About

My interest in radio started when I was around 12 years old, listening to broadcast stations on short-wave using my parents Marconi T21A valve receiver. I collected QSL cards from all over the world for my reception reports and then moved on to listening to radio amateurs on 40m and 20m.

I passed the RAE in 1975 and was first licensed in 1979, starting on 2m FM with a homebrew transceiver and 2m SSB with a Mizuho SB2-M 1W transceiver feeding a 5 element JayBeam from my parents house in IO91oi (ZL57g). I quickly moved onto using a Kenwood TR7010 with a 9 element Tonna on the roof, followed by a Yaesu FT221 with muTek front end and a home brew 16 element G2BCX Yagi. My final setup at that QTH was an Icom 251E, homebrew 4CX250B amplifier and an 11 element DL6WU antenna.

Between 1994/1995 I was licensed as J88CX and active on 2m EME running a Kenwood TS530S, Microwave Modules transverter and 400w from a Henry Tempo 2002 to a single 11 element DL6WU antenna with fixed elevation.

After returning to the UK I lived in JO01bn for a few years and ran a FT1000MP, DEMI transverter and 400W from a HA1YA GU74b amplifier to 2 x 9 element Wimo antennas.

In 2010, following a period of no activity I moved to the present QTH in IO91wh. However, it took a while to build the station back up, starting in October 2014 with a single 12 element YU7EF with no elevation and then 2 x 12 element YU7EF with full elevation in June 2015. I used a 4 x 12 element LFA array between April 2017 and May 2019.

I’ve always enjoyed building equipment and antennas. Projects have included a rf power meter using a AD8313 and Arduino Nano, an antenna azimith/elevation position readout using Yoctopuce devices and a AD8317 noise meter.