Amateur Radio Station ZS1KE

I really need to get back into amateur radio. My radios, which are a Ten Tec Argonaut 505 (with 50W linear and power supply) and a Yaesu FT200, have been living in boxes ever since I moved house at the start of December 1995. I also have a few boatanchors, read on...

I'm into QRP, morse code (except that I've probably forgotten it by now) and cheap (wire) antennas. I'd also like to spend more time with some old valve gear I have lying around.

Next amateur radio projects: rebuild the Argo (it hummmmms, so I'll replace all caps and re-align) and build an R2 direct conversion receiver.

Antennas and Tuners

As I said, wire antennas rule. But of course, that needs an antenna tuner. I've been using a simple LC circuit for years -- it uses a piece of prewound coil and the capacitor from an old valve receiver. This works well most of the time, but I have had situations where the capacitor starts arcing and I had to reduce the drive (below 50 watts, that is, I've never had problems at the 2 watt level).

Time to build a new tuner, maybe modify the antenna, make things work.

My boatanchor stuff

I have a Hallicrafters SX-28 receiver that's in a really bad state and a KW Viceroy transmitter that's excellent. The KW Viceroy used to belong to ZS6ABN, but I bought it from a ham in Somerset West (and I can't remember who it was...)

• 2004-01-14 : Alan G3XAQ told me about the KW_Radios Yahoo group. This information on identifying the different "marks" is from him:

  Mk1: Pilar cabinets, equal size for both transmitter and PSU, valve
  rectifiers. No Function switch.
  
  Mk2: Wrap-around cabinets. Separate PSU, but about half the width of
  the transmitter. Function switch (CW/SSB/VOX/Tune, etc) on PSU. No
  aerial changeover relay, you have to supply your own.
  
  Mk3: Same as Mk2 but with internal PSU, so the Function switch is on
  transmitter front panel.
  
  Mk4: Seems very similar construction to Mk3, but with aerial C/O
  performed by extra contact sets on the internal PO relay. VFO and
  second mixer frequencies changed to give more bandspread on the VFO
  dial, necessitating splitting 10M into two bands (so there are 5
  conversion crystals instead of 4)
  
  Mk1-3 frequencies: VFO 3.06-3.75, crystals 4.965, 6.0, 6.25, 8.05
  Mk4: VFO 3.065-3.665, crystals 4.965, 6.0, 6.25, 8.025, 8.175
  

• 2004-01-15 : I scanned my schematic for the Viceroy MK IIIa, dated G3MCA 1-3-62.

You can find Hallicrafters (and many other) manuals at the BAMA ftp site.

Eurelec tube tester

This Eurelec tube tester is similar to the Euratele units shown on Jogi's page (Thanks to Carsten Falck for the pointer)

Does anybody know more about this Eurelec tube tester? Please let me know.

Pictures at the RigPix database

• Ten Tec Argonaut 509.
• KW Viceroy.
• Yaesu FT-200.
• Yaesu FT-107.
• Yaesu FRG-7.

Info

• Ten-Tec Argonaut 509 schematics.
• Improving SSB Performance of the Ten Tec Argonaut 509.
• Yaesu FT-200 manual and schematic at Bama.
• Yaesu FT-107 schematic at hamradio.online.ru.
• Yaesu FRG-7 schematic at Bama.
• Yaesu FRG-7 information (Schematics, manual, mods).

• Find your grid square and get a great circle map.