Dabhandradio The Shack

I have been a licenced Radio Ham since 1984 but I have always been interested in radio. My grandfather made me a morse key, which I still have, when I was ten years old and kicked off my lifelong passion listening to those ephemeral sounds and broadcasts from all around the world... Many a teenage nighttime was spent tuning into Short Wave on an old valve HMV set where I especially got interested in listening to the AM broadcasts of transatlantic aircraft talking to mysterious airfields in Gander, Santa Maria and ‘Shanwick’. Airband listening was and still is to this day a particular part of the hobby which still intrigues me. Having a Virtual Radar system in the Shack has pushed this aspect of the hobby far from what I could have ever imagined as a young boy back in the 1950’s and 60’s!

The main Shack radios are a Yaesu FT920 for HF and an old Trio 2 Metre mobile rig for local stuff. The audio on the web cam is usually monitoring the 2 metre local repeaters.

I use the fantastic Ham Radio Deluxe computer programme for logging and rotor and rig control.

The antennas are a Cobweb beam and a trusty G5RV for HF and various verticals for VHF UHF.

II don’t use the morse key as I prefer SSB but my intention is to get more proficient on morse now that I am retired from the shackles of full time working for my living! To compliment the above I have several receivers including home built DAB/FM sets plus my trusty Signal Airband scanner and a hand built ‘Swinburne’ airband monitor bought in the 1980’s from the man himself at Birmingham Airport. I can’t relay airband transmissions via the web cam audio, which is a great regret, but the law is the law! Shannon Volmet is okay (I hope!!). Finally, at the heart of everything is the twin screen computer which runs my logging software, weather station and web cam 24/7. This summer I will be testing out my DIY wind power generator to help my carbon footprint!

About G0PUD...and AMATEUR RADIO!!

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Above is a picture of my ever changing Radio Shack. I am a radio ham, callsign G0PUD, and this is where most of my designs and construction takes place. It’s also where I chill out from the world!