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VK7AX > BCAST 26.09.20 04:01z 396 Lines 26175 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
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VK7 Amateur Radio News 27Sep20
Text edition: VK7 AMATEUR RADIO NEWS BROADCAST
FOR SEPTEMBER 27 2020
(Note.. please remove spaces in email addresses before using)
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VK7 AMATEUR RADIO NEWS BROADCAST
FOR SUNDAY 27th SEPTEMBER 2020
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Welcome to the VK7 Amateur Radio News for the 27th September 2020. This broadcast is brought to you by VK7WI, and read today by Mike, VK7FB.
This broadcast utilises repeaters around VK7 and the following HF rebroadcast stations:
On 3.670 MHz by Peter, VK7TPE
On 7.140 MHz by Garry, VK7JGD
On 14.130 MHz by Ross, VK7ALH
On 28.525 MHz by Tony, VK7VKT
On DMR Talk Group 5 and D-Star Reflector 91C by Clayton, VK7ZCR
This broadcast is repeated on Tuesday night at 8:00pm on
repeaters VK7RAA in the North and VK7RTC in the South.
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SILENT KEY NOTICE
Maxwell Francis Hardstaff VK7KY
Vale Maxwell Francis Hardstaff 1940 to 2020 . Also known as Bravo Tango - 60, and later as VK7KY.
Sadly, Max spent the last five years of his life in the Meercroft Home Dementia unit after a lifetime of all sorts of pursuits.
Employed on the Refinery at APPM, Burnie till either retiring or taking redundancy he continued with his outside interests of taxidermy (loved stuffing animals) and Citizen Band Radio
that evolved into a full call Amateur Radio license along with his partner Shirley. In the heady years of the 1970's the airwaves were chocker-block full of CB operators making their way to work or going home off shift from Ulverstone to Wynyard and 27.205 Mhz USB really buzzed. By 8:00am silence reigned till the "Wheelchair Warriors" held the fort. They too have passed on.
My sincere condolences go to Shirley and Kim on the loss of a Husband and father.
John Medwin.
Endorsed and approved by Shirley VK7HSC and passed on by Anne VK7BYL
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SPECIAL EVENT CALLSIGN VI75WW2
This callsign is to commemorate 75 years of peace in the Pacific since the end of WW2.
Nic VK7WW will be operating the Special Event Callsign VI75WW2 on as many bands and modes as possible, day and night throughout the period.
Commencing Monday 28th September 0001 local time until Monday 5th October 2359 local time.
eQSLs will be available, so listen out for Nic VK7WW as VI75WW2.
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NEWS FROM THE NORTH
SOTA/WWFF PARKS GROUP
The Summits On The Air/World Wide Flora and Fauna parks group is now meeting twice weekly – Mondays and Fridays 10.30AM till 12.00 at the Glebe Gardens Cafe, Henry Street, Launceston.
For more information contact Al on 0417 354 410.
73, Al, VK7AN
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Northern Tasmanian Amateur Radio Club Incorporated
www.ntarc.net
Silent key – Max Francis Hardstaff, VK7KY
It was with great sadness that NTARC has learnt of the passing of our long-term friend and former member Max Hardstaff, VK7KY of Sulphur Creek. Sadly, Max had suffered dementia in recent years, the debilitating illness seeing him progressively withdraw from the amateur radio hobby, before he entered residential care at Meercroft, Devonport some 5 years ago. He succumbed to the condition on Thursday 17 September, in his 81st year.
Much could, and undoubtedly will, be written and spoken about Max’s radio adventures over the years, as he really was a character on the local radio scene. Without detracting anything from those at record, NTARC believes we should also acknowledge his special contribution through his great talent as a woodcarver. Visitors to the Hardstaff QTH often came away with carved mementos, the ladies usually with a miniature pair of carved clogs. NTARC also benefited from this talent and Max’s generosity. He and XYL Shirley VK7HSC often arrived at NTARC social functions with carvings that he donated to our raffles, thereby generating considerable revenue for the club. Winners of those raffles greatly prize their particular pieces of Max’s craft.
One particular carving though demands special mention. Throughout most of his life, Max carried the nickname “Slipperyö, the origins of which are probably now known only to the family. He was also a keen trout fisherman. Max managed to combine his nickname, his fishing passion, his wood carving ability, his love of amateur radio and his affection for NTARC by producing a particularly beautiful carving on Huon Pine of a trout rising from the water. He presented this to NTARC as a perpetual trophy for awarding to the first member to land a trout at our then annual Myrtle Park Christmas Break-up BBQ event. This is of course the famous “Slippery Trout Awardö that was hotly contested by our keen fisher persons, skilled and otherwise, including the likes of Joe VK7JG (SK), who won it on several occasions.
The Slippery Trout Award will now go on permanent display in the NTARC clubrooms, in memory of Max but hopefully the annual competition will be reactivated when circumstances allow.
Our sincerest condolences to XYL Shirley VK7HSC and family.
VALE Max VK7KY, 2 January 1940 – 17 September 2020, undoubtedly one of Wynyard’s finest.
Birthday wishes – belated Happy 65th birthday to Kevin VK7HKN. Kevin turned 65 on 20th September. Hard to believe we celebrated your 60th birthday at the club room Kevin, how fast time passes.
New members – NTARC would like to welcome 3 new members. Tony Lohrey VK7ZTT, Lewis Snare, a short wave listener who is busily studying for his call sign and Ian Gillespie who is working towards an advanced licence.
NTARC website – yes, it is still under development, surely good things come to those that wait. In the meantime NTARC has set up an email address for the Club room and it is VK7TAZ@gmail.com. The email box will be checked on the Friday coffee morning and Wednesday night Tech nights.
Speaking of the Wednesday evening Technical sessions, we hand over now to NTARC President Idris VK7ZIR to let us know how things progressed at the latest such club event,
Technical Session 23rd September 2020 - Another cool Wednesday evening and members started turning up early to see the heater roaring and the urns primed.
Ross VK7ALH arrived with a few items, one of which was a very nice 5kW balun from the UK. Another item was a Kenwood TS850 transceiver in very good condition. This was brought in to instruct attendees there on the operation of that particular radio. Another show and tell was from Idris VK7ZIR, a vintage Heathkit multi-meter in excellent condition complete with original leads and probes and with a typically comprehensive Heathkit assembly manual.
Kevin VK7HKN was seen wielding the latest Lo-Key magazine and in deep discussion on matters QRP. A Discord session had been started, after a few hiccups, and was in full swing with participants logging in from interstate, as well as the usual suspects locally!
Idris VK7ZIR was busy with radio programming and Peter VK7KPC had disappeared into the shack to try some contacts on 80 meters, which was a technical failure at the last session. Soon we heard the sonorous tones of Nic VK7WW, heralding Peter’s success in sorting out the antenna problems. Well done Peter!
The Discord screen was projected onto the big screen for everyone to watch and photos of the happy campers at the Clubrooms were uploaded.
We also welcomed three new members to the Club. Ian, SWL Lewis and Tony VK7ZTT.
Bernie made a special selection of his delectable sandwiches which were enjoyed by everyone. Thanks Bernie.
Thus, it was a truly multi-media session this week which worked very well.
73
Idris VK7ZIR
Thank you Idris, and speaking of Nic VK7WW, here he is, right on cue, with his account of last Wednesday evening.
A no-TechNet Report – only a short one!!
There was no official Test Net or Technical Net on Wednesday evening this week, because the NTARC Clubrooms were open for the regular Technical Night meetings, which are now held every two weeks. So, the official nets will be held every two weeks on the nights there are no meetings at the club.
And of course, because there was no official net, propagation and conditions were the best they have ever been for a Net night!
However, Nic VK7Whisky Whisky, in a very relaxed mood, decided to first go to 3.580 and have a listen. Nobody around, so he called CQ on CW. Somebody came back sending three Vs.
Not knowing who that was, Nic came back on LSB, thinking it was a club member wanting to test a QRP rig, and then was greeted by that prolific author and builder of home brew rigs, Peter Parker VK3YE! Peter was quickly joined by Allen VK4AN running 2w pep, and, then Steve VK2STG in Cooma. It was only about a 20 minute net on 3.580, but a great surprise. Then everyone disappeared into the ether!
Nic VK7 “Double Scotchö then went down to 3.567 MHz to see if anyone was about. Well another surprise!
Steve, VK4VN from Brisbane called, followed by Andrew VK7DW in “Lonnieö - a new satellite contacted.
Robyn VK2CAB in Parramatta - with a Stainless Steel dipole!
Graham VK7KT in Burnie - fantastic signal! Phil VK7ZPD in Legana 60dB over 9! and Paul VK7KPA on Mt Arthur....another cracking signal.....then - wait for it!
All stations went into “shockö hihi, because VK7TAZ called in from the NTARC Clubrooms; with Peter VK7KPC operating! Yeah! Peter had fixed the technical issue from two weeks ago and whopped us with a massive signal! Well done Peter!
.....and “Tail-end Charlieö was Ross VK7RC.
ALL SIGNALS were between 20 and 30dB stronger than usual!
Internet Discord was alive and well with great pics from the Clubrooms of the motley crew of members enjoying themselves.
Bill VK7MX and Yvonne VK7FYMX connected to Discord from Victoria.
SWL Lewis and Robin VK7RH, Peter VK7PD, and Stefan VK7ZSB were also there.
73 for now from Nic “Double Scotchö VK7 Whisky Whisky and see you next week!
Once again, many thanks Nic.
Future events
Fortnightly TechNet – 30th September. Nic VK7WW will once again be in the chair hosting a “TestNetö on 3.580 MHz at 19:00 local time, with the TechNet for NTARC following on 3.567 MHz at 19:30 local time. Paul VK7KPA will be hosting the accompanying Discord session on the net.
Fortnightly Tech Night – Wednesday 7th October at the NTARC Club rooms 19:30 hours until whenever. Continuous tea and coffee, although a gold coin donation for the evening would be appreciated. The Discord on-line session that normally accompanies the TechNet 80 meter event will also be alive, Murphy permitting, to allow members who cannot be present in person to continue their participation via that medium.
JOTA/JOTI 2020 - Scouts Tas JOTA/JOTI Coordinator, Peter VK7KPC advises that all things being equal, JOTA/JOTI will still be happening this year on weekend 17th and 18th October. We will provide more information on this event as it comes to hand.
Equine Endurance event - State Championships Santarena Park, Scottsdale November 20-21. Rides over the days will be a 160km, 95Km, 40km and 20km. The 160Km is a 24 Hour ride.
We will need additional crew members to handle this event. Please advise if you are able to assist by emailing Norm VK7KTN: safetycomms.ntarc @ gmail.com or catch up at coffee sessions.
Coffee mornings – currently every Friday in the NTARC Club rooms. Catch up time is from 10.00 am to noon and we look forward to seeing you all.
Please remember that aside from the good company, freely offered philosophical views, maybe less than expert political analysis, tall tales, funny stories and genuinely good fare on offer, these coffee events in the past have been normally a good opportunity to collect your QSL cards. Currently we have a few cards awaiting collection from past deliveries.
As I remind all each week, please demonstrate your appreciation of all the effort that goes into operating the club, its facilities and the other services we provide, especially in these abnormal and very trying times, enjoying the company, coffee, biscuits and cake and leaving a gold coin or two, or even a small bank note, in the jar to assist in our on-going operations.
Once again though, this must be all from NTARC for this week. Please bear with us as we attempt to bring club life back to normal, while balancing the need for continuing caution and with all complying with the social distancing requirements.
Finally
A reminder to all members that if you have any items of news you would like added to our weekly roundup, no matter how trivial then please
email ntarc.emails @ gmail.com.
Please note that it would be appreciated if any items for the weekly news could be sent in Times New Roman, 12 pt Font format.
For some time to come, with the exception of the occasional club emailed newsletter, the weekly broadcast news segment will continue as the medium for informing all about happenings, or lack thereof, in the local amateur radio world. It would be appreciated if any news, no matter how insignificant, could be sent no later than 17:00 hours on the Friday prior to broadcast, to allow its timely insertion into the NTARC segment.
That gives all a chance to get the NTARC segment together and off to Hobart in time for collation into the VK7 Broadcast. Your continued cooperation in this regard will be gratefully appreciated.
We will bring you all such contributions next Sunday morning.
73, Yvonne VK7FYMX, Secretary NTARC Inc
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NEWS FROM THE SOUTH
October REAST Presentation Night
Our REAST Presentation Night for October will see Steve, VK7OO taking us through his obsession with SSTV and SSTVCAMs and his experiences during his 13 year journey.
Covering the challenge of keeping a SSTVCAM operating, observations about propagation, receiving SSTV from space unattended and just what's involved in operating a SSTV CAM.
Steve will also discuss his success building a PEX-AL-PEX magnetic loop just for SSTV on 14.230. This presentation will feature actual images from the 120,000 plus images Steve has received over that 13 years.
We also will be broadcasting this presentation on 445.5 MHz DVB-T in the Hobart area and we will be streaming on the REAST YouTube Channel -
https://www.reast.asn.au/news-events/live-stream/
Wednesday 7th October 2020 from 7:30pm in the Queens Domain clubrooms.
This should be a fascinating presentation. Hope to see you there.
73, REAST Committee
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Radio and Electronics Association of Southern Tasmania
https://www.reast.asn.au/
https://www.facebook.com/reasttas/
https://www.youtube.com/reasthobart/
REAST Training News
REAST has our next Foundation Training and all licence assessment day on Saturday 3rd October 2020 from 9am.
If you are thinking of coming along then grab your copy of the Foundation Licence Manual from the Caltex Service Station on the corner of Amy St and Main Rd, Moonah for $35 cash and please let Reg Emmett VK7KK know ASAP that you will be coming along by phoning 0417 391 607 or
email assessor @ reast.asn.au.
73, Reg, VK7KK & Justin VK7TW
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DATV Experimenter's Night
We welcomed a number of people from the Hobart Hacker Space who came along to see what we got up to. We are organising a training and assessment day for the Hobart Hacker Space as there are a number of people who would like to get their Foundation and Standard licence assessments. Watch this space!
We started the night in the studio with Ben VK7BEN describing his End Fed Half Wave kits. Ben took us through his inspiration for experimenting with and EFHW antenna and his liaison with VK3IL and Owen Duffy who helped with the optimisation and development of the kit. Ben took us through a presentation on his measurements of the antenna with the experimentation with the wire and counterpoise. The counterpoise is formed by the feeding coax and Ben experimented with differing lengths.
Justin VK7TW then took the audience through his experience with building the kit and how impressed he was with the results. Justin then described the additions he made to the matching Un-Un box which included a counterpoise banana plug and variable capacitor. Ben finished off with the experiences of running the antenna as a sloper and inverted vee. Thanks Ben.
Rex VK7MO then took the audience through his experiments with Richard VK7ZBX using Justin's Tektronixs Photometer to measure and show that the current through an LED is linear to the light output. Rex then showed the experiments using very small (800 microhertz) bin widths in Spectrum Lab to accurately measure a tone at very low light levels over the Non-line of sight path between Rex and Richard's QTHs. Thanks Rex.
Ron Cullen then took us through the conversions he has been doing on a monitor LCD screen to build a solar powered skylight. The inspiration for this came from the website - DIY Perks.
https://youtu.be/8JrqH2oOTK4.
This YouTube channel shows the conversion of old TVs and monitors into LED powered light panels. Ron is using this to light a dark passage-way. Ron showed his panels and the various ways to power them from the existing modules or with 12VDC with the replacement LED strips. This is a great bit of repurposing of e-waste. Thanks Ron.
We finished off with a demonstration of how to use the transform function on the NanoVNA to measure the length of a piece of coax. This versatile device enables you to use the Low Pass Impulse Transform function. We set the velocity factor, start frequency and calculated the stop frequency. The stop frequency determines the distance range and resolution for the transform function using a simple formula. The higher the frequency - the shorter the distance range and higher the resolution and vice versa. We then measured a length of coax by moving the cursor on the NanoVNA to the peak and read off the distance - 27.3m.
We finished off with some interesting videos for our RF viewers on the NanoVNA and a great video by David VK5KK which he gave to the Elizabeth Amateur Radio Club a few days ago about using the Autodesk Eagle PCB software.
The Video is available of the night at the REAST YouTube Channel: https://youtu.be/NJdBjD2AC9M
This Wednesday night we get back underway with some of the experiments with the EFHW portable antenna and more on what you can use the NanoVNA for in the shack.
So, why not come up to the Queens Domain clubrooms and see what we get up to. If it is too cold to make it up to the Domain why not take a look on RF or the YouTube Streaming channel and we will be taking questions via Repeater Two (146.700), DMR Talk Group 3807 and the YouTube Chat channel.
And a reminder that we go out on RF on 445.5MHz DVB-T 7MHz Standard Definition. So, if you have a TV, Set-top box or USB DTV Dongle that you can tune and scan 445.5MHz and you can see the Queens Domain, then you have a good chance of receiving the DATV Experimenter's Night Signal.
Look out for VK7OTC. We also stream the nights on the REAST YouTube channel.
https://www.reast.asn.au/news-events/live-stream/
https://www.reast.asn.au/special-interest-groups/amateur-tv/
https://www.facebook.com/reasttas/
https://www.youtube.com/reasthobart/
73, Justin, VK7TW
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TECHNICAL ARTICLE
Managing port communications across Tasmania
TasPorts has installed a new scalable dispatch management system in its two control centres, connecting 15 remote sites across Tasmania.
Tasmanian Ports Corporation Pty Ltd (TasPorts) is responsible for 11 Tasmanian sea ports and the Devonport Airport. It has successfully used Omnitronics equipment in its control centres for decades and has been a longstanding user of the DX64 dispatch system. After making the decision to upgrade the DX64, TasPorts chose the latest generation omnicore.
The existing Omnitronics system supported 21 repeaters and seven dispatchers across two locations — the Launceston State Operations Centre and Port of Bell Bay. Eventually there would be a need to cater for 28 channels in total, so the company was looking for a solution that is cost-effective and easy to deploy as well as technologically advanced.
TasPorts uses VHF marine analog radio connected via IP. It wanted an easy-to-manage and easy-to-maintain dispatch management system that would instantly update changes from a central location across all consoles in both of its Vessel Traffic Service (VTS) centres. In addition, the new system needed to be mission-critically reliable, as maritime navigation and distress calls are also managed by the operators. Ideally, TasPorts preferred applications that would run on commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) equipment and operating systems.
TasPorts chose the Omnitronics omnicore Enterprise Dispatch Management System, not only because it meets its needs for current and future functionality, but also because it is based on the proven technology of DX-Altus and RediTALK-Flex radio dispatch. The interface set-up of the previous system was easily replicated and within 20 minutes of omnicore going live, the operator was able to competently interact with a vessel using the new console.
“I played a bit with the test install before Omnitronics came in to install our new system. It was so easy to set up that when they arrived only 45 min later, I had almost finished,ö said Ben Stoffelen, IT Network Administrator, Tasmanian Ports.
omnicore dispatch enabled TasPorts to implement its own high-availability solution across two locations and on its own servers as virtual machines (VMs). With two servers, one in the Launceston State Operations Centre and one backup server in Bell Bay, TasPorts is able to communicate to its 15 remote sites scattered across the state from either of their two dispatch locations. Three operator consoles, including one supervisor station, are used at the central Launceston VTS, now upgraded to omnicore. Another omnicore system is fully operational at the Bell Bay centre. In addition to server redundancy, omnicore consoles support high-availability even further, as each console can continue to operate in the unlikely event that both servers are down.
omnicore provides reporting mechanisms and analytics for operational and business needs. For example, where in the past the team had to rely on anecdotal information to know that one geographic region — known for its rough weather — has a higher number of incoming calls than other regions, a supervisor can now quantify these through integrated reporting of relevant metrics… meaning they are able to take early action to manage operator load and other resources.
TasPorts also benefits from the option to utilise Rapid Recall on a choice of one or more channels, where previously only all-channel Rapid Recall was possible. Combined with easy-to-manage and on-the-fly updating using the centralised server system, TasPorts reported a smooth transition with minimal downtime.
The transition to a new high-tech dispatch system was seamless and much of the install was carried out by TasPorts with help from Omnitronics. As the system is Commercial Off The Shelf Virtual Machine based, the TasPorts IT team retains a high level of self-sufficiency in supporting its user requirements and expanding for future needs.
Read more: http://criticalcomms.com.au/content/radio-systems/article/managing-port-communications-across-tasmania-1335003118#ixzz6Z3AUzqss
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Regular VK7 gatherings and events over the coming months:
Regular gatherings:
SOTA/WWFF Group – Meeting Mondays and Fridays 10.30-12.00 midday at Glebe Gardens Cafe, Henry St, Launceston.
NWTR&TVG - Club meetings cancelled till further notice.
NTARC - Coffee mornings - Fridays 1000 to 1200 NTARC Club Rooms.
NTARC – Technical Sessions and Tech Net on alternate Wednesdays. Next Tech Net on will be 30th September and next Technical session at the Clubrooms on 7th October.
REAST – MICROWAVE QSO Party – following after the Sunday broadcast on 1296.15 MHz FM.
REAST – WAGS – Wednesday Afternoon Group meet in the Queens Domain Clubrooms from 12 noon.
REAST – DATV Experimenter’s Nights from 7:30pm live in the club rooms on DVBT RF and YouTube Streaming
Sewing Circle Net – Daily commences at 17:00 on 3.640 MHz.
Events:
REAST – 7 October – SSTV Webcams and Magnetic Loop Antennas with VK7OO and VK7MAG – Queens Domain Clubrooms from 7:30pm
WICEN TAS (South) – 9-10 October – Equine Endurance Ride Pyengana
Miena QSO Muster – Saturday 24 October 10am to 3pm - Great Lake Community Hall.
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A reminder to those people rostered for next week’s broadcast:
Newsreader: VK7PD
Repeaters: REAST, NTARC and NWTR&TVG
80m: VK7ALH
40m: VK7TPE
20m: VK7JGD
10m: VK7VKT
DMR: Talk Group 5 and
D-Star: Reflector 91C VK7ZCR
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This broadcast is repeated on Tuesday night at 8:00pm on repeaters VK7RAA in the North and VK7RTC in the South.
Thanks to all people and organisations that assisted with this broadcast.
---------------------------------
That concludes our VK7 Amateur Radio News Broadcast for this week.
You have been listening to or have just missed VK7WI. Next week the National WIA news can be heard at 0900 followed by the VK7 Amateur Radio News around 0930 hours.
Items for the broadcast can be emailed to vk7arnews @ gmail.com
Further information about the broadcast can be found at the VK7 Amateur Radio News Groups.IO Group.
https://groups.io/g/vk7arnews
The deadline for items is 21:00 on Friday prior to the Sunday of the broadcast.
VK7WI is now closing but will reopen shortly for callbacks and relay reports. Callbacks will be taken on the frequency to which you are listening. Relay stations will use their own callsigns during the callback.
From the VK7 Amateur Radio News, it is 73 from Mike, VK7FB
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(Posted to the packet network courtesy Tony VK7AX)
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