March - Washington Amateur Communications

The W.A.C.O.M. Ham
Washington Amateur Communications
Inside:
SPORTS SHOW . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Meeting Minutes . . . . . . . . . . .3
Area Hamfests . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Grounding Protection . . . . . .4
Skywarn Class . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Target Link System . . . . . . . 5
Member’s Shack . . . . . . . . . . 6
Officers
President: Bud Plants, N3TIR;
[email protected]
Vice President: Kevin Beatty,
KB3JHO;
[email protected]
Secretary: Bill Sheehan, KB3LIX;
[email protected]
Treasurer: Norma Plants, N3YJJ;
[email protected]
Board of Directors
Director: Joe Furjanic, WA3WMB,
Presidents Message March 2009
Spring is in the air what a winter we have had- snow –
wind – ice -it makes a radio operator question why we live
in the North.
Spring equals Hamfest and I attended my first last week
and enjoyed meeting operators that I have not seen in
years. That’s one of the best things about attending a local Hamfest. The WASHFEST was another great tribute to
Amateur Radio with all the snow and ice they experienced
a great turnout. That translates into most operators are
making plans to start their Spring radio projects.
I encourage all WACOM members to attend the various local Hamfest and support the area clubs. This offers a
great opportunity to meet other local operators. This networking also can offer ideas on improving your station.
And I also encourage our members to make at least one
trip to the Dayton Hamfest and experience ham radio at
its finest.
73’s Bud N3TIR
The March General Membership meeting will be held Thursday evening, Mar. 5th, at 7:30 p.m. in the Washington
County Building. Room 103. All are welcome to attend.
[email protected]
Director: Jim Burtoft, KC3HW;
The March Licensing Class has been postponed.
[email protected]
We will announce the times and location as soon
Director: Dave Demotte, N3IDH;
[email protected]
Webmaster: Joe Caldwell, N3XE;
[email protected]
Editor: Jacque Gosselin, N3ZEL
[email protected]
as new arrangements are completed. Please
watch for notice to be posted on our website or
announcements to be made at the meetings and
on the nets. Thank you for your interest.
Page 2
SPORTS SHOW
The Washington County Sportsmen’s Show at the Washington Crown Center Mall was a
great success. We operated our Special Event Station under the call W3C and have
already received a number of QSL cards.
Above: Bill, W8CWH & Ed N3ZNI
Below: N3ZNI, Gary, AB3HO;, and Jim KC3HW
Upper Left: Kevin,KB3JHO; Denny,
W8DKS; Deb, KD8KAC; Dave, N3IDH.
Upper Right: Jim, KC3HW & prospective ham.
Below Left: Wiley, KD8JNJ (center) answers questions for interested
potential students.
Below Right: Craig, KB3RHR on 6m, observed by Wiley, KD8JNJ and
Ed, N3ZNI.
Minutes of the February 5, 2009 General Membership Meeting
Meeting called to order at 7:30 pm by Kevin, KB3JHO.
Treasurer's report approved as printed, motion by WA3WMB, second by AB3FQ
Minutes approved as printed, motion by WA3WMB, second by N3IDH
Web Site: Joe, N3XE, reported that it was moved to a new server ok.
Old Business:
Bylaws reported meeting on 1-22, will schedule more meetings.
Board of Directors: Discussed lengthing tongue of tower trailer.
New Business: New Tech class March 14, 15, 21, 22.
General class in April.
Club needs new quartermaster. WA3WMB volunteered to test club
equip.
Discussion about fox hunt this summer.
Discussion about setting up excess equipment for emergency uses.
Motion to adjourn be WA3WMB, second by KD8KAC
AREA HAMFESTS
* MARCH *
9: Foothills Amateur Radio Club Hamfest, Greensburg, PA. More Info: (Phone:724-9890462) - http://www.W3LWW.org
* APRIL *
26: Two Rivers ARC Hamfest-The Spectrum of Boston-Boston, PA More Info: (Phone:412751-1937) - http://www.tworiversarc.com Email: hamfest @ tworiversarc.com
Amateur Radio Exams Available at Hamfest-More Info TBA
* MAY *
15-17 Dayton Hamvention. http://hamvention.org Phone: 937-776-7898.
* JUNE *
7: Breezeshooters Hamfest-Butler Farm Show Grounds-Butler, PA More Info: (Phone:412366-0488) - email: n3lwp @ verizon.net http://www.breezeshooters.net
*JULY*
12: North Hills Amateur Radio Club. Phone: 412-486-2785. [email protected]
The W.A.C.O.M. Ham
March and April General Meetings
Lightning Protection for the
Ham Radio Station
Here in the Pennsylvania,
spring is in the air — and
already we’ve had a violent
windstorm. Protecting our
equipment from lightning is
one of the most important
non-operating tasks that we
do. We have a lot of expensive
equipment inside the house
with a nice tall metal structure
outside in a cleared area is
simply asking for lightning
o strike.
There are a lot of misconceptions
out there about lightning protection. Those misconceptions can
cost you dearly.
I will present information on
dealing with this problem over
the next two general meetings.
I work with grounding antenna
systems on a daily basis under the NEC code and offer advice to insurance
adjusters on lightning claims. I have 25 years of experience in the proper way
of bonding antennas and electronic equipment to ground.
73’s Bud N3TIR
The W.A.C.O.M. Ham
Page 5
Inside Story Headline
On April 6th, 2009 the Washington County Department of Public
Safety will be hosting the United States Department of Commerce
(National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) SKYWARN
Class. This course is designed for County and Local Emergency
Coordinators, Emergency Responders, and Radio Amateur Civil
Emergency Services personnel. This course will teach students
how to identify and report various weather patterns that can develop into tornados or damaging storms so that proper preparation
and warning can be given. The information given in this course will
also give students the vital information to assist their community
during weather emergencies.
The course will be held
April 6th, 2009
6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Washington County Emergency Operations Center
100 West Beau Street Level C
Washington, PA , 15301
All students wishing to participate in this course may register by calling the
Department of Public Safety at (724) 228-6911.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
THE TARGET LINK SYSTEM — By Denny Schwing, K8DKS
Before the February meeting of the Washington Amateur Communications club, a conversation was brought
up about the Target Link Communications System. I found out at that time that there were members present
that didn’t know any more about this system than I did. Kevin (KB3JHO) suggested that I do an internet
search to find out more.
I was first introduced to this system by Bud(N3TIR). The Target Link System is a series of four Two (2) meter
repeaters that are all linked together. They transmit through a hub link in Berkley Springs, West Virginia.
When you, as an operator, open one repeater you open all of them . This will allow talking from eastern Ohio
to Baltimore, Maryland including Washington DC. The closet link to us is 146.835 (W3WGX) in Seven
Springs, PA this is a CTCSS receiver with a 123 tone to open it.
I hope at the March meeting to have a handout that will supply more information to those that may be interested
I accept no license for any content of this message it can be found on www.kuggie.com.
Denny Schwing
K8DKS
Page 6
WACOM Member of the Month
Amateur Radio Station de KB3RHR
Station Equipment :
Radios: Primary Rig Yaesu FT 920 6 Meters & HF
Yaesu FT 950 HF and Digital Modes
Icom 7000 2 Meters / 440
Power: King Conversions SB220RHR 6 meter Conversion
Antennas :
m2 6M7JHV 7 element 30ft boom 6 Meter
Hy-Gain 4 Element Yagi 6 Meters
Tennedyne T6 Log Periodic 13-30 MHZ
2Meter & 70 cm Jpole
Imax 2000 10 Meter Vertical
Misc: W2IHY 8 Band Audio Equip. W/ W2IHY EQ plus Diamond SX-2000 Meter / Drake W4 Watt Meter / LDG Antenna Switching / Microphone’s Heil GM 5’s / Yaesu G-1000DXA Rotator / PHILIPS HTS3565D Theater Sound System
/Assorted Iambic Key’s as well as Straight Keys / Several Power Supplies up to 52 Amps
Where does one start ? Licensed June of 2008, I began this obsession, hooked by one 10 Meter contact IS0KEB
Marco 28460 at 5:59 PM on a 5/8 Wave ground plane, 1st Call. HOOKED HARD! I have come so far in so little time.
Addicted ? My true love and passion is 6 Meters. The Magic Band. I have tailored my entire station around that portion
of the spectrum. In my personal opinion, it’s a tough band to work , but can provide many satisfying DX contacts if your
station parameters are 100% efficient. Since my inception into Ham radio, I have made 2,320 Qso’s on 6 Meters with a
total of 3, 127 across my operating privileges. 16 DXCC confirmed, 200 plus Grids, and 24 confirmed WAS contacts all
on 6 meters. I currently use Ham Radio Deluxe to additionally control my radios as well as their Satellite / DX Cluster /
DM780 / PSK31 / Mapper and Logging software.
I normally use SSB Voice and CW as my modes, however my CW receive needs some work… HI HI. When I am operating, I can be found on 50,125(calling freq.) / 50,110 Listening (south winter / east summer) / or 50,140 in Local Ragchew. I do monitor the 147.225 repeater as well as the 146.790 machine and 28.400.
Fall/Winter Mornings when I am available I
work gray line and Meteor Scatter up the
eastern seaboard and in the summer,
beaming East into Europe and Africa.
Latest project, Ham Radio Cam.
I have 2 web cameras set up here in the
shack, (working on the audio) and do in
fact have them on at times during openings
or rag chew. www.hamradiocams.com or
http://kb3rhr.camstreams.com.
73 de KB3RHR
Craig Yoho
Page 7
The W.A.C.O.M. Ham
John Kanzius Ham enthusiast and inventor now SK
From QRZ.com:
John Kanzius (1944 – February 18, 2009), was an American inventor, radio and TV engineer, one-time station
owner and ham radio operator (Call Sign K3TUP) from Erie, Pennsylvania. He invented a method that has the potential to treat cancer. He also demonstrated a device that can "burn salt water". Both effects involve the use of
his radio frequency transmitter.
Kanzius, an autodidact, says that he was motivated to research the subject of cancer treatment by his own experiences undergoing chemotherapy for treatment of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.
Kanzius died from pneumonia on February 18, 2009, at a hospital near his winter home near Sanibel, Florida. The
pneumonia developed as complication after two recent rounds of chemotherapy.
John was a cousin of Dolly, wife of Sam Mayberry, W3CYO.
John Kanzius
(This was in the Observer-Reporter, Washington, PA)
John Kanzius, who had no medical background but invented a device that has become one of the most promising breakthroughs in
cancer research in years, died Wednesday, February 18, 2009, of complications from the disease he was fighting to cure.
A 1962 graduate of Trinity High School, Kanzius was 64 years old and lived in both Erie and Sanibel Island, Fla.
Mr. Kanzius died from pneumonia, a complication from rounds of chemotherapy he recently underwent.
A former partner at Erie’s Jet Broadcasting Co., Mr. Kanzius had owned and operated several television and radio stations in the Erie
area. He received national attention in 2008 after he invented a machine that uses heat from radio waves to kill cancer cells without
harming other cells. He set up a crude laboratory in his home and tested his theory using his wife, Marianne’s, pie plates and raw
meat he purchased from a local butcher.
Mr. Kanzius was inspired to develop the treatment after he was diagnosed in 2002 with chronic lymphocytic leukemia and witnessed
young children undergoing chemotherapy and radiation.
“I’m just kind of shell-shocked. Over the last seven years, even though he was deathly sick, he devoted all of his strength, time and
everything he had to help cure cancer so little kids don’t suffer,” said his brother, Joe Kanzius of Washington. “He did all of this cancer
research; he did everything he could for humanity.”
Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, currently are experimenting with the device, called the Kanzius RF Machine. If it is effective, doctors would be able to treat cancer without using drugs
and surgery, and without side effects.
Mr. Kanzius was selected in 2008 by Discover Magazine as one of the world’s 50 most promising scientists, was featured on the Discovery Channel, and was interviewed by “60 Minutes,” the “CBS Early Show” and many national newspapers and news networks
about his work.
“It just kept getting bigger and bigger and kept growing and growing. Nobody was able to dispute it. It’s promising, and they’re still
working on it. Many scientists are still involved,” said his sister-in-law, Anne Kanzius of Washington.
Kanzius’ survivors include his wife, Marianne; two daughters, Sherry Kanzius and Toni Palmer; and two grandchildren.
Funeral arrangements are incomplete and are being handled by Dusckas-Martin Funeral Home, 4216 Sterrettania Road, Erie.