Hello To All from KA2HHB
Thu, 08 May 2008 02:41:24 GMT
Just a quick hello to all "My Ham Shack" users.
Well my name is Ruben been licensed as a General
since 1978. Earned my ticket the hard way in front
of an FCC examiner in New York City. I was originally a CB'er in the early 70's during the CB boom then one day while visiting Radio Shack I
saw a flyer posted at the entrance. It basically
said that the "Nutley Amateur Radio Society" (N.J.) was offering instruction for anyone interested in Ham Radio. So I started attending
every week. After a few months I was ready, passed
my 5wpm and theory, received my novice ticket.
Almost a year later I passed my General in NYC.
Had a full Yaesu FT101ZD setup with all of the accessories and a Heathkit Tri-Bander on the QTH.
Wow did that antenna put out a signal!!!
I lived in East Orange, N.J. back then with the wife and 2 kids. Anyway that's how I started.
Well the real start was a PACE 23 channel CB radio that peaked my interest in radio. So lately been active in PSK on 20 meter...

Net Check-ins from KJ4DBD
Tue, 06 May 2008 21:26:30 GMT
Tuesday, May 6, 2008

1900 - Turkey Heaven Mtn. Net (146.865 - 131.8)

2000 - St. Clair County ARES Net (145.13 - 103.5)

2030 - Alabama Emergency Net Y (146.160 - 100)

Tube rigs from W7DTG
Mon, 05 May 2008 11:37:32 GMT
Been a while since I posted anything new, so I thought I would catch up a bit on the tube gear.
Been trying to generate 10m activity in this area, and using the tube gear on the 10m band, which isn't easy sometimes. The tube gear can be a bit finicky at times. For instance, the Drake T4XC and R4C can only do abt 50w output on that band. not sure why, since on 15-20-40 and 80M I can get up to 150W output. Going to fire up the old Swan-350 in the next day or 2 and see what it will do. if I remember correctly, it was a bit shy on 10m also.
Also tossing the idea around abt trading off some of this tube gear for an MFJ antenna analyzer. I do a lot of wire antenna construction out here, and that would help tremendously. Still love the old tube gear, nothing with beat the sound of the audio from one. I can listen to them all day long, as compared with my Kenwood TS570 or 440Sat radio's.
Maybe i will do some more horse trading, and what sort of other vintage gear I can acquire. Sort ...

QRP Operations from N2UGB
Sat, 03 May 2008 15:37:59 GMT
For the past several days or so I have experienced much improved results on 20 and 30 meters. Not DX by any means but my four watts QRP cw from central New York State has gotten me acceptable reports from as far west as Iowa and into the southern states.

And, the propagation was not ideal.

Maybe the decision to keep the Buddistick a 20 and 30 meter antenna helped. Had been using it for 10 through 40 meters with counterpoises all over the place. It is not ground mounted. Eliminated the rats-nest of wires that were suely reacting with one another.

Sure hope conditions improve on a daily basis.

73 and good luck to the QRP players

-------------Sunday, May 4, 2008--------------

Added OK City, OK to my QRP list. Sort of a three-way as an unidentified op added his "dit-dit" when we signed with each other.

Working my QRP way west like the early gold miners of '49. Hope to reach the Pacific Coast some day.

Put the old Vibrokeyer to the OHR 400 which has the elctronic ke...

First Rig/Station ? from KA6KBC
Tue, 29 Apr 2008 15:54:21 GMT
Hey All,

So what was your first Rig/Station ?

This is back in 1979 or so, when I first got my Novice Ticket. For me my first Rig was a Homebrew 6L6 Transmitter that my Dad (WB6CGN SK) and I built. I remember that I had to order Crystals from a company in Florida (CW Crystals ?) and it took about 6 Weeks to get them. So I had a transmitter that I could not test for weeks after building. I ended up with two crystals that worked - one at 7.125MHZ and one at 7.118MHZ. I put out a blistering 10 watts. My dad was a really “Old School” Ham – Even back then not many people Homebrewed, but he thought it was the best way to learned. It was a great way to start out in the hobby.

For my receiver my Dad loaned me his old Collins 75A Receiver. It was as big as a barn. I still have the thing in the garage

For my Antenna I had a Dipole over the top of the house and into the Trees. At the time I did not realize that most of my power was going in the trees :)

As a...

Hams In The "Fam" from KB3LAZ
Mon, 28 Apr 2008 21:58:46 GMT
Well all there are 9 active hams in my family and sadly one departed.
KE3CK
AA3MW
N3CDX
N3SLA
N3TTK
N3WWY
KB3LAZ
KB3NEY
KB3NYU
KB3RCR

I guess you could say it a family hobby.

Some Fire in the Wire! from KA9SRK
Thu, 24 Apr 2008 21:17:40 GMT
I finally have a little oomph in my signal with the addition of a Collins 30L-1 amplifier (on loan from W9JXN). What a difference it makes!

I can't wait to get my antenna a little higher so the radiating vertical element of the Carolina Windom isn't laying on the ground. Once I get a few honey-do project knocked off the list, a tower of some sort is in the near future.

Who got you Started in Ham Radio ? from KA6KBC
Mon, 21 Apr 2008 16:34:00 GMT
I thought this would be an interesting topic.

So who got you started in this Ham Radio Stuff ? For me I had two important elmers in my Ham Radio Life.

My dad Jack (WB6CGN - SK) got his Tech Ticket in the early 60's. He was very interested in early VHF and built equipment and Antennas for 146MHZ, 220MHZ, 433MHZ. As a kid it was the coolest thing. He was also involved in Fast Scan TV in the early 70's. He later became interested in HF and CW - Where he made a number of contacts and got very good at the code. He got me started in electronics in 5th grade and loaned me an old WWII Receiver for SWL. He later helped me build my own HF equipment once I got my ticket. He also helped me with my College Senior Project (146MHZ to 28MHZ Transverter). He was a Great Dad and a Smart RF Tech.


My second Elmer was one of my High School Teachers. His name is Lou Malory (WA6DVK) still alive and well in his eighties. He headed a program at Fontana High School called the Vocational C...

40 meter FH Net, April 17, 2008 from W8LEW
Fri, 18 Apr 2008 04:15:20 GMT
The net began in usual fashion. We received 2 check-ins pretty quickly and then issues began. During our 3rd check-in, someone began to transmit on top of each of the attempts by W0YSE. They used what appears to be JT65a RO at first then 73. At first I thought it was a true transmission since the JT65a region is 2 KHz below our Net frequency, however, after 6 to 7 transmissions and only when W0YSE was transmitting and not on the top of the minute, it was quite clear we were dealing with malicious interference. I quit transmitting and within a couple of minutes, a strong JT65a signal was detected 500 Hz down from Net frequency. I was not fast enough to copy the call and they never sent a message despite my calling CQ in that mode x 6.

This is a sad time indeed. We have to deal with the QRM from the non-USA Region 2 LSB'ers and we try to stay above the JT65a users. Malicious interference is a shameful act. JT65a freqs are 7.075 - 7.077 MHz typically. We were 7.078 MHz on N...

Why do so few hams use personal web sites? from NG9R
Thu, 17 Apr 2008 18:12:59 GMT
Just curious, why do so few hams have personal web sites? This site certainly makes it easy to do and the only expense is voluntary. Then, to make it worse, almost half of the sites on here have no information on them. I can understand not wanting to post too many personal details, but if your going to the trouble of registering with this site, can't you at least post a little info about yourself and your background?

NG9R

Silent Key Estates (no dis-respect intended) from NG9R
Thu, 17 Apr 2008 18:08:40 GMT
Why is it when anyone sells equipment for a family of a silent key, they have to make sure everyone knows it is a silent key? It it to generate sympathy so the prices will be higher? Is it to advertise the fact everything is sold as is, no returns?
Just curious.....

NG9R

30 meter Feld Hell Club net April 14, 2008 from W8LEW
Mon, 14 Apr 2008 15:34:00 GMT
30 meters has been hopping lately. QNI for the net went quite well as the stations coming back to me were 579 most of the time. Check-ins were: WB2HTO, Dave in MA; KO5G, David in TX; K5WTA, Jake in FL; N5ZTW, Delbert in TX; W5APS, Jim in TX. Though there were no major announcements, greetings were shared between all participants.

After the net, K5WTA and I worked each other for about 5 minutes using MFSK16. I answered a MFSK16 CQ from WA5MHE, Ed in El Paso, TX and we chatted about 30 minutes. Near the end of our chat, a ZL3 station called for Ed. He picked it up and they chatted for a while. It was about 10:30 Eastern time about then. Without a large number of sunspots, it was good to see 30 meters useful at night.

Our next Feld Hell Club Net is another 40 meter net on Thursday 0200 UTC, 7077 KHz + 1000 Hz audio freq. All are welcome to participate. SWL foks can send me a greetings via email (wulfeku1@yahoo.com) and I'll spin off a QSL card from the Net and send it ...

Welcome from K4TTY
Sat, 29 Mar 2008 14:34:17 GMT
Hello and welcome to my new page...
I live in Rose Hill Virginia and im medically retired so i spend some of my free time playing with ham gear and antennas to pass the time. Ham radio is a good hobby but it can get expensive and time consuming if you get to dxing very much.

Im going to upload some new photo's soon and maybe some items for sale/trade also.
thanks for looking k4tty/victor

40 meter Feld Hellschreiber Club Net March 27, 2008 from W8LEW
Wed, 26 Mar 2008 20:55:02 GMT
40 meters started out pretty good. Stations were initially 599 all except WA0JYD & AA9DY who were 339 or worse. Check-ins were: N3LFC, AA9DY, WA3QHJ, W0HPE, WA0JYD, and myself. The band dropped out after about 35 minutes and the net was closed. Too bad things fell apart just when the net was getting around to traffic/messages. Well, there is always next week.

10m and Tube rig's from W7DTG
Sun, 23 Mar 2008 18:16:10 GMT
Hi, haven't posted anything in a while, so thought I would just catch up a bit.
Been working on 10m a lot lately, although I have only made a few local contacts so far. Been trying to stir up some 10m activity in this area. I also have a friend who is a technician that is dying to make some 10m contacts, so we get on there everyday and chat for a while, just waiting for an opening.
Also been playing around a lot with the tube gear. I have an antique setup now, with a Heathkit Apache, Mohawk and Warrior 1KW linear. I also have a set of Drake C-line rigs now, as well as the old Yaesu FT-101ZD and Swan 350 rig. I have a Heath SB401 but I need to find a P/S for it, and a Atlas 210X that has a rcv problem I am working on.
Ok ok ok, I know those are 2 different subjects.....Just love them both too much I guess. Have all sorts of radios to keep me busy.

Updated Shack from KC5YPU
Sun, 23 Mar 2008 04:26:11 GMT
Well I have almost completed my shack upgrade.. the only thing left if to erect my 30 foot tower and put the Butternut HF5B and a 2 meter beam up..

HF Portable Ops in Okieland! from N5XTR
Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:43:04 GMT
I am traveling to my fathers farm for Easter weekend. The plan is to take my HF gear and do some portable operating. The only antenna at my disposal will be his 3-mile long hotwire fence, hopefully I will be able to load it up for 20, 40, 75 and 160 meters. Should be lots of fun and hope to see you on the air!

Never underestimate the wire antenna from NG9R
Wed, 19 Mar 2008 19:12:53 GMT
I an somewhat antenna limited at home. Actually, I am not supposed to have any antennas up, but my landlord looks the other way with my attempts at skyhooks, or at least he has so far.
Most of my HF antennas are wire, hung across trees and do not generally live very long. In an moment of what must have been temporary insanity, I purchased a commercial antenna, an Aplha Delta DX-B. The DX-B is made to operate as a 1/4 wave sloper on 30/40/80 and 160 meter and is suppose to be operated with a tower as the other half of the antenna. Since I didn't have a tower, I never did put the antenna up as it was designed. I did wind up using it as a ground plane, fed at ground level with a simple 4' ground rod for my ground pane. It is actually in an inverted L configuration, with the vertical part being 33 feet up and the horizontal part (80 & 160) running somewhat horizontal. I managed to work several QSO's with VP6DX on 30, 40, 80 and 160, both phone and CW with that simple antenna and no radial...

Hamstick Fan Dipole for HF from N5XTR
Mon, 17 Mar 2008 23:12:24 GMT
I have had a lot of emails about my HF antenna, so here is a brief description.

I operated mostly mobile and only 10m and up from my home. After discovering PSK31 and other digital modes I wanted to relocate my ft-857d to the house and connect to my PC. The change wasn't really that difficult until I moved to a cheaper QTH...an apartment. All of my hf wires had to come down and I designed the fan out of my hamsticks. I would say the outcome was better than expected.

I went to Home Depot and bought a piece of 3/16" x 1 1/2" flat steel. I bent it into a square and drilled holes for a U-bolt and 3/8 X 24 antenna lugs. I had to bend it by hand so it's not perfectly square but it works. Next was the phasing box. I bought the aluminum enclosure at Radio Shack for 3 dollars and drilled holes for 5 so-239 connectors. I ran 12 gauge power wire to each center of the connecters and grounded the shields to the box. I also made 4 1 foot jumpers from rg-8x ...

K1NWB Blog from K1NWB
Thu, 13 Mar 2008 22:24:47 GMT
not much for writing, but here goes... ham since 57, U.S. NAVY radio opr on board U.S.S. Hissem DER/400...

Digital Modes from KD7UFF
Tue, 11 Mar 2008 18:48:09 GMT
Well for sometime now I have had a SingalLink SL+1 interface but can still not get it to work right. I get it to key the radio & I can recive just fine but for some reason I can not get the signal out.. So anyone running a SL-1+ with a 706MIIG please let me know what I am doing wrong.? Thanks

using standard phonetiics from K8ELR
Sat, 08 Mar 2008 14:57:55 GMT
I haven't posted here in a while and this subject came up today on HRHG yahoo group.

This is a subject that I think is important. At least it is to me. Believe me I like to have fun with this hobby. My answer to this new ham about using standard phonetiics was not to dampen his enthusiasm but to make him aware that standard phonetics are something to be used and are important to a new ham.

LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK..
>>
--- In HamRadioHelpGroup@yahoogroups.com, "xxxxxx"
wrote:
>
> Ok, i was wondering like when you say Tango for T whiskey for W does
> each club make up their own thing or what?
>
> Sxxxxxx
>

Hi,

My suggestion is to learn the proper phonetic alphabet. Stay with the standard (there are minor deviations) as much as possible unless you
are just talking to friends on a repeater. There is nothing worse than trying to work a station that uses some made up phonetics.
Especially when the station is very weak. Most all DX stations do use the standard. I wo...

new old gear from W7DTG
Sat, 01 Mar 2008 14:40:30 GMT
The other day I had a chance to swing a deal for some tube gear, which I happen to really enjoy. I had a Yaesu ft-857 which I wasnt really using to much other than for 2M, so I did a swap with a local ham that was looking for an HF rig fr his truck. I ended up with a set of C-line drake twins, a Heathkit 1KW Linear, and a Heathkit xmtr/rcvr also. They are the nmohawk, apache and the warrior line. Really fun stuff from the early 60's. Amazingly enough, they are in excellent shape, and they all work. the linear alone was worth the trade in my opinion. even though I dont run power that often, it is still nice to have it when you need it. Like when I was working VP6DX on 40m. I tried for 3 days before I used the amp. I was able to work them on 12-17-20-30-40-80m CW and Phone. which is pretty decent for my snall station I have up.
thats about all that is new here. 73's to all that read this, Don

w0zdw from W0STL
Fri, 29 Feb 2008 18:19:34 GMT
I learned some about stealth antennas and QRP from my OL's Uncle Larry- w0zdw- Larry Haney from Colorado Springs. I finally have more time to learn....and he's a silent key now.

Panarama of the Tower and Back Yard from NK9I
Sat, 23 Feb 2008 12:34:45 GMT
My Father (KK9E) took this picture and posted it on his web site.

Quicktime needed to view this. By holding the left mouse button and moving it on the picture, you can get a look at the tower and back yard of my QTH.

http://homepage.mac.com/panophoto/.Public/NK9I/fullscreen.html

Busy Working VP6DX from NK9I
Sat, 23 Feb 2008 12:34:41 GMT
I Have been lucky enough to get VP6DX on all bands and modes from 160 to 12 meters. (18 band mode contacts)

Hoping for some DX Gods to help out on 10 meters.

Be careful of what you wish for...you may get it! from K9DMW
Fri, 15 Feb 2008 21:07:38 GMT
Last year I mused over getting a vanity call with better phonetics for contesting. Specifically with a suffix DMW which happens to be my initials and cool sounding phonetics, "Kilo Nine Dead Man Walking". I applied for and received last June(07) the call K9DMW. I used it in the Sep 07 CQWW VHF Test and Jan 08 ARRL VHF Test. I liked my old call which was shorter (NT9E) so today I applied to get my old call back. We'll see what happens.

what dx contacts have you made from W3NRL
Fri, 15 Feb 2008 15:14:48 GMT
Made some nice dx contacts today
Vp6dx, 4z5la, j79pn,ea8ak,& 8r1ak
nice day for contact dx
will try later..
let me know what your dx contacts were
thank you for reading my site
73 de
w3nrl
Nick

w000t, new Vanity callsign finally here from W7DTG
Mon, 11 Feb 2008 14:41:12 GMT
Wow, after waiing for the F.C.C for what seemed an eternity, my NEW callsign is finally here. I went with W7DTG (my initials) for the new callsign. I would have had t at the same time that becky did, but I made 1 little change to it while in the process of changing the call, and it changed my receive date from the 18th to the 22nd....AAARRRGGGHHH
Now if I can just get used to the new call, i'll be doing great.

packet spotting and CW Skimmer from NG9R
Sun, 10 Feb 2008 16:34:24 GMT
I don't know who all uses packet for spotting DX stations or contesting, but there is a debate going on among the contesters about spotting being used by stations claiming not to use packet.
A new method of spotting for CW operators is a recently introduced software package called CW Skimmer. What CW Skimmer does is listen to and decode all the CW stations it hears in the audio passband of a transceiver. Similar to other sound card digital modes, all you need it a computer using the CW Skimmer software and an audio connection from your radio audio output and the sound card input. It will easily identify every station it hears and allows the operator to click on the callsign and the software will set the radio to that frequency, very much the same as contest packet spotting software. In this case, the wider your received bandwidth, the more stations you are going to be able to decode. It allows spotting many signals without tuning around the band looking for new multipliers or DX stat...

__ from VO1GXG
Sun, 10 Feb 2008 12:19:25 GMT
Feb/10/2008

PLL unit for the TS-450SAT still not here , stuck in Quebec. 14 days now paid for 6 day shipping.

My New Ham Shack Page from W7RJW
Tue, 05 Feb 2008 21:38:27 GMT
Well, a new call sign and a new ham shack page. My vanity call sign was granted today (02/05/08)-W7RJW
My initials. I like it-pretty cool.

New Callsign from KE7KWG
Tue, 05 Feb 2008 18:44:22 GMT
Well, the FCC granted my vanity call sign today. Formerly ke7kwg, I am now W7RJW. 02-05-08

APRS Weather from KE7MRB
Tue, 05 Feb 2008 08:45:54 GMT
I am working on a system that will allow you to build an APRS weather station for very low dollars. The hardware is working, I am working on the design for the Wind Speed Anemometer and Wind Vane.

The Hardware is Microprocessor Based and easy to build. I will offer pre-programmed devices and also a complete Kit with Quality PCB.

Email me for more details

ke7mrb@cox.net

Ever get tired of reading QRZ, eHam or QTH?? from K8ELR
Fri, 01 Feb 2008 12:01:44 GMT
Hi,

I am really getting tired of reading the CRAP from all the angry and nasty people on the ham radio web sites.

I have to say that if I had read all that stuff before I got my license I would have dropped the whole idea.

I think some of that stuff is not good for amateur radio. Any prospective future ham would probably figure everyone involved in this hobby is an old nasty,cranky bastard.

I have met some fine people associated with ham radio and I'm sure I'll meet a lot more. To them I say thanks. I'll always be greatful.

I have to just stop reading and contributing to those disussions on those sites. You know, from now on I'll spend my time on the air havin' fun!

73!
Jim K8ELR

New callsign - W5JNP from W5JNP
Wed, 30 Jan 2008 11:36:59 GMT
About the time I get a few pictures posted and workout a password issue (my fault) I get a new call sign.

So, what now. I guess I'll have to build a new profile / shack. Unless someone knows how to change callsigns.

Anyway look for more in the future.

Jeff
W5JNP

Spar Winter field day from W7DTG
Sun, 27 Jan 2008 14:41:03 GMT
Well, the weekend event is now over with, and we have a total of 80 contacts under our belt for the whole weekend. Apparently it isn't as popular a contest as we had hoped, since a good number of the contacts had no idea why we were sending "winter field day". After spending several minutes explaining to them what we were doing, they would move on. Guess no one likes to test there equipment in harsh weather. maybe it just isn't a big enough event for people to be interested. In any case, I considered it a success, even with all the problems we encountered.
The first big hurdle, was getting the shed cleaned out to setup as a shack, and we had a great time pooling together, and getting all the wood moved out of there. even the kids pitched in to help. they had a great time pulling the wagon loads of wood to the tool shed out back. Next was erecting antenna's. which proved to be a challenge as well. I had the Hygain 12AVQ for 10-15-20M, but nothing for the lower bands. After spending ...

Radio from KB3LAZ
Fri, 25 Jan 2008 20:36:23 GMT
Hello my name is Travis and I have been a ham since April 2004. I am 20 years old and I live in PA. I was introduced to ham radio by my grandpa Frank(ke3ck). I have many relatives in the hobby, so you could say its in my blood.

I became a ham shortly after my grandma passed away. I feel that I did so because I needed an out let as well as something to remember her by. she was a ham so I in turn followed in her foot steps. But back to the story. My grand father and I decided to just pick up and go on the road. So he called up some of his ham buddies and mapped out a route. So we made many stops at many qths in many states. All in 13 days. Any way I learned a little more from each person. So when the trip was over I had a new found interest. These hams and friends of my grandfathers gave me a profound inspiration to get my ticket. So I did and the rest is history.

So whats the moral of this so called saga, well that you can find a positive outlet for life in the places you least ...

SPAR contest weekend from W7DTG
Fri, 25 Jan 2008 03:08:49 GMT
Woot, another contest this weekend. All i got to do is set up ALL my gear out in the backyard in a tent, run a generator to the radios, and away i go !!!
This weekend is the SPAR field day event. SPAR is the Society for the Preservation of Amateur Radio, and they are hosting a winter field day event. Don't want no summer pansies for this one. hard core, in your face winter and ham radio in the coldest, worse conditions of the year. what could be better than that ?
Hope this event catches on, since most of the time they do field day in the summer months when it's nice and cozy. everyone sits around and eats hot dogs and hamburgers, and brags about how great there stations are. Bah !!! This event is gonna be while huddled up in a tent, under 2 layers of blankets, while trying to make contacts and keeping the generator going. Just gotta figure out how to make hobo coffee in the tent HIHI
if your interested in REAL radio, and emergency communications in the REAL world, you should g...

New To myhamshack.com from KE7KWG
Thu, 24 Jan 2008 20:27:16 GMT
Well, I'm still waiting for my vanity call sign I applied for last week. The prediction is I will get my first choice of W7RJW. We shall see. I'm excited. At least I should have it by 2-07-08 when I do net control for our 2 meter club net. Even though I've only had my ham ticket since February of 2007, I have been very active with the ham radio community. My boyfriend, who is also my Elmer, got me interested in amateur radio over 2 years ago. My boyfriend, Theron, KC7NPP-has been a ham operator going on 13 yrs. We're getting ready to design and build a new ham shack. More on that later.

Spars winter field day from KE7LKA
Thu, 24 Jan 2008 20:03:30 GMT
Me and my elemr have decided to perticipate in this new field day that started last year. We maybe going out to a camp ground or go out in the woods and run off of a generater operating phone and cw for 24hrs straight hopfully we can make it that long. Up here in joyce where we are located it gets very cold at night down in the upper 20s to the lower 30s and its very cold. We will be using My ts-130se and either a yasue 857d or a kenwood 570d. We will have two tents set up that arn't the best insulated. This is going to be a great time and experience besides being frozen like a ice cube. More information for the field day can be found at www.spar hams.org/contests/winterfd
I will try to write a blog about how it went somtime next week.

Comments are welcome from W3NRL
Thu, 24 Jan 2008 04:31:29 GMT
I build my own antennas, I have made several beams in the past. now i have several wire antennas, i made a windom and used that for several years then i was really interested in the Carolina windom so with the help of Radioworks - wrote Jim and made a Carolina windom and i toggle between windom and Carolina windom and i find the carolina windom has an increase of 3-4db cause of the vertical drop as for the making contact yes on some dx station no problem then with the other dx i toggle to the windom and make the contact.. i made the contact with J5C the other day with the Carolina and the windom no way .....
OH let me say that both antennas are up the same footage and set for Europe/Africa.
i just have making these antennas and trying to make the contact that i can with a somewhat challenge as to using the beams which i have taken down and are sitting on the ground behind the shed.
So tell me of your antenna(s)!!!

Western IL ARC Dinner meeting from NG9R
Sun, 13 Jan 2008 09:48:39 GMT
Well, I know most of you aren't close enough to have any interest in what our local club does, but last night we had out annual dinner meeting. What made this special was the speaker, Ralph, K9ZO. Ralph is an enthusiastic ambassador for Ham Radio, an avid DXer and contester, a great speaker and a really personable guy. Ralph provided is with a slide show presentation of the ZL8R adventure from Raoul Island in the Kermadec chain and, he also had the recently released ZL8R DVD that he shared with us.
Ralph does get around a bit and if you get the opportunity to hear him speak, don't miss it.

NG9R

ke2yk's Random Oscillations from KE2YK
Sun, 06 Jan 2008 14:58:33 GMT
see http://ke2yk.wordpress.com

160 Special from KA9SRK
Sat, 05 Jan 2008 11:41:28 GMT
My Radioworks Carolina Windom 160 Special arrived yesterday. It'll be going up today to replace the CW 40 if everything goes smoothly.

k5lot/ navymarine corps marsnnn0yfa from K5LOT
Sat, 05 Jan 2008 05:54:15 GMT
serveing those that serve use you ham brain to help the country not just rag chew callk if you would like to help your country with your ham license281-501-1175 in just 90 days and passing a 100 question test you too can have a mars license which gives you a differant licenseit will cost a little more to have your radios modified and to get a sound card interface like the mfj1275 and mix w for mt63 and olivia modesbut the personal satisfaction is worth it knowing you are part of the infrastructure of our countrycall me or email me at shaw10822@comcast.net or send me your phone number i can call anywhere in the usa for free u7se your equipment in a professional manner become all you can be help in disasters or terrorist attacks

Time for band scanning from W3NRL
Fri, 04 Jan 2008 09:00:52 GMT
Ok, now that the holidays are over it's time for the radios and band scanning and chasing the DX.
Hope to QSO with you on the bands

1/2/2008 from KC0YDZ
Wed, 02 Jan 2008 18:50:32 GMT
Today I listened around on 20... heard a few faint stations, didn't try working any of them

I uploaded the rest of my 2007 LogBook to LoTW

I got a paper QSL in the mail today,
New State Confirmed,
W7BW, Oregon

Till next radio day

73 kc0ydz

1/1/2008 from KC0YDZ
Tue, 01 Jan 2008 13:39:00 GMT
Around 1800Z

tried to work N6JWN on 14.250

rest of the band seemed dead

Blog Use from KC0YDZ
Tue, 01 Jan 2008 13:37:15 GMT
I'm going to be using the "blog" as a "log book" for my station

New (used) Radio Acquired - Kenwood TS-430S from KA9SRK
Tue, 01 Jan 2008 11:15:02 GMT
I now have a Kenwood TS-430S tranceiver with an AT-250 automatic antenna tuner, courtesy of W9JXN.

What a difference over the TS-120! The VFO doesn't drift, speech processor, notch filter, etc.

So far, I'm absolutely loving it!

Illinois QSO Party results from NG9R
Sun, 30 Dec 2007 07:04:30 GMT
The 2007 Illinois QSO Party results are ready and can be found at

http://www.w9awe.org/2007ScoreFinaToWeb.pdf

Thanks to all those who participated and congratulations to all the winners!

NG9R

Got a real antenna now from KA9SRK
Sat, 29 Dec 2007 16:05:48 GMT
A couple days ago the temperature was up to 45 degrees - it was just about as good as it was going to get.

So this time, I installed a screw eye with a pulley under the eave on the corner of my house, 2 stories up. Much better than the 16' temporary solution I had before.

I've ordered a Carolina Windom 160 Special that should arrive in the next week or so. In the meantime, I have a Carolina Windom 40 on loan and raised it up. What a difference! It doesn't tune up well on 80 meters, but it's gangbusters on 40 and 20. I've already made a couple DX QSO's on 20 that were 20 over 9 for both myself and the other parties.

Can't wait to get the 160 Special up in the air.

One thing I need to resolve, and maybe one of you can help. I need to get some sort of stand off from the side of the house, at least 2 feet. I want to tie off the short end of the Windom to that so that it doesn't lay against the house. For the next week or so, it's okay laying on the siding (vinyl) but t...

Happy Holidays from W3NRL
Thu, 27 Dec 2007 07:38:17 GMT
To all that reads this site .....
Happy Holidays and very best of the new year in 2008

Items for sale from W3NRL
Mon, 17 Dec 2007 06:38:38 GMT
If you are interested in any item for sale let me know.
thank you for reading my site
happy holidays
best of 73
de
w3nrl
Nick

Watch out for these guy ----- scammers on the loose from W3NRL
Thu, 06 Dec 2007 21:14:19 GMT
Name: steven paul
Callsign: NONE
E-mail: stevenpaul_sla@yahoo.com

The response is:

Hello Advertiser,
Am highly interesting in urgent purchase of your item, but before we proceed in this transaction i will like you to answer the following questions.
1. Can you accept payment through cashier check,money order or bank certified check?.
2. Can you allow a global shipping company to come for the pick up of the item?.
3. What is the final asking prize of the item?
So kindly get back to me with the full name and address of the place you want the check to be ordered to.However, I hope to hear back from you soon...

Please kindly reply to my private email box for my own security purpose and the email is stevenpaul_sla@yahoo.com ok hope to hear from you soonest

Best regard

This guy left an email address and name i dont know if it his real name or email address
becareful guys

looking for solid state amp - need your advice from W3NRL
Thu, 06 Dec 2007 16:25:39 GMT
Ok guys looking for a solid state amp that covers all hf bands, What you think? i would like to hear from you
tnx
w3nrl

Finally have an antenna from KA9SRK
Sat, 01 Dec 2007 15:09:56 GMT
About a month and a half ago, I decided I needed to get some sort of antenna up before the snow started blowing.

Earlier this week I decided it was now or never, so Saturday would be the day. Lo and behold, on the next day, the first snow and ice storm of the year was forecasted for Saturday. No matter - it isn't supposed to hit until late in the afternoon.

Since I have no trees in the back yard, I devised a plan for an inverted L. Come out the window well, straight up to the peak of the house, and back diagonally to the shed. I anchored a small pulley to the flood light at the peak of the house. I ran some large twine through the pulley and tied it to one end of a ceramic insulator. The wire is fed through the other end so that it can move freely through the insulator. The far end of the wire is secured directly to another ceramic insulator that is then tied off to the shed.

Now, the snow storm started earlier than previously forecasted - it began around noon. It was ...

Sunspots from NG9R
Fri, 30 Nov 2007 15:32:04 GMT
Well, it can't be much worse. We have had several weeks with almost no sunspots and it can only improve from here. I would have say we are clearly at the bottom of the cycle, the issue is how soon do we start seeing and upturn in sun activity? Even at the low of the sunspots, there still have been several DX contacts worked on 10 and 12 meters recently.

11-26-07 from W3NRL
Mon, 26 Nov 2007 07:14:13 GMT
Anyone have any feed back on how i can improve my site.. please any help i would count on or if you just want to sign in to let me know you where here
thank de w3nrl

Changes Ahead from KE7MRB
Tue, 06 Nov 2007 08:44:28 GMT
Well there are some changes ahead here. I am leaving all the foul language and bad practices on HF and going up in frequency. Before you all start to flame me, I know its not everyone, but you listen to 80m at night, it sounds like a CB radio show.

Going to start working the LEO birds, both from home and portable.

I have also set up a new web site dedicated to Outdoor activities in Arizona.

http://www.outdoor-arizona.com

Space Coast Visit from N1QIK
Tue, 30 Oct 2007 06:42:15 GMT
Driving the F-150 from MA to Cape Canaveral next week. Will check-in and monitor the recommended repeaters during my stay. Frequent visits to Patrick AFB.

QSL CARD FROM VP6TD??!! from KC2NTV
Sun, 28 Oct 2007 18:54:23 GMT
Hey!!! Has anyone received a QSL Card from Pitcairn Island yet???

Getting a little nervous I guess.


Scott
KC2NTV

Anderson Powerpole connectors from NG9R
Thu, 25 Oct 2007 18:37:18 GMT
Who all uses Anderson Powerpole connectors for their DC connections?
If you don't I would suggest you look into them. They are a simple design and many accessories are available that use them. I am amazed the new radios do not use them instead of the old Molex style connectors.
I have used power distribution fuse panels for several the use the Anderson Powerpole connectors, both in the shack and in the truck. They have the advantage of being filtered for RF, fused and polarity protected, plus the quick disconnect feature, just in case you tend to move stuff around once in a while.
For some of the stuff available, check out http://www.powerwerx.com/category.asp?CtgID=1001
and http://www.westmountainradio.com/RIGrunner.htm for some ideas. I use some DC distribution boxes made by Saratoga that are like the Rigrunner, but use smaller ATC fuses. Good stuff.

2007 ILQP from NG9R
Mon, 22 Oct 2007 14:09:37 GMT
There oughta be a law…

My second trip as a county line portable didn’t fare any better than the first one, but part of that was lack of preparation on my part. This year, I went by myself and decided there was no reason to drag the trailer out for just one station and antenna. I thought this ought to be a walk in the park after last year. Boy, was I wrong, although I did get my station on the air a good bit earlier than last year.
I didn’t start loading up the truck until late Saturday afternoon and there were several last minutes decisions that affected what I took. At the last minute I decided against the generator, partly because it is a pain to load and unload plus I wasn’t sure I wanted to have it running in the bed of the truck while I was operating in the cab, thus making me load and unload it another couple of times. I finally decided I would run off of the truck battery and just make sure I didn’t run the battery too low to start the engine.
I used my Kenwood TS480H...

Illinois QSO Party from NG9R
Mon, 08 Oct 2007 09:23:52 GMT
Since the club I am president of this year, Western Illinois ARC, sponsors the Illinois QSO Party, I thought I would take time to put in a plug for it. The Illinois QSO Party is held on the Sunday of the third full weekend of October. This year it falls on October 21st. Operating time is only 8 hours, from noon to 8 PM local time (CDST). The object is to work all the counties in Illinois and for Illinois stations to work as many Illinois counties and states as possible. What makes this contest fun are the MOBILES! We always have a dedicated bunch that will activate as many as 20 counties while on the road during the 8 hour contest. Stations can be worked on both modes for QSO credit.

For more informatin go to : http://www.w9awe.org/ILQP.html

If you hear me on, stop by and say hi. I'll be operating from the 3 county corner of ADAM, SCHY and HANC

Danny NG9R

WEATHER from W4BPT
Wed, 05 Sep 2007 12:15:34 GMT
Come and put your weather link to me sent to w4bpt@yahoo.com and i will add them to my website also your home are club websites link

17 Meters on 8/25/07 from KD4SM
Sun, 26 Aug 2007 17:22:22 GMT
After resting for most of the day, I decided to check out the bands and see if any thing was going on. I'm glad I did. 17 meters was open wide to Europe. The first station I heard was YO4RYU, who was maritime mobile off of the coast of Nigeria. He went QRT for the night before I got to work him, but the fun had just begun. I then heard and worked OS8A and OR4U, both from Belgium. I then got LX1HD in Luxembourg. Afterwards, I worked EA1AKS in Spain. I also barely missed M0JWK in the UK and CT2JHU in Portugal before they went QRT for the night. All in all it was a fun 2 hours on 17 meters on a Sunday afternoon.

My 100'th QSL Card from K8ELR
Sat, 18 Aug 2007 13:38:34 GMT
I received my 100'th QSL card today. A very nice card I might add. A JA card with a beautiful scene of Mt. Fuji. The stamp on the envelope was cool too.

This was my first asian contact.

Quite a thrill for me. I have only been on HF since Feb 2007.

If you hear me jump in. Let's talk.
73!

Jim

This is a great website from N4URW
Wed, 15 Aug 2007 16:39:19 GMT
To the webmaster that designed this site. You have done a great job. Keep up the good work.

Joel / N4URW

Amateur Radio N4URW - Palm Bay Florida from N4URW
Sun, 12 Aug 2007 18:31:50 GMT
Welcome to the N4URW Amateur Radio site.

QSL cards. What do you think? from K8ELR
Thu, 02 Aug 2007 09:04:42 GMT
I was reading my friends blog and began to really think about QSL cards. There is a lot of controversy about QSL CARDS. Should they be used at all? LOTW, eQSL are all out there. I have an account at eQSL but I still send qsl cards either thru the ARRL buro or direct. I QSL 100%. I like getting the cards. I read some statements by a few well known hams that will not qsl. What do you do?
73
Jim

take a look at Dan's blog at KB6NU.com

Terrible band conditions for mobiling from KC8UUG
Thu, 02 Aug 2007 07:19:23 GMT
Tried to get on the air this week but the conditions were pretty bad especially, made a couple of contacts thought

Remote station operation from K3KHG
Sun, 29 Jul 2007 18:29:45 GMT
I have been looking into remote station operation using my lap top to access the station via the internet ... Still in the planning stages . If anyone has completed this project would you send me some email with suggestions .....

Thought I would try this from KC8UUG
Sat, 28 Jul 2007 11:01:00 GMT
Was playing around on the net today and found this website so I figured I would give it a try.

My new bike soon to get HF capabilties. from K8ELR
Fri, 27 Jul 2007 16:56:41 GMT
Well I got a bike that I can ride that will accomodate my balance problem. I uploaded some pics of it here. I have a Kenwood THF6A mounted on the handle bars. I am planning to go HF very soon. I have to decide which rig to go with. I have always been an ICOM guy but I want the best rig for this mobile setup. Maybe an IC-703+ or the FT817. If you have some good ideas let me know.
73!
Jim K8ELR

Local traffic on 10M SSB from AA9GL
Fri, 20 Jul 2007 13:08:14 GMT
With all Hams having voice privileges on 10 meters now I wonder why there is not more local activity on the band? If hams would use 10M to talk local you would hear voices and know sooner when the band is opening for DX. I say lets use 28.300 to 28.450 for local and stateside QSO's and keep 28.450 to 28.500 open for DX. What are your thoughts?

FT101E goes to a new home from K8ELR
Thu, 12 Jul 2007 17:14:00 GMT
I finally sold my old FT101E. I had posted a few ads on QRZ and Fox Tango web sites. I always said I would not ship it. Pickup only.
Well, a persistent OM, but very courteous I might add convinced me I should sell it to him and ship it to him. So it's off to a new home at N1TKO.

http://www.fighter411.com/N1TKO07/index.html
73
Jim

What has become of the art of Homebrewing? from NG9R
Thu, 05 Jul 2007 09:13:02 GMT
I am not talking about making your own beer but making your own ham equipment. The internet has made it so much easier to find the parts, just not much cheaper!
Who has made any of their own station equipment? Antennas? Coax switches? Keyers and paddles? Antenna tuner? Amplifier?
We talk about the "dumbing down" of amateur radio, but what have we done to help keep the expertise at the level we think it ought to be?
Maybe Elmering some of these newer hams in how to build their own antenna tuner, or build their own trap dipole, helping them trouble shoot their broken power supply would build a little technical interest, not only in newbies but us "mature" hams.
I am as guilty as anyone. I have collected hundreds of parts over the years and sold most of them without ever starting on the project. I still currently have several tubes I would like to eventually make amplifiers for.
even to old Heathkit has gone the way of the dinosaur, but there still many kits that can be bought.
Ever...

MLA 2500 conversions from NG9R
Thu, 05 Jul 2007 09:12:54 GMT
I have seen several conversions using the Dentron MLA 2500 on the internet, but none are a simple as one I currently have on my desk.
The MLA 2500 originally used Eimac 8875 tubes that have become worth their weight in gold, if you can find them. I have seen many conversions to use other tubes, most requiring gutting the entire chassis and building a remote power supply, eliminating the usefulness of a compact desktop amp.
The one I currently have was done by another ham, W6TR, and is as simple as can be. The 8875 tubes were replaced with Eimac 8874's and a plenum was made from .010 fiberglass board epoxied together. The 8874 is a drop in replacement electrically and actually a bit smaller in diameter than the 8875. The plenum is simply a box that sits around both tubes with holes for the air to exhaust out the top and a hole in the back for a small blower to force air into the box. No power supply parts need be changed, the same sockets are used, the bias is the same and it runs as ...

Pitcairn Island from VP6TD
Sun, 01 Jul 2007 17:24:12 GMT
Hi, thanks for taking the time to read my first attempt at blogging.
Arrived here on the island 2 months ago.
Due to work loads I could not get active on the air as quick as I could.
I was introduced to Pitcairn’s 2 most active hams, VP6MW Meralda and VP6DB Dave.
These two made me feel welcome.
Dave is the president of the Pitcairn’s radio club VP6PRC.
He has allowed me unlimited access to the clubs station, which has been a great help.
I work rotating shifts and can not always be on air when I want to or when the bands are open.
When I have I have been having a blast. The Ft-857d sure has paid for itself with the fun I have had.
My first pileup was a real eye opener, I think some of our brothers and sisters need to learn to wait and show patients towards fellow hams.
I will add to this as time permits.

logging programs from NG9R
Fri, 15 Jun 2007 14:02:02 GMT
I guess I have developed a fascination with logging programs in the last few years. I started many years ago with a DOS machine using CT. It was several years later before I tried again and since then I have used WinEQF, TRLog, Writelog and recently settled on VQLog for my main logging program and N1MMLogger for contesting. I sure wish someone would develop a really good contest/general/awards tracking program. I currently import my contest logs into VQLog for tracking awards and QSL status.
There are several other programs available that all fill a niche. DXLabLauncher has many parts that do packet, digital modes, rig control, propagation forecasting and DXCC status. DigiPan, MMTTY and several other digital mode software usually include some kind of logging itself.
What works best for you?

VHF weak signal stuff from NG9R
Fri, 15 Jun 2007 13:48:01 GMT
If you haven't tried it, take a look at WSJT for weak signal work on VHF. WSJT started as a high speed meteor scatter mode and has evolved into an EME, tropo and recently seeing use on HF.
On VHF, it is a real addiction to be able to work stations 500 to 1200 miles on 6 and 2 meters without an real propagation enhancement, just the normal junk that enters our atmosphere every day.
Even without WSJT, I spend as much or even more combing the weak signal part of the VHF bands looking for activity, With 6 meters being on most of the new HF radios, that band has seen a huge increase of activity. 2 meter SSB and CW aren't nearly as popular and usually requires a dedicated all mode radio or a transverter attached to a HF radio. 222 and up is pretty much all transverters. The Radio Shack HTX-100 has been very popular with the VHF/UHF crowd as an inexpensive radio for driving a transverter. Radios like the IC-706 or the FT-100 have made it possible to get a good start on HF up to 440 at a beg...

Jamesburg Earth Station Development for EME from AA6EG
Sun, 03 Jun 2007 19:30:35 GMT
See http://www.jamesburgdish.org

Join reflector, sign up instructions on website

Currently operating the 100 ft dish in Moon bounce on 1296. Looking for a new buyer/owner of the dish to hopefully continue EME and other activities in the long term.

Bandwidth Bandplanning from AG4YO
Sun, 03 Jun 2007 12:53:59 GMT
If you're confused about all the discussion concerning the Bandwidth Bandplan proposed and now withdrawn by the ARRL, then you're not alone. Check out the Bandwidth article on my website or on QRZ.COM for a simple explanation.

Don't ignore this issue or you'll wake up one day with data signals in the voice bands!

Some of my favorite links- from K8ELR
Wed, 30 May 2007 20:57:02 GMT
Ham related-

www.w8pgw.org
www.kb6nu.org
www.cebik.com
www.myhamshack.net
www.qrz.com
www.qth.com
www.eham.net
www.icomelmer.com
www.classicicom.com
www.bruender.de/de0brf
www.hamtestonline.com
www.mouser.com
aintel.bi.ehu.es/psk31.html

and some others not ham related-

www.clocklink.com
www.acme.com/licensemaker
www.bfa.net
www.balloonlife.com
flightaware.com
shootata.com
www.nssa-nsca.com

Heading to Dayton 2007 from KA9SRK
Wed, 09 May 2007 19:48:43 GMT
I'll be heading to Dayton for the first time in a long time. I'll likely be within a decent radius of the Collins Collectors Association booth, and also with W9JXN and W2IMK.

Looking forward to the trip and potentially getting to know any of you who might be interested in the site, to answer any questions or suggestions you might have.

TNX & 73,

Brian
KA9SRK