Settling in

We've finally begun to settle into the new QTH.  Every day I unearth something I thought was lost forever to the black hole of the storage unit.  Let me tell you, I am done with this moving stuff!

Last night I got my workbench set up and operational, I even fired up the soldering iron a bit and wired up a cable so I could charge a battery.  Feels good man!

I'm still working on particulars of my operating position and I have not got my ground system set up or hole drilled for cable passthrough or....  There's still a lot of work to be done.

Here's a reminder of what I'm shooting for

And here is where we sit today (pardon the weird stitching - click on the picture for the 3D photosphere)

So things are coming along pretty well and I'm really happy with it so far.  I decided to lower the bench top so I could use one chair and just roll between desks rather than have another chair to clutter the space.  I think this setup will be really ergonomic and comfortable.

I suppose that is about it for now!  Hamcom is next week here in Dallas so I will probably have a post on that as well as look for an upcoming post on my ground installation and cable passthrough and all the other fun stuff on the list!  Thanks for reading and as always, 73 for now.

New shack planning begins!

I spent some of the evening trying to learn Google Sketchup in an attempt to model the room that will become my new shack at our new QTH.

If you have ever worked in any 3D environments, Sketchup shouldn't be too hard to learn, but if you have zero experience, have no fear, there's a lot of tutorials out there on youtube and the like.  None the less, it had been a while since I looked at it and it took me a while to get reacquainted.

One thing that amazed me about the app now, is the incredible number of models available in the model warehouse.  They had models of my monitor, a Kent CW paddle, and even models of my audio interface!  Almost all of the models in the warehouse are made by people just like me: amateurs just sharing their hard work for nothing but fun!

I think the model came out pretty well anyway.  Enjoy the video!  If you have any suggestions for a better setup, please share!