4th Wednesdays of the month
Formal Nights for talks, demonstrations, lively discussions and activities: 7:30pm: Heeley Green Community Centre, 344 Gleadless Rd, Heeley, Sheffield S2 3AJ.
Other Wednesdays in a month
Check out our events and Member's Hub on Facebook, as we either go out for meals and socials, contesting evenings, or we do portable evenings.
The weekend of the 25-26th July this year, 2015 saw members of four local groups join up to field a strong contest team in the annual RSGB Islands on the Air (IOTA) Contest. They travelled independently up to the beautiful Isle of Arran in the Scottish Clyde estuary and stayed at the excellentSeal Shore Campsite at Kildonan on the south coast of the island.
The groups were: Sheffield & District Wireless Society (SDWS), The 93 Contest Group, Worksop Amateur Radio Society and the Sheffield HF DX Group. As far as we know it is the first time such join venture has been undertaken in this area and demonstrates the excellent relationships these groups have with each other. Indeed the 93 Contest Group and SDWS had already worked together previously, in the July VHF Field Day and in the 2014 VHF/UHF UKAC contest series when the 93 Group members graciously entered their logs on behalf of SDWS as they had only come together as a contest group at the end of that year.
The IOTA team consisted of the following people: From SDWS: 2E0KSH, G3PHO, G8EQD, M5DWI, M0GDX, M6JIJ From the 93 Group: G0NEY & G4LKD From the Worksop A.R.S: G0EAK, M0PJA, M6XAK, M6ZCA and the following wives/partners: Judy (with G3PHO) Pat (with M5DWI) Bea (with M0GDX), Anthea (with G0NEY) and Carrie (with G4LKD)
The unlicensed ladies very kindly saw to the catering over the period (Friday to Sunday), preparing a nice BBQ on Friday evening and another communal meal on Saturday while the contest was in full flow.
Entering the IOTA Contest as an Island DXpedition station, we used the SDWS callsign GM5TO. Outside contest hours the Sheffield HF DX Group call, GM2AS, was used to work a couple of hundred contacts to test out the equipment and antennas. After several months of planning, including contest logging training at SDWS, it was decided to use simple antennas rather than unwieldy tower mounted yagis.
Peter, G3PHO had spent some time during March to July constructing and testing a series of low angle vertical antennas based on the well known Spiderpoles, available from Germany.
The antenna used for 10/15/20m was a vertical fan dipole, three centre fed dipoles on a common 100 foot RG8miniXX coax feeder. The dipoles were cut to size, separated at 3 inches apart from each other by a series of thin fibreglass rods, with the 20m element being taped to the spiderpole and adjusted for lowest VSWR using a Sark 110 VNA.
The 40m vertical was a single quarter wave wire taped to a 12 metre spiderpole so that the base of the antenna was some 7 feet above ground. Two quarter wave elevated radials and another 100 feet of coax completed this antenna. The 80m antenna (also usable on all the other bands if required) was a 136 foot centre fed wire doublet, held up inverted V style on a 40 foot telescopic aluminium mast belonging to Paul, M0PCF.
The excellent GM3SEK choke balun design used on the 40m vertical
Today’s DXpeditions, even those to remote areas of the world, tend to favour Spiderpole mounted vertical dipole arrays rather than yagis for the verticals radiate at very low angles if located on or very the beach, as they were in our case. Yagis , while having gain over the dipoles, have to be rotated and during a contest this can take time and often lead to lost contacts. Though less gainy, the verticals do perform very well and, of course, need no rotation!
The station equipment consisted of G3PHO’s FT5000MP, with his FT950 as a standby rig. In addition a Microham Keyer MkII was used for CW contacts and a Yaesu manual ATU, pretuned to 3.7MHz, for the doublet. Throughout the contest, each operator had to merely change bands and antenna and start to send, no other adjustments to the antennas being necessary. A refinement would have been to include automatic antenna selection …. maybe next time!
We were fortunate to have internet access courtesy of the campsite owner, so that we could run the DX Cluster with our Wintest logging software. While it was unreliable at times we did manage to have this facility running for most of the contest.
Scottish weather can be variable as even the Scots have to admit. This weekend was no exception. Those members of the team who went up to Arran early in the week were rewarded with sunshine and warm weather. However, things started to change on the Friday when the antennas were erected in drizzle conditions during the morning. Friday evening saw the sun out though for the communal BBQ, at which everyone enjoyed themselves immensely. The forecast for Sunday was not good but we were lucky to have a dry spell after 1pm local time when the contest finished (it had started 24 hours earlier on Saturday) and we were able to take down and pack all antennas in just 40 minutes after the end of the contest, leaving just the indoors equipment to be dismantled and packed in the cars ready for an early start back to South Yorkshire on Monday morning.
To round off a thoroughly enjoyable weekend we went out for dinner at the Lamlash Bay Hotel, just 15 minutes up the east coast from the campsite.
Monday saw most of us leave (a few stayed on to hopefully enjoy a few days of holiday time) but by then the rain started to lash down and what would have been, for the writer at least, a 5 hour 15 minute journey turned out to be a stressful 8 hour one. The road conditions were extremely hazardous with torrential rain washing across the roads and causing trucks and cars to send out sheets of spray behind them, so dense that at times it seemed as if we were driving in a a car wash! Once back in the home region things seemed more settled and it was long before all the equipment and antennas were reinstalled in the radio shack or stored in the shed.
Thanks to everyone who made this expedition so successful As you will see in the summary score, we did very well, 1008 scoring contacts in 191 IOTAs for a final total of well over 1.5 million points. This is an excellent score for a team whose members were 98% VHF contesters rather than HF ones. For a while they found the pile ups daunting (EU 123 is a relatively rare and highly desirable IOTA!) but they quickly got used to the racket on the bands and made this impressive score. The antennas worked very well and the accommodation, provided by Maurice Deighton the owner of Seal Shore Campsite, was very good. It was a warm, private room with table, chairs and a settee!
Finally we must thank Maurice for all his help in making the weekend such a success. If you ever want to have a camping holiday on Arran then his campsite is the place to stay. Anyone for ARRAN IOTA next year? Sure thing! We’ve already booked the site!
My thanks to the following members of the expedition for their photographs used in this article:
SDWS MEMBERS RECEIVE AWARDS IN RSGB 5OMHz TROPHY CONTEST…
Two of our members, G3YJR and M6JIJ have received certificates for their entries in the June 2015 RSGB 50MHz Trophy. Graham, G3YJR for the Highest Placed 25W/Single antenna station and John M6JIJ for the highest placed Foundation Licensee.
John used a very modest vertical antenna and just 10 watts. All entrants in the contest were help by the remarkable Sporadic E conditions at the time. Graham worked his best every DX NP4A (Puerto Rico) at 6761km while John’s low power and quarter wave groundplane bagged E7TT at 1886km.
Many congratulations to both!
If you would like to contest with a club but there isn’t one near to you that is interested in contesting then why not join us at the Sheffield & District Wireless Society? Once a member you can enter all RSGB contests apart from the RSGB 80m CCs from your own home even if you don’t live near our HQ in Sheffield. Just upload your log to the RSGB contest robot and choose Sheffield & DWS as your club! To become a member just apply by going to our open Facebook page and clicking JOIN under the banner at the top of the page.
The Society has completed its second successful VHF NFD over last weekend. Despite average to mediocre conditions, the operating team made contact numbers comparable or better than many clubs in their sections.
SDWS wishes to especially thank two members of the local 93 Contest Group, who are also SDWS members, for offering their services. They would have, in normal circumstances, been entering for their own contest group but were not able to do so this year so, in true “ham spirit” they said they could work with us!
Many thanks Mike G0NEY and John G4LKD ! These two experienced VHF contesters provided us with complete 432MHz station using a 20 element yagi and an Icom 9100 transceiver running around 75 watts. In photos below Mike is on the left and John on the right.
This shows what an excellent spirit of co- operation some clubs now have in this area … SDWS, Worksop Amateur radio Society, the 93 Group and the Sheffield HF DX Group, all of which will be shortly mounting a joint DXpedition to the Isle of Arran for the IOTA Contest weekend. Look for us as GM2AS outside the IOTA contest period and GM5TO during the contest.
On the other bands we had 100 watts on 50MHz (FT950 to a five element yagi), 40 watts on 70MHz (IC7100) and 350 watts on 144MHz (home made linear amp + Icom tx/rx) into a stacked 10 over 10 yagi system.
Adjudicated results are not yet published of course but here’s a brief breakdown of the scores we submitted soon after the Field Day. Some of the detailed info is not available at the moment: 50MHz (100W restricted section): 70 QSOs 13102 km points Best DX YL6BF/P in KO07 (Latvia) for 1514 points 70MHz (40W restricted section): 50 QSOs for 11597 points. Best DX 9H1CG (Malta) for 2313 points 144MHz (300W Open section): 184 QSOs (details later) 432MHz (75W restricted section): 50 QSos for just under 12,000points
These results will be updated as and when more information comes in.
Setting up the 50MHz and 432MHz masts and tent on the Saturday morning.
G3PHO’s four metre yagi waiting to be erected for the Sunday session.
During Saturday the mast carried M0GAV’s 5 element yagi for the 50MHz band….
The 144MHz station was located about 500 metres away to the South:
Andrew G0HSA operating the 50MHz station, an FT950 to a 5 element yagi at 10m above ground. On Sunday this was replaced with a 4 element yagi fed by an IC7100 for the 4 metre band producing 40 watts.
John M6JIJ logs the 144MHz stations while David M5DWI does the operating:
For 432MHz we used a very nice 20 element yagi and an IC9100
….. Five new “home grown” licenced radio amateurs ! …..
Sheffield & District Wireless Society congratulates its first successful candidates in the Amateur Radio Foundation Licence examination, held on 15th April 2015, at the club premises (which is a registered examination centre). The five candidates were taught by Krystyna, 2E0KSH, who was perhaps more nervous than the they were as the five lads were her very first students! None of them, Sean, Marcus, Steve, Andrew and Paul, need have feared the outcome as the five passed with flying colours. Krystyna planned and executed the course and arranged both the practical and written examinations. Over the tuition period she was assisted by David G8EQD, David M5DWI, Andrew G0HSA and Peter G3PHO. Thanks must also go to Steve G0EAK and Pete M6EEZ for taking on the job of inviligators at the written examination on the night.
The Society hopes they will have a long and happy life as transmitting radio amateurs… good DX and happy contesting to them all!
SDWS is the second major club within the city boundary to offer courses leading to the amateur radio licence.
In the photo, left to right (new callsigns in bold type): Pete M6EEZ, Andrew M6XAW, Paul M6GOE, Krystyna 2E0KSH, Marcus M6RUK, Sean M6ICR and Steve M6SLO.
Welcome to the website of the Sheffield & District Wireless Society. We have members from all walks, of life, bringing with them a very long wealth of history and knowledge with a common ground to agreed a very relaxed, different and refreshing set of membership aims and objectives. Do come and join us in our Facebook Member’s Hub where most of our daily activity takes place. Just bring yourselves along, your ideas and together we can enjoy what is a fantastic life long hobby to pursue!
Since 2013, we have always offered FREE membership and no subscriptions chipping in with funding via junk sales and donations when we need to. We welcome new members who are interested in getting involved in amateur radio, who want to take up training for Foundation, Intermediate and Full License, enjoy our lectures and social nights, or typically, become a part of our strong and vibrant contesting team where we do have a strong recent history of being at the top of the league tables.
Feel free to visit our website and Facebook promotional page, or better still, come along to one of our Society meetings, talks or events where a very warm welcome awaits.
Are you interested in ultra low cost 2 meter antennas that are easy to build using cheap parts; that require no tedious matching and adjusting; that are almost invisible; that are portable, compact, quickly assembled; and that can be converted into a beam?
If so read on!
These antennas are somewhat based on the “V” designs.
They include the Ultra-simple wire version in figure 1
The Table Top version in figure 2
The 2 element beam version in figure 3
Fig. 1 Ultra-simple “wire” version above made on an SO-239 connector.
Designed for hanging from any handy support and can be hung from trees, used inside motel rooms or as a “stealth” antenna.
Fig 2. Table top “wire” version above using a dowel or other simple base.
Upper and lower elements must be self supporting. Use aluminum or copper tubing.
Disregard the reference to the upper insulator in figure 2
Fig 3. Yagi or Beam version above This is a variation of the designs above. By adding the extra reflector element about 16 inches behind the driven element and increasing it’s length to 20 inches each side (5%), some gain can be realized! According to the article, this version had not been tested but should work with a bit of experimentation. It’s no more than a standard dipole with a reflector added to come up with a 2 element yagi with all elements bent forward at a 90 degree angle.
CONSTRUCTION NOTES AND TIPS In all of these designs, please note that the centre conductor from the coax connection is connected to the element in the “down position”. According to the article from which these designs were taken, this helps in adjusting swr!
Simply change the angle and or trim each half a very small amount for best swr. Remember on these antennas that the driven elements have to be insulated from each other and also their support.
The beam version can be made in a “T” shape with an insulated boom between the driven element and reflector and the “T” portion for the support mast. Small diameter PVC would be a good choice.
You will have to use your ingenuity for the mounting of the elements to the support so the antenna will maintain the approximately 90 degree configuration. Experiment.
An alternate version of each antenna can be built with all elements either vertical or horizontal instead of in the form of a sideways V.
These designs can be used from HF up thru 440 or above with a little experimentation.
Just dig out that old formula you should have learned for a starting point for the lengths……468/freq = half wave dipole (driven element) and add 5 percent to the length for the reflector.
The spacing should be a little less than .25 wave lengths from driven to reflector.
(According to the article, using a director and driven element arrangement would cause problems with a poor match and the spacing would be a lot closer.)
Using an MFJ 259b or equal would help with tuning the antenna for your particular choice of frequency, but if you’re not that lucky, then just use the old swr meter and very low power while testing. As always, start with longer elements and trim down. It is very difficult to add length!
The contest calendar for 2015 can be downloaded from here: Calendar
You can see that not a week goes by without a contest of some sort. Please feel free to enter as many or as few as you wish. This coming year the Society will once again be aiming to reach the top of the RSGB 80m Club Contest league. In 2014 we finished 3rd in a league of over 90 clubs. We can reach the top if we try harder so please enter as often as you can. The rules can be found here:
and there will be constant reminders and more information posted week by week on the members’ Facebook Hub.
At a meeting in December 2014, the Society contesters decided, to the sheer numbers of contests on the calendar, they would not be taking such an active part the RSGB UKAC VHF to Microwave contests that take place every week of the year. You will find some members still doing the contests on a weekly basis but some others may do a few and maybe restrict the bands they use and try to reach the top on those bands. In 2014 the Society reached 4th place in a league of over 110 clubs… a magnificent effort for a brand new radio club! In 2015 we will try to do better in the contests in which we didn’t shine during 2014… ie VHF Field day and the several VHF/UHF Trophy Contests. All these can be found on the contest calendar mentioned above. Please consider entering one or more of these contests on behalf of the Society.
Of course we will continue to enter the various field days at VHF and HF (and this may include the RSGB HF CW Field Day in June). We are also making a strong commitment to the Islands on the Air Contest (IOTA) this coming year! We have booked 15 camping pitches at Seal Shore Campsite on the Isle of Arran for the period 23- 27 July 2015 as well as some rooms in the nearby hotel. We will have sole use of a nice warm and dry operating room that has only been put in at the site in the last couple of years so we will not need generators, etc as we will be operating off the mains, with internet access as well! The expedition will be a major boost to our contesting and those coming along, including several members of the newly formed 93 Contest Group, will be having a great time. Look out for our club calls GM5TO, GS5TO/P and well as that of the Sheffield HF DX Group, GM2AS/P. These calls will be activated over the days we are on site. The call to be used in the IOTA contest has yet to be decided but it may very well be GM5TO.
Take a look at this new video….marking our first anniversary as the new Sheffield & District Wireless Society. Congratulations to all at SDWS who helped to make this past year such a fantastic success.
Well, for our Society Christmas Meal we certainly dined in Four Star Style at the Sheffield’s Rutland Hotel, who have very generously sponsored our superb meeting facilities all year long. We ended the year with a bang with some excellent cuisine to die for, with everyone who came along having a really darn fine time.
Despite missing 5 members, we still had a full house attendance of 28 people, attracting also some members from Worksop ARS as well members Jenni M0HZT and her husband who drove for four hours from Trowbridge & DARC to join us, a great effort!
We had a superb quality night with an excellent service provided by James and the waiting staff. It was a splendid night to be had by all with many members saying it was the best club Christmas meal they have had in years. We cant wait for next year!
The contest calendar for 2015 can be downloaded from here: Calendar
You can see that not a week goes by without a contest of some sort. Please feel free to enter as many or as few as you wish. This coming year the Society will once again be aiming to reach the top of the RSGB 80m Club Contest league. In 2014 we finished 3rd in a league of over 90 clubs. We can reach the top if we try harder so please enter as often as you can. The rules can be found here:
and there will be constant reminders and more information posted week by week on the members’ Facebook Hub.
At a meeting in December 2014, the Society contesters decided, to the sheer numbers of contests on the calendar, they would not be taking such an active part the RSGB UKAC VHF to Microwave contests that take place every week of the year. You will find some members still doing the contests on a weekly basis but some others may do a few and maybe restrict the bands they use and try to reach the top on those bands. In 2014 the Society reached 4th place in a league of over 110 clubs… a magnificent effort for a brand new radio club! In 2015 we will try to do better in the contests in which we didn’t shine during 2014… ie VHF Field day and the several VHF/UHF Trophy Contests. All these can be found on the contest calendar mentioned above. Please consider entering one or more of these contests on behalf of the Society.
Of course we will continue to enter the various field days at VHF and HF (and this may include the RSGB HF CW Field Day in June). We are also making a strong commitment to the Islands on the Air Contest (IOTA) this coming year! We have booked 15 camping pitches at Seal Shore Campsite on the Isle of Arran for the period 23- 27 July 2015 as well as some rooms in the nearby hotel. We will have sole use of a nice warm and dry operating room that has only been put in at the site in the last couple of years so we will not need generators, etc as we will be operating off the mains, with internet access as well! The expedition will be a major boost to our contesting and those coming along, including several members of the newly formed 93 Contest Group, will be having a great time. Look out for our club calls GM5TO, GS5TO/P and well as that of the Sheffield HF DX Group, GM2AS/P. These calls will be activated over the days we are on site. The call to be used in the ITOA contest has yet to be decided but it may very well be GM5TO.
