August 25th 2018
Meathead All Day
Transmitter Hunt
Hider: Scott N6MI
On August 24, 2018, N6MI hid nine transmitters on 146.565
MHz for the MEATHEAD transmitter hunt. This was a start
anywhere, start anytime hunt.
Four transmitters were scattered along Highways 18 and 138,
north from the intersection of 18 and Waterman Canyon. Five
transmitters were placed by communication towers near the
Crestline Hang Glider and Paraglider launch.
The first transmitter (“N6MI T3” in Morse Code) was a KF6GQ
design. It was connected to a small whip. The transmitter
was placed at ground level at the foot of a 60 foot cell
tower in the shape of a pine tree. (N6AIN thought it was a
tree.) The transmitter was hidden under a broken
“branch” that fell off the tower. The only access was via a
hidden driveway to the east side of the northbound ramp to
Highway 18. This transmitter was clearly heard for several
miles along Highway 18, and along Playground Drive (near the
hang glider launch).
The second transmitter (“N6MI hidden t” in a robot voice)
was hidden about 100 feet from the Mormon Road Historic
Marker (just south of the intersection of 18 and 138). This
was another KF6GQ special, running to a small whip.
The third transmitter (“N6MI T9” in Morse Code) was a 15
milliwatt MicroFox 15 (byonics.com) connected to a short
horizontal whip. This transmitter was placed about two feet
above the ground in a bush on top of a cliff with a clear
view to the south and west. This was LOUD.
The fourth transmitter (“N6MI” in Morse Code) was a 30 watt
transmitter box, running to a four element log periodic, in
a large turnoff on Highway 138 about half way between the
intersection of the 138/18 (to the south) and the
intersection of 138 and Crestline cutoff. As KF6GQ noted,
the antenna was pointed into the hill. (Due to this error,
my Extra Class license has been suspended for 24 hours.)
The fifth transmitter (“N6MI T22” in Morse Code) was a two
watt MicroTrak AIO (byonics.com). This ran into a four
element yagi, horizontally polarized, placed about three
feet high on the branches of a pine tree. The transmitter
was on a short hill, next to a communications tower, just
west of the Crestline Hang Glider and Paraglider Launch on
Playground Drive in Crestline (east of Camp Paivika). This
was the loudest transmitter on the hunt.
The final four transmitters were hidden on a flat hilltop,
by a communications tower and a water tower, on Playground
Drive. One transmitter (“N6MI T4”) was a KF6GQ transmitter
in a hole in a K-rail, running to a small whip. Another
transmitter (tones, followed by “N6MI T29” in Morse Code)
was a 15 milliwatt MicroFox 15S (byonics.com/mf) running
into a small whip on the east side of the large water tower.
The final two transmitters (custom voice messages) were 25
milliwatt WB6EYV squawk boxes. One squawk box ran to an
orange dipole in a dead tree
(http://www.silcom.com/~pelican2/PicoDopp/MICROHUNT.htm#SQBX).
The other squawk box was hidden under the ugliest bush ever
seen on a transmitter hunt, by the fence on the west side of
the large communications tower.
N6AIN and WA6RJN found all nine transmitters. N6AIN was
declared the winner because of the short elapsed time
between his first and last transmitter.
KF6GQ/KD6LAJ found seven transmitters. They “did not hear”
two transmitters (N6MI T9 and N6MI T3). But the “missing”
transmitters were still running when they were collected.
I’m sure the KF6GQ/KD6LAJ team just did not want to hide in
January 2019.
KA6UDZ found five transmitters, using only a doppler and his
sniffer. Good job!
Thank you for coming out.
73,
J. Scott Bovitz, N6MI
Some Pictures
