New Member - Couple Questions:
NEW to the FT60r world.? Nice to meet this group!
I'm not deeply technical, and like to keep things simple.? Main rig is FT857, and MicroHam TNC thingy.? Usually 40 Meter CW.? I have a newly purchaced used FT-60r, taking delivery tomorrow.
1). I'm wondering if I can use my Elecraft KX3 USB control cable (TRRS) as a programming cable for CHIRP?? Would it hurt anything if I just plugged it in and tried it out??? I'm an experimenter - but I'll give it a miss if there is a possible risk.
2)? I've got a splitting sound patch cord -? Female 3mm (TRRS) and splits into two marked male ends:? ?1 MIC - TRS and? 1 Earphone - TRS.? ? ?I have traditionally used a simple Sabrent Soundcard ($10) for portable communication with the KX3 - works very well!? It just takes a Sound In TRS and a Sound out TRS 3mm plug.? ?I'm hoping that I can find a way to keep it that simple without need of a DigiRig device.
?? Have these options been tried ??
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Re: connecting my HT to an external power supply
Followup: I just bought a pocket oscilloscope to play with. I can improve my understanding of a few things without risking my one reliable HT. This is cheaper than smoking my FT60 and can teach me stuff. Thanks again!
Jayne
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Re: connecting my HT to an external power supply
Thanks to those who replied with the process. I am taking to heart the caution to not risk my good radio in this way, but I am curious how it would be done. I'll consider the Baofeng version of the E-DC-6 and find a Baofeng version of the battery eliminator if I actually go through with trying it.? Maybe I'll just buy an oscilloscope.
Jayne
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Re: connecting my HT to an external power supply
In this vein, here’s a half-serious suggestion: put the white elephant power supply on a shelf until someone gives or lends you an oscilloscope. With it you’ll be able to see the input to and output from the supply as a function of time, and improve your understanding of AC, DC, rectification and filtering.
Good luck with any experiments you choose to do, and risk only those things you don’t mind destroying.
-KC6OEI
On Sat, Dec 16, 2023 at 19:16 Will W6SWF < 2sheds@...> wrote: I don’t intend this as an insult but only a caution: it’s probably best you don’t experiment with what I would consider a valuable piece of hardware if you don’t know what you are doing and by that I mean if you don’t understand the requirements of the radio and safety constraints that need to be employed. You might ask: How do I learn this?
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Re: connecting my HT to an external power supply
I don’t intend this as an insult but only a caution: it’s probably best you don’t experiment with what I would consider a valuable piece of hardware if you don’t know what you are doing and by that I mean if you don’t understand the requirements of the radio and safety constraints that need to be employed. You might ask: How do I learn this? I learned it with a lot of smoke-generating experiments. I have done countless stupid things that didn’t work and that’s called experience. I would usually not experiment with my Ft60 unless I have done a lot of investigation and dry testing to determine if my assumptions about what I’m working on are correct. Everybody who has responded has great suggestions but if you don’t understand what they are saying you might step back and question your competence to do it. Again, that’s not an insult just friendly advice to keep you from smoking your Ft60. I experiment to eliminate “unknown unknowns” and even then I realize I have a lot to learn. I would consider working with my Baofeng before doing something with my Ft60. Just be safe no matter what and have fun. ??
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Re: connecting my HT to an external power supply
My two cents:? One end has bare?wires, the other end has a jack for your radio. Easy-peasy. I suggest you carefully examine the homebrew power supply, you don't want any funny business ruining your radio!
73 de KK4KRK
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Karl KaucherTaylor Mill, Kentucky?
"I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear."? ? ? - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
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Re: connecting my HT to an external power supply
There's a DC jack on the radio that can accept a pretty wide voltage range. ?It's a 4x1.7mm coaxial jack. ?I got some adapters with PD triggers so that I can run it off USB power banks that can manage enough current (which would be any PD bank for receive-only).
I see others have expressed doubts about the quality of the power coming out of that particular supply. ?It doesn't have to be _great_ power, but, yeah, you might wanna ask yourself if it would better be used to run cheaper equipment (not that the FT-60 is gold-plated). ?If you do then definitely put a fuse holder in line with the wires from the plug to the radio. ?Not as important as if you run off a battery, but a good idea.
The thing he was talking about is a Yaesu FNB-83 Battery Eliminator. ?It comes with a car lighter socket plug on one end, and a dummy battery case on the other. ?Either cut that off, or get a female lighter socket you can attach to the power supply.
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Re: connecting my HT to an external power supply
I agree with you: Cheap? power supplies can cause damage . I? actually use clip leads to power a few HTs with battery removed .73 K2FT
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Re: connecting my HT to an external power supply
I personally wouldn't connect a power supply made by someone without knowing how good it is. There is a possibility the power supply isn't filtered properly and could do damage to your nice FT-60 HT. I'd stay with using the power supply made for your radio and that comes from Yaesu. Why risk ruining a good radio?
Just my two cents worth.
Dean - KC9REN
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Re: connecting my HT to an external power supply
Gary, there's no DC connection on the power supply. There are simply two poles as I described. From what the elmer who made the power supply said, one connects the HT via the two cables to the two poles, obviously + to + and - to -. It certainly doesn't seem to be a commonly carried part, to say the least.
Like I said, I'm more curious about the process and how I'd do it than actually doing it. This Yaesu is my only HT right now worth caring about. Of course I could risk the UV5R-no worries if I burn that one out!
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Re: connecting my HT to an external power supply
DON'T TRUST IT!!! Use only the proper Yaesu power supply from the manufacturer, for the type of battery in your FT 60!!!?
On Fri, Dec 15, 2023 at 12:50 PM, Jayne Rising KD9WLM <jayne.rising@...> wrote: Hello,
So I was given an external power supply at the White Elephant gift exchange during the ham club Christmas party. I spoke with the guy who built it, and he said it's a 2 amp power supply that would supply my HT but not much else. He did point out the danger that if I didn't connect things properly I could burn out my radio, but I'm still curious to learn how to do this even if I never take the chance. There's no diode, just a fuse, a couple of connectors (+ and -) and a plug that's surprisingly not grounded. And a DC dial, of course.
My question is this: I want to find the part he described. He said I'd need a part that fits into the battery slot with a couple of cords coming out, used to connect the HT to the poles on the power supply. The part would have to make contact with the contacts on the radio, yes the same ones the battery makes contacts with. Does anyone know what this part is called, or even a part number if one exists?
Thanks!
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Re: connecting my HT to an external power supply
There is a DC in jack on the side of your HT. Have a look.
--
Gary
KY8M
Macomb, MI.
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connecting my HT to an external power supply
Hello,
So I was given an external power supply at the White Elephant gift exchange during the ham club Christmas party. I spoke with the guy who built it, and he said it's a 2 amp power supply that would supply my HT but not much else. He did point out the danger that if I didn't connect things properly I could burn out my radio, but I'm still curious to learn how to do this even if I never take the chance. There's no diode, just a fuse, a couple of connectors (+ and -) and a plug that's surprisingly not grounded. And a DC dial, of course.
My question is this: I want to find the part he described. He said I'd need a part that fits into the battery slot with a couple of cords coming out, used to connect the HT to the poles on the power supply. The part would have to make contact with the contacts on the radio, yes the same ones the battery makes contacts with. Does anyone know what this part is called, or even a part number if one exists?
Thanks!
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Re: FBA-25A battery holder question
Based on this conversation, I'm going to try the?Yaesu FBA-25A battery holder.? I don't use the radio much and this seems like a good choice, especially if my fingers are strong enough to get the holder locked in.? If my radio usage increases, I'll get another?Yaesu FNB-83 battery pack.
73,
Barry
WA9EQL
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Re: FNB-83 battery question
No balance circuitry.? When/if the battery life gets short, I'll check the cells individually and manually charge the low one.?
Halden
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Re: FNB-83 battery question
Nice integration with the base. ?Did you have any balance circuitry, or just charge the two (I presume protected) cells in series?
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Re: FNB-83 battery question
Radellaf, See post # 19174 if this link doesn't work:
/g/Yaesu-FT-60/message/19174?
Halden
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Re: FNB-83 battery question
"At one time I modified an old mechanical (daily) timer" - back 20 years ago I used one of those with a 60 or 30 min on-time to keep cells charged, vs a low level trickle charge.? Back when we didn't have Eneloops that just stay charged.? Back then, though, NiMH really took damage from over charge.? Back when <1500mAh was SoTA.
As for cooking, don't worry for short term (like a full 24h) overcharge at 0.1C on a factory pack.? One reason they may have picked such low-capacity 1400 cells, originally, before the?smart charger was popular, is that they can tolerate overcharge MUCH better than higher 1700+ cells.? Sure, it's _better_ to turn off when full (by time, or when they get a little warm), but a day won't make much difference.? Leave 'em on for a week, and sure, that's far from ideal.
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Re: FNB-83 battery question
"?I stuffed 2 Li-ion flat cells into the enclosure and have been enjoying its lighter weight and higher capacity"
How did you rig a charger for those?? I've looked at a couple of options: bring out 3 contacts for a hobby charger, integrate a USB charge module, use the two output contacts and rely on the cell protection or a balance board, or not seal the case and charge each individually with a hobby charger (since re-sealing the pack is a bear).
I'll probably just buy another factory pack when mine fails, though, unless I want a project at that time.
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Re: FNB-83 battery question
Hi All,
I did the same with a mechanical timer.
The Yaesu automatic charger suits me now.
The seem to be plenty of WiFi power plugs with timers around and cheap too.
Andrew VK5CV
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I broke open my FT-60's original battery pack when it failed similarly.? I found 1 cell that had fully failed, 1 that had low capacity, and 4 that worked well and had lower series resistance than other NiMH AA cells I have around.? I applied tape to the outsides
as insulation and blobs of solder to the crumpled bonding strips on the positive terminals, turning them into button-top cells.? They're now in service for other appliances.? I stuffed 2 Li-ion flat cells into the enclosure and have been enjoying its lighter
weight and higher capacity ever since.
Halden VE7UTS
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Will W6SWF
Karl Kaucher
radellaf