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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 !

Technical



Below, is the new schematic which, if everything goes to plan, reflects the actual re-configured system as of 8th March 2014.





You will note that an additional duplexer has been installed, between the circulator and the lightning arrestor.  This is in preparation for the installation of the GB7JB DMR DV 70cm repeater, which now has its NoV.

The duplexer will introduce approx., an additional 0.2 dB of loss at 2m and approx., 0.3 dB at 70cm, whilst providing greater than 60dB of isolation between the 2m and 70cm equipment ports.  This duplexer is to allow the same antenna and feeder system to be used for both GB3JB and GB7JB.  

I have been testing the duplexer at home, with an FT2600 on 2m and a TM-G707 on 70cm, operating into the main dual-band colinear.  With both rigs operating at there highest power levels, I have not detected any de-sensing of either receiver, even on very weak signals.

It is not anticipated that the addition of this duplexer will have any significant impact on the tuning of the main 2m cavity filter assembly.

All of the four solar panels are also new, they are each comprised of 72 cells, in a 6 x 12 array, measuring 1.6m x 0.9m.

 Two are rated at 250 watts peak and two at 190 watts peak.

 The nominal full load output voltage is 35 volts dc.

 To give some idea of scale, the picture below is of a single panel of the same dimensions, with the late Clem G3UGR.


The change to the four solar panels, reflects a significant problems we have faced at the site with various turbines just NOT being engineered well enough.
Typically the weak areas seem to be associated with the bearings and/or the manner in which the blades are attached to the shaft.

 As will be appreciated, the site is now totally reliant on Solar Energy.

With regard to the future power loading of adding GB7JB and GB3WX.  The plan is that additional battery capacity will be added, as and when required by the additional repeater installations.

 The other major site change is of course, the replacement of 2" mast with a two section, free standing, Rasmussen, steel lattice tower.

 The antenna is now mounted on the Rasmussen Tower, as are the solar panels.

 All, well above the anti-climbing panels, the anti-climbing paint, and the barb wire.


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