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Mark Killmon - K4SO's Gallery

HQ-110A

Feb 27, 2012

Photos: 20

80M dipole, NE, SW

A tall tulip poplar in the front yard was too appealing to ignore as an antenna support.

Feb 23, 2012

Photos: 4

HQ-110 from W3TIM

Tim, W3TIM, graciously loaned me his HQ-110 to have some boatanchor fun. The quid pro quo, which I established, is that I'd detail the receiver while I had it. That's really part of the fun for me.

Feb 20, 2012

Photos: 17

K2AV Folded Counterpoise Project

After a recent 160M event, I found a design for a folded counterpoise, designed and tested by K2AV, and used by several stations that seem to do quite well on the band. Not desiring the effort, wire, and mess of a dense radial field (I have 31 currently on my T Vertical), I decided to give this a try. I like building things too, so the isolation transformer looked like a fun, if not inexpensive build. The commercial unit is $82 from Balun Designs, and this one cost me about half that, excluding my time, of course.

Feb 11, 2012

Photos: 30

Balun enclosure - free from the dump!

A bit roomy for the application, but the price was right. A nice Rubbermaid Roughneck container, with top, free from the landfill. This will keep my homebrew 4:1 balun--3, 3 inch cores--dry. I know, it's purple, but beggars can't be choosers.

Feb 7, 2012

Photos: 22

4-1000 5-bander built by WA8SAJ

This amp graced my shack for 20 years, after my cousin, Art, KF4YH, sold it to me. Here it is in the builders shack in the 1970s. Jeff, WA8SAJ, is well know to Drake and also Collins enthusiasts for his excellent repair work.

Feb 1, 2012

Photos: 10

Quick and Easy deck tower

It's winter. I have 3 sections of Rohn 25, and no top section, base, or rotator shelf. The January VHF contest is next weekend, and I'm now 200 ft. ASL higher than at my last QTH (althought there's a 1.000 ft. hill to the NE now). What I do have is a ladder, a base for a deck umbrella, a piece of steel pipe, and a mast-mountable rotator. With the risk of a clang from a frying pan, here's what I cooked up.

Jan 17, 2012

Photos: 37

2M FM antenna - cheap and effective

Remembering the classics, I "built" a 1/4 wave groundplane like I did in 1972 to use with a Heathkit 2M lunchbox. By using existing satellite TV feedline (we don't have it, but the previous owner did) and a few adapters, I had an outdoor antenna in an hour. After I got it working, I uglied it up a bit, in the interest of weather survivability. This may be a temporary permanent antenna!

Jan 13, 2012

Photos: 13

160M T Top-loaded Vertical

My second antenna at the new QTH, based on the design and experience of KT3Y. Phil has a highly effective T on 160M (with more radials than I may ever achieve), and I decided to give it a try here.

Jan 11, 2012

Photos: 27

Ham IV Rebuild 1-2012

The first of two Ham IV rotators that faithfully served at our previous QTH. Showing it's age outside, it was in great shape inside. No broken parts, and some cleaning and greasing with Emerald C was all that was needed. I repainted it any. I can't help myself.

Jan 6, 2012

Photos: 27

Easy Side-mount for towers

This is a technique utilizing easy to obtain materials, and easily built with hand tools. It will work with triangular towers, and these pictures are of a unit built for Rohn 45. The mount requires some aluminum C channel, mast material, the Ham IV mast mount, and a bunch of U-bolts and a few nuts and bolts. This proved highly durable for at least a dozen years, with a 6 element OWA 10M antenna, and M2 6M5X. A similar design, made from steel and welded together was used to spin a 15-4CD and 50-3.

Dec 9, 2011

Photos: 9

New K4SO QTH in Amissville, VA

After raising our family in our last home, 24 years later, we moved to Amissville. It's 30 miles due west of where we had been, but a world away. Much more country, and nearer to the mountains. Quiet, beautiful, and a house with living on one floor, room downstairs (basement) to build a kitchen and bath, and use the space for a furlough place for missionaries returning from the field. God has been most gracious to give us the use of His house!

Dec 7, 2011

Photos: 119

Dad's WWII photos

A small collection of photos that my dad, Sgt. Charles F. Killmon, US AAF, 73rd Wing, sent to his grandsons, Matthew and Steven Killmon. We found these whe preparing to move. I recall them from you youth, but had no idea where they had ended up. I knew they were not among his possessions, when he died in 2004.

Nov 29, 2011

Photos: 22

KA4RRU on the K4SO tower for 2M takedown

Doing the job I wasn't prepared to do, Mike took down my C3I, 15 element K1FO 2M antenna, which I hope to use again. Then, not content to just come down and call it a day, he took down my 4 element 15 meter monobander as well. Thanks Mike, for helping an aging fellow ham.

Nov 20, 2011

Photos: 5

Shack packing, November 2011

Packed to travel. It gets worse before it gets better.

Nov 10, 2011

Photos: 26

K4ENE - Tymeter Model 100, 1962

This is the rebuild of a Tymeter for Don, K4ENE.

Nov 8, 2011

Photos: 20

LMR-400 with PL-259

Oct 30, 2011

Photos: 6

Numechron M124 - 1968

A Call-Ident-Timer Numechron Tymeter, belonging to W1CC. Tom trusted me with this excellent specimen, to restore the case, and repair the buzzer. This is in the best condition (case notwithstanding) of any I've received, or still own. No cleaning of the wheels or number mask was needed or attempted. The buzzer was a simple fix, but I've documented some of the procedures, in the hope that they may help others. I've learned a few tricks restoring or at least refurbishing these clocks over the last few years.

Oct 7, 2011

Photos: 50

QSLs and Envelopes

41 years of "collecting" QSLs yielded a box used to hold a case of 8.5 x 11 paper (5000 sheets) and a couple smaller boxes. I decided to keep only the most noteworthy ones, DXpeditions, exotic locales, and special cards. As much as I used to look forward to bureau mailings, the thought of lugging these around any longer was too much, so they were unceremoniously dumped in the recycling bin on 10-7-2011. I did look at each, one last time, and found some from friends and even my Elmer, WA3KZX, that I didn't realize that I'd kept. Many years of crudely printed cards from the Eastern block, and hundreds from the most common European countries, which used to flood in after a contest. So many had handwritten entires. Fascinating. Thanks to all. Don't look too closely as the stack and draw any conclusions, hi.

Oct 5, 2011

Photos: 6

National Air & Space Museum - Udvar Hazy Center

A guided tour, with my chosen highlights of a day at the museum. The low ambient light is great for the effect, but my old Kodak digital camera is not great in low light, but some of these are still fun. I highly recommend a full day there!

Sep 22, 2011

Photos: 60

Jackson Harbor Press Keyall

A tiny circuit board-based keying circuit with an opto-isolated input and able to key negative, positive and HV amp relays. This should be a handy buffer for the K3 to 30L-1 and similar connections. It is tiny, and could easily be incorporated in an amplifier. $14 for the board and components. $3 shipping. Works great! (Those are AA batteries for scale). Can operate on other voltages with a change in R1 (there is no R2!)

Sep 12, 2011

Photos: 8

New TV setup

Sep 9, 2011

Photos: 3

Mexico Mission Trip

Jul 16, 2011

Photos: 2

House hunting 2011

Jul 15, 2011

Photos: 24

6M VUCC via LoTW, 199 grids.

I received a VUCC for 6M in 2001 for 100 grids, certificate 1,000 something. After all these years, and 545 grids in the log, I applied for a new award to consolidate the paper and electronic awards. I hope others continue to add their logs to LoTW to add a few more stickers.

Jul 15, 2011

Photos: 5

Ham Radio Awards

Jul 1, 2011

Photos: 3

K3 Failed Transmitter

The Alpha 89, which has been a handful, with failed blower, and PIN diodes, apparently ate the transmitter of the K3 while testing a repair to the RX PIN diode (second time). The LPA transistors were shorted, gate to source, and replaced.

Jun 25, 2011

Photos: 20

2011 June VHF Contest

When the K3 croaked on Friday night, I'd given up getting on 6M for the contest, and hadn't planned to be on 2M anyway. K3TRM to the rescue with an IC-706MKIIG.

Jun 12, 2011

Photos: 9

Numechron Tymeter Model 100, 1963

This is the worst one I've had, but that's part of the fun. It was $16, including shipping, and not running when I got it. But, it's physically complete, and except for ill-advised lubrication, it's never been fiddled with. Smoked at, oh yes.

Apr 20, 2011

Photos: 62

K3 Single wire overload mod. SN0178, KT3Y - March 27, 2011

#24 tinned copper and Teflon sleeve.

Mar 27, 2011

Photos: 4

Black Tymeter with Call-Ident timer

I had wondered if Numechron made black-cased Tymeters with the Ident-Timer. Apparently so.

Mar 25, 2011

Photos: 6

TS-950SDX Refurbishment

Mar 23, 2011

Photos: 39

K3 Single wire RX overload mod. SN2720 - KT3Y

Mar 23, 2011

Photos: 8

Shack rebuild 2-21-2011

15 years of the same old same old, was changed. Only one operating position now, pending a planned move in the summer or fall, so there's less to take apart then.

Feb 21, 2011

Photos: 18

10M and 15M Antenna and tree trouble

The 10M monobander was getting stuck in a nearby tree. After I climbed as high as I could to trim the branch, and that failed, I decided to get a rope over it and bend it back. It worked! 7-30-2011, the 15M began sticking also, and the frontmost director was clearly getting caught. It's about 30 degrees off of horizontal.

Dec 10, 2010

Photos: 8

The Shack - post Alpha 78 and 4-1000 era

Dec 3, 2010

Photos: 10

RG-8 style coax prep.

A pipe cutter with tinned braid, and a sharp knife for the center conductor generally yields a good result.

Nov 13, 2010

Photos: 4

Alpha 89 - 11-6-2010

After 3 great Alphas in a row, a 76CA and two 78s, I dedided to go for the 89 for additional headroom at legal limit output. This is a 1995 model, and based on good reviews and excellent results at W2PA, I made a relatively quick decision to make the jump.

Nov 6, 2010

Photos: 77

Skyline Drive - late October 2010

We hadn't been up for a drive in this beautiful place for many years. We took the boys there for a weekend 18 years ago (Skyland), and decided to take the trip since we were both off for the week.

Oct 26, 2010

Photos: 101

Matthew at 2 - workin' the rig

This is what a 2-year old thinks you're doing when you're on the air. CW should be this much fun all the time!

Oct 13, 2010

Photos: 2

EAA Aluminum Overcast B-17G

These are stills from video I took on September 10, 2010. I had wanted to experience something of what it was like for my Dad to fly in a B-17. He trained in them, and was stationed on Saipan in early 1945, flying as a radio operator in B-29s. I'm saving my pennies for a ride in Fifi, the only flyable B-29, operated by the Commemorative Air Force. My sincere thanks to those who at a young age, flew these aircraft to defend our country.

Sep 10, 2010

Photos: 33

The Heathkit Shop AC-4R Drake AC-4 upgrade install

This is the second one of these I've installed, and with just a few questions about wording in the instructions, and black and white photos in them, I decided to photograph this entire build to help others. There are no captions yet, but they basically are in the order of the steps. There are some multiple shots of things for clarity. Just seeing parts, in color, may be helpful.

Aug 27, 2010

Photos: 71

Mark Killmon - K4SO
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