Listen for me in the evenings and weekends on 40m, 20m, 17m, 15m, 12m, and 10m SSB.

About My Equipment:

• Base: My good old Icom 735 (from the late '80s) is my home radio. I don't operate primarily from home anymore since my mobile installation has progressed (see below). I'm currently using an endfed wire antenna with the aid of an MFJ antenna tuner, so I can work on 40-10 meters. But I have some other ideas for future antennas.
• Mobile: In my truck I have an Icom AH-4 automatic remote tuner loading up a 102 inch stainless steel whip for 40m through 6m. This goes to my Icom 706 MkIIg for mobile and portable operations. It is my primary means of HF operation these days. I also have a Kenwood TM-V7A, that neat blue mobile radio with the big LCD display, for 2 meters and 440 MHz FM.
• Portables: Various Icom HTs for 2 meters, 220, 440, and 1.2 GHz.
• Other junque: An older Kenwood TR-7400A 2 meter FM transceiver, and an AEA PK-232 TNC for use on local packet radio, and a simple ground-plane coathanger antenna for it (if I should feel like getting back on packet).

My Interests in Amateur Radio
Stuff I used to be into	Stuff I'm into now	Stuff I'd like to get into
Packet radio. From 1986 to 1993 I was on packet messing around and having fun every day. I helped do live packet operations in field locations for emergency drills and public service events. N7JY and I went up onto Southern California mountaintops to work long distance VHF packet on several occasions. We even operated packet while mobile on I-25 in New Mexico! It was tons of fun back in those days. Unfortunately, a few Southern California ham dictators decided to turn packet into a political game, and I lost nearly all interest in it. QRP. I was necessarily forced to use low power (5 watts) on 10 meters for a while (a cheap power supply, etc). When you can hear everybody else but nobody can hear you, the fun goes out of it real fast. I would rather use some watts in the upper 2-digit range and be heard out there. (They don't call AD7DB '87 dB' for nothing!) Since getting back on HF more recently though, I've found that 50 watts will frequently do quite well.	FM and repeaters. I'm really a lurker, I don't talk on the air all that much. I've been on various machines over the years, particularly K6CPT, KB6C, N6ENV, MARS, and lately on Cal-Net. I monitor many other repeaters, mainly to listen to what I sure hope are more knowledgeable people talking about whatever. (But I've found that many hams are rank amateurs in more than just radio...) APRS. I am set up now and am appearing on the maps on a regular basis. See my [APRS Page] for more information. HF Mobile. It became my primary means of operating due to an unsolvable electrical noise problem near my home QTH. Some kind of motorized device cuts on and off at irregular intervals, 24 hours a day. When it comes on, there's an S9 noise level across all HF bands. (I can't imagine that BPL could be much worse if it goes through.) I tried for nearly a year to track it down or figure out where it was coming from. I gave up, and now nearly all my HF is mobile... so I can go where that noise source isn't. 40 Meter SSB. You can often hear me on weekends. I also get on the 3905 Century Club nets a few nights a week when I have the time. I can sometimes be found on other HF bands, but I prefer 40m for the most part. Despite having to dodge broadcasters at night it's a really fun band at all hours. Homebuilt antennas. Many people study antennas just enough to pass their tickets, but I've taken a real interest in it. I have lots of grand plans (don't we all), and when I have time to actually build any of them, some of the ones I'm dying to try out are tuned doublets (extended double zepp, etc), and horizontal loops (aka the Loop Skywire, German Quad, cloud warmer, cloud heater, cloud burner, etc). For VHF, N7JY and I built a couple of Quagi antennas for 222 MHz which work quite well. You can read about these subjects and more on my antenna page. Awards. I like working toward operating awards. I don't particularly prefer high pressure contesting weekends, although they can be a good way to make lots of contacts very quickly. I don't consider myself a DXer, as I don't keep track of how many countries I've worked or whether I've talked to them before ("That country? I already got a QSL card from there, I don't need another one"). I'll talk to just about anyone, whether they're DX or domestic. I also like making contact with special event stations. Mostly I just operate when I have time to do so.	Ham Satellites. We'll see. WA6TWF has a page about an easy way to do it here in the L.A. area. I'll have to try that one of these times. T-hunting. I've been interested in it for years, just haven't actually done it to any great extent yet. 6-meters. Now that I finally have the Icom 706MkIIg I can get onto 50 MHz on all modes. I'd like to really see what Sporadic-E Skip is all about. This means I need a good 6m antenna, but I'm not afraid of building my own. Mobile or Portable. I've had VHF in the truck for years, and now I have HF in there too. I am getting ready for more serious mobile and portable operation on vacation and camping trips. I am also investigating what it would take to become a Rover station during VHF contests. I'd like to get to some of the Rare Grids and have a lot of very pleased hams calling me for a change; it should be very different being on the receiving end of a pileup.

My projects so far:
2000. In the Year 2000, the FCC removed the higher speed code requirements, and I and many other Pre-1987 Technicians upgraded to General class just by filling out some paperwork, showing some documents, and paying a fee. I didn't use my new General privileges at all that year (or ever, as it turned out). Instead, I decided to study to upgrade to Extra. I'd have gone for the Extra exam in December of that year, but most all of the local exam sessions conflicted with the holiday time, so I decided to go for it the next month.

2001. In January, I took my exam for Extra Class and passed! Then I applied for a new callsign, and replaced old WB6WKB with AD7DB. The remainder of the year, ham radio wise, was spent in saving up for a good HF radio and getting my home station going. In September, I got my brand new Icom 706 on the air. Soon, my first HF contest weekend (I'd never majorly participated in any, even on VHF) was the California QSO Party, and man did I have fun, even though I wasn't out for any serious contest score. Worked lots of states and several countries. I also found the 3905 Century Club nets and began regularly checking into them.

2002. My 2002 project was to Go Portable. It was not the complete experience I had originally envisioned, although I did get out there with the radio during a summer road trip, and learned a lot in the process. My Portable Page has the details. The project is still ongoing.

2003. I never really decided on this year's annual ham project. The major thing I accomplished was getting most of my mobile HF station installed and working.

2004. Now that's where I need a crystal ball...

Here's the current weather where I live:

Check out these other ham pages:

I also print up my own special limited edition (small run) QSL cards for things like the 3905 Century Club net, and for certain special operations.

Take a look at some of the great QSLs I've received back!

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