CQ CQ CQ #HamRadio Saturday – NYC, stuff I don’t understand, and #UnaVoce

I set up on Twitter FrZ_HamRadio so we might more easily make contacts on the fly.  I believe KD8ZFF also set something up.  He can chime in with details.

During my recent too brief trip to New York City I was able to make contacts using Echolink via iPhone while sitting outside of the Metropolitan Museum of Art while waiting to meet someone (another kind of QSO) and also in Bryant Park.  Next, I used Echolink aboard an airplane and made a contact with someone on a train!

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Thanks to WB0YLE for being so generous.  More on him below.

I went to the only ham radio store in Manhattan, which is a stone’s throw away from Holy Innocents Church.  There isn’t much to report about this place, except that the fellow who runs it is both friendly and chatty… when he is there.  I ran into a closed door the first time I tried to visit.

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But the next day I had more success…

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You should probably call first.

Next, I am getting feedback about the QSL cards I sent.  They are arriving.  I am trying to figure out the best timing for me to get that vanity call.  I suppose I should just pull the trigger.  Or did I just commit a micro-aggression?  Sorry… I intended a hyper-macro aggression.

Meanwhile, also through the kindness of WB0YLE some possibilities are opening up about a Catholic Net.  He sent me a few mails about technical things.  I imagine that this is how some readers might react when I write about Latin.  For example:

building these up; full asterisk and echolink node with a radio adapter on top; have it working with a wouxun in simplex right now.  Raspberry pi computer, etc.  can also hang a wifi dongle on it, and pair to a phone hotspot…to get on the net Just In Case with an RF link.

I believe this has to do with remote operation of a station.

But of my living situation – which is suboptimal at best for good antenna placement and a place to work – I would like to find a way to work a station remotely.  Right now, where I have my antenna is sort of like a Faraday cage.  Not good.  I can still get out, but…

And now a happy conjunction of Traditional Liturgy and Ham Radio….

I received an email from the head of the newly formed Una Voce chapter in La Crosse, WI.  They had their first event recently.    You can see some pictures at their web site, www.unavocelacrosse.org.  They want me to attend an event sometime.  HA! Say I.  Invite me to sing a Mass for you. I generally can’t drive across the state only to sit in choir.

As it turns out, the nice fellow who wrote is a Ham, as are his chilluns’.  He wrote (I’ll for now blank the callsigns unless he wants to make them visible himself):

On an unrelated note, my son ___ (currently a junior in chemical engineering at ___) mentioned to me that you are a ham.

We’re a ham radio family — I’m W9HQ, my son is _____, wife _____ is ____, and eldest daughter is _____.  We’re prodding the younger two girls to start studying for the Technician exam.  I am very active in VHF-UHF weak-signal work and host a modest blog, Standing Waves. It would be great to connect on the air sometime.  We don’t have an Echolink node here in La Crosse, but perhaps when I get my new gain vertical antenna for 2 meters on the roof I’ll be able to hit a repeater in Madison and we coull chat.  Or if you ever get on 160 or 80 meters, all the better.  And having you on 144 MHz single side band would ice the cake.

That would be icing indeed.  Let’s try to make that work.

And, sincerely, I’d like some cooperation of that chapter with my own Tridentine Mass Society of Madison (which accepts tax deductible donations).

Also, check out his cool Ham Radio blog.  HERE  Kudos.

Remember: More than one person can connect via Echolink to WB0YLE-R.  Use it!

Ham Radio and Traditional Latin Mass.  Non plus ultra.

KC9ZJN (for a little while longer)
73

 

About Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Fr. Z is the guy who runs this blog. o{]:¬)
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68 Comments

  1. MWindsor says:

    Erm….Does this mean that I’ll have to join Twitter? I’ve managed to avoid that so far.

    Also, I think we should call it Zed Net. It’s descriptive to us, but not to anyone else.

  2. Fr. Bryan says:

    ANyone on tonight? 10/10 19:05 EDT

  3. I will be on in a little bit. (Talking to mom via phone, not CW.)

  4. Fr. Bryan says:

    OK, roger Will be watching here

  5. Heading to the rig. 20m to start.

  6. Fr. Bryan says:

    Yep. 14.230

  7. Fr. Bryan says:

    Me 2…hearing nothing

  8. bands aren’t good it seems… AGAIN? Really?

  9. Fr. Bryan says:

    I know. There has been some geomagnetic activity that has had the bands very noisy the last couple of days. They are still a bit off. Would you like to try 40 m?

  10. Rather than waste time (I must be up at 6) let’s try tomorrow?

  11. Fr. Bryan says:

    OK. Sounds good. I have made a couple QSO’s on 20 tonight out west, and heard Hawaii. Tomoorw may be better…will try again then.

  12. Elizabeth D says:

    I don’t know a dot from a dash regarding ham radio, but I don’t know how you would do anything with radio where you are. You cannot even get Relevant Radio reception there, my poor old lady friend Margot (now deceased) absolutely loved Relevant Radio but could NOT get reception at the assisted living down the hill from the SPTDB, and the Relevant Radio guy with an office at the SPTDB said it was because of that huge antenna and he could not get reception himself.

  13. O. Possum says:

    Fr. Z,

    Allow me to suggest against the idea of a vanity call sign. When I first saw your call sign I assumed it was a vanity call already. It is perfect for you. ZJN….Z JN….Z., John. Perfect! Further, Sacred Scripture tells us that “all things are vanity,” therefore, your current call sign is already vanity.

  14. MWindsor says:

    I may be on after lunch for a while.

  15. acardnal says:

    Elizabeth, Relevant Radio – and EWTN – are also available via the Internet…LIVE!

  16. frjim4321 says:

    On Harris Hiil near Elmira there is a remoted station.

  17. Elizabeth D says:

    acardnal, I know that but old Margot would not accept a computer and when I got an internet radio (I got one that looked like an old-fashioned radio) it worked only the first day and ever after it never worked again. The problem was thought to be the internet connection/wi-fi at the place. I tried so hard and it was very frustrating. The nice Relevant Radio staff guy even gave us an antenna thing to try to help the Relevant Radio reception on the analog radio, by the way, but it was not enough to actually help.

  18. Fr. Bryan says:

    I have not set up anyway of communicating on the fly when we are on the air, or on what band or frequency. I can work on that though so people can know when and where I am on the air. Twitter, as Fr. Z has set up, seems like a good idea. KD8ZFF

  19. Fr. Bryan says:

    OK, I am following FrZ_HamRadio. I am setting up a twitter account just for Ham stuff as well. @FrBryanHamRadio. between the two of us, and perhaps WB0YLE, we can set up scheds on the fly and get some kind of net up and going.

  20. Father Zuhlsdorf says:

    I’m on now for a while longer. Field set up!

  21. Fr. Bryan says:

    I am away from the rig unfortunately.

  22. Fr. Bryan says:

    If you will be on awile longer, I can get back and get on.

  23. Fr. Bryan says:

    At the rig.

  24. Fr. Bryan says:

    Frequency?

  25. Fr. Bryan says:

    Made a couple contacts on 20 m tonight. Band is collapsing, and the geomagnetics are unstable again. Going to move to 40 m. If anyone is on, I will be on 40 m., and can post freq here. Will be on about another 90 minutes to 2 hours.

  26. Fr. Bryan says:

    Bands are really noisy. Hanging up for the night.

  27. I’ll get on for a bit. 01:50 UTC 20m

  28. Fr. Bryan says:

    OK, on 20 m will give it a shot. Bands are lousy though
    14.250

  29. Fr. Bryan says:

    calling cq on 14.250

  30. on 14.250 – can’t hear anything. Band seems closed right now.

  31. Fr. Bryan says:

    40 is open, want to try it?

  32. Fr. Bryan says:

    7.192 is clear

  33. I’ll change my antenna to 40m

  34. Fr. Bryan says:

    OK. Standing by on 7.192

  35. Fr. Bryan says:

    Standing by

  36. I have someone pretty strong on 7.192 talking to “Brian”, but I can’t hear you.

  37. Fr. Bryan says:

    That was a guy in Oklahoma talking to me.

  38. Fr. Bryan says:

    SOmeone is tuning up

  39. Fr. Bryan says:

    I will try calling again.

  40. Fr. Bryan says:

    Guy in OK had a 7 element beam antenna. That would cut through anything. My puny 40 m dipole is nothing compared to that. Conditions don’t appear to be even as good as a week ago when we did have a QSO.

  41. My SWR is fairly high. I don’t know if I am getting out at all. Not hearing much on 192.

  42. Fr. Bryan says:

    Ok, I’ve been calling CQ, and for KC9ZJN, and hearing nothing. SWR could definitely have an impact.

  43. Fr. Bryan says:

    The Hams that I’ve been listening to are going to 75 and 80 meters because of conditions. I can’t go there, I do not have the antenna for it.

  44. Fr. Bryan says:

    Yes, LSB 7.192 MHz

  45. Okay… I guess the conditions beat us again.

  46. Fr. Bryan says:

    Apparently so. All my QSOs have been fairly distant, and Hams on 40 m are saying the band is stretched. I take that to mean the skip is longer.

  47. Some signals that were strong earlier are now fading on 40m.

  48. On the other hand, Vatican Radio is booming in on 7.305! Spanish now.

  49. Fr. Bryan says:

    hmmm. gotta check that out! never heard that. —-> Ah, very strong signal. Is it always on this frequency?

  50. I hear that hams are moving to 8om.

  51. Fr. Bryan says:

    Ran into the same fellow from OK on 7.195, but he was all I could hear, and he was weaker.

  52. Fr. Bryan says:

    I have heard the same. I can’t get there, antenna is too short for 80.

  53. I have a coil for my vertical for 80-75m. I haven’t used it yet.

  54. Fr. Bryan says:

    I have Vatican Radio at 60 over S9 on 7.305 AM. That is very strong.

  55. Fr. Bryan says:

    My dad has an 80 meter inverted V at his farm in Indiana. I wish I had the room for something that large here at the parish.

  56. Well… I think I will shut down.

    We must persevere! Perhaps in daylight hours?

  57. Fr. Bryan says:

    40 in daylight might work much better, its “closer” than at night. We can try it.

  58. Okay…. be in touch. 73 and clear for the night.

  59. Fr. Bryan says:

    I’m all shut down. Headed to the rack. God Bless! 73, and we will persevere! KD8ZFF

  60. Fr. Bryan says:

    10/12 @ 19:10 UTC, there is a minor geomagnetic storm occurring, and all bands are shown as poor in the banners. Not sure how radio is going to be tonight.

  61. WMBriggs says:

    K2JM here. I live in Manhattan on the 9th floor of an apartment which faces the Western sky and where radio signals come to die. I can’t even reliably receive WABC AM, let alone HF!

    I’ve been in the city for nearly 20 years but this is the first time I’ve heard of a ham shop.

    Always meant to check in here with the others, but I’m incorrigibly lazy.

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