Back in December, Becky Schoenfeld W1BXY, Editorial Director for ARRL’s On the Air magazine, asked me if I would be interested in writing a detailed set of step-by-step instructions for my Drive-on Portable Antenna Support. Naturally, I said I would.
I submitted my manuscript, along with an all-new set of pictures. The article was published in the current issue (May/June 2024) of On the Air (pages 20-22).
If you’re interested, have a look. ARRL members have access On the Air as part of their membership.
I’ve been toying with buying a 17-foot telescopic whip for some time now. I didn’t really have a pressing need for it, since my 12-foot whip has been doing a great job for me. As a result, I kept talking myself out of buying it—until now. When I heard the news that MFJ was shutting down production, I figured I might as well buy one while they’re still available.
With no additional matching, you can adjust the MFJ-1979 to cover the 20M band and higher. I figured this whip coupled with my “Junk Box Coil” should easily cover 40M through 20M with the antenna fully extended. The four-foot height advantage over my 12-foot whip, should yield some performance improvement. With my older, larger coil, operation on 80M might be possible.
To test my assumptions, I made a trip to Evansburg State Park (US-1351, KFF-1351), where I was one activation away from a POTA “Repeat Offender” award. Like my last visit, it was raining, and I seemed to be the only one in the park.
I set up the 17-foot whip and coil on the back of the truck and quickly identified the proper tap for 40M. I used a Sharpie pen to mark the tap location. (The coil now has two sets of marks.) Despite an impending geomagnetic storm, I made my first 10 contacts in about 12 minutes. Not too bad for an early activation on a Friday morning.
The MFJ-1979 17-foot whip mounted on my “Junk Box Coil.”
After about 25 minutes, I switched to the 30M band and marked the tap location on the coil. I picked up eight contacts on 30M before giving 20M a try. It was no surprise that the SWR was a flat 1.5:1 with the entire coil bypassed. Although conditions on 20M seemed a little weak, I logged five more contacts before pulling the plug. I ended up with 25 contacts in the log. No DX or park-to-park contacts today, unfortunately.
For part of the activation, I used a plastic bag to keep the rain off the coil. When I got home, I brought the coil and the whip inside and dried everything off. While I had the whip extended, I measured the actual length. By my measurements, it’s 16 feet 11 inches long.
Based on this brief test, I made a few observations:
Compared to my older 12-foot MFJ whip, I don’t think the quality of the MFJ-1979 is as good. The older whip just seems to telescope more smoothly. Some online reviews mention problems keeping the antenna from collapsing after using it for a while. In an effort to avoid problems like that, I’ll be extremely careful when extending and collapsing the whip.
Performance on 40M, 30M, and 20M should be better than the 12-foot whip, given the additional length. A big difference? Given today’s band conditions, it was hard to tell.
With the 17-foot whip and my coil, I can cover 40M. 30M, and 20M without adjusting the length of the whip. However, the 12-foot whip gives me 40M, 30M, 20M, and 17M without adjusting the whip. This lines up perfectly with the bands on my TR-35.
I won’t be retiring my 12-foot whip anytime soon. I think for most POTA activations, I’ll stick with the 12-foot whip out of convenience. For contesting and activities like Winter Field Day, I will probably go with the 17-foot whip. I have an old 20M mono band QRP rig I want to put back on the air in the near future. The MFJ-1979 should be perfect for that.
This was another of those weekends that involved different aspects of ham radio. I was involved in a public service event on Saturday, and I got my QRP-portable fix on Sunday morning.
Once again, I served as the net control operator for the event. Chester County ARES-RACES (CCAR) had 13 operators at nine locations along the course. Several local dive teams also took up positions along the course, to ensure the safety of the participants.
This year, I was set up at the Northbrook Canoe Company, which is the end point for the course. The weather was less than stellar, with on and off drizzle throughout the event. The CCAR team, along with a paramedic, hunkered down under a large overhang off of one of the buildings. Communications-wise, this is a straightforward event. CCAR’s repeater system provides excellent coverage in the area, so the entire course can be covered using HTs. I was able to run the net from my camp chair with my AnyTone HT.
I neglected to take pictures of the Canoe Challenge, but I did snap this one of the WB3GCKmobile next to the Brandywine River.
Fortunately, there were no serious issues to be dealt with, and judging by the cheers at the finish line, the participants had a great time, despite the weather.
Evansburg State Park (US-1351, KFF-1351)
On Sunday morning, I wanted to get in a quick POTA activation. The weather was worse than the day before, with chillier temperatures and a more steady rainfall.
I rolled into Evansburg State Park and found the park completely empty—except for one crazy old ham. After setting up my 12-foot loaded whip, I draped a plastic bag over the loading coil to give it some protection from the elements. I used my trusty TR-35 (5 watts, CW) up in the cab.
My antenna and I sporting our raingear in Evansburg State Park (US-1351, KFF-1351)
For as early as it was (0900 EDT), the number of callers surprised me on 40M. I had my first 10 contacts in about 13 minutes. I operated for exactly an hour and spent most of my time on 40M. Moving up to 30M, I picked up three contacts there before shutting down.
I ended up with 31 contacts, including one park-to-park contact that I’m aware of. No DX today, but the Canadian stations were really booming in.
Towards the end of my activation, I had some rain coming in the passenger-side window where I bring the coax in. Normally, I use a piece of pipe insulation to help seal things up a bit, but I couldn’t find it in the truck. I have some more in the basement, so I’ll have to cut a new piece to fit the window.
Now it’s time to dry off my antenna parts before putting them back in the truck for next time.
I drove over to Norristown Farm State Park (US-4363, KFF-4363) for a quick activation. The bands weren’t very “QRP-friendly,” but I made the required 10 contacts plus another half-dozen for good measure.
I went with my usual setup: TR-35 (5 watts, CW) and my 12-foot loaded whip. After getting things setup, I tuned around the 40M band and heard Greg WA3GM booming in. Greg was operating from a POTA gathering at Evansburg State Park (US-1351). Since we were only about five miles apart, it was an easy park-to-park contact.
My antenna at Norristown Farm State Park (US-4363, KFF-4363)
After making 13 contacts on 40M, I moved up to 30M. My only QSO there was with W3WJ who was operating from Tyler State Park (US-1430, KFF-1430) about 20 miles away (as the crow flies). Our signals weren’t very strong, but we completed the park-to-park contact.
I finished up with 16 contacts, three of which were park-to-park. I made all but one of them on 40M.
Since I wasn’t too far away, I stopped by Evansburg State Park on my way home. The POTA gathering, sponsored by the Pottstown Area Amateur Radio Club (PAARC), was easy to find. The plethora of antennas was a dead giveaway. There were quite a few local hams there, and a good time was being had by all. After saying hello to WA3GM, KB3SBC, and a few others, I continued on my way home.
The PAARC in the Park POTA Event at Evansburg State Park (US-1351)
We’re finally getting some warm weather here in southeastern Pennsylvania, so it was a nice morning to be out in the parks.
The past few weeks have been crazy. I mentioned in the last post that I’ve been going through some medical issues. While I still have a few issues to resolve, I’m doing well—well enough to get in a long-overdue POTA activation.
I drove up to nearby Evansburg State Park (US-1351, KFF-1351). I’m (slowly) closing in on a Repeat Offender award for this park, so Evansburg was an easy choice.
There was nothing special about my setup today. I went with my usual Penntek TR-35 (5 watts CW) and a 12-foot whip with my homebrew loading coil. This combination has always served me well, so why tamper with success?
WB3GCK – Alive and well at Evansburg State Park (US-1351, KFF-1351)
The bands weren’t very “QRP-friendly” this morning. Starting off on 40M, it took longer than usual to make my first ten contacts. There was some static, which I assume was from some bad weather passing to the south. To make matters worse, a hybrid car parked a few spaces away, wiping out the 40M band, until the driver turned the engine off.
Despite the less-than-stellar band conditions, my 90 minute activation yielded 27 contacts. There were two park-to-park contacts that I’m aware of. Only one European station made it into my log today. IW2NXI called me on 20M, but didn’t come back after I sent his report. Fortunately, Graziano called again later on, and we completed the contact. I heard another station (Sweden?) calling, but I just couldn’t get the whole callsign. I hate when that happens.
It certainly felt good to get back out to a park again. I really needed that. Hopefully, I’ll get back to activating more regularly soon.
I also want to thank those who reached out to see how I was doing. Thanks for checking on me!
I wasn’t planning to activate a park today, but my (far) better half suggested I might want to. I have some medical procedures coming up and a bunch of other obligations, so I probably won’t have many opportunities in April. It had been a while since I last activated Marsh Creek State Park (US-1380, KFF-1380), so I tossed my radio gear in the truck and headed out.
For a holiday, there was a fair number of people in the park. I pulled into a spot overlooking the lake and started setting up. Once again, I used my Penntek TR-35 (5 watts CW) and my 12-foot loaded whip.
One of my favorite spots in Marsh Creek State Park (US-1380, KFF-1380)
I spent an hour operating on 40M and 20M, and the hunters were out in full force. Although band conditions have been better, Craig sure was a busy boy. I ended up with 52 contacts. With the QRN, it was tough copying some of the DX stations. Despite that, I still logged nine of them:
St. Maarten
France (2)
Slovak Republic
Italy
Sweden (2)
Finland (2)
Hopefully, I’ll be able to get back out there in a few weeks.
We have some family coming in, and I had some errands to run to get ready for them. Before I got started with all that, I drove to Evansburg State Park (US-1351, KFF-1351) to squeeze in a short activation.
I went with a usual setup: my TR-35 (5 watts, CW) and 12-foot loaded whip. Although I was off to an early start, it didn’t take long to make my first 10 contacts on the 40M band. The 30M band was less productive, but it produced a handful of contacts.
WB3GCK at Evansburg State Park (US-1351, KFF-1351)
I spent the rest of my time up on 17M. I spotted myself on the WWFF spotting page, and the European WWFF hunters did not disappoint. They contributed seven DX QSOs to my log:
Poland
Belgium (2)
Finland (2)
Germany
Italy
There were a few other notable highlights. I worked NL7V in Alaska (17M), and I also received a call from Thomas K4SWL from QRPer.com (30M). Right before I pulled the plug, I saw on the POTA spotting page that fellow Polar Bear QRPer, Michael VE3WMB was on 40M. I ended my activation with a Polar Bear park-to-park QSO with Michael. My activation wrapped up with 37 contacts, including six park-to-park QSOs.
And now it’s back to the holiday preparations, I’d like to wish all those who celebrate a very happy Easter.
My (far) better half and I spent the weekend puppy sitting at my daughter’s house in central Pennsylvania. There are some POTA entities in the area, so I planned to get in an activation while we were there. We drove out in my (far) better half’s car, so I couldn’t use my usual setup.
Thanks to the work I did before I retired, I have a tendency to plan for every contingency. I started thinking about antennas for every scenario I might encounter. Since I have a lot of antenna options, my packing list quickly grew to ridiculous proportions. In the end, I resisted the urge to over-plan and kept things simple.
For this trip, I took my Elecraft AX1 antenna. With this antenna, I could go “picnic table portable” or use a window mount on the (far) better half’s car. For the rig, I went with my KX3, so I could use 20M, 17M, and 15M.
Early Saturday morning, I threw my backpack into my (far) better half’s car and drove up to Boyd Big Tree State Preserve (K-4356, KFF-4356). My last activation at this park was back in 2022. Coincidently, I was puppy sitting on that trip, too.
The parking lot was pretty crowded when I rolled in, but I found a spot with a little room around it. It only took a minute or two to set up the AX1 on the window mount. The car is pretty small, so I had to experiment a little to find a spot on the center console to accommodate the KX3.
It was a little cramped inside my (far) better half’s car, but certainly workable.
My goal for the day was to make at least 14 contacts to reach the required 44 contacts at this park for World Wide Flora and Fauna (WWFF). (I had 30 contacts on my previous activation.) Of course, I would have been happy just to make the 10 contacts required for POTA. But, once again, I underestimated the effectiveness of the AX1.
My AX1 and window mount on my (far) better half’s car
Running five watts of CW on 20M and 17M, a steady stream of hunters kept me busy. It only took about 20 minutes to make the 14 contacts I was looking for. The last time someone activated this park was back in November, and there have been very few CW activations. So, this was probably a new one for a lot of hunters.
DX-wise, I had one of my better outings. I had 14 DX contacts with the following countries:
Sweden (2)
Finland (4)
Italy (3)
France
Poland
Germany
Slovak Republic (2)
I worked OH2LIO on both 20M and 17M. Although not DX, I was pleased to log a contact with a California hunter. My little QRP signal really seemed to be getting around.
After slightly over an hour, I had 37 contacts, including four park-to-park contacts. Not too bad for five watts and a 45-inch whip.
I’m glad I went with this simple setup. That little AX1 never ceases to amaze me.
The weather prognosticators said we’re under a Wind Advisory from midday today through tomorrow. In the best interest of my antenna, I got an early start this morning to avoid confronting the forecasted 45 MPH wind gusts.
Instead of doing a normal POTA or WWFF activation, I headed down to Ridley Creek State Park (K-1414, KFF-1414) to take part in the Straight Key Century Club (SKCC) Weekend Sprintathon (WES) contest. I haven’t been very active in the WES contests of late, so I focused my attention on that.
I used my usual Penntek TR-35 transceiver (5 watts CW) and my 12-foot loaded whip antenna. I also used my little American Morse MS2 straight key. The MS2 is an unusual-looking key, but I’ve really grown to love it over the years. I did some earlier posts on the MS2 and the magnetic base I built for it.
My little MS2 straight key attached to my clipboard with a homebrew magnetic base I made for it
Most of my operation today was on 40M. I split my time between calling CQ and search-and-pounce. The WES contests are rather laid back, compared to a typical POTA activation. The WES QSOs come at a much slower pace. I didn’t log my 10th contact until about 45 minutes in.
As I was making my tenth contact, it started raining. So, I grabbed a plastic bag and went back to wrap up my loading coil. It was only a passing shower, so I removed the antenna’s “raincoat” a short while later.
The “raincoat” I fashioned to protect my loading coil from the rain
I ended up this morning with 15 contacts in my log. Thirteen were with SKCC stations, and two were POTA park-to-park contacts. I also worked KS1KCC, the SKCC club station in Michigan, on both 40M and 20M.
This was a fun change of pace today, and I added a few new SKCC numbers to my log.
Today was a day of sunny weather sandwiched between a rainy day yesterday and a week of mostly rainy days coming up. So, I took advantage of it and headed over the Norristown Farm State Park (K-4363, KFF-4363) for an early morning activation.
I operated today from a parking lot near the picnic pavilions. This area is a little lower in elevation than some other parts of the park, but I always seem to do well there. This spot also has the advantages of being less crowded and having nearby “facilities.”
WB3GCK at Norristown Farm State Park (K-4363, KFF-4363)
I used my usual “stationary-mobile” setup, with my Penntek TR-35 (5W CW) and 12-foot loaded whip. Although the bands seemed a little weak, the hunters were out in full force. Starting out of 40M, I had 10 contacts in the first eight minutes. After an hour and ten minutes, I had 48 QSOs in my log with two park-to-park contacts.
Among my contacts today was one with fellow QRPer, W2LJ. It’s always nice to hear Larry. I also had a DX contact with SM4BNZ. Initially, I copied his callsign incorrectly (placing him in Italy). Fortunately, he called back, and I got my log squared away.
I had some other things I needed to do today, so I was glad I could sneak in a quick activation this morning.
WB3GCK QRP Amateur Radio 