summer, but now it's time to really learn it.
Since I don't have the cover on yet, I spent the afternoon preparing the deck. I spread canvas on the port side deck, and secured the stairs with a couple of lines. I ran one about 2 feet above the deck as a lifeline from the stair pulpit aft to my stern pulpit and another one from the stair handrail forward under the bow and to the foredeck cleat. Then I slipped a fender between the hull and the stairs and pulled the lines nice and tight.
I had to pull off the regular lifelines because they go outside the shrouds, and with the shrouds off, are slack and fall too close to the coach roof to walk safely on the side decks carrying Zoe. I got the rest of my decks cleared as well, but still want to re-tape up the hole where my chainplate pulled through.
We'll probably be stuck inside for several days, but I've got plenty to do in the cabin, so I'll concentrate on that until the weather clears.
Book watch:
As I mentioned before, I'm going to use my uninsulated backstay for my HF/SSB antenna, and run a bunch of lines under the deck for counterpoise. It should work fine, but I'd like to understand why, so I started reading the ARRL Antenna book. I also downloaded an open source antenna modeling program, but still need to read the book before I try to use it. I got souped up on all this stuff for my exams this summer, but now it's time to really learn it.
Merry Christams
I hope everyone has a merry Christmas today, or great Saturday depending on your point of view. Zoe and I plan to have a quiet day on the boat, punctuated by a couple long walks around City Island. She'll get a few extra treats today, but I'm sure she doesn't even realize it's Saturday, much less Christmas. In fact, every time she gets a treat, she acts like it's the first one she's ever gotten.
I took off her fleece last night brushed her coat. With the extra heater keeping the cabin warm, high 60's, she doesn't need it as much now. She still needs a bath, but her coat really grew in this winter -- she looks like a little bear.
Wes, one of the owners of the yard, has a bunch of cats that live in and around the office. They don't seem to cotton too much to Zoe, but she's sure interested in them. They don't run, but I don't let her chase them either. She's used to cats, but can't resist chasing them if they run.
I took off her fleece last night brushed her coat. With the extra heater keeping the cabin warm, high 60's, she doesn't need it as much now. She still needs a bath, but her coat really grew in this winter -- she looks like a little bear.
Wes, one of the owners of the yard, has a bunch of cats that live in and around the office. They don't seem to cotton too much to Zoe, but she's sure interested in them. They don't run, but I don't let her chase them either. She's used to cats, but can't resist chasing them if they run.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)