Pactor II/III Modem for SSB

If you get a second offered - I am after one as well. Which SSB and ATU do you have? and how have you connected your ground plane?

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Make that three will you!
I've never seen one offered second hand so I suppose that it will have to be a new one as soon as I am back in gainful employment having spent up after two seasons pottering around the Med.


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Have seen them on Ebay USA but they go for almost new price /forums/images/icons/shocked.gif - the line up looking for second hand ones in this thread perhaps explains why.

Unfortunately, for new ones, the market is cornered.

Regards

John

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Well I am only trying because I just missed one being sold by a retiring cruiser in Portugal 2 weeks ago! These and other blue water cruising items are too expensive (for me anyway) to hang onto when you revert (if you can) to cold, wet, dank, dark blue water sailing. I do know modems are available from www.jgtech.com at £549 and up. They are in Weymouth and sound a good outfit.
Talbot you asked about my rig. Well, the boat is abroad right now and I assume/hope you are not from some Eurocrat/UK radio snooping organisation or whatever so I will tell you it is an ICOM 906 MkII (which is a mobile Ham set) "opened up" for SSB frequencies. The earth (in my fibreglass boat) is a 10 metre length of 50mm width copper spread around the bilge area and coupled to keel bolts etc. The aerial (and this is really clever and not my idea) is 6mm (I think) copper wire in a pvc cover sealed at the extremity and passed up the inside of cored braided rope from which the core has been removed. The upper end of the rope is attached to a spare masthead fitting and the lower end to a U bolt deck fitting at the stern. The actuall aerial wire is pulled out through the rope cover just above the deck. The aerial wire which is insulated anyway connects directly to the ATU which is the matching one to the radio, just beneath the deck. The performance of this economical and safe rig (no need for insulators in the backstay which are expensive and potentially an extra weakness, no through hull hole for an expensive sintered bronze earth plate) is outstanding. I have often had better long and short range contacts than nearby boats with more conventional earths/aerials. The aerial itself is possibly very efficient because the copper wires are not twisted as in the backstay and there is no intermediate atu/aerial connection.
The radio itself is very compact, car radio size but not weight.
ELIs Amateur radio, typically, in Fort Lauderdale can supply all that is needed for about US$1200. Do not have their address readily available but a search should find it. There are loads of other US suppliers, ICOM in Kent may also be able to advise suppliers.
Hope this gives you some ideas, obviously one should be aware of and abide by, at least in priciple, with the appropriate operating rules. I suspect my US spec VHF which I need to hear US weather channels and speak to US/Canadian/UK stations is not absolutely legal either, but that once again may be mindless EU regulations for you.

<hr width=100% size=1>SimonJ
 
Simon, very interesting to hear about your MM rig, not least because I have just bought a second hand Icom 706Mk11 myself. I have a wire aerial which I intend to support with a very long extendable fishing rod, in fact you can buy them for this purpose (Sota beams).
As you say they're surprisingly heavy but have a good reputation. The instructions for
opening them up are at DKmods, although I haven't risked it yet!
A word of warning about the modems, it's not easy apparently. I know of skippers much less luddite than me who were stumped by the configuration complexities.
I am currently listening to the Med net on 8122 at 05.30Z, UK MMnet on 144303 at 8 and 18.00Z,
and the Italian net (in English) on 14297.5 at 19.00z
Anyone care to add to this list especially for the Med.
David.


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Not sure if you noticed that pactor controllers are available directly from SCS, the inventor of the PactorII/III. www.scs-ptc.com
The IIex is €600 there and with PactorIII license (recommended) it is €770.
Still a lot of money but maybe a touch below what you said.
Anyway, the website is very informative and my experience with their support via e-mail is very good.

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Hi Talbot!

I can second what the others say re the Icom 706mk11. I've had one on board for the last 6 years and it's quite superb both as regards it's size (car radio), adaptability (it has a detachable front panel for neat remote fixing) and it's output/range. In the western Med. I could easily talk to Japan, Italy, Canada, the States etc etc. I use the Icom ATU130 (I think it's the 130) with 75mm wide copper tape from the earth to the keel bolts on my cast iron keel, an almost perfect counterpoise. I have an insulated backstay (there is no problem with integrity here as the Norseman insulators 'fail safe') that is connected to the ATU using a very heavy coax conductor, I think it's RS8 or something like that, but it's too long ago to remember!

BUT, I only used the copper sheathing of the co-axial cable, NOT the centre core. This was a tip given to me by a professional radio installer. The inner core is cut back and must NOT be joined with the sheathing at either end. Twist the sheathing together (the mass of copper is far greater than the core this way) solder it into one 'wire' and connect to the backstay or other aerial.

I was delighted, when a friendly radio examiner checked the installation out about a year after installation, and found the RVS was virtually zero! In short, a near perfect set-up. Certainly this little radio regularly out performed the bigger (150w output) marine Icoms and others during our Atlantic circuits.

All in all, an extremely effective piece of kit. Incidentally, the 'doctoring' to open up the channels (purely for safety receiving situations you understand) cost just £25.00. It cannot be done on this radio, as in the old days, by removing a diode, and is a little more akin to micro-surgery - or so I was told! Too difficult for me anyway, and at that cost - what the hell!

Hope this helps.



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As a long time licenced amateur and a recently born-again boat owner, I've been toying with the idea of installing my ICOM IC-706G (Mk1 variety) on the boat, but couldn't find the mod (and ICOM wouldn't tell me!!!) to get it to Tx on the marine band as well as the amateur bands.
Can anyone who has this mod tell me (or PM me) the details of either how it is done or who I can talk to, to get it done??
All in the interests of safety, you will understand!!

Don't suppose the automatic ATU (AT180) that I bought with it is of the slightest use as a tuner, since it needs to feed effectively a long wire rather than a balanced aerial.

Cheers
Nick

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Re: Slight distraction

Since you are clearly all using SSB can I ask you how useful you find it? I will be looking to fit longer range com's gear in the next couple of years and have to decide between SSB and sat phone

Thanks

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Re: Slight distraction

Hi Roly voya!

As posted above, I have used SSB on a couple of Atlantic circuits and, less so, in the Med between times. Predominant use is for weather info, either from Weatherfaxes down-loaded to laptop, or direct verbal comms with e.g Herb's Net operating from Ontario.

From my point of view, the cost and limitations of a satellite 'phone, made it a no-no. I skippered a friend',s Vancouver from Gib to the Canaries about 4 years ago and they insisted on taking a sat phone. We were supposed to be sailing for pleasure, but at the very least an hour was spend each day 'on the 'phone' either sending/receiving faxes or talking. It became clear (to me anyway) that if you CAN be contacted, you will be!! It was a real bore frankly, and extremely expensive overall.

For approximately similar costs (I include the charges over the few days passage we made) we installed the Icom 706 Mk2 c/w ATU and other bits - and still have them to use! Ok, and before someone points it out, I know that satphone prices have come down, but I still think the economics stack up in the medium term.

There is the safety element. Here the satphone is at least as good and probably better (if it hasn't been bumped or got damp) than the SSB, though we had no difficulty communicating over vast distances throughout our trips. Finally, we were always able to communicate with other yachts on passage, to exchange weather info, sort out engine, electrical, minor medical and other problems - and, not least quite frankly, boost each others confidence when things began to get lumpy.

Sure you can do all that with a Satphone, but I know of only two other boats that had satphones while we were cruising, so there is, at present, a problem from that viewpoint. Of course, the humble level at which we cruise almost certainly has something to do with it. We couldn't afford to run a satphone and, from experience, wouldn't dream of doing so in lieu of SSB even if I could!!

I suspect that, as with plotters, interfaces, laptops and Lord knows what else, satphones will become the norm in the near future, but I genuinely believe that those going off cruising to 'get away from it all' will be making a HUGE mistake in following that route.

All IMHO of course, and others will swear that they can't live without them. Fair enough. But just try holding a short evening 'Net' on passage, with perhaps 4-6 other cruisers via satphone. See what I mean?!!

If you do decide to go the SSB route, do take time to study the proper way to install it. THIS IS VITAL, if you want good long range communication ALL conditions. There are two or three good books out there to guide you and many among cruising boats , on this forum and elsewhere who will help if you're in doubt - myself included.

Hope this helps.

Good sailing!

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You do need to think about the service provider you are going to use. We are using Kiel radio which is Ok not great we get messages repeated sometimes and a certain time of day the lines are all full, but gernerally they are OK.

One reason I mention this is that they sell all the kit at reasonable rates and you may be able to avoid VAT.
Yachtcom are there agents in the UK (yachtcom.co.uk ) we got soem of the stuff from them to and they have been very helpful in helping with queeries.

I found the modem a lot easier to set up using Kiel radio softwear, then the weather fax programme.

Thans for the Med frequencies david I'll tune in some time (we're in Mallorca).

Pete

<hr width=100% size=1>PB
 
Re: Slight distraction/SSB worth having

Just to add briefly to above comments some further thoughts on the benefits of SSB.
Weather info obviously both from broadcasts and maps - quality of reception in my experience is better than with the the admittedly cheaper (& adequate) receive only sets.
The greatest benefit for me is staying in touch with the other cruisers and joining in with nets on longer trips. Particularly useful in caribbean where phoning is expensive and unreliable (and thus also conventional emailing). If this is not a factor for you then probably SSB is an unjustified expense. However having started around the USA/Caribbean without an SSB I soon realised (&so did my wife) I was missing out on the enjoyment/benefit of the nets.
ps do not forget SSB uses lots of electricity in short doses.
SimonJ

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Re: Slight distraction/SSB worth having

Hi Simon,

Yep! Agree with all your reasons for having SSB, and as I hope I indicated, I rate this far, far, higher than satphones for those very reasons. In general, you are correct re the inferior reception of receive only sets, however I suspect you refer to those at the cheaper end of the spectrum.

We have aboard the marine version of the Lowe HF150 receiver, which is generally accepted as the Rolls Royce of SW receivers, and the reception/fax quality from this unit is at least as good as our Icom 706 MkII transceiver. True, it cost around £450.00, but is a superb back-up and a neat, beautifully constructed, high quality unit.

We added the Icom exactly for your prime reasons - contact with other yachts, nets etc, but retain the Lowe (despite many offers from other yachts to buy it from us!!) as 'reserve'!

Good sailing!

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Hi

Dkmods, will go searchingf can you supply addresss or web URL

I have been looking at SSB rroute and was surpriced by coat of the modems

Hamish

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