WHAT’S HAPPENING?

What Goes up….

A Reflection

Greg Karlove, W9GAK, Chris Otto, K9MFT and Rob Orr, K9RST helped Rich Roberts, KA9R remove his antenna and tower from his home. He was in the process of selling his home but still wanted to be on the air so we devised a temporary wooden structure that could be easily removed and would support his G5RV. When I first joined this club, a zillion years ago, we had projects like this happening almost every weekend. There was a crew of about 8 members who would tackle projects of all types. It was a great learning experience for me personally and I got to see first-hand the comaraderie within the ham community. That hasn’t changed much but fact is many of us have gotten older and less nimble! At that time, it was more like antenna raising but in more recent times, well, what goes up! Even as this particular assignment was not technically challenging, there can be plenty of dangers. Anytime you get off the ground can be dangerous! Even climbing a ladder can defeat the best of us at times! We had break with some very nice weather, although was cold and windy. This is a great way to meet some of your fellow radio club members. Turns out Rich had a killer shack including a massive three screen display that stretched across his operating position. Of late, he has become more of a FT8/FT4 fan, so the screens were loaded with colorful waterfall displays. And, by the way, if you want to do projects like this, don’t do it alone! Ask for help and you might be surprised who shows up and what you might learn! Rob Orr K9RST

Club Auction returned in November

Our sale of ham radio gear was a part of the November 8 meeting. This is a major fundraising event for the club. The process will be different this year to save wear and tear on the sale team. Items were auctioned rapidly, using the starting prices on the item tag.

HAMS IN THE PARK ARE BACK

Hams in the Park – August 13, 2022 Report

It was a beautiful afternoon at the Daniel Wright Woods in Mettawa for our August edition of Hams in the Park. Some clouds kept the sun at bay, although a few errant droplets fell during the afternoon.

 Four operators set up stations Saturday, each running a little bit differently.

 UdO, N0LSR set up his Yaesu FT-818 using a helically wound vertical on a tripod to successfully work some FT-8. This just goes to show that even with low power and not much antenna, contacts can indeed be made.

 Next up was Jeff, KK9JEF, who brought his Yaesu FT-891 and was using linked dipoles for 40 and 20 meters to work CW, mostly trying to capture some stations in the Worked All Europe (WAE) contest, but also some SSB. Again, success!

 The next operator was Don, KK9H, who brought his Elecraft K-3 and his MyAntennas End-Fed half wave for 40-10 meters. Using the EZ-Hang slingshot system, he hoisted the antenna nearly 50 feet up in the trees. From there, Don was able to easily work Europe on CW and FT-8. He even let Jeff hook up to the antenna when Don’s battery gave up the ghost. Height is definitely might!

 Last but not least was our organizer, Warren, KC9IL. Warren brought out his Yaesu FT-991A and the Chameleon Emcomm III end-fed antenna to operate in the Straight Key Century Club (SKCC) Weekend Sprintathon on 40, 20 and 15 meters. Again, with about 50 watts and the antenna up 25 feet or so, lots of contacts were made.

 During the afternoon, we had a few club members stop by, including Jeremy-W9DEE, Marty-WD9GYM, Ron-K9IKZ and his guest, and Rich-KD9TGX and his guest. Also, some non-hams stopped by to ask what we were up to, giving us the opportunity to show off the hobby.

All in all, it was a fun way to spend the afternoon. We hope to see you all next month at the Northbrook Library for the grand opening, and then again in October if the weather cooperates.

73,

Warren, KC9IL

VIEWS FROM FIELD DAY 2022

Upcoming Events

BUILD CLUB

Build Club will be led by Udo Koch, N0LSR, in 2023.  Look for information from Udo on recommended kits in different categories, and a proposed schedule and mentor list.  Contact Udo at ukoch@msn.com to get signed up.  Build Club will include some additional possibilities in 2023 with radio and accessory repair and homebrew help available.  Work is underway to be able to meet at the Northbrook Library Maker Lab. Builders and Mentors can work together, and the club station is available there for testing and operation. Many thanks to all the mentors for their help. 

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