WA5ZNU
Monday, December 29, 2008 Zulu
 
101-Led Wreath
We made a wreath totally out of LEDs and posted it on Instructables. It turns out they're running a contest for holiday decorations, so vote for it (once you log in...)!

Update: We won a runner-up prize! Thanks to all who thought this was a worthwhile project.


- posted by Leigh @ 02:38 z 1 comments
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Thursday, December 04, 2008 Zulu
 
Power Supply
Lambda LOS-12-X Finished 12v 5A Power supply

I found a stash of old Lambda linear regulated power supplies. They were so old, the regulator IC was in a round metal can with 8 gold wire legs coming about 1/2" long, and the circuit board was all wavy, hand-drawn lines. Still, I wanted to make at least one of them work. So I cranked it up from 12v to 13.2V and put it in a Radio Shack case, fused in and out, with an EMI filtered IEC connector from Halted and a red/green LED switch.

Now I have a 13.2V/5A linear supply, which I guess I can use for charging my LiFePO4 batteries (which need about that).

Why did I do this? One of my favorite science fiction authors, Stanislaw Lem, offers a glimpse: In the introduction to Lem's book "Mortal Engines," Michael Kandel quotes Lem:

In his autobiographical essay The High Castle, [Lem] writes: "I used to be a philanthropist to old spark plugs, I would buy parts of incomprehensible gadgets, I would turn some crank or other to give it pleasure, then put it away with solicitude. . . To this day I have a special feeling for all sorts of broken bells, alarm clocks, old coils, telephone speakers."

- posted by Leigh @ 04:56 z 0 comments
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Monday, December 01, 2008 Zulu
 
ARRL FMT 2008 Results
Alan WB6ZQZ encouraged me to participate in the ARRL Frequency Measuring Test. I heard W1AW and WA6TZY on 40m but neither on 80m, probably due to time confusion. I got two of the four frequencies measured at less than 1 Hz, and the one was off by 1.35Hz. All four were under 2Hz, and my final differences were both under 1Hz (due to cancellation of errors). Here are the results. Alan was one of only three stations to get all measurements within 1Hz.
- posted by Leigh @ 03:10 z 0 comments
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