Monthly Archives: August 2019

Ron is impressed with the PK Loop Mini (A-LOOP-MTAM)

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Ron, who shares the following review of the PK Loop Mini (A-LOOP-MTAM):

Standard PK Loose-Coupled Loops (the “A” series) are 14 inches in diameter…they are
for use with a receiver having a built-in ferrite bar antenna.

Don’t think they’re not capable of serious DX…a few years ago a friend in Texas
snagged and recorded France Inter (162 kHz) on a 14 inch standard PK LW
loop using a Sony 7600GR.

But this is about the PK Mini 10 inch loop for Medium Wave (there are none for
other ranges).

The build quality is superb as with all PK loops. The band has two ranges: 525 to
710 and 710 to about 1720 kHz. Paul Karlstrand uses a unique design consisting
of flat computer cable and a custom made circuit board to connect the turns
end-to-end.

The low end simply switches in a fixed capacitor across the variable to lower the
frequency.

The Mini has 25% less sensitivity than the standard 14 inch loop according to the website.
Currently it can be had for $66 USD delivered to your door from Melbourne…this one
was ordered on a Monday and showed up a week later,which is outstanding considering
it had to clear customs in NYC.

Performance is virtually identical with the Tecsun or Terk loops, which are 9 inch loops.
So why buy a PK?

You get what you pay for, or not…the PK is fairly robust compared to the Tecsun or Terk.
It’s made to last and it’s a PK Loop.

Here are some links for comparison purposes:

PK Loop

Terk

Tecsun

If you wish to enhance your loop try co-coupling it to your receiver with a Q-Stick :

http://dxtools.com/QStick.htm

Thank you, Ron, for sharing your experience with the PK Loop Mini. It certainly sounds like an excellent option for travelers and, like you, I agree that the construction quality is superb!

Click here to check out the PK Loop website.

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FTIOM & UBMP, August 25-September 7

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From the Isle of Music, August 25-September 7:
August 25-31, our special guest Ethiel Failde presents Siempre tu voz, his tribute to Benny More
that won a Special Prize in Cubadisco 2019.
September 1-7, no guests, but an interesting potpourri of artists you probably have never heard
if you live outside of Cuba.
The broadcasts take place:
1. For Eastern Europe but audible well beyond the target area in most of the Eastern Hemisphere (including parts of East Asia and Oceania) with 100Kw, Sunday 1500-1600 UTC on SpaceLine, 9400 KHz, from Sofia, Bulgaria (1800-1900 MSK)
If you don’t have a shortwave radio or are out of range, you can listen live to an uplink from a listening radio in the Netherlands during the broadcast at
http://websdr.ewi.utwente.nl:8901/?tune=9400am
2. For the Americas and parts of Europe, Tuesday 0000-0100 UTC (New UTC) on WBCQ, 7490 KHz from Monticello, ME, USA (Monday 8-9PM EST in the US).
If you don’t have a shortwave or are out of range, you can listen to a live stream from the WBCQ website here (choose 7490)
http://www.wbcq.com/?page_id=7
3 & 4. For Europe and sometimes beyond, Tuesday 1900-2000 UTC and Saturday 1200-1300 UTC on Channel 292, 6070 KHz from Rohrbach, Germany.
If you don’t have a shortwave radio or are out of range, you can listen live to an uplink from a listening radio in the Netherlands during the broadcast at
http://websdr.ewi.utwente.nl:8901/?tune=6070am

Uncle Bill’s Melting Pot, August 25 and 27; September 1 and 3:
Episode 127, This Just Out, is a potpourri of new releases.
Episode 128, Back to Finland, presents some interesting Finnish music.
The transmissions take place:
1.Sundays 2200-2230 UTC (6:00PM -6:30PM Eastern US) on WBCQ The Planet 7490 KHz from the US to the Americas and parts of Europe
If you don’t have a shortwave or are out of range, you can listen to a live stream from the WBCQ website here (choose 7490)
http://www.wbcq.com/?page_id=7
2. Tuesdays 2000-2030 UTC on Channel 292, 6070 KHz from Rohrbach, Germany for Europe.
If you don’t have a shortwave radio or are out of range, you can listen live to an uplink from a listening radio in the Netherlands during the broadcast at
http://websdr.ewi.utwente.nl:8901/?tune=6070am

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A simple WWII era “hack proof” way to send messages between ships

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U.S. NAVY PHOTO BY MASS COMMUNICATION SPECIALIST 1ST CLASS BRIAN P. CARACCI (via Popular Mechanics)

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Marty, who writes:

Hi Thomas, I spotted this article in Popular Mechanics – To Prevent Cyber Snooping, The US Navy is Relying on WWII-Era Communications – and of course I thought it was about short wave. Boy, was I wrong!

(Source: Popular Mechanics)

The U.S. Navy, anticipating a future when a high-tech enemy could read its electronic communications, is going back to a hack-proof means of sending messages between ships: bean bags. Weighted bags with messages inside are passed among ships at sea by helicopters.

In a future conflict with a tech-savvy opponent, the U.S. military could discover even its most advanced, secure communications penetrated by the enemy. Secure digital messaging, voice communications, video conferencing, and even chats could be intercepted and decrypted for its intelligence value. This could give enemy forces an unimaginable advantage, seemingly predicting the moves and actions of the fleets at sea with uncanny accuracy.

Last week, a MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter delivered a message from the commander of an amphibious squadron to the captain of the amphibious assault ship USS Boxer. The helicopter didn’t even land to deliver it, dropping it from a hovering position before flying away. The message was contained in a bean bag dropped on the Boxer’s flight deck.

The bean bag system, as Military.com explains it, is nearly eight decades old. The system dates back to April 1942, when a SBD Dauntless dive bomber assigned to the USS Enterprise was flying a scouting mission ahead of the USS Hornet. Hornet, about to launch sixteen B-25 Mitchell bombers on a raid against Japan, was traveling in extreme secrecy to preserve the element of surprise. The Dauntless pilot encountered a Japanese civilian ship and, fearing he had been spotted, dropped a message in a bean bag on the deck of Hornet. You can see some archival footage of the event here.[…]

Click here to continue reading the full article.

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MW Loop antenna sale at Anon-Co

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Ron, who writes:

Anna at anon-co has both the AN-100 and AN-200 for $12.99 plus
$9 shipping by First Class Airmail.

This $21.99 total delivered is less than *anyone* else:

https://www.anon-co.com/category/radio-reception-antenna

Thank you for the tip, Ron. I’ve had the AN-200 for years–it’s a brilliant loop for portable medium wave DXing!

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2019 Huntsville Hamfest photos: Vendors, Clubs and Organizations

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As promised by Huntsville Hamfest veterans, Sunday was a more relaxed day at the Huntsville Hamfest than Saturday (which was insanely busy–in a good way).

Since we had a table in the vendor section of the hamfest, I started taking many of the photos below before the doors officially opened. As you’ll see, all of the major radio manufacturers and retailers were present in Huntsville. It’s no surprise, as it turns out Huntsville is the third largest hamfest in North America (Orlando Hamcation is #2 and Hamvention #1).

[Note that Huntsville flea market photos were posted yesterday.]

Click on the photos below to enlarge the image:

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2019 Huntsville Hamfest photos: Flea Market

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Yesterday (Saturday, August 17), was the first day of the Huntsville Hamfest in Alabama.

Over the years, I’ve heard from a number of friends that Huntsville is a must-see hamfest. And, boy, were they right! Turns out the Huntsville Hamfest is one of the largest hamfests in North America.

The entire event is held in the amazing Von Braun Center and is fully air conditioned–a good thing as temperatures were pushing 100F/37.8C yesterday!

I took a number of. photos in the flea market area of the hamfest. In truth, though, this is only a small sampling of what was there. I told a friend that–in terms of selection and radio density–this was one of the best hamfest flea markets I’ve ever seen. If you were looking for ways to rid yourself of your hard-earned cash, this was the place to do it!

Click on the photos in the gallery below to enlarge each image. Note that I plan to take photos of the vendor/club areas today and hopefully post them tomorrow: