Homebrew 40m QRP CW Transceiver
A scratch-designed single-band CW transceiver for 40 meters, targeting 5 watts output. The project started in 2022 as a way to learn practical RF circuit design from the ground up. The VFO is now stable using a TCXO, the BFO and product detector are working, and I'm currently finishing the PA stage and low-pass filter. Target output: 5W into 50Ω with clean harmonics.
Automatic Antenna Switch Controller
An Arduino-based antenna switch controller to automatically route the IC-7300 between the G5RV and the 20m Yagi based on operating frequency. Uses a relay board and frequency data from the rig's CI-V bus.
End-Fed Half-Wave (EFHW) Antenna for POTA
Building a lightweight EFHW antenna with a 49:1 UnUn for portable POTA use. The goal is a multi-band wire antenna that covers 40/20/15/10m with no tuner needed and packs into a small bag.
Shack Environmental Monitor
A Raspberry Pi-based monitor that logs temperature, humidity, and RF noise floor in the shack and displays trends on a local web dashboard. Will eventually trigger alerts when conditions degrade.
2m / 70cm Portable J-Pole Antenna
Designing a roll-up J-pole from 300-ohm twin-lead for 2m and 70cm. Lightweight, no ground plane needed, and can be taped to a window or hung from a tree for SOTA and emergency use.
3-Element 20m Yagi
Homebrew 3-element beam for 14 MHz built from aluminum tubing and a wooden boom. Up at 35 feet on a push-up mast fixed NE. About 7 dBd forward gain and a clean pattern. Significantly improved my European DX results.
5-Element 2m Yagi for Satellite
A 5-element Yagi for 144 MHz built from scrap aluminum and a wooden boom for about $12 total. Used for SO-50 and other FM satellite passes. Works great for its cost. Plans published on the blog.
LiFePO4 Field Battery Pack
Built a 20Ah LiFePO4 battery pack in a Pelican-style case with Anderson Powerpole outputs, a 60W solar charge controller, and a digital voltage/current meter on the front panel. Powers the IC-705 all day at POTA activations.
Shack Audio Mixer & Speaker Switcher
A passive audio mixer that combines speaker output from the IC-7300 and TM-V71A into a single external speaker, with individual volume controls and a mute button for each rig. Built into a custom aluminum enclosure.
APRS Digipeater / iGate – W8LCK-10
Set up a Raspberry Pi-based APRS iGate and digipeater using Direwolf and a Baofeng UV-5R as the radio. Running 24/7 on 144.390 MHz, digipeating local traffic and uploading to APRS-IS. Covers most of Lorain County.