GO TO OUR NEW WEB SITE

Please click HERE to go to our NEW web site.

These pages are no longer being updated.

Please also note that the "Contact Us" e-mail address, shown here is no longer available.

SITE LAST UPDATED ON: Saturday, 10/01/2015 @ 4:35 pm local time.

RV63 - Out 145.7875 MHz - In 145.1875 MHz - 103.5 Hz ctcss (G).


GB3JB is funded solely by donations from its' users and supporters. There is no club or group to join and no annual membership fee. We rely totally on your good will.

The system is located in South Wiltshire, in IO81vc, and provides coverage across South Wiltshire, South Somerset and North Dorset, with specific areas such as the City of Salisbury, Salisbury Plain, the Blackmore Vale and Cranborne Chase being well within its range. Coverage also extends, for fixed stations, across most of central and parts of North Wiltshire, Southern Dorset and West Hampshire, plus parts of North and West Somerset. See coverage map.

GB3JB is an analogue voice repeater, with no internet linking, simple intuitive logic and no bells or whistles. The beacon sends callsign and locator. The invitation to transmit is a single dit.

To access the repeater, users must continually transmit a 103.5 Hz ctcss tone. There is NO 1750 hz tone burst capability.

The system timeout has been reduced to 3 minutes, so please set your rigs' TOT accordingly.

The simple rules for using GB3JB ....

(1) GB3JB is available for ALL Licensed Radio Amateurs to use, be they 'newly licensed' or an 'old timer'.

(2) All users of GB3JB are expected to operate their station within the terms of their specific licence conditions and restrictions.

(3) When in QSO, please wait for the invitation to transmit (a single dit), and always leave a pause between overs' - always give others a chance to call-in.

(4) Please use good operating practices and procedures. Mobiles have priority. Remember, if a station calls in, during the gap between overs', always acknowledge them and please DON'T leave them sitting on the side, while everyone else has an over.

(5) Only use the minimum power necessary - remember there are other repeaters on the same channel. The repeater only transmits with 25 watts ERP, so if its' 5/9 with you, you don't need to use 50 watts to a high gain vertical, when 5 or 10 watts will do. If you use 25 watts ERP, then the signals strengths should be reasonably reciprocal.

(6) If, under lift conditions, you wish to use another repeater on RV63, please turn off the 103.5 Hz ctcss tone, otherwise you will still access GB3JB.

(7) Remember that you are Radio Amateurs, using an Amateur Radio facility, so please use the appropriate operating practices and procedures.

Since you have taken the trouble to get an Amateur Licence, surely it's not to much to expect of you, that you use Amateur Radio abbreviation and accepted terminology, such as the Q-codes. We do not have a '20', we have a 'location' or 'QTH'. We do not have a 'personal', we have a 'name', etc., etc., If you still use CB, that's fine, no problem, BUT please leave the CB lingo for CB, and not when you use GB3JB or any other Amateur Radio facility or the Amateur bands.

and finally .....

(8) Ignore any idots - If you don't hear a callsign, do NOT respond - EVER !

Wednesday 8 January 2014

Turbine & Antenna Installation ...

Hi All,

It's not quite "bad news" and "bad news", which is what I thought it would be earlier this afternoon.
The Turbine.

Simon M6CTP, and I, installed the turbine today. It was only supposed to take us a couple of hours.

Having arrived at 10 am, it was nearly 4 pm by the time we eventually left the site.

The good news.

The repeater system fired up, without any problems. Hurrah !!!!

We got the turbine installed. Hurrah !!!!

The bad news.

The 3 phase rectifier / regulator, appears to be faulty. Boo !!!!

At first we thought that we might have been supplied with a 12v turbine, (hence the bad news, bad news), when we were initially trying to check the system.

However, some rather long winded investigations, which involved lower the turbine assembly and then putting it back up again, eventually revealed the following:

When the output from the turbine is NOT connected to the input terminals of the 3 phase rectifier / regulator, it appears to spin up relatively freely and when at speed, it is possible to measure 24 to 25 volts ac, between any two of the three phases.

When the output from the turbine IS connected to the input terminals of the 3 phase rectifier / regulator, it seem to struggle to spin up, even in a strong gusty wind.

When the +/- 24 volt dc output terminals of the 3 phase rectifier / regulator are connected across the battery, there is a significant spark, and the voltage across the battery terminals starts to drop.

I do not have the circuit for the 3 phase rectifier / regulator, but simple logic suggests that current should NOT be flowing back through the device !!!!

I have e-mailed the supplier, and am awaiting their response.
Antenna.

The plan at this time is still to install the antenna, tomorrow (Thursday 9th), as planned. With arrival on site at about 10'ish.

However, the weather forecast has changed quite considerably over the last two days, and there is now concern regarding the stability / safety of the "Cherry Picker" in what are forecast winds of 17 mph, but gusting up to between 25 to 30 mph. I believe that the safety limit for the system is around 25 mph.

If anyone is planning to come up to the site tomorrow, please check directly with me, before you leave.

Also. If there is NO posting on this web page, prior to 9:30 am tomorrow morning, then we will be proceeding to the site to install the antenna, subject to finding that the conditions are un-acceptable, when we get there.

Cheers & 73's
Dave, G3ZXX.


Posted by at