At the July club meeting Lisa, KC1YL, presented her POTA Operation, Setup, and Techniques. Learn about the many options for setting up and parks to work from. Check out the video link below.
Posts published in “Antennas”
The SPARC team finished the installation of the power winch on the club tower replacing the old hand crank. Those who have cranked the tower up in the past using the old hand crank can appreciate the improvement.
Watch the video Here
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The Zero-5 80m to 10m vertical antenna was erected and the 2m 440 antenna taken down to be moves closer to the new station.
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Many of us use Alpha Delta coax switches in our stations for antenna selection. These switches use Arc-Plug gas discharge tubes as lightening protection. Spare Arc-Plug elements sell for $10 – $12 from the traditional ham retailers. Mouser Electronics sells them for $2.37 each in quantities of 10. P/N 576-CG21000.
Thanks to Richard K2UPS for this tip.
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Members of SPARC, UPARC and CARS came out to Lake Seminole on Saturday March 14 to enjoy the sunshine as well as operating HF and satellite portable. Patterned after other “in the Park” events put on by our clubs in the past, approximately 15 people came out to enjoy a day in the fresh air. Unlike Field Day, everyone is encouraged to bring their own radios and test their portable setup in the field. It also gives members a chance to see different portable HF setups. Given that many people cannot operate stations at home, operating in a park allows hams to still get on the air. Pat AA0O borough his gear which he uses in many parks around the state to make HF contacts.
Dee W4DCH from UPARC brought his Icom 7300 and wire antenna system.
Tom NY4I operated his satellite station to make 5 QSOs on 3 different satellites. Lisa KC1YL operated as well even making a satellite contact with KP3A in Puerto Rico. All told we had around 15 people come out to play radio in a great day in the park.
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As you may recall, the club experienced damage due to the tornado in Pinellas Park last week.
Dave KR4U, John KI4UIP, Pat AA0O and Billy KN4LUZ were on site to work on the project (The author arrives late so anyone was had already left, please accept my apology for the omission).
The tower was bent just above the first section nesting point. With the help of a crane secured by Pat AA0O, the tower was safely lowered on Thursday 2/13 along with the log periodic antenna. This is only the take down stage. The 40m antenna on the shipping container appears to be ok but the wire antennas that used the tower as a center support are also down. Click the video below to see the crane in action (video by Pat AA0O).
![Billy KN4LUZ overlooking the Log Periodic [Photo by Pay AA0O]](https://www.sparc-club.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Image.jpg)
![The tower on the ground sans antenna. [Photo by Pay AA0O]](https://www.sparc-club.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Image-1.jpg)
As we are still in the dismantling stage, no plans have been made yet on repairing the equipment. No doubt the club officers will share that information. Stay tuned to the normal SPARC information channels (Web site, Daily Nets, etc).