The Koolau Amateur Radio Club Newsletter for April 1999

3/99 KARC Meeting

-ANNOUNCEMENTS-

NEXT MEETING: Saturday, April 10th at Ho'omaluhia Park Visitor's Center- Be there!

It was great to see our attendance growing each meeting, the March meeting had 26 members and guests.Our April Guest Speaker by popular demand is Alan Lloyd, this time showing slides and speaking about Super Battleships. In May, Our speaker will be Richard LeChance, WH6T, long-time ham, two-way radio businessman, W5YI VEC, and KARC supporter.

At the Next Meeting the Exchange Box full of magazines, catalogs, parts and books will be there. Come and take some of these magazines and items home or donate some for others. "Show and Tell" needs you to bring something from your shack to show those attending, while you tell about it. Remember, you can not win the prizes, contribute your special ideas and catch up on the latest from your ham radio friends if you do not attend.

Thanks to those that volunteer to bring the coffee, donuts keep the the meeting room room clean.

REMINDER...TO INSURE THAT THE NEWSLETTER IS PUBLISHED...

WANTED IMMEDIATELY Associate NEWSLETTER EDITOR: We need someone to learn to follow the simple established format that produces Identical "online" and mailed versions of KARC NEWS. If uninterupted publishing is to continue. It is as easy as filling in the story material and information at the right places in the HTML file template with your word processor.It is not Rocket Science or Brain Surgery, and it can not be too hard Greg, WB6FZH, does it!

Future travel and work plans will have Greg off-island more in the future. A smaller content with the same meeting announcements and minutes would be the minimum, and your imagination is the limit. Steal from QST, CQ, World Radio, Playboy, Field and Stream, just make up things! Contact Greg, WB6FZH/KH6 for details. 236-4449

-NEWS-Features-CONTESTS-Ham Ads-MINUTES-Articles-PHOTOS-

MINUTES- Here is what you missed at the March 13th Meeting...

FIELD DAY '99- Planning Ahead...It never hurts...

Check with Jerry, WH6BKQ, and Walt, AH6OZ, lead FD committee members. Walt will be FD Station Manager in charge of operations this year to coordinate the single transmitter class station. Walt has a secret plan to increase our score this year, now that the computer logging, propagation study, antenna performance and other factors have been tested last year. Jerry has been videotaping cooking shows while he is at work, and promises even greater couisine this year.

We will have a separate visitor's radio and antenna for those that want to make a few contacts at a more leisurely pace with their own callsigns when the KARC operating position is in use. Contact Walt to sign-up for operating, logging or other station related activity. We are still looking for more Field Day committee members to help. Contact Jerry, Walt or Greg.

Pictures from the last few years Field Day are in the Photo Gallery section of the KARC Website or viewed in the KARC Activity Binder Greg, WB6FZH brings to the meetings.

KH6OS CALLSIGN CAN BE SECURED BY THE CLUB... Details Pending

Greg, WB6FZH, has contacted the FCC and will present the alternatives to the club for having the use of longtime KARC member Tom Hori's call KH6OS permanently. Tom's family has agreed to support KARC's desire to keep Tom's callsign active into the next century. KARC already has a club callsign, we can easily exchange the call through the Vanity callsign program, or create a Koolau Contest Club or the like, and secure another club license that would not be KARC. Then throught the vanity program, transfer Tom's Call. Please give this some thought for the next meeting. Our present KARC callsign is KH6J and our trustee is Joe Keola, however, we do not use this call, and there are pros and cons for single letter callsigns.

TSUNAMI or HURRICANE..Take Your Choice..Are you Prepared

Check your supplies and think about what you would do if the warning is issued. Are your supplies all together and up to date. Running Shoes, Radio, Batteries, Frequency Listings, Materials, print-outs, Backpacks, License Study Guide to read in the shelter, Snacks, etc. An upcoming KARC NEWS will have a basic list to start you on your way, but til then you are on your own.

COMMERCIAL ADVERTISING HITS A NEW LOW AT 400 MILES UP!

The SWATCH company has paid the Russians to put advertising messages in the small non-rechargeable battery operated satellite to be tossed out the door of MIR Space Station.

This is of course would seem contrary to treaties, regulations, and the spirit of amateur radio. The digital signals are to be in the 2 meter ham band. Many Amateur Radio Organizations and individuals have immediately contacted SWATCH and the Russians. A boycott of SWATCH products is planned and no amateur support in the form of signal reports, etc. to the company. More is being organized and details incomplete at presstime. Update in May KARC NEWS .

HAWAII DISASTER DRILLS IN MAY!...Are you ready?

Or is your own disaster radio plan a disaster? The Statewide Hurricane Disaster Drill will be in the first week of May. (Date to be announced). The 28th of May will have the WMD- Chemical Emergency Drill. Even if you can not participate in the drills, consider monitoring while you review your own equipment, power, cables, antennas and other portable station equipment and supplies. When further information is availiable it will be posted on Latest News section of KARC Website and an email message will be generated to KARC members that have listed thier email address with WB6FZH.

CONTESTS- Details in World Radio, CQ and QST Magazines

APRIL

RECIPRICAL LICENSING NOW EASIER FOR US HAMS

The International CEP licensing program will be soon availiable to US hams visiting member countries, and hams from those countries will be able to operate in US. Tech Plus to Extra Class will have full operating privileges of CEP1. Technician license hams CEP-2 (VHF Only). Novice Class has no priveleges in this program.

Full details when availiable in, but if you are considering foreign travel, it will be easier to operate soon. You will carry a certificate that says you have a license of the proper class, and a receprical licensing agreement in force with USA are all that will be needed. Naturally, this is after WB6FZH's probably one and only Baltic Cruise..Last August!

ON THE AIR- You never know who is listening..

Aloha to WH6CUQ, Ralph Penner, Is now in W6Land trying to decide what kind of antenna system to grow.

Ralph is now on 40 acres on the Northcoast of California, leaving his Kailua QTH. Ralph donated some HF mobile antennas to the club before he left. Thanks Ralph and Good Luck at your new QTH.

SWAP, SELL & TRADE- Your FREE Advertisement here!

e left. Thanks to Ralph and we all wish him well from KARC.

3/99 KARC Meeting

CONSTRUCTION CORNER- "ROLL-UP" 2 Meter "J" Antenna- WB6FZH/KH6

This is a very worthwile construction project... you have probably seen this in Ham Magazines for years...no originality is claimed, just making it easy for you to build something useful that you can use for years.

This simple antenna will always work better than a rubber ducky or even a full 1/4 wave antenna. If you do not build this antenna you might think about purchasing one of the commercial versions.

For those that will not build it without knowing the theory...It is a half- wave antenna fed in combination with a quarter-wave stub that comes close enough to match 50 ohm cable...Now Build It!

This "J" Antenna is constructed from a 54 1/2" piece of 300 ohm twinlead. Follow the pictorial diagram exactly and you will not have any problems. You will need the following; Good quality 300 ohm twin lead, not the cheap very thin type, or the round foam type. The coax can be RG-58, RG8X, even the 50ohm micro-coax. (75ohm coax is even useable, but not recommended). You will need a connector to match your radio on the end of the coax. The minimum length recommended is 5', and you can carry extension cables to suit your portable situation.(R/S Part #278-965)

Mounting the antenna is up to you, I carry plastic suction cups with a hook, double sided foam tape, duct tape, push-pins, fish line and a 19 year-old girl in a small bikini to hold the antenna. Note: if my XYL askes... it is an FCC Requirement (I am sticking to that story...).

Construction Hints: Use heat-shrink tubing or plastic tape to protect your coax to twinlead solder connections. Punch or melt a hole 1" from the non-coax end to tie your fish line, or put your push-pin or hook through. Keep the antenna as high as you can, away from metal objects, and move it from place to place while monitoring a repeater or other signal. Yes, it works upside down too! Hate to solder BNC fittings...Dislike the solderless twist-on BNCs...Purchase a 10' BNC to BNC RG-58u ready-made cable. Cut it in two and you have enough cable for 2 antennas, want a longer cable? Just cut it where you want and solder away.

If you want to use it outside...spray some layers of protective coating over the antenna, particularly where you have soldered and wrapped the connections. Tape it to a piece of wood or put it inside a piece of PVC pipe. This even lends itself to disguise or comoflage applications.

The answers to your other questions are yes, ofcourse, not much, worked MIR and Satellites with it, and sorry you burnt your fingers. 73- WB6FZH

Support the KARC "Loaner Computer" Program

WANTED: Computers & Accessories Working or Not- PC 486 or Pentium best, some 386 considered

3/99 KARC Meeting

SPACE & Satellite NEWS- KARC Meeting AO-27 Demonstration Satellite

NH6VB, Peter, brought his ARROW hand-held 2mtr & 70cm antenna to the March meeting, along with his HT. Coax was attatched to each antenna on the common boom, and the antenna connections on 2 separate radios for the purpose of this demonstration. A 1.5w 2mtr HT brought by WB6FZH/KH6, Greg, tuned to TX 145.850, and NH6VB's HT RX on 436.8. A computer was set-up to see the approaching AO-27 Satellite on the Monitor.

KARC President WB6FZH, Greg, was cautioning that the pass of the satellite was not optimum, and we should not be dissapointed if we do not hear the satellite as his voice came out the speaker of the nearby HT after it's long journey into space and back.

Peter, NH6VB, explained to those gathered what was happening, as several hams with their dual-band HTs heard their own 2Mtr signals come down on 70cm from their built-in antennas! This was due to the extremely sensitive receiver in the small satellite orbiting above.

Thanks to Peter for his demonstration, and offer of help to anyone interested in satellite operations. We have several Satellite Elmers availiable at KARC. Special thanks to John, KIER for being the semi-auto matic AZ and EL rotor, While Peter, NH6VB listened on 436.8 and Greg, WB6FZH transmitted on 145.85. (Photo to be posted soon on KARC Website)

QRP COLUMN- 1999 CQ WW WPX SSB Contest

The CQ WW SSB WPX Contest has come and gone. The conditions were fairly good for many of the time periods I operated. Strategy for the ICOM 735 at 5W output and the vertical was to start on 10 meters and work my way down as the bands closed each of the 2 days. 10 meters was open and closed it seemed every few minutes, while 15 was noisy but allowing a few contacts at QRP levels, but 20 was less hospitable, but contacts made. The most notable was 9A6A, in Croatia, who said he really needed a KH6 QSL!. As day turned into night, I dropped to 40 and made a few contacts transmitting in the 7075-7100 khz sub-band and listening to specified frequencies around 7.2 mhz. Several US stations were contacted, with best DX Florida, and Japan. Very late, 80 meters yielded VE6 as best DX and AH6OZ,Walt, strained to hear me as the only KARC Member worked. On 160, KH6BZH in Kaneohe, and Mark, AH6PR, up at Haleiwa were the only contacts. I logged 220 QSOs, exchanging signal report and serial number, with more than half being separate prefixes. I am just now working on the entry form and will have it scored this week I hope. My guess is that I must have called more than a thoasand stations, as I only worked about one out of every 5 or 6 that I contacted. Kilo-Hotel-Six-Portable-Whiskey-Bravo-Six-Foxtrot-Zulu-Hotel I could always figure out how good my signal was when the station came back with my call perfect the first time...There were others that just gave up and some that stuck with it and even turned their antenna my way. I even had my share of oh, it is the guy with the long call and low power in Hawaii...again! From those who's callsigns sounded a little familiar from past contests. I have not counted them yet, but there must be more than 50 DXCC countries worked with 5 watts and a vertical in a few hours. I hope that this will encourage others that some contests are a good place work new countries on your way to DXCC, or just see how your antenna works. - 72/72- WB6FZH/KH6 Greg

KOOLAU AMATEUR RADIO CLUB

CLUB OFFICERS

DIRECTORS

PROGRAM CHAIRMAN- Howard, WH6LF 247-0775

NEWSLETTER

CLUB MEETINGS

MEMBERSHIP CHAIRMAN- Jerry Mulherin, WH6BKQ, 235-3042, email:jerham@aloha.net

MAILING ADDRESS- KARC c/o J.Mulherin, 45-145 Mikihilina St., Kaneohe, HI 96744

VEC TESTING

2 METER ACTIVITY

CLUB CALL: KH6J

KARC WEBSITE