VK6RAR Repeater
The VK6RAR repeater was originally proposed for portable
operation associated with Rally Australia WICEN activities. Rally
Australia in Western Australia has long since ceased and it
wasn’t until after that time that the repeater was finally
put on the air. Original configuration used a Philip’s FM828
radio but the conversion was not successful and the decision was
made to use modules from Hamtronics. Wally VK6YS and Nigel VK6NI
built the modules from kits and these were easy to construct and
get going.
The repeater uses a Hamtronics R451 single channel receiver with
a TA451 exciter transmitter, both are crystal controlled. A TD5
tone encode/decoder module is used to detect CTCSS and control
the audio and squelch lines. A COR 6 controller and voice
identifier board complete the basic repeater with a nominal 1.5w
output. Although the voice ident capability is available the
ident is actually a recording of the repeater call sign in morse.
This was found to be easier than having a voice clash with
repeater users.
The transmitter output is boosted to around 14w with a Minikits
amplifier using a Mitsubishi M57716 RF power module. The whole
repeater fits in a standard 19" rack.
The duplexer is a Polar Electronics bandpass filter type
’CI’. This is large and not really suitable for a truly
portable repeater but until we can find something better they do
a great job.
The repeater is powered by a 135ah sealed lead acid battery that
is float charged from the mains.
The repeater remains licensed by WICEN WA and is available for
deployment statewide to support emergency or community based
activities.
Click on the thumbnails for a view of the repeater, the exciter
and the receiver/controller
