Jefferson County Amateur Radio Club

KE7JGB
John Ammeter

On the bottom shelf, from left to right…. Yaesu G-1000DX A Rotator Control with the Fluidmotion SteppIR controller on top. Next to the right is a Uniden Bearcat BC898T Scanner with a Davis Vantage Pro2 Weather station on top. My speaker is an ICOM SP-21 and the control head for my Kenwood TM-D700 is mounted on top of the speaker. The HF radio is an ICOM 756 Pro III. On top of the 756 is an ICOM IC-821 which is an all mode 2 meter/440 radio.

All radios are powered by 2 deep cell batteries located under the desk. They are kept fully charged with a West Mountain Radio PWRgate PG40S powered with an Astron SS-30M. The radios all have Powerpole connections and I use a West Mountain Radio RIGrunner 4005 for power distribution.

The second shelf holds the SPE Expert 1K-FA amplifier. This is a solid state 1 KW amplifier with a built-in tuner. It can handle two radios with 4 antenna outputs. It has a standby setting where only the tuner is activated plus half or full power. I usually keep it at half power unless trying to bust a pileup.

The 40 meter through 6 meter antenna is a 3 element SteppIR with the 30/40 meter option plus 6 meter passive antenna. The SteppIR is at about 55 feet height which, considering our house is at 400 feet elevation at the top of the ridge, “gets out” pretty good. For 75 meters, I use a semi inverted V wire antenna. I call it “semi inverted” since one leg of the antenna is horizontal while the other leg goes down at a 45 degree angle to about 10 feet above the ground. On the top of the mast I have a 2 meter/440 omni antenna for the Kenwood D700. The IC-821 uses eggbeater antennas for 2 meter and 440. They are on top of a 24 foot fiberglass mast which is attached to the side of the house. The scanner antenna is on top of another fiberglass mast also attached to the house.

I’ve been interested in Amateur Radio for years but the code requirement was too much of a hurdle for me. I passed the Technician test on October 19, 2006, the General Test in March 2007 and the Extra Test in March 2008. I’ve also become a VE examiner as a way of “paying back” in a small part all the help and support I’ve gotten from our local HAM’s.

John A

73
John

NEWS FLASH
Check out our new ECHOLINK connection to the
W7JCR repeater.
Look for KB7DQT-R node.
(Authorization is required during the testing phase)

The Jefferson County Amateur Radio Club is open to all who are interested in this hobby. The club meets on the first Wednesday of the month at 7:30 PM at the Chimacum Fire House, in Chimacum,Washington. There is a social period before the meeting starting at 7:00 PM. The club participates in a weekly 2 meter net on Tuesdays at 6:30 PM using the W7JCR Repeater (145.15 MHz, 114.8 PL). For more information about JCARC, click on the links below.

Vice President Ken Hanson AA7CX (360) 437-7974 AA7CX at ARRL dot NET
Secretary Lou Hoffer N7BXU (360) 379-3501 HOFFER at CABLESPEED dot COM

See American Radio Relay League (ARRL) website for information about this wonderful hobby and how to become a ham. Or talk to one of the JCARC Officers about the opportunities for local classes to prepare for the FCC Exam.

Visitors are always welcome at the club meetings on the first Wednesday of each month at 7:30 PM at the Chimacum Fire House, in Chimacum,Washington. - come and see our monthly program and talk to local hams about Amateur Radio.

Jefferson County DEM conducts technician classes periodically and then offer the VE testing session at the completion of the class.
These sessions are open to the public. Please contact John Ebner at KC7SUF at WAYPT dot COM for further information.

The Port Ludlow ARC also gives exams periodically, see their PLARC web site for details. In Bremerton, the North Kitsap Amateur Radio Club gives exams on a monthly basis at Olympic College.