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These pages are no longer being updated.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 !

Friday 10 October 2014

Apparent Intermittent RX Sensitivity.

Hi All,

As some of you may be aware GB3JB, has been playing up a bit, over the last few days - Intermittent sensitivity.

One moment a signal being nice and strong, the next very noisy.

There was also the sort of effect that you would associate with "Rusty Bolt Syndrome".

Managed to get to the site, late this morning, Friday 10th.

Initially, did the waggling of cables & connectors bit ... no not that ...

Checked the VSWR into the antenna ... that's gone up a bit ... but nothing drastic. Now 1.5:1.

However, one of the radials is at a strange angle and appears to move slightly, in a strong wind.

Checked the VSWR, looking into the 2m / 70cm diplexer, from the cavities ... looks OK ... 1.2 : 1 (?)

But, I took it out of circuit, more on a whim than anything else, and signals went back to normal.  

No intermittent variation in received signal strength, no "Rusty Bolt Syndrome".

I've brought the Diamond duplexer, back home, and will take apart to see if anything is a miss.  On the basis that it's lumps of L & C, I'm currently working on the assumption, that perhaps over the last few days an internal component has been damaged, by static discharges, with all the lightning that's been around.  Having said that, though, we do have a lightning arrestor in the feeder.

Although 'JB' appears to be back to it's normal capability, the Antenna will need to be looked at in due course.

Thanks to Dave, G0AYD, for his assistance today.

Please let me know if you notice any more peculiarities in the performance.  I don't monitor the Repeater, all the time .....

Cheers & 73's
Dave, G3ZXX.
Posted by at