G4ILO

I only recently discovered Julian's (G4ILO) blog. He had one of the first reviews of the UV-3R that I found and he has been very active in the UV-3R Yahoo Group. If you can spare a minute in your prayers, it sounds like he could use it.

He lives in Cockermouth in the UK. I spent several weeks there with my then girlfriend, now wife, and her parents in the mid-90's, so I guess I feel more connected to him than some other blogger I've never met.

Baofeng UV-3R: Disassembly 2

Long time readers (since June 1) may recall that I tried to disassemble the UV-3R, but got stuck because the antenna connector was soldered to the circuit board. I'd read instructions on the UV-3R Yahoo Group, people had posted comments on the blog and the Youtube video,etc. but it wasn't until a Youtube comment by r0b0b4ss pointed me to OM1LD's Loud Receive Audio Fix that the light bulb finally came on. His post to fix the loud audio included instructions for taking the radio apart and included this picture.


It seems so obvious now. Another example of how to make something a lot harder than it should be. Now I need some time to take this thing apart again!

I have a lot of love to give.

And something, something about cats.

Echolink

Another plug for ham on the cheap... if Echolink didn't feel like using a real radio, then maybe the Echolink 100 software is what you need. It provides a front-end to Echolink that makes it look like a radio. Given all the software defined radios (or hybrids like the Baofeng UV-3R), no one should get too hung up on the computer vs. radio debate. (Is anyone still waving the banner for vacuum tubes as the end all and be all of radio technology?)



Via KD8BIG

Baofeng UV-3R: Power Plug

Thanks to Lee, N9LO, for finding the power plug specs for the UV-3R. It is a DC male power supply Plug socket connector 2.5 x 0.7mm and is availible via eBay.

Maryville City

Since Uncle and others had posted about it, I thought I would skip posting the Maryville City rap by Hollywoood and Dirty D. However, since it has stuck in my head, I hope this will help get it out.



Maryville City. Country Boys. Blount County Boys.

How we warm up in the morning...

I like for the guys in my IT department to get things going in the morning by doing a little bit of physical activity. It looks something like this...

I.T.!
Fired Up!

I think winning programs have that level of excitement and enthusiasm in most of their practices.

Prepping

I've often though that one of the first things I should do as part of any "prepping" is to get in shape. Everyone talks about guns, food, flashlights, medicine, etc. I have to believe all these tools become a lot more valuable if the prepper has the energy to use them.

So, I went out and bought some running shoes. I haven't played indoor soccer for approaching two and a half years. It has been almost seven years since I was jogging on regular basis. I got home, changed, and took off running. I ran just under 3 miles in about 33 minutes. Not a bad start - all things considered.

Baofeng UV-3R: Review by Dave, N9EWO

Paul has pointed me to Dave's (N9EWO) review of the, as he call its, the VGC / Baofeng / Magiksun / Comtex / Zastone UV-3R "Micro" Dual Band Handheld Transceiver. You have to scroll half-way down to find the start of the UV-3R info, but it is worth a little mouse work. He has lots of good information.

First, he's found two other brands the radio is sold under - Comtex and Zastone.

Second, he's encountered a few problems with the radio and has some fixes like this one for :

"When we do PC uploads to the UV-3R transceiver using the "409shop's" Universal USB cable,the 5 Khz channel step appear like this [B. 4BK] on the LCD afterwards on some memory channels and/or each VFO . Software version used : 1.01.01.
We cured this bug by going to Menu # 9 after and just rotating through the loop of "steps" once to wash out the weird step entries (done after every upload ).
Needs to be done for both VHF/UHF VFO AND also for EVERY memory channel used to clear these weird entries out and for the display to show properly ."

He also mentions the slow scan times and loud receive audio, but comes to the same conclusion that we all do:

"Cheap, Fun and Useful."

Football Cops

Justice is a team sport.