THE SQUELCH BURST
a monthly publication of the
STAMFORD AMATEUR RADIO ASSOCIATION
President ........ Andy Laska .......... KA1SLG ........ 531-9493
Vice Pres ........ Fred Cunningham...... K1FC ......... 322-8274
Secretary ....... Mike Cordelli ....... N1FOA ......... 838-3661
Treasurer ........ Dick Finn ............WA1VUU ........ 323-0982
Trustee .......... Spence Heath ........ W1BWK.......... 322-7539
Editors .......... Marv Fleischman ..... N1AWJ ......... 438-7889
Mike Cordelli ....... N1FOA ......... 838-3661
Dick Finn ............WA1VUU ........ 323-0982
Y.O.J.B. Ed....... Marv Fleischman .... N1AWJ ......... 438-7889
Circ/Pub.......... Dick Finn ........... WA1VUU ........ 323-0982
Repeaters: W1EE/R........ 146.055 in; 146.655 out (PL. 1Z, 100Hz)
W1EE/R.... 442.125 in; 447.125 out (PL. 2A, 114.8Hz)
Internet Home Page at http://www.qsl.net/ctsara
Yearly membership $20.00 ($ 15.00 for retirees, senior members over 62, $10.00
for full time students, members under 16 years of age and members living over
100 miles from Stamford; $20.00 for family memberships.) This includes a copy
of the club bulletin and a copy of the club roster.
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, or e-mail to n1awj@ att.net.
Unless noted, meetings are held on the first Thursday of every month in the 4th
floor cafeteria of 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.
TREASURERS REPORT AS OF 17 JUNE, 2002
INCOME EXPENSE
Int. 7.28 PO Box 45.00
Phone 25.04
______ ______
Totals $ 7.28 $ 70.04
Balances: Checking $1524.27 Savings $ 3960.47
De WA1VUU
SARA Will Have Their Annual Picnic on July 11, at Dennis K1FOT. Directions. (65 COUSINS Rd. Stamford)
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.
ASK ELMER
Dear Elmer,
I know that a Dipole radiates off the sides. In the Stamford area, what would
be the best orientation N-S or E-W or ? for max contact or coverage area.
Signed, Looking for Directions
Dear L F D,
This question is one which can only be answered in very general terms. As
Stamford is nearly due East of Europe and West by North West of California, one
preferred orientation would be the antenna ends would point North by North West
and South by South East. On the other hand if you are attempting to contact
Japan and the Pacific Rim countries, an orientation South by South West and
North by North East would be suggested. This would aim your signals “over the
Poles”. If you want to contact the East Coast of the Americas (both North and
South) then an orientation of East-West for the ends of the antenna. As you can
see there is no real preferred direction. This makes the assumption that you
have an “ideal” dipole in unobstructed space many, many wavelengths above
ground. The radiation pattern of the antenna is a doughnut perpendicular to the
wire, and you can be assured of radiating in the direction of choice. Obviously
this is not the case in the real world. Your antenna is probably going to be
fairly close to an imperfect ground, with many obstructions due to trees,
buildings, etc. Under these conditions, the radiation pattern of a dipole
antenna is going to be much less than ideal. I would be less then honest with
you if I say that I can predict the radiation pattern for your antenna. I would
suggest that you use one of the antenna modeling programs obtain an idea of your
particular antennas radiation pattern. A less than ideal antenna will radiate
in more than two directions depicted for an ideal dipole. Some of these
additional “lobes in the radiation pattern” might make your dipole almost
omni-directional, or if you are unlucky may just “heat the aether” sending the
radiated energy into space. If you can't model the antenna, I would suggest
that you erect it and do what hams have been doing for decades…. Test it out on
the air. One of the joys of amateur radio is experimentation, and antennas are
one of the easiest things to experiment with. You may hit upon just the right
combination of orientation, height above ground, effects due to obstructions,
and other resonant antennas or structures in the immediate area, which might
provide you with an antenna ideally suited to your particular type of operation
(luck plays a big part in the antennas operation, as does Murphy's Law). If the
dipoles are not horizontal, but are constructed as inverted "V's", or "slopers".
then the radiation pattern gets more complex. Another suggestion is to erect 2
independent dipoles, one oriented to radiate in a North East, South West
direction and the other to radiate in a North West, South East direction. With
the two dipoles at right angles to each other will afford you a better chance of
omni-directional coverage. Nothing is perfect, and everything is a compromise,
Antennas included. What you want to do is to arrive at the best compromise for
your style of operating by modeling and then experimentation. Other hams around
the country and world will be more than happy to assist you in checking out your
antenna on the air.
Well LFD, have a ball experimenting with antennas. It is an eye opening
experience.
73,
Elmer
Send your questions to "ASK ELMER", c/o Marv Fleischman, N1AWJ, PO Box 113,
Ridgefield, CT 06877-0113 or e-mail to [email protected].
President's Message
Field day will be over by the time we get this, lets just hope everyone enjoyed
themselves and we didn't get rained on. The Bennett Cancer Center Walk went off
without a hitch at our end, it's too bad News 12's crew missed the start of the
runners and walkers and in perfect form missed the first runners and walkers
across the finish line as well. Many thanks to WA1VUU, N1FOA, NlAWJ, KA1SLG,
N1ZFS for staffing the event. Field Day 2002 Photos SARA & GNARC Radio Clubs
The Stamford-Denmark sailboat race is the next Public service event and we will
again be looking for volunteers to man the marker boats that run the race.
Please call KY1Q if you are interested.
Progress is being made on repairs to the 440 repeater. The intermittent
connection that haunted K1IT, Greg, and KG1M John, for years has been tracked
down thanks to the efforts of N1ZFS. A Micor mobile radio (A Micor mobile radio
is about the size of a briefcase with a cable that runs to a dashboard mounted
control head.) was donated to the club and Jim, NlZFS, is working at fitting the
nearly identical 100 watt mobile amplifier board onto the heat sink of our old
75 watt rack mount unit. The 2 Meter repeater receiver was tuned by NlZFS and
myself and put back on frequency. It Had been off frequency by about 1500 Hz but
now it's right on and tuned for maximum selectivity to help reduce pager
interference. It has developed the crackles which is most likely due to some
loose mechanical connections. I plan to get up to the repeater site some time
after field day, clean up the connections and torque everything down.
Governor Rowland has proclaimed June 1&23 Amateur Radio Week in the state of
Connecticut in recognition of the service hams have provided in the wake of the
9-11 disaster. Possibly in response to the proclamation, a donation was made to
the ARRL to provide CT hams training in emergency communications through The
League's continuing education online courses. Details are not yet available but
the course may be free to CT hams, all you need is a computer with an internet
connections and the desire to take the course.
SARA WEB SITE
Mike, kbldxc and myself started to discuss the idea of a SARA club web site that
would be updated regularly and be full of useful information. We also wanted a
site that would get people interested in the SARA radio club and amateur radio
as a hobby. We already had a club web site but had little information and was
rarely up to date. We knew we could do much better. I had some experience in
building web sites but Mike knew more and was willing to help me.
I opened an account on Homestead. With Homestead you can build your web site
online. It had nice features. It was very easy to use. I started to have
problems with Homestead. The pages were loading slowly. I also had a problem
with the page alignment. I finally deleted Homestead. I then opened an account
on qsl. net."http://www.qsl.net/wlee".
qsl.net has thousands of ham radio web sites. For the web editor I am using
Microsoft FrontPage 2000.
For a background Mike suggested copying the SARA logo from the club jacket. I
put the jacket on my scanner. To get a good copy I had to use black & white. I
then sent the picture to Mike. He then added color and made the background. The
site has slowly transformed into what it is today. I am constantly making
updates. I had to add META tags, which are Keywords in the HTML code. When
people go to a search engine and type different words: example: wlee, ctsara,
Stamford radio club.
This makes it easier to find the site. I also went to many search engines:
example Google, Yahoo and added the web address. When possible I added our link
to other ham radio web sites.
Almost any question someone might have on SARA or ham radio you should be able
to find some where on the site. If you can't find what you are looking for you
can go to the Bulletin Board and type in your question. If you have a radio to
sell you can go to the Message Board. If you have a web address you can add
photos of your ham gear or you can send your photos to me and I will put them on
a Photo Page. You can post a link to your web site. Add the category under which
it falls and write a short description so visitors can surf to your web site. Of
coarse there is the traditional Guest Book where you can add your comments.
There are other pages: Most important I will take some articles from The Squelch
Burst; President's Message, Upcoming Events and paste them on the web sites main
page. On a separate page the complete Squelch Burst SARA newsletter is published
each month. I can add pictures and links. You can go to the Archives page and
find past Ask Elmer questions and answers. There is a beautiful color calendar
of meetings and local events. Field Day 2002 information, Area Clubs, Skywarn
and Live Weather and much more!
John, WB1GRB
For Immediate Release
ARRL-The National Association for Amateur Radio--and United Technologies
Announce a Statewide Effort to Aid Homeland Security
Newington, Conn., June 18, 2002 - Thanks to a generous grant from United
Technologies Corporation, ARRL-the national association for Amateur Radio--and
Amateur Radio volunteers throughout the state will have the opportunity to
significantly enhance Connecticut's emergency response capability during natural
or man-made disasters.
A $33,000 grant will provide ARRL Emergency Communications Course Level I
training for 250 Connecticut Amateur Radio operators via ARRL's Certification
and Continuing Education Program. The on-line course is made possible through
the Connecticut Distance Learning Consortium (CTDLC).
Certified volunteers will work with community organizations to relay vital
information in a structured and accurate manner. They will be skilled at
composing and relaying messages by voice and through computer based Amateur
Radio communications modes. Trained volunteers will join local Amateur Radio
Emergency Service (ARES) networks and will support emergency activities ranging
from equipment logistics, victim location and identification, emergency shelter,
food and water information, medical equipment and material distribution, and
sometimes, life-and-death communication.
This unique public/private partnership is the first of its kind for both
organizations. It is anticipated that Connecticut will serve as a model for a
nationwide campaign.
"I am excited that UTC can participate in such an innovative and important
program, right here in the state of Connecticut," says Jacqueline Strayer,
Director, Contribution and Communication Services for UTC. "This joint
partnership is sure to make a difference in communities across the state and
act as a model for other states to showcase the important role Amateur Radio
operators play during times of emergency."
ARRL Chief Executive Officer David Sumner says ARRL is very fortunate to have
received this generous grant for Connecticut amateurs. "The organization will do
its best to ensure that the people of Connecticut benefit by having these
specially trained volunteers in their communities," he said.
United Technologies Corp. (NYSE:UTX), based in Hartford, Conn., provides
high-technology products and services to the building systems and aerospace
industries worldwide through its Otis Elevator, Carrier Corp., UTC Fuel Cells,
Pratt & Whitney, Sikorsky Aircraft and Hamilton Sundstrand companies.
Connecticut based ARRL--the national association for Amateur Radio--is a
non-profit, membership organization with nearly 2,500 members in Connecticut and
more than 159,000 in the United States and elsewhere around the world. ARRL
provides technical advice, the best in Amateur Radio-related publications and
software products and many other services to the Amateur Radio community.
Thanks to all the volunteers who attended the UTC PR event at ARRL today!
ARRL members who wish to register should go to https://www.arrl
.org/forms/cce/se_num=145. As classes fill up, this URL will change slightly so
don't give up-just contact me [email protected] or Dan Miller K3ufg [email protected].
SILENT KEY
It is with great sadness that we announced the death of longtime member Hugh
Evans, N1FZG, at the June meeting.
YE OLDE JONQUE BOXXX
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 continuous 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
ICOM IC-02AT 2M HT w BP-3, BP-5 & BP-8 Batty Packs, BC30 Charger,
Spkr-Mic, Manual, $125 obo. FatMac Computer w/ 1Meg Ram, Free!!!
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; Ringo
Ranger 2M Antenna, $10; Heathkit Station Monitor Mod. 614, $50. Machinist's
Tools for Sale, 2 South Bend 7.5 HP Go-Cart Engines. Lots of Tools, Hardware
and Craft supplies, etc. Call for Info.
Call Irv, N1ATS, 348-3425
2M 30W AMPLIFIER, $25; 6M Amplifier, 10W in 150W out, $175
Call Andy, KA1SLG, (203) 531-9493
Send all your ad's for YE OLDE JONQUE BOXXX to Marv Fleischman, N1AWJ, PO Box
113, Ridgefield, CT 06877. E-mail to [email protected]. Ad's must be in by the
meeting night of the month prior to the publication. (December meeting for
January publication)