eeting d bara bulletinwhat is “tropo” 5 member contest scores 6 dx insights 6 new dxer’s...

Eeting D

Bergen Amateur Radio Association

BARA Bulletin February 2016

Volume 53 Number 2 www.BARA.ORG

NEXT MEETING

Meeting Programs

Are there any topics of interest to the

club that you would like to see a presen-

tation or demonstration? Is there a sub-

ject you could lead a discussion on?

Please contact Tony Izzo, K2AMI

K2AMI ‘at’ ARRL.NET

February 14, 2016

7:30 PM

Municipal Building Senior Center

350 Hudson Avenue

Township of Washington, NJ

07676

BARA Dues 1

BARA Auction 1

February Meeting Presentation 1

South Georgia 2002 1

VE Exam Schedule 2

Public Service Information 2

Link of the Month 2

Upcoming Events 3

January Meeting Minutes 4

Morse Trainer 4

IC-7600 Firmware Update 4

Illegal Mongolia Operations 4

Radio Parity Act 5

What is “Tropo” 5

Member Contest Scores 6

DX Insights 6

New DXer’s Handbook 6

New Operating Event 7

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Our 53ed Year

2016 BARA DUES

It’s BARA dues time again.

BARA Dues for 2016 are $25 for

an individual member and $35 for

a family membership.

Please pay at a business meeting,

kit night, or mail to the Treasurer.

Make check payable to BARA.

February Meeting

Presentation

Ron Bosco, WB2GAI, will

discuss his design and con-

struction of a “Stepper IR”

type vertical antenna that he

made.

BARA

Annual Auction

Sunday, March 6th

At

Westwood Regional Jr/Sr

High School Cafeteria

Sellers 12 Noon

Auction starts at 1 PM

Refreshments available

If item sells, seller pays 10%

fee per item, maximum $20 per

item.

Recycle your no longer used or

seldom used equipment to other

hams and buy something new for

yourself. If it’s only function is

gathering dust in the garage or

on a shelf, time to sell it.

Consider donating items to

BARA.

South Georgia

DXpedition 2002

If you have an hour “free” time,

watch the video of the 2002

DXpedition to South Georgia.

The whole expedition was hard

work, but they all seem to be en-

joying it and having fun. Look at

what these guys went through so

you can add one more country to

your totals.

https://vimeo.com/121317595

Tnx to WA2PNI and WX2S


PUBLIC SERVICE

BC RACES NET 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of each month.

7:45 PM on the W2AKR Repeater

146.790 Mhz; PL 141.3 Hz.

Net control is NJ2BC

Directed training net for all authorized

Bergen County RACES stations and

authorized liaison stations.

K2BAR NETS

VE EXAM SCHEDULE

The next Ham License

test session is scheduled for:

Feb. 19

7:00 pm

at

Westwood Regional

High School

Enter school grounds from

drive at right side of school.

Cross in front of school and

turn right into parking lot.

Enter side door with

Gymnasium sign over door.

The FCC has imposed a

Testing fee of $15.00 per

exam/retest.

Required documents:

Two forms of ID required

for all transactions.

Social Security Number

if unlicensed or FRN

Number if licensed.

Original CSCE if prior

test credit is claimed.

If license upgrade, a

signed copy of current

FCC license

Questions may be directed to:

Don Younger, W2JEK

201-265-6583

Question Pool Revision:

The General exam question pool

was revised on July 1, 2015.

Current Question Pool:

Technician, Element 2-July 1, 2014

General, Element 3 - July 1, 2015

Extra, Element 4 - July 1, 2012

Sample tests available at QRZ.COM

http://www.qrz.com/p/testing.pl

Daily FCC report of new and re-

newed callsigns available at:

http://www.qrz.com/new_hams.html

Link of the Month

Bill Hays, AE4QL's tabletop demon-

stration of what SWR is and how to

deal with it. You might not under-

stand EVERYTHING Bill's talking

about, but you'll know a lot more

about SWR than you do now.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=oejsHzurzv4&feature=youtu.be

Tnx to WI2W BC RACES

Communications Unit Any licensed ham operator in Bergen

County, if not already a member, is

asked to join the BCRACES team by

sending an e-mail to:

[email protected]

with your name, callsign, e-mail, and

municipality.

SSB Net:

Mondays 9:00 pm

10 Meters – 28.375 MHz

Net Control: Jim, K2ZO

FM Nets:

Wednesdays 9:00 pm

2 Meters: 146.79 MHz.

PL 141.3

Net Control: Hector, W2NPR

Thursdays 8:30 pm

70 cm: 444.100

PL 141.3

Net Control: Marco, KC2ZMA

Thursdays 9:00 pm

Technical Net

2 Meters: 146.955 MHz.

PL 141.3

EchoLink NO LONGER AVAILABLE

Net Control: Gordon, W2TTT

The FM Nets use the BCFMA repeater.

New HF Digital Net

Focused on EMCOMM

The New Jersey Narrow Band

Emergency Messaging System (NJ

-NBEMS) Net meets every Sunday

Morning at 9:30 AM on 7.073

MHz using OLIVIA-8-500. This

net is NOT affiliated with RACES

or ARES, so any Radio Amateur

with appropriate operating privileg-

es may participate.

FLDIGI is the preferred sound card

software because FLAMP and

FLMSG are used for message han-

dling. This is a training net for

new users, so operator error is ex-

pected and well tolerated.

For additional information contact

Bill, KC2VUT at arrl.net, Rick,

N2PHI at comcast.net or Karl,

W2KBF at arrl.net.


BARA BULLETIN

BARA RESOURCES

The BARA Bulletin is published monthly by the Bergen Amateur

Radio Association. Subscriptions are included in the annual member-ship dues. Membership is open to anyone interested in radio communi-cation.

QSL Bureau:

Warren Hager, K2UFM

Public Service:

Club Contesting:

Phil Barber, WA2LXE

VE Exams:

Don Younger, W2JEK

Donnan917’at’aol.com

Hamfests:

Jim Joyce, K2ZO

Webmasters:

wm’at’bara.org

Tony Izzo, K2AMI

David Levine, K2DSL

MEMBERSHIP

APPLICATION

Interested in learning more about amateur radio and meeting new

people? Then join the Bergen

Amateur Radio Association (BARA). Dues are $25 per year. Send your application request to:

David Levine, K2DSL

11 Mackay Ave.

Waldwick, NJ 07463

e-mail to k2dsl’at’arrl.net.

Please include your name, address, town, zip, call sign, license class, and phone number.

Upcoming Events

February 14 - BARA Business Meeting

February 16 - Kit Night at Senior Center

February 19 - VE Test Session

February 23 - Kit Night at Senior Center

February 26 - 28 - CQ 160 Meter Contest - SSB

February 27 - 28 - North Amer. QSO Party - RTTY

March 1 - Kit Night at Senior Center

March 4 - 6 - ARRL Int’l DX Contest - SSB

March 6 - BARA Auction

March 8 - Kit Night at Senior Center

Welcome New Member:

Melissa McGourty, KD2KFG - Bloomingdale

BARA KIT NIGHT 7:00 PM to 9:30 PM

Township of Washington Senior Center

350 Hudson Ave., Township of Washington, 07676

Build a kit related to Amateur Radio (partial BARA funding available)

Diagnose/repair a defective piece of equipment

Discuss radio and computer problems

Technical assistance available

Seek/give technical opinions


BARA Meeting Minutes

Jan. 3, 2016

The meeting was called to order by

Club President Jim, K2ZO.

Following the salute to the Flag,

the club officers were introduced:

VP – Tony, K2AMI; Treasurer –

David, K2DSL; and Secretary -

Bill, KB2OCJ.

Health and Welfare: Tony,

K2AMI, noted a recent communi-

cation with Noel. N2OEL that he is

going to the hospital for knee re-

pair.

Guests: KD2KBD, Al; KT2F,

Kathryn; and N2BKC, Emil.

Announcements: J im, K2ZO,

announced that:

1. Sunday, Jan. 10 will be the

Ham Radio University in Long

Island.

2. Due to the Super Bowl. The

next BARA meeting will be on

Feb. 14 at which Mike Lisenco,

N2YBB, is expected to speak

about ARRL issues.

3. The BCFMA meeting will be

held here at the Senior Center on

Sunday. Feb 21.

Jim. K2ZO, turned the meeting

over to Gene, K2KJI, and Randy,

WA2RMZ, for their presentation

on the new Yaesu Fusion Radio

System.

Jim, K2ZO, thanked Gene and

Randy for their presentation and

reminded all the next meeting is on

Feb. 14 and the BCFMA meeting

is on Feb. 21. Jim also announced

that Gordon, W2TTT, has filled

the open Trustee position.

The meeting was closed on a mo-

tion be Gordon, W2TTT, and se-

conded by Bill, WA2JKY.

Respectfully submitted,

Bill, KB2OCJ

BARA Secretary

Morse Trainer

Morse Trainer is a free windows

morse code training program de-

veloped by G4FON using the

Koch method. The Koch method

of CW training was developed by

a German psychologist, Ludwig

Koch back in the 1930's. The

concept is based on initially

learning two characters transmit-

ted 15 wpm, for example, and

adding a character when you

have mastered the first two. You

learn to react to the sound of the

character in CW at your target

speed.

The Morse Trainer software al-

lows you to set the speed at

which the character is sent and

the overall effective wpm. There

are many other settings including

changing tone and adding QSB

and QRM to the transmission.

The software may be downloaded

from: WWW.G4FON.NET

A demonstration video is availa-

ble at:

WWW.DXZONE.COM/CW-TRAINER-

DEMO/

Illegal Mongolia Operations

There are several hams Operating

on HF without proper amateur ra-

dio license in Mongolia. Communi-

cations Regulatory Communication

of Mongolia and MRSF are working

to stop such a illegal operations

here and will announce to the pub-

lic the callsigns used illegally. And

will ask DXCC Committee not count

the QSL cards of those Callsigns for

DXCC award.

Please visit www.mrsf.mn for valid

licensed Opeartor's list of

Mongolia.

Batu, JT1CS

From QRZ.COM

Firmware Update for the

IC-7600 HF Transceiver

Last May, Icom announced a signif-

icant firmware update for the IC-

7600 HF Transceiver. The update

provides a new range of functions

including waterfall screen for the

band scope, amongst many!

Please note that before you install

the firmware, you should download

the installation guide using the link

on the firmware update page:

Improvements:

• Waterfall screens, mouse opera-

tion, and other additional functions

have been added to the spectrum

scope.

• An APF AF Level setting has been

added.

• CI-V commands for antenna con-

trol, logging software and RIT/

DELTA-TX have been added.

• TX Delay (HF/50M) settings have

been added to adjust the TX delay

time.

• A Standby setting has been added

to remotely turn ON the IC-7600

transceiver by a command from the

REMOTE jack.

• “MOS-FET” is now the default

value of “SEND Relay Type.”

For more information, please refer

to IC-7600 Information for Firm-

ware version 2.00.

• Firmware can be updated using a

USB flash drive. Thoroughly read

Section 14 (UPDATING THE

FIRMWARE) of the instruction

manual to know what the update

requires.

• Backup your transceiver’s data

onto a USB flash drive as it is possi-

ble that your data could get lost or

corrupted during the update. Thor-

oughly read Section 10 (File saving)

of the instruction manual for details.

Never turn OFF the transceiver

power during the update.

From QRZ.COM

http://www.mrsf.mn


also spoke and recognzied the work

all parties are doing to insure the

passage of the bill in the House.

H.R. 1301 would direct the FCC to

extend its rules relating to reasona-

ble accommodation of Amateur Ser-

vice communications to private

land-use restrictions, such as deed

covenants, conditions, and re-

strictions. The bill has attracted 120

cosponsors from both sides of the

aisle. An identical US Senate meas-

ure, S. 1685, has attracted three co-

sponsors. It cleared the Senate Com-

mittee on Commerce, Science, and

Transportation last November.

From the ARRL ...

US house Subcommittee

to Consider Amateur

Radio Parity Act

The Amateur Radio Parity Act,

H.R. 1301, was among three bills

that the US House Subcommittee

on Communications and Technol-

ogy considered in a Thursday,

February 11 "markup" session.

Subcommittee members voted to

send the measure to the House

Energy and Commerce Commit-

tee for further consideration.

The Subcommittee on Communi-

cations and Technology is chaired

by Rep Greg Walden, W7EQI (R-

OR), who, during a January 12

Subcommittee hearing on H.R.

1301, called the measure "a com-

monsense bill" and urged his col-

leagues' support. Subcommittee

members submitted in advance

any amendments they might have

to any of the bills being consid-

ered in the February 11 markup.

The House bill's sponsor, Rep

Adam Kinzinger (R-IL), also

spoke in favor of H.R. 1301 at the

January 12 hearing, explaining

that hams in some neighborhoods

"are outright prohibited" from

erecting antennas on their proper-

ties. He cited Amateur Radio's

role in emergency communication

support, and said his bill's

"reasonable accommodation

standard" would not mandate

placement, size, or aesthetics re-

garding an outdoor antenna, leav-

ing ham radio operators and

homeowners associations to de-

cide those issues.

Reps Walden and Kinzinger made

impassioned statements at the

markup session, in favor of the

bill. Representative Anna Eshoo

What is “Tropo”

Tropospheric (a.k.a. "Tropo") DX

modes are defined by the mechanics

behind them. A Tropo DX mode is

any condition that scatters, reflects

or refracts signals in the Tropo-

sphere allowing long distance recep-

tion (and hence interference) to oc-

cur in the VHF, UHF and/or micro-

wave radio bands.

Refraction occurs when the normal

Index of Refraction has been

altered. Vertical boundaries between

different types of air masses usually

cause this..where a temperature in-

version (warm air over cooler air)

exists. This causes signal enhance-

ment. When the vertical boundary

becomes especially sharp, the

amount of refraction becomes so

severe that signals extend a great

distance as though caught in a

duct...thus the reference to tropo-

spheric ducting.

Although a temperature inversion

is key, the most important influenc-

ing factor is water vapor

(humidity). Thus..a warm dry air-

mass on top of a cooler humid air-

mass produces the best conditions.

Dry Mexican air flowing across the

Gulf of Mexico or Dry Saharan air

flowing across the Meditteranean

are two examples of prime tropo-

producing conditions. High pres-

sure subsidence (the sinking and

drying out of air)..if it occurs over

the oceans..can produce reception

across several thousands of

km! Hawaii to California recep-

tion..both on UHF and VHF..is not

as uncommon as one might think.

On the other hand..high mountains

can physically block tropo DX..and

deserts are generally too dry for

tropo. Thus..tropo is rare in the very

mountainous or dry regions of the

world.

As far as classifying tropo..there is

not a sharp line between enhance-

ment and ducting. Rather than clas-

sify the type using the actual phys-

ics involved, the heights of the in-

versions can be used as a general

rule of thumb. So typically

"enhancement" is caused by inver-

sions below 450 m (1500 ft) above

ground, and "ducting" is caused by

inversions above 450 m. (The layer

of the troposphere below 450 m is

called the "boundary layer" in me-

teorology).

Tnx to WA2PNI

Government's view of the

economy could be summed

up in a few short phrases:

If it moves, tax it.

If it keeps moving, regulate

it.

And if it stops moving,

subsidize it.

-- Ronald Reagan (1986)


MEMBER REPORTED CONTEST SCORES SUBMITTED

FOR AGGREGATE CLUB SCORE

North American QSO Party (NAQP)

Power Mode QSOs Mults Score

K2DSL Low SSB 75 43 3,225

WA2ALY Low SSB 68 43 2,924

WA2ALY Low CW 62 32 1,984

CQ 160 Meter Contest

Power Mode QSOs Score

WA2ALY Low CW 191 19,135

W2JEK QRP CW 80 4,862

BARTG RTTY Sprint

Power QSOs DXCC States Cont. Score

K2AMI Low 40 2 8 2 800

ARRL VHF QSO Party

Power QSOs Points Grids Score

K2AMI High 213 281 40 11,240

W2JEK Low 36 37 7 259

DX Insights

KERGUELEN ISLANDS FT/X

#17 ON THE MOST WANTED LIST

Kerguelen Islands, a French possession, are a

group of islands in the southern Indian Ocean,

they are some of the most isolated places on

earth, located 280 mi northwest of uninhabited

Heard Island. The climate is raw and chilly with

high wind throughout the year. France maintains

a permanent base with 45 to 100 scientists, engi-

neers and researchers. There are no airports on

the islands so all travel must be conducted by

ship. The main island Grande Terre has an area of

2,786 mi which is surrounded by 300 smaller is-

lands and inlets forming an archipelago.

Over the years several Ham DXpeditions have

taken place. Recently Nicolas, FT4XU, has been

active from the island but is now QRT. DX

World Bulletin reports that FT5XT, Gildas, is

now active from Kerguelen and will be active for

a period of time. Gildas is captain of a fishing

boat which will be sailing in the area for 3

months, so activity will be sporadic. When he is

sailing Gildas will sign FT5XT/MM.

Hopefully some of the BARA DXers worked

South Sandwich Island, VP8STI, before they

departed for their next stop at South Georgia.

VP8SGI, South Georgia Island, was operational

Friday Jan.28 but went QRT early due to severe

weather. QSL manager for VP8STI, South

Sandwich, is N2OO. QSL manager for VP8SGI,

South Georgia, is KU9C.

Good hunting.

73, W2FT

The New DXer’s Handbook

“The New DXer’s Handbook” © Second Edition, written by:

Bryce K. Anderson, K7UA, was released on January 10, 2015.

The author grants permission to individuals to reproduce this

document for personal non-commercial use under the condition

that credit is given to the author

The complete pdf document is available at:

http://www.k7ua.com/uploads/4/9/9/0/4990079/

new_dxers_handbook_second_edition_01-29-

2015_optimized.pdf

Chapter – 1 Listening – The key to successful DXing

Chapter – 2 DX Cluster Basics

Chapter – 3 The Pinnacle of DXing-The DX Century Club

Chapter – 4 The DXer’s Toolkit

Chapter – 5 Split Operation & How to Be Heard in a Pileup

Chapter – 6 DX Propagation Basics

Chapter – 7 Phonetics

Chapter – 8 The Art of QSLing

Chapter – 9 DX Intelligence


David, K2DSL, holding his

plaque for First Place in the

Hudson Division in the 2015

ARRL RTTY Roundup.

Tony, K2AMI, operating dur-

ing the 2016 VHF contest

from his “humble” shack at

his QTH. He operated four

bands, high power, multi-op

with Steve, WI2W.

NRRL Promotes Hot, Fresh Idea

NEWINGSTEAD, VERMONT – In a media briefing

today held at the organization’s headquarters, the

National Radio Retransmission Legion (NRRL)

announced a year-long operating event for ham

radio operators wanting to add “flavor” to their

operating habits.

“The National Pizza Ovens On the Air event

(NPOOTA) will begin immediately and run through

this calendar year,” says legion president Ray

Fergie, dabbing a spot of pizza sauce and parme-

san cheese from his bolo tie.

“We hope to foster a unique radio experience for our members, while

promoting the American values embodied in a good deep dish, stuffed

crust, bacon laden 3-cheese pizza prepared by your favorite local pizze-

ria.”

Portable station NPOOTA activators are asked to post upcoming activa-

tions on the NPOOTA home page. Throughout the year, both activators

and chasers will be tallied on a leaderboard which includes total stations

worked and total calories consumed.

Although details are still being finalized, the NRRL released the following

list of FAQs:

Q: Can I operate from the parking lot of my local pizzeria?

A: To be considered a valid NPOOTA activation, the transmitting anten-

na must be located with 10 feet of the pizza oven.

Q: Can the “10 feet” rule be interpreted as positioned ABOVE the pizza

oven?

A: If you can get permission to operate a portable station on the roof,

then “yes.”

Q: What modes are considered “authorized” for this event?

A: CW, SSB, Digital and All You Can Eat

Q: Do I need documentation to prove my activation?

A: The NRRL will conduct random audits throughout the year. A photo of

the radio operator and pizza cook will be required.

Q: Since I am on a diet, is it possible to activate only the salad bar por-

tion of the pizzeria?

A: We hope to implement Salad Bars on the Air (SBOTA) later this year.

From www.HamHijinks.com



169 Woodland Ave.

Westwood, NJ 07675

President

Jim Joyce, K2ZO

K2ZO ‘at’ ARRL.NET

Vice-President

Tony Izzo, K2AMI

K2AMI ’at’ ARRL.NET

Secretary

Bill Montague, KB2OCJ

KB2OCJ ’at’ AOL.COM

Treasurer

David Levine, K2DSL

11 Mackay Ave.

Waldwick, NJ 07463

K2DSL ‘at’ ARRL.NET

Trustees

Bennett Norell, KO2OK

KO2OK ’at’ ARRL.NET

Gordon Beattie, W2TTT

W2TTT ’at’ ATT.NET

Chuck Lemken, KC2SST

CLEMKEN ’at’ HOTMAIL.COM

BARA Bulletin

Phil Barber, WA2LXE, Editor

WA2LXE ’at’ ARRL.NET

Next Business Meeting

Sunday, February 14 at the

Twp. Of Washington

Senior Center

Presidents Emeritus

Bill James, WA2QHL - SK

Dominick Interdonato, NB2F - SK

Steve Mendelsohn, W2ML - SK

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