June 2003    

 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 .......…... Jim Markus ... ........... N1ZFS .......... 316-8585 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: www.qsl.net/w1ee/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.

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.

MINUTES OF THE MAY 1 MEETING

The meeting was called to order by Fred Cunningham, K1FC at 8:15PM. Guests present were Mike KE1IF and Larry, WA1PDK.

Committee reports: Squelch Burst: Marv, N1AWJ is editing the Squelch Burst this month. Members present were asked to modify the “Ye Olde Jonque Boxxx” listing, or e-mail him changes otherwise they will remain unchanged in the June issue. He needs Ask Elmer Questions in order to keep the column going on a monthly basis. Marv also asked for articles from the membership to be published in the Squelch Burst. They will only be passed through a spell checker before publication.

VE: SARA is having a license examination session on Saturday, May 10 with a 9:30 AM check-in. It will be held in the 4th floor cafeteria of the Stamford Government Center. The fee for the exam session is $12. Marv, N1AWJ called for VE's to attend the session. He also thanked the VE's for their help in all the previous sessions.

Public Service: Jeanine, KY1Q announced that we are providing communication to the Cancer Walk on Sunday, June 1. The walk is scheduled to start at 9AM in Czecik Park on Shippan Ave. in Stamford. The volunteers should be on station no later than 8:30 AM. 5 Volunteers are needed, and she already has signed up 4 of them.

Repeater: Fred, K1FC reported that the new repeater is operating at the Hospital site. It is currently running without a PL, as it appears that one is not needed. Its power output is approx. 35 W. The new PA has been received, but it has to be checked out and then installed. The repeater squelch threshold is a little too low and has to be adjusted. The old repeater still has to be removed from the site, before the new repeater is permanently installed.

Field Day: Fred, K1FC, said that we will be operating field day using Solar Powered QRP equipment on both digital and analog modes. We will be operating CW, PSK31 and SSB. He has obtained some LED floodlights which he will be using for evening illumination. Fred is working on the design of a Moxon Rectangle antenna for use on 10, 15 and 20 meter bands. 40 & 80 meters we will use Marv's, N1AWJ trapped Dipole.  

There was a proposal to put Echo Link on the Stamford repeater. Fred, K1FC, volunteered to test the Echo Link using his high speed internet connection, to see how it would work out.

New Business: Larry, WA1PDK, eulogized Bruce Balog, WA1FVZ, who recently became a “Silent Key” after a short battle with Cancer. Bruce was a former 2 term President of SARA, and for many years an active voice on our repeater.

Ernest, KA1NGG, recommended that we make a donation to the Amateur Radio Newsline, as we do play it over the repeater on our Sunday night net. The suggestion will be brought up at the next SARA board meeting on May 20.

The meeting was adjourned at 9:00 PM.

Minutes submitted by Marv, N1AWJ.

ASK ELMER

Dear Elmer, I have an ICOM 751A transceiver purchased in 1992. I'm not using it as much now that I have the Dell PC. I Pull the plug when not using it. (For safety reasons). I'm concerned about my memory. (In the Radio) Hi!. My manual tells me that the Lithium battery life is about 10 years, but could exceed that. There are no signs of abnormal operation. The manual also tells me not to attempt to change it myself. Am I safe to leave it as is for a while? My Motto as a rule is, adhering to the old adage. "If it ain't broke don't fix it" What is your advice? TNX and CUAGN 73 for now. Signed Mo Ray

Dear Mo, Many of the modern radios which are microprocessor based use various forms of backup power for their memory system. Three of the most popular are, primary long life batteries (ones that can't be recharged), secondary batteries (ones that are rechargeable) and “Ultra-Capacitors”. The “Ultra Capacitor” is a fairly modern device, which chemically simulates an extremely large capacitor with values in the Farad range. Ordinarily, capacitors made this large would be enormous in physical size, and not very practical. These “Ultra Capacitors” are large in value (think of 0.1 to 2 Farads at 3 V) and small in size, making them a good substitute for a rechargeable battery in ultra low current memory backup. When the radio is used, the power supply charges the “Ultra Capacitor”, and of course supplies power to the memory. When the radio is turned off, the “Ultra Capacitor” supplies a holding current to the memory chips, for, in some instances, as long as a year. The secondary (rechargeable) battery, acts very much as the “Ultra Capacitor”. It is capable of supplying somewhat more current then the “Ultra Capacitor” for a moderate time period. This method of memory supply backup can be found in many radios. The drawback to this system is that the early rechargeable batteries were not as reliable as the more modern batteries, and they are the most expensive battery system for the manufacturer of the radio to provide. The expense comes from the cost of the battery as well as the need for a recharging circuit. Modern memory systems use CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) memory systems which require very little current to maintain any data stored in them. Primary batteries using modern chemistries, such as Lithium Ion and Silver Oxide, have extremely low self discharge rates, that their shelf lives are in the order of 5 to 10 years. This makes them ideal candidates for unattended memory backup power sources. Many of the modern radios use these batteries for exactly that purpose. They usually admonish you not to change these batteries as they are sensitive to the excess heat from a soldering iron. The batteries, if not properly heat sunk could be damaged, or in some cases could break open or vent, releasing some of the caustic electrolyte. This can be a safety hazard if not properly handled. If done properly, then changing the battery is not a problem. It is important that you know the proper procedure for handling this type of battery. If you are in any way unsure, do not attempt it yourself, but send the radio to an authorized service agency for the battery replacement. Check the radio every month or so to see if the battery needs replacement. So Mo, as long as you know the battery is a go if the memory still shows, the frequency it knows! (Very bad “Iambic Pentameter”.) 73, Elmer

Send your questions to “Ask Elmer”, c/o Marv Fleischman, N1AWJ, PO Box 113, Ridgefield, CT 06877-0113 or e-mail.

FIELD DAY 2003

Field Day will be held on Saturday and Sunday June 28 and 29, 2003. The location for SARA'a Field Day site is the Stamford Museum Observatory grounds. The observatory grounds entrance is on Scofieldtown Road in Stamford. To get there from downtown Stamford, travel North on High Ridge Road past the Merritt Parkway until you reach a fork in the road with a traffic light. Take the left fork (Scofieldtown Road) for a distance of about 1/2 mile. The entrance to the site will be an open gate on your right with a sign indicating SARA Field Day. For those using the Merritt Parkway, exit at High Ridge Road (Exit 35) and head North to Scofieldtown Road. As above, take the left fork and proceed to the observatory entrance. Please note that the main entrance to the museum is at the junction of High Ridge and Scofieldtown roads, but do not use it. It will not lead you to the Field Day site. This Field Day we will be operating QRP using alternate power sources.. Solar, etc. We will be operating some of the newer digital modes as well as CW and SSB. Mark your calendar join us and have a great time operating. Hope to see you there.

TREASURER'S REPORT AS OF 12 MAY, 2003 INCOME EXPENSE Dues 256.00 Postage 37.00 Rptr. Fund 110.00 Memorial 25.00 Int. 1.16 Repeater 542.06 Phone 24.90 P.O. Box 58.00 _______ ________ Totals $367.16 ` $686.96 Balances: Checking-$1,147.34 Savings-$2,997.66 De WA1VUU

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.

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 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 or e-mail.

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

MICROTEK SCANMAKER, Flat Bed Scanner Mod. E3 w/cables, software and ISA SCSI card. FREE to a good home Call Dick, WA1VUU, (203) 323-0982

COMET CX-333, 3 Band Vert., 2M, 220 & 440, Like New, No Tuning Req'd., $ 100. Triplexer for use w/Comet Ant w/Leads $60. Call Chris, N1YNO at (203) 359-0570 evenings

Send all your ad's for YE OLDE JONQUE BOXXX to Marv Fleischman, N1AWJ, PO Box 113, Ridgefield, CT 06877. E-mail. Ad's must be in by the meeting night of the month prior to the publication. (December meeting for January publication)