Daily Archives: 16/05/2011

Chirp Gone?

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I want to pass along my thanks to Hank, W6SX up in Mammoth Lakes for his assistance yesterday in working with me to resolve my “chirp” issue. Hank gave me a call and we met on 4 bands yesterday (80M-15M) in order for him to listen to my problem. All worked out well as we started on 40M and then moved to 80M. Both of these tests were run with 100 watts.

Upon moving to the higher bands I had to start the Alpha 76PA in order for Hank to hear me through the noise. Unfortunately 20M caused some RFI in the shack that knocked out my Internet gateway and USB functions and digital interface until. So I had to restart the PC and turn the input power down on the FT-1000MP in order to get about 500 watts out and not cause RFI.

We moved to 15M, which had been my problem band as reported by NK7U and W7POE (via an OO Advisory Notice). After sending a string of ‘VVV DE’ for about 45 seconds Hank could not distinguish any sort of chirp and commented that my signal sounded clean.

I suspect it could be an intermittent issue because my CW signal sounded different yesterday than it did during the 7QP (InQP & NEQP) when the problem was reported to me. This also makes me reflect back to last year when Iain, N6ML e-mailed regarding my signal as seen on CW Skimmer and the “chirp” could be seen. Interesting, but I didn’t put much into at that time.

I did find out, thanks to the brain trust on the NCCC Reflector and at the FT-1000MP Yahoo Group that I do in fact have an internal AC power supply. I do recall opening the FT-1000MP up and toggling the switches to convert the radio to 12VDC when I bought it from Ken, N6RO. From what I have learned on the Yahoo Group is that any 120VAC power code, like that for a personal computer should work. With any luck I will have an extra one in my wire pile and be able run the Ft-1000MP off the AC power supply and hopefully rid myself of the chirp.

Chicken Parmigiana

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Ingredients
1 lb. boneless chicken breasts
1 cup flour
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup bread crumbs
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup Romano cheese
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1/4 cup chopped basil
4 Tbsp. olive oil
26 oz. jar of Full Circle Organic Tomato Basil Sauce
1 cup shredded mozzarella

Directions
Place the flour, beaten eggs and bread crumbs in separate pans. Cut breasts into fillets. Using a meat tenderizer, pound the chicken into fillets that are 1/4 inch in thickness. With 1 lb. of chicken I can usually get 10 fillets.

Dredge each side of the fillet in the flour, followed by the beaten eggs and the bread crumbs. Place each breaded fillet on a wire rack. Over medium heat add the olive oil in a 12 inch pan. Place 2-3 fillets in the pan to brown (3-4 minutes each side). Remove and place on wire rack.

Add cooked, breaded fillets to a 9″ x 13″ Pyrex pan. Cover fillets with Parmesan and Romano cheeses. Add the chopped basil and over with the tomato basil sauce. Add shredded mozzarella to the top and cover. Heat over to 350 degrees and cook for 25 minutes. Serve with spaghetti.

Notes
One of the things I didn’t do was make my own tomato sauce. Instead I just bought an organic brand at the store, but in the end it turned out wonderful. I could have also used slices mozzarella over each chicken fillet, but opted for the shredded. The fresh basil enhances the entire dish! Experiment, that is what makes cooking enjoyable.