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They might be cracking down harder, but I took mine at my desk which is littered with a 3d printer/breadboards and other various random projects and they just asked me to remove any suspicious papers. I do know they kept an eye on me during the test to make sure I did not deviate away from the test. So all of the work they're asking you to do is so they have an easier job watching you. Edit: Because new page, I'm gonna add some more content. The DMR net is considering a time change while we also start to consider a long term TalkGroup ID. Nothing is set yet and the original times are going to be carried out (Tue 8PT, Fri 6PT) but I figured since I get the privilege of starting a new page I'd mention it and welcome any feedback. drunk mutt fucked around with this message at 02:07 on Oct 8, 2020 |
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Oct 8, 2020 02:04
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A bit premature but I may be coming back into the fold. I had to take my radio out of my Jeep, sigh years ago now, because of frequent vandalism. I took off my nice antenna too so I couldn't even easily carry my radio out ad hoc. I have a new Jeep on order, I can easily remote head my FT857, parking is more secure in my new place, so I'll probably be out more burning through gasoline next spring. Thus starts the research for a good place to put the antenna.  Sadly I've never convinced myself to find a good portable (ie hiking) antenna solution that mates well with my vx6, but I do still sometimes carry it with wilderness emergency on scan. I guess I could take it when I'm near the mountains with 2m repeaters, haha.
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Oct 8, 2020 03:07
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PhantomOfTheCopier posted:I had to take my radio out of my Jeep, sigh years ago now, because of frequent vandalism. 
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Oct 8, 2020 04:25
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CapnBry posted:As a TJ owner for 10 years, I sympathize with you. How many times have I come back to my Jeep to suddenly wonder "What. Why?! Why would someone take / break that?!" Bunch of savages in this town. With a Jeep, your stuff is everyone's stuff-- and they don't take good care of their stuff.  The second ripped out the wing window, left the faceplate to the car stereo, took the faceplate to the FT857, a tire gauge, and a box of desiccant.  Seriously, who tf takes a $15 box of silica beads that are used to dry things?The most recent jammed the ignition cylinder, left their tools, etc. Amateur hour. They probably gave up when they realized it was a manual, haha. I have security boxes in it now and a big chain and master lock around the steering wheel. I hope they leave the new one alone. (I don't leave things in sight inside.) Anyway, I have a couple months to figure out where to put the radio and wires, probably under the passenger seat. Antenna I'll have to think about, because that kinda signals there's a radio inside.
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Oct 8, 2020 07:09
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I discovered MMGAL today. Also I made a cocktenna for 2M. https://twitter.com/markpentler/status/1314277354013949952?s=21 In reality I am genuinely trying to model a flowerpot antenna and I’m getting nowhere. How do I tell it which bit is the coax with braid and which bit is without?
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Oct 8, 2020 21:51
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modeling a flowerpot in mmana-gal is gonna be real tough. mmana is good at modeling wires and yagis and stuff but once you get into poo poo that uses feedline as radiators and such, it can get really intricate
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Oct 8, 2020 22:02
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Ok - will just build it to instructions then. Was kinda interested to see it.
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Oct 8, 2020 22:05
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Yeah, you CAN model up coax lines and whatnot, but in the end the flowerpot is a kind of finicky antenna that just needs fiddling to get right.
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Oct 8, 2020 23:10
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drunk mutt posted:The DMR net is considering a time change while we also start to consider a long term TalkGroup ID. Nothing is set yet and the original times are going to be carried out (Tue 8PT, Fri 6PT) but I figured since I get the privilege of starting a new page I'd mention it and welcome any feedback. Would be good if there was a time that overlapped waking hours in the UK. But that probably puts the latest it can start at 3PM PT.
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Oct 9, 2020 07:51
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Ok. There’s so many differences in dimensions online, with some calculations that just don’t work right, with the right velocity factor and everything. Folk don’t always take that into account and then just shove it in a PVC tube. I’m convinced everyone just makes this up. VK1AD’s coaxial dipole seems to be the best one, just needs the elements shortening a bit for 145.5 in the U.K.
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Oct 9, 2020 17:55
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yeah tbh i've never had good success with coaxial / sleeve dipoles. Too much velocity factor fuckery, and your choke at the bottom has to be _really_ good because it's trying to stop shield radiation at a point on the antenna that's at very high impedance. 200 ohms of choke isn't going to do poo poo when the end of the bottom 1/4 wave is at 3000 ohms impedance
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Oct 9, 2020 19:33
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But they all say it’s so easy! I’ll give it a go anyway, got some scrap lying about.
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Oct 9, 2020 21:38
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Cool, I made my first echolink contact last night and my first actual radio contact this morning. I have a Tenway-branded BaoFeng 8w* HT and apparently it was working really well! * I think, it was advertised as an 8w UV-5R but I'd only be a little surprised if it's actually 5w
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Oct 10, 2020 19:21
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Achmed Jones posted:Cool, I made my first echolink contact last night and my first actual radio contact this morning. I have a Tenway-branded BaoFeng 8w* HT and apparently it was working really well! Most of the 8w Baofengs are closer to 5w, yes. Plus, every doubling of watts is... what, half an S-unit? So you're not even going from S5 to S5.5 using a 8w over a 5w transceiver. As HRCC said the other day on his stream, pretty much every baofeng is the same, and their advantage is their price.
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Oct 12, 2020 19:29
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Radio nerds, we are doing ~things~ and are asking for y'all to take part. AG0ON SAARS is looking for your input. All serious input will be considered! Please review the charters/by-laws and make suggestions/comment on those that exist https://docs.google.com/document/d/1o_kca7kA5E1Yffv5zS_No74jjarNTGnXFobrEwHKZCw/ We will be holding a meeting, which all are welcomed to join, on 2020/10/19 at 5PM PT. If you wish to join, please join the discord https://discord.gg/DY6P8YC and we will make sure to get you all setup.
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Oct 13, 2020 00:02
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I'm part of the way there on using my Mac as a DMR interface. I have blue stacks installed, and can record audio in a random voice recorder app I installed. I'm running mmdvm bridge and analog bridge on my server, with a dv3000 stick being used directly by analog bridge (no ambeserver). I can hear audio (other people's parrot calls) when connected to the BM parrot at 9990, but my own never come back. There aren't obvious errors in the logs that I see from either mmdvm bridge or analog bridge. I get key messages in the logs when I hit the PTT button in DVSwitch Mobile; not sure if I should be getting other messages too. Any ideas? e: I have my DMR ID set; sometimes in the conf I use it. I use it + 00 in one conf and +01 in the other because the comments made me think that the suffixes should be unique. But it also didn't work when they were the same. I am using 50111 as USRP tx and rx ports because all the guides said to do that (and to use an unrouteable 169 as the IP for that). Achmed Jones fucked around with this message at 02:51 on Oct 13, 2020 |
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Oct 13, 2020 02:48
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It will be super hard to provide the support needed via the forum for this one. Hop onto the discord link, even if just for the matter of time it takes to figure it out. It sounds like the analog bridge isn't configured for the right decoder and you're seeing the analog and mmdvm bridges work. I put the suite together with the idea that the firmware emulated was used. So we will need to look at your setup and work through it. Which I am totally down to do, just this isn't the best medium to do it.
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Oct 13, 2020 04:08
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drunk mutt posted:It will be super hard to provide the support needed via the forum for this one. Hop onto the discord link, even if just for the matter of time it takes to figure it out. Will do, cheers! e: HA! I found a post that says tht DMR parrot won't work in group call - it has to be private call. I found another post saying that DVSwitch Mobile can't do private calls. So that's probably it the problem. I'll see if I can find an active TG to test with since the parrot appears to be a no-go E2: looks like there's something called pyuc that might be able to connect directly to my analog bridge instance rather than doing the android emulator thing! Fingers crossed! I'll have to work on that tomorrow, though e3: aww hell yeah, it's workin. Cheers! Achmed Jones fucked around with this message at 23:41 on Oct 13, 2020 |
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Oct 13, 2020 05:18
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Fuuuuuck yeah I took the technician exam while Zooming on my toilet tonight, scored 35/35 and the guy told me I'd set a new record for fastest test time (for whatever set of people he was keeping track of, I guess). Once the FCC puts me on their list, I can go fuckin nuts with this Baofeng.
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Oct 15, 2020 05:52
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So I was thinking of getting an FT-857 for my minivan. I do a lot of weird stuff like minivan off-roading in the desert, so there's a nifty field day aspect to it. And I suppose it might be useful for emergencies if I'm not in range of a VHF repeater (is that even possible in CA?). But then I heard the FT-891 had a better DSP. And besides, I already have a 2m/440 mobile so I only really need HF. And all these new digital modes sound pretty cool, but when I add the cost of a signalink and maybe an antenna tuner, I should probably just go straight for an IC-7300, right? The radio is bigger, but the integration makes up for it. I'd just need the radio and my laptop. AAAARRRGGGHHH! Why the hell am I looking at thousand dollar HF radios and ridiculously huge "portable" HF antennas? I don't even have a general license yet. Hell, I don't even like talking to other humans over the radio. What am I even doing here? thank you for attending my ted talk
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Oct 15, 2020 09:37
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ryanrs posted:So I was thinking of getting an FT-857 for my minivan. I do a lot of weird stuff like minivan off-roading in the desert, so there's a nifty field day aspect to it. And I suppose it might be useful for emergencies if I'm not in range of a VHF repeater (is that even possible in CA?). The ft-897 was my first experience with HF. Same radio as the 857, but in a larger chassis with room for batteries. FWIW, I hated it. As a newbie, I never got used to the long alphabetical list of menu items, especially without a firm grasp of what they all do. Maybe the newer ft-891 is better? I don't know. It loses 2m/70cm though. After 10 years collecting dust, I sold my 897 and bought a 7300. It completely renewed my interest in radio. It's so intuitive to use and there's visual feedback for what everything does. I don't think I'd toss the 7300 around portable too often, though. I wanted a cheaper knockaround that still has a waterfall display, so I picked up a Xiegu g90 for $425. Its built solid and has an exceptionally good internal tuner. I've been doing Parks On The Air activations with the g90 and a Wolf River Coils "take it along," getting 59 reports coast to coast on 20 watts. You don't strictly need a Signalink for non-fancy radios if you can do some minor DIY. I soldered a PS2 cable to some mini jacks to plug into laptop for the 897, and soldered an 8-pin DIN cable directly to an audio dongle for my g90. Both work fine with VOX PTT and came in under $10.
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Oct 15, 2020 15:41
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eddiewalker posted:The ft-897 was my first experience with HF. Same radio as the 857, but in a larger chassis with room for batteries. FWIW, I hated it. As a newbie, I never got used to the long alphabetical list of menu items, especially without a firm grasp of what they all do. Maybe the newer ft-891 is better? I don't know. It loses 2m/70cm though. I have the same g90/wolf river coil/parks on the air setup and can confirm it works great-I've had a qso with someone in massachusetts from California. I'm having terrible luck with digital modes though. FT8 works ok, but I haven't been able to make a winlink connection after trying for 2 weeks 
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Oct 15, 2020 18:01
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Walrusmaster posted:I'm having terrible luck with digital modes though. FT8 works ok, but I haven't been able to make a winlink connection after trying for 2 weeks Winlink isn't nearly as robust FT8. It can't be, or a message would take hours to send. I've had some success hitting 40 meter gateways with the g90/wrc. I suspect I'm skipping right over the 20m stations, despite RMS-Express forecasting good propagation. I will say, if you're trying Winlink for the first time, definitely start with RMS-Express on Windows. Pat for Mac/Linux has a big learning curve, especially if you don't know what to expect.
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Oct 15, 2020 18:53
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Hello DIYers! We have a new forum/mod feedback thread and would love to hear your thoughts! https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3944213 Get ready to read this message 15 more times in every thread you read!
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Oct 16, 2020 01:31
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Since you already have a dual bander I say get the 891. It's half the price with a better screen, MUCH better dsp and it still gets up into 6 meters. I have an old but dying Kenwood TS-50s in the truck and I'm seriously considering replacing it with an 891. They really are good radios.
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Oct 16, 2020 02:34
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eddiewalker posted:Winlink isn't nearly as robust FT8. It can't be, or a message would take hours to send. I've had some success hitting 40 meter gateways with the g90/wrc. I suspect I'm skipping right over the 20m stations, despite RMS-Express forecasting good propagation. Your post inspired me, so I started over from scratch with a fresh winlink express install. Got it to work 3 times in a row on 40m, just like you suggested. Are you a winlink wizard? I also got APRS working and had my first CW QSO this week. Now if I could get pat work...
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Oct 16, 2020 03:37
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Jonny 290 posted:Since you already have a dual bander I say get the 891. It's half the price with a better screen, MUCH better dsp and it still gets up into 6 meters. Wait, are you saying this relative to the IC-7300? Because the 891 costs about the same as the 857. But the 7300 seems like it should kick the 891's butt in every way (other than chassis size, I guess). ryanrs fucked around with this message at 04:21 on Oct 16, 2020 |
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Oct 16, 2020 04:16
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Well, 7300 is good for _portable_ vehicle operation. if you're gonna post up in the back of the van and operate parked, it's a better radio. But if you want to actually operate in motion, the 891 is way better. Simpler controls and you don't want to be pawing at a waterfall when driving. So it just kinda comes down to exactly what type of van ops you wanna run.
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Oct 16, 2020 04:29
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Oh yeah, my use case would definitely be park somewhere, setup a 100 ft wire dipole, deploy solar panels, etc. Then mess around with the waterfall display.
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Oct 16, 2020 04:44
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Can confirm the 857 is excellent for operation while driving. Having a radio with a full keyboard, three foot pedals, a steering wheel, and six relayed throw switches is most excellent when you can give it your full attention. On the other hand you want an alphabetical scrolling list in situations where you can only glance at the screen for 73ms and then want to estimate how much farther to twist to hopefully get the desired item. I'm out of practice right now, but I could get most features on my 857 just by feel, and I wear driving gloves.
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Oct 17, 2020 03:42
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ryanrs posted:Oh yeah, my use case would definitely be park somewhere, setup a 100 ft wire dipole, deploy solar panels, etc. Then mess around with the waterfall display. Definitely consider the 7300 then. the only icom i have that i like more is my 9700
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Oct 17, 2020 16:41
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Is it possible to get some sort of kit to convert a HT from using its own internal battery to an external pack? Like you used to get those adapters for video cameras to plug them into the mains. Just has the battery contacts on and a cable? It’s for my Kenwood F6/F7. My HT and battery is old, 12 years or so, and I don’t want to replace it as I’ll replace the HT itself soon, but if I can run it off a power pack that I can use for other things going forward then it’s worth doing. Also my PortaPack that I bought in error is finally in SA Mart if anyone is interested.
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Oct 17, 2020 17:14
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Oh sure. Almost every HT has the provision to take DC input and just run off of that. Just make sure voltage and polarity is correct, and you get a pack with enough beef that it can source enough amps on transmit (usually in the neighborhood of 1 amp for an HT at full power)
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Oct 17, 2020 17:22
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thehustler posted:Is it possible to get some sort of kit to convert a HT from using its own internal battery to an external pack? Like you used to get those adapters for video cameras to plug them into the mains. Just has the battery contacts on and a cable? It’s for my Kenwood F6/F7. Not sure where you're located, but Batteries America has a bunch of replacements for the F6/F7, including a 4000 mAh one, as well as some battery eliminator adapters: https://batteriesamerica.com/search?type=product&q=th-f6*
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Oct 17, 2020 17:25
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Yeah I just can’t spend 25 quid on a new battery and feel good about it if I’m getting a new HT soon. I’m in the U.K., prices aren’t bad but I’d rather put it to a new radio. But a power pack I can use on other radios and kit somehow going forward would be great I had to go to 50 milliwatt on a hill today to save power and made a 50km contact on FM. Ridiculous. We were both ~400 feet up.
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Oct 17, 2020 17:41
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There is a USB plug to DC power jack thing which has a booster to 7.4V, but the F6 and F7 have issues on transmit sometimes when running on mains (they reset themselves on PTT) so if I can keep it thinking it’s “on battery” it’s better I think.
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Oct 17, 2020 17:42
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As a further question, are data modes on the U.K. 2M simplex channels ok? The band plan says FM/DV but if that FM has SSTV in it does it matter? I heard some SSTV on 145.525 today and was surprised. I just assumed it was voice-only Edit: sorry for the post flood, I’ve just had a really fun afternoon! I’m so new to this despite being licensed long enough to be on page 1 of this thread. Just had mic fright all this time. Edit 2: looks like the 7.4 volt of the battery is the same as that used by many drone batteries. I figure it’s worth buying a battery eliminator, chop the plug off, whack a connector on the end and get packs to just plug in. That eliminator shell presumably does some voltage conversion. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/PB-42L-12V-Car-Charger-Battery-Eliminator-Kenwood-Radio-TH-F7A-TH-F7E-TH-F6-/164218324880 There’s a USB version too. Either way, think I have options here. Then just use the batteries for something else when I upgrade the HT. thehustler fucked around with this message at 19:50 on Oct 17, 2020 |
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Oct 17, 2020 18:00
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thehustler posted:That eliminator shell presumably does some voltage conversion. I doubt it. After poking through the manual and making a couple assumption, I'd guess it'll eat anything from 5-16V, but is happiest between 7-14V. Try simply feeding 7.4V into the DC IN connector. It won't be enough to charge the li-ion pack, but it should operate the HT just fine. You might lose a diode drop going in from the DC jack? If tx seems anemic, measure your RF output power since it drops precipitously with lower voltages. P.S. If your radio catches fire from following this advice, please post pics.
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Oct 18, 2020 09:54
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I think that’s the way to go according to someone on mods.dk. They put a 9V battery snap with a DC jack on the end into the socket and it worked and didn’t charge the battery as it didn’t go over the required amount. The power source needs to be a bit more higher in capacity/possible draw than a 9V PP3, though.
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Oct 18, 2020 12:11
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Does anyone know how often you can activate the same park for POTA? For SOTA it's once per calendar year, but I can't find any rule on this for POTA.
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Oct 19, 2020 22:04
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