Ham On A Bike

  I received a few comments from my recent post "So You've Learned Morse Code (CW). Now What? Some operators say they are having difficulties finding operators sending at a speed they could copy.  Over a few days I took time to listen across the bands and did find their comments to be fairly accurate in comparison to the amount of total CW signals I heard. There were not many operators sending at speeds less than 15 WPM. Just might be a little daunting for a someone stepping into the Morse Code world. It is definitely not like the days when I was first licensed in 1963 or when I was relicensed in 1983 when Morse Code was required by the FCC.  In those days of yore, Novices were restricted to CW on 3.7 - 3.75 Mhz, 7.1 - 7.15 Mhz, 21.1 - 21.2 Mhz , 28.1 - 28.2 Mhz.  I look back now and tremendously appreciate my days as a Novice during those days.   There was no internet or spotting networks then. There were though regular daily and weekly CW nets and of cour...

  The CWmouse Paddle There is a CW Mouse in my POTA Bag and you don't need CHEESE to feed it. In late December of last year a mutual follower on Mastodon Radio asked me if I would try out and review his NEW concept 3D Printed Iambic Paddle he had produced. I obliged and said yes. First let me touch on MY EXPERIENCES with 3D printed Ham Radio products. I'm a pounder. It goes back to my early days in the 60's as a Novice. Pounding doesn't bode well with 3D printed paddles. When I first got involved in operating Morse Code with Parks on the Air, I wasn't confident with my CW skills so instead of purchasing an expensive paddle so I opted for an inexpensive and reliable 3D printed paddle.   I purchased several 3D printed paddles in mid to late 2021 for POTA activations.  Noting against any of the people who produced the paddles I purchased but I have found that continued use of 3D printed material in a warm environment does not hold up long term. Most of the paddle compo...

  So you've learn Morse Code (CW) The graphic above depicts of what I think some look like after they decide to place their fingers on the straight key, paddle, cootie, or bug and send their first Morse Code characters.  The cold weather of winter has taken its grip on most of the northern hemisphere and there's  "No better time than the present" than to fire up that rig and quall your Morse Code fears and get "ON THE AIR". Parks on the Air (POTA) and Summits on the Air (SOTA) have proven to be incredible instruments in bringing more and new Morse Code operators into the fold. However, "OLD MAN WINTER" has put a "FREEZE" on the number of Morse Code activators. Maybe you have become accustomed to the predictable format of POTA  and SOTA QSOs.  Don't fret.  There is another organization which lends to the same short predictable format to fill the void of the shortage of POTA/SOTA Morse Code activators this winter. http://www.k1usn.com/ ...

  I hope everyone had an enjoyable and wonderful Christmas. We'll be back sometime in early 2025. Here are a  couple of Blog Posts we are working on. I don't need 1.21 Gigawatts, a Flux Capacitor or Plutonium to make a QSO Confessions from a Wanna-Be Engineer

Quail, Deer, Rabbitt, Turkey, Squirrel,  pheasant and other animals are being hunted in the U.S.   I wake up each morning and check the forecast to determine what type of fowl or other prey I might  want to pursue.   I go through all of my equipment and gear to determine which weapon I might take.  Here's the CATCH. I'm not your typical hunter.  As cold weather has descended upon the Ohio Valley (Kentucky.USA); this old body just doesn't handle the freezing temperatures like it did when it was younger. This winter I'm scaling back doing Parks on the Air activations. I've made some winter Ham Radio goals. My goals are to do some QRP radio kit building, repairing some transceivers and doing some SSB, CW, FT8, FT4, RTTY, PSK31, Olivia, and Satellite hunting operating.   Some of my  hunting equipment consists of the following: I have a several sets of firepower to throw at the Amateur Radio / Ham Radio HF bands.  Ten Tec 580 Delta,...