Suffolk Area Radio Emergency Net (SAREN)
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The Suffolk Area Radio Emergency Net (SAREN)
Activate/Operate Suffolk Repeater Autopatch
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Suffolk Repeater (146.400 MHz In / 147.000 MHz Out)
Suffolk Area Amateur Radio Club
324 Sussex Court
Suffolk, Virginia 23434
May 27, 1998
TO: All Suffolk Area Amateur Radio Operators
I am writing to bring you up to date on a major improvement which has been made
to the Suffolk Repeater, to invite you to join the Suffolk Area Amateur Radio Club which
is now organizing, and to give you some information of interest to Amateur Operators in the
Suffolk Area.
The Suffolk Repeater was moved from it�s original location near downtown
Suffolk to a new location 10 miles to the south southwest in the Whaleyville community of
Suffolk in early May. The repeater is now at the City of Suffolk Whaleyville
communications facility as permitted by an agreement with the City. The repeater
antenna, a four element Cushcraft AFM-4DA dipole array stacked vertically one
wavelength apart, is side mounted 3 feet from the tower on the southwest tower leg
centered 328 feet above ground.
The repeater is a Kendecom KRP-5000B with a Kendecom PA-100 amplifier. The
amplifier output is 90 to 100 watts at full power which provides approximately 200 watts
of effective radiated power. The feed line is 3/4 inch diameter, 75 ohm underground cable
TV feed line, with 75 ohm to 50 ohm matching transformers on each end.
The repeater has a CAT-300 repeater controller. The repeater time out timer is
presently set for ten minutes for long winded operators. The repeater is providing
significantly improved coverage of Suffolk and the surrounding area from the new
location. While the auto patch is not presently active, it can be reactivated in the future
when a phone line becomes available.
A Communications Specialists, Inc. TS-64 CTCSS subaudible tone encoder/decoder
module is being installed on the repeater output and input which will be activated
only when skip conditions indicate it is needed. Keying 100 on a Touch Tone
pad will deactivate the CTCSS tone decoder for 15 minutes of carrier access if you do not
have CTCSS capability. Keying 100 a second time on your Touch Tone pad will
reactivate the CTCSS tone decoder.
All amateur radio operators are invited to use the newly upgraded repeater. I hope
you will make the Suffolk Repeater one of your favorites.
You are also invited to check-in to the Suffolk Amateur Radio Emergency Net
(SAREN) which is held every Thursday night at 9:00 PM. The Chief Net Control
Operator is Jim - KF4ERD. Jim is looking for additional stations to serve as primary or
alternate net control. Contact Jim or me if you are interested.
I also want to invite you to join a new amateur radio club, the Suffolk Area
Amateur Radio Club, which is being formed through the end of the year. Initial directors
of the club are :
Richard Reynolds - KF4LVM
Stewart Tyler - WA4JUO
Robert Lewis - KF4NXM
John Lasher, N4NKN
Lloyd Gatling - W4LG.
The initial purpose of the club is to support the Suffolk Repeater and Emergency
Communications in the Suffolk Area. The club has been working with the City of Suffolk
Emergency Communications Officer, Capt. Jeffrey Messinger, and Lloyd Gatling - W4LG
has recently been appointed as the EC for Suffolk ARES/RACES by the District 9, DEC.
There are numerous ARES/RACES appointments which need to be filled if you are
interested in this activity.
Club activities can be expanded as membership interests increase. All persons
joining the club before the end of December, 1998 will be a Charter Member. Charter
Member dues are $10.00 for calendar year 1998. You may join by
contacting Richard Reynolds - KF4LVM.
Meetings are presently scheduled for the second Saturday of every other month.
With the exception of the June meeting, meetings will be held in the multi-purpose room in
the new Suffolk Fire Station No. 3 on White March Road. The meeting and activity
schedule is as follows:
Date Time Event/Place
June 13 10:00 AM Informal Meeting at the Bronco Club
June 27 9:00 AM Field Day behind Johnson�s Flowers
August 8 8:00 AM Meeting at Fire Station No. 3
October 10 8:00 AM Meeting at Fire Station No. 3
December 12 8:00 AM Meeting at Fire Station No. 3
The June meeting will be held at the Franklin Repeater Cookout and Tail Gate
Event which starts at 8:30 AM with breakfast by Walt - KB4ZII. The Suffolk Area
meeting will be very brief at 10:00 AM for the purpose of passing out a draft club charter.
We do not plan any formal business at this meeting. However, this is a good chance to
meet other Suffolk and Franklin Area Amateur Radio Operators. You need to contact a
member of the Franklin Area group if you plan to eat breakfast at 8:30 AM or eat at the
Pig Pickin at 2:00 PM. A Flyer with information on this event is enclosed.
The Suffolk Area Amateur Radio Club is also planning to operate during ARRL
Field Day on Saturday, June 27, 1998 from a site behind Johnson�s Flowers in Suffolk.
Johnson�s Flowers is about 3 miles West of the Suffolk Bypass on Route 58, Holland
Road. Stewart Tyler - WA4JUO, and Robert Lewis - KF4NXM, are coordinating the
Field Day activity which will be on Saturday only from 9:00 AM until around dark.
Anyone who would like to attend is welcome to come out and help set up
equipment or just to operate. Field Day operations begin at 2:00 PM.
To help with expenses of the repeater move, Stewart Tyler - WA4JUO, has also
arranged a drawing for a new Radio Shack, HTX-242, 2 meter mobile rig. Tickets are
available from members and at club activities. Suggested donations are 1 for $5.00,
or 3 for $10.00. Only 500 tickets are available. The drawing for the rig
will be held after all tickets are gone or at the December meeting, whichever is first.
You do not have to be present to win!
In addition to keeping in touch on the Suffolk Repeater and checking into the
Suffolk Amateur Radio Emergency Net at 9:00 PM on Thursday nights, here are two
more ways to keep up with what is going on in Amateur Radio in Suffolk.
First, you can receive the Suffolk Area Newsletter �RF Burns� by e-mail if you will
send your e-mail address to: [email protected]. The newsletter is edited and published by
Jim Beasley - KF4ERD who has been doing a great job.
And second, you can visit the new Suffolk Area Amateur Radio Club Home Page
on Internet at www.qsl.net/n4nkn. This Home Page has already been activated by John -
N4NKN and will be updated with news and information as it becomes available.
I hope to talk with you on the repeater soon and see you at Suffolk Area Amateur
Radio Club events. Again, all Suffolk Area Amateur Radio Operators are invited to use
and enjoy the newly improved Suffolk Repeater and to join the forming Suffolk Area
Amateur Radio Club.
73�s,
Lloyd - W4LG
Lloyd Gatling, W4LG (formerly WA4HMT)
Repeater Trustee / Club Committee Member
P.S. If you have an e-mail address please send it to:
[email protected]