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W?VFW Monthly Meeting will be January 28th at 7pm. Eyeballs (casual informal gatherings) Before and After.
This meeting will be the 1st meeting with the new regime in power... All have been requested to bathe before coming..

Commerical- Don't have time before coming to the meeting to have dinner? Or are you still hungry or thirsty?
Our famous VFW post 3115? Canteen offers a variety of freshly cooked previously frozen pan pizza's and other tempting snacks.? If you're just thirsty or want to sip on something during the meeting, They also offer a wide range of both cold, hot and adult beverages. All reasonably priced and delivered with a smile.

Return to NETWORK Feed:? The network feed everyone has been listening to on W?VFW 145.27 repeater has been off and on the last 2 weeks. (icing on th e repeater antenna during the past week has caused some de-sense requiring ALLSTAR disconnect and a dose of sunshine) ? The Blind Hams talk group, D-star Reflector, and Allstar node... all bridged together.Allstar 50631, DMR Brandmeister 31679, and D-STAR DCS679A. This includes the Blind Hams Digital net, held twice weekly,Thursdays at 9:00 PM Eastern, and Saturdays at 10:00 AM Eastern. The Allstar and DSTAR bridges to DMR are
provided by KE4DYI. As this is a world-wide, multi-mode bridge, this is not a regional talk group. The servers and equipment for bridging are located in the NYC area. It is also streaming at:?

Also in the News:? Recent W?VFW 145.27 Repairs have included replacing an external 145.27 filter and "Wireman low loss cable P/N CQ106" (38 inches) from the Transmitter to the duplexer with a W8LM home brew? 3/4 wave length of RG-223 double shielded cable. That increased duplexer output from 18 to 28 watts. Or reduced losses from TX to Duplexer output from 4.4 dB to 2.44 dB. Theory being multiple 1/4 waves are required to best match duplexer input.

We interupt this post: The latest news from Facebook is not to believe a thing you read there, EXCEPT there are a few groups worth following:
Visually Inconvenienced Hams ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?? ? ? ? - our own Patricia Hawkins administers this group.
520 Crew?????????????????????????? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?? ???? - you know 1/2 of the smiling faces in the picture from Derby Radio Shack.
Ham Radio For Sale?????? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ??????? - administered by Dave W9WRL
amateur radio newsline??????????????????????????????????????????? - Available in print and a podcast. Many repeater groups transmit this on their repeaters weekly.
BAOFENG AMATEUR RADIO NETWORK (B.A.R.N.)? - Lots of followers mostly beginner hams.
ARRL VHF Contest - N0LD Rover???????????????????????????? - Randy N?LD formally of Rose Hill, now putting OK on the map. Fun reading their adventures.

CALL FOR VOLUNTEERS: Remember Our big? Fundraiser this year is going to be the The 2nd DEAD OF WINTER EXTRAVAGANZA on Febuary 29th. Please contact W8LM before volunteers will be assigned under double secret membership rules subject to fines and censure.

SIGN OFF:? Everyone belonging to this group can receive or post topics. The first time you post, it is delayed pending approval by the moderators, but only the 1st time, in case of hacking. Kind of a verification thing.? If you're looking for help or a part or have a question, feel free to post it here. If you'd like to invite a friend, ham or not. Just have him give a sort reason when he joins to expedite the approval. This group in not limited to members only.

145.27 repeater? is back on the air. Not perfect. We are going to replace a funky coax cable from the transmitter to the duplexer as soon as we make it and test it. Mark at Radio shack supplied us with RG-233 double shielded coax.? We have measured 4.4 db loss (50W in >18W out) in the duplexers which we estimate to be 25 years old.
We need to start raising money for new duplexers. Harold has tuned and re-tuned the duplexers twice in the last 6 months. We have no history on them, and sending them out for refurbishment just shipping can cost over $250 and refurbishment is an unknown till be physically get them to Alabama. There is a company who specializes in buy sell refurbish.?????? BTW 443.325 is just fine and alive on K-LINK...

NOW FOR a REAL TREAT-
????????????????????????????????????????????? The ALLSTAR LINK IS WORKING!!!
We are temporarly connected to the Blind Hams talk group, DMR,? D-star Reflector, and Allstar node... all bridged together. We will be "testing" it out for the weekend maybe longer...?

Allstar 50631, DMR Brandmeister 31679, and D-STAR DCS679A.This includes the Blind Hams Digital net, held twice weekly,Thursdays
at 9:00 PM Eastern (8pm local), and Saturdays at 10:00 AM Eastern (9am local). The Allstar and DSTAR bridges to DMR are
provided by KE4DYI. As this is a world-wide, multi-mode bridge, this is not a regional talk group. The servers and equipment for bridging are located in the NYC area.

It is also streaming at:


There is about a 3 second delay if you listen to broadcastify on the internet or your smart phone..

A Local group can also be followed on Facebook - "Visually Inconvenienced Hams"? and "520 crew" ?

Due to the weather and other commitments the Special event station will not happen. Sorry for any problems this may causes but I have a lot to do to get ready for school.

Thanks for sharing. I will try and check in to this event.

I KC0FUE will be hosting a Special Event Station in Celebration of my Acceptance to Newman University on January 8-13, 2020. The bands will be 40-23 cm. Some possibly frequencies are: 7.045, 7.070, 7.195, 10.125, 14.045, 14.070, 14.250, 18.138, 21.045, 21.070, 21.324, 24.96, 28.350, 50.045, 50.130, 52.525, 145.17 DMR TG Nationwide, 146.55, 442.250 C4FM, 446.00, and 1294.50. You can send me a QSL direct to my address please include a SASE or LOTW or EQSL. Scheduled time may be 09:00 to 10:15, 11:15 to 15:15, 16:15 to 22:00 for January 8-12, 2020 and after 20:30 January 13, 2020.
Sincerely,
Evert L. Hastie III KC0FUE

Pat KC?ZRY and I spent a few hours at W?VFW ham station this Sunday.. WWe have tackled and solved the low HF transmitter output. We found that even if having a charger on the new battery, not having a full 13.8 volts on the ICOM 718 reduces it's output. We also tried my ICOM 725 as it has the same power connector and found the same thing.
We also compared the receive on 80 and 40 meters where we are receiving some AM broadcast on certain frequencies 3620KC and 3940KC.. There are 2 checks to do yet.. 1st for me to check with my HF mobile rig in th earea.. and secondly to use a YAESUI FT87 portable HF rig to connect varous points in the receive change. As we go, Open wire feed to 4:1 Balun to coax to patch panel, to LDG antenna Tuner to coax jumper to 600 Watt AMP to coax jumper to radio.. Any point in the chain where there is corrosion or 2 unlike metals, could cause injection of Broadcast Interference.

The 145.27 repeater duplexer was confirmed a problem on the Transmitter side. the transmitter puts out 50 watts but gets knocked down to 20, then 8 then 5 then less than 1 watt on the output. We are looking into duplexer alternatives as we spent a day with guru Harold and his commercial quality test equipment just 2 months ago and it went south again..

With a new repeater coming, maybe new duplexers are in order.... WE will look into it. as soon as possible.

Regarding our Feb 29th event at the VFW.. Does anyone want to put on a display, show and tell or give a short talk.. We could use a cook and be sure to talk it up on the nets in the area. I have fliers if anyone wants one for the bulletin board where they work.

Finally, I have for your cold night reading enjoyment.. November 2018 to January 2020 issues of QST... message me to arrange delivery. email --.w8lm at arrl dot net.



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1. For all the advances we've made with the W?VFW repeater on 145.27. We have ran into problems yet again. We discovered at the end of a long day at the VFW attempting to resolve HF noise, we found 145.27 output from the transmitter to the duplexer was over 10:1 SWR. The repeater was immediately taken off the air. Due to the Holiday's? I will not be able to investigate it further till next Friday. Should you wish to drum me out of the VFW, I understand..
2. W?VFW UHF repeater on 443.325 is now back on K-LINK and checks of the transmitter indicate slightly over 25 watts going up the coax to the antenna. Those old Motorola duplesers have 3dD insertion so all seems well there. as the Vertex repeater is advertized as 50 watts.
3. Some work needs to be done with the tower and coax running there. PAt KC?ZWS and I found the coax leaving the tower is routed between the building and a storage shed on the ground. We found that coax when was installed in 2009. It was rigid where it was laying on the ground. That indicated water-moisture has permiated the coax and was frozen as the sun never reaches that area between both buildings. Steps are needed investigate and correct that issue.
4. Wednesday EVERGY removed our service enterance pole to the VFW post along with 3 new pole pigs. It was dark for 3 hours and we found before, during and after? noise levels on HF to remain the same. A walk of the paremeter outside of the VFW indicated no single immediate source of AC-Noise. arcing or interference. WE did not investigate any sources beyone our property. We are however hearing at low noise levels AM broadcast in the static. If anyone on the east side of town is hearing BC interference on 80-40M please contact us. Again I cannot perform any further investigation into the ICOM 718 without replacing the rig with another. That can be done post? next Friday.
5. The ICOM 718 rig in the W?VFW shack is currently outputting 50 watts at 1:1.. I plan on bringing forward a second power-SWR bridge to confirm our measurements last Wednesdy. It is rated for 100 watts. So investigation is required.
6. The 52 crew is planning on TRACKING SANTA CLAUSE on Christmas Eve.. Please participate. 146.520 is exceptionally popular in this area.?
7. Remeber Post 3115 VFW will be open Christmas eve and Christmas day.. THere are a number of Veterans who have no other place to go on those days. Many people go to support them. Should you decide to stop by, feel free to bring something to share, even if only cookies, chips or a Turkey of ham..

?? Merry Christmas,
Larry W8LM

ALLSTAR LINK is a hardware, software, internet collaboration of Ham Radio operators (and others - as it can be used commercially and GMRS).
In the realm of linking repeaters or any radio, 1st was remote bases in the1960's using phone lines or UHF point to point links. Then ECHOLINK in 2007 and has evolved into digital and things like Dstar, DMR, and Fusion. ALLSTAR is better than Echolink and as good as any of the digital modes. In our case it is ANALOG, but can connect to DIGITAL nodes. Some Digital nodes also have ALLSTAR.

ALLSTAR Link can be accessed by a radio, a computer, a smartphone and even a telephone. At it's heart is VOIP program called ASTERISK it is used for telephone calls over the internet. Even AT&T, VERIZON and COX uses VIOP for their "Clear Digital Telephone SERVICE ... Can you hear me now?"

Here is a scree shot a place to start. this is the MENU of ALLSTAR NODES.. You do not have to be logged in or a registered user to view the entire list. You do not need to request a node either unless you want to be able to access the internet via a radio. Lot's of guys use Baofeng BF888's to do it, making a local hot spot. Any simplex radio will work. even GMRS (Class A CB). The node list is found at: https://web-tpa.allstarlink.org/nodelist/


As you can see it is not necessary to login/sign-up. Across the top, To get to this display click on LISTS & STATS. Select NODES and a screen will show up like this. You can scroll all you want. This list I have a filter- that filter is W0VFW, but the filter could be LAS VEGAS or a node number.
What you need to comprehend as you can see it the various columns and what they mean. User ID is the "Owner" of the NODE. He is the guy that it was assigned to. As you can see the USER ID may not be the NODE ID. The rest of the columns are pretty self explanatory. This is the screen shot of our repeaters. Now all NODES assigned are listed. However some have never been implemented or may not be on the air. That's where the LAST SEEN becomes important. NOTE- Time is UTC, so subtract 6 hours for local time. The time you see in the screen shot, is exactly the time I took the screen shot. Both repeaters are on the ALL STAR NETWORK. You see the one says K-LINK which we know is a closed NETWORK, the other lists the VFW.. So it's whatever the VFW club wants to do with it. in our case you could connect to it from your ALLSTAR NODE..or could anyone else.? We can set up numerous ways.

So go have a look, there are YOU TUBE tutorials for beginners both on operating and building an all star node.? But a good start is to view the NODE LIST and see what is out there.. As a start- go filter "las vegas" and see how many nodes are available to connect to. Just think you can be walking down the "strip" with a HT and telling the guys in Wichita just how much money you won..?? LIFE IS GOOD....

W?VFW UHF 443.325 PL 162.2? is now operational back on K-LINK it was tested 12/11 about 6pm with a mobile in HILLSBORO who had thought their repeater was no longer part of the node. K-LINK is a private ALLSTAR NODE that is (hopefully for a long time) 24x7x365. NOTE- THERE ARE NO TOUCH TONE COMMANDS FOR USERS. IT IS LOCKED, as it should be. The K-link masters will control it. Remember to ID, you will be heard state wide.

Justin NV8Q and our Jordan K?JWH have been running all over the state taking care of multiple nodes and have invested hundreds of hours. Since W?VFW is just 1 node of many in K-link, they are turning their energies to the rest of the state. K-LINK website is Both Justin and Jordan have full time demanding jobs, and therefore all of us welcome these changes. We know if we ever need technical support we can count on them. Thanks to both.

W?VFW VHF 145.270 PL 103.5 has been a stand alone repeater for last 2-3 years. We have now fixed the internet cabling problems at the VFW and set up a ALLSTAR to work with it. 7-9pm on 12/12 we tested the node with WB2KAO repeater in Rochester, NY. We received good audio reports but was told we had a bit of hum on our audio. We believe it is our PL setting. There is an option for filtering PL or passing it. We have to look into it and not only do some testing...but? educate? members regarding protocol of the repeater now that it has enhanced features. As of now- better things are coming, stay tuned. Except for testing it is local use repeater now.

Since all the work that Justin and Jordan have started, we now have 3 members now retired that live in area. Larry, Pat and Don. We will now be the go to people regarding the repeaters. Hopefully Justin's and Jordan's work is done and Pat, Larry and Don will be filling those big shoes. If you hear Justin and Jordan on the air be sure to thank them for their service.

A little bit of an update. Last Saturday Pat KC?ZRY and I W8LM, attended the TECH-NI-CHAT annual meeting. This group has been active in Wichita since 1963. They own the 146.94 and 444.000 repeaters and thanks to a lot of work by other amateurs and a Federal Grant they were able to make repairs and upgrade their site to a new Motorola commercial repeater. They are located on a TV tower in Colwich at over 500 feet. It requires them to pay big dollars for professional climbers. They are the wide coverage repeater in the area.? At the meeting a number of Door prizes were raffled to various members. They have made their way to W?VFW's extravaganza as donations. We now have a brand new ARRL 2020 Handbook as one of our prizes..
We have invited TECH-NI-CHAT to our Extravaganza, to inform us of their offerings, offer membership and fellowship. At the end of the year they will be insolvent as Insurance is the single biggest expense they have and is on going. You may want to consider joining. There is a membership box at Radio Shack. Membership is $25 for the entire family, if hams.

Our raffle prizes have arrived (Yaesu FT70D and NanoVNA) and when making the order, I mentioned they were raffle prizes, Gigaparts, Inc. sent along 2 baseball hats with their logo on them to include in our door prizes.

I am in the process of obtaining additional things for this event.? I do not plan to let it fail because of lack of participation. However I can't do it all by myself.

We have reserved the VFW middle and back room for the Day, The wait staff asked if any extra barmaids will be needed. I expect anyone that attends uses the front Canteen for beverages. Which brings us to Food. There are a number of ways to go, We could even have one ham I know take over the food end of the event. I'm thinking of Chili and also Hot Dogs. Additionally, covered dishes from other members. Cookies or Donuts and such. We WILL be asking for donations to cover the food expenses and such items as paper plates, plastic sporks and napkins.

If anyone wants to head up our "kitchen" please contact me. It can be by donation, or by reimbursement of expenses by collected donations.

Next- Demonstrations - Show and Tell. Would anyone want to demonstrate their passion in Ham Radio. Demonstrations can include kits, Groups you belong to, Go boxes, Antenna's , NovaVNA, HOTSPOTS,? Microwave and such. In the middle room, there is a widescreen TV that I understand can run You Tube type video's via a laptop attachment. if you'd like to use it.? If you have something you'd like to promote contact me w8lm@...

Finally- (Hallelujah) We need someone (Jennifer?) that can register guests, offer memberships (2020 members get 5 free raffle tickets). Give each guest 1 door prize ticket and on the side sell additional raffle tickets $1 each or 6 for $5.? Volunteers please contact me w8lm@...

Uploaded to the files section is a copy of the Flier for our 29th of February 2020?
Hide out from Sadie Hawkins on Leap Year Day 2020 at the W?VFW 2nd Dead of Winter Extravaganze.

The flier is double sided , but you may print it to distribute it. Copies will be at the Derby Radio Shack, at the VFW post and I am taking a handful to the TECH-NI-CHAT annual meeting tonight at 7pm. The previous post has information on that meeting tonight.

We will be opening our doors to the public and other hams. We are planning on having chili and hot dogs by donation. A covered dish or dessert would be welcomed. I am asking for volunteers. If you have a go box or a satellite antenna & HT hookup, maybe you can demonstrate working it. I have kn idea what will be over head. WE may have our FUSION REPEATERS OPERATIONAL BY THEN. I myself purchased a NanoVNA this past week. I would hope to be able to demonstrate that. I also have a SharkRF openspot 2.?

Be sure to thank Mark at the Derby Radio Shack for his generous donation of 2 $25 gift certificates. We need people to demonstrate their favorite aspect of ham radio. We have a membership special that day- join for $20? and get 5 FREE raffle tickets. That's a full 2020 membership.

If you can volunteer please do so. If you can talk it up on the air and off, please do so. One thing I think would be a neat club project is to have a group buy of the D4D transceivers. They sell for $29 for the kit with a metal case, the only thing is if you buy 1-5 the postage is the same..Hense the group by.

Tec-Ni-Chat Annual Eyeball meeting is scheduled for Saturday December 7th, 2019 at the Riverwalk Church on Waco St. between 1st and 2nd. This is the same place the Wichita Hamfest is held every year.

Christmas goodies will be dupplied by members and you may want to bring some of? your favorite cookies.

Tec-NI-Chat Dues are $25 per your for the entire family. If you pay your dues at the meeting on Saturday for 2020 you will be elegible to vote for officers that night.

Tec-Ni-Chat was formed in 1963 and operates 2 repeaters 146.94 (narrow band analog FM) and 444.000.

Your dues will support this club and it's repeaters.

Hope everyone survived National Eating day, and National Shopping day. Sadly I participated in both.
I have my Raspberry pi sitting on my desk and projects waiting, but pushed that aside yesterday as my Christmas present to my self, for myself (with lots of Love) arrived from ESTONIA. Well, anyone into Ham Radio knows the hottest thing comes from ESTONIA. You know Estonia- the country just south of Helsinki or East Of Stockholm. A peninsula in the Baltic sea..? Yes, My RF Shark Openspot 2 has arrived.? Not the least expensive hot spot on the market, but highly acclaimed. I still am not getting over the $25+ cost of shipping, yet it arrived DHL in 5 days and those Chinese ones take weeks.

I am looking forward to DEMO'ing it for the FEB 29th Leap Year Event. If you want to know more there are almost 20 reviews of the Openspot? on YOUTUBE.
I made 2 contacts yesterday on it. One Fusion and then found out it converts Fusion to DMR and worked a DMR room in Kansas City. it is DMR-FUSION-Dstar-P25-NXDN- POCSAG- and APRS messaging and forwarding. Solves a belt full of radio's..

The Black Friday item I did take advantage of was from Gigaparts. I ordered a NanoVNA.. an VECTOR NETWORK ANALYZER. An Antenna analyzer and more. Again one of these you can find them cheaper on Ebay, some with li-ion batteries or not and varoius versions. Gigaparts has a battery and a quality source. they are good from 50kc to 900mhz. They have a USB connection for interface to? a computer. Just over $50. On sale to Dec 3. Some VNA's are $18,000. So it was a tough decision as to which to buy.

It is amazing now that there are cold nights, the activity on 146.52 every night. Likewise if you have internet, what you can learn about Ham Radio on various YOUTUBE "Videos" Some hams have "Channels" and multiple videos. Reviews, Do it Yourself video's, and comparisons. There are other videos regarding solar panels, building livPo4 battery packs, wind turbines. If you have a "smart" TV and are retired, it beats watching "The Price is Right"?

Next in the news- All the news that is fit to print...
TEC-NI-CHAT has a facebook page, they maintain the 146.94 and 444.000 repeaters. Been around since 1963. They have an annual meeting beginning of every December. I do not have a date and time. If you know post a reply. Annual dues at the Annual meeting is $20.

I been following the D4D transceiver kits for $40.. They are single band 80-40-30-20 +? Shipping 5-6 is the same cost as shipping 1. Perhaps a group buy. They work FT8 and JT8CALL (FT8 but keyboard to keyboard) Here is a complete "mini-station setup" by Jim WB2HLP in Michigan. Link has pictures and an equipment list. Can be built for under $200 with all new components and an optional GPS module. Here is the posting:
/g/crkits/topic/64375342

Tomorrow is the W?VFW Meeting-? Probably the most important meeting of the month..
My Show and Tell, either before the meeting or after is my procurement of some Lifepo4 batteries and equalizing charge-discharge regulator. My plan is to put together some Todays Technology ultra high capacity Go box batteries. These batteries are the size of 2 D cells and 4 in series can put out 200amps, enough to start a car.
I don't want to disrupt the meeting with the show and tells, but before and after come see me. New installation in my truck.. a 50 watt dual band Fusion. here's a pix as it will be dark out.


I am also playing with Fusion, and software programming my new radio and HT.. Lot's to learn. I ahave programming software for the Yaesu FTM7250D if anyone wants to use it. I also a SHARK OPENSPOT 2. I received a repeater frequency pair of 442.000-447.000 and will be putting repeater son the air this winter. Also investigating ALLSTAR? Nodes. Hope to invite the W?VFW crew to connect to alstar by Christmas.. Stay Tuned.
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Reminder - W?VFW Monthly Meeting is NEXT Tuesday - November 26th. This will probably be the most important meeting of the year.
One issue is the December meeting is Christmas Eve.. The quagmire is- December meetings historically have been Elections of Officers for the following year.
There is much to cover this next meeting. An option we have is to vote (pole)? on groups.io

Yesterday Don WB?QFR and I took a road trip to Abilene, KS? to see the Famous Union Pacific 1404 BIG BOY. I shot video of it leaving Abilene Station. We then drove to Salina after a stop at Russel Stover Factory Outlet Store. We tried to run with the train along old U.S. RT 40 but traffic jams disallowed getting ahead or to it.
I have a 5 minute video of the Big Boy leaving Abilene on my Facebook page.? There is also a video of the train running Abilene to Salina at:

You may need to join "Old and Interesting Places in Kansas". The video is worth viewing. When we arrived in Salina they were shutting down the engine for the night. Connecting fire hoses to hydrants to re-fill the water supply and there was 1 Semi fuel tanker you see filling at gas stations connecting to the Tender to refill with Diesel, along with 3 more waiting. 4 semi fuel tanker trucks!! What a fill-up!

On a personal note. I enjoyed working the ARRL November Sweepstakes Phone contest. last weekend. I installed a new Fusion Dual Bander in my Truck.? I also am "dusting off" 2 commercial UHF Ritron repeaters I have. I brought them back a year ago when I closed out my footprint in New Hampshire and sold my home there. I have applied for coordination to the Kansas Repeater Coordinator and was assigned the following repeater pair- 442.000 - 447.000.... I have plenty of options with 2 self contained repeaters, One possibility is to program both to the same frequency, but different PL's - then set up one that can be deployed for Public Service and Emergencies. OR place one on GMRS. (Old CB class A)? I am licensed as WRCD403. (500 transmitters).? I also have to assemble 5 ALLSTAR interfaces. ALLSTAR is a very formatible interface into the internet, including Echolink, and ILRP. The ALLSTAR website HAS Moved- if you want to learn more -here is the link:

Today 3PM local is the start of the ARRL November Sweepstakes (SS) Phone. My Favorite contest.? If you have never operated a contest, this is the perfect one to get your feet wet. If you complete 100 contacts you're eligible to buy? a commemorative pin for $8.00. I've uploaded the 2019 ARRL Sweepstakes Rules into the Files section of W0VFW at groups.io in case you want to participate. If you don't have a logging program. A free easy to use contest logger for SS can be had at: I have been using that for contests for 5-6 years. Takes 5 minutes to learn.

The Union Pacific BIG BOY steam locomotivve will be traveling through Kansas next few days. Coffyville today.. I am going to see it in Salina. or possibly Kansas City. Schedule is here-
If someone wants to ride in the back seat, let me know- If I go to Kansas city- I will also be stopping at MicroCenter and eating at Mr. Greek In Overland Park. We could also stop at Universal Radio.. Otherwise, I am heading to Salina which is less mileage. Plans to eat at Kansas Buffet Salina, and maybe stop at Russel Stover Factory outlet.. Love those boxes of chocolate seconds- (The ones they drop!!) Contact me via PM at w8lm at arrl dot net.

Thanks to Lighting and homeowners insurance plus a few bucks. I have a new Tram 1481 on top of my tower. Tip is at 55 feet. I replaced the 2FM rig with a new Yaesu 50W dual band Fusion FTM-7250D. I sold a? 10 year old FT60R and bought a FT70D Fusion HT. As an early Christmas present along with a Yaesu FTM7250D for the Truck. Locally we have a VERY active group on 146.52 - They even have a Facebook page... "520 crew"? With winter coming, I expect .146.52 to become crowded in the evenings. Perhaps populating 146.42 (National Prepper calling) Is next. A FUSION Simplex would be fun too..

Remember W?VFW meeting is NOV 26th, 2019... Probably the most important meeting of the Year. Lot's happening behind the scenes, that will impact Wichita area for the future. Nominations for Officers -

W?VFW November meeting will probably be the Most Important meeting of the year. Start making arrangements to attend.
?Meeting night is NOVEMBER 26th Starting at 7PM...
As usual, there will be eyeball chat before and after.

AT THIS TIME - I am not at liberty to divulge some things that are going on behind the scenes with the club..
HOPEFULLY by meeting night we will be able to announce certain plans currently in the making.
All I can say IF it comes about, It will change the W?VFW mission VERY positively in the Community.
We need to prepare for 2-3-4 possible outcomes.

Secondly, Nominations for NEXT Year's officers will be held.
Currently the elected offices are President, Vice President, Secretary/Treasurer.
Trustee of the Club FCC Callsign is appointed.
Over the years, we have been somewhat loose regarding assignments of
Training- VE testing - Technical - Repeater - Trustees- Field Days - HF station - Constitution and By-laws - Activities -Executive Planning- Moderators of the new 开云体育 (I have been moderator of the old Yahoo groups since Feburay 2012)
It is time to look at each of those and decide if we for instance for an executive board club steering type committee and use the features of groups.io as we CAN do polls and make subgroups now.

Finally- At the last meeting, we spoke about putting together a "Ham Radio Auction" on the 29th of Febuary Leep year Day. A SATURDAY. as our "Dead of Winter Extravaganza" a few years ago was a suscess.? I HAVE NOT HEARD FROM A SINGLE MEMBER WHO WILL PARTICIPATE or SERVE ON THE COMMITTEE I volunteered to head.?

Please CONTACT me if you willing to Volunteer, WE NEED TO Finalize a go-no go in it's regards. AS to start advertizing it so we can proceed. It will beasicall ybe our only fundraiser unless other people are willing to lug our donations to hamfests every few months. Coy W?ZRY and I have done it 5 years and many $$$ and many miles. Tenatively the Auction woul drun all day at the VFW post.? Equipment for auction would be accepted and marked for auction starting 8AM. Auction would start at NOON. The club would take 10% up to $10 commission. or 100% if donated.? For the Auction we need:
Night Before
SET UP TABLES - Chairs etc.
Prior to the start of AUCTION
#1 INTAKE VOLUNTEER Equipment
#2 INTAKE VOLUNTEER Setup Equipment for display.
#3 BIDDER REGISTRATION PERSON
#4 SNACK SALES? ( liquids would be to support VFW Canteen )
at the start of the auction:
#5 AUCTIONEER
#6 Recorder of AUCTION SALES -(plus an audio recorder)
#7 CASHIER maybe 2.
#8 DOOR SECURITY.
#9 Runner to bring equipment to the auction block.

If we cannot fill most of these positions by the NOVEMBER meeting I believe we will have to let this money maker for the club die a silent death.
If you wish to volunteer please contact me by email : w8lm at ARRL dot org

At the Last meeting we had a discussion regarding? the demise of Yahoo Groups and moving to Facebook versus groups.io. I mentioned my friend Dave W9WRL's problem with his very active "Ham Radio Buy & Sell" group on Facebook. Here is the latest:
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