How I

I occasionally make things work. Here’s how.

  • Navigating The Parks

    My YouTube buddy Ed W4EMB just released a video on Tools To Find And Get To Your Park.  He did a great job, you should check it out. He’s inspired me to share what I’ve learned about this topic.  I don’t want to drop… Continue reading

    Navigating The Parks
  • Challenge Accepted!

    As a portable operator, my antenna system and the accoutrements necessary to get it deployed are at the core of my decision making processes.  If you watch my videos or read these posts, you know I love putting a wire in… Continue reading

    Challenge Accepted!
  • Wires and Antenna Models

    I’ve been playing at modeling antennas.  It’s an on-and-off again thing where every time I play with the software I get a little closer to understanding it.  I use MMANA-GAL to model.  It’s free.  It’s also fairly simple if you… Continue reading

    Wires and Antenna Models
  • CW – The Long Game

    Don’t give up – it’s a long game. I took two CW courses offered by my club, a beginner’s and an intermediate level course.  The first course, the beginner course, was well attended.  Started with about a dozen folks and… Continue reading

    CW – The Long Game
  • Portable Vertical Antenna

    Wishing a speedy recovery to the essential employee at Wolf River Coil, but in the meantime… Their antenna systems breaks down to five essential elements. Lets look at each and find some alternatives. The Loading CoilFirst, let’s talk about the… Continue reading

    Portable Vertical Antenna
  • IC-706MK IIG

    Mike – Tips, tricks, and what I learned about your rig are below. The rest of you can move along… unless you have and IC-706. Auto Repeater pg 32 and 53This is a function that sets repeater shift automatically. You… Continue reading

  • Adjusting Portable Antenna Length

    We learned to calculate wave length from frequency for the Technician ticket.  Or at least, we memorized the questions and answers for the test.  At the time, I thought it was an interesting tidbit of information but not critical to… Continue reading

    Adjusting Portable Antenna Length
  • POTA Maps in Google Maps App

    POTA.app has some fantastic resources for both activators and hunters. The Parks Map and the Parks List both offer extensive views of entity locations and relevant details. But I don’t like being tied to a web page – I want… Continue reading

    POTA Maps in Google Maps App
  • CQ POTA! A Guide.

    The POTA Exchange Our CW exchange from the park is short and sweet, little more than the briefest handshake. The rules for POTA don’t qualify any requisite information so in the end, we really just need a call sign to… Continue reading

    CQ POTA! A Guide.
  • Learning Morse Code

    I hear it’s possible.   It’s challenging, it takes persistence, it’s an investment. It’s especially challenging in this overwhelming culture of solutions. We’ve been conditioned to seek solutions to problems – work smarter, not harder – right tool for the job. … Continue reading

    Learning Morse Code