On the radio this weekend

Sorry that I haven't been postng much, lately. Work has been a bear and I have been way too exhausted in the evenings to play much radio. But I sure hope all you guys are still having fun out there!

This is what's doing this weekend:

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Worked All Britain HF Contest (Phone) ...QRP Category
Oct 11, 1200z to Oct 12, 1200z
Rules: http://wab.intermip.net/Contest%20Rules.php
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Pennsylvania QSO Party (CW/SSB/Digital) ... QRP Category
Oct 11, 1600z to Oct 12, 0500z
Oct 12, 1300z to Oct 12, 2200z
Rules: http://www.nittany-arc.net/paqso.html
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EU SPRINT CONTEST (CW) ... 100W category
Oct 11, 1600z to 1959z
Rules: http://www.eusprint.com/index.php?page=140&lang=g
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FISTS Fall Sprint (CW) ... QRP Category
Oct 11, 1700z to 2100z
Rules: http://www.fists.org/sprints.html
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North American Sprint (RTTY) ... QRP Category
Oct 12, 0000Z to 0400Z
Rules: http://www.ncjweb.com/sprintrules.php
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SKCC Weekend Sprintathon (Straight Key CW) ... QRP Category
Oct 12, 0000z to 2359z
Rules: http://www.skccgroup.com/sprint/wes/
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Courtesy of N2CQ

73 de Larry W2LJ

This weekend on the radio .....

For those QRP contesters out there, these events may interest you:

German Telegraphy Contest (CW) ... QRP Category
Oct 3, 0700z to 0959z
Rules: http://kontest.de/dtc/DTC-Rules_e.pdf
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TARA PSK31 Rumble (PSK31 only) ... QRP Category
Oct 4, 0000z to 2400z
Rules: http://www.n2ty.org/seasons/tara_rumble_rules.html
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EU SPRINT CONTEST (SSB) ... 100W category
Oct 4, 1600z to 1959z
Rules: http://www.eusprint.com/index.php?page=140&lang=g
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California QSO Party (CW/SSB) ... QRP Category
Oct 4, 1600z to Oct 5, 2159z
Rules: http://www.cqp.org/
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RSGB 21/28 MHz Contest (CW/SSB) ... QRP Category
Oct 5, 0700z to 1900z
Rules: http://www.vhfcc.org/hfcc/rules/2008/r2128.shtml
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Thanks to SM3CER, WA7BNM, N0AX(ARRL), VA3JFF & G4GXL (QRPARCI)
N2APB (AmQRP), WB3AAL (EPAQRP) and others
for assistance in compiling this calendar.

This was made possible through the courtesy of Ken Newman, N2CQ.

73 de Larry W2LJ

NAQCC turns 4 !

We invite all ops to come help the North American QRP CW Club (NAQCC) celebrate its Fourth Anniversary.

How?

By working our special event station N3A which will be active during the whole month of October.

A handsome certificate and/or QSL card is available to everyone who works N3A and requests one or both.

We also have 3 special certificates for the FISTS members who make the most different band QSO's with our N3A stations during the month and in the FISTS and NAQCC sprints.

N3A will be operated from all 10 US call areas with the appropriate portable designator - N3A/1, N3A/2....N3A/0.

All 10 calls will be active in the FISTS sprint on the 11th and our NAQCC sprint on the 14th (15th UTC).

Full details including an operating schedule and how to request the certificate and QSL are on the "N3A Operation" page on the club web site - search "NAQCC" in your favorite search engine, or follow this link to our website (www.arm-tek.net/~yoel/main_n3a.html).

Join us in celebrating our Fourth Anniversary, share the fun and earn a few certificates and special QSLs!

This is also a good opportunity to join NAQCC. Lifetime membership is free and you will receive your membership number, membership certificate and starter kit FREE! No cost or obligation on your part.

73,
Tom, WY3H (NAQCC President)
John, K3WWP (NAQCC VP)

This is way cool!

I was born in 1957, the year of Sputink. Throughout my kidhood and right through adulthood, I have been and remain fascinated with anything having to do with space travel and exploration. I have the editions of NY Times, NY Daily News and Newark Star Ledger describing the Apollo 11 moonwalks safely tucked away in plastic bags.

As a kid, I had every Revell model made that had anything to do with Projects Mercury, Gemini and Apollo. I even have cassette audio tapes (somewhere) of the WCBS TV coverage of the Apollo missions - can you say Walter Cronkite and Wally Schirra ?

So when I saw the following on QRP-L, I just had to re-post this here.

Dear QRPers!

Devoted to 51'st anniversary of the 1'st Sputnik launch. October 4-5 special event RU-QRP Club station UE3QRP/3 will active on International QRP freq's. QTH: Zvyozdny Gorodok (as Star City in Russian, nr Moscow), Cosmonauts Training Center. QSL via UA3LMR.

The same dates, from Baykonur Space Port (Kazakh Rep.) will QRP active UA9LAK/UN7 (op. Alexander, ex Space Radio Communications Engineer).

BCNU!

72 from Oleg V. Borodin RV3GM (RU-QRP Club Hon.Sec.)
=== In QRP We Trust! ===

I hope conditions are good enough to hear and work them this coming weekend!

73 de Larry W2LJ

Guess I got taken

It's my own fault, I guess. I should have used more common sense; and not have relied on "good faith" or the honesty of others.

About a month or so ago, I saw on one of the e-mail reflectors that a Ham was looking to swap for a 40 Meter Rockmite. In exchange, he was offering a straight key in trade. My 40 Meter Rockmite has been laying dormant; and I never mind having an extra straight key hanging around, so I agreed to the trade.

I got the Rockmite out the next day via UPS Priority mail; and my trade partner had it in just a couple of days. I got an e-mail that he was happily making contacts with it; and that, by the way, he had mistakenly mailed out the straight key to another Ham he was trading with. That should have set off the alarm bells; but the "good news" was that the key was on its way back to him and it would be shortly mailed to me.

That's the last I heard from him; even after about 4 or 5 inquiries on my part since. The e-mails to me have ceased; and ever since, all I've been hearing is the chirping of crickets.

I guess P.T. Barnum was right, there is a sucker born every minute; and I guess I'm one of them. The downside is that the next time a perfectly honest opportunity for a trade comes along; I'll probably never pull the trigger - you know that old adage about "twice bitten".

73 de Larry W2LJ

Station in a box

To the right is my QRP "Station in a Box", that I keep in the car for portable QRP ops.

The case is an aluminum one that I got from Harbor Freight. It is 12" X 16" X 5". I don't remember what I paid for it; but I got it on special when it was dirt cheap.

It's a lot fuller than it used to be (as in the picture). It is currently populated by the following:

K1 with autotuner
12V 5Ah sealed lead acid battery
Emtech ZM2 tuner as a backup
Autek RF-1 antenna analyzer
LDG 4:1 balun
NorCal Doublet which I keep wound up on an empty monofilament fishing line spool
A Glad storage container with a Bulldog paddle, Morse Express Christmas straight key, cable for the battery to rig, an extra small jumper coax (about 12" long), allen keys for the Hamsticks.
Cheap-o set of Walkman type headphones. I also keep a roll of twine in there for doublet support ropes, a Swiss army knife, and a pad and pencils for taking notes during QSOs.

Also in the back of the car is the Black Widow crappie pole with homebrewed support mechanism, the PAC-12 and Hamsticks; as well as a canvas folding chair and a canvas collapsible camping table.

The only thing that I need to remember to bring along from time to time is my solar battery charger, which I keep in a safe place at home so it doesn't get damaged.

It pretty much has everything I need to set up a temporary QRP station in the great outdoors. If need be, I can transfer everything to a backpack if hiking becomes necessary. This is more in the line for setting up in a park or a picnic grounds.

73 de Larry W2LJ

Courtesy - the lack of it ..... (Part Deux)

I hate to rant on and on about this; but the lack of courtesy reared its ugly head again this past week. In fact, it was Wednesday night during the NAQCC Sprint.

A bunch of us NAQCCers had moved over to 80 Meters on and about 3.560 MHz. While we weren't exactly wall-to-wall; there were enough of us spread out over a few kHz so that ANYONE could tell there was something going on.

Anyone that was listening FIRST, of course. Because out of nowhere and without warning, in the middle of this bunch of QRPers came a loud, earsplitting PacTOR "CQ" signal. I've done enough digital back in my day to know what a digital CQ sounds like. This idiot, whomever he was, was at least 10 over 9 and he tore the band up. Fortunately, he gave up after about two attempts at a QSO, as no one came back to him.

So the question is .... just how hard is it to listen for a bit before you fire up the transmitter? Is this rocket science; or is it more like, "I just don't give a damn to whatever else might be going on ..... this is what I want to do?"

I can understand accidental interference. It happens to all of us sometimes. But to just blindly turn on the TX without so much as a few seconds worth of listening is just so alien to me. It definitely makes me shake my head.

73 de Larry W2LJ

QRP Afield

It looked like a promising day for the annual QRP Afield event, which is sponsored by the New England QRP Club.

The weather was great, being in the 70s with lots of sun and mostly sunny skies. I set up both the NorCal Doublet and the PAC-12 in the backyard. The NorCal Doublet was supported at the center by my 20 foot Black Widow crappie pole.

There was not much activity at all. Calling CQ and alternately doing the "hunt and pounce" thing on 20 Meters in the morning yielded all of about 2 QSOs in the first hours of the contest. The NorCal played very well on 20 Meters but was giving me a very high SWR on 40 Meters, which is strange. It used to play very well for me on 40 Meters also; so I think there's a wire busted somewhere. I'll have to build another as I still have a goodly sized hunk of computer ribbon cable sitting in the basement.

Anyway, after getting the grocery shopping out of the way, in the afternoon I made contact with W5ESE in Texas and 20 Meters seemed to have more activity going on. Then the cell phone rang and I got called into work for an emergency. I ended up getting home around 8:00 PM and thus, my QRP Afield day got ruined.

If nothing else, it was a good excercize in portable antenna deployment.

73 de Larry W2LJ

Thank you

In the 7 years since 9/11/01, there have been no terrorist attacks on our Homeland.

Thank you so very much to the following:

Our brave men and women in our Armed Forces.
All firefighters and police and EMS personnel who safeguard us daily.
All intelligence weenies who are carefully poring through 1000s of bits of data daily, looking to decipher threats.
All our Coast Guardies, Border Patrol, NTSB workers, Customs officials who look to safeguard our borders, ports and other points of entry.
President Bush for your determined resolve, even when it seems like everyone in Congress is fighting against you.
To anyone else I might have unfortunately forgotten to mention.

73 de Larry W2LJ

9/11 - Never forget

Lest We Forget

Rainfall total

The rainfall total from Tropical Storm Hanna, in my little corner of South Plainfield, was 4.5 inches.

No winds above 30 MPH - so no broken limbs or felled trees or major damage in our immediate neighborhood. No power outages, either - power remained on throughout.

73 de Larry W2LJ

Courtesy - the lack of it .....

40 Meters was wall to wall NA QSO Party QSOs; so I ventured down to 80 Meters, not knowing what to expect with the atmospheric conditions roiling all day.

Pleasantly, there was a major lack of QRN and static crashes. Maybe Autumnal conditions are starting to make their presence known on 80 Meters once again. That would be a welcome to me as I enjoy QSOs on 80 with regularity. The G5RV does a very nice job for me on 80 and I have no complaints. I don't seem to garner much DX with it; but I have no problems having nice ragchew QSOs on 80 Meters with stations I guess could be considered "local".

And so it was tonight. Calling CQ netted a nice QSO with Bill WA1ZFE who hails out of Norwalk, CT. Bill was also QRP, running 5 Watts out of his Kenwood TS-2000 to a loop antenna. Conditions were such that we were able to give each other RSTs of 589. We were going at it nicely, comparing Hanna weather notes when IT happened.

And by "IT", I mean unannounced contest stations blasting on an occupied frequency without even so much as a complimentary "QRL?" Nothing like inconsiderate contesters to bust up a good ragchew. I understand that since I was running QRP, they might not have heard me; but even that being said, there's NO reason to just start blindly transmitting without throwing a "QRL?" out there as a courtesy. Such as it was, even turning on the K2's tight crystal filters made copy go from sublime to almost impossible in a matter of seconds - they were indeed, right on top of us.

Now I know there are many A-1 op contesters out there who are a shining example to uphold. Unfortunately, there are also "some" out there who break the cardinal rule, "Listen first before transmitting." They're the ones who give all contesters a bad reputation. I certainly don't mind sharing the bands with fans of contests; but it would be nice if they listened before jumping in with both feet.

Heck, it would be nice if EVERYONE would listen before they transmit - contesters, ragchewers, traffic handlers alike. I wonder why that's such a difficult concept for some?

73 de Larry W2LJ

Don't let the glass

'hit you on your way out the door, Hanna! Good bye and good riddance!

Hanna is beginning to leave our environs. A bit more rain is expected until Midnight; but it seems the worst is over (at least that's what various radar pictures are showing).

The winds are picking up on the backside of the storm. While 20 MPH gusts were intermittent before, it seems like a 20 MPH wind is about the norm right now with some higher gusts. A few minutes ago, I went out to check my rain gauge and it looks like a total of just just a skosh over 4.5 inches.

All in all, it wasn't a devastating storm. We've had some winter time Nor'Easters that were much worse. Back in 1994 (I think that was the year) we had a December Nor'Easter blow through and later it was called a "white hurricane". Those were much worse non-hurricane storms.

Tomorrow the forecast is for a very sunny Sunday with highs in the mid 80s. What a difference a day makes! Now maybe I'll head down to the shack for a bit to see what's brewing on 40 Meters.

73 de Larry W2LJ

Hanna is over DelMarVa

As of 6:35 PM EDT, the center of Hanna is over the DelMarVa peninsula. Heavy rain bands are falling over New Jersey; and as you can see, most of the state is colored yellow. Since the beginning, some 4 hours ago, about 3 inches of rain have fallen here in South Plainfield, at least in my back yard.

Strangely enough, just across town lives another SkyWarn spotter - Marv K2VHW. He has recorded about 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch more rain than I have received here.

Luckily, I live on the crest of a small rise and I am not experiencing any water problems to speak of - notwithstanding a leaky skylight here in the rec room. Many parts of Middlesex County which are lower in elevation are reporting moderate to major flooding of local roads and highways.

73 de Larry W2LJ

Raining cats and dogs ......

It has rained approximately 2 inches in the last 3 hours. More heavy bands of rain are expected until Hanna clears out sometime between 11:00 PM to Midnight. So far, winds have been very quiet; a lot more quiet than I expected. I would guesstimate no more than some 20 MPH gusts; and those not often at all. They will probably pick up on the backside of the storm.

On a lighter note, Jim W1PID went on another one of his QRP hiking adventures recently. For a recap, along with pictures of the awesomely beautiful New Hampshire scenery, please visit:

http://www.mv.com/ipusers/w1pid/piper2/piper.html

73 de Larry W2LJ

Hanna has arrived

Approximately one hour ago, at 2:30 PM Eastern Daylight Time, the first of Hanna's rains have arrived in Central New Jersey.

Going out to do the grocery shopping this morning, the air felt like a sauna. This was truly a good indication of the tropical air accompanying the storm.

The radar image up top, courtesy of AccuWeather, shows the heavy rain bands across most of New Jersey.

SkyWarn has been activated, CERT is on standby and I have set out a rain gauge that will hopefully let me record total rainfall amounts that occur here in South Plainfield. Since it's a temporary gauge of my own design, I hope it doesn't blow away in the expected heavy winds to come. There have been accompanying rumbles of thunder occuring at random intervals. So I guess there will be no HF transmissions from W2LJ until they stop.

73 de Larry W2LJ

Keeping an eye on the lady

Hanna, that is.

Tropical Storm warnings have been posted up along the East Coast all the way up to Massachusetts. Hanna should be just off the New Jersey coast around 2:00 PM or so tomorrow afternoon if present trends remain.

As of right now, anywhere from 3 to 7 inches of rain are expected depending on how close to shore Hanna's center tracks. Winds up to 70 MPH are expected - I'm sure my antennas will just love that!

I will have the Sayreville, NJ K2GE repeater tuned on the handheld all day. I am a Skywarn spotter and the Skywarn nets are held on that repeater for Middlesex County. Our Office of Emergency Management here in South Plainfield has already put our CERT Team on standby.

It should be an interesting day. I have all my radio batteries charged up and ready to go. Hopefully, no power lines will come in the way of any falling branches. We're not expecting any of the misfortune that recently hit the Gulf States; but there are several communities in Middlesex County that are prone to flooding during hurricanes and Nor'easters.

73 de Larry W2LJ

A fascinating read

I an currently reading David McCullough's fine work, "John Adams". Early American and Revolutionary War history is one of my passions. John Adams has always been a fascinating historical figure to me; and this book makes him my favorite personality of that era.

John Adams, in my humble opinion, is THE "Founding Father". If it were not for his talent, timing, fortitude and vision, this nation would be nothing of what it is today. While we have strayed far from his vision, I think on the whole he would be pleased to see we remain a strong, vibrant nation some 232 years later.

What is amusing as a result of reading this book, is the realization how much hot air and baloney is the argument of today's extreme Left regarding the "separation of Church and State". Their idea that it was the Founders fervent wish to push religion out of the public square is ludicrous to the point of being laughable.

It is apparent, after reading volumes like this, that our Founders realized and depended upon the benevolence of "The Creator" or "Providence", or if you simply prefer - God. They were not religionophobics, rather, they realized the importance to the nation and society the values and morals that came with believing in and relying upon the Almighty.

What they ardently desired, was that the United States would not become like England and found a state religion. They believed in allowing multiple religions to coexist and prosper in peace. And they did not believe that it was necessary to remove religion from the public square for this to happen.

May God be willing, that our nation will return to this view; and not become the secular state that so many seem eager for us to become.

73 de Larry W2LJ

It works!

I stopped by Lowe's on the way home from dropping my two children off at a birthday party; and I picked up a piece of PVC that's 2 inches in diameter by 2 feet long.

I removed the 1.5 inch diameter piece that I previously had attached to the angle iron and replaced it with the larger. Viola' !!!!

As you can (hopefully) see from the photo to the left, the Black Widow crappie pole slides right into the PVC and is held nicely upright.

This should now allow me to make more frequent use of my NorCal doublet when I set up QRP portable. The PVC cost me all of two bucks and change; and the angle iron was about the same. So for under $5, I have a neat holder for my Black Widow crappie pole, which I purchased from Cabela's a few years ago for $19.99. I went on their Website this past week and they still stock them; but I don't remember what the cost is - I think they're still about $20.

So, if I have a couple of trees on either side, I can have a nice flat top dipole - if not, I'll carry along two tent pegs and set up as an Inverted Vee.

BTW, it was very hot and muggy here in NJ today. About 85 degrees with lots of humidity. Real August weather, which up until now has been abnormally cool and dry. From the extended forecast, it's looking like September weather in August and August weather in September!

73 de Larry W2LJ

No controversy today

20 Meters was booming in at lunchtime today. I heard and worked (very briefly) G3RGD, Ray from Birmingham, England. He gave me a 559 and them moved onto W8FU. Ray was loud into NJ. I don't know what he was running; but he was 599+. It's not often that I hear an English station so loud.

I heard a lot of Europeans - this was all around 1700 UTC or so at the lower end of 20 Meters. EA4s, G3s, SM3s, etc. Maybe the sunspots are coming back?

Which has me thinking portable antenna set ups again. Today, I was using the Hamstick and I'm seriously considering using the NorCal Doublet more. I dragged the 20 foot Black Widow crappie pole out of the basement and stuck in the back of the car. Below is what I used to support my Buddipole back in the day when I had one.


As you can see, it's a piece of angle iron, which I sawed off to a point on the earth end. Attached to it with two hose clamps, is a piece of PVC pipe. The Buddipole mast just slipped into the pipe and was held upright. Unfortunately, this pipe isn't a big enough diameter to allow me to slip the Black Widow in. I'm going to have to make a trip to Lowe's or Home Depot for a slightly bigger diameter piece of pipe. I hope I won't have to buy a whole big length of it for just the relatively short piece I need.

Here's another shot of it; but not in the ground. Not that great a photo; but you get the idea.


The only disadvantage that I can foresee is that I'll have to carry a small sledge so I can pound this thing into the ground. But the upside is that a doublet at 20 feet or so (probably set up as an Inverted Vee) should outperform the Hamstick on the car.

73 de Larry W2LJ

CB Lingo

I had my Alinco HT turned on last night, on my nightstand, listening to some of the local Hams chatter away as I was drifting off to sleep. I heard something that instantly had me wide awake, listening.

A very minor thing; but it stuck out; and I feel the need to offer some advice, or perhaps a word of warning.

Two Hams were conversing, one from South New Jersey, the other from Philadelphia. The New Jersey Ham asked the Philadelphia Ham, "What's the personal over there?" To his credit, the Philadelphia Ham came back with, "My name is ........" I was anxiously waiting someone to come on the air to make a big stink out of it. Perhaps, it was the lateness of the hour, and the incident went unnoticed.

Please ......... no!

All of you, don't get offended; or rip me for being snobby or elitist. I welcome everyone to Amateur Radio. Whether your first fledgling steps towards the hobby have been as an SWL or a CB'er - makes no matter to me. You're all welcome with open arms!

But please, all you ex-Citizen Banders out there ..... please leave the CB lingo behind. We have enough of our own vernacular that gets used and abused all too often as it is. The CB stuff just smacks of ...... well, I'm not sure just what.

You're more likely to be abused by some know-it-all elitist out there who feels that he has been anointed "The Guardian of Amateur Radio" - God knows, we have our share. Don't give someone who is not versed in holding their tongue well, the ammunition they need to possibly embarrass or make you feel bad on the air.

And to all of you "Guardians" out there - please engage your brains before your mouths. Let stuff like this slide and instead of criticizing, instruct the person the correct way, quietly on the side. I cringe at the thought of someone discouraging a newcomer. We need all the newcomers we can get - not drive them away.


73 de Larry W2LJ

E-mail reflectors

I subscribe to a lot of them, all related to either QRP or CW. As you can imagine, as a result I get a ton of e-mail everyday. I use the "Delete Key" a lot to sift the wheat from the chaff. Every now and then, though, you come across a real gem.

I came across such a gem today on the Straight Key Century Club reflector, which was posted by Milt K4OSO. It's titled:

NEW CW OPS - 8 reasons for not getting on the air

1. I CAN'T COPY VERY WELL
Copy skills get better with time and practice. Nerves is certainly a factor at first. The answer to nerves is exposure. Get on the air and practice those skills. After all, you're not copying vectors for a brain exploration surgery……just fun stuff. What if you do miss some? Eh?

2. I MAKE MISTAKES IN SENDING
Who cares? Everyone does! If you show me an op who sends flawless CW, I'll eat my hat. Even keyboarders make mistakes. Its what you do when you make one that is the measure of an op. A good op corrects his mistakes. When you glide past mistakes it leaves the other guy guessing.

3. MY CW IS VERY SLOW
Accuracy transcends speed! Accuracy is absolute, while speed will increase/improve over time. What you DON'T want is to get faster at sending poorly. Fast and poor are an awful twosome. Practice sending well, at a speed which is comfortable for you. You WILL make mistakes,…just correct them and move on.

4. I GET LOST IN QSO'S
As many have suggested, by writing down the parts of a typical exchange/qso, you will be better able to get through a qso. Its really funny how few comments are directed to spelling. Spelling
slows us down and trips us up in many qso situations. When you practice off-air, its fine to use a sheet of text, but I find that sending as if in a qso is much more helpful. Practice this by sending out of your head. You'll get used to sending off the cuff and your spelling will improve tremendously. If ragchewing is your goal, keep your exchanges short, at first. Don't try to say too much in one exchange. That way, it will give you time to think about what you'll say next, and will slow the other op down as well. That will make his transmissions easier to copy. Keep it casual, and don't let it become hard work.

5. MY PALMS SWEAT
Keep a hand towel at your operating desk. My palms sweated on my first date too but, it didn't stop me. Remember, no one can see you! Try PRETENDING you're as calm as a cucumber. Think of yourself as a "take charge" op who can handle any situation. As an op thinkest, so shall he be on the air.

One particular activity that improved my confidence and ability to handle most situations was learning traffic handling on the Maryland Slow Net. Net speed was maximum 10 wpm (and flexible), the instructors were patient and considerate. That training gave me the confidence I desperately needed. I'm now an Instructor/NCS on that Net and watch the transformation of new ops from tentative and unsure to ops who would be welcomed on NTS traffic net throughout the country. Its easy and painless and proceeds at the new op's own pace. Even if you don't become an active traffic handler, the training is invaluable for learning general operating practices.

6. PEOPLE WILL THINK POORLY OF ME
Bull Crap!!! Everyone expects new/inexperienced CW ops to be somewhat tentative, make some mistakes and miss some copy. They expect it because THEY PERFORMED THE SAME WAY WHEN THEY WERE NEW/INEXPERIENCED. Some well-meaning ops, in an attempt to sooth the nervous new op will say, "Aw, no one will notice your mistakes" Bull crap! Of course they notice them! They'd have to be idiots not to. BUT, no one cares about a your mistakes. This is a hobby,…..a means of having fun. It WILL be fun if you stop agonizing over it. The amount of fun you have at CW is inversely proportional to the amount you worry about it.

7. I'LL DO IT WHEN I GET BETTER
That's fine if you like spending your time procrastinating. "He was gonna get on the air tomorrow" would make a unfortunate epitath. "He really enjoyed his ham radio hobby and his CW" is a much nicer one. I waited until I was over 60 to finally get started in Ham radio. I often think of how much fun I could have had over the years if I had just bitten the bullet and jumped in. Now, I'm trying to make up for lost time. But, we all know that's impossible.

8. I HAVE PROBLEMS WITH THIS OR THAT TYPE OF KEY.
Ok….use whatever you're good with, and develop your skills on the others at your own pace. Whatever you do, don't try to assuage your fist into a type of key that frustrates you. Learning new skills, while not easy, should be fun. Measure your progress in small chunks. Don't set your goals too far ahead. You must be able to see progress. If speed improvement is your goal, measure it one word per minute at a time. Don't try to go from 5 wpm to 10 wpm. That's doubling your speed!. It would be like me trying to go from 35 wpm to 70 wpm. Never happen,…..go from 5 to 6. Then to 7, and so on….

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

Golden words of advice from relatively new Ham who practices what he preaches. If you ever get the chance to work Milt K4OSO in an actual on the air QSO, you will be working a quality CW op! (I know, I've had the pleasure!)

73 de Larry W2LJ

Great Website !!!

I was using Windows Live to do some searching on the NorCal Doublet, when I ran across this Website:

http://home.frognet.net/~mcfadden/wd8rif/field-antennas.htm

If you've ever done QRP outdoors, or are thinking about doing some QRP outdoors, this Website is a "must read" as far as I'm concerned. It's chock full of useful information; and if for one second you think that WD8RIF doesn't know what he's talking about - just check out his "Event Reports" section.

73 de Larry W2LJ

St. Maximilian Kolbe

In the calendar of the Catholic Church, August 14th is the day that the Church honors and remembers the life of Saint Maximilian Kolbe, Priest and Martyr.

The following short biography appeared on the Catholic Exchange Website:

As a child, Maximilian Kolbe (1894-1941) had a deep devotion to Our Lady. On one occasion he had a vision in which Mary offered him either a white garment, symbolizing purity, or a red one, symbolizing martyrdom. “I choose both,” the boy replied. His heart was transfixed by Our Lady. Later he prayed that when he died, he would be blessed with departing life on a Feast Day of the Blessed Mother.

Maximilian entered the Franciscan Order at age thirteen, and was ordained a priest in 1918. After serving some years as a humble parish priest, Fr. Kolbe was named director of one of the largest Catholic publishing firms in Poland.

To better “win the world for the Immaculata,” St. Maximilian’s friars utilized the most modern printing and administrative techniques. This enabled them to publish countless catechetical and devotional tracts, a daily newspaper with a circulation of 230,000, and a monthly magazine with a circulation of over one million. Maximilian started a shortwave radio station and planned to build a motion picture studio — he was a true “Apostle of the Mass Media.”

Following the German conquest of Poland in 1939, he (like many priests) was arrested, but soon released. Maximilian devoted himself to helping Jewish refugees. When the Nazis discovered this, he was again arrested and sent to Auschwitz in 1941. There he tried to set an example of faith and hope for the other prisoners.

When a prisoner escaped from camp, the Germans chose ten men at random and sentenced them to death by starvation; one of them was a Polish sergeant, Franciszek Gajowniczek, whom Kolbe had befriended. Fr. Kolbe left his place in the ranks and asked permission from the commandant to take Gajowniczek’s place. The shocked German officer agreed, and Kolbe and nine others were taken away to die. Maximilian helped the others prepare for death. He was the last to succumb, dying on August 14, the eve of the Assumption.

In addition to his priesthood, Father Kolbe was also an Amateur Radio operator. His callsign was SP3RN and the picture above shows him at his station. He is credited with keeping many of the world's Amateur Radio operators informed about the atrocities committed by the Nazis prior to the outbreak of World War II.

Because of his exemplary life and because of his devotion to God and to his fellow man, Fr. Kolbe was canonized as a Saint of the Catholic Church by Pope John Paul II in October of 1982.

73 de Larry W2LJ

Something is not right

I was listening to a conversation on 2 Meters tonight on the way home from work. I heard something, that were I drinking coffee, would have caused me to do a spittake. That's the term for the comedic tool where you see someone who is surprised spew out whatever beverage they happen to be drinking at the time.

A Ham (who will remain nameless) was describing how much fun he's been having with his Yaesu FT-817 and how he loves making 5 Watt contacts ...... yadda, yadda, yadda. So far, so good.

The he went on the describe how he hasn't used the radio much lately because the current sunspot lull is making QRP contacts so hard. OK, I don't really agree with that assessment; but I can see how for someone else it might have some merit.

THEN came the kicker ..... he continued on to say, and I quote "It's hard enough making QSOs with 600 Watts from the home station".


Really? ..... Really?!?

I was about to jump in and question that; but he had arrived at his destination and shut his mobile station down.

73 de Larry W2LJ

An investment of "self"

A friend and I have been privately corresponding over the past week about the decline of the retention of "Newbies" to Amateur Radio; and the increase in the popularity of QRP. We have been engaging in philosophical arguments as to whether not the two phenomena are somehow linked.

Personally, I think that the explosion of the popularity of QRP and the decline of "Newbies" staying interested in Amateur Radio are totally non-related and are 180 degrees apart in the spectrum.

My personal opinion is that for many, QRP hearkens back to the "Golden Age" of Amateur Radio. The tradition of building, homebrewing, operating on a shoe string is very akin to Amateur Radio of the 20s, 30s and 40s. Back in those days, it was very rare for a Ham to open up some boxes, plug a few things in and get on the air. Back then you had to scavenge, scrounge and build. Getting on the air was the end step of an entire process. Back then, after you took your test, you waited six weeks or more for your license to come and you used that time to make final preparations. When you got on the air, you knew how and why your station worked. Heck, you built most of it yourself, including the antenna. Fortunately, there still seems to be a large segment of the Amateur Radio population that shares that ethic and wants to enjoy it, again.

Today things are different - radically different. Without getting into arguments, the process today is more akin to this:

1) Take a multiple choice test
2) Find out your results within 15 minutes of completing your exam
3) Go to the FCC Website within a week and get your callsign.
4) Use that week to order and receive a fancy new "box" and antenna from HRO or AES.
5) Open the boxes, plug a few things in and get on the air.

Where's the romance in that? Where's the anticipation in that? Where's the pride of a "job well done" in that? Where's the "magic" in that? Is it any wonder then, that so many of today's new licensees are losing interest?

Amateur Radio was so popular way back when; and retained its newly licensed because they had made a major investment of "self". It WAS harder back then! It took a lot of effort, discipline and self motivation to study, scrounge, build and get on the air. The words "instant" and "gratification" hadn't even been linked together yet! After all that study, building, effort, blood, sweat and tears, you would have looked like a bloody idiot to go through all that only to say, "Nah, this isn't for me".

Today's "plug and play" society makes it easier to walk away. The "investment of self" has turned into an "investment of money". Open some boxes, throw some stuff together and get on the air. It turns Amateur Radio into a (yawn) "been there, done that" kind of thing. And even the 'investment of money" isn't a total loss; because if you find out that Amateur Radio isn't your "thing", then there's always eBay.

73 de Larry W2LJ

Looking forward to things

It's not a good thing to always wish for the time to pass quickly. I wonder how many of us realize we are wishing our lives away when we concentrate so hard on wishing for the arrival of the next weekend or the next holiday or the next vacation.

However, that being said, I really am looking forward to next weekend. Going against my own advice, eh? But there are two events coming up that I have been looking forward to for a while.

The first is the QRP-ARCI SK Memorial Sprint, which is an annual event to honor all the dedicated QRPers who have gone on the the "big shack in the sky" ahead of us. This is a four hour Sprint and I'm hoping the weather will be good enough to allow operations from the backyard. Instead of the PAC-12 (or perhaps in addition to it) I would like to set up the NorCal Doublet as an Inverted Vee using my 31 foot Black Widow crappie pole as a center support.

The second event occurs a few hours later, which is the NJ QSO Party. I've "fooled around" in this contest in years past; but have never made a serious effort. I'd like to give it a go this year as a true QRP entry just to see how I stack up.

In addition, this coming Tuesday night is the NAQCC Sprint for August. That will serve mightily well as a warm up for the weekend's events.

73 de Larry W2LJ

Broke the pileup!

'Twas not "exotic" DX; but it was a rather rare entity; and the pileup was HUGE! When I went out to the park today at lunchtime, I found a buzz saw of stations at 14.042 MHz. Going down one, I heard VO2A the DXpedition to Paul Island (NA-205), off the coast of Labrador in Canada.

There were a ton of Europeans calling, EA3, G3. UA9, HA5 were among some of the prefixes I heard. Labrador isn't so far from New Jersey in terms of the world of DX; but I thought I'd give it a whirl.

And about 10 minutes or so in, I managed to break through, putting 5 Watts into a Hamstick which was nestled in some tree limbs because of where I had parked the car.

The K1 doesn't have "true" split capability; so I had to set the K1 to the transmit frequency (where I was guessing that VO2A was listening) and I used the RIT control to tune "down 1" where VO2A was transmitting, so I could hear him. There's also a XIT feature on the K1 which will allow you to do the same thing, but basically the other way around; but I haven't really figured it out yet.

Soon after I worked VO2A, it started showering; so I packed up and headed back to work early. It was a portent of things to come as we had a pretty bad thunderstorm with some very hard rain later in the afternoon.

73 de Larry W2LJ

I guess it's just me .......

Maybe I'm stupid ...... maybe I'm blissfully ignorant ..... maybe I just missed the bus.

I received an e-mail today from a Ham I've known for a while; but never had the chance to meet face to face - opposite ends of the country and all that. He was writing to me to tell me that he finally had QRP all figured out; and how really, really difficult it actually is!

Sigh - heavy sigh.

It really isn't. At least I don't think it is.

I never seem to lack for QSOs. I don't always have one; but I do more often than not. There are times my CQ's go unanswered (more on this in a bit) ; but there are more often times that I get a response. There are times I get a 339 or 449 report; but then there are just as many times that I get a 589 or 599 report. In fact, a few minutes ago, I worked Yuri RW3QO in Russia on 40 Meters. He gave me a 589.

Maybe it's all in the attitude. My attitude is not so much that it's QRP. My attitude is that it's Amateur Radio and I just happen to be using 5 Watts. Geez, if I got discouraged about my power out and became obsessed with always using 100 Watts or better, I would have never gotten through my Novice days. I guess I didn't know any better then; and I still don't know any better now!

And by the way ..... I'm sick and tired of hearing the QRP "rules". You know, the ones the "experts" tout:

NEVER call CQ while operating QRP.
ALWAYS expect that your signal will be weak on the receiving end.
ALWAYS use a slower code speed to make yourself understood.
ALWAYS keep your QSOs short, NEVER expect to be able to have a rag chew.
NEVER start out your Ham career using QRP.

Sheesh - I think I've broken all those rules about a million times over! I call CQ a lot; and I get a lot of answers. Look, odds are your signal is going to be loud somewhere. Why not call CQ? Even if you end up working the guy across town; it's still a QSO.

Always weak on the receiving end? What a bunch of baloney! I can't tell you how many times I've worked Todd N9NE only to have my earphones blown clear off my head! I wrote him once that I felt like the radio studio engineer in that episode of "The Little Rascals" who always had his headphones blown off when Spanky would drop a lightbulb near the microphone. And Todd is not the only 599+++++++ QRP signal that I've had the pleasure to receive - not by a long shot.

Slow code speed to be understood better? That just doesn't make sense to me. I don't think code speed has anything to do with being understood just because you're QRP. The only time code speed enters into the picture is when the receiving station can't copy as fast as you're sending.

Short QSOs? Criminy - I've had plenty of rag chews that have lasted an hour or more while running QRP. Another bit of hogwash.

Never start your Ham career using QRP. I laugh at this one the most. Back in the day, most of us Novices had flea power radios and crappy antennas. We might have put out 35 Watts or so; but by the time we loaded up the bed springs we were probably only putting out 2 or 3 Watts. Of course I'm exaggerating here; but you get the idea. The idea that you HAVE to run 100 Watts to get your instant gratifications is immature and idiotic.

Well. so much for my evening rant - probably just another sign of my ignorance of how "it really is".

73 de Larry W2LJ

10 Meters was open

I didn't get a chance to get on the air on Saturday; but I saw several postings to various e-mail reflectors touting the fact that 10 Meters was open on Saturday. This was also confirmed to me by Bob W3BBO who participated in the North American QSO Party over the weekend; and he made 46 QSOs on 10 Meters.

Today, after an afternoon full of yardwork, I got on the air for a bit and decided to tune around the 10 Meter band. It was so quiet, there wasn't even much static or white noise. Then at 28.028 MHz I heard AF4OX calling CQ. I answered back; and Bob and I had a nice chat for a little bit.

It was nice to have a QSO on 10 Meters for the first time in I can't really remember when. Maybe this is a sign that propagation is starting to improve. More than likely, though, it's not so much that 10 Meters is always dead. It's probably more that we all ASSUME 10 Meters is dead when it really isn't; and we're ignoring a valuable resource that is available for us to use, if only we would.

73 de Larry W2LJ

Evicted ..... tossed ..... thrown out!

My luck has not been the greatest so far this week. On Sunday, I got rained out of participating in the 2008 rendition of the Flight of the Bumblebees. Yesterday, I received another disappointment.

I went to the park during lunchtime at work yesterday and set up the PAC-12. Just as I was attaching the K1 to it (in a nice shady spot underneath a tree) a park worker comes up to me and tells me that I have to pack up and leave. It seems that they are beginning some kind of upgrade that involves excavation and that they were blocking off that side of the park, including blocking off the entrance. They had orange and white traffic barrels and yellow caution tape at the ready to do the job.

I returned to work; and during a quiet moment, I pulled up a Google map of the area and began scoping out other parks in the area. I found two and spent lunchtime today reconnoitering the two sites.

I think the one I will use is called Boynton Park in Woodbridge, which is the next town over. The drive to the park I was using was about 5 minutes. This one is about 7 minutes in the opposite direction. It has horse shoe pits, two lighted baseball diamonds and the mandatory playground area. However, next to the far ball field is a nice grassy area with a huge maple for shade. It looks pretty good; but it also seems to be used more than the other one I frequented so there might be more "visitors".

I'll be going there tomorrow to give it a shot if it doesn't rain.

73 de Larry W2LJ

No FOBB again!

For the second year in row, my plans for the Flight of the Bumblebees were thwarted.

As I was driving home from visiting my Mom this morning, the skies started darkening ominously. By the time I has approached the outskirts of South Plainfield, I saw numerous cloud to ground lightning strikes as well as cloud to cloud strikes. The Middlesex County SkyWarn Net had begun; and there was a severe thunderstorm warning issued for Middlesex County. The skies opened as I got out of the car and ran into the house. We got quite a downpour, lots of lightning and thunder; but thankfully, no hail or circular winds. Several other parts of the county reported pea sized hail as well as highway and road flooding.

From 2:00 PM until 4:00 PM, we had a doozy of a boomer; and thus ended FOBB for 2008, just like in 2007.

73 de Larry W2LJ - Bumblebee #27 who never got the chance to fly.

One more time ..... does QRP really work?

I got a really nice e-mail from Todd, KK7WB, who is getting back into Amateur Radio after being away for a bit. He wants to get back on to HF; but doesn't want to spend a king's ransom in the process. So he has decided to go the QRP route. Simple equipment that won't drive him into bankruptcy is an attractive thought; but ...... will it work? Can it be fun? As Todd put it, "With this being the solar minimum how successful has QRP been for you? Is it still worth your time go get on the air and do you make many contacts at all?"

Here's my answer; and the reason I'm posting it is because there are probably some folks out there who think "That W2LJ talks a good game; but I'll bet he goes running for the 100W rig first thing when the chips are down!" Not true! In fact nothing could be further from the truth!

-------

Todd,

How successful has QRP been for me? VERY! Since 2003 I am 100% QRP. I clung to my QRO rig for a few years after the switch over; but sold that off about 3 years ago. I own a K1 and then laboriously saved up enough for a K2. It took me a while, but I finally did it.

QRP has been a lot of fun and continues to be. I have been a Ham for 30 years now, first licensed in 1978. I can say without fear of lying that QRP has been the most fun in Amateur Radio that I have ever had.

I think the trick in becoming successful with QRP is just learning to forget that you're running QRP. To me it's just Amateur Radio. I have learned that even while running 5 Watts, your signal is going to be loud SOMEWHERE. I get my share of 449 and 559 RSTs; but I also get my share of 589 and 599 RSTs, also. In fact, I got a 599 from a guy in Williamsburg, VA once who would just not believe that I was using a Rockmite at 500 mW! My antennas are nothing exotic - a G5RV at about 25 feet and a ground mounted Butternut HF9V vertical.

Now before I go painting a picture that's all butterflies and roses, there will be times your QRP signal won't do the trick; and there are times you will get frustrated. I find those times to be a distinct minority, though; especially if you're blessed with the virtue of patience. If you learn how propagation works; and you learn how to work DX, you'll get your share of that, too. DO NOT try to work DXpeditions the first few days out - work them towards the end when THEY are begging for contacts. Jump into a DX contest on the 2nd day - you'll be amazed how many foreign stations will listen for a weaker signal when there's points to be had!

I have found ragchews to not be a problem - with one caveat. I rarely mention I'm running QRP. If you just let a ragchew flow, they can last a long time. I have had nice ragchews busted up because all of a sudden I have QSBed ONLY AFTER I mentioned I was running QRP! I think it can be psychological on the receiving end! Plus, unfortunately, you're going to run into ops who will just not QSO with anyone who puts out less than a 599 signal; but then it takes all kinds to make up this world we live in.

As far as the sunspot cycle goes, if the bands are dead - they're gonna be dead whether you're QRO or QRP. If you can't seem to make a contact; then it's time to go build something or read a book or QST or something. But I would urge you to go take a look at John Shannon K3WWP's Website if you haven't already. John is a special individual for sure; but he really proves that QRP works. He's made at least one QRP QSO a day for like the past 5000 days or something like that - we're talking YEARS here! And he doesn't own a tower or beam. He uses all simple wire antennas; and I'm pretty sure that 1/2 of his longwire is inside his house!

As far as rigs go, simple inexpensive ones will yield as good results as fancy, expensive ones; and sometimes I think the contacts are more rewarding with the simpler ones. A side benefit of QRP is that since it tends to dwell on simpler rigs; it kinds hearkens back to our Amateur Radio roots when everything was homemade! I would urge you though, that if you're going to be using monoband rigs, rather than something that has multi- bands; that you get something for 20 and 40 Meters. Those are the two bands I operate with the most success, although on winter evenings, 80 Meters is quite workable, too.

Lastly, the QRP fraternity is truly special. I have made close friendships with several Hams that I never even met in person! I consider them to be amongst some of my best friends. For the most part, QRPers are extra special friendly and very supportive, helpful and generous. For the life of me, I can't explain why - it just seems to be that way.

Don't worry about being QRP, Todd. If you don't consider it to be a handicap; then it won't be. Put up the best antenna you can (even if it's just a random hunk o' wire) and get whatever rig you can on the air and start having fun. You might not be able to work everyone you hear; but believe me, you'll start filling up your logbook quicker that you would have imagined!

------

Everything I said there, I believe in 100% I realize QRP is not for everyone; but for those of you out there who can't get on the air any other way; but remain skeptical - "Let not your heart be troubled". You WILL have fun!

73 de Larry W2LJ

I tried ......

In my last post, I mentioned that I ordered an inexpensive Diamond dual band magmount for the dual band radio that I won. I came home from work last night to read an e-mail from Universal Radio telling me that the antenna is on backorder - with no mention of how long the delay is expected.

I replied by cancelling the back order and hopped on over to AES. I placed an order for the same antenna and received an e-mail today with a UPS tracking number. My order has been shipped already; and it's scheduled to be here on Friday!

I really wanted to do business with one of the smaller guys. I probably would have not cancelled the order if there was some kind of indication given as to how long the backorder would last - a couple of days - a week - a month. But when a backorder is in essence "open ended"; prior experience tells me it's going to be a long wait. Longer than I care to wait at this point.

There will be no HF emanations from station W2LJ tonight. There are quite a number of thunderstorms going through the area; and in fact, it hasn't completely stopped rumbling since I left work! I drove through quite a downpour on the way home and saw a lot of cloud to ground lightning. In fact, as I type this I can hear it begin to downpour on the skylight window here in the rec room again.

Speaking of lightning, there's a very good article on lightning safety on eHam.net. You can read it by clicking here. It's mostly common sense; but it makes for good reading anyway. One of the least controversial articles on eHam as it's all based on fact.

In 10 minutes the VHF net starts on the local repeater. Maybe I'll turn on the HT and check in for the first time in a few years. I guess it good idea to get on there every now and then to let all the guys know I'm still alive. See what happens when you're addicted to HF?

73 de Larry W2LJ

It's a good thing the antenna was unplugged!

Last night, even though it was Flying Pigs Run For the Bacon night; I hit the hay at 9:00 PM. I had to get up at 5:00 AM this morning so I could be at work by 6:00 AM. Every Monday morning I have to put together a 2000 line spreadsheet from scratch and the process takes me about 3 or 4 hours depending on how much I get interrupted.

Anyway, around 11:30 or so last night, I was rudely awakened by what could only be described as the sound of a stick of dynamite going off underneath my bed. We were having a good ol' fashioned heat wave thunderstorm. Problem is that the lightning was striking close ...... very close. The thunder was lound enough to wake me from my slumber, which surprised my wife (who once told me that I could sleep through an atom bomb going off).

It's a good thing that I keep the antennas disconnected from the radio and shunted to ground when not in use. I've seen blue static sparks jump the gap from center pin to ground on PL-259 coax connectors during Field Day thunderstorms. I definitely wouldn't like that kind of arc playing havoc with my gear.

I placed an order Friday night with Universal Radio for a Diamond dual band magmount mobile antenna. I went a little on the cheap side and got one of their less expensive numbers. I'm still trying to save up for that Kenwood tri-band HT - the TH6FA or whatever the model is? Once again, I digress. Hopefully the antenna will make it here this week - Ohio to New Jersey isn't THAT far; and hopefully I'll get to install my Hamfest Doorprize in the Explorer next weekend.

73 de Larry W2LJ

Toasty here in NJ

It was definitely the hottest day of the year to date in Central New Jersey. At 1:00 PM local time, the back porch thermometer (which is NOT in the direct sun) topped out at 101 Degrees Fahrenheit (38.3 C).

I don't know if it's going to be this hot tomorrow; but it's going to be close. And the weatherman is saying that this heatwave is supposed to carry on for the next few days.

Now I'm not saying that there's any carry over from the air temperature to the conditions on the airwaves; but 40 Meters was hot tonight!

At 0207 UTC tonight I worked a new country via QRP to bring my QRP country total to 87. I heard and broke the pile up to work YL3GFX and snare Latvia on the lower portion of 40 Meters. He was a very strong 599 into NJ and I got a reasonable 559 back.

A few KHz up was a European Russian station RA1AOB who had a bigger pileup than the Latvian station! Since I already have European Russia in the log; I didn't stick around to break that pileup, even though I was tempted just for the sport of it.

73 de Larry W2LJ

The bands were dead today

As the temperatures sizzled in NJ today; so did the bands fizzle.

QRP operations the last three days were very good from the park that I go to in Carteret, NJ during lunchbreak. The K1 and the PAC-12 have been doing an outstanding job for me. Not only have the QSOs been good; but I've been getting compliments from the ops on the other end when they have been finding out that I've been using a QRP radio with a portable vertical antenna. You see, QRP skeptics? You can get 589 and 599 reports using 5 Watts!

Today, however, as the temperatures soared past 95 degrees; the bands seemed to head in a proportionally inverse direction. 20, 30 and 40 Meters yielded few, if any signals. After about 15 - 20 minutes of tuning around, I packed up and headed back to work. Not that I wanted to go back there by any means; but at least it was air conditioned.

By the way, the park I set up in is the Joseph Medwick Memorial Park. Joseph Medwick is better known as "Ducky" Medwick - professional baseball player for the St. Louis Cardinals as part of "The Gashouse Gang" in the 30s and for the Brooklyn Dodgers and the New York Giants in the 40s. He was the last National League Player to win the Triple Crown (league leader in three categories for any one season - home runs, runs batted in and batting average). Joe Medwick, who was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1968, was born in Carteret NJ; so the park bears his name. Since I'm such a big baseball fan, it's fitting.

73 de Larry W2LJ

A first time for everything.

There's a first time for everything, I guess.

You know, snow in July ..... 90 degree weather in December ...... a hurricane in Minnesota ....... a blizzard in Miami ...... W2LJ winning the doorprize in a Hamfest.

Yep, that's right! I came home from work today to find a package waiting for me. A brandy new Icom IC-208H was waiting for me along with a note, "Congratulations, you won the SCARC Hamfest doorprize!"

You could have knocked me over with a feather. This is the first time I have ever won anything! And one of the things I was planning to purchase in the near future was a dual band VHF/UHF rig for the car. I really need 440 MHz capability for CERT; and this will replace the monoband 2 Meter Yaesu that I have in there now. Of course, now I have to acquire a dual band antenna; but that's OK. I'm glad to have to do it.

Wow! The good feeling from this is definitely going to last a day or two. Thank you so much Sussex County Amateur Radio Club and KJI Electronics!

73 de Larry W2LJ

73

No, I'm not going anywhere!

The 73 in the title is about one of my pet peeves in Amateur Radio, the misuse of "73".

This train of thought all came about because of a "discussion" (that's Ham talk for "argument") that started on the SKCC e-mail reflector. One Ham used "hi hi" in his post to indicate laughter; just as it's done on the air. Another Ham got bent out of shape about it and commented on it.

At first, I thought the criticism was pretty petty and picky; but then I remembered my own peeve. The misuse of "73". On the air, while sending CW, it's pretty hard to misuse "73". You send the numerals 7 & 3. Pretty cut and dry. For those of you not in the know; or new to Amateur Radio, "73" means "Best Regards" and is used as at the end or sign off of a QSO.

However, in the spoken QSO, 73 is often misused and for some inane reason, that irritates the heck out of me! It's "seven three" when spoken. That's it - no more and no less.

It's NOT "seven threes".
It's NOT "seventy three".
It's NOT "threes".
It's NOT "seven thirds".
and the most idiotic way I've ever heard:
It's NOT "trees".

It must be a bit of Obsessive/Compulsive Disorder that affects me; but hearing 73 used the wrong way just makes my skin crawl. Almost as bad as dragging fingernails across a chalkboard or scratching a balloon - but not quite.

Oh, and by the way, don't even get me started on those two "favorites" of mine from 2 Meter FM:

"I have to sign now because I'm destinated." or "This is WA2BCD for ID".

AAAAAAAARRRRGGGGGHHHHHHHH!

73 de Larry W2LJ

A bit of sad news.

I see that Jeff K3OQ is shutting down his blog, "Adventures in Radio by K3OQ", which is listed on the blogroll to the right.

'Tis a pity.

Good Amateur Radio blogs are not as common as you'd think. There are a lot out there that die by the wayside. I have to admire Jeff though, for officially closing it out and not leaving it to languish and leave you wondering when the next post will appear.

Sorry to see you leave the blog scene, Jeff; but I can understand your motives. Keeping this up on a regular basis IS a lot of fun ....... but there ARE times.

Times you'd rather be doing something else (actually being on the air, perhaps?).
Times when you just don't feel like turning on the computer.
Times when you'd rather be with family or friends.
Times when your creativity dries up and you can't even begin to think what to write about.

If it becomes a chore and it's no fun anymore, then it is time to pack it in.

Good luck, Jeff. I look forward to your next Internet adventure.

73 de Larry W2LJ

Hamfest time!

Today was the annual Sussex County Amateur Radio Club's (SCARC) Hamfest. I usually don't get to make this one; as it usually occurs while we're on vacation in Lake George. This year, it fell on the Sunday after we got back; so I was able to make it.

The SCARC Hamfest is one of the best hamfests left in New Jersey. Where the others continue to get smaller (with the exception of the Raritan Valley Radio Club - which seems to be growing), SCARC is holding its own. The hamfest is held in the Sussex County Fairgrounds and there is an 'indoor section" with vendors and an outdoor "tailgating section".

I'm happy to say that both selling sections were well attended; and the hamfest in general was well attended with plenty of buyers. The tailgaters actually were asking reasonable prices; as far as I was able to ascertain from stuff that I was familiar with. Take straight keys, for example. While there were no "steals", there were no really bad rip-offs, either. About 20 bucks would buy you a decent specimen, which is probably a bit less than you would pay on eBay these days.

I didn't have any major purchases in mind, I just went to browse and meet up with old friends. I came away with a bag of PL-259 connectors (12 for $10), a 100 foot spool of antenna rope, a pair of angled cutters for $3 and a neat CERT placard for $2 that I can put in my windshield when I'm on duty for the town.

Speaking of town, I picked up a capacitor made by Cornell-Dublier which was based in South Plainfield for years. In essence, I was able to bring the capacitor "home". The factory site is an EPA Superfund site and all the buildings were just knocked over and ground has been paved over. In a few months they are going to rip up the paving and start to remove the PCB tainted soil.

Back to discussing my purchases .... I also picked up an MFJ crystal controlled QRP 40 Meter transmitter along with a crystal and a home brewed straight key for $10. And lastly, I picked up a neat project box for $5 - which would be the perfect size for a small homebrew 40 Meter receiver to accompany the MFJ transmitter.

I was tempted to pick up some ARRL antenna and QRP books; but then I realized that a majority of the articles were reprints from QST that I could get online whenever I want.

I did hook up with a few friends from the now defunct Piscataway club and I hooked up with Joe WA2QHA, who had won one of the door prizes. Joe lived across the street from me when I used to live in East Brunswick back in my single days. We would often blow each other out of the water with our HF operations; and we would both bother a mutual neighbor who complained that we were BOTH ruining his TV picture. It was good to run into Joe again, who told me he was running mostly QRP these days. I guess our old cranky neighbor is still cranky!

Then, as a extra special treat, I got to have an eyeball QSO with Don W2JEK. Don is a fellow NAQCC member and we've QSOed with each other many times in various QRP sprints; but as a result of our meeting, I now have a face to associate with the fist. And THAT is way cool!

It was a hot morning; but I had a lot of fun walking around. It was good to rummage through all the junk ....... er, I mean treasures, looking for useful items. My main problem is avoiding impulse buying; which would mean coming home with stuff that I'd end up never using. I did good today on that front.

73 de Larry W2LJ

Back from Lake George

We just got back this morning from our annual Summer vacation trip to Lake George, NY. The lake is 230 miles away from South Plainfield; and we had a much needed relaxing week with a chance to recharge the ol' batteries in a manner of speaking. I could have used two weeks of battery recharging; but I'll not be greedy and be happy with what I was able to get!

Of course, I brought the K1 along for some Amateur Radio activity. I didn't set up every day; but I did make a few QSOs and got some of my fellow vacationers curious enough to deliver a fine pitch for Amateur Radio.

For the most part, I used the PAC-12 with the multi-band coil; although I did also use the Hamsticks on the top of the Explorer. It was much nicer to sit at the picnic table and spread out a bit and enjoy the beautiful weather rather than work from the cramped rear hatch of the Explorer. As I mentioned before, the transceiver was the K1 and I used a 12V sealed lead acid battery as my power supply. The key was a Bulldog iambic paddle and I used QSO Diary on my Palm Tungsten E for logging.

I had QSOs with Fairfax, Virginia and Oak Ridge, Tennessee and Sherbrook, Quebec among other locations. 20 Meters was nice on Friday with lots of European signals being heard with the loudest coming from Germany and Poland.

The sound of Morse Code and the sight of the PAC-12 brought a few curious vacationers by the picnic table and I was able to give the "pitch". A few guys and their sons walked away quite interested, especially after hearing those signals coming from across "the pond"; and I promised to follow up with e-mails detailing how to go about getting a license. It seems the "magic of radio" still has the albility to capture imaginations, even these days! Strangley, the folks I spoke to were as impressed or even more impressed with the solar panel that I was using to keep the battery up to snuff.

And quite by coincidence, it turns out that the occupant of the next cabin over from us used to be the mayor of Newington, CT; so he was quite familiar with Amateur Radio and the ARRL.

By the way, this is the view I was able to look at while operating:

Not too shabby, eh?

I brought along my Autek antenna analyzer; and it made using the PAC-12 so much easier! I was able to pin point the tap setting on the PAC-12 multi band coil to the point where the match was so good that I was able to disable the antenna tuner on the K1. It amazed me to see what a big difference just one coil tap setting would make. With the Autek hooked up I was able to see the SWR jump from 3:1 down to 1.4:1 on the next! It sure takes the guess work out of things! The Autek will now be a permanent addition to my portable ops kit.

I brought along the NorCal Doublet; but ended up not using it. Chuck LaPlante, who owns the Stepping Stones Resort, where we stay is VERY accomodating to my Amateur Radio exploits. I didn't want to push the envelope too far by putting up a dipole in his trees, even if it was the very stealthy NorCal Doublet.

By the way, if you're an Amateur Radio op and you're thinking of a Lake George vacation; do make a point of looking into the Stepping Stones. It is a VERY family friendly place and my wife Marianne and our two children love the place. Chuck runs a very tight ship; but like I said, he is VERY accomodating to Amateur Radio as long as it doesn't bother any of the other vacationers.

Tell him that Larry W2LJ from NJ sent you - I'm pretty sure he'll remember me.

73 de Larry W2LJ

Would they be proud?

I am fortunate to live in the area known as "The Crossroads of the Revolution". This part of New Jersey was the host to more skirmishes, battles and military action during the Revolutionary War; than any other part of the original 13 Colonies.

Indeed, just down the road from me is the historic Oak Tree Pond, which was the site of a skirmish between the NJ Militia and the British Regulars that put an end to a flanking maneuver that the British were trying to accomplish in an effort to win the Battle of Short Hills.

In the next town over, in Piscataway, NJ, resides the historic Indian Queen Tavern which used to sit on the waterfront in New Brunswick. It was in this very inn that John Adams and Ben Franklin stayed when they came to "inspect the troops" in New Brunswick on behalf of the Second Continental Congress. George Washington was a guest at the inn numerous times; and it is believed that Thomas Jefferson composed parts of the Declaration of Independence while staying there.

Which lead me to wonder sometimes, that if Jefferson, Adams, Washington and Franklin were to fall asleep at the Indian Queen on a night in 1776 and were to awake to find themselves in the United States of America in 2008 ..... what would they think?

After the initial shock and awe, which would take a long time to overcome, I think that they would have mixed reviews as to what has become of their dream, their "experiment".

I think they would be proud of our ingenuity, our technological advancement, our nation's character (for the most part). I think they'd be proud that we expanded to include 50 great States; choosing not to rest and be content to remain a Union of 13 States. I think they'd be proud that we survived the Civil War and became a stronger Nation for it. I believe that while our Founding Fathers were isolationists, preferring not to become embroiled in Europe's politics, that they would be proud that the United States was behind the voice of Liberty and Freedom that carried through two World Wars and various other times of conflict.

I believe that the Founding Fathers would be proud that until this day, we remain for the most part, "The Breadbasket of the World", feeding millions besides our own. I believe that they would be unbelievably proud that our flag, The Star Spangled Banner, flies on the Moon and is on the sides of spacecraft that have left our Solar System to explore the deepness of space. I think as a whole, they would be delighted with the character and dignity of the people that today, we call Americans.

On the other hand, I am sure there are MANY things that they would shake their heads at; and hold in contempt. I am sure they would deplore the lack of personal responsibility that seems to be so prevalent today. They would certainly abhor the desire of so many for a type of "Nanny State" government that would take care of everything FOR the people. Indeed, they saw such as a throwing away of personal liberty which they regarded as man's most sacred possession. In their minds, government was supposed to exist at the will of the people. It's not supposed to force people to do things they wouldn't otherwise want to do; or interfere with their personal lives and liberties.

The would be very sad with the Judicial Branch of our government, who feels it is their responsibility to make laws instead of interpret them - "legislation from the bench". And they would probably be angered to the point of apoplexy by politicians who spend too much time trying to hold on to their jobs instead of DOING their jobs.

I think the concept of "political correctness" would smack too much of "European delicacy and gentility" and that they would stay away from that like a cat from water.

I am sure they would most definitely shake their heads in sorrow with our fanatical obsession with the "separation of Church and State". I can almost hear them now ... "When we wrote, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof" that is ALL we meant!" The desire was for no state religion like The Church of England to become an American institution whereby the President or Congress would become the head of said religion. The Founding Fathers had no desire to separate the United States from God! In fact the Founders believed that a healthy fear and respect of God was necessary for the continuing survival of this Nation. It's so pitiful that so many of our country spend so much of their time divorcing our Nation from God in every circumstance; and then wonder where He is when some kind of natural disaster or calamity occurs.

I think they would look at our current system of taxation and would wonder whatever became of the idea of "taxation without representation". This inflation of the size of government and the plundering of the citizen's personal wealth to keep it all going would be very distasteful to them, indeed.

Lastly, I think they would have a terrible time with the concept of abortion; and how the Supreme Court could have so badly misinterpreted the Constitution as to think that somehow murder (yes ...... murder) would be protected by that Document.

So ....... the question remains ....... would they be proud? I am certain that for the most part they probably would be; but at the same time they'd also be very sad to see how their legacy was mishandled by succeeding generations.

In any event, the Nation remains strong, prosperous and proud. Happy Birthday, United States!To all of you out there, have a wonderful, safe and happy 4th of July weekend.

And may God continue to bless America.

73 de Larry W2LJ

The Fox is afoot!

The 20 Meter QRP Foxhunt season officially opened tonight. The two Foxes were Bill AA4LR in Georgia; and Dale WC7S in Wyoming. Bill was filling in for John K4BAI who was originally scheduled for tonight; but ended up having to be out of town.

Bill was surprisingly loud; and I found him quite easily. He was a good 589-599 and was handling hounds at a nice clip. But I expected to hear him less well than I did, given the proximity between New Jersey and Georgia.

I thought that Wyoming to New Jersey would be the easier trip for 20 Meters; but I was sadly mistaken. After working Bill, I went hunting for Dale and found him - barely. He was 339 (maybe 449 at peaks) all the way. I called him for a good hour and fifteen minutes and there was once or twice when I thought he'd heard me, so I sent my exchange anyway.

Let's put it this way - if my call find its way into his log, I will be VERY surprised!

For the second year in a row, it's been my job to organize the QRP Summer 20 Meter Foxhunt season. The operators are superb - all top notch and it's been a pleasure working with them. It's also nice to be involved in something that gives a lot of your fellow Amateur Radio operators so much fun.

73 de Larry W2LJ