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The National Association for Amateur Radio American Radio Relay League is a 501(c)3 non profit organization. Sacramento Valley Section Serving Alpine, Amador, Butte, Colusa, El Dorado, Glenn, Lassen, Modoc, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Sacramento, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Sutter, Tehama, Trinity, Yolo & Yuba Counties in Northern California Sacramento Valley Section is located in the ARRL Pacific Division. ARRL National Page: www.arrl.org/Groups/view/sacramento-valley Thanks to Greg Kruckewitt KG6SJT for maintaining our Section ARES web page and for assisting with our Facebook page and Twitter feed. Submit Section News updates to kp4md(at)arrl.org
Past Section News Archive
Amateur Radio License Classes and Volunteer Exam (VE) Information and Schedules
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July 2019 News
From the Section Manager
Here are the latest news and happening from clubs and members around our section.
June 22-23 ARRL Field Day Report
This month's news features reports, photos and videos from ARRL Field Day activities. I offer my sincerest apologies to those in the northern areas of our section that we were unable to visit this year. Section Affiliated Club Coordinator Max Soucia and I appreciated the hospitality shown at the Field Day sites that we could visit in the eastern and southern areas. I do hope we will have enough help next year to visit more Field Day sites throughout the section.
Mother Nature graced our Section with mild weather but challenged us with scarce sunspots this Field Day weekend. Thanks to the efforts of the many amateur radio operators and clubs who helped this year's ARRL Field Day continue to be our outstanding public exposition and exercise of amateur radio's emergency communication response capabilities. Thanks also to all who have sent photos and reports on their Field Day events. Be sure to see the Field Day reports, media hits and click on the "Field Day Photos" links below to see our online photo albums.
New Section Appointments
- We welcome Don Kirkpatrick W6FS as Amador County ARES EC replacing Dan Edward KJ6WYW,
- Robert Cobb K6JBH is the new Lassen County EC replacing Terry Cobb K6ME,
- and Michael Ellithorp KF6OBI is the new District 2 DEC replacing Mac McCulley W6MAC who became a Silent Key.
Section Manager Election
Thanks to all for supporting my re-election as your Section Manager. I am honored to continue serving you. True recognition is due to our Field Organization volunteers and Section members whose service makes this Section work.
It is with great sadness that I announce the passing of Section Member Don Nelson KO6CO of Sacramento who became a Silent Key on June 13.
Thanks to all who participated in our June 20 Section-wide nets on 2m and 75m. See our net report below.
Future Section Events
Mark your calendars for the Western Placer ARC Hamfest in Lincoln, CA on Saturday, September 21, and the ARRL Exhibit and Special Event Station N6M at the Rocklin Maker Faire at Sierra College, Rocklin, CA on Saturday October 12.
ARRL Pacificon Convention Oct. 18-20, 2019
Register online now at www.pacificon.org for the October 18-20, 2019 ARRL Pacificon Division Convention at the San Ramon Marriott. PACIFICON is the annual ARRL Pacific Division convention, held each year in October. It is THE premier amateur radio conference in the western U.S.
You can still send July news to kp4md@arrl.org. This website is visited most during the first week of each month, but do check back as it is often updated with late breaking news.
Our Section website, Facebook and Twitter pages are a work in progress, and your suggestions and submissions are always welcome.
73, Dr. Carol Milazzo, KP4MD
American Radio Relay League Sacramento Valley Section Manager
kp4md(at)arrl.org
You can always send compliments, suggestions and submissions for inclusion in our Section News to kp4md(at)arrl.org
June 20 ARRL Section-Wide Net Report
No Section Net is scheduled for July.
The ARRL SV Section-wide nets were held on Thursday, June 20. Andy Boone KJ6IYM opened the VHF net on the WD6AXM 146.085 MHz FM repeater at 7:30 pm PDT after the Yuba-Sutter ARES net signed off.
Here is the VHF net check-in list: KJ6IYM, KP4MD, KG6SJT, N6CNY, AG6IP, KK6VZD, AI6JB, KM6NFE, K6CEL, KA6ETB, KM6OGC, KM6RHC, KK6SOZ, KK6ISQ, K6VNR, WA1NER, KA6FFM, KM6WYQ, N6PGQ, WW6L, N6IRA, W7KOZ, KK6ZGD, WG6CFS, WA6OHP, KB9MYF, W6VJ, KOØX and AE6LM.
At 7:45 pm PDT, ARRL SV Section Manager Carol Milazzo, KP4MD, called the SV Section HF net on 3880 kHz LSB. Propagation was fair and KP4MD, K6CEL, WW6L, WB6OGD, K6GCN, KM6NFE, N6PGQ, W7KOZ, AE6LM, WA6OHP, WG6CFS, N7JIL, K7XE and N5BMU checked into the HF net.
Thanks to all who assisted and participated in our June Section-Wide Nets!
All Sacramento Valley Section radio amateurs are welcome to check into our Section Nets. The nets carry announcements of interest to our section and test our section-wide station communication capabilities.
ARRL Sacramento Valley Section Nets are conducted only on months when announced, on the third Thursday of that month following the 7 pm Pacific Time Yuba-Sutter ARES net on the WD6AXM 146.085 MHz FM repeater, followed by the HF Section Net on 3880 kHz LSB +/- 3 kHz. During spring and summer months the HF net may be conducted on 5330.5 kHz USB as propagation permits.
and Listen to our HF net on a web receiver.
| W6DRZ receiver at Half Moon Bay | 3880 kHz | No 60m |
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| WO7I receiver in Northern Nevada | 3880 kHz | 5330.5 kHz |
| Northern Utah web receiver | 3880 kHz | 5330.5 kHz |
Hourly Northern California NVIS Observations
This chart shows colors that represent the recommended HF frequencies for contacting stations for a particular hour. Both stations should use the SAME frequency denoted by the color at the location of the target station. The chart is in Universal Time (UTC). More information at http://www.sws.bom.gov.au/HF_Systems/6/6
ARRL Exhibit and Special Event Station N6M at October 12 Rocklin Mini Maker Faire
Posted June 1, 2019
Call for Homebrewers and Radio Amateurs!
The ARRL Sacramento Valley Section will sponsor an exhibit promoting Amateur Radio and our local clubs at the Mini Maker Faire at Sierra College in Rocklin on Saturday October 12 from 9 am - 4 pm. Admission is free! We plan a display of homebrew amateur radio equipment and antenna projects, Morse Code practice stations, and offering hands-on experiences for attendees to learn about amateur radio wireless technology and to communicate on the air with amateur radio operators via our on-site Special Event Station N6M. We will offer literature and information on licensing, local clubs, the ARRL and amateur radio's role in community service and promoting careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math.
If you are interested in participating in this fun promotional event, please contact ARRL Section Youth Coordinator Orion Endres at ai6jb@arrl.net.
Update from Bob Wortman, WB6VYH, Section Technical Coordinator
Posted June 1, 2019
Here comes summer, maybe
Minden Nevada Annual Radio Swap meet is on June 1, 2019
http://www.w6thw.com/n7rca/main_page.html
July 19-21, 2019 is the Nevada State Amateur Radio Convention and the swap is on Saturday the 20th
http://nvcon.org/vendors/ham-swap
Pacificon is Oct. 18 to the 20th.
http://www.pacificon.org/
I will be all over Northern California, Northern Nevada, Idaho (still thinking about moving to Idaho and looking for a place) and Oregon this summer. If you have cards to check for DXCC, VUCC or WAS and can’t get out or find someone in your area let me know. I will need advance notice so that I can advise the ARRL Awards Desk especially for the out of state ones.
73, Bob Wortman, WB6VYH, wb6vyh@arrl.net, wb6vyh@comcast.net
ARRL Pacific Division DXCC Awards Manager, Sacramento Valley Section Technical Coordinator, WAS Award Manager, VUCC Awards Manager
Placer County ARES participate in SRMC MCI Exercise
Posted July 7, 2019
On June 19th Placer County ARES participated in a Mass Casualty Incident (MCI) exercise at Sutter Roseville Medical Center (SRMC). The exercise was a drone strike on a Black Hawk Helicopter landing on the SRMC helipad causing it to crash and start a fire. There were nine "victims" with varying degrees of injuries. Placer Count ARES were located at the Emergency Department, and at the scene. The relayed "victim" injury information from the scene to the emergency department, so the emergency department could be properly prepared to treat the injures. The exercise was a great success. I would like to thank KM6RIW, WH7QC, WH7DH, KC3PO, KM6RIX, K6ABJ, NI2U, N6UWQ, and KK6GLP for participating.
Carl First N6CKV Placer County ARES EC
The pictures are from Mike KK6GLP
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July 13, 2019 - Sacramento County ARES Training
Posted July 7, 2019
The next Sacramento County ARES training and meeting is scheduled for Saturday July 13, 2019 from 9:00 am to 12:00 noon at the Sacramento Sheriff's Central Division, 7000 65th Street, Sacramento, CA 95823.
Vince Cracchiolo KI6NHP is the Sacramento County EC.
For more information, visit the Sacramento County ARES web site at www.saccountyares.org
Update from Jim Piper, N6MED, Red Cross Liaison to Amateur Radio
Posted June 1, 2019
Changes are afoot in the American Red Cross Gold Country Region.
The ink will be dry on the changes this coming January 1. Nationally, the Red Cross is aligning its previously uncorrelated disaster response and blood services regions.
The Gold Country Region will be giving up San Joaquin and Stanislaus counties which will be absorbed by the Central Cal Region. We will be gaining the north coast Del Norte, Humboldt, and Mendocino counties and Lake county to increase our regional response area by two counties to 26. Along with these counties comes additional disaster potentials, not the least of which are more wild land fire and tsunami risk.
Homogeneous training for voice and digital disaster comm skills between ARES districts becomes ever more important.
Thanks to ARES for all that you do and best regards, Jim / N6MED
Pot grow lights interfere with Ham Radio
Submitted by Rene Smythe, WB6PSY, posted March 4, 2017
I have experienced this interference for the past few years. I found the interference by swinging my 10m Yagi monobander around until the noise became over S9. I then went outside to see where the beam was physically pointed and discovered a garage where indoor pot is being grown. The lights are on a time cycle so the interference comes and goes. 40º degrees in either direction takes the noise out.
Now that marijuana is being legalized in more states, more hams are going to experience this noise.
WB6PSY
Radio Frequency Interference
posted February 3, 2018
ARRL and the FCC have a cooperative agreement in radio frequency interference matters. You may submit interference reports together with your supporting documentation to ARRL EMC Engineer Mike Gruber W1MG who then files the report with the FCC Gettysburg office.
You may also contact our Section Technical Coordinator Bob Wortman, WB6VYH, or our Section Official Observer Coordinator Bob Hess, W1RH, for assistance. More information is posted under the "From the Section Manager" notes in the November 2016 Section News - Carol KP4MD
Our Official Observer Coordinator Bob Hess, W1RH, shares this helpful web page by NK7Z for identifying sources of Radio Frequency Interference http://www.nk7z.net/rfi-snapshots
Club and Member News - July 2019
Update from Friends & Amateur Radio Communications Enthusiasts
Posted July 7, 2019
Dennis, W6UHQ was Field Day Team Leader for affiliated club Friends & Amateur Radio Communications Enthusiasts KF6NNM Field Day site in Herald, CA.
Update from Yolo ARS
Posted July 7, 2019
Yolo Amateur Radio Society, Yolo County ARES, Sacramento ARC, and UC Davis Amateur Radio Club. The members of these clubs combined to conduct their Field Day at the UC Davis Campus on June 22 and 23rd.
Gary Matteson WA6TQJ, President YARS
Congratulations also on your media hit on KCRA-TV! - Carol, KP4MD
Update from Amador County ARC
Posted May 2019
Our Club meetings are the first Thursday of every month at 7PM at the Volcano Telephone Tech Center in Pine Grove. We also have a club breakfast on the third Sunday of every month, at 8:30AM at the Waffle House in Jackson. Thanks for stopping by and we hope to meet you sometime.
Club Repeaters
On VHF, you can find us at 146.835 MHz, minus offset, 100 Hz PL. On UHF, you can find us at 441.525 MHz, plus offset, 100 Hz PL. Both repeaters transmit 100 Hz PL, so you may use PL decode on your receiver, if you like. Our weekly net is on Tuesday evenings, 7:30PM on both repeaters. We also have a simplex net on 146.55 MHz simplex on the second Tuesday of each month immediately after our net on the repeater. In either case, visitors are always welcome.
Update from Mount Shasta ARC
Posted May 2019
WEEKLY NET: The Mount Shasta Amateur Radio Club conducts a weekly net on Wednesday evenings on the Grey Butte repeater. Early check-ins start at 6:35 PM Pacific Time and the Net starts at 7:00 PM. The Grey Butte (W6YOP) repeater operates on a frequency of 440.275 MHz with a +5.0 MHz offset and a tone of 118.8.
MONTHLY SOCIAL MEETINGS: The members of the club gather for social and radio operating time at the clubhouse on the second Saturday of each month at 10 AM.
License Testing – Second Saturday of Odd numbered months. Please see the licensing/testing page for details.
Science Festival: May 18, 2019 Sign-up here to help the club introduce the art and science of radio to the young and the old at the Mt. Shasta Science Festival.
Update from Paradise ARS
Posted May 2019
June 3 Meeting 7:00 pm at the POA Library 14211 Wycliff Way in Magalia. Presentations: Introduction to Contesting – Grant Hunsicker – KK6FKW, Field Day Presentation – Stephen McDermott – W6AKF, Repeater Etiquette – Grant Hunsicker KK6FKW (Time Permitting)
PARS Net - The Paradise Amateur Radio Society net meets weekly on Thursday nights at 1900 on the Butte County Search and Rescue Repeater. Radio Settings: 145.290, Minus Offset and PL of 110.9.
PARS Breakfast - The Paradise Amateur Radio Society is holding monthly breakfasts at 9:00 am on the 2nd Saturday of each month. Location to be determined.
Update from Shingletown ARC
Posted May 2019
Our club is made up of a great group of new and experienced anateur radio operators who live in and around Shingletown, California. Shingletown is located approximately 27 miles east of Redding, CA. in Shasta County, just a few short miles from beautiful Mt. Lassen Volcanic National Park. Our club callsign, WO6P, is in memory of Richard Cloyd (SK). Richard was very active in the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) and was the Emergency Coordinator for Shasta-Tehama ARES for many years.
The club meets on the first Tuesday of each month, at Open Door Community Church, at 33883 State Highway 44, Shingletown, CA. Meeting time is 7:00 PM local time. The club holds a weekly 2M net on Tuesdays at 7:00 PM local time on the WO6P repeater (147.165, +600 offset, PL 88.5.) There are no nets on meeting nights. (The WO6P repeater is owned and maintained by STARC.) The club also has a 2nd repeater to increase the communications coverage in the Shingletown area.
We also offer amateur radio licensing exams every other month which are sponsored by the Shingletown ARRL Volunteer Examiner Team. Licensing exams are held at the same location as the monthly meetings. We request that candidates pre-register.
Update from River City ARCS
Posted July 7, 2019
Editor’s Message
Well another Field Day is over, we should have results at the meeting. The weather while warm was not unbearably hot and there was some wind which helped. The potluck went well and I don’t think any one went hungry.
This year we used a new location, the VFW in Fair Oaks where we had a picnic shelter which gave us a nice shady area then at night the shelter lights were turned on so there was plenty of light, no struggling with desk lights, folding led lights and the like.
At our July 2 meeting program, Mike Meighan KD6ILC will present an introduction to the Sacramento County Sheriff 's Amateur Radio Program (SacSHARP). SHARP members have volunteered for over 125,000 hours of dedicated service helping county citizens and neighboring communities.
The Sheriff's Amateur Radio Program is comprised of volunteer amateur radio operators licensed by the Federal Communication Commission (FCC). The members of the Sheriff's Amateur Radio Program have the responsibility of assisting the Sacramento County Emergency Operations Center with any emergency requiring auxiliary communications.
The Sheriff's Amateur Radio Program also provides communication in assisting Search and Rescue, locating "at risk" missing persons, and crime prevention. SHARP may also be used to help deter juvenile truancy, prevention of graffiti, and public nuisance issues such as illegal dumping. Volunteering as the "eyes and ears" for the county, SHARP has helped in the apprehension of criminals.
Ken Martin KE6RMN Editor
DIY Radio BuildersThe DIY Radio Builders group will start meeting in July. See our DIY Radio Page for details.
Our club meetings are held at 7:30 pm on the first Tuesday of each month at the Sacramento Co. Corp Yard (SMUD) building 5026 Don Julio Blvd, Sacramento, CA 95842 (corner of Elkhorn and Don Julio Blvds). Meetings are open to the general public and visitors are always welcome.
Our on-the-air nets are conducted every Wednesday evening at 8:00 pm on the 145.25 MHz N6NA FM repeater, followed by an 8:30 pm 10 meter net on 28.420 MHz USB and a slow scan television net at 9 pm on the 441.300 MHz N6NA FM repeater. All club members and visitors are welcome to check in to our nets. See more information at www.n6na.org/nets
Club member Ioan Negru, AI6UO, invites all interested to check into his Slow Speed (5 wpm) CW Net on 28.055 MHz. Net times are Tues. & Thurs. at 10:00 AM and Wed. at 7:00 PM Pacific Time.
Update from Sierra Foothills ARC
Posted July 7, 2019
President’s Message - Field Day 2019 – Another Resounding SUCCESS!
By all accounts this year’s Field Day (FD) was one of the best! It was all due to the leadership and efforts of our members. This year’s event was co-led by, in no particular order, Gary, KC3PO, Al, NI2U, Bob, K6UDA, and Herb, KM6JBI. Thank you gentlemen for doing all the legwork and organizing an amazing weekend!
Of course, they couldn’t have pulled this off without the hard work of many dedicated SFARC members. Top of my list was the food. Thank you Jim, KQ6VP, for always having a hot pot of coffee brewing, BBQ’ing Tri-Tip and chicken, organizing and serving our Pot Luck dinner on Saturday. I’ve had the pleasure of enjoying Jim’s BBQ for over 3 years, and this years is perhaps the best!!
The weekend got off to a great start with a delicious hardy pancake, eggs, and sausage breakfast hosted by Lin and Brian, AI6US, for 30 or so early risers Saturday morning. Thank you Lin & Brian for kicking off this year’s FD by sharing breakfast with us.
Setup started on Friday afternoon at noon and by 7 pm, all the antennas, pop-ups, power cords, tables, and chairs were ready for the weekend. I didn’t take an actual head count but there were at least 20 members there to help out. We erected (2) 80m Doublets, (2) Beams, (1) Hex Beam, and a VHF/UHF antenna. One of my pleasures of working with you all is the phenomenal support you provide. Thank you all for coming out to help!
Now for some stats for those who like numbers. On Sunday morning, I noticed we already had 77 people sign-in. With the visitors on Sunday, I wouldn’t be surprised if we had over 90 people show-up. Dennis, WU6X, noted we had 22 operators log 1,126 contacts in the 24 hours of operation. That is an average of 46 QSO/hour or 1 every minute and a half. Not bad at all. Our two youngest members among other, Talia, KM6UMY, and William, KN6BXV, made their first HF and Digital HF contacts on Saturday. Congratulations to you both.
One of my favorite parts of FD is relaxing Friday evening after a satisfying afternoon’s work setting up. While Brian, Chip, KM6MDF, Herb, KM6JBI, and I were sipping on some Woodford & Hennessy and listening to 20m, we heard a strong CQ. Nathan, K6NDC answered and worked his first HF contact … in Rarotonga, Cook Islands! For those who like numbers, that’s 4,880 miles!! Not bad for your first time.
Every group has someone who likes to grab attention. If there were an award, it should go to Dustin, W6YUE. He started it off with the biggest pneumatic CANNON I’ve ever seen. It was so heavy he built its own stand. It shoots tennis balls out of sight. Now you might ask where did he get the compressed air? A Toyota Celica isn’t known for its vast storage and hauling capacity. Simple, he hooked it up to his car’s AC compressor. He didn’t stop there; he also used his AC compressor and a cordless drill to blend some mighty fine Margaritas. Check-out the Groups.io photo album if you don’t believe me. Thanks Dustin for providing awesome Margaritas and memories!
Scott, KK7AIR, one of our newer members and a pilot, provided our Educational Presentation Saturday evening. He hypnotized us with a fascinating talk on the history of aviation navigation and radios. He also was aviation’s de facto ambassador by flying in every day of the event (or at least attempting to). Unfortunately, his piloting skills weren’t up to the challenge of landing in 30-40 mile per hour winds Saturday morning. Scott, I think I can speak for everyone when I say, we are glad you didn’t try to unseat Dustin for the Grab Attention award by auguring in on Saturday morning’s attempt to land.
I am certain with so many great things going on last weekend, by so many fine dedicated folks that I probably neglected to give credit where credit is due. To all of you, thank you for coming out and making FD 2019 so memorable.
If you took pictures, please share your memories with everyone by posting to the Field Day 2019 Photo Album on Groups.io.
73 Orion Endres, AI6JB President AI6JB@arrl.net
Meetings - July 12 at 7:30 pm. See w6ek.org for details!. Nets - Every Thursday night at 7:30 pm is our general net. Everyone is welcome, no membership needed. Also every 1st and 3rd Wednesday is the Elmer Net. Get answers or help on your projects, radios, antennas or anything else ham radio related. 7:30 pm. Held on the W6EK Repeaters: 145.430 pl 162.2; 223.860 pl 110.9; and 440.575 pl 162.2. Come join the fun!
Newsletter at: http://w6ek.org/newsletters/SFARC%20July%202019%20newsletter.pdf
VE Exams - Every 1st Saturday each month at Raley's Granite Bay. Starts at 8 am. Walk ins welcome. See http://w6ek.org/veexams.html or contact is Al, NI2U at vechair2015@w6ek.org.
VE Report June 2019
Thanks again for all the VE's that were able to come to the session. We had seven VE's. We had a very successful session again. We administered 17 elements to 13 candidates. 12 earned a new or upgraded license. We have 6 new Technicians, 3 new Generals and 3 new Extras.
Thanks, Al NI2U
Update from North Hills RC
Posted July 7, 2019
The next meeting of The North Hills Radio Club will take place on Tuesday evening, July 16. The evening will kick off with the monthly board meeting at just after 6:00 P.M.
All NHRC members are invited to attend. The board meeting will be followed by the general membership meeting at 7:30 pm.
Remember NHRC meetings are open to the general public. We meet at the former SMUD building which is located at 5026 Don Julio Blvd, at the corner of Elkhorn and Don Julio in Sacramento.
See you all on Tuesday evening June 18. Sincerely, Doug Emerson, Vice President, North Hills Radio Club. Amateur radio call sign N6NFF
Update from Samuel F Morse ARC
Updated July 7, 2019
Because of the July 4th holiday, our next SFM ARC inperson meeting will be held at its normal time and location July 11th (followed by our Aug 1st meeting). The SFM ARC in-person meeting will be held in the Howard Crowley room upstairs at the Carmichael Presbyterian Church. Directions, including a Google Map, are available at the bottom of the W6SFM homepage.
At our July meeting, we will be discussing ARRL news and events. We will also have our annual re-cap meeting on the club’s Field Day 2019 activities including scores. As always, we will have our “show and tell” portion where Members and visitors are welcomed to share their Ham Radio related items they find of interest.
On-Air Net MeetingEach Tuesday of the week 8:00 PM on 3.545 MHz the SFM ARC enjoys getting on the air with CW for our weekly Nets. You do NOT need to be a member of the SFM ARC to check into our nets and we encourage you to invite a friend to join us as well. Although our nets usually run around 15 wpm code, we are all happy to accommodate those that are slower and need us to oblige. If you are unable to copy Morse Code or need some code practice, please feel free to visit our on-line LIVE streaming broadcast of both the Audio and a CW to Text decoding of the meeting. The “LIVE FEED” link can be found on our home page of our website. With our YouTube Live streaming system, you can watch the Live Feed on your Apple IOS or Android devices. You do not need to have a YouTube account to access the feed. However, you will need one to subscribe to our channel. Those viewing through YouTube can chat with others watching on-line as well. This of course is not mandatory, but rather just a way of making everyone feel more involved in our on-air nets. If you like, you can “check-in” using the chat window and you will be included with our On-Air Net log. Simply announce your call letters in the chat window.
Tell A FriendDo you know someone in need of a Ham Club to call home? Perhaps someone that wants to learn Morse Code, are interested in CW or already knows and uses it? The SFM ARC would love to be their new Club home. Our in-person meetings are held each 1st Thursday of the month at 7PM. Please use the rear parking lot and entry for best access to the meeting. A map and directions can also be found on our website. We hope to see you at our next meeting!
Thank You, Chris AI6U Secretary 2019
Update from Western Placer ARC
Posted July 7, 2019
Annual Ham Fest Scheduled for Saturday, Sep 21
The date for the annual WPARC Ham Fest will be on Saturday Sep 21, 2019. Plan to join us at McBean Park in Lincoln, CA. Make your list to buy or sell. We're looking forward to seeing you there!
Ham License Testing - Wednesday, July 3, 6 PM
WPARC offers Ham radio license testing on the first Wednesday of each month at Round Table Pizza at 6 PM (see below for map and directions.) For more information please email Chuck KK6DOA
WPARC Board Meeting - Wednesday, July 3, 7:30 PM
WPARC conducts Board Member meetings on the first Wednesday of each month at Round Table Pizza at 7:30 PM (see below for map and directions.) The board welcomes members and guests who wish to observe or bring business before the board.
WPARC Meeting and Testing Location - Tuesday July 16, 7:00 PM
WPARC holds Member Meetings on the third Tuesday of each month at Round Table Pizza at 7 PM, 1020 Pleasant Grove Blvd #170, Roseville. This location faces Roseville Parkway at the northeast corner of the complex, just around the corner from the CVS store. Come out to enjoy some camaraderie, food, beverage, and tales of the radios! Round Table Pizza offers a pizza and salad bar buffet dinner on Tuesday evenings for about $12/person.
The club website, http://wparc.us/index.html, has a new look and new information. Jey KQ6DK is now club web master and is updating the the site on a regular basis. Thanks to Jey for all his work on the website.
Don’t forget about our WPARC Facebook page. It is at: https://www.facebook.com/WPARC
Want more? We now have a Twitter account! Just search for @k6pac (the club repeater call sign with the “@” symbol). We are following the ARRL, the ARRL Sacramento Valley Section, Kenwood, and Yaesu and a few others. If you think of someone we should follow, please email me. I know there are a few local clubs with Twitter accounts and I will add them.
73, Michael Buck. K6BUK
WPARC on Facebook and TwitterCheck us out on Facebook and Follow us on Twitter (@k6pac)
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Update from El Dorado County ARC
Posted July 7, 2019
FROM THE PRESIDENT
Hello El Dorado County ARC,
Well its June and that means it’s time for Field Day. So, find your sun screen, bug repellent and canteen and come join us up on the hill on Saturday the 22nd or Sunday the 23rd. The weather should be nice and hopefully the band conditions will be good too. We won’t be having a club meeting at the FD site, but we will have a pot-luck dinner around 5pm on Saturday. Everyone is welcome to come up and operate or walk around and see the station setups. If you want to see how we hang antennas in the trees you need to come up on Friday evening or early Saturday. We can also use help with tear down on Sunday afternoon. If you don’t want to spend the entire time looking at and listening to radios you can always go for a hike or find some shade for a nap.
The Solar conditions are still poor but there is some DX to work. I have found that you must watch for band openings and then be quick to go and work the needed station. The opening may not last long and you may have to wait for the next chance. This time of year, Six Meters has Sporadic E propagation which allows you to work 600-800 miles on a single hop or further with multiple hops.
The Midwest got a multiple hop Sporadic E opening earlier this month into Japan. Sporadic E isn’t limited to six meters, it also creates propagation paths on ten meters and if we are lucky, on two meters as well. Most of the action is on FT8 now but SSB is still used and even FM will work with a strong Sporadic E opening. That’s it for now, I must get back to packing for Field Day. If you make it to the Field Day location stop by the 40M phone tent and say hello or even better, sit down and operate for a while.
73, Jay, KE6GLA
Field Day Photos Newsletter
Update from Oroville ARS
Updated July 11, 2019
Special NHW Meeting Monday July 8, 2019 7 PM Wyandotte Grange 4910 Foothill Blvd, Oroville“HOW WILL WE COMMUNICATE WITH 9-1-1 Medical or Fire Emergency, SHERIFF’S OFFICE/CALFIRE/EACH OTHER DURING A PGE SAFETY POWER OUTAGE with LIMITED WAYS OF COMMUNICATION?”
Please plan on attending this meeting and invite anyone you know in the greater south county area who has Ham Radio experience or CB radio experience and is willing to help. Flyer
OARS Monthly Meeting
OARS (w6af.com) will hold its monthly meeting at the Wyandotte volunteer fire station (Station 66), 4795 Foothill Boulevard, on 12 July 2019, 7 pm. The scheduled program, entitled “Radio For the Rest of Us,” will be presented by Alan Thompson, W6WN.
Due to the relevance of Alan’s presentation to what was discussed this past Monday night in the Neighborhood Watch meeting up the road at the Wyandotte Grange, it was decided to secure a one-time venue for this club meeting that would provide additional space for attendance. Six OARS members attended that meeting, and President Ted Cochrane invited all present to our Friday meeting.
The doors at Station 66 are expected to be open at 6 pm for a social hour prior to the meeting. Hope all can attend.
73, Jim, W7XZ
OARS Sunday Night Net meets at 2000 (8 pm) local time Sunday evenings through W6AF/R 146.655 MHz, –, 136.5 Hz CTCSS, or EchoLink Node W6AF-R. After the net session on 2M closes, a short 10M net meets on 28.450 MHz USB.
OARS Monthly Breakfast
This month’s OARS Breakfast will take place Saturday, 27 July 2019, 9 am, at Gold Country Casino, 4020 Olive Highway, Oroville, in Acorn Cafe, located on the level above the gaming floor (go to the left at the top of the escalator or to the right leaving the elevator). Hope all can attend. 73, Jim, W7XZ
Update from SOTARS/QCWA Chapter 169
Posted July 7, 2019
The SOTARS/QCWA meeting is Wednesday, July 10. You may choose lunch or breakfast. Lunch is at eleven and Denny's serves breakfast all day.
The meeting will be called to order at noon in the restaurant's back room.
The program this month is the first half of TX Factor Episode 23 which includes Mike Marsh, G1AR who is a recording master engineer demonstrating his craft. The next segment is about using the Qatar OSCAR-100 satellite. Qatar OSCAR-100 is the first geostationary amateur radio transponder, a joint project between the Qatar Satellite Company (Es'hailSat), the Qatar Amateur Radio Society (QARS), and AMSAT Deutschland (AMSAT-DL) which provided the technical lead.
The meeting as usual is at: Denny's Restaurant on the southwest corner of Howe Ave. and College Town Drive, one block North of Highway 50. 7900 College Town Drive, Sacramento Phone (916) 383-7071
Please plan to attend. 73, Dan WA6VPJ
Update from Nevada County ARC
Updated July 7, 2019
Next Meeting: Monday July 8, 2019 7 pm-9 pm.
General Meetings 2nd Monday of Each Month 7:00 p.m. at the Salvation Army Meeting Room, 10725 Alta Street - Grass Valley. Guests are Welcome. Presentation, Coffee, Monthly Raffle. Doors open at 6:30 pm.
Nevada County Amateur Radio Club members hold impromptu meetings at the Omega Rest Area on highway 20. Elevation is around 5000 ft and the views are tremendous. Our activity always draws the interest of motorists coming through the rest stop.
73, Cal McKitrick AI6MC, NCARC President 2019 Newsletter Facebook Group
COFFEE CHAT (Ham n' Coffee)
Thursdays, 8 am at Valentina's Bistro, 841 Sutton Way, Grass Valley
Update from Yuba-Sutter ARC
Posted July 7, 2019
YSARC AND SHARC FIELD DAY 2019
This year, as we did last year, we operated at Sutter High School along with the Sutter High School Amateur Radio Club (SHARC). Operations were on 6 m, 10 m, 15 m, 20 m and 40 m using phone and digital mode FT8. Between the two clubs we operated 5 stations. The club call sign of W6KJ) was used. Dave (KC9EI) set up a wireless internet for logging the contacts. Saturday evening we all chowed down on smoked Tri-Tips and brisket burgers, with side dishes.
FIELD DAY RESULTSTotal 393 QSO's, 160M 8, 80M 96, 40M 134, 20M 93, 15M 28, 10M 8, 6M 25, CW 89, Phone 84, Digital 219, Satellite 1, 38 States, and 10 countries, the furthest being Indonesia at 8679 miles. The satellite contact was via AO-91. transmitting on 440, receiving on 2M.
Joe Vilsalli (N9BD)
NEXT GENERAL MEETINGThe next general meeting will be held Tues., June 4th at Marysville First United Methodist Church, 730 D Street, Marysville. Help prepare for Field Day.
The YSARC Weekly Breakfast is held Wednesday mornings at 8:30 am at the Dancing Tomato in Yuba City.
EDITORS COMMENTS✓YSARC’s new web page is: www.ysarc.net - click on the upper right-hand icon on the homepage to join the club’s Facebook page. Past issue’s of the VHN are available on our new website.
✓Send your ham related articles and pictures to share in your VHN. Pictures of ham shacks, antenna projects, antenna parties, etc. are appreciated KI6CSN@arrl.net or KF6FVP@arrl.net
Update from Elk Grove-Florin ARC
Posted July 7, 2019
Elk Grove-Florin ARC Update
The club's new website www.W6EGF.org is now up and operating.
Members joined with River City ARCS for Field Day operations at VFW Post #6158 in Fair Oaks. The weekly net is held every Wednesday on the N6NA Repeater, starting at 7:00 PM (1900) Frequency: 145.250 (-) pl 162.2 Hz
Monthly meetings are the second Saturday of every month except for December, beginning at 7:00 p.m. (1900). Everyone is invited to attend meetings, which are held at the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Florin Station, 7000 65th Street, Florin, CA 95823
The Saturday July 13 meeting will feature a presentation by Jim Piper, RN, N6MED, Volunteer Disaster Health Services Liaison to Amateur Radio, American Red Cross, Gold Country Region. It’s Fire Season and time to prepare for major wildfires so Jim will be talking about the role of amateur radio operations in support of disaster communications for the American Red Cross, Gold Country Region. Flyer
The August 10 meeting will be the 3rd Annual Install-O-Thon and all who would like to show off their home, mobile, SOTA, QRP, other installation are welcome to come and do so. Easels and Display boards for photos will be available. If interested in participating, please contact: vicepresident@w6egf.org Flyer
The September 14 meeting will be a presentation, Disaster in Paradise, by Alan Thompson, W6WN. Alan has made this presentation to other clubs earlier this year, but if you missed it, then come and see this updated version.
Update from Glenn ARS
Posted July 7, 2019
Prez Says for July 2019
Warm Summer greetings to all! Well I must say that the month of June has been quite a ride. I have been sent sideways almost everyday. And on some days it felt like I was a ping pong ball, so much so, that I was not able to get all things ready for Field Day 2019.
On the first day of Summer the DRT was taken to Chico for use and display during Field Day. The location was set by GEARS and was at the Masonic Family Center on East Ave. GEARS also held their board and membership meetings this night. Set up for Field Day followed in due course. GARS was represented by several of its own members at this evenings doings but conducted no business as there was not time to ready for such.
After a few antennas were set up all went home for the evening to show the next morning in time to finish getting ready for a start time of 11pm. When the magic time arrived all were ready and operations commenced. When one looked out on the antenna field one saw an end feed half wave that was connected to the IC-7300 in the DRT. Also on the DRT was one vertical that was in play along with the new scanner that was placed in service by our own KJ6KIX, Michael. Thank you much Michael for spending the time to commission the scanner and do some basic programming of same.
Other antennas on site were one OCF dipole, one HF vertical and a forest of Buddipole’s. There was also the famous 20 meter self rotating dipole that belonged to Gene, WA6ZRT. Was a sight to watch this antenna rotate in the Summers breeze.
There were many contacts made on CW, Phone, and Digital modes as well. I must report that all had a grand time and we, GARS, look forward to participate alongside GEARS next year during Field Day 2020. So come on out and join the fun!
Phil, KI6SMN, has returned from his trip out of state and is in recovery mode. The hope is that he will get all caught up by the time this letter goes to press. Phil did return just in time to participate in Field Day festivities and was seen to be having the time of his life. He made more that his share of contacts using 40 meter phone. Michael, KF6OBI, on the other hand did not fair so good. Michael was running a Winlink packet station and was not able to get into his own Winlink gateway back in Willows. There seems to be many path losses in that compass direction.
A path was made to another Winlink gateway on a different bearing and messages were sent on their way. At last to no avail, none were returned within the Field Day window. Have had several reply’s this week though. KF6OBI, brought two different packet radio setups and both would connect but only one would pass traffic. FM deviation seems to be the area that needs to be addressed. More bench time and field testing to follow.
The GARS and GEARS partnership to rebuild the W6RHC repeater and to build and put up an- other repeater at a site up on Saint Johns is moving forward. A new Yaesu DR-2X has been received and a second is on order. Antenna and Duplexer are to be ordered within the next few days. The plans are to link this new repeater to the current W6RHC repeater that is now located up in Forest Ranch by Internet through Ubiquity Micro Wave. Trip up to repeater site is in planning and scheduled for the second weekend of July.
Glenn County ARES – monthly meetings are held at the Kanawha Fire Protection District fire house located at 1709 County Road D, Willows. The next Glenn ARES meeting is to be held on the 9th of July. Meetings start at 6:30pm.
We are still needing information on the location of the second mail box key (box 212) that belongs to the club. If you know who has it we would like to make contact with them to retrieve the key.
After two months off we will again return to our normal membership meeting schedule. This Month’s meeting will be on the 11th of July, at the Artois Lutheran Fellowship Hall at 6:30pm. Late arrivals and guests are always welcome. Also remember that one does not have to be a member of the club to participate in our membership meetings. So be safe in all you do and may you all have many blessings in the days ahead!
Mike Ellithorpe, KF6OBI President, GARS kilofox6obi@yandex.com or kj6hcg@gmail.com Newsletter
Update from Golden Empire ARS
Posted June 2019
GEARS monthly meetings are held on the third Friday every month, at 6 PM, at the Butte County Search and Rescue building, 3898 Morrow Lane, in Chico, and usually include an interesting and informative speaker or program. If you are interested in Amateur Radio, you are invited to attend. Doors open at 6 PM for social time (“Eyeball QSO”) General meeting starts at 7 PM: Flag Salute & Introductions, Interesting and Informative Programs/Speakers, Committee Reports, Announcements & Adjourn – 8:15 Raffle.
Monthly Breakfast
All GEARS members are invited to meet for breakfast at Farmers Skillet, 690 Rio Lindo Ave, Chico, usually on the second Saturday of every even-numbered month. Other hams are also welcome. All hams who check in on the Thursday night 146.52 Simplex Net are invited to meet for breakfast at the Farmers Skillet on the last Saturday of odd-numbered months. Other hams are also welcome. In other words, the GEARS breakfast and the Simplex Net breakfast are both on the second Saturday of the month, on alternating months, but all hams are invited to every breakfast.
LOCAL NETS
DAILY Sacramento Valley Traffic Net: 9:00 PM, 146.850 MHz (GEARS Repeater)
MONDAY Butte County ARES – Amateur Radio Emergency Services Net: 8:00 PM, 145.290 MHz (BCSCR Repeater)
TUESDAY GEARS Club Net: 7:30 PM, 146.850 MHz (GEARS Repeater)
THURSDAY North Valley Simplex Net: 7:30 PM, 146.520 MHz (National 2-meter Simplex Calling Frequency)
Any licensed ham is welcome to participate in any of the nets listed above. Please feel free to contact the net control for more information about joining the roll call, or tune in to the net and transmit your call-sign when the net controller asks for visitors to check in. GEARS encourages participation in local nets, and we are pleased to provide the GEARS repeater to host local nets as a service to the community.
Member Updates and Feedback
Please send your feedback to kp4md@arrl.org to be included in this section.
Rich and Ron's Field Day Report
posted July 7, 2019
Rich and Ron's Field Day at 38°31'51.6"N 120°24'43.2"W, Pioneer, CA, KJ6HRO. Ron Monnie KJ6HRO and Rich Leaman KJ6SII operated from California State Highway 88, Pioneer, CA.
Field Day Photos by Max Soucia, N1KGS
High Sierra Field Day Group
posted July 7, 2019
Frank Kibbish N6OI, Oliver Barrett, KB6BA, and Alan Biocca, W6AKB operated the High Sierra Field Day Site.at 38.565°N, 120.268°W.
Field Day Photos by Max Soucia, N1KGS
QSL CARDS—PAST AND PRESENT
by Al Canton, K6AAI, posted July 8, 2019
Part of the fun of amateur radio is collecting cards, called QSL cards, from other amateurs that you’ve talked to on the radio. Some people like to collect stamps from various parts of the world but hams collect QSLs.
History
The term QSL comes from the radio “Q” code meaning “I confirm reception.”
During the early days of radio broadcasting, the ability for a radio set to receive distant signals was a source of pride for many consumers and hobbyists. Listeners would mail “reception reports” to radio broadcasting stations in hopes of getting a written letter to officially verify they had heard a distant station. As the volume of reception reports increased, stations took to sending post cards containing a brief form that acknowledged reception. Collecting these cards became popular with radio listeners in the 1920s and 1930s, and reception reports were often used by early broadcasters to gauge the effectiveness of their transmissions.
The concept of sending a post card to verify reception of a station (and later two-way contact between them) may have been independently invented several times. The earliest reference seems to be a card sent in 1916 from 8VX in Buffalo, New York to 3TQ in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (in those days ITU prefixes were not used). The standardized card with callsign, frequency, date, etc. may have been developed in 1919 by C.D. Hoffman, 8UX, in Akron, Ohio. In Europe, W.E.F. “Bill” Corsham, 2UV, first used a QSL when operating from Harlesden, England in 1922.
Today
Today ham radio operators send QSL cards for a variety of reasons. It is interesting to collect them. Having made contact with a particular ham radio station it is often nice to have a card from them to remember the contact. It may be a particularly interesting contact, or one with a rare country where few ham radio operators are active. It may even be with a famous personality as there are a number of famous people around the globe who hold amateur radio licenses. In addition to this, the cards can displayed in the radio shack. Being colorful and interesting they can brighten up any ham radio shack.
Collecting QSL cards can be an interesting addition to the hobby of amateur radio. Cards from distant corners of the earth can be attractive and interesting. Not only do they brighten up the shack, but they can act as an encouragement to hear or contact some more interesting stations as well as being used to apply for operating awards.
- RadioQSL.com: Custom QSL cards at an affordable price.
Contact: RadioQSL.com, Al Canton, K6AAI, info@radioqsl.com, 916-962-9296
Section Member Duane Wyatt, WAØMJD, on Childrens Hospital's "Kaleidoscope Variety Show"
Posted February 3, 2019
The University of California Benioff Childrens Hospital's Kaleidoscope Variety Show recently featured Sacramento Valley Section member Duane Wyatt, WAØMJD, showing his ham radio operation.
In this "Video Postcard" Duane explains and demonstrates his ham radio station in this program for children.
Section Member Phil Sittner, KD6RM, on QSO Today Podcast
Phil Sittner, KD6RM, has a ham radio story that goes back over 50 years, from childhood. Still living in Northern California, Phil builds his own radios and test equipment, operates CW on 80 and 40 meters, using his fence mounted 80 meter end-fed Zepp and a pair of phased 40 meter verticals in an HOA neighborhood where antennas are forbidden. We harness Phil’s extensive technical expertise and hear his ham radio story in this QSO Today.
Listen to Phil's podcast interview on https://www.qsotoday.com/podcasts/kd6rm
Keep Our Digital Transmissions Legal on 60 Meters
Posted January 29, 2017
Our decreasing solar activity and residential antenna restrictions have attracted increasing numbers of radio amateurs to operate CW and weak signal digital modes on our lower HF frequencies including 60 meters. The five frequency channels that US amateur radio operators share on a secondary basis with US federal government users on 60 meters (5 MHz) pose unique requirements for CW and digital operators. As explained on http://www.arrl.org/60m-channel-allocation, US radio amateur emissions on our 60m channels must be precisely centered in the center frequency of each assigned channel, that is, 5332.0, 5348.0, 5358.5, 5373.0 or 5405.0 kHz. Thus, for example, a CW signal on channel 3 (USB Dial frequency 5357.0 kHz) must be precisely on 5358.5 kHz. The same ARRL page explains that all digital emissions must also be centered in the channel center.
This may appear unreasonable to radio amateurs because a 2.8 kHz channel can accommodate many digital and CW transmissions simultaneously, and requiring multiple stations to operate on the same exact frequency would result in mutual interference. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA)* explains this requirement in https://ecfsapi.fcc.gov/file/7021871884.pdf which states: "Allowing multiple emissions within the necessary bandwidth of the widest authorized modes (2.8 kHz) increases the possibility of harmful interference from secondary amateur stations to primary federal stations, and would make it more difficult for a federal station to identify an interfering amateur station. In addition, NTIA is concerned about the aggregate equivalent isotropically radiated power from multiple amateur stations transmitting within a single 2.8 kHz channel. Accordingly, NTIA requests that 47 C.F.R. Section 97.303(h) continue to require that amateur stations transmit only on the five center frequencies allocated to the amateur service." (See http://www.arrl.org/what-the-fcc-rules-say-97-303-h)
| Observed Violations of US 60 Meter Frequency Regulations | |
|---|---|
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JT65This screenshot photo shows JT65 signals received on 60 meter Channel 3 (5357 kHz USB dial frequency) from 0300-0309 UTC on January 29, 2017. In the photo, the 5357 kHz dial frequency is at 0 Hz on the left side of the waterfall and the 5358.5 kHz channel center is at the 1500 Hz mark. Decodes of several US radio amateurs are seen transmitting JT65 emissions simultaneously on various frequencies throughout the channel 3 frequency range 5357-5360 kHz. This is the familiar appearance of a JT65 waterfall display on all other amateur radio bands; however, it violates the NTIA requirement that each US radio amateur transmission be centered on the 1500 Hz mark (the 5358.5 kHz channel center frequency).ARRL Official Observer Richard Saunders, K6RBS, has posted the proper WSJT-X program settings for legal 60m JT mode operation here. |
 |
WSPRThe link http://wsprnet.org/olddb?band=60&sort=callsign&reverse=on&unique=on lists WSPR mode emissions on the 60 meter band. One can scroll down that list and see how many A, K, N and W call signs have been transmitting WSPR mode on 5288 kHz outside the authorized 60 meter center channel frequencies.US WSPR transmissions continue to be observed on the WSPR software default 60 meter frequency of 5288 kHz, a completely unauthorized frequency for US radio amateurs. |
Each licensee has the final responsibility for the lawful operation of his or her station. Unfortunately, the increasing automation in our radios has apparently accustomed some to falsely assume that the radio will correct for operator carelessness and ignorance of regulations. Our cooperation with NTIA requirements is essential for our continued access to the 60m channels and for possible future access to the new ITU worldwide 60 meter allocation at 5351.5 to 5366.5 kHz. (See http://www.arrl.org/news/view/arrl-asks-fcc-to-allocate-new-5-mhz-band-retain-channels-and-current-power-limit and http://www.arrl.org/news/fcc-invites-comments-on-arrl-petition-to-allocate-new-5-mhz-band). Please be aware of these requirements if you intend to or currently operate CW or digital modes on our shared 60m allocations. The Amateur Auxiliary is documenting this matter and hopes to raise its awareness in the wider amateur radio community.
-Carol Milazzo, KP4MD
*The NTIA is the federal authority that coordinates radio spectrum use for the US military and federal government while the FCC serves in this capacity for US civilian radio spectrum users.
Free Amateur Radio Club Website Template
Posted January 20, 2019
Section Member Al Canton K6AAI is offering a generic amateur radio club WordPress website template for free. See the sample website posted at https://k6anc.com/wpradio/. If interested, please contact Al at ac@K6AAI.net
