F E  E  D  -  P  O  I  N  T
The Official Newsletter of the St. John Valley Amateur Radio Association

October 2002                                                      Vol. 12 No. 10
Letter From Our President
Dear Fellow Hams,       
 
  The view out my window is a mix of autumn colors and snow. It is fortunate that both the new .64 antenna  and the new Rocky Mountain Repeater were installed last weekend.
     On Wednesday Oct. 9 the wind died down enough to allow N1CHF to mount the solar panel on the new tower with Stan's help. The sun came out and Steve got the one battery charged. On the 10th it snowed an inch. On the afternoon of the 11th 146.640 was taken off the air as it was removed from Frenchville. On Saturday, Oct. 12th, after the fog cleared and it warmed up a little, N1CHF put .64 in its new home in the refitted freezer. First, the second battery had to be put in place and the two equalized. Then the 4 cavities were put in after some adjustments to their styrofoam cradles. The radio was put in place and the necessary connections made.  N1CHF climbed the tower with the new G7-144 antenna (Coils for the old antenna would not arrive in time. To prevent delay the new antenna was ordered.) Stan took a digital photo of Steve at the very top with one leg stuck out in a cavalier fashion. You'd n
ever think he was up 150'! After all that, the SWR was too high, and the repeater was disconnected. Disappointing!
     The next day, Oct. 13th N1CHF, N1JHD, and N1FG 


      

headed for Rocky Mountain. N1CHF's arms were probably lengthened a few inches carrying the heavy duplexer unit up. N1JHD had the new strong door balanced on his head, and N1FG had the radio, drill, and N1CHF's big lunch box in a pack. Steve went up into the tower, lowered the rope, and we managed to get the equipment up in spite of strong wind. The rope with its hammer weight was blown out into the tree tops a few times. Gil guided the duplxer unit up from the ladder as he climbed. Steve and Gil installed the new repeater, and Gil spent a lot of time whittling the door to fit the opening. Gale worked on the trail, picking up fallen branches, breaking off some, pulling some young trees, and sawing others with a Leatherman saw.
                       (Continued on page 3)
     

N1FG , Gale

     Address comments, questions, or suggestions to: 
Gale Flagg  108 Franklin School RD
Fort Kent  ME 04743
Phone: 207-834-6670
E-mail: galeflagg@sjv.net

Next Meeting:
Tuesday, November 5, 7:00 PM,  Alumni Conf. Rm.
 Nadeau Hall UMFK ----Emergency Comunications---N1KGS
 

Schedule of Coming Events

Date
Event 
Place
Contact
Sponsor
Time
Freq
SUN
Net
NB
VE1PIN
IRG
2000
145.130
MON
Net
Fort Kent
N1FG
SJVARA
1900
146.64
MON
Net
Presque Isle
WA1YNZ
AARA
2000
146.73

 
 
    
Page 2                                    Feed-Point, October, 2002
Minutes of Oct.8th Meeting

Called to Order: 19:03  

In Attendance:  N1FG,  N1CHF, N1CGV, N7GLR,  KW1C, N1HPU- (This was Ben's first meeting and we were glad to met him after talking with him many times),  and Randy Michaud of North Star Search and Rescue.

Secretary's Minutes: Reading of minutes waived. 

Treasurer's Report:  Sept. Bal:$225.89. + interest .31 +  $12 dues, +$8.00 donation, $70.88 for solar frame, etc. Oct. bal.: $175.02. Motion to accept by N7GLR, seconded by KW1C, passed. 
N1FG presented a $100 donation from the Can Am Crown.
Have you paid your dues yet?   If not, please do.

Old Business:  

Rocky Mountain: N1CHF reported:  The new door is finished. The tone for the new Rocky Mountain Repeater will be   91.5.

The 146.64 Repeater:
The solar panel has been mounted in the frame made by N1CHF and would have been mounted on the tower today, but it was too windy. The panel is a 60 watt panel, donated by Stan Flagg. 

Fundraising: N1FG reported a glitch with the Current Fund Raiser. They had SJVARA listed under Nebraska! That has been corrected. Pass the word that anyone who wants to help SJVARA and get some good products should go to   www.currentfun.com  .  

       At check out, just click on Maine, then on the St. John Valley Amateur Radio Association. 50% of the sales will go to SJVARA.  It is easy to do. If you don't want to order on line, you can do it by mail (contact me for the mail information)

Raffle: The Garmin Etrex  GPS and the ADI HT were on hand for inspection. N7GLR has made posters announcing the raffle. $93  turned over to the treasurer from ticket sales so far, and we sold more during the meeting.   Please help us sell tickets!

New Business: 
Echolink and .64: N7GLR reported that Echolink is easily connected or disconnected from .64. There was some discussion
about the speed and delays in responses. (Oct. 20--N1FG talked on the radio to N1MSG, Kevin, in South Carolina  and KB5KBR, Lucky, in Texas on the N7GLR link through .64)
Thanks: To N7GLR for tower article in SJVT and raffle work.  To N1CHF for continuing work on the repeaters.

Silent Key: WB1HLT, Perley Barrows

Program:   Held First: North Star Search and Rescue, Randy Michaud
Next meeting: Tuesday, November 5,  7:00 PM Alumni Conference Room  in Nadeau Hall, UMFK

Adjourned:  20:20  Submitted by:  N1FG

Another Anonymous Donation
Many thanks to the person who donated a brand new Garmin etrex Vista GPS unit with built in compass and altimeter and full mapping capabilities to be raffled, along with the ADI HT, to benefit the SJVARA. The raffle is open to anybody. Tickets $1.00,  or 6 for $5.00. Please contact me for tickets, and let's sell as many as we can.
Happy Birthday To:

Matt Albert 11-07
Charles Zafonte  11-25
Ruth McKinney 11-29


   
 
 
 
 


 
Page 3                                          Feed-Point, September,  2002
 Repeater News (continued from page 1)

      After the disappointment with .64 the day before, it was nice that 146.715 worked well right away. The old equipment was lowered from the rope. N1CHF  and N1JHD carried their tool packs and two cavities each. N1FG had the heavy load going down with the old radio and some tools. We got back to the truck about 5, just as the rain started. I was able to get into the repeater from the St. Antoine Road, which I have not been able to do before. It should be even better when the better antenna is put up. Thanks Gil and Steve for your hard work that day.

      Monday, Oct. 14 was extremely windy and cold. N1CHF arrived at 1:45 to try to solve the problem with .64.   He brought a quarter wave antenna to mount on the tower if necessary.  He tried a different cable between the hard-line and the repeater. The SWR was good, but no courtesy tone, so repeater the would not shut off.  N1CHF had put in a new chip when he moved the repeater. He decided it must be faulty.  He went home to get the old chip. The old chip worked fine, no other antenna needed.  There was some scratchiness, that he thought might be because of the very strong wind. 
     We held the net that night with good signals from Presque Isle and St. Francis.  During the week N1CHF and KW1C were heard from Masardis and Patten.

       

  

             
     On Oct.16th, N1FG taped plastic over the large vents of the freezer to hopefully prevent condensation. Also a container of Damp Aid was put in the freezer. Some condensation had been found on October 9th.
          Thanks again to all who helped in any way!        

North Star Search & Rescue Program

      Randy Michaud told us there are 70 members of NSSR.
The unit consists of an Air Team, a Mounted  Team,
as well as the ground teams. An ATV team is being formed, but all members may be called to help with a ground search. They have rescue sleds mounted on 4 skis. Calls they receive are transferred to the the Wardens, who tell NSSR whether to go or not. NSSR  is the largest S&R in the state. They are called to help all over the state.
    It is easy to become a member. You sign up, get a uniform (a bright orange shirt and hat) and work under a team leader. They provide the training it is good to have: basic search and rescue techniques, CPR, and are arranging for a Wilderness Responder course. Randy would like to start a northern unit here in Fort Kent to save response time for rescues up this way.

     


For Sale

Heavy duty 40' galvanized steel tower, 16" x 16" x 16". Includes mounting hardware. Best Offer. 
Heil BM-10 microphone boom set   $35.
MFJ 451X  keyer  $35 Contact Charles Zafonte N1FRX  834-6273

A Bit of Humor
Actual Test Answers  from School Tests
* Gravity was invented by Issac Walton.  It is chiefly noticeable in the
autumn when the apples are falling off the trees.  * Johann
Bach wrote a great many musical compositions and  had a large number of children.  In between he practiced on an  old spinster which he kept up in his attic.  Bach died from 1750  to the present.  Bach was the most famous composer in the world  and so was Handel. Handel was half  German half Italian  and half English.  He was very large.    

   
 
 
Page 4                                                                Feed-Point,  2002

 
FEED-POINT
Published by the St. John Valley Amateur Radio Association and distributed free to members and friends of Amateur Radio.
Officers
President: Gale Flagg N1FG
Vice President: Sandra Daigle, N1QMC
Secretary: Rotating
Treasurer: Steve Boomhower N1CHF
Public Information: Charles Ames, N7GLR
Technical Advisor: Steve Boomhower, N1CHF
Editor/Publisher/Printer
Gale  Flagg - N1FG / Stan Flagg   834-6670 
Associate Editor/Web Edition
Steve Boomhower   N1CHF 
Membership Information (Annual Dues):
Regular Membership  $ 12
Associate Membership  $ 6
Articles:
Articles may be submitted by anyone with a good idea, and may be re-printed only in their entirety and with credit going to this newsletter. 
 

Feed-Point
RFD 3 Box 250
Fort Kent, ME  04743