Fun fast hamradio project

 

I had to order some parts on Amazon and remembered I read about a fun project in the SARC Communicator from September-October 2024. To get free postage I ordered the items I needed a few days ago. This is about the famous HamClock. Normally this can be run on a computer with Linux OS. A bit difficult when you use Windows. Yes you can run it with virtual machine like hyper-v, virtualbox or vmware. But then it only runs on that virtual machine. Wouldn't it be great if this clock would run on any phone, tablet or computer you have at your home. And yes, this is possible with a small RaspberryPi Zero2W and a small microSD card. That is really all you need. You follow the instructions from the description in the SARC communicator and there it is...HamClock via local WiFi...

Just a few things I noticed:

* After configuration and updates of the OS (step 3) the Pi is not rebooting after you quit the raspi-config program. You need to disconnect the power and power it up again.

* Before step 4 you need to connect again via SSH. Do that with the command: 

ssh pi@hamclock.local

* Step 4: Copy the line to install hamclock and paste it in the terminal screen doesn't work in Windows. You need to type it yourself.

* After installation I had to wait a moment before something came up after I entered: hamclock.local:8081/live.html. And I noticed when I closed my terminal screen the pi did boot again. Had to wait till hamclock was working again.

So, this is really a fun project and I will go on now with configuring hamclock reading the users manual: https://clearskyinstitute.com/ham/HamClock/HamClockKey.pdf

Found another setup page with interesting tips from G6NHU: https://qso365.co.uk/2024/05/how-to-set-up-a-hamclock-for-your-shack/

Update 21-Nov-2024

Configured hamclock with the help of the G6NHU post second part. 

Configured the colors for 60m red and 6 orange. Those are my favourite bands at the moment. I really love flexibility of this clock. The cluster works really well. And solar data / VOACAP are really up to date. The little Pi computer is enclosed in a case which was in the package I bought. I power the Pi via a free router USB port. The fun is that I can configure a kind of ECO switch on this port so the Pi will be off when I sleep and start up again at 4 am. 

Friese 11 steden contest 2024 review

   This contest is open for international traffic but overall it is a Dutch QSO party in honour of the great Frisian 11 cities skating tour. The contest is only on 80m. Goal is to work the 11 multipliers + extra multiplier. 12 in total. And of course work as many stations as possible. Because it is not really interesting for international readers I write the review in Dutch which can be translated to english if you wish to read it.

Het was, zoals elk jaar, weer een gezellige contest. Helaas waren de condities op 80m wat aan de magere kant. Daarom besloten om gewoon tussen de middag te gaan eten. Dat heeft wel zo een 45 minuten gekost en daardoor waarschijnlijk wat minder stations gewerkt dan mogelijk was. In totaal 52 QSO's gemaakt en 11 multipliers kunne werken. Bolsward ontbreekt maar was schijnbaar wel aanwezig. Het is altijd jammer als je een multiplier mist. Maar ik was zeker niet de enige. In deze contest kun je gerust tussendoor een QSO maken, het gaat er erg relaxed aan toe. Zo heb ik tijdens de contest toch even wat langer gesproken met PE2V Vincent, PF5T Frank en PA3JD Joop. En na de contest nog even wat ervaringen uitgewisseld met PA2JO Jonnie en PA3ECY Maarten. Dat maakt de contest wel wat leuker. Ik heb de hele contest mijn eigen signaal bekeken op de webSDR Twente. Daarop was me direct al duidelijk dat het signaal wel een stuk minder sterk doorkwam als andere jaren. Maar ondanks dat bleef het wel verstaanbaar. Het enige buitenlandse station dat ik werkte was ON5ASB uit Lier. Hieronder het kaartje met gewerkte stations.

#60m South Cook Isl. worked

 

It took me some time. E51SGC could be seen on/off (QSB) but then at the right moment in greyline he finally saw my call. Happy with it because with strong European signals on the band the weak signals from the Pacific are usually covered.