Listen for
K2FX News Reports ONLY on "This Week In
Amateur Radio International"
as well as a Repeater System near you!
"This Week In Amateur Radio
International" is heard on WBCQ, Monticello Maine Sundays at 4:00PM on 7.415
MHz
The Newbie Net!!
K2FX can also be heard every Sunday
Night on the "Ray Pickens Memorial Newbie Net" as your Net Control Station.
If you are in the Rochester, NY area, please join us on the 146.880 Repeater
System beginning around
9:15PM EST following the Monroe County FM Net. This net is for new and
seasoned operators alike, and is designed
to bring you information to help further your understanding of this great hobby.
If you are outside the Rochester area, you too can listen via Echolink.
Just connect to KB2CHY-R
and check-in when I call for Echolink Stations.
The Newbie Net can also
be heard live in the Capital Region of New York
State on N2TY, the
Troy Amateur Radio Association's (TARA) 145.170 MHz
and 447.075 MHz repeaters. When the link to TARA is
up, streaming MP3 audio can be
heard live on
the Internet.
The Newbie Net can now
also be heard on the
N2HLT Repeater System
throughout the central and southern tiers of
New
York State and northern Pennsylvania.
The net is beginning to
gain popularity around the country,
as more and more of you are listening via Echolink! Won't YOU join us?
If you miss any, archives of the Newbie Nets can be
found HERE courtesy of Mike
Wren, N2QDK.
Just "LEARN THE CODE" and have some CW Fun!
This is the Amateur Radio Page!
Amateur Radio Station-K2FX
Paul J. Kolacki
2571 Kenyon Road
Ontario, New York 14519-9757
USA
Grid Locator: FN-13gc
DX Stations Please QSL Via the Bureau & Stateside Direct QSL
Real Time Grayline Display
Moon Phase
Real Time World Time Zones
The Early Years
K2FX in 1973
(Age 13) as a newly licensed Novice.
My Callsign was WN2SNU. I became WA2SNU in
1975, and eventually K2FX in 1996.
Like most Ham Radio Operators, ever
since receiving my Novice license back in 1973, I've always dreamed of being able to erect
a Tower, but have never owned property that would make that possible. That is up
until the fall of 2001. Cyndie (K2SKY) and I bought a brand new home in the country
that came with 3 1/2 acres. From that point on, I knew it was just a matter of time
before I would begin such a project. After doing some extensive research on what was
available, I decided that somehow by the fall of 2002, I would make that dream a reality!
Myself and K2SKY documented the entire process with digital pictures from the first
scoop of soil as the base was being dug, right up to the finished product. We've
assembled these pictures, and have made them available on this site to share with all of
you for a couple of reasons. The obvious reason being the sense of pride it has
brought me, but I've also done this in an effort to help other Hams who may also have an
interest in doing such an installation. Believe me, this was no small project to
undertake, but in doing something like this, it only made sense to do it the right way,
and to make sure that what was being installed would last for many years to come, and
provide troublefree service. Going with too small a tower would limit me in the
future, yet going too big would have made the entire project too cost prohibitive.
So here is what I decided on. The tower purchased was a US Tower Corporation
HDX-555, Heavy Duty, 55 foot crank-up, capable of handling 30 square feet of antenna
windload. This tower required a base hole that turned out to be 6 1/2 feet deep, by
6 1/2 feet square. Next a steel rebar cage was constructed which weighed in at 285
pounds, that was lowered into the hole. From there a frame was constructed for the
pouring of the concrete, which also held the tower base plumb in place while the
11
square yards of concrete were poured!! Yes, I said
11 square
yards! I went with a 20 foot steel reinforced mast, thrust bearing,
coaxial spreader arms, and an M2 ORION OR-2800 Rotor to turn the whole thing. I
decided that the tower would be supporting four antennas for the time being. The
first antenna at the very top of the mast is a Cushcraft AR270B dual-band vertical.
Below that is a Cushcraft 148-20T, 20 element 144 MHz beam that has horizontal and
vertical polarization. Next is a Cushcraft 6 meter yagi. The HF Antenna that
was purchased is about one of the largest HF Array's you will ever see. It is a
Force 12, C39XRN, 14 Element antenna for 40, 20, 15, and 10 meters. This antenna
weighs 200 pounds, and has a boom length of 40 feet! It is so large that it must be
trussed on the boom , and also on the two 40 meter elements. The design of this
antenna is incredible, and it's performance is not to be believed! Anyone who knows
anything about HF antennas knows that nothing out there compares to a FORCE 12 for design
characteristics, performance, strength, and durability. They are not cheap, but in
my estimation, worth every penny. So lets go take a look.
Click here to view the pictures, and
enjoy! If you have any questions about what I did with this new tower installation,
feel free to email me, and
I would be happy to answer any of your questions. Last but certainly not least, I would
like to thank Rick Dechau (KC2EVC) for all of his help with the Tower Installation.
His Construction equipment along with his assistance was invaluable, and a great time
saver, not to mention, it virtually made this entire process just a three person
operation. Hard to believe that a Tower and Antenna this size could go up so
easily! Rick's Company is called Readi Construction, and he is the
best!
Thanks again Rick!!!!
K2FX TOWER
PHOTOS
K2FX TOWER UPDATE MARCH 2006
A Mast raising
fixture was added due to the weight of the Force 12 Yagi. If rotor
maintenance should ever be required in the future, it would be very difficult to
get the mast out of the rotor to perform the work. So I've added a US Tower Mast
Raising Fixture (MRF) which will hoist the mast vertical when needed and hold
the weight while the rotor is serviced. I should note that the M2 Orion
OR-2800 Rotor has been working flawlessly since its installation, but this is a
safeguard that can't be overlooked.
I've also installed a US Tower MD-75 Heavy Duty Motor unit for the HDX-555
Tower. This past Winter, even though mild, turned out to be quite windy,
and I would routinely raise and lower the tower based on weather conditions.
Winds to 50MPH were quite prevalent. With all of the weight on this tower,
manual cranking was soon becoming a very big pain. So adding the MD-75
made perfect sense. It raises and lowers my tower effortlessly. The
only draw back to the MD-75 is that the reversing drum switch with the up, down,
and neutral lever is NOT rated as being waterproof. (I called US Tower
Tech Support to see if they were aware of the switch rating. They were
not! Quite a surprise!) That is a big problem for a switch meant to be
mounted at the tower base. So, I decided to gut out a new outdoor circuit
breaker box, and mount the switch inside for weather protection. Running
the cables into the box through the bottom cable knock-outs was the way to go.
The box can then be locked for security. The only question I keep asking
myself is, why didn't I do this a while ago? I've included a few pictures
of the new motor installation. I hope you enjoy them.
K2FX
TOWER
UPGRADES-FALL 2008
K2FX Radio Room/Broadcast
Center
Operator K2FX in the multi purpose Broadcast
Center. This Hamshack also doubles as the
recording studio where News Anchor segments for the Program "This Week In
Amateur Radio"
are recorded, and sent to the Satellite Center.
(Studio A)
Station K2FX as of November 2008
The new Tokyo Hy-Power 350 Watt VHF Amp is now in
line!
The Ameritron Al-1500 Amp, and Palstar
AT4K Antenna Tuner
The new
Vintage Station (Studio B). Yaesu FT-101ZD MK III Transceiver, SP-901P Speaker with
Phone Patch,
FV-101DM VFO, and theYO-901 Monitor Scope. (All in Collector Condition)
Acquired in March 2008
The new Drake C-Line (Studio C). T-4XC
Transmitter, R-4C Receiver, MN-2000 Antenna Tuner, and MS-4/AC-4 Speaker Power
Supply
This equipment has been stored away for year, and came complete with original
boxes and manuals that look like they
have never even been opened. Another K2FX Pristine Vintage Station. (ALL
in Collector Condition)
Acquired in October 2008
Astatic D-104 Silver Eagle Final Edition
Serial #00011
K2FX Current Station Equipment
MAIN HF EQUIPMENT (Studio A)
Yaesu FT-1000MP (Main HF Rig) (Talk about
Beautiful Audio!)
Yaesu DVS-2 DVR Recorder & FH-1 Remote Control Keypad for the FT-1000MP
Heil Goldline Microphone with Shock Mount and Boom Stand
Yaesu MD-100A8x Microphone
Yaesu FT-897D with Internal Power Supply (Back-Up HF Rig) (HF, 6 Meter, VHF, UHF)
(This is a Great Rig)! (For Portable Operations)
Ameritron AL-1500Q (HF 1500++ Watt Amplifier, single tube
(3CX1500A7/8877)
with the QSK5PC unit
installed!
Ameritron ARB-704 Linear Amplifier Interface
Palstar AT4K Antenna Tuner (Legal Limit Antenna Tuner)
Tokyo Hy-Power HL-350Vdx VHF Amplifier (350+ Watts) (Solid State Amp) (One of
the Best
VHF Amps on the market!)
VINTAGE STATION 1 (Yaesu FT-101ZD MKIII Series) (Studio B)
(Acquired March 2008)
Yaesu FT-101ZD MK III (December 1981 Late Serial Number) (Collectors Like
New Condition!)
Yaesu FV-101DM Matching VFO for the FT-101ZD (Collectors Like New Condition)
Yaesu SP-901P Speaker for the FT-101ZD (Collectors Like New Condition)
Yaesu YO-901 Monitor Scope for the FT-101ZD (Collectors Like New Condition)
Astatic D-104 Silver Eagle Microphone (Final Edition in a Glass Case!!!)
(Absolutely Perfect!) (Serial 00011)
VINTAGE STATION 2
(Drake C-Line Series) (Studio C)
(Acquired October 2008)
Drake
T-4XC Transmitter (Late Serial Number) (Collectors Like New Condition)
Drake R-4C Receiver
(Late Serial Number) (Collectors Like New
Condition)
Drake MN-2000 Antenna Tuner
(Late Serial Number) (Collectors Like New
Condition)
Drake MS-4 Speaker and AC4 Power Supply
(Collectors Like New Condition)
OTHER EQUIPMENT
Nye Viking MB-V-A (Legal Limit Antenna Tuner)
Yaesu FT-8800R (Dual Band Mobile)
Yaesu VX-6R (Dual Band Handheld) (The XYL has one of these too!)
2006 Jeep Liberty Vehicle is Equipped with a Roof
Installed NMO Mount with a Comet SBB-7 High Gain Dual Band Antenna
Kantronics KAM XL (Dual Port HF, VHF/UHF TNC Data Controller) Running Pacterm For Windows
Software
Heathkit SB-634 (Station Console)
Astron RS-70M Power Supply
Alinco DM-330MVT Power Supply 5-15 Volt Variable
& 32 Amps (For Portable Operations)
Bencher BY-2 (CW Paddle) (CW All The Way!!!)
(For Portable Operations)
Bencher HEX Iambic Paddle (This Paddle is Quite Nice!)
MFJ-890 DX Beacon Monitor
MFJ-269B Antenna Analyzer
160 Meter G5RV Dipole (Up at 75')
US Tower HDX-555: 55-Foot Heavy Duty Crank-Up Tower
MD-75 Motor Unit for the HDX-555 Tower
US Tower (MRF) Mast Raising Fixture
M2 Orion OR-2800 Rotor, capable of 35 Square Feet of Antenna
Load
Force 12 C39XRN: 14 Element HF Yagi Beam for 40, 20, 15, and 10
Meters (40' Boom. Over 200 Pounds. It's a Monster!)
Cushcraft 148-20T 2 Meter Beam (Vertical and Horizontal
Polarization) (Tower Mounted)
Diamond X510 HDM (Dual Band Vertical) (Tower
Mounted)
Cushcraft 3 Element 6 Meter Beam (Tower Mounted)
Ameritron RCS-10 Antenna Relay Switch (Tower
Mounted) (2-Units)
DX Engineering RR8-HP/CC-8 Remote Antenna Switch & Control Console
Here are some spectacular
pictures taken of an Aurora as it streamed directly over my tower
installation. THIS IS WAY COOL!!
These pictures are of an
incredible Double Rainbow as it illuminated directly over my tower
installation. The shots were taken by my wife (K2SKY) on November 16, 2006
following a day of Heavy Rain.
The Sun decided to make an appearance late in the day!
NEW 2008 ANTENNA
PROJECTS
In 2008, I plan to
install a 160 Meter Full Wave Loop. Five Hundred and Thirty (530') feet in
length, and it will be supported 4-square at around 60-Feet. I've always
wanted to experiment with a loop, and now I have all of the parts just waiting
to be erected. Also, I am changing out all Tower Coaxial Runs due to Water
Intrusion. I am upgrading to Times Microwave LMR-400DB, and have gone the
Commercial Connector route to ensure years of trouble free service. A new
DX Engineering Remote Antenna Switch is also being installed at the base of the
tower in a NEMA 3R Watertight Utility Box. It's beginning to look like a
Cell Tower Site installation.
I'll provide updates and
pictures as they become available.
This is another project that I was involved
with.
The Tower Raising Party at the home of my Uncle Bernie, WB2FBP.
He lives in Broadalbin, New York which is near Albany.
Have you ever seen a finer bunch of Hams?
Another Fine WB2FBP Tower and Antenna in
the Air and On-The-Air!
K2FX (left), KC2EVC (middle), and Tower
Owner WB2FBP (right) Hey, how did that Rick guy KC2EVC get involved in this project
as well? That guy is such a "Ham"
Solar X-rays:
Geomagnetic Field: |
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