Monday, Aug. 31, 2020
Well, the deed is done. I just placed my order for a new Yaesu FTDX101MP with matching power supply/speaker and the fancy-schmancy LAN unit. Allegedly the LAN unit gives you network/internet access to your station, at least for phone access. From what I understand, you cannot operate CW using the LAN unit, which kinda sucks, but it is what it is.
In addition to the radio and LAN unit, I’ve also ordered a new Heil PRO 7 headset; a Heil BM-17 headset to replace my aging BM-10 headsets; an adapter for both headsets for use with the new rig; a Comet dualband vertical for use here at home; and a Hustler 6-meter vertical that I’ll install in the place of my former 6-meter copper pipe j-pole.
The damn state sales tax was over $300 … I could have purchased a couple of VHF Ringo Rangers for that, but these days buying something out-of-state doesn’t seem to give you a pass on state tax. Sigh.
I haven’t yet started cleaning up the shack, which I absolutely MUST do in order to put my new gear in. My wife won’t like it, but the gear will end up staying in boxes until I make room in the shack. Obviously, once that gear arrives, I’m going to have to put my eBay selling on hold (or at least listing of new items) until I get the shack in some semblance of order.
I did purchase two 7-foot shelf units, so once they arrive I can start putting them to use for storage of shack “stuff.”
I ordered my items from DX Engineering, so I’m not sure when it’ll arrive, but all items are allegedly in stock, so maybe a week or so? I’m not sure how they ship, but if its UPS Brown, it’ll be at least a week.
SPEAKING OF SHIPPING …. I quit using UPS for shipping the items I sell on eBay a long time ago. Not only have I had bad luck on receiving items intact or unmolested by the UPS gorillas, I’ve had miserable luck shipping items via UPS.
I shipped an item via UPS once that just simply disappeared for more than a week — the tracking never was updated. After 4 days, I went to my local UPS shipping center to complain. The owner told me to calm down. I didn’t know it, but the UPS route that serves our town is a training route — all of the new guys start on our routes in our town. And he assured me that the package I shipped had probably gotten stuck in a corner of a tractor trailer somewhere. “It’ll turn up, just wait.”
The problem was my buyer didn’t want to wait. I told him what the shipper told me, but that didn’t make him feel any better. The item showed up on the tracking system a week later — and it eventually arrived at the buyer’s home. After that, I swore off UPS forever.
For about a year, we had an office here that shipped FedEx, and that went well until that office closed.
I’ll update when my gear arrives … I’m hoping the shelving gets here first!
73 es CUL … de KY4Z .. SK … SK … (dit dit ) …