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July 4, 2024. Happy 4th of July

Another 4th of July is upon us. Hey Sam, put the Flag right side up!

I am happy to report that the Drake PTO (yesterday's post) is cranking out RF and so that soon may be tried with one of my homebrew rigs. I did replace both transistors and now a bit of lubrication on the gears will make everything as slick as a baby's butt.

Just a bit of reflection on the importance of this day AKA Independence Day. It is not just a day where there is a good excuse to drink beer at noon or to demonstrate your skill at pitching horseshoes, but certainly a lot more than those typical activities. 

It marks the birth of our nation and the high cost to maintain this democracy. Do not take this day for granted. Think of our US Service personnel who around the world are protecting our freedom. Amen brother!

Last night about 8PM local I worked 3D2USU on 20M FT-8 using my homebrew SDR running off of a Raspberry Pi4. I had to look it up as the 3D2 prefix is the Fiji Islands. Of note this station has an eye popping 1,179,504 lookups in QRZ.com.




Speaking of the Raspberry Pi 4, it was more difficult to get working with QUISK (SDR Software) than the Pi3B. A bit of a "kludge" on how I did it but I did find a way. I also have the HB SDR working on an ASUS Tinker Board and an Atomic Pi running Linux Mint 20.

Homebrew SDR
 
Final word -- today is also a good day to turn off the radios and just spend some quality time with the family.

73's
Pete N6QW


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