Posts: 485
Threads: 49
Joined: Dec 2006
Is anyone on Punaweb a shortwave radio operator or even perhaps a member of BIARC (Big Island Amateur Radio Club)?
http://www.biarc.net/
I'd be interested to know how active folks around Puna are in shortwave radio operation and would appreciate some practical coaching from an experienced local perspective as regards setting up an antenna tower, as well as on some other equipment issues.
)'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'(
"Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence."
Pres. John Adams, Scholar and Statesman
"There's a scientific reason to be concerned and there's a scientific reason to push for action. But there's no scientific reason to despair."
NASA climate analyst Gavin Schmidt
)'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'(
)'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'(
Astonishing skill! This archer is a real-life Legolas and then some!
http://geekologie.com/2013/11/real-life-...rs-anc.php
)'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'(
Posts: 2,402
Threads: 145
Joined: Apr 2005
WR6P Good buddy, 10 4 and all that! No not me, the phantom husband! LOL Silent now but hopefully not for long!
Ya gotta love those people with moss growing on the north side of their nose. Their indoor hobbies are extensive, and they are expert!! Peace be with us.
mella l
"Resolve to be tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving, and tolerant with the weak and wrong....because sometime in your life you will have been all of these."
mella l
Art and Science
bytheSEA
Posts: 1,727
Threads: 29
Joined: Feb 2006
BIARC meets in Keaau once a month and it isn't expensive to join. Otherwise, try Jack in the Box in the early mornings. If you see a bunch of cars with antennas on them, go inside and there are usually a few radio folk at the table in the corner nearest the door.
DE WH6MT
"I like yard sales," he said. "All true survivalists like yard sales."
Kurt Wilson
Posts: 102
Threads: 12
Joined: Aug 2005
My wife and I are both long-time hams. What help do you need?
Jim - KC7OKZ
Carol - KC7TSX
Posts: 485
Threads: 49
Joined: Dec 2006
"What help do you need?"
I'm looking for coaching on what are probably a standard set of newbie questions, such as:
-local regs and practical considerations in building an antenna tower (height restrictions, designs and materials to use or avoid based on local experience, permits needed, etc),
-the source of lightning rods which local operators are using to protect their systems,
-station equipment (makes and models) recommended for good quality and range in voice communication (versus Morse only) from the Big Island,
-if shortwave equipment problem diagnosis and repair is available locally, on-island, or must be shipped off-island ...and so on.
Since we are currently in the process of construction from afar and only actually on the Big Island once every few months at this point (and booked solid with business meetings while we are there) I've not yet had a chance to connect with the local group at all, nor do I currently have a shortwave system set up here in Alaska, plus which a public discussion --versus private emails-- sometimes benefits many by popularizing potentially useful information and perspective, and thus asking the question via Punaweb.
Thanks in advance for any comments or advice!
)'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'(
"Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence."
Pres. John Adams, Scholar and Statesman
"There's a scientific reason to be concerned and there's a scientific reason to push for action. But there's no scientific reason to despair."
NASA climate analyst Gavin Schmidt
)'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'(
)'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'(
Astonishing skill! This archer is a real-life Legolas and then some!
http://geekologie.com/2013/11/real-life-...rs-anc.php
)'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'(
Posts: 89
Threads: 14
Joined: Mar 2006
take a look at this link:
http://ronhashiro.htohananet.com/am-radi...awaii.html
and military comms:
http://www.radioreference.com/apps/db/?sid=3120
local frequencies:
http://www.radioreference.com/apps/db/?ctid=542
Like a lot of things, ham radio on the big island is like going back 20 years in time...
Of course you will have to order everything from the web. No local stores. You have to remember most people in Hawaii are sort of "checked out", so emergency communications are not on anyones radar. Also, most people in Puna are pro illegal drugs, so if you pull out a HT in a public place, or if you monitor police comms, you may get the stink eye.
I have seen many towers in Hawaiian Paradise Park. I think you need to check your CC&R's for your neighborhood. Lightning is a major factor in Hawaii, and your ground system and coax switches to ground your antenna while not in use is important.
Thief is another factor, so keep your antenna low key, because you will be ripped off. If you have a tower at home, wind storms are common, so you need to be able to lower it.
The first thing you will notice is the lack of noise on the HF frequencies in Hawaii. Being so isolated makes for quite. Lots of marine, military, aviation monitoring. All most no police or fire communication, say compared to Los Angeles. Some military trunking systems, but most of Big Island is still VHF analog. You may be able to do a near field interception on drug surveillance operations and helicopter operations.
There is a CERT group in HHP that uses Ham Radio for emergency communications. Hawaii needs as many ham radio operators as possible to wake these sleepy heads up.
Posts: 414
Threads: 10
Joined: Jun 2006
You'll have to get a copy of the ARRL and study the hell out of it.. I have several friends that are hams (and have their license). If you don't have a license I think that would be a good first question. I kinda let go of the rope, when I got to morse code. Don't go out and buy a bunch of stuff before you figure out what meter/band you'll want to operates on.. Any way good luck, dave
Blessings,
dave
"I'm not as good as I once was.. but I'm as good once, as I ever was" George Straight
Blessings,
dave
"It doesn't mean that much to me.. to mean that much to you." Neil Young
Posts: 485
Threads: 49
Joined: Dec 2006
Morse is no longer required for a shortwave radio operator's license, but in my humble and relatively inexperienced opinion it is a very good idea to become proficient in Morse code signaling and receiving even if such is no longer required. Under some unfavorable conditions up in the ionosphere (or somewhere else similarly mystical) voice communications can break down into a garble which sounds remarkably like feral cats mating on a hot summer night, yet Morse is often still intelligible even under such adverse conditions. In the event of a direct hit by a hurricane or somesuch civic emergency, if the neighborhood is counting upon you for getting a flow of information in and out (e.g., insulin supply running low, a tree fell on someone and they need to be airlifted out by helicopter for medical attention or die, etc), then proficiency in Morse can literally make the difference between life and death.
)'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'(
"Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence."
Pres. John Adams, Scholar and Statesman
"There's a scientific reason to be concerned and there's a scientific reason to push for action. But there's no scientific reason to despair."
NASA climate analyst Gavin Schmidt
)'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'(
)'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'(
Astonishing skill! This archer is a real-life Legolas and then some!
http://geekologie.com/2013/11/real-life-...rs-anc.php
)'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'( )'(
Posts: 127
Threads: 4
Joined: Apr 2005
Keep in mind that shortwave and amateur (ham) radio are two different things. Shortwave is merely listening and requires no FCC license whatsoever.
Until relatively recently, there were 5 classifications of ham licensing (Novice, Technician, General, Advanced and Amateur Extra). Each level required the applicant to pass a multiple-choice written test covering the technical and regulatory aspects of the hobby, and in the case of Novice, General and Extra, also a Morse Code test. (BTW, hams call it CW which stands for 'continuous wave'). The further a person progressed up the ladder, the more privileges he or she received. For example a Novice could only operate in a very small slice of the Amateur frequency spectrum and then only via CW, whereas an Extra Class could operate on any band or frequency using any permitted mode - CW, SSB, UHF, VHF, satelite, packet, etc.
I'll be honest. I've been an Extra for 28 years but would be hard pressed to tell you the difference between a capacitor and a resistor; and once I passed the 20 wpm code test, I threw the keyer away and haven't touched one since. I'm what the more technically oriented hobbyists call an 'appliance operator' - basically I just like to turn the transceiver on and talk. I don't much know or care how it works or why. What I'm saying is, the only talent required was the ability to take tests; and since ALL the potential questions and answers were published by the FCC, all a person had to do was study the test.
Now it appears that the code requirement has been dropped entirely making the task of becoming licensed even easier. The first place to investigate if you're interested in becoming a ham is www.arrl.org. The American Radio Relay League is the oldest and largest organization dedicated to the advancement of this activity.
As far as equipment goes, I'd say Kenwood, ICOM, and Yaesu are the most well known and respected manufacturers of radios. If you plan to talk and/or listen to traffic from other parts of the world, you'll need an HF radio that covers the 10 thru 160 meter bands. Most people that operate in this manner use a tri-band beam antenna that covers the 10/15/20 meter bands mounted on a tower or pole and a vertical antenna (essentially just a 30' or so whip) for the 40/80/160 meter bands. It's a BIG generalization, but pretty much the 10, 15 & 20 meter bands are used during daylight hours, whereas 40 thru 160 really only work at night.
The tower for a tri-bander can be had in many configurations: rigid, free-standing and guyed or non-guyed, fold over or crank up. IMHO one of these last two is the obvious choice - particularly a crank up. Depending upon the particular model or size they telescope up from around 10' high in the lowered position up to over 100' when extended. You also need a rotator motor on top of the tower to properly aim the antenna. I don't know that any one brand of beam or tower is any better than any other . . . there are literally hundreds out there. Not sure about Hawaii county, but some jurisdictions require a building permit for antenna construction.
Low-band verticals are made by numerous companies too, but the one I like and use myself is the Butternut HF2V..
aloha & 73,
Gene, WR6P
also/ex: VK4CEO, T26RP, T31AJ, V31EQ, WR6P/6Y5
_________________________
Quando Omni Flunkus Moritati
_________________________
"I've been on food stamps and welfare, did anybody help me out? No." - Craig T. Nelson
I really don't know much about "Ducts" or HAM Radio, but I did read this article the other day.
...The best known such duct is the Hawaiian duct which links the West Coast of the US, especially California with the Big Island of Hawaii....
-------
blog
|
