With Varying Frequency - Amateur Radio Ponderings

WI9DX Washington Island DX Club Meeting - July 2nd 2008

k9zw — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 13:43:47 +0000

The famous KK Fiske Restaurant on Washington Island (WI-001L) Wisconsin was the venue for a WI9DX Washington Island DX Club meeting. Founding Members George W9EVT, Mac W9EVI and Myself (Steve K9ZW) welcomed member Dean K3GGN and new members John KA9USC & Mike K9ABT WI9DX DX Club was founded several years ago to promote Amateur Radio on Washington Island, [...]

Be Ready to QSY - Marine Net Handling a Medical Emergency Out of Usual Net Hours

k9zw — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 04:02:53 +0000

Tonight I had an interesting experience, a good friend (not an Amateur yet) just received an Icom IC-R75 receiver I had help hind for him, and had emailed that he would be listening to 14.310 USB if I had the time to call CQ and see if I could initiate a QSO he could SWL [...]

Amateur Radio Appropriate Technology

k9zw — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 18:40:50 +0000

Surfin’: Got User Interface? by Stan Horzepa, WA1LOU, ARRL Contributing Editor’s article speaks to a very important aspect of radio-operator interface and appropriate technology. A contributor to his article says: “I am as amazed as I am appalled at SDR for emergency, military, commercial, contest and general ham use. For some reason, the software has become the [...]

An All Amateur Family - Victor KC9NWB

k9zw — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 23:39:07 +0000

Today the FCC issued my youngest son, Victor, the Technician Call Sign “KC9NWB” It is good to get this 12 year old youngster involved, and as a special treat Victor’s passing his first license means that all five of our family members have Amateur Radio Licenses. Victor’s brothers Tom KC9JGD (18) and Winston KC9FVR (15) were joined [...]

Antenna and Yard Work - Lift Rented

k9zw — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 06:07:09 +0000

Weather providing I’ll be in my safety harness in a 60 ft boom lift cutting tree limbs away, fixing & clearing gutters, doing some tower inspection & checks. Oddly the lift didn’t arrive when expected, perhaps in the next few hours. Should take about six hours in the lift when it is here. Now if only mother nature [...]

D-Star - a Delight or a Disaster?

k9zw — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 21:39:17 +0000

The D-Star system has both interested me and left me wondering since Icom brought it to the USA several years ago. The discussion at Jeff KE9V’s “CQ Calling” Blog D-Star Rising Article & Comments pointed out: With only a computer dongle for a non-Icom option it appears that no other manufacturer sees enough market to launch a [...]

Technology of Yesteryear - Sound Processing comes a long ways

k9zw — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 18:07:23 +0000

BBC Report on Early Computers is super interesting - how these early machines did something, but a something that any chip in a toy now exceeds. The search for the ’Oldest’ computer music unveiled some very early BBC recordings. Watch the filk clips to see how it took days of hardwaire programing to make it work! Neat stuff! 73 Steve K9ZW [...]

Dayton Hamvention 2008 Follow-Up Report No. 1 - WX7P

k9zw — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 06:07:40 +0000

At one of the Contest Supersuites I had the good fortune to have a long chat with Wilse Morgan WX7P I had started our after Contest Dinner chat talking about how he had been recognized as the Oldest Guy there! Turns out Wilse WX7P has a lot of recognition coming his way, as he was the First [...]

Dayton Hamvention 2008 Follow-Up Report No. 16 - Handsfree by Bluetooth

k9zw — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 18:07:38 +0000

Displaying at the Dayton Hamvention was TalkSafe, a UK product push from their very strict handsfree laws to make any rig connect to a headset/earpiece by Bluetooth. They were showing both waterproof and non-waterproof models for everything from Motorcycle use to inside vehicle use. Worth noting is on some models the unit’s cover is the antenna, making mounting [...]

Dayton Hamvention 2008 Follow-Up Report No. 11 - EZNEC Antenna Modeling

k9zw — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 06:07:58 +0000

I’ve been long interested in Antenna Modeling, and had started using EZNEC-ARRL as part of the ARRL CCE Antenna Modeling Course. As I recently wrote about, I’ve also been using CocoaNEC on a Mac. In both cases I have been approaching program limitations with some of the full-station modeling I have been trying. EZNEC Version 5.0+ seemed to be [...]

More New Hams - June Hamcram a Success

k9zw — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 12:09:14 +0000

On Staurday June 21st Mancorad held the main session & VE session for another of our modified Hamcram Classes. We’ve adapted the W9PE Hamcram by adding a formal “Pre-Session” and a preparation Elmering Responsibility. From our Club President (Why retype!!): From: Carl KA9WYK June 21, 2008 To: All ManCoRad members Today Mancorad hosted its spring Ham Cram. I am happy to [...]

Dayton Hamvention 2008 Follow-Up Report No. 5 - Hiberling Impressions

k9zw — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 06:07:23 +0000

At Dayton Hamvention 2008 I again had time to meet with Herr Hans Hiberling. Meeting with Hans is always a pleasure, as everything he does appears to be the best possible he can do. Impression of the Radio were solidly reinforced with a mere 10 minutes operating the Hiberling PT-8000 with QSOs with the Icom 7800 station [...]

eHam - Ham Community Cross Section or Ham Hobo-Land?

k9zw — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 06:07:26 +0000

Has eHam become the Ham Community with the cross section of writers, reviewers, forum participants and readers originally envisioned, or has it become too much of a Wasteland of the ultra-biased, the negative, the ham internet trolls, and the self-important? When posing this question to a group of very well published Radio Amateurs I was surprised [...]

eHam Posed with Reviews Quandry - DailyDX Enthusiasts Too Supportive for Editorial Tastes

k9zw — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 18:52:35 +0000

Recently eHam has had to address a new issue - a casual request to subscribers of The DailyDX to consider rating the publication in the eHam Reviews section lead to over 75 almost instantaneous 5 out of 5 ratings with reviews from around the world. This was followed by a very crabby non-review posting giving The [...]

Dayton Hamvention 2008 Follow-Up Report No. 6 - American Morse

k9zw — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 06:07:26 +0000

The Neat Keys & Enclosures from American Morse have long captured my attention. I built my RockMite in one of their Mity Boxes and though I am very weak on CW I really had wanted one of their matching keys. After walking by their booth several times, I bought one of their Porta Paddle-II Precision Iambic Paddle [...]

Dayton Hamvention 2008 Follow-Up Report No. 17 - Impressions of the FCC General Counsel

k9zw — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 19:06:43 +0000

At contest dinner we heard Riley Hollingsworth K4ZDH, the FCC’s general counsel. For those of you who have never heard him speak, he speaks in a slightly monotone but mischievous way. So much of what he had to say was worth hearing Riley K4ZDH speak that I have found another of his ”friendly talks” from the Dayton Hamvention 2008 for [...]

Dayton Hamvention 2008 Follow-Up Report No. 12 - Antenna Forum

k9zw — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 06:07:34 +0000

The 2008 Dayton Hamvention Antenna Forum, Moderated by Tim Duffy, was held Friday May 16th. Presentations included: Real World Antenna Patterns vs. Theoretical Computer Antenna Plots by Mike Wetzel, W9RE and Tom Chance, K9XV A New Approach for Measuring Complex Antenna Currents in a Vertical Array by Greg Ordy, W8WWV and Multi-element Lowband Vertical Arrays - Approaches for Small Lots by Ted Rappaport, [...]

Two-Hats or Two-Souls? The Perils of Over-Multitasking in Emcomm

k9zw — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 06:07:17 +0000

Can an Emcomm Leader or Volunteer serve two or more “masters” effectively? Is dual-hatting simply that, being qualified & roster-listed for multiple tasks, or is it an unresolvable conflict? As a follow on to Emcomm Promises and Practicality, my previous Emcomm articles and recent discussions at various forums (eHam being one), the magnitude of the questioning of multi-hatting is very evident. While [...]

Emcomm Promises and Practicality

k9zw — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 20:22:08 +0000

The recent horrid weather in the upper Midwest has brought to many people’s attention the stark reality that many Emcomm groups may be promising more than they can deliver. Numerous county EC/RO slots are empty. Some counties have low rosters, specially if those listed who have other primary emergency roles (EMS, Volunteer Fire, First Responders, Served Agency [...]

Dayton Hamvention 2008 Follow-Up Report No. 3 - NUE-PSK Team

k9zw — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 08:32:46 +0000

I had a long chat with Milt Cram, W8NUE at AmQRP’s NUE-PSK Booth. Though I received the NEU-PSK modem I ordered under the early-bird program a few weeks before Dayton, I had made less than 20 QSOs with the unit and was eager to learn more. Presently there is a firmware update that Milt W8NUE offered [...]

Dayton Hamvention 2008 Follow-Up Report No. 9 - Green Heron & Remote

k9zw — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 06:07:52 +0000

The Green Heron Rotor Control continues to impress me. With the formal release of the GH Everyware Program this control really shines! This program allows remote IP based control of multiple Green Heron RT-20 and RT-21 controllers. Green Heron’s Jeff Ach W2FU demonstrated control of his multi-tower station back in New York state via GH Everyware directly from his Dayton [...]

Dayton Hamvention 2008 Follow-Up Report No. 19 - Comtek Four Squares

k9zw — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 06:07:11 +0000

Spent a very pleasant hour or so chatting with Jim Miller K4SQR the owner of Comtek Systems a major supplier of the switch gear for Four-Square antennas. This was fantastic as Four Square antennas were on my personal “learn everything possible” list for Dayton. Jim K4SQR seemed to be everywhere - a sponsor of Contest University, [...]

Dayton Hamvention 2008 Follow-Up Report No. 18 - VNA - Beyond SWR

k9zw — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 06:07:49 +0000

One of the items that very much caught my attention at Dayton was the new VNA (Vector Network Analyzer) units available at “shack-friendly” prices. I’m not going to cover the use of a VNA, as there are web write-ups that explain it better than I ever could. Wiki is a first stop: Vector Network Analyzer (VNA) - Measures both [...]

ARRL Website Mentions “With Varying Frequency - Amateur Radio Ponderings”

k9zw — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 13:01:41 +0000

It is very kind of Stan Horzepa, WA1LOU ARRL Contributing Editor to mention “With Varying Frequency - Amateur Radio Ponderings” in his June 6th article “Surfin’: Relive the Lives of Dead Electrical Dudes” as part of “Are You in the Blog Now?” follow ups. I’m hoping that something in the 600 plus articles on this blog [...]

Dayton Hamvention 2008 Follow-Up Report No. 8 - Buying a Tower

k9zw — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 06:07:03 +0000

One interesting side event at Dayton 2008 was to help George W9EVT find a replacement for one of his towers. Spec was Motorized Crank-Up, 70ft, towards the heavier duty, but not extra-heavy. Strong pull would be to be able to use the base already infor the tower being retired. US Tower seemed to have the tower that best [...]

Family Time… Just a Couple Days….

k9zw — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 06:07:31 +0000

“With Varying Frequency - Amateur Radio Ponderings” Blog will be on autopilot a few days while we have Tom KC9JGD’s graduation, family visiting and all the fun that goes with a new High School Graduate. Tom has a place this autumn at Michigan Tech in their Chemical Engineering Program and we will be off to see them [...]

REPOST: It’s about Time - NIST WWV Radio Reference Signals

k9zw — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 13:07:47 +0000

This is a repost of a February 2007 Article. Several of our local club members asked about WWV during a club shack session, prompting the return of this article. —————————————————————- Did you know that the USA Government provides a free to use time reference that is as accurate as anything on the planet? Perhaps you have heard the [...]

REPOST: Going Armed during Radio Emcomm Activations - Cowboy or Wiseman?

k9zw — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 06:07:01 +0000

This article is a repost from February 2007. The issues still have not been resolved with the Emcomm community and face the Radio Amateur. The original article with comments is at: http://k9zw.wordpress.com/2007/02/22/going-armed-during-radio-emcomm-activations-cowboy-or-wiseman/ ——————————————————————– PLEASE NOTE THAT LAWS & THE AGREEMENTS YOU SIGN SHOULD BE RESPECTED. THIS ARTICLE IS A DISCUSSION POINT AND IS NOT ADVICE OR ENCOURAGEMENT [...]

Dayton Hamvention 2008 Follow-Up Report No. 13 - Construction & Hotels

k9zw — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 11:56:05 +0000

My drive to Dayton from Manitowoc (between Milwaukee and Green Bay) was greatly smooth good roads with long periods of Road Construction. The saying in the upper-Midwest is there are two real seasons “Winter & Road Construction!” That seemed to be very much the case! Slow construction traffic added 15% to the travel time of accomplished in [...]

REPOST: Book Review - Managing Interstation Interference by W2VJN

k9zw — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 13:07:48 +0000

At Contest University 2008 the importance of this book was again stressed, and a discount coupon to buy a copy was part of the CU packet. Here is my write-up & review of the book from 2007. It is also being reposted as it was done before Tags and RSS feeds were implemented for this blog. —————————————————— At Dayton [...]

Dayton Hamvention 2008 Follow-Up Report No. 2 - TI9KK Cocos Island Team

k9zw — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 06:07:41 +0000

During the Dayton activities I was able to spend some time talking with two of the TI9KK DXpedition Team Craig K9CT and Norbert DJ7JC K9CT spoke to us during Contest University and DJ7JC we met in one of the Supersuites. Organizational the DXpedition seemed fairly normal, a core group had established contact with the TI0RC Radio [...]

Mancorad Hamcram Summer 2008

k9zw — Sat, 31 May 2008 06:07:23 +0000

Mancorad W9DK has announced a summer 2008 Hamcram with VE session. The pre-session orientation is June 2nd and the Hamcram & VE session Saturday June 21st. Here is the PDF announcement: hamcram-summer-2008-announcement-v2 W9DK has sponsored several Hamcrams (check this blog - search on Hamcram) and this is the second session where the Sheboygan Radio Club has offered to provide massive [...]

Hiberling PT-8000 Receives FCC & CE Approvals & More Hiberling News

k9zw — Thu, 29 May 2008 13:33:31 +0000

The Hiberling PT-8000 has received it’s FCC approval! Here is the German Announcement: PT-8000A·B / HN-8000A·B 21.05.2008 Im Mai ist die Prüfung der PT-8000 Transceiver auf Übereinstimmung mit den Zulassungsbestimmungen der Federal Communication Commission (FCC) der USA abgeschlossen worden. Die Transceiver können nun in den USA und in Kanada vertrieben werden. Da die Zulassungsbedingungen der FCC den CE-Bestimmungen [...]

Dayton Hamvention 2008 Follow-Up Report No. 21 - Dayton the Unwashed

k9zw — Wed, 28 May 2008 20:17:04 +0000

The more I reflect on Dayton 2008, specially contrasted with expositions, conventions and events I have attended elsewhere, the question begs “Why is the Hamvention in Dayton?” Is time running out for this show in this city? The Hara was a filth pile. Unswept, vendors with roof leaks in their areas, toliets out of service, broken door [...]

Use or Misuse of Request for Clear Frequencies? - Colombian Earthquake Frequencies and a New Quake off Guatemala

k9zw — Tue, 27 May 2008 20:44:05 +0000

Just out on Amateur Reflectors is this request: Colombian Earthquake Frequencies + New Quake off Guatemala: From the CQ Newsroom… CQ Public Service Editor Bob Josuweit, WA3PZO, relays the following information from the International Radio Emergency Support Coalition (IRESC), via G4HPE: ———– The following frequencies are in use by amateur radio rescue teams following the 5.5 magnitude earthquake in Colombia: 7077 [...]

Dayton Hamvention 2008 Follow-Up Report No. 15 - Buying Boatanchors

k9zw — Tue, 27 May 2008 15:51:27 +0000

At Dayton I had the chance to help George W9EVT with boat anchor purchases. George W9EVT has by far the knowledge to select the “good stuff” for his collection, but the real trick was how to get them out of the Flea Market area. The grunt & lug was manageable by borrowing a hand tailer, but the [...]

Back from Washington Island (WI-001L) Memorial Day Weekend

k9zw — Tue, 27 May 2008 06:07:22 +0000

Great Ferry ride and drive back from Washington Island W9EVT, where we had booked again with George W9EVT and his XYL Susan. Memorial Day weekend on an Island, yeah! Adding to our Memorial Day observance is that George W9EVT is a Korean War era Navy vet and I spent my time in the [...]

Dayton Hamvention 2008 Follow-Up Report No. 20 - Headcounts, Fuel Prices & Dayton 2009

k9zw — Mon, 26 May 2008 06:07:27 +0000

$4+ a gallon seems to have had at least a mental impact on Hamvention Attendees Hotels also see you coming, putting up rates. Attending the Dayton Hamvention is Generally Expensive. Visually the Headcount down. Packing up Saturday outside in the Flea Market was surprising, specially with the number of empty Flea Market spots. Not to be discounted is the general [...]

Dayton Hamvention 2008 Follow-Up Report No. 14 - 160m Everynight Group Gathering

k9zw — Sun, 25 May 2008 06:07:46 +0000

On Friday night of the Dayton Hamvention, foot weary both, W9EVT and I drove out to the KOA Campground for the tail-end of the 160m Everynight Net BBQ & Gathering. A Friday Tradition with the members of this net, they have quite a spread put on on a pot-luck basis. Lucky W9EVT had stocked up on Sodas, [...]

Poppycock All Stirred Up - World Radio Calls it Wrong Again

k9zw — Sat, 24 May 2008 14:00:45 +0000

Check out your Jun 2008 World Radio “Rules & Regs” for a real mixed-bag of opinions on following Part 97. John W3BE’s take that certain classes of Exam Questions (frequencies from a chart) are less than useful, and that one should consult the actual FCC Part 97 rather than depend solely on the popular rewrites sold [...]