Send your dues, membership applications, etc. to the club Treasurer, Dick Finn, WA1VUU, 27 Ivy St., Stamford CT 06902.
Non-commercial ads are printed in the SQUELCH BURST on a no charge basis, club members only. Send your ads for Ye Olde Jonque Boxxx and articles for the SQUELCH BURST to Marv Fleischman, N1AWJ, P.O. Box 113, Ridgefield, CT 06877-0113,
Unless noted, meetings are held on the first Thursday of every month in the Mural room of the Senior Center, the Stamford Government Center, Tresser and Washington B'lvds., Stamford, CT. Meetings start at 8:00 P.M.
Free parking in the Government Center garage with the entrance on Washington B'lvd.
The Stamford Amateur Radio Association is a tax exempt organization under section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue code.
EMPIRE SLOW SPEED NET
Join the Empire Slow Speed CW Net every evening on 3590 KHz at 6PM local time. CW speed is between 6 and 8 wpm. A great way to improve your CW proficiency and learn net operation. Joe, W1LUH is one of the rotating Net Control stations.
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RED STAR ISSUE: If you have a red star on your address label, we have not received your 2004 dues!!!!!
March 2004 ASK ELMER
Dear Elmer
I am a cw op (I assume our extra brethren can still copy code). When I was a novice in the early 60s, I was scared on CW. When someone came back to me and said( so I copied) "so lid copy." I took offense as I thought he was calling me a lid. I now know it was "solid copy." mea culpa. I would
pose to Elmer: where did the derivation of the word lid come from? It is probably as broad of a statement as where did the term “ham" come from. Your thoughts on this and perhaps enlighten me on any other "hamoese"
terms that we take for granted. Your obedient and faithful reader, Harry A , K1PLR
Dear Harry,
As you well know that all avocations, hobbies and professions , over the years, generate or adapt many terms, expressions as part of a special language associated with it. Amateur radio is no exception. Many of the terms in use come from those developed by the railroad telegraphers, Western Union telegraphers and shipboard operators. Some, of necessity, were to abbreviate the message so as to handle traffic more efficiently. Others, were to comment on the performance of some of the other operators. If an operator uses a particular mode for a long time the develop a style that is unique to themselves. It is almost like a signature. In the jargon of telegraphy it is known as an “Operators Fist”. How this “Fist” comes across to other operators indicates the sending operators ability and experience (which generally goes together). As I do have an interest in the history of Amateur Radio, I did not know the origin of the term “LID”, though I did know it was an expression denoting a poor CW operator. I did have to do some research in order to dredge up it origin. I found some comments on the following website: http://www.ac6v.com/hamlid.htm .
Here are two of the comments:
“ORIGIN OF LID
My granddad was a railroad telegrapher. He said that the term lid came from operators who would put the lid of a Prince Albert tobacco can on the sounder so that they could copy the code easier. It was a practice that was frowned on by operators who did not have to do this and it became the slang for bad operators. They would also say that such an operator had a “tin ear”. Mark, WA0DC”
“Actually no, it isn't the lid, but it is the can itself. The tobacco can was shaped similar to a pocket flask but had a flip top metal lid on it. If you removed the lid and stuck the can between the sounder and the reflecting box, then it amplified the sound and gave it a little rounder tone (removed some of the click). Some of the local old timers tell me that they would fill the can with sand. Varying the depth of the sand changed the tone. Anon. from the Internet. “
I would suggest that you continue the search into the history of Amateur Radio Jargon.
With respect to the origin of the term “HAM” for an Amateur Radio Operator, there are several (read that as one for every operator) explanation as to its origin. One of the more popular is that there was a fairly popular magazine which described the construction and operation of early radio transmitters and receivers. The name of this magazine was “The Home Amateur Mechanic”. Those that
constructed the radios and used them were called “HAM's”. I can think of 2 or 3 other stories, each as credible as the next. I would suggest doing some research on the Internet and the library, to see what you can come up with. When you do, write an article for “The Squelch Burst”. There was an interesting article on page 38 of the February 2004 edition of World Radio. The article is written by Jim Wades, WB8SIW and is titled “In the beginning…”. He discussed the origin of some of the jargon used in CW operation.
I think the article is very well written and would recommend that you obtain a copy and read it.
Hopefully I gave you some insite into the origins of a few of the amateur radio expressions and a desire to do some research on your own.
73, Elmer
ASK ELMER needs questions. No Questions, NO ASK ELMER!
Send your questions to “ASK ELMER”, c/o Marv Fleischman, N1AWJ, PO Box 113, Ridgefield, CT 06877-0113.
SARA SUNDAY NIGHT NET
We encourage all of the SARA members to join in the informal net on the Stamford Repeater every Sunday night at 8 PM. After about a half hour of friendly discussion, we play the “Amateur Radio Newsline” with the latest happenings in amateur radio. Make yourself heard, join the net.
TO ALL MEMBERS
We need your ideas and input. What activities would you like the club to participate in? We also need your help in organizing these activities as well as participating in them. How would you increase club membership? Communicate your ideas and comments to any of the board members or to the editors of the Squelch Burst. Your input is very important to the continuing health of the club.
We are actively arranging for a speaker at every meeting. This month, Joe Leferson, W1LUH, will talk about the early history of SARA.
ICOM IC-V8000
I bought the Icom IC-V8000 3 years ago. This is the best 2-meter mobile radio I have ever owned. The ham side of the business has finally caught up with the commercial side. This radio is constructed like a tank. These units are ruggedly built, and with the ease of computer programming. Other radios I owned that came without a fan would get so hot you could not touch them. Radio's that run cool are more reliable. The fan on this radio runs very quietly for 2 minutes after transmitting, but you can also choose low, medium, or high speed. You can also choose to have the fan run continuously. RF output 5/10/25/ and 75 watts on high power. You can easily search and lock in an unknown PL -tone of a repeater with the CTCSS tone scan. This radio is very easy to program and all the buttons light up including the microphone. You can program all of the radio's functions from the microphone including the squelch. The microphone is lightweight and comfortable to hold. I have not had a bit of intermod with excellent receiver sensitivity. The front mount speaker sounds great and cuts through loud road noise.
I can hit all the repeaters that I want. If you are in the market for a solid reliable 2 meter mobile, I would highly
recommend buying the Icom IC-V8000. These radios were originally $249.00. You can now purchase them new for about $165.00. Great radio for the money. I am planning to buy another IC-V8000 for my base station.
Other Features: RX: 136 - 174 MHz, Wide/narrow operation, Front firing speaker, Cooling fan, Dual color Display, Auto repeater offset, CTCSS Encode, CTCSS Decode, CTCSS Tone scan, DCS Encode, DCS Decode, DCS Code scan, DTMF Encode, DTMF Decode (optional) DTMF) Code squelch, Dynamic Memory Scan, Weather channels, Weather alert, Weather scan, 207 Memory channels (3 scan edges) Call channel 6 Character alphanumeric display, PC programmable, Radio - radio cloning, Programmable keys, RF Attenuator, Channelized operation, Alpha only operation. Icom web site is located at www.icomamerica.com/
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RED STAR ISSUE
If your address label has a red star, it indicates that we have not yet received your 2004 dues at the time of mailing. The March meeting date is the deadline for inclusion in the club roster.
Dues are $20.00 for regular members and families, $15.00 for retirees and $10.00 for students and those living 100 miles or more from the repeater. Get them in now!
SARA Minutes of the Meeting 2/5/04
Fred K1FC started the meeting at 8:00pm.
Fred introduced himself. He mentioned we are the guest of the Senior Center at the Stamford Government Center.
Officers present: President Fred K1FC. Vice President Bill Librandi KB1iFY. Secretary John Sabini WB1GRB. Dick Finn WA1VUU Treasurer was not present. We then went around the room so people could introduce themselves.
Marv N1AWJ then started with a series of reports.
Squelch Burst. If you need to make any additions or changes to the YE OLD JONQUE BOX contact Dick WA1VUU for publication in the newsletter.
Dick will be editing the Squelch Burst. Any correspondents contact Dick WA1VUU.
Ask Elmer. I am at the point were I need “Ask Elmer” questions. I only have two questions, which are not suitable. No questions no, Ask Elmer. We also need new articles.
Repeater: Fred reported that the 2-meter repeater has been getting excellent reports since it was moved. The receiver squelch might be a little high because of interference we had several months ago. Fred will be programming the auto patch, which would include the emergency speed dial numbers.
440 Repeater: Marv reported that Ernest and I are going to pick up the 440 repeater from John Mineham. What we are getting is a Yasu 440 repeater, a controller, two heavy-duty 35-amp Astron power supplies, and one- hundred-watt RF amplifier in a cabinet with a duplexer. It will need new crystals and be re-tuned to the Stamford 440 repeater frequencies. The duplexer will also need to be retuned or we can use our old duplexer, which should not need retuning. Marv will order the necessary parts and do the needed work. When the weather improves, we will need to remove the 440 antenna and install it on the other end of the roof. The coax will need to be installed. Mast and brackets are already installed. The antenna will need to be checked and possibly retuned.
Fred will be installing EchoStation, which is a repeater-control program for Windows, which makes it easy to set up a complete, fully functional repeater or "announcement machine" using a personal computer. We will be able to make “announcements” over our 2- meter repeater. Examples: club meetings, public service events, and special events.
Fred mentioned that the Norwalk ARES nets would be scheduled for the first Monday of each month at 8:00 PM. All Radio Amateurs are welcome, and encouraged to check into the net. Frequencies for the Norwalk ARES Group are 147.390R, 448.075R - PL 114.8 and 147.420 Simplex. Details for each month will appear in the GNARC Newsletter at. http://www.gnarc.org/
The next Norwalk ARES Net Schedule is Monday April 5, at 8:00 PM on 147.390R. Net Control Station will be Check: www.gnarc.org/
Stan WA2RNV asked, “What are we doing to increase membership?” Fred: “we are making a commitment to have speakers at our monthly meetings. Concentrating more on Field Day. Renewing out ties with the Stamford Red Cross and continuing with Public Service events.” There was a suggestion of having a Special Event Station.
March Speaker will be Joe Leferson W1LUH. He will be talking about the early history of the SARA club. John, WB1GRB.
YE OLDE JONQUE BOXXX
Also Check SARA / GNARC Message Board For Sale |
ICOM IC-2AT 2m HT w/Charger, Batty., & SS-32MP micro-min. CTCSS Encoder kit, VGC, $100; Simpson 260 VOM, VGC, $50. Call Geoff, N1CAT, (203) 966-7444 evenings
HALLICRAFTER SX-28A RECEIVER, recapped, $275. Works good.
Call Joe, N1GWO, (203) 322-4061 Evenings.
PARTS GALORE- Xerox 3000 Word Processor (antique) w/transformer,
p/s, etc., connection to Diablo printer. FOR FREE!!! Take it away! Call Mike, KA1VWP, (203) 838-8089.
AOR 1000 XLT, 1000 Channel HH Scanner, 5KHz to 1.3 GHz cont. coverage. Exc. cond. $ 275.
Call Rick, N1LYK, (203) 531-1756
YAESU FT-757 GXII, HF Rig, FP 757 HD Power Supply, FC 757 AT Tuner and MD 1B8 Desk Mike. Call George, N1HIX, (203) 357-1879.
Mac Laserwriter printer, best offer. Call Jeanine, KY1Q, (203) 324-6865
FOR PARTS..Olevetti Accounting Machine. FREE!!!!! Take it away!!! Call Marv, N1AWJ, (203) 438-7889
HD-73 ROTOR w/CONTROL & CABLE, $50; Cushcraft 10-40M Vert. Ant., $15; Heathkit Station Monitor Mod. 614, $50. 2 South Bend 7.5 HP Go-Cart Engines. Call for Info. Call Irv, N1ATS, 348-3425.
2M 30W AMPLIFIER, $25; 6M Amplifier, 10W in 150W out, $175: AM6155 2M SSB Amplifier, 8930 Tube based, Cavity Tuned, 400 W Out (not cont. duty) $325. Call Andy, KA1SLG, (203) 531-9493
MFJ ANTENNA TUNER A-1 Cond. $100; Cushcraft R4 Ant , New, $25; ¼ ? Mag. Mt. Ant., $12; ? ? Mag. Mt. Ant, $15, ? ? Trunk Mt. Ant., $10; Measurements Grid Dip Meter, $25; HP Signal Gen.; $15; Code Pract. Mach., $15 Call Milt, K1DLT, (203) 324-2723
HYGAIN CD 45-II Rotator Control w/cable and manual. Call Frank, KA1NTG at (203) 655-7378
.
Icom T8A HT w/slow charger & 2 extra Batt's., $119; Radio Shack HTX 242 2m 10/45W Mobile w/o mounting bkt., $60. Call Chris, N1YNO at (203) 359-0570 evenings
ESTATE SALE (N1CML) Yaesu FT-980 HF Xcvr, $475; Yaesu FT 726R 2M all mode Xcvr $325; Yaesu YS-60 SWR-Pwr Mtr, $50; MFJ Versatuner II (300W), $100; Tram Reflectometer, $15; Azden PCS3000 2M Mobile w/o Mic, $25; HP5301 10 MHz Freq Ctr. $25; Eldorado 1615 30 MHz Freq Ctr., $25; AEA PK-88 Packet TNC, $35; Leader LAC 897 2M Transmatch, $20. Call Marv, N1AWJ, (203) 438-7889.
Send all your ad's for YE OLDE JONQUE BOXXX to Marv Fleischman, N1AWJ, PO Box 113, Ridgefield, CT 06877. Ad's must be in by the meeting night of the month prior to the publication. December meeting for January publication)
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J/S WB1GRB Friday, March 05, 2004