#HamTalk A3. Never worked 2200/630m as I don’t have any of the gear or space I need. Been meaning to build a portable antenna for 160m but haven’t got there yet either

#HamTalk A2. Never got a gift from a non ham but did get a CW key sent to me from a CWops class member in California

@ingalls
#HamRadio #HamTalk A6.

I'm looking into getting a 2m/70cm base rig, so I can use repeaters more easily from home. My HT isn't really ideal for that. Limited power and bad audio.

@ingalls
#HamRadio #HamTalk A2.

My wife gave me an Elecraft K2 kit for my 30th birthday, but it was very much a wish list item 😄

@ingalls
#HamRadio #HamTalk A1.

Checking in from Melbourne, Australia. No home brew gear in my collection, I'm not that skilled with electronics. I do enjoy building kits though. And I'm hoping to get back to building up this 140W amp project that has been on the shelf for years.

@ingalls A1: I built an 49:1 endfed halfwave matching unit onto an RCA connector to use with my MTR3b. I'll have a video out in a couple days on the build.

#HamTalk #HamRadio

@ingalls

To be fair, I also sent her to the local club's Tech classes. I think 7 weeks of mondays out of the house, away from the kids. She actually didn't mind that part, but circumstances kinda got in the way of her getting her ticket. We're still working on it, but the fire is somewhat diminished.

BUT guess what she brought on a road trip to see her mother this weekend? And what she's sitting at a campground fiddling with right now?

So maybe it worked out?

#hamtalk

@ingalls

A7. I am looking forward to the next generation #KiwiSDR which is being designed.

#hamtalk

@ingalls

A6. I'm hoping to fill a big piece of my wishlist through local clubs that have club equipment to borrow or members that have extra gear to loan out from time to time. The list of things I'd like to try out is longer than the list of things I'd like to own.

It would be great to take down the ancient TV aerial on my chimney and replace it with some kind of working antennas.

I'd love an HF rig that was rugged and portable enough to do POTA bicycle mobile.

#hamtalk

@ingalls

A5. I have not transmitted from an airplane, but my cell phone has an FM radio receiver in it, and I was able to tune in FM broadcasts from within a commercial airliner using headphones as the antenna.

It was very noticeable that altitude makes a big difference in bringing in broadcast FM signals. I was able to copy the WCBN-FM Ann Arbor signal on the approach into Detroit Metro Airport, but the final 50 feet of descent at landing time put the signal into the noise.

#hamtalk

@ingalls

A4. My favorite AM radio pastime is listening to baseball through #KiwiSDR stations around the country. On opening day I tuned in English language home-team broadcasts from all but two teams (the Padres and the Blue Jays proved to be tough to tune).

For shortwave listening, there are some good scheduled weekly shows like Pop Shop Radio from Hope BC, and fun to copy pirate broadcasts like Ball Smacker Radio. Weekend evenings US Eastern time tend to be good.

#hamtalk

@ingalls

A3. Have never transmitted on 630m (472–479 kHz) or 2200m (136 kHz).

The closest I've gotten is listening to NDB stations in the US on #KiwiSDR systems - one near me, "Pembleton Farms KiwiSDR", has a 230 meter Beverage antenna. I've also listened to #longwave broadcast stations in Europe especially BBC Radio 4 on 198 kHz through the U Twente #WebSDR .

#hamtalk

@ingalls

A2. The ARROW club does a white elephant gift exchange at the December meeting, that's the closest I've gotten to having anything ham radio adjacent as a gift.

#hamtalk

@ingalls

A1. Checking in from Ann Arbor MI, grid #EN82

The only working homebrew equipment I have is a roll-up 2 meter J-pole antenna that Dan @kb6nu helped me build at a workshop. I also have parts for a 2 meter tape measure Yagi, but that kit didn't get built yet.

I'd like to build a better 1090 MHz antenna for better #ADSB reception, that's probably the next thing on the antenna list.

#hamtalk

@ingalls I'll bite!

Project recommendations for a freshly licensed (but a General class) ham looking to dip their toe into things on a budget? Don't have much soldering/electrical experience, but wanting to learn. At the moment, that seems to be the best way to get into the HF side (and other fun things).

Honestly, doesn't even have to be HF related, I'm happy to go down some rabbit holes. Have been messing with #DMR lately, for instance.

#HamTalk

A7:
I am a proponent of RoIP. I run a large (ish) multi-mode system myself, so I don't fall into the "it's not real ham radio" category, but I also don't see the point in QSL cards for a RoIP contact. I've never sent, nor have I ever received such a thing.

#HamTalk #AmateurRadio

A4:
My brother and I were the only two hams in my immediate family. However, I discovered that my great uncle John, K4TUN (SK) was a ham after my brother and I got our licenses in 1992 and 1993, respectively. His license went back to the 50s.
My dad was big into CB in the 70s and 80s. Never got into ham radio, but was pretty antenna/radio smart, which came in handy when we needed to build antennas and such.

#HamTalk #AmateurRadio

A3:
As a totally blind ham, APRS tracking isn't the most amazing experience ever. I can decode packets and grab lat/lon, but that's probably not as fun as seeing stations on a map. The idea is interesting to me, though.

#HamTalk #AmateurRadio

@ingalls #HamTalk #HamRadio

A4: Ham radio does not run in my family, but I have an unused QSL card from my wife's great grandfather, who is now a silent key. We found a stack of them in her family's old house, and I saved one as a keepsake. If I was home, I would share a picture. Unfortunately, none of his equipment stayed in the family.

It makes me want to print my own QSL cards if/when I start making DX contacts.

@ingalls

#HamTalk A7: I have exchanged cards from a POTA activation where I self spotted and have received them. I never thought it was a problem.