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APRS and Echonet - what are they for?

APRS is a data service that can run on Amateur radio networks.

What its for:
It's for providing tracking data, as in sending your GPS position via radio when you're out of range of cell service. Like container ships at sea, or hikers in the wilderness, mountain climbing.

How it works:
Plug your GPS device into your Beofeng handheld radio via a data cable. Your position is transmitted to a website where you can be tracked. Generally one would use an Android phone which has GPS built in and there's an app to run APRS on it.

You can buy HT radios that have GPS built and support APRS, so you don't need to plug in your cell phone. However those radios generally cost $500+. And you already have the GPS receiver built into your phone. Just download the app, and turn off cell, wifi, Bluetooth on your phone to extend battery life.

Other nice features of APRS are it supports a simple messaging service like SMS. You don't need a radio to receive APRS data, it appears on a website. You may be able to get APRS data out even when you're out of range for voice radio reception.

Echonet is an Internet / Radio gateway.

What it's for:
Echonet allows you to talk on Ham repeaters via your cell phone or desktop. You install the app, select any Echonet enabled repeater and talk, just like you would with a radio.

Anyone that's on the same repeater can talk back and fourth with you, just like you're both on radios.
Echolink lets you select any repeater in the world to talk on. In some sense it allows you to use your phone as a Ham radio. And in the same sense, you have to be a licensed Ham operator to use Echolink.


Both APRS and Echonet are fun toys, it's a wow moment to see your radio show up on the APRS map and to talk into your cell phone with Echolink and have it come out on your Ham radio. However there's a lot of hoops to jump through to get up and running on these services and I doubt I'll have any continuing use for either of them. What I really need is a data service via a phone app that I can connect to my radio with usb or Bluetooth and upload my current position and download any SMS/emails. Notice I didn't say what I need is to spend a couple hundred dollars on a DMR radio. A simple messaging / data service is all we need for existing Ham radios.

SDR - Software Defined Radio - Linux USB stick setup guide

Getting started with SDR is cheap and simple. You buy the USB stick on Amazon, install a few RPMs, connect up to a antenna and you're up and running. There's a many of how to use videos on Youtube, the main question we're answer here is what software you need to install on Fedora Linux in order to use the USB stick.

yum install rtl-sdr gqrx cubicsdr
rtl_test -t

GQRX (gqrx &) the the GUI that runs the SDR interface. Type in the frequency and hit the play icon upper left. Check your reception on 162.550Mhz (NOAA). Check it out on YouTube.

CubicSDR is another GUI, but I'm having some trouble with it as the RPM is for Fedora 29 and I'm on version 28, it's not working at the moment.

rtlsdr_scan

Dipole Antenna Calculator

Amateur radio, getting started, quick and simple guide

"Checkmate, King Two, this is White Rook, over!"

Before we get into the details, let's make it clear now is the best time to get into Amateur "HAM" radio, for 3 simple reasons:

1) Radios are now cheap, VHF radios that used to cost $300-$400 are now $25.
2) The FCC increased the power limits for the unlicensed bands.
3) You no longer need to learn CW "Morse Code" order to get a license.

Now, the details....

Amateur radio - what is it, and do I need it?

Let's start by saying 99% of new users are using hand held radios.  Everyone now coming into "Ham radio" just wants walkie talkies that work over greater distances.

The cheapest way to start in the hobby is the FREE Scanner Radio app for your phone. This will allow you to listen on Ham radio repeaters, and fire, police, airport traffic on your cell phone. You can't talk but even for advanced Hams this is a great app.

Let's look at the 3 things that killed Ham radio, in order: CBs, Usenet, Cell Phones

First, when CB radio came along, you didn't need to pass a Ham exam to talk on radio (which was really useful in the days before cell phones) and there were many thousands more people talking on CB than ever were on the Ham bands, so CB was where all the buzz was at as far as two way radio was concerned.

Usenet, the social media of the 80s/90s. When Usenet came along, people could communicate with other people around the world, without building a radio shack and a shortwave tower. So Usenet gave you access to the world, without being a licensed Ham operator.  Ironically, the Ham operator groups became very active on Usenet.

Cell phones, the standard issue person radio.  Talk to anybody, anywhere, without a license. Nextel even had shared channels, just like talking on Ham repeaters. And now we have Zello.



So what need is left for licensed Ham radio?  First the 1%'ers.  These are the "Elmer's" , electronics hobbyists, they like to spend their weekends solving impedance mismatch problems and running cable up towers, so they can type Morse code to friends in China.  They are also the backbone of emergency services when the power goes out and your cell phone doesn't work.  The other 99% need a Ham license for mobile radios where there's no cell service, like on hikes, camping, off road adventures. Also when you need many to many communications rather than person to person calling, like event management.





Do I really need a Ham license? No. Currently there are a several unlicensed, high power frequencies anyone can use on VHF (MURS) and UHF (FRS/GMRS).  The problem in the past was the unlicensed frequencies where power limited to .5 watts.  The .5 watts range is basically as far as you can shout in a good, loud voice.  This why department store walkie talkies are practically useless. But now the rules are changing and you can use higher power on the unlicensed bands. Amazon has 6 watt GMRS handhelds, no license required.









This leaves about the only reason to a get a Ham license is to be able to talk out of your area, by direct contact on the 6, 10, 20 meter bands or via the repeater system.  This will allow your small $25 4 watt radio to communicate over a wide area, by having the repeater tower receive and rebroadcast your signal.  Even in remote areas you stand a good chance of being able to reach a Ham repeater on the 2 meter VHF or 70m UHF bands.  There are open repeaters in the GMRS band however they are few and far between, most repeaters in that band are closed, you have join a club and/or pay money to have access to them.

So, Ham radio is all but dead?

No - in fact there's hundreds of times more Ham radios being sold today than ever before! Because system on chip makes them cheap, there's the $25 Baofeng HT and a lot of experimenters are are plugging $25 USB Software Defined Radios into $25 Raspberry Pis and having lots of fun.

How hard is the Ham test?

Well, if you know what the components of a transistor are, the test is easy.  If you have no clue about resistors, oscillators and Ohm's Law, then the test is very hard.

However it's multiple choice quizz show type test.  Once you see the show in reruns a few times you know what all the answers are.  Just download the Ham radio technician class testing app and retake the test until you're passing.  It shows you the right answer each time, so eventually you learn all the answers in the test pool.  Then go to a test center and you'll have your license.

What radio do I buy?  Very simple answer, here's 3 radios to choose from;

BaoFeng UV-5R

BaoFeng BF-F8HP

BaoFeng UV-82HP

The UV-5R is the cheapest at $25, doesn't sound as good, doesn't scan as well, but a great 4 watt radio for VHF or UHF.  The BF-F8HP is the next step up at 8 watts, I use this one.  The UV-82HP is water proof and transmits up to 7 watts.  They all transmit on the same "Ham radio" bands. And note for more money you get a cooler looking box. Functionally, these radios are the same, even 4 vs 8 watts doesn't make much difference, so just get the Baofeng UV-5R. And buy the Abbree 19in antenna.

UV-5R, BF-F8 with 3800mAh battery, UV-5X3 tri-band with 17in wip 

But how far can I send and receive?

AR-152A 18in

Can be folded

On VHF I'm able to transmit a clear signal with my UV-5R ($25 on Amazon with a $10 AR-152A antenna from eBay) to a local repeater that's 6 miles away, suburban environment, lots of tall buildings in the way, and I'm inside my house.  Longest contact I've made from BaoFeng to BaoFeng, at 8 watts, was 31 miles. The other guy was on a mountain and I was in suburban valley near sea level. Line of site was heavily obstructed by tall trees. 5x5 contact on VHF. I've had 5x5 contacts on UHF 18 miles away.

ABBREE AR-152A 42.5in

And when you need to phone home from Mars, go with the 43in antenna! Of course it's practical, not to hold in you hand but if you have the radio on your belt and have a loop from your shoulder to keep the antenna from bobbing too much and use a remote speaker/mic, the antenna extends just over your  head and you get fantastic reception. You can also go to the folded configuration, which is more practical than the 17in  Nagoya, and even folded you get better reception than with the Nagoya.





Check out Hoshnasi's review of the Abbree 42.5in antenna

The HAM shack

    

6 meter HT

 

TIDRADIO TD-H8 and Quansheng UVK5(99)

This kit adds Bluetooth to your Ham radio, costs $30 on Alibaba.

 

Contacting Space, Star Trek Communicator BT to radio to ISS

The space probe antenna

Now that's an impressive SWR across the whole VHF/UHF bands!

Building a wood stand for firewood out of PVC

2 inch PVC pipe and green PVC roofing cover
6ft x 3ft x 15in wide

This project was simple, cheap and effective.  It's been outside 5 years with no sign of wear, and supports the weight of a quarter cord of wood, out of contact with the ground, dry from above and allowing air circulation.

Close up of the pipe details.

The pictures petty much show I just used PVC pipe and 90 degree joint connectors, I didn't even need glue.  You can drill holes and use some washers and screws to connect the cover.  I bent the green roof cover over and attached it to the front, after the first year I took out those screws to make for easier access, once the PVC was bent into place.  The back I didn't care about as it's under the overhang from the house.

This has worked out to be a much better solution than covering the wood with tarps and cheaper in the long run, my tarps were tearing within a couple of years due to sun, wind and rain, and I had to buy chains and connectors, otherwise the tarp ends up in the neighbors yards.

However, I think I can make it cheaper still.  Next version I build I'm planning to use heat to bend the PVC pipes, so I won't have to buy the 90 degree pipe connectors, I expect I'll be able to almost cut the project cost in half by bending the pipes.

Soda Stream carbonator refilling

My original Soda Club Edition 1 (left) and latest SodaStream Power (right)

One of the first things you'll find after you buy a "carbonator" from Soda Stream or others is the CO2 refill bottles are very expensive, assuming you can find somewhere than sells them.  Too expensive in fact.  It's likely you can buy case of Pellegrino at Costco for less per litre than you'll pay for the 60L CO2 refill bottles.  So, all you're getting with Soda Stream is the opportunity to drink local tap water, which likely is not as good Pellegrino, what with Clorine and Floride being added.  At least it's easier to carry a single 60L CO2 bottle home than a case of Pellegrino.

Now CO2 being one of the most common gases on Earth, one would think it would be cheap and easy to obtain, and it is.  Soda Stream more or less is charging you $40 for a bottle of compressed air.  The only trick is getting CO2 into the bottle under pressure.  At that price point most people figure it out fairly quickly, the 60L bottles don't last long, they are expensive, so the Soda Stream machine sits unused.




Now we see the problem, here's the solution:

1) Order a Sodastream Machine adapter
2) Find a local home brew supply shop
3) Buy a 5 pound CO2 cylinder at the home brew supply shop
4) Connect up the cylinder to the Sodastream Machine using the adapter.

Done!  You'll be returning to the home brew supply to get the cylinder refilled with CO2, it lasts 10 times longer than the 60L CO2 bottles and costs $10-$20 to fill (I'm paying $19 to refill my 5 pound CO2 bottle at the shop I go to).














Talking with folks, some really don't want a 5 pound bottle and hose on the counter, so refilling the 110L bottles is good for them. However I fixed up the cabinet to store the 5 pound bottles CO2 refill bottles and now connect via a hose directly to the SodaStream. All those took was drilling a hole in the bottom of the cabinet and door off and raising the hinges half inch, so the door could clear the top of the SodaStream machine. 

Let start with the process of refilling the 110L bottles yourself.  This is the first method I used. To start, you'll need a dip tube 20 pound CO2 bottle ($150).  These are very hard to find, brew shops don't carry them, you'll need to deal with a specialty gas company.  It must be the "dip tube" style tank which draws gas from the bottom of the tank in order to have pressure enough to charge the 110L bottles.  Next, you need to weight the bottles while filling them to have any idea if they are filling to not.  One has to purchase the filling adapter ($100).  Of course you want to have at least 6 empty 110L bottles handy.  Connect it up and fill away.  

Simple as it sounds, it's really not "do it yourself" for the average person, it's a hobbyist thing.  Dealing with 20 pound tanks under high pressure can be dangerous, one missed step and you disconnect a hose while a valve is still open and you have a high speed metal projectile jetting across the room.  If you've ever dealt with refilling scuba tanks you know what I mean.  If you have not refilled scuba tanks, this likely isn't the place to learn, as you're dealing here with CO2, one small leak in any connection when you open the valve on the 20 pound bottle and you get sprayed with -50c degree gas than can freeze the skin right off your hands, or face. That said, I never had a problem refilling tanks for 5 years.  Wear gloves.

One gotcha is the "tink" sound. SodaStream has an anti-refill valve in the nozzle, that sort of works, 5 out of my 7 bottles fill without problem, but two of them I have to fill very slowly or I hear a metallic "tink" sound and they stop filling. Then I have to depressurize the line and try filling again. The right thing to do it replace the nozzle on these problematic bottles.

The CO2 bottle refill adapter (above) and connected to 110L bottle and 20 pound CO2 tank (above right)

(Above left) 5 pound bottle with the more expensive pressure gage, which is really not needed, you can easily when you're charging the bottles that pressure is getting low.  Also avoid the "quick release" connector, mine broke and it's really not needed.  (Above right) the 110L bottle inside the Edition One machine.

The "Fizz Giz" (above) let you use tiny CO2 cylinders with a bottle cap to fizz up some water.  It doesn't really work well, maybe I'll buy a few more cylinders and try again but thus far it is not putting much carbonation into the water. People are using paint ball CO2 cylinders with SodaStreams. Sounds like a good idea, never tried it. 

Lastly, there's a few sites selling kits to produce CO2 at home, I've not tried any of them.

SodaStream flavor syrups - Make your own soda!

These syrups you mix with the carbonated water to make your own soda at home. My son's favorite is the root beer. They are rather expense, though you can buy any type or brand of soda syrup. Personally, after trying a lot of mixes, I found the best to be Kool-Aid Lemonade Flavored Unsweetened Drink Mix. Add your own sugar. The they mixes with sugar pre-added then to be awful. The Kool-Aid Unsweetened 96 pack is around $20 and makes 200-400 glasses depending on how much you use, so it's a fraction of the price of SodaStream syrup and teases better.

Archery gear, for beginners

The number one question I get as an archery instructor is how do I get started, followed by what bow should I buy.  Here are some simple answers, this is what you need to buy:

Bows:

Kids 7-10 years, a recurve bow, 14-20 pound "draw weight" (how hard it is to pull the string back), 45 inch in length.  This is a "real bow" that you can actually hit a target with, not the toy bows they sell at Target.  This is a fine bow for all ages, adults can (and should) start learning on this bow, it's much easer to learn to shoot on a low draw weight bow.

Here are some examples, either from Amazon or at least you'll know what to ask for at Bass Pro Shop:

Martin XR Recurve Bow Kit

Crosman Archery Sentinel Youth Recurve Bow

Teen age to adult bows, you need to be taller and stronger to handle these:

PSE Razorback Recurve Bow

Ragim Wildcat Jr 54" 16#

Ragim 2013 Ragim Wildcat Jr 58" 22#

Ragim Wildcat PLUS Takedown Recurve Bow Complete Archery Set

Samick Sage Takedown Recurve Bow

Arrows:

To start, you'll lose arrows, so go with a bunch of cheap Fiberglass 28 inch arrows, they work well for kids 7-12.  Once they get older and have longer arms, step up to a 29 or 30 inch aluminum arrow.  The Easton Jazz 29 inch 1816 is a great all around arrow, for teens or women or average men.  If you're a bigger guy step up to the Jazz 30 inch 1916 arrow.

Wizard Archery Fiberglass Target Practice Arrows

Feather Fletched Easton XX75 Jazz Aluminum Arrows

My goal here is to get you answers to get you started, not to provide a complete education on the world of archery, types of arrows and bows or how to shoot.  There's lots of YouTube videos that can help you along.  I've not personally owned or shot all of the gear above, but most I have, I'm familiar with the brands and items and it gives you some choices to compare.

What I use and recommend is Ragim bows (Wildcat Jr 58 inch, 22 pound, great all around bow) and Easton 1816 29 inch arrows.  I also use Martin bows (Saber 60 inch, 40 pound draw) and a few other Ragim and Martin models.  My son started with the Martin XR when he was 7.

One confusing term I will point out is "takedown bows".  This just means it comes apart.  And "compound bows". Avoid these (the ones with the pulley systems at each end), they are expensive, complicated and send arrows way off into the brush where you'll never find them.  Not good for learning.

What else you need:

All you "need" is a bow stringer (ask Youtube how to use this).  You may also want a target, a quiver, an arm guard and a glove or finger tab.  And somewhere to shoot.  If you don't have an instructor handy you certainly can learn on your own, watch some "how to" videos on Youtube to see the proper way to nock and release an arrow.

Your first question after you get the bow is where do I put it so it doesn't get broken. Get a hard case.  Archery gear is easy to damage if not stored and transported correctly.  Spend $20 now rather than a lot more to fix your broken bow later.  And it's great to have a grab and go case, with bow, arrows and quiver together.

Condition 1 #759 40" Black Hard Rifle Case  (looks good, I've not used it)

Flambeau Outdoors Tactical AR Case, Large (I have several, I can fit 2 smaller bows in it)

Youth Archery Arrow Target

Label your gear! Especially mark your arrows. Once you get on a public range and there's a lot of shooters, for certain someone else will have arrows that look just like yours, and it'll be impossible to tell them apart. And people will pull your arrows out of the target and leave you to go searching in the brush for their arrows. Admittedly we've come back with other people's arrows a few times because they looked like ours.

I started out just labeling everything with a Sharpie, now I use a Dymo to label and number each arrow, so I can tell if a certain arrow is not flying right. And the length of each arrow, makes in easier to grab the correct arrows. However, there's still some reasons to use the Sharpie, people can just peel off labels and take your gear, harder to do that when it's marked with a Sharpie, and it takes far less time to mark a dozen arrows that it does to make and apply labels.