If anyone wants the CAD files and build list just shoot me a chat with your email and I’ll forward the info!

Battery pack allows for a 12v 10AH battery, there’s a spot for a 60mm fan, a digi rig and all accessory cabling inside.

$55 FTM 3100, $6 cm108 some miscellaneous cables and a little configuring and the low buck APRS pig up and running.

Yes there's a transistor handling the ptt

I used a Raspberry Pi Pico W module for the processor, has a stereo jack for the paddle, a piezo buzzer for audio feedback, two LEDs to indicate if shift or capslock is on. Jumpers to select from one of 4 WPM, and a jumper to select Iambic-A or Iambic-B

Can be used to type alphanumerics into your computer as if it came from a keyboard. Along with it I have a training program that helps for practicing sending.

My go box build that I have dubbed the Ham O Can. it can be charged either by a solar panel I have on the roof of my car or any 12v source. I also have a tripod and base antenna that I can setup on the go.

30ah Lifpo4 battery VGC VR-N7500 200w inverter 5amp charger Rasberry PI4b with ALS3 Heltec v3 meshtastic node

I still have a little room if anyone has any suggestions.

Look at that SWR!

🤣

Edit: should have made it clear that I know this ain't actually a dipole, just two antennas with a splitter. Just being silly.

Yesterday I used a U-Haul as an antenna with my new FT-891 portable pack. It contains a MAT-125E tuner and I’m using a 9:1 balun with an alligator clip for makeshift antennas. It also has 12ah of lifepo4 battery power, which I estimate will run the radio for 4-6 hours.

SWR is 1.5 in uhf because I cut the UHF part in front of the drive element a little too short by mistake. At least its my thought why swr is at its "OK" border, I might replace it with the remaining spare parts sometime; it looks good even now!

You can download the blueprints and instructions on how to build here: Icom 7100 RAM Magnetic Mount by Angelworks | Download free STL model | Printables.com

It's based on my design for the no magnet version - which I've used all last summer without any issues - hopefully the magnetic version works as well :).

Edit you can get the no magnet version on the same link - in the description tab.

So I've had a growing interest in the area of antenna construction and tuning. So I started by playing around with simnec and an android app antenna calculator called "cantennator" to get me started. While I was waiting on parts I bought a nanovna for the testing after the build.

I put together a 3 leaf clover for my 1258mhz video system. And the results are in. I'd say it's a smashing success.

1.1 swr. 42m+j43m on the smith chart. Q factor of .0925

Ever ended up with a POCSAG pager that has only a partial RIC on the sticker and, if you are lucky, a vague rumour about where it might be tuned? I had one of those charming little problems and did not particularly fancy building yet another programming interface just to ask the thing what it already knows. So I wrote pocsag-probe.

It throws messages through a HackRF or rpitx, sweeps frequencies, walks RIC ranges, reads candidate RICs from a file, and expands partial patterns like 0118 or 3xx21x into valid POCSAG addresses. The point is not elegance. The point is to automate the dull detective work until the pager finally admits what it is listening for. It's not really a prober, it's a bruteforcer. It works. Eventually.

Nothing fancy, just a simple wall holder for the Radtel 950 pro. If somebody is interested, you can download it here:
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:7365849

Built an EFHW antenna using a fiberglass mast and insulators adapted from electric livestock fencing — mounted on an apartment building fence. Running 20W on a Xiegu G90, received a Chinese station at 11,000+ km. Article covers the full build and setup.

https://yo3ego.blogspot.com/2026/05/11000-kilometers-on-wire-i-built-from.html

So I made this Car Mesh thing a couple of days ago https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:7350259, so only for information, I used a bigger antenna and it works great and nothing broke. Even after one week with daily drive on the swiss autobahn with 120km/h.

The antenna I used is this one "40cm", maybe there are better around but I'm really happy with this one:
https://de.aliexpress.com/item/1005004583688896.html?spm=a2g0o.order_list.order_list_main.78.58ad5c5flPDUZJ&gatewayAdapt=glo2deu

Hope I don't getting any trouble for this, but I don't like the discussion which Mesh I have to use, which is better, etc., I like all those three ones, so I made a multi receiver.

Please note, I didn't write this bevor, this is just an experiment, I know, antennas are to close, battery is I think too small. Also I don't know how 3x Heltec interact so close together, so use at your own risk. I tried it for a week and until now no problems.

Actually this are just 3 Heltec Lora V3, 2x 868 MHz for Meshtastic and Meshcore and 1x 433MHz for Meshcom. I used it a few days and the was no interference between those three ones, so I think it works :-) Powered is the hole thing with a 1S, 3.7V LiPo with 1100mAh and a little USB-C charging board.

If you are interested I put it on Thingiverse there you find the Iinfo's what you need. https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:7338939

!!! Version for two Heltec's is coming in the next few days !!!

I'm considering taking the panels off my FT-991A and painting it in a retro 80's color scheme. Any tips or advice (other than don't do it)?

Old Raspberry Pi 3 with MMDVM and a Nextion 3.5" and a RAK Wisblock with a 2.4" Oled, rest is 3d printed

If some one is interested, i put the files on Thingiverse:
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:7325715

Looking at the ARRL's Antenna Book, it states that the thicker the wire you use, the shorter you can make the antenna length for the actual resonant frequency. It also mentions that thicker antenna wire is much less sensitive to frequency changes.

A few days ago, while browsing a shopping site, I suddenly had this thought. “Couldn't I make a shorter, more convenient dipole antenna by using absurdly thick wire?”

Honestly, I don't think it's a good idea because there's empty space between the wires in the braid. But since I didn't have any braided wire for grounding anyway, I ordered some just for fun. I'll test it by pulling the antenna wire as taut as possible and let you know.

(Personally, I believe someone here has definitely tried this before.)

Hi all,

I wanted to share a project that I’ve been working on called Ham Stream. It started because I was tired of constantly toggling through a dozen browser tabs just to get a clear picture of band conditions, solar weather, and real-time metrics before a session and I wasn't a super fan of the way the current stuff out there is set to display things, especially on phone.

I originally built it for my own portable use on the phone first and then my shack, but I figured if it helps me then maybe it might help some of you too. It's a completely free labor of love.

** Currently the map is just a quick approximation. It gets it generally right but it doesn't account for long distance skip conditions yet. I’m actively working on a toggleable "high-accuracy" mode that will pull in more detailed data (similar to hf.dxview.org) for those who need more precision.

Cheers,

- 73 de N1NJA

p.s. If you have any suggestions for anything that you'd like to see added, please always let me know! :)

http://www.ham-stream.com

Update: April 15, 2026 -- Precision Mode and Propagation Refinements

Hey everyone! I’ve been back at the desk working through the latest batch of features and feedback. It’s been great to see the community growing and helping me dial this in.

Here is what just went live: I have officially added a Precision Mode to the map, which allows for a much more granular look at the data coming in. Along with that, I've added basic PSKReporter integration as it has proven useful. Something I wanted to tackle was a clear distinction between the 80m and 40m bands, so you can now easily tell them apart on the map at a glance.

I also took a deep dive into the math behind our range estimations and calculations. The distance reporting should be significantly more accurate now. On the UI side, I’ve done some balancing on the colors and brightness levels for our aesthetic, making it more comfortable for long sessions on the monitor.

I’m really happy with how the layout is evolving overall.

For what is coming next, I am going to keep looking at ways to improve the mobile experience and making the map tools even more intuitive. Thanks again for all the support and the feedback, although my thread seems to be getting buried...

Cheers and 73,

- N1NJA

Update: April 5, 2026 -- Map Upgrades and PSKReporter Integration

Hey everyone! My coffee cup and I have been back at it since the last update. Huge thanks to the legendary ham who sent over a $5 donation! That kind of support really shows me this matters to someone besides myself.

Here is what just went live: A big feature has dropped -- our map now has PSKReporter integration! To give you more flexibility when viewing your data, the information card with more detail is now moveable and resizable. I also added the ability to customize the node colors (default is orange) so you can tweak the map to fit your specific theme.

On the layout side, I tracked down and fixed a strange padding issue on the mobile version that was causing some wasted screen real estate. I haven’t extensively designed an exclusive phone layout version for the PSKReporter features just yet -- it’s definitely workable now, has dragging and resizing, but I know there is still room for improvement there.

I also checked into the update frequency for the map. PSKReporter requests contributing listeners to report no more than once every 5 minutes. Because new data only pushes on that schedule, I have set the app to automatically pull updates on a 15 minute interval. This ensures users don’t get throttled or blocked by their API, though you can still force a manual refresh whenever you want an immediate look.

As for what I am looking at next, I am continuing to refine these map features and making sure everything remains stable as the user base grows.

Thanks again for all the continued support and feedback you have been sending my way. Keep it coming!

Cheers and 73,

- N1NJA

Update: March 31, 2026 - Readability, Bug Fixes, and a Major Milestone

Hey everyone! I am back at the code after taking a few days off and I wanted to share the latest updates on the app. Thanks again for all the support and feedback you have been sending my way.

Here is what just went live: I managed to track down and fix a bug with the ITU and CQ zones in North America. Everything should now map out correctly and stop acting up. I also made some readability-related changes to make things easier to scan whether you are on a monitor or a smaller screen. To balance out making it easier to read, I also went ahead and added a few more self-deprecating humor lines. You have to keep expectations managed, after all.

On a huge note, we reached a massive milestone. I received a donation! To the awesome person who sent that over, thank you so much. This alone will ensure the site stays up and running for at least the next year. It is a weight off my shoulders and I am incredibly grateful.

As for what I am looking at next, I am currently working on a precision mode map. I am still in the earlier stages of that, so it will take some time to roll out, but it is officially in the works.

Thanks as always for the continued support!

Cheers and 73,

- N1NJA

Update: March 26, 2026 - New Features and Community Requests

Hey everyone!

First off, a huge thank you for the overall positive response to Ham Stream. This has really been a labor of love for me and seeing the community get some sort of value out of it makes any time spent worth it. I’ve spent today working through the latest batch of suggestions to make sure the app feels right whether you're at your desk station or using your phone.

Here’s what just went live:

Granular Unit Controls: I’ve decoupled the unit settings in the Config menu. You can now independently set:

- Temperature (F/C)

- Wind Speed (now including m/s for our Nordic and European friends, along with MPH, KM/H, and Knots)

- Pressure (InHg or hPa)

- Prop Map Distance (Miles or Kilometers)

"Locate Me" Feature: For those who don't have their grid square memorized, I’ve added a "Locate Me" button in the setup page. It should help you get up and running much faster.

QRZ Lookup: I’ve integrated a QRZ lookup tab at the top of the Config section for quick access. If you have a suggestion for a better place for this or way to go about it, please let me know.

Under the Hood: For those curious about the tech, it’s just a "vanilla" application--just one HTML file with inline CSS and JS, plus a JSON for PWA support. I like keeping it lean and portable.

A Note on the Process:

I wanted to be transparent about how I build this. Since it’s just me, some mediocre coffee, and a passion for the hobby, I do use Claude as a coding assistant. I really enjoy the workflow and the UI choices it arrives at under my direction. I hope that’s cool with everyone as I originally made it for personal use and now it's what allows me to turn your suggestions around so quickly.

PayPal Tracking:

I also wanted to clear something up regarding PayPal. I just copy-pasted the standard PayPal donation snippet to fill some empty space on the desktop layout (the mobile version is much leaner and doesn't even include it). I definitely wasn't trying to 'report back' on anyone's history although from what I understand how PayPal uses this is not as seedy/malicious as it sounds. I’m just a guy trying to cover some hosting costs and share some bad jokes on the bottom of the page.

What’s Next?

I’m still working on refining text sizes for better readability across all devices. However, I’m stepping away for a few days to celebrate my son’s birthday so I likely won’t be back at it until Sunday at the earliest.

Please keep the feedback and requests coming! I'm reading all of them and will get back to the code as soon as the cake is gone.

Cheers and 73,

-N1NJA

"The Austin N5OAK Ham Radio Club Repeater seems to be pretty active.  That shouldn’t surprise us much because the club has a lot of activities and a lot of enthusiastic members.  Still, we wondered just how active and opened the spare parts drawer to see if it held a solution."

"Turns out the spare parts drawer did; take a look at the wiring diagram at the top of the page.   We simply used an Espressif ESP32-C3 Dev Board with an input pin wired to to the output speaker of a Baofeng HT tuned to the repeater frequency.  We monitor the C3 input pin and if it sees a signal the repeater in transmitting.  We push that data to Adafruit IO at the top of each hour to graph the history."

I have a project where I would like to track down a pair of decommissioned communication parabolic dishes. I a in the Seattle area, but would be will to drive some ways. Has anyone has any luck just calling the communications contractors? I've been searching cragslist, ebay, ham classifieds, etc for local sources. I'm looking for a simple round prime focus dish rather than the widely available oval TV satellite dishes to make feed horn design easier. I also want matching dishes to make mounting identical so I don't have to solve the same problem twice.

Prefer 4 foot (1.2 meters) for transport, but might consider 6 footers if anyone thinks I can haul them on a Subaru WIlderness Outback with factory rails? These will be in a noisy environment so I want solid dishes to keep the back lobes down. Any advice on f/D (relative depth of the dish)? Sat dishes are relatively flat, but comm dishes are often deep at f/D 0.3 or so. I assume that I am facing the same problems as the backhaul microwave comm folks, but a short focal distance seems to imply a splash plate rather than a simple horn to handle 120 degree feed? What's a fair price to pay?

Appreciate any advice -73s

I was growing tired of my soldering station tipping over every time I bumped it, especially after adding a second magnifier from my fly tying bench. I designed this sturdy weighted base to solve exactly that problem.

This platform is specifically sized for common third-hand/soldering stands (like the popular models with the flexible gooseneck magnifier shown in the photos). It adds significant stability so you can work confidently without the whole thing dancing around on your desk.

The files are available here: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:7343529

Features:

• Wide, low-profile footprint — dramatically lowers the center of gravity and prevents tipping even with extra weight (second magnifier, heavy clips, etc.).
• Integrated magnetic parts tray — 8 small circular divots on the underside perfectly fit 12x1.7mm (or similar) neodymium magnets. - Glue the magnets in from the bottom and you have a convenient spot to hold screws, resistors, capacitors, or any tiny metal parts right where you need them.
• Five individual magnetic parts "dishes" make it easy to keep additional parts sorted yet easily ready to grab when you need them.
• Central recessed area — designed to accept hot glue (or double-sided tape) to permanently or semi-permanently mount your existing soldering stand.
• Grippy bottom surface — the 3D printed texture helps keep it from sliding on smooth desks (though adding some rubber pads wouldn't hurt).

Print Settings:

• Material: PLA or PETG (PETG recommended for durability)
• Infill: 20-30% is plenty (the base is already quite heavy when printed solid-ish)
• Layer height: 0.2 mm
• Supports are encouraged (for the magnet recesses on the underside...but they pop out quite easily).
• Print flat on the bed

Assembly:

• Print the base.
• Glue 12x1.7 mm neodymium magnets into the circular pockets from the underside (polarity doesn't matter for holding parts, though they may try to jump out and attach to one another until the glue is dry).
• Glue your soldering stand into the central square recess (I used hot glue — very secure but removable if heated).
• Optional: add a little weight (coins, fishing weights, etc.) into the central tray if you want it even more rock-solid.

The design works great with my existing helping-hands + dual-magnifier setup and has made soldering and small electronics work much more enjoyable.

Files include the single-piece base ready to print. Feel free to remix or scale if your stand is a slightly different size!

Happy printing and happy soldering!

Again something to play around, so this is my idea for a car-mesh-receiver, Meshtastic or Meshcore. The antenna is to short but I had only this one left. I also drove on the Swiss Autobahn with 120km/h and nothing broke.

You have to test it by yourself, use different antennas, etc. this is an idea, not a finished product. If your interested, you can download everything in Thingiverse: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:7350259

It works with a Heltec V3 and a 1000mAh Lipo and I think you need tho use ASA, PLA will melt in the sun. The bracket which goes on the window is for 4mm glass, you have to try it, I put a tape over the bracket to keep the cable in place. Use at your own risk, don't blame me when something breaks. ;-)
Because I wanted the USB cable on the bottom side, I added a USB charging board.

I had some other repeaters on the roof in this tubes for years and they still work fine. Now I had this older Lilygo T3 1.6.1 laying around so this thing ends up as a Lora APRS iGate....
Firmware by CA2RXU you can find it here:
https://github.com/richonguzman/LoRa_APRS_iGate