Activity Night

At the South Plainfield Amateur Radio Club, we have two meetings a month, on the first and third Thursdays. The second meeting is our monthly Business Meeting, while the first one is "Activity Night". This was something that Marv K2VHW instituted as our Founding Club President. We got away from it for a while because of the pandemic. It's hard to have an activity when you can't meet in person. When I was s"elected" last year to be Club President, I made it my business to revitalize this.

Our Activity Night meetings are still hybrid, in person and on Zoom, so I try to keep it more of a learning experience rather than a hands on kind of thing so that everyone can benefit. So far we've had Activity Nights where we shared our experiences with the Reverse Beacon Network, how the National Traffic System works and how to send a radiogram, and a presentation on solar panels and controllers among other topics.

This past weekend, I was taken aback on a lot of the comments on social media referring to band conditions. "Who shut the bands off?" ......."Are the bands bad for everyone, or is it just my antenna?" ...... "My POTA activation was a complete bust!" and other comments like that.

We experienced a Coronal Mass Ejection and a series of geomagnetic storms and Hams didn't expect this? They didn't know about this? If you did more than just memorize answers for your Amateur Radio exam, this is basic knowledge. Surely, Techs must have a basic and rudimentary understanding of this, and Generals and Extras should be totally familiar with this. It appears not, from a lot of what I've read over the past few days.

For this SPARC Activity Night, we're going to have a very brief going over of our Field Day preparations, as we have one more Business Meeting before the big weekend. I want to spend the rest of the evening showing this YouTube video.

There are a few good PowerPoint presentations on the subject and a plethora of equally good videos. I chose this one firstly because it's only 22 minutes long, and I don't want to keep our club members occupied all night. Secondly, it treats the subject matter in "plain English" and doesn't get all esoteric, or go off on tangents. It's a very well done "meat and potatoes" kind of presentation, that I think will benefit our members who don't have HF rigs and are not all that familiar with HF operating.  Even for the VHF/UHF only people, this is good stuff to know and every Ham should at least be aware of the Sun and it's effect on our bands.

72 de Larry W2LLJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Special Net tonight

The local Repeater Club, for which I am Secretary, is having a special net tonight, and I will be the NCS. Maybe a little back story is in order, first.

We used to have a weekly "Wednesday Night Information Net" for many years. The last iteration was run by our club President at the time, Jeff N2VHV. Jeff had COPD and when it became difficult for him to run the net, at times, either Rodolfo N2HRG, Pete KD2ARB or myself would pick up the slack.

When Jeff finally passed on, the net kind of went into "hiatus" mode, as no one really was able to make a weekly commitment. At a recent club meeting, we decided to try to revive the net, and I volunteered to serve as Net Control. However, I have SPARC and ARES commitments on three out of four Wednesdays a month, so the club agreed it would be a monthly, instead of weekly, net.

So far, in September and October, we've had decent, but not stellar participation. I am hoping that tonight will be different. Borrowing from the Catholic custom of November being the month in which we remember those who have gone on before, I decided that tonight's net will be a "Silent Key Net". Members who participate will be invited to share a special memory or story of one of our club members who have gone on to "The Shack in the Sky". For those who are newer to the club and are not familiar with any past members, they will be asked to share a memory or story about someone who may have played an important part in their time as an Amateur Radio op.

I am hoping that this will make the net a bit more personal and meaningful, instead of something that's perhaps a bit too routine and dry. I try to present a topic for discussion for each session, and I am hoping one that "hits home" will draw more into participating. I have sent out club e-mail notices for the past couple of weeks in order to let every member know what will be happening tonight. We'll see it it generates a bigger turnout.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

NAQCC on the DitDit podcast

Bruce Pea N9WKE interviews Paul Huff N8XMS, President of the North American QRP CW Club.

https://www.ditdit.fm/shows/episode-21-naqcc

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

New club in town

There's a new QRP Club, or new Yahoo Group, if you will. It's the California QRP Club and membership is open to any QRPer. Residence in the Golden State is not a prerequisite.

https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/calqrp/info is the link.  And as Doug Hendricks KI6DS, posted:

"The purpose and goals of the California QRP Club is to promote QRP. We don't have dues, we don't have officers, and we don't have business meetings. We do have monthly get togethers in San Jose, and we will be a co-sponsor of the qrp activities at Pacificon next year. The club will have two caretakers, Steve Smith, WB6TNL and Doug Hendricks, KI6DS. They will be responsible for the running of the club. We will not do anything that involves the exchange of money to the club. If there are expenses, Steve and Doug will pay them.

We will also issue membership numbers, only upon request. You may get yours by sending an email to directly to Steve. Do not send your request to this list. It will not be acted upon. To get your California QRP Club membership number send an email to Steve Smith at sigcom@juno.com with "CalQRP Membership number" in the subject line. Steve will assign a number to you.

I plan on doing more issues of QRPp, but it will not have a regular schedule and will be posted as a downloadable file in the file section of this list.

The first announcement that we would like to make is that the club has an Amateur Radio Club License, and the call sign is WA6GER. We are dedicated to preserving the memory and legacy of Jim Cates, and plan on activating his call at least once a month. More on that later. This was formerly the club Vanity Call Sign of NorCal but it was allowed to expire and was not renewed. When the 2 year grace period for renewal had passed, the FCC cancelled the license and WA6GER was returned to the available call sign database where anyone could have claimed it. Steve Smith did the leg work to secure the call and I want to thank him publicly for it.

Everyone is invited to join the California QRP Club, and you may do so by going to (Ed. note - see link above). and signing up."

So there you - new group in town.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

"Hearing crickets"

I guess that's a relatively new saying.  When someone says something that is so outrageous or so amazingly stupid that it deserves no response from anyone - it is often said that "All he heard was crickets".

Thanks to the 4 States QRP Group, soon we'll be hearing an entirely different kind of Cricket.  This kind of Cricket:

This kind of Cricket is an 80 Meter QRP transceiver designed by David Wayne Cripe NM0S. It was the OzarkCon Build Project this year.  As you can see from the photo, it's all through-hole parts - no SMD.  A great project for the first time builder.

It's based on the Pixie, but is much better than a Pixie.  No toroids to wind (you can see the coils etched into the board), and it also comes with an included straight key. However, if you want to use your favorite keyer and paddles, there's an input for that. The Cricket also uses MOSFETS for improved sensitivity and switching and uses a NJM2113D for the audio amp.

All the details and specs can be found at http://4sqrp.com/cricket.php

All proceeds go towards keeping OzarkCon a viable yearly event.  QRPers helping other QRPers - what's better than that?

In other news ............

"Morsum Magnificat" was a great little periodical produced by Zyg Nilski G3OKD, devoted to Morse telegraphy and those who love it. I was a subscriber, until the publication ceased in 2004.  Some (a lot) of issues are now available for downloads as .pdf files.  You can go here
http://www.n7cfo.com/tgph/Dwnlds/mm/mm.htm to download.   "Morsum Magnificat" was really a niche publication. You really have to have an interest in Morse Code telegraphy and its history to appreciate it. Thanks to N7CFO for making these available to us!

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Want a crowd

at your next Club meeting?  Plan a presentation or an activity! Publicize it well and ahead of time and you're sure to draw out some people - new faces as well as old.

Photo courtesy of Drew W2OU

Thanks to Drew Moore W2OU for arranging for Mike Terruso WA4LOQ to come to our ETS of NJ meeting last Friday evening to talk about his high altitude ballooning experiments.  What started out as a science project for his son is turning into a combination of ballooning and Amateur Radio for Mike. In fact, ballooning is what got Mike in gear to earn his Amateur Radio license, as he realized it's potential to help him in his endeavors.

The technology that he uses is interesting. A combination of radios, cameras, Raspberry Pi's, GPS devices, temperature and humidity sensors - it was all fantastic to listen to. I've embedded his YouTube video which is a compilation of stills (taken at 5 second intervals) of his maiden launch last October.  The balloon was released near Lebanon, PA and landed in Boonton, NJ. It's an hour long video, but you can skip around it if you wish to see the "near space" photos which clearly show the black sky of space and the curvature of the earth's horizon. As Mr. Spock would say - "Fascinating!"

Mike is a "maker" in the sense that he did all his own research and started his project from scratch using materials purchased and/or cobbled together on his own.  His next launch is scheduled for sometime in May.  He is going to add Amateur Radio to the mix this time and will be getting cooperation from the local radio clubs in tracking and recovery.

 

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

FYBO weather for FN20to

From WeatherUnderground:

Not bad! An overcast day, very light winds, temperatures in the mid to upper 30s for most of the afternoon. Only about a 10% chance for any precipitation. All in all, very bearable conditions for FYBO.

I have signed on with the QRP Polar Bears to be on their PBMME/FYBO team. For the uninitiated, PBMME stands for the Polar Bear Moonlight Madness Event.  Every Saturday closest to the full moon, the QRP Polar Bears go and operate outdoors - year around. Kind of like a QRP To The Field every month. I don't get to participate in PBMMEs as often as I would like, so I am looking forward to tomorrow. This year FYBO and the PBMME occur on the same day - neat!

72 de Larry W2LJ (Skeeter Bear #283 - Grrrrrrr)
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

FYBO 2015 - this Saturday!

Freeze Your B____ Off 2015 is this coming Saturday - the opening event of the 2015 Outdoor QRP Operating season!  If the weathermen are correct, and these days, who knows? Anyway, if the weathermen are correct, Saturday will be the last day before a significant three day snow event here in Central New Jersey. As of right this second, the forecasted high temperature for Saturday is expected to be 39F (4C), with overcast skies. That would be a 4X multiplier at the very least.

So I have several options. I can operate from outdoors - probably the picnic table in the back yard, but that's still covered with ice from last Monday's ice storm - it's never gotten above freezing since that nasty little clipper came through here. I can also operate from inside the Jeep. The advantage there is that all I have to do is plop the Buddistick on the roof - after I chip away the ice that's still on the top of it! But, with the heat off, the temperature inside the Jeep will be the same as the outdoors. Operating in this manner wouldn't qualify for the Mobile category, but it would be much dryer than the picnic table. I have time to decide - there's no hurry, and it will depend how adventurous I feel and how clogged up my head is on Saturday. Don't want this slight head cold that I am dealing with to develop into bronchitis or something worse.

FYBO rules haven't changed much, with the exception that this year, teams are being allowed. Here's the URL for the page with the latest rules posting: http://www.azscqrpions.org/FYBO2015_Rules.htm

I guess I should make sure all my batteries are charged up for this weekend!

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Coming this May!

I was surprised, honored and humbled when I was recently approached by Nelson De Sousa KD2CYU, President of the Tri-County Radio Association and was invited to come and give a talk about QRP at one of their club meetings this coming year. The invitation came out of the blue, and to say that I was flabbergasted is an understatement, to say the least.

The TCRA, which was founded in 1934, is home to the W2LI repeater. So we're one letter apart from each other, call sign-wise. How cool is that? Tri-County refers to the fact that the club is located in the area where the NJ Counties of Middlesex, Somerset and Union come together. This is a VERY active club and they pride themselves that they are a radio club - not a repeater club, even though their W2LI repeater has great coverage throughout the area. They have not one, but two meetings a month, conduct VE sessions, do Fox hunts (the radio-directional finding type), and engage in many other activities. Whew! They do a lot!

First contacted via e-mail and then by telephone, Nelson and I had a nice chat the other evening. QRP seems to run deep in the roots of TCRA, with a lot of past members having been or current members  being avid QRPers. We spoke with each other for about a half an hour, and agreed that I will come and speak at their meeting on Monday, May 4th.

Between then and now, I hope to put together an interesting Powerpoint presentation concentrating mainly on portable QRP operations. They say you should talk about what you know, so I should be on terra firma here.

I'd like to cover Parkpeditions, SOTA outings, and of course, operating from your car during lunch breaks!  Really, I'd like to talk about any excuse for packing up your gear, getting out into the sunshine and operating from the great outdoors. I hope to put in an especially good word for the classic outdoor QRP exercises - Freeze Your Buns Off, QRP To The Field, the Flight of the Bumblebees, QRP Afield, the Sizzle Your Buns Off Sprint and of course, the Skeeter Hunt.  Can't get away without pushing the Skeeter Hunt, can I?

I've done a bit of public speaking in the past, and of course, I've been involved in teaching Amateur Radio license classes.  But this is different. This is spending some time with your peers (who I have the greatest respect for), many of whom have way more experience than I do, talking about my favorite aspect of the hobby. Pray that I don't screw up!

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

FISTS / SKCC Joint Sprint this Saturday

For all the details: http://www.skccgroup.com/operating_activities/fists-skcc_sprint/

Looks like I'll have to get some bug practice in before the weekend. This is going to be a toughie, though - a Saturday afternoon before Christmas. I definitely won't be able to put in a full four hours, but I am a member of both organizations and I do need to start working on my SKCC Tribune award. I've been treading water as a Centurion for years now.

72 de Larry W2LJ - FISTS 1469 - SKCC 49C

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Bravo!

Congratulations are in order to fellow QRPer and blogger, John N8ZYA. In an e-mail this morning from the President of the NAQCC, Paul Huff N8XMS, it was announced that John has been selected to serve as the new Vice-President of that fine organization.

A most appropriate and deserving choice!

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

QRP Afield Spetember 2014

Did you know this year is QRP Afield'd 20th Anniversary?  This was posted yesterday on QRP-L:

QRP Afield 2014 – Saturday, September 20, 2014 – 1600Z - 2200Z

In celebration of the 20th anniversary of QRP Afield, this year’s event will follow the rules, times, and scoring of the original event from 1994. Note that this is now a six hour event, encouraging everyone to get out during daylight hours. Note also that the scoring particularly encourages QRPp operation, with added points for operating a field location at powers below one watt. Information regarding the event is given below. It has been taken from the June 1994 issue of NEQRP’s 72 monthly magazine, modified only slightly to accommodate reporting via email. It will also soon be posted to the NEQRP web page.

The weather today is absolutely gorgeous in the northeast, with temperatures in the low to mid-70s, mild breezes, and a deep blue sky. This should actually improve over the next couple weeks (we hope), with the advent of early fall. Should be a great time to get out with your QRP rigs, portable antennas, etc., and to take a short (or long) hike to your favorite mountain, state park, lake, wherever and to join in the fun.

See you on the 20th!

72 DE K1CL Chuck...

--------------------------------------------------------------

QRP AFIELD-2014

QRP Afield-2014 is sponsored by the NEW ENGLAND QRP Club and is designed to encourage QRP enthusiasts to field-test their radio equipment, using temporary and non-commercial Antennas and non-commercial sources.

Date/Time Saturday, September 20, 2014 from 1600Z to 2200Z

Exchangez;
     QRP-NE Members: RST, state/province,
     NE-QRP # Non-Members: RST, state/province, power OUTPUT

Definitions:

Permanent Location: Any location using commercial power AND/OR permanently installed antennas

Field Location: Any location using battery/solar/natural power AND temporary antennas Low power QRP: Less than one watt output. High power QRP: 1 to 5 watts output.

Scoring (CW only)

1 point for each contact from a permanent location using high power QRP. 2 points for each contact from a permanent location using low power QRP. 4 points for each contact from a temporary location using high power QRP. 8 points for each contact form a temporary location using low power QRP.

Note: All contest contacts MUST be made using the same location and power output.

Multipliers Each state/province/country worked counts for one point. Multipliers may be counted only once, regardless of band worked.

Awards and Results Certificates will be awarded to the ten stations with the highest point totals. Complete results will be posted to the NEQRP web page. Scores and results may be sent by email or mail to the following:

Address:      

cludinsky@verizon.net
Chuck Ludinsky – K1CL 6 Prancing Rd. Chelmsford, MA 01824

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Summer - it's finally here!

After a long, cold Sprinter (that's what you get when Winter seems to last endlessly into Spring), Summer is finally here! Yay! And as promised, as of today, numbers are being assigned for the 2014 NJQRP Skeeter Hunt.

The Hunt will be held on Sunday August 10th this year - and right now, the best place to see the rules is at  http://w2lj.blogspot.com/p/njqrp-skeeter-hunt.html. I am trying to get the QSL.NET page updated with the new bonus points rules, but the server seems to be down right now.

Yes - bonus points this year for gathering enough letters from callsigns to spell out the word "SKEETER". 100 extra points will be added to your score if you accomplish this feat. In any event, the NJQRP Skeeter Hunt is a grand time and folks seem to enjoy themselves a lot, so send me an email (w2lj@arrl.net) and reserve your Skeeter number today.

Today was also the Raritan Valley Radio Club annual hamfest, which is held at Piscataway High School, in Piscataway, NJ.  The weather was absolutely beautiful - perfect for a hamfest!  It was sunny and it got up into the high 70s.  Very nice, but yet not exasperatingly hot. And as you can see from the two quick photos that I snapped with my phone, there was not a cloud in the sky. Unfortunately, it was perfect sunburn weather. Reporting time for the hamfest workers was 5:00 AM and as I was driving to the hamfest site, I had realized I had forgotten to bring sunscreen.  I discovered the hard way that there are NOT a lot of places open at 5:00 AM where you can buy sunscreen!

There were plenty of vendors and lots of buyers. The ARRL had a presence with the appearance of Bill Hudzik W2UDT, our section Vice Director. (Psst!  It helps that he's a club member!) We also had a VE Exam session, where three people earned their Technician licenses, and we also had one upgrade to General and one upgrade to Extra.

In the top photo, you can see the huge mast sticking up from an old broadcast van that Brian N2MPM had acquired. Running up the mast was a PAR END-FEDZ antenna that Alan W2AEW using to make QRP contacts.  If you follow this blog, you know that I have mentioned Alan's YouTube videos in the past. He does an excellent job producing videos on how to use test equipment and other neat technical tutorials. If you haven't subscribed to his YouTube channel, then you are cheating yourself. After you read this go over and subscribe - it's definitely worth it.

Here's a video he took of today's festivities:


Pulling off a hamfest like this is a huge undertaking. Thanks to the direction of our two Hamfest Committee Chairmen, Drew W2OU and Rich W2PQ and all the members of the RVRC, this comes off flawlessly - year after year.

In between my duties of assisting with the parking and placement of the vendors, and being the lead in administering the VE session, I did get a chance to look at the various wares on the tables.  I purchased some BNC to PL259 adapters and some large alligator clips that we will to connect to batteries that we will be using next weekend during Field Day. Not a big spender much to the discontent of the vendors, but much to the delight of my wife.  ;-)

I've been up way too long and am making way too many typos - even more than I usually make, so it's off to the sack for W2LJ. (Thank God for spellcheck.)

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to sedn the very least!
Skeeter #13 for 2014

It was the coax!

After being stuck inside during lunchtime last week, due to workload and/or weather, I was finally able to get out today.  This was the first opportunity (if you don't count the weekend) that I had to try out the tri-magmount with the Buddistick since changing out the coax. Well, it was the coax that was giving me fits.  With the new coax, the KX3 tuned the antenna in mere seconds and once it tuned, it stayed tuned. No phantom jumping SWR values, everything behaved nicely.

For my efforts, I was able to work W1AW/5 in Arkansas on a different band, Don K2DSV who is a fellow K2ETS Club member, as well as XE2ST, Fernando in Nogales, Mexico.  So I am considering the surgery that I performed on the antenna base to be an unqualified success.

I also spent a lot of time thinking about a posting on KB6NU's blog about how "New Hams are Different" and the responses that Dan has received.  I think that times have greatly changed, or maybe that's just my perception.  When I was a Novice back in the late 70s, and joined a local club (which is no longer in existence - and this may be the reason why) there was a kind of a "keep your mouth shut if you're a Newbie" mentality going on.  New callsigns appearing at meetings or on the repeaters weren't welcomed all that enthusiastically (as a result, that may be why I'm not real big into VHF/UHF to this very day).  I guess there was kind of a "pay your dues" mentality, back then.  For better or worse, that was the way it was. But guess what? I survived, more or less.  ;-)

I really believe that I saw that change in the mid 90s, though.  I joined a couple new clubs and was welcomed.  Even though I was licensed for quite a while by then, I was still a neophyte compared to the established "Old Timers" who were a large part of the membership, and I was a comparative stranger, to boot. But in both cases, I was welcomed warmly - I was not shunned, I was not looked down upon, I was accepted into the groups without question.

And that's the way it should be.  I currently belong to three active local clubs - the K2ETS Electronic Testing Society of NJ, the W2QW Raritan Valley Radio Club as well as the NJ2SP South Plainfield Amateur Radio Club (which I helped to establish).  Since SPARC is so new, I am going to leave it out of the mix for this discussion, but the same philosophy holds there, as well.  In both K2ETS and W2QW, newcomers are welcomed enthusiastically and with open arms.  There's no "we vs. they" mentality when it comes to new members. Everyone is encouraged to participate, and everyone is listened to. Your age, your gender, your level of experience is really of no matter.

I really don't see any wide gulfs when it comes to "new" vs. "old" technologies, either.  Those who primarily operate HF only seem to peacefully co-exist with those who like to experiment and build and toy around with Arduinos, Raspeberry Pi's and the digital voice and data modes.  In fact, I see a lot of the groups co-mingling and getting pointers, answers to questions and operating tips from each other.  Just the way it should be.

Newcomers are welcomed for their new ideas and enthusiasm while "Old Timers" are respected for their experience and built up wealth of tribal knowledge - again, just as it should be.  Guess I've been very fortunate to not be involved with "cliquey" organizations. Hopefully, that is becoming everyone else's experience as well.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

SPARC Lives!

I guess you could say that tonight was the first, formal meeting of a new Amateur Radio club. The newly formed South Plainfield Amateur Radio Club (SPARC) now lives.  Up until now, we were an "informal' club, a loosely knitted confederation of Amateur Radio operators who gathered under the CERT umbrella to provide community service to our town.

But now we have a formal constitution and by-laws and we now fall under the banner and protection of the South Plainfield Office of Emergency Management.  Our major purpose is to provide communications and service to the OEM and the town of South Plainfield, NJ. The club documents were signed by the charter members, of which yours truly, is one.  I was appointed to be Trustee of our Club Callsign NJ2SP., which really is just a continuation of what I had been doing.

 Signed constitution - charter members - founders

Our secondary purpose is to highlight Amateur Radio to the public, as well as to try and introduce Amateur Radio to the youth of our town and the surrounding area.  One of the ways we hope to do that is by sponsoring a prominent Field Day effort in a very public park in town.  Since time is short, it was decided to put forth as simple an effort as possible, so we will be doing a two station QRP setup - one station SSB and one station CW.  Since I seem to be the "QRP Guy" in town, I was made Field Day Committee Chairman. Yikes!

It looks like we'll be using my two KX3s and some simple wire antennas.  While South Plainfield has its share of parks, there are two in particular that have very high visibility. The first is Spring Lake Park, which is actually part of the Middlesex County parks system.

That gazebo to the left in the picture would offer a nice shelter in the even of inclement weather.  The other possibility is Putnam Park,  a municipal  park which has the advantage of being at the intersection of two major roads in town. It sees a lot of traffic and has lots of tall trees, also. The only disadvantage is the lack of a shelter. We would have to procure some kind of tent, canopy, or other portable shelter.

Time is short, and this is definitely going to be a "fly by the seat of the pants" effort at this point.  The main goals will be to have fun and garner some publicity for SPARC and Amateur Radio in general. Since this looks like it's going to be a QRP expedition on steroids, maybe I can get the other guys in town to be bitten by the "QRP Bug".

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Some thoughts

Argh! If my head wasn't screwed on, I would probably forget that, too!

Rem K6BBQ wanted me to mention that he has added a SOTA category to this year's inaugural Scorch Your Butt Off contest, coming this July. If you activate a SOTA summit, you can claim an additional 100 points to your SYBO score. Please keep in mind that this has NOTHING to do with your SOTA activation points, this is for your SYBO score only.

I had my last Pastoral Council meeting tonight, so I didn't get the chance to put any more radials down this evening. I have served on the Parish Pastoral Council for the last four years. Two meetings a month, all year around. That may not sound like much, but there are always many peripheral duties involved, as well as peripheral events where attendance was not mandatory, but desired. The normal term of service is three years, but I was asked to, and served for four. Now that these are going to be over, I will be able to attend Amateur Radio club meetings again. I hesitated to in the past, as I always tried to keep away from being out of the house multiple nights a week. To say my attendance of club meetings was sporadic is being generous. It was, for all intent and purpose, non-existant.

This Friday evening is an Electronic Testing Society of NJ meeting. Fancy name for a repeater club meeting, eh? The group is better known as the Greenbrook repeater group, and the meetings are always the last Friday of the month. Even though this would mean being out two evenings this week, I am going to make a best effort to attend, so as to get back into the swing of things.

I also hope to attend a lot more VE sessions when license exam season starts up again in earnest this September. I have always enjoyed being a VE, going back to the days when I regularly attended and volunteered at the sessions that were offered by the Raritan Bay Radio Amateurs.

I had to go to a remote site at work today, so I didn't get in my lunchtime QRP session, so no photos today, maybe tomorrow, weather permitting (but alas, it seems there's a 75% chance of rain for tomorrow).

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

The Cyclone

no ....... not the roller coaster at Coney Island - but a new kit from the Four States QRP Group, designed by Dave Cripes NM0S.

"The Four State QRP Group is pleased to announce the availability of the Cyclone 40 Transceiver.

This innovative and simple transceiver by NMØS is an enhanced version of Dave's QRP ARCI's 72 Part Challenge Design Contest entry in 2010. This is a complete kit, including the enclosure. The price is a buck a part plus shipping, $104 total, for domestic sales. Purchasing info and more details are on the kit's home page here  http://www.4sqrp.com/cyclone.php  Here are some of the design features:

.  All through hole parts and easy assembly. NO SMD parts
.  Less than 100 components
.  Superhet receiver with very good sensitivity and selectivity
.  "Perfect" QSK very high speed and absolutely seamless operation.
.  VFO tunes the entire 125 kHZ CW segment of the 40M band at a comfortable
tuning rate.
.  Transmitter output is nominally 4W.  Those built so far are running ~ 4.6W
.  Frequency readout is included so you know where you are at all times.
.  A very attractive PCB enclosure is included, asy to assemble, looks great.
.  All parts are included, jacks, knobs, enclosure, transformers, everything.
This is a complete kit, including a black enclosure with white silkscreened
labels.

We hope you enjoy this high performance transceiver."

Looks like the Four States Group have come up with another winner. And at the rate these guys are coming out with kits, we're going to have to change that famous advertising slogan to: "Like a good neighbor .... Four States is there!"

On a side note, this weekend turned out to be even busier than I had first imagined.  Other than my accomplishments of Friday evening, and an 8 minute QSO with Bob W3BBO on 40 Meters on Saturday afternoon to give a listen to his new HF2V antenna, I was not able to squeeze in any on air time at all.  And that QSO with Bob was a bit disappointing as QSB was so deep that it made our QSO more of an adventure than either of us would have liked. Of course, now that I do have time this Sunday evening, we have thunderstorms off the horizon. So for safety's sake, instead of getting on the air, I have disconnected the antennas.  The past four days have seen 90F (32C) plus temperatures, for the first real bonafide heatwave of 2013.  According to the weather folks, the coming storms will break the heatwave, but will also have the potential for a lot of lightning, heavy downpours and gusty winds.

Ahh summer, you gotta love it!

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

A lot of good QRP info here!

This appeared on the QRP-L e-mail reflector today, courtesy of the owner of the QRP-L:

"Hi Guys,

Since there some reading this that may have some extra time during the holiday season I thought I would pass along some information you may or may not know about.

Just in time for your QRP overload season. I get sort of tickle with all the QRP-Lwhatever lists out there, when there are other lists doing great job and have been around for years. If you haven't already, please give them a try! Here are just a few lists to try out.

First off is the 4SQRP list. http://www.4sqrp.com/reflector.php 
The next up is the GQRP list. http://www.gqrp.com/list.htm 
Then there is the Flying Pigs International http://www.fpqrp.org/fpqrp-l.htm

These are just super nice guys that are fun to be around!  The above are direct links for signing up to their reflectors, here are the direct links for the group's web sites in general.

4SQRP http://www.4sqrp.com/index.php
GQRP http://www.gqrp.com/
Flying Pigs http://www.fpqrp.org/

Here are some other clubs that also come to mind.  If you live near these clubs/groups please go check them out in person. They also may have their own reflectors and QRP bulletins.

NOGA http://www.nogaqrp.org/
Norcal http://norcalqrp.org/
St Louis QRP http://slqs.net/about
Michigan QRP http://miqrp.org/
NJQRP http://njqrp.org/
MW Homebrewers http://hbqrp.org/
Arizona Scorpion QRP http://www.azscqrpions.com/index.html
Texas QRP clubs (too many to list, hi) http://www.kk5na.com/texasqrpclubs.htm
New England QRP http://newenglandqrp.org/

This is by no means the end all of QRP lists or clubs. I am sure there are many I have overlooked!  I was mainly trying to focus on other QRP lists that also may have a QRP news bulletin or magazine.   However as I wrote this. I kept expanding on what I had above.   All the above are just a great bunch of clubs/groups, each have their own flavor on the QRP side of the hobby. So enjoy all the surfing and reading through out the holiday season, as well the New Year coming up! If you have a favorite QRP group/club that I missed, please list their information here on QRP-L. Bragging on them is not only welcome, but encouraged!

73 and Happy Holidays!"

I have no idea who the current "owner" of QRP-L is, as that ownership has changed several times in the years since I have been a subscriber.  For the most part, it is a thankless job, by a person who, at times, has to deal with a lot of grousing.  Thank you to the owner of QRP-L for your thoughtfulness and a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you too, Sir (or Madam)!

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Two things

Two topics that I wanted to bring up today:

Number One - Don't forget that this weekend (starting in about 45 minutes from the time that I am typing this out) is the CQWW DX Contest - CW.  The exchange on this is soooooooo simple - RST and your CQ Zone (in my case, that would be 5).

If you are thinking of starting QRP DXCC, in the middle of working on QRP DXCC, or towards the end of reaching QRP DXCC - this contest is a good way of helping to achieve your goal.

Don't be put off by the high speed and don't be put off with the fact that you are running 5 Watts or less.

A) There will be plenty of DX stations on the air.  You WILL find ones that you will be able to copy.  Search and pounce until you find someone that doesn't sound like a buzzsaw to you.  Hey, I've been at this for over 30 years and I still run into stations where I just shake my head and say,"Huh?"  If you're not 10000% confident in your CW copying capabilities, you will have the chance to hear that one station give out their call a jazillion times as they run stations. And if that still doesn't work for you, and you can only copy a partial call - it's not a mortal sin to log onto DX Summit or some other DX Cluster to see if you can find that station listed by someone else on the band/frequency that you are hearing them (as long as you are not "officially" entering the contest - then I believe the use of spotting is not allowed). But make your best effort. By the end of the contest you will be amazed at how much your CW copying ability can improve in the course of a weekend.

B)  Put out of your mind that you are QRP. I really mean that. Approach the contest just like anyone else running a 100 Watt barefoot rig.  Look, you're not going to be able to work everyone you hear - but concentrate on the loud ones at first and don't be afraid to throw out your call.  Contesting brings out the bionic ears on some of these guys and it's amazing what they can pull out of the aether - ESPECIALLY towards the end of the contest when they are still hungry for points.  Serious DX contest stations that might not otherwise give you the time of day under normal circumstances WILL go out of their way to pump up their contest score.  Take advantage of that.  As the contest progresses (especially the last 24 hours) you will find that you will be able to work stations other than just the loudest ones, too.  But don't beat your head against a wall.  If you're trying and you're just not being heard, move on and come back and try a little bit later.  Propagation may improve and work in your favor.

Number Two - The Android tablet has some Ham apps available that I didn't even think of when I purchased mine - namely the Zinio and Kindle apps, which are both free by the way.

"Ham related?" you ask?  Yes, through Zinio, I can read both CQ Digital and WorldRadio Online (Note - the subscriptions for these are NOT free). And since the tablet is small and is a WiFi device, I can take it with me into "The Library" to read, if I choose to - or just about anywhere else for that matter.

The Kindle app is strange in a way.  For books, I actually prefer using my Kindle.  But for e-zines that come in a .pdf format?  It's perfect!  I could never get the "K9YA Telegraph" to load into my Kindle properly. But with the Kindle app on the tablet, it's better than sliced bread! Prior to this, when I wanted to read "The Telegraph", I had to sit in front of the desktop or the netbook.  Not always the most convenient situation. I loaded the latest issue onto my tablet just to see how it would work; and I was like a kid on Christmas.  I have a whole bunch of back issues on my desktop computer that I am going to move onto the tablet via DropBox.  Now I will be able to enjoy them in a more relaxing setting.

The ARRL just recently introduced an app for idevices for QST Digital.  Hopefully, they will come out with an Android app soon and I can do all my Ham Radio magazine reading on my tablet - with the exception of QRP Quarterly, of course ....... although............ anybody from QRP-ARCI reading?  ;)

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Big Brutus

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you know how much I love Amateur Radio. Two of my "passions within a passion"  are operating QRP and taking QRP to the great outdoors and operating portable.

I use this blog as a vehicle to promote and publicize those two passions (among others).

So you will forgive me while I extol the adventures of the 4 States QRP Group and their portable operations at Big Brutus.  "What the heck is a Big Brutus?" you might well be asking yourself. I did the first time I heard of it.

Big Brutus is a gigantic electric powered coal shovel that was used in Southeast Kansas.  In 1985, Big Brutus was dedicated as a museum and memorial to Kansas' rich coal mining history.

The 4 States QRP Group has made an official club outing to Big Brutus for four years now.  You can see a slide show of their outing here.

Thanks to good friend, Terry WAØITP for sharing!

As you can see, this was a well coordinated group event.  But it doesn't necessarily have to be. Whether you're like our buds from Kansas, here; or whether you're like Jim W1PID, taking day hikes and making contacts - it's all good!  I know we're coming up on colder weather here in North America as we travel farther into Autumn towards Winter ...... but it's never too early for even just thinking about treating yourself to some fun outdoor QRP outings in 2013.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!