wythall radio club

      The author Chris in the workshop

              Restoring the Admiralty Pattern 1271 Buzzer Repeater Key by Chris Pettitt

Member may recall I purchased a Lot of six vintage morse keys at a local auction, sight unseen a couple of months ago. I have already written of my experiences in restoring the Vibroplex Champion semi-automatic bug key. (See Library index). The next key in the Lot to get my attention was the Admiralty Pattern 1271 Buzzer Repeater Key. A strange looking device indeed, not only a key but an earpiece, a B15 bulb holder and an on/off switch (see picture below)

         “a strange looking device indeed”

your supervisor is calling

 I did some research and found a circuit for the unit and according to Brundit’s Morse Key website it has been suggested, but not confirmed, that this type of unit was used on large warships for internal communications between the main W/T office and other      offices. As well as the earpiece (acting as LS) it has a miniature bulb which was used to attract attention when the Radio Supervisor was calling. (See Circuit above). I reckoned the buzzer unit was from the 1940s.   

Further research via Google, took me to a 1930 Royal Navy Document W5 which showed that similar units were located at various stations on the vessel and were connected to an audio oscillator in the Ship’s Coding office. They were clearly used internal signalling purposes using the key. Warships would have had several means of internal communications, i.e. Voice tubes, tannoy, etc in case of damage during action. I hope to find out more about how these units were used, particularly what signalling codes may have been use.

I stripped the whole unit down to individual parts and using a combination of warm water, vinegar and metal polish cleaned all the parts and rebuilt it. The only thing I had to replace was the internal wiring which was fabric covered solid core copper wire which had deteriorated. This was replaced with modern plastic covered equivalent.  I also discovered that the bulb needed to be 12-14V DC with a 15mm bayonet fitting, so found a suitable red one from a ship chandlers’. It cleaned up rather nicely as you can see below.

          …..and the finished article ready for the museum

COMING SOON.. DATES FOR THE DIARY:

1.THE EASTER CONTEST AWARDS EVENING .. WHO WILL WIN THE MUCH COVETED (AND MYTHICAL??) CHOCOLATE EGGS- TUESDAY APRIL 23RD. 8.30

2. “ASK THE EXPERTS”

(OR ANYONE FROM WYTHALL RADIO CLUB REALLY) ASK THOSE QUESTIONS ABOUT RADIO YOU ALWAYS WANTED TO ASK. TUESDAY 8TH MAY AT 8.30 PM

BOTH MEETINGS IN THE DARTS’ ROOM AT WYTHALL HOUSE; ALL VERY WELCOME AND ZOOM AVAILABLE.

Following Chris’ (G0EYO) previous article on Training  for the Amateur radio Licence, Martin M7XFD describes his journey to the Foundation Licence (and beyond)

WHAT NO CW!! OR HOW I FOUND THE FOUNDATION LICENCE ..OR THE FOUNDATION LICENCE FOUND ME

Martin (left) receiving award certificate from Lee G0MTN

Always at the back of my mind has been the idea of getting licensed as a Radio Amateur.

As a young person I was a Short Wave Listener. My father had been involved in Radar during World War II and at a very young age I discovered a crystal set in his box of ‘bits and pieces’.

We used the metal frame of my bed for the earth, strung a long wire down the garden and with a pair of ex-army headphones rotated the stiff aluminium thing with corroded vanes to pick up the BBC Light Service on the medium wave. Hearing speech and music, with no batteries or electric power involved, was sheer magic to young boy!

Following on from that we had a valve radio that had shortwave that I was able to use and added a long wire antenna. I finally bought an ex-army radio, the size and shape of the top half of a large fridge. A battleship grey Marconi 52 I think. It weighed 50lbs, had glowing valves and UV sensitive dials that also could glow in the dark. I listened to Hams around the world and I wrote to them for QSL cards to confirm I had picked up and heard their signal.

The mighty battleship grey Marconi 52

It was the CW (Morse requirements) that put me off getting my licence (sorry editor)-  [Ed.unforgiveable!!]

Years flew by……….

With a career in electronics which led to computers, I retained my interest in radio and bought an airband radio that had three crystals allocated to Birmingham Airport’s Control tower, approaches and one other: (perhaps I only used two slots as the crystals were expensive.)

Living close to an airport I have updated my scanner and noticed technology changing with the advance of digital radio.

A few years ago I noticed that Wythall Radio Club ran training courses for the Amateur radio Licences and I toyed with the idea of finally becoming licensed.

Time passed. I gained another handheld receiver.

Some of my post-retirement hobbies changed, freeing up time, and in the summer of last year I emailed the club to inquire if I could get involved. As a result Chris G3YHF invited me to a talk at Wythall House in September and a few weeks after that to a ‘Plug and Play’ Open day in the fields at Wythall Community Centre.

G3YHF’s neat portable CW Plug and Play table

I was not the only prospective new member so the talk was on Amateur Radio in the modern world of today. What struck me was that despite the  decline in  numbers of active Hams , the focus has shifted to pursuing  different  ways of doing things in this digital age and the technical challenges within the hobby. I could see this as a way of finding out what would interest me most.

I took my wife to the open day so she could understand better what I was thinking about getting into. She had a good time and could see the range of interests and the camaraderie involved. The fact that every rig and antenna set-up was portable was good for me to see as my main interest is in handheld and portable systems. ‘How much is it going to cost?’, she said. ‘Oh not much’, I replied. ‘There are very cheap handheld radios from China’.

 Neil,G1TZC , taking time out from his satellite dish, reassured me that Morse code was not mandatory and showed me a copy of the Foundation licence manual, explaining me that studying and taking the exam was straightforward especially given my background in electronics. Other Club members encouraged me to have a go and again I checked : definitely no  CW requirement!! 

I sent for the manual from the RSGB the next day.

Wythall Radio Club do not run their own courses anymore as most of the courses have gone on-line, so in September and October  I took the Essex Ham course and passed my Foundation Licence in November last year.

Neil’s Pop- up shack with captive audience . (Martin in there somewhere?)

From contacting a Wythall Radio Club to being licensed took less than three months.

To reassure those that might be thinking of getting into the hobby, even taking the exam itself was a pleasant experience as there is a pre-exam chat with a person who is also a keen radio amateur and the same person is on hand to facilitate the online exam session.

Martin’s current rig

I traded my scanners in for a very good Handheld radio transceiver (right). Even though I could get something much cheaper this was going to be my sole equipment for a while. As you will recall I said I wanted portability rather than a fixed set-up at home

However to get more coverage, with advice from Ian M0LQY, I have subsequently put together a hotspot. With the handheld radio I have three options. I can make contacts directly locally and on the move, via near and sometimes far repeaters, or through the hotspot over the internet. With the latter I can make contacts all over the world, but I have enjoyed most being able to contact  club members directly and via the Wythall repeater. I am also getting to know other Radio Amateurs locally and further afield – sometimes as I pass by on my travels

        MMDVM Pi-Star Rig

It was seeing a YouTube video on a ham using a Handheld radio and a hotspot in his house, contacting the World that was one of the triggers to contact WRC which led on to the Foundation Licence.

To continue to extend my knowledge I am now studying for the Intermediate Exam which is taking longer, but  equally enjoyable.

   For me Amateur Radio has so much a lot to offer.

I am enjoying VHF/UHF and surprising world wide contacts when I want. With the summer coming then HF with a portable set up may be something to try.

Shall I learn morse code? … I am not rushing!! (you never know Ed. !!)

THE WYTHALL RADIO CLUB EASTER CONTEST IS ANNOUNCED

SPRING IS HERE!!

“ONLY CONNECT”

Calling all 52 members of Wythall Radio Club !!!

Get active .. get on the air.. talk to folk.. communicate..exchange greetings..meet up on the air with old friends… …only connect….. and have fun with RF!!

G0ICJ All Band Easter Contest Shield

G6ZDQ 2m/70cm Bands Easter Contest  Shield

 This contest is in recognition of two dedicated members of Wythall Radio Club:

COLIN  BAKER:  THE G6ZDQ The EASTER VHF CONTEST SHIELD (pictured left above)

DAVID DAWKES:  THE G0ICJ EASTER HF CONTEST SHIELD (pictured right above)

Where does the time go? It seems only yesterday that we were taking down the decorations , disposing of the tree, watching the rain and preparing to receive the Xmas Contest Results

Now the Wythall Radio Club 2024 Easter Contest is upon us..it’s still raining  but there are trophies and certificates to be won 

The aim of the Contest is quite simply to promote activity amongst members of the Club and of course is open to all members.. especially our new members!

The contest starts 1000 local Maundy Thursday (28^th March 2024)

The contest ends 2000 local Easter Monday (1^st April 2024)

Full details have been posted on the Club reflector as per usual but one new initiative  this time:

MEMBERS CAN MAKE CONTACT WITH TWO DIFFERENT NON-CLUB  MEMBERS EACH DAY FOR AN EXTRA POINT PER QSO.

THE ONLY STIPULATION IS THAT IT IS A ‘MEMORABLE’ QSO EXCHANGING AT LEAST A NAME AND SIGNAL REPORT AVOIDING THE QUICK FIRE 599/PILE UP QSO’s (SO FT4/FT8 QSO’S ARE NOT VALID!)

 Maundy Thursday ..1000 local time ..’Only Connect !!’

WHAT HAPPENED WHEN CHRIS G0EYO WAS CONFRONTED BY  THESE 5  MORSE KEYS BOUGHT FROM A  STOURBRIDGE AUCTION HOUSE AND EMBARKED UPON A LABOUR OF LOVE  AND RESTORATION………….

…..and chose this Vibroplex Semi-Automatic  Bug key for restoration? (pictured below)

The Vibroplex key in its original condition

In this wide ranging and fascinating article Chris takes us through not only the restoration project, but his own  experience of CW in the past  working once as a CW intercept operator in the Government agencies of Bletchley Park and GCHQ and, since then  his determination to improve his sending of CW.

Fresh from the Auction House.. 5 Morse keys in need of some TLC!

With a brief history of the development of Morse keys from simple circuit breakers .. straight keys to the foundation of the Vibroplex Company and the semi- automatic Bug in 1905 Chris leads us to  the present day and the not previously- viewed arrival of a collection of old keys from a Stourbridge Auction house.

His gaze is drawn magnetically to a  Vibroplex Champion Semi-automatic Bug key (serial number 164719)  much in need of some TLC.

THE AUTHOR IN HIS WORKSHOP

It is this process that Chris documents in some detail describing the painstaking process and subsequent realisation of an immaculate example of this iconic key.

Read the full article in the Website Library .

Visitors are welcome at Wythall Radio Club’s on-the-air evening, next Tuesday 5th March from 8.00pm.

We’ll be using the Club’s 260ft doublet and TS590 rig.

Let’s see what we can work – have a go if you hold a licence (Foundation licensees can use 100w with our Club call).

Find us in the Darts Room on the ground floor, or in our usual spot on the far side of the bar.

Refreshments are available.

(PS well spotted – that’s not a TS590 in the photo!)

The full amateur radio experience is within your grasp: read on and discover.

A recent pass of the Full Licence Examination by our Hon Sec. Clive (now M0KNP) got our Training Co-ordinator Chris G0EYO thinking about how wonderful it is that people who have an interest in radio communications, but no technical, engineering or academic training can pass an examination in which some of the questions require them to learn a high level of technical and electronic theory and scientific calculations.

Chris G0EYO has written an article “Achieving the Impossible by Getting That Full Amateur Licence”  where he describes how the structured approach of the Bath Distance Learning Team has got around 1000 amateurs through their Intermediate and Full Licence examinations with their courses which have an award winning success rate.  It is based around a Syllabus which is produced by the Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB) and approved by Ofcom. Each course ties in the material in Course Books (again published by the RSGB) with the requirements of the Syllabus, so that everything that is examinable is covered by the course.

The team behind the course have put in an incredible amount of time and research to make sure there are no gaps in the training and that each week’s topics tested by a quiz which the students do under timed conditions. The weekly tutorials are optional but are at the same time every Wednesday evening on Zoom. If a student is unable to watch a tutorial in real time a YouTube video of it is available to watch the next day. The tutorial is also supported by a power point presentation and this also available as a PDF to download the next day. 

At the end of the course, the student is expected to have a go at several Mock exams similarly structured to the ones set by the RSGB. It is the tutor’s job to supply the students with worked answers for all the quizzes and mock exams after they have been submitted and to help them with any queries they may have on the questions or course material. The tutor also keeps in contact with the student over his progress and will chivvy them along if they fall behind.

The BBDL Intermediate course runs for 19 weeks and the Full course runs for 20 weeks. Both of these courses call for a serious commitment from the student. In addition to the 2 hour weekly tutorial, you will need to spend another 2 to 4 hours studying each week’s material, preparing for and doing the weekly quiz.

https://www.wythallradioclub.co.uk/?page_id=13341&preview=true

YOU WILL FIND THE ARTICLE IN THE LIBRARY/ARTICLEOF THE WEBSITE OR THROUGH THE URL LINK ABOVE

There were 100mW QSOs during Wythall Radio Club’s QRP month in January.

John M6KET wound down the wick and used 0.1 watt to work Germany, France and England on 30m cw. 

Upping the power to 500 milliwatts gave him QSOs with Germany and Hungary also on 30m.  

Overall, 48 countries were worked using 5 watts or less on CW, and 50 countries using 10 watts or less on FT8.

It was harder work on SSB, with only 9 countries worked.

John M6KET and Kev G4XLO topped the CW and FT8 leader boards with 46 and 48 countries respectively.

Not bad for one month’s operating!

Using 1 watt on 30m, the big surprise for John was working C6AAE (Bahamas) at 16.45 UTC.  He also had a QRZ from  TZ4AM, but unfortunately Jeff in Mali wasn’t able to copy all John’s callsign.

Kev G4XLO in Torbay had spectacular results on FT8, working 48 DXCC entities despite gradually reducing power during the week – starting with 10 watts for the first week, then 5 watts, and finally 2 watts from the FT817. 

Amongst his highlights were Antigua (an all time new one), Cyprus – the op. was Sergio Rebrov ex-Tottenham manager!, San Marino and Puerto Rico.  

Kev found that 5 watts was enough to get across to west coast USA.

Lee G0MTN was also active, although other commitments limited his operating time using his new battery-powered QRPLabs QMX rig.

Darren GW7HOC used QRP in the past:

“I’ve worked VK4 from a tent in Cornwall on 20M SSB with 5W… I was in a tent! The antenna was an 80M mobile whip via an ATU.

I’ve crossed the Atlantic hundreds of times on 2.5W or less, mainly on SSB. I’ve crossed the pond many times on 1/2W or less on CW.

QRP is the best way to enjoy the hobby. No computers. No weak signal modes, either phone or CW.”

Chris G3YHF was mainly been on 7030kHz CW with his Rooster at 1w working around Europe.

He added a Sotabeams audio filter which made a big improvement to selectivity and a Kanga kits keyer module, but this left the operating desk now a bit of a rats nest!

You can read more about Chris’s adventures with the Rooster here.

HOW I BECAME INTERESTED IN SATELLITE COMMUNICATION AND THE BENEFITS OF USING THE QO-100 SATELLITE AS AN EVERYDAY SET UP

I became interested in satellite quite soon after getting my licence, but it was very expensive to take up. The complexity of tracking the satellite across the sky was not within my budget. I did try the Armstrong method and really struggled. So, I decided to move on from that.

Many years later I started listening to the ISS from a simple handheld and received a few slows can pictures. I also heard stations working through both on voice and packet. Again, I parked the hobby but on this visit back to the hobby I have set my station up so that it is permanent and I can simply lock things away when I’m not working.

Some time in mid 2022, I happened to be reading an item, I forget where exactly, about a geostationary satellite that had been launched. This seemed more interesting. A satellite I could just point at and leave set up. Yes it’s lazy but it is also reliable. What was also interesting was the fact that the satellite was available on a webSDR. This became my first port of call, which quite soon made me realise that this was a thing I would be interested in.

I did some research and decided on purchasing a ready- made transverter. Unfortunately, due to my own mistake, I managed to wire up a couple of connections incorrectly and damaged the transverter. The manufacturers were very supportive and we eventually got me on the air.

It has become a bit of a passion of mine, even going portable from time to time, with a foldable 60cm dish.

Hopefully my talk on 6th February at 8.30 pm in the Darts’ Room at Wythall House will give an insight as to how we got to this point, with a quick history of satellite communication and the benefits of using the QO-100 satellite as an every day set up.