MICH-A-CON
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Mich-A-Con RF Newsletter
Mich-A-Con RF is published by the Mich-A-Con Amateur Radio Club. Click HERE to view the latest issue or to access the archives. Items for the newsletter should be sent to Tom, KC8TH.

The LLC paperwork has been received from the State of Michigan.  The club is now an LLC.

Club DINNER
A club dinner is planned for March 8, 2023 at the C & R bar in Aurora.
The cost will be around $22 per person. Cocktails at 6:00  with the dinner to be at 7:00. Hope to see you there.
Contact Scott for reservations

   APRIL 2021 FACE TO FACE MEETING LOCATION CHANGE
The April 14th 2021 meeting will be at Niagara City Hall, 1029 Roosvelt Rd, WI at 07:00 PM

50th ANNIVERSARY DINNER
On Saturday, October 10, 2019 at Mike's on Main in Norway, Club will celebrate 50h Anniversary with dinner. Contact Tom Martin for reservations. Dinner expected to be 1800 hrs.

ANNUAL CLUB PARTY
The club holiday party will be held on Saturday, March 23, at Bartoletti's in Aurora, beginning at 6:00.  There will be five menu items to choose from.

FIELD DAY 2019
Field Day weekend is June 21-23. Address: 1443 W Fisher Lake Parkway, Auroa. Wisconsin
See June Newsletter for Map to location

30th International Marconi Day Event
Slated for April 22, 2017 0000-2359 UTC (starting on April 21 in US time zones
The event is not a contest but an opportunity for amateurs around the world to make point-to-point contact with historic Marconi sites using HF communication techniques descended from those used by Marconi, and to earn an award certificate for working or hearing a requisite number of Marconi stations.
Contact ARRL or A Facebook page is also available at, https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=gb4imd for more details

New Net On the Air
Beginning on Friday, April 14th at 12 noon EDT, or 1600 Z, a new net will be hitting the air waves on the W8IRA Independent Repeater Association Link system. It will be called the IRA Link System Michigan Noon-time Roundup Net.
The net will be held on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday each week, with the possibility of expanding to a five-day schedule if interest and participation are sufficient. So, find a link near you, and please join us!
The purpose of the net is to promote activity on the IRA Link System, and also to help identify and trouble-shoot any problems that might be occurring with system repeaters.

Ham Class 2017 Announcement
The Mich-A-Con amateur radio club with be conducting a ham radio class starting Wednesday, January 11 at 7:00 in the Dickenson County Library. The class is expected to meet weekly until March 1. At the end of the class there will be a test session scheduled so the students can obtain their Ham Radio License.

Contact: Bob Meyers at 906 396-0119

or Skip at 906 774-3371

Club Party March 2017
The club party has been scheduled for March 4, 2017 at Bartoletti's, in Aurora, Wisconsin. Cocktails will be at 6:30 with dinner at 7:00. There will be a select menu, like last year.

QST has been notified of our Veterans Day special event station.  Set up will be in the afternoon on Thursday, November 10.  Operation will take place on Friday, November 11 and Saturday, November 12.

Announcing the ALL NEW U.P. Ham Directory --- 28 March, 2016
Over 1400 names and call signs of U.P. Ham radio operators (More than 200 new names and call sign listed since the last printing) Same low price ($5.00/copy) as the last edition (Printed in 2007) Send reply via E-Mail to: [email protected] by JUNE 1, 2016. George R. Thurner, W8FWG

Club Repeater
The 440 repeater is a GE Master II with plus offset and 100 hz pl tone. The frequency is 444.85. 35 watts output The 2 meter is on 146.85, minus offset, and 100 hz tone. It also is System Fusion capable. The Controller is a Arcom 210. The 2 meter and the 440 can be linked

The ARRL Letter
The ARRL Letter contains a weekly synopsis of Amateur Radio related news items. Click HERE to view the latest letter or to access the archives.

Michigan NPOTA Activation Information
From ARRL Michigan Section Manager updated information on participation and facilities usage. See Michaconnewsletter 4-16 for more information.

ARLB015 FCC Invites Comments on Petition to Eliminate 15 dB Gain Limit on Amateur Amplifiers (April 28, 2016)
The FCC has put on public notice and invited comments on a Petition for Rule Making (RM-11767), filed on behalf of an amateur amplifier distributor, which seeks to revise the Amateur Service rules regarding maximum permissible amplifier gain. Expert Linears America LLC of Magnolia, Texas, which distributes linears manufactured by SPE in Italy, wants the FCC to eliminate the 15 dB gain limitation on amateur amplifiers, spelled out in Part 97.317(a)(2). Expert asserts that there should be no gain limitation at all on amplifiers sold or used in the Amateur Service.

RM-11767 can be found on the web at, http://apps.fcc.gov/ecfs/comment/view?id=60001536394 .

"There is no technical or regulatory reason [that] an amplifier capable of being driven to full legal output by even a fraction of a watt should not be available to Amateur Radio operators in the United States," Expert said in its Petition.

Expert maintains that the 15 dB gain limitation is an unneeded holdover from the days when amplifiers were less efficient and the FCC was attempting to rein in the use of Amateur Service amplifiers by Citizens Band operators. While the FCC proposed in its 2004 Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Order in WT Docket 04-140 to delete the requirement that amplifiers be designed to use a minimum of 50 W of drive power and subsequently did so, it did not further discuss the 15 dB amplification limit in the subsequent Report and Order in the docket.

The R&O is in PDF format at, https://apps.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-06-149A1.pdf

"Although no party advocated retention of the 15 dB limit, it remains in place today," Expert pointed out in its filing. "In the intervening years, advancements in Amateur Radio transmitter technology have led to the availability of highly compact, sophisticated low-power transmitters that require more than 15 dB of amplification to achieve maximum legal power output. Therefore, Expert seeks to remove the 15 dB limit from Part 97.317 so that Amateur Radio manufacturers and distributors will not be forced to needlessly cripple their amplifiers for sale in the United States."

Expert pointed to its Model 1.3K FA amplifier as an example of a linear "inherently capable of considerably more than 15 dB of amplification," which would make it a suitable match for low-power transceivers now on the market having output power on the order of 10 W.

ARLB013 ARRL Tells FCC to Restore Balance of Modes on 80 and 75 Meters
In comments filed on March 23 on its Petition for Rule Making (RM 11759) seeking changes to 80 and 75 meters, the ARRL has told the FCC that its primary objective is to "rebalance" the bands by correcting a 10-year old FCC error.

"ARRL's proposal is not fairly viewed as a proposal to take anything away from anyone," the League's comments assured. "It is more properly viewed as the effectuation of a fair, equitable, and efficient 'band plan' looking forward for the foreseeable future that balances everyone's needs, and which remedies a plainly unfair plan, imprudently created in the 2006 Report and Order in WT Docket 04-140." The Report and Order can be found on the web at, http://apps.fcc.gov/ecfs/comment/view?id=5513680269 .

Prompting the League's assurances were comments filed on the ARRL's Petition by a number of Amateur Extra class licensees, who felt that refarming 3600 to 3650 kHz for data modes could prove to be a disincentive to General licensees to upgrade. Others commenters saw it as an unfair spectrum grab. The ARRL noted that prior to 2006, the band was evenly divided between RTTY/data and phone/image subbands, with the RTTY/data subband extending from 3500 to 3750 kHz, and the phone/image subband extending from 3750 to 4000 kHz.

The 2006 FCC Report and Order "substantially altered" what the League called "this even division of emission types." In outlining the history of the proceeding, the ARRL pointed out that the FCC's Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in Docket 01-140 would have shifted the line between the 80 meter RTTY/data subband and the 75 meter phone/image subband from 3750 kHz to 3725 kHz, pursuant to a 2002 ARRL Petition for Rule Making, RM-10413. This would change the ratio of spectrum between phone/image and RTTY/data segments on 75/80 meters from 50/50 to 55/45, and it is what the FCC proposed in its NPRM.

In its Report and Order in Docket 04-140, however, the FCC made "a very substantial and unjustifiable departure" from what it had proposed in its NPRM, the ARRL recounted. The Commission expanded the phone/image subband at 75 meters to 3600-4000 kHz, and it reduced the 80 meter RTTY/data subband to 3500-3600 kHz, eliminating RTTY operation above 3600 kHz and changing "the entire dynamic of this band," the League said.

The FCC had said in its proposal that no licensees would lose operating privileges. Nonetheless, the FCC's phone band expansion reduced by 100 kHz the spectrum between 3500 and 4000 kHz that was previously available to General class licensees, while Advanced licensees lost 75 kHz. In an apparent FCC oversight, the Report and Order completely eliminated access by automatically controlled digital stations (ACDS) to 3620 to 3635 kHz. A subsequent FCC Report and order and Order on Reconsideration only made the situation worse by replacing the deleted ACDS segment with 3585-3600 kHz.

"It resulted in a sudden and severe dislocation of traffic-handling nets using telegraphy, without advance planning or notice," the ARRL said. "It disaccommodated net participants with General and Advanced class licenses; and it worsened the effect of the overexpansion of the 75 meter phone/image subband."

The result, the ARRL noted, has been "a shortfall in available RTTY/data spectrum on 80 meters" that has created a significant obstacle to narrowband digital data communications and experimentation. The League said its current Petition "simply restores that which was disrupted in 2006 in error."

In its comments, the League conceded that compromises are inevitable in managing a heavily used band like 75/80 meters, no matter the band planning approach. "Looking forward, it is necessary, in order to encourage experimentation with and expand the use of digital communication techniques, to rebalance the 75 and 80 meter subbands," the ARRL concluded.

November 6-7, 2015
Veterns Day Special Event, Pine Mountain

December 15, 2006
FCC MODIFIES AMATEUR RADIO SERVICE RULES, ELIMINATING MORSE CODE EXAM REQUIREMENTS AND ADDRESSING ARRL PETITION FOR RECONSIDERATION ...More information

Jan 19, 2004
ARRL to Propose New Entry-Level License, Code-Free HF Access
NEWINGTON, CT, Jan 19, 2004--The ARRL will ask the FCC to create a new entry-level Amateur Radio license that would include HF phone privileges without requiring a Morse code test. The League also will propose consolidating all current licensees into three classes, retaining the Element 1 Morse requirement--now 5 WPM--only for the highest class. The ARRL Board of Directors overwhelmingly approved the plan January 16 during its Annual Meeting in Windsor, Connecticut. The proposals--developed by the ARRL Executive Committee following a Board instruction last July--are in response to changes made in Article 25 of the international Radio Regulations at World Radiocommunication Conference 2003 (WRC-03). They would continue a process of streamlining the amateur licensing structure that the FCC began more than five years ago but left unfinished in the Amateur Service license restructuring Report and Order (WT 98-143) that went into effect April 15, 2000.

"Change in the Amateur Radio Service in the US, especially license requirements and even more so when Morse is involved, has always been emotional," said ARRL First Vice President Joel Harrison, W5ZN, in presenting the Executive Committee's recommendations. "In fact, without a doubt, Morse is Amateur Radio's 'religious debate.'" The plan adopted by the Board departs only slightly from the Executive Committee's recommendations.

The "New" Novice
The entry-level license class--being called "Novice" for now--would require a 25-question written exam. It would offer limited HF CW/data and phone/image privileges on 80, 40, 15 and 10 meters as well as VHF and UHF privileges on 6 and 2 meters and on 222-225 and 430-450 MHz. Power output would be restricted to 100 W on 80, 40, and 15 meters and to 50 W on 10 meters and up, thus avoiding the need for the more complex RF safety questions in the Novice question pool.

"The Board sought to achieve balance in giving new Novice licensees the opportunity to sample a wider range of Amateur Radio activity than is available to current Technicians while retaining a motivation to upgrade," said ARRL CEO David Sumner, K1ZZ. "It was also seen as important to limit the scope of privileges so the exam would not have to include material that is inappropriate at the entry level."

As an introduction to Amateur Radio, the Novice license served successfully for most of its 50-year history. The FCC has not issued new Novice licenses since the 2000 license restructuring, however. Under the ARRL plan, current Novice licensees--now the smallest and least active group of radio amateurs--would be grandfathered to the new entry-level class without further testing.

Anticipating assertions that the new plan would "dumb down" Amateur Radio licensing, Harrison said those currently holding a ticket often perceive the level of complexity to have been greater when they were first licensed than it actually was. "Quite frankly," he said, "if you review the questions presented in our license manuals throughout the years, you will be surprised how they compare to those of today."

Technicians and Generals
The middle group of licensees--Technician, Tech Plus (Technician with Element 1 credit) and General--would be consolidated into a new General license that no longer would require a Morse examination. Current Technician and Tech Plus license holders automatically would gain current General class privileges without additional testing. The current Element 3 General examination would remain in place for new applicants. ARRL already has proposed additional phone privileges for Generals in its "Novice refarming" petition, RM-10413, but the FCC has not yet acted on that petition.

Morse Code Testing Retained for Extra
At the top rung, the Board indicated that it saw no compelling reason to change the Amateur Extra class license requirements. The ARRL plan calls on the FCC to combine the current Advanced and Amateur Extra class licensees into Amateur Extra, because the technical level of the exams passed by these licensees is very similar. New applicants for Extra would have to pass a 5 WPM Morse code examination, but the written exam would stay the same. The League's plan calls for current Novice, Tech Plus and General class licensees to receive lifetime Element 1 (5 WPM Morse) credit.

"This structure provides a true entry-level license with HF privileges to promote growth in the Amateur Service," Harrison said. "It also simplifies the FCC database by conforming to the current Universal Licensing System (ULS) structure and does not mandate any modifications to it."

Sumner concurred. "The Board started out by recognizing that three license classes was the right number when looking down the road 10 or 15 years," he said. "We need a new entry-level license."

"On the other hand, there's nothing particularly wrong with the existing Extra class license," he continued. "The change in the international regulations notwithstanding, the Board felt that the highest level of accomplishment in the FCC's amateur licensing structure should include basic Morse capability."

Sumner and Harrison say the current Technician entry-level ticket provides little opportunity to experience facets of ham radio beyond repeater operation. "The quality of that experience," Sumner said, "often depends on the operator's location."

Among other advantages, Sumner said the plan would allow new Novices to participate in HF SSB emergency nets on 75 and 40 meters as well as on the top 100 kHz of 15 meters. The new license also could get another name, Sumner said. "We're trying to recapture the magic of the old Novice license, but in a manner that's appropriate for the 21st century."

Proposal Includes "Novice Refarming" Band Plan
The overall proposed ARRL license restructuring plan would more smoothly integrate HF spectrum privileges across the three license classes and would incorporate the "Novice refarming" plan the League put forth nearly two years ago in a Petition for Rule Making (RM-10413). The FCC has not yet acted on the ARRL plan, which would alter the current HF subbands. The Novice refarming proposal would eliminate the 80, 40 and 15-meter Novice/Technician Plus CW subbands as such and reuse that spectrum in part to expand phone/image subbands on 80 and 40 meters.

The ARRL license restructuring design calls for no changes in privileges for Extra and General class licensees on 160, 60, 30, 20, 17 or 12 meters. Novice licensees would have no access to those bands.

The amateur community and other interested parties will have an opportunity to comment on the ARRL proposal once the League formally files a Petition for Rule Making and the FCC puts it on public notice.

This artilce was taken from The ARRL Letter, January 23, 2004 with permission from the American Radio Relay League.

Proposed Phone/Image HF Subbands (Includes Novice Refarming Proposal)

80 Meters
Extra: 3.725-4.000 MHz (gain of 25 kHz)
General: 3.800-4.000 MHz (gain of 50 kHz)
Novice: 3.900-4.000 MHz (new)

40 meters
Extra: 7.125-7.300 MHz (gain of 25 kHz)
General: 7.175-7.300 MHz (gain of 50 kHz)
Novice: 7.200-7.300 MHz (new)

15 meters
Extra: 21.200-21.450 MHz (no change)
General: 21.275-21.450 MHz (gain of 25 kHz)
Novice: 21.350-21.450 MHz (new)

10 meters
Extra and General: 28.300-29.700 MHz (no change)
Novice: 28.300-28.500 MHz (no change)

Proposed CW/Data-Exclusive HF Subbands (Includes Novice Refarming Proposal)

80 meters
Extra: 3.500-3.725 MHz
General: 3.525-3.725 MHz
Novice: 3.550-3.700 MHz

40 meters
Extra: 7.000-7.125 MHz
General: 7.025-7.125 MHz
Novice: 7.050-7.125 MHz

15 meters
Extra: 21.000-21.200 MHz
General: 21.025-21.200 MHz
Novice: 21.050-21.200 MHz

10 meters
Extra/General: 28.000-28.300 MHz
Novice: 28.050-28.300 MHz

Nov 12, 2003
Mich-A-Con ARC members gathered at the ManorCare nursing home in Kingsford to install Jay Jennings' tri-band beam antenna. Jay, W8HFS, has been a resident there for several years and was granted a "Heart's Desire" wish to have his antenna and tower moved from his home to ManorCare. The project was coordinated by Lee Michaud, N8LT, who also repaired and realigned Jay's Yaesu transceiver earlier this year.

View The Daily News article.

June 7, 2003
The Mich-A-Con Amateur Radio Club has registered with FISTS, The International Morse Preservation Society. Our FISTS number is 10150.

FISTS is a well established and recognized CW organization in the world of amateur radio. Founded in 1987 by Geo Longden, G3ZQS, it now has a membership in the thousands, is world-wide, and growing daily. The purpose of the club is to further the use of CW on the amateur bands, to encourage newcomers to the CW mode and to engender friendship within the membership.

Information about the FISTS Club can be found at http://www.fistsna.org

Jan 24, 2003
Mich-A-Con ARC to Receive Award
The Mich-A-Con Amateur Radio Club has been selected to receive the We Energies Reliability One Award. The award consists of a $1500 contribution and is available to ARES (Amateur Radio Emergency Service) groups in any community with 5,000 or more We Energies customers. The club was recommended for the award by Peter Schlitt, Dickinson County Emergency Services, for our service to the government and the community. The award will be presented to the club at a date yet to be determined.

Jan 14, 2003
It's official, the Mich-A-Con Amateur Radio Club now has the KC8VC call sign in memory of former member Mike Wolfe. The old call sign, KC8UVX, was cancelled by the FCC.

Oct 1, 2002
The Mich-A-Con Amateur Radio Club has been issued call sign KC8UVX. This is our first step toward obtaining vanity call sign KC8VC in honor of former club member Mike Wolfe.

Mar 20, 2002
Did I mention that the ads are FREE! The only condition is that they must be related to amateur radio.

Mar 6, 2002
The Mich-A-Con ARC is on the World Wide Web! After all, it is the 21st century, eh? Remember, this is a club web site and I need input from everyone if this is to be a success.

For those wondering how much this is going to cost, the service is free of charge to the amateur radio community and is provided by QSL.NET. All they ask is a donation of $15 per year to defray their cost of operation.