SCARC MEETING MINUTES
May 24, 2007
SCARC Vice President Mike Burns KE4DZU called the meeting to order at 19:00 and had the attendees introduce themselves. There was one visitor, Jeff Drew N4JDU, who was later voted into membership. The regular order of business was abbreviated but the following items were discussed:
Lee Aured KI4NMD reports that the new 146.98 MHz repeater and antenna are in transit, but nothing new has been heard.
Lee also gave a synopsis of the state of our proposal to Shelby County Hospital concerning the equipment and associated material needed to establish an emergency communications operation center there. Discussion centered mostly on the type of HF and UHF/VHF transceivers to be requested.
There will be a fish fry at John Wilder‘s QTH (WB4CCQ) on Saturday June 2, 2007 starting at 13:00. Everyone who wants to go should contact as soon as possible. There will be more information posted on the Club web site, possibly a link to John’s web page.
Secretary Bill Davidson KW4J
· Scanned the minutes for the May 10, 2007 meeting, which are posted on the President’s Blog.
· Informed the members of the D-Star Gateway Certification Classes that are available via the Internet from ICOM. The week-long courses start each Monday and cost $150 for the general public.
· ARES E-Letter dated May 16, 2007 contained praises for the Pandemic exercise in Alabama during which ARES operators played key parts.
· A note from Frank Hoult KI4VVI informed us of his new license. (Congratulations Frank!!)
· An email from Ken Adkisson WB4FAY, BARC president, was forwarded from SCARC President Rod Scott N1YZ stating that BARC has refused SCARC’s formal request asking for the loan of BARC Kenwood repeater. Several reasons were given for the refusal.
Jeff Drew is the Chairman for the combined SCARC/BARC Field Day event to be held at Oak Mountain State Park National Guard Site on June 23, 2007. He explained a lot of the particulars dealing with the site setup and operating rules. He also stressed the need for setup volunteers and operators, especially during the wee hours. EVERY HAM CAN OPERATE ANY POSITON OR STATION. Also, there will be jobs that non-hams can fill, such as greeters and food servers. The plans are for the joint club to operate as class 4A, which means that a limit of four transmitters can simultaneously operate and that non-commercial electrical power will be utilized for the rigs. Jeff remarked that it takes a lot of material to run a 4A station, so bring whatever asset that you may feel required. The following is a non-inclusive list of needed items:
· Gasoline generators
· Fire extinguishers
· First Aid kits
· Rope for guying antennas
· Laptop computers
· Plastic bags
· Fuses
A motion was made, seconded, and passed to adjourn the meeting.
Attachments:
SCARC Meeting Roster
ICOM D-Star Certification Class Notice from the ICOM America web site
ARES E-Letter for May 16, 2007
Email from Frank Hoult KI4VVI
Email from Rod Scott N1YZ
Field Day Notice (from N4JDU)
Secretary’s raw notes
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Friday, May 18, 2007
SCARC Fish FRY at WB4CCQ's Lake Property
On Saturday June 2, 2007 there will be a SCARC fish fry at John Wilder's place (home of the world famous WB4CCQ Radio Station) down on the Lake.
He needs a head count so send him an email
wilder@spitfire.net ,call him on the phone (hey John what is your phone number? , or give a loud call on the repeater.
Hope to see you there!
73,
Rod, N1YZ
Saturday, May 12, 2007
Mike Burns's NVIS Program!
Mike, KE4DZU, did a great job of presenting a program on NVIS to the club.
"What is NVIS?
Near-Vertical Incident Skywave is a combination of radio hardware, skywave radio propagation, operating procedures, cooperation, and knowledge used by a group of radio operators who need reliable regional communications. It fills the gap between line-of-sight groundwave and long-distance "skip" skywave communications." http://www.athensarc.org/nvis.htm
For those who want to learn more about this form of using HF antennas check out some of these sites:
http://www.tactical-link.com/nvis_member_page.htm
http://www.arrl.org/FandES/ead/materials/NVIS.ppt#257,2,Introduction
Thanks Mike for a Great program!
73,
Rod N1YZ
"What is NVIS?
Near-Vertical Incident Skywave is a combination of radio hardware, skywave radio propagation, operating procedures, cooperation, and knowledge used by a group of radio operators who need reliable regional communications. It fills the gap between line-of-sight groundwave and long-distance "skip" skywave communications." http://www.athensarc.org/nvis.htm
For those who want to learn more about this form of using HF antennas check out some of these sites:
http://www.tactical-link.com/nvis_member_page.htm
http://www.arrl.org/FandES/ead/materials/NVIS.ppt#257,2,Introduction
Thanks Mike for a Great program!
73,
Rod N1YZ
May 10 Meeting Minutes
SCARC MEETING NOTES
May 10, 2007
President Rod Scott N1YZ called the meeting to order at 19:00 and had the attending members and guests introduce themselves. There were two visitors – Jim McLester W4YXU and James George KI4QWK.
The Club voted and passed the following for membership:
· N8QB Bob Palmer
· WB4VWI Barry McGowan
· KB4FRM Karen McGowan
· KI4PGS Jacob McGowan
· KI4PPQ Andrew McGowan
· KI4PGO James McGowan
· KD4AGT John Lowe
· W4YXU Jim McLester
· KI4QWK James George
Treasurer Jack Evans KC4PZA reported that the funds for the new repeater are as follows:
$950 Individual Received Donations
$ 60 Donations at the BirminghamFest
$100 Donations before the current meeting
He said that all donations will be accepted at any time.
Secretary Bill Davidson KW4J reported that a new CERT class will begin October 4, 2007 at Shades Valley High School. Contact Joan Ratchford (305-0291) or Donald Dunlap (956-6877) for more information. Their emails are ratchmom@bhm.rr.com or edunlap@bellsouth.net respectively.
A program on NIVS antennas was presented by Mike Burns KE4DZU and the meeting was closed afterwards.
Attachments:
SCARC Meeting Roster for May 11, 2007
Secretary’s raw notes
Irondale CERT Newsletter May 2007
May 10, 2007
President Rod Scott N1YZ called the meeting to order at 19:00 and had the attending members and guests introduce themselves. There were two visitors – Jim McLester W4YXU and James George KI4QWK.
The Club voted and passed the following for membership:
· N8QB Bob Palmer
· WB4VWI Barry McGowan
· KB4FRM Karen McGowan
· KI4PGS Jacob McGowan
· KI4PPQ Andrew McGowan
· KI4PGO James McGowan
· KD4AGT John Lowe
· W4YXU Jim McLester
· KI4QWK James George
Treasurer Jack Evans KC4PZA reported that the funds for the new repeater are as follows:
$950 Individual Received Donations
$ 60 Donations at the BirminghamFest
$100 Donations before the current meeting
He said that all donations will be accepted at any time.
Secretary Bill Davidson KW4J reported that a new CERT class will begin October 4, 2007 at Shades Valley High School. Contact Joan Ratchford (305-0291) or Donald Dunlap (956-6877) for more information. Their emails are ratchmom@bhm.rr.com or edunlap@bellsouth.net respectively.
A program on NIVS antennas was presented by Mike Burns KE4DZU and the meeting was closed afterwards.
Attachments:
SCARC Meeting Roster for May 11, 2007
Secretary’s raw notes
Irondale CERT Newsletter May 2007
Monday, May 7, 2007
Proposed By-Laws and Constitution are on the Club Web Page
At the top of the www.W4SHL.com web page is a selection list. Three items have been added to the selection list: 1) the proposed By-Laws, 2) the proposed Constitution, and 3) the new Club Brochure.
Be sure and give the following club members a "thank you" for the work they have put into the revision of the By-Laws and the Constitution: Bill Davidson KW4J , Bob Thomas KC4AF , Ed Pitchford KD4AY Jack Evans KC4PZA , Joe Ford K4NVJ , Michael Spanos KA4VCA , Mike Burns KE4DZU . Bob Thomas is the committee chairman.
The publishing of the proposed By-Laws and Constitution is the first oppportunity for the Club to read and evaluate the efforts of the committee. A more formal presentation of the By-Laws and Constitution will take place in the near future. These documents include changes in the structure and function of the club. Please read these documents and give the committee your feed back.
Thanks again to Mickey Hicks, KI4QXB for his great work on the brochure.
See you at Club this Thursday night which is a PROGRAM night!
73,
Rod, N1YZ
Be sure and give the following club members a "thank you" for the work they have put into the revision of the By-Laws and the Constitution: Bill Davidson KW4J , Bob Thomas KC4AF , Ed Pitchford KD4AY Jack Evans KC4PZA , Joe Ford K4NVJ , Michael Spanos KA4VCA , Mike Burns KE4DZU . Bob Thomas is the committee chairman.
The publishing of the proposed By-Laws and Constitution is the first oppportunity for the Club to read and evaluate the efforts of the committee. A more formal presentation of the By-Laws and Constitution will take place in the near future. These documents include changes in the structure and function of the club. Please read these documents and give the committee your feed back.
Thanks again to Mickey Hicks, KI4QXB for his great work on the brochure.
See you at Club this Thursday night which is a PROGRAM night!
73,
Rod, N1YZ
MINUTES From the Special Called Meeting
Thanks again Bill for great minutes! 73, Rod, N1YZ
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SCARC MEETING NOTES
May 3, 2007
Special Called Meeting
At 20:30 SCARC President Rod Scott N1YZ called the meeting to order at the Bluff Park Community Center and had the attendees introduce themselves. Treasurer Jack Evans checked the roll of current members to ensure that a Club membership quorum was present. The purpose of the called meeting was to discuss and pass proposals for improvements to the Club’s main two meter FM repeater on 146.98 MHz.
Mike Spanos KA4VCA reported that the current condition is that the twenty-eight-year-old repeater system is working but not reliable. He cited several recent repairs including a burned trace on one of the boards and a broken wire. Repeater Committee Chairman Bob Thomas continued with a list of recent repairs made on the system over the past few weeks. A detailed explanation of the repairs was presented to the club members as a report which is attached to the minutes. The consensus of the Repeater Committee is that the main repeater must be replaced with a new machine and that the associated antenna be replaced with one that is expected to give additional gain. The Committee suggested that the repeater replacement be a Kenwood TKR-750 and that the antenna be an Andrew Exposed Dipole Quasi-Omni (Model DB228E). Copies of the specifications were passed out to the membership along with an estimate of the entire project replacement cost, which is $4035.24. A detailed copy of the estimate is attached to this document along with the technical data.
The floor was then opened to the membership for discussion, and the following questions were presented:
· Will there be a repeater coordination problem?
Jack Evans, a member of the Alabama Repeater Coordination Council, stated that this is merely an equipment upgrade and should not cause a problem.
· Will there be an issue with the remote receiver or voter installations?
Lee Aured KI4NMD, a member of the Repeater Committee stated that he discussed this issue with Kenwood and they believe the equipment to be adaptable.
· Is the current DC power supply adequate for the new equipment?
It was reported and affirmed by several members that the new equipment can be served by the existing power supply.
· Is the unit complete as listed (e.g. no hidden costs)?
It has to be programmed but the vendor will do that once our information is provided.
· Is the existing tower safe to climb for antenna replacement?
The consensus of several of the recent workers on the repeater system indicates that it is safe. It was also pointed out that a bonded, professional climber will be doing this part of the installation.
· Can the existing antenna be reused instead of a new one?
Discussion from the floor indicates that the old antenna needs to be replaced. The cost of the new antenna and the associated tower climb/installation is a small percentage of the total outlay, and the new antenna will give 3 db more of gain.
· If replaced, can the old repeater be repaired and used as a spare?
Several of the repeater workers agree that it cannot be used as a backup due to the lack of spare parts.
A financial discussion ensued during which Treasurer Jack Evans reported that the club has approximately $3500 in savings and $125 in checking. He also indicated that there have been individual current donations and commitments of $1000 towards this project by the membership that are not included in his estimate. The club should have at least $1000 in savings if the proposed purchase is approved. It was pointed out that there may also be some FEMA and other EMCOM money made available shortly due to some planned projects.
It was pointed out that the Club is entering into some commitments to provide emergency communication assistance to several local agencies, and that a reliable, efficient repeater system could be the backbone of our assets. Also, it was noted that a club’s reputation can hang upon how well it maintains and uses its repeater. Finally, but not least, the southern part of Shelby County has been suffering from lack of repeater coverage which will be improved by the new system.
A motion was made, voted, and passed that the Club purchase and install the new repeater and antenna as recommended and presented by the Repeater Committee. The motion was carried by 17 affirmatives, 0 nays, and 2 abstentions.
Attachments:
· SCARC Meeting Roll
· Secretary’s raw notes
· Kenwood TKR-750/850 series and Andrew DB228E technical notes
· SCARC Repeater Committee Update Dated May 3, 2007
· SCARC Repeater Committee Estimated Repeater System Upgrade Costs
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SCARC MEETING NOTES
May 3, 2007
Special Called Meeting
At 20:30 SCARC President Rod Scott N1YZ called the meeting to order at the Bluff Park Community Center and had the attendees introduce themselves. Treasurer Jack Evans checked the roll of current members to ensure that a Club membership quorum was present. The purpose of the called meeting was to discuss and pass proposals for improvements to the Club’s main two meter FM repeater on 146.98 MHz.
Mike Spanos KA4VCA reported that the current condition is that the twenty-eight-year-old repeater system is working but not reliable. He cited several recent repairs including a burned trace on one of the boards and a broken wire. Repeater Committee Chairman Bob Thomas continued with a list of recent repairs made on the system over the past few weeks. A detailed explanation of the repairs was presented to the club members as a report which is attached to the minutes. The consensus of the Repeater Committee is that the main repeater must be replaced with a new machine and that the associated antenna be replaced with one that is expected to give additional gain. The Committee suggested that the repeater replacement be a Kenwood TKR-750 and that the antenna be an Andrew Exposed Dipole Quasi-Omni (Model DB228E). Copies of the specifications were passed out to the membership along with an estimate of the entire project replacement cost, which is $4035.24. A detailed copy of the estimate is attached to this document along with the technical data.
The floor was then opened to the membership for discussion, and the following questions were presented:
· Will there be a repeater coordination problem?
Jack Evans, a member of the Alabama Repeater Coordination Council, stated that this is merely an equipment upgrade and should not cause a problem.
· Will there be an issue with the remote receiver or voter installations?
Lee Aured KI4NMD, a member of the Repeater Committee stated that he discussed this issue with Kenwood and they believe the equipment to be adaptable.
· Is the current DC power supply adequate for the new equipment?
It was reported and affirmed by several members that the new equipment can be served by the existing power supply.
· Is the unit complete as listed (e.g. no hidden costs)?
It has to be programmed but the vendor will do that once our information is provided.
· Is the existing tower safe to climb for antenna replacement?
The consensus of several of the recent workers on the repeater system indicates that it is safe. It was also pointed out that a bonded, professional climber will be doing this part of the installation.
· Can the existing antenna be reused instead of a new one?
Discussion from the floor indicates that the old antenna needs to be replaced. The cost of the new antenna and the associated tower climb/installation is a small percentage of the total outlay, and the new antenna will give 3 db more of gain.
· If replaced, can the old repeater be repaired and used as a spare?
Several of the repeater workers agree that it cannot be used as a backup due to the lack of spare parts.
A financial discussion ensued during which Treasurer Jack Evans reported that the club has approximately $3500 in savings and $125 in checking. He also indicated that there have been individual current donations and commitments of $1000 towards this project by the membership that are not included in his estimate. The club should have at least $1000 in savings if the proposed purchase is approved. It was pointed out that there may also be some FEMA and other EMCOM money made available shortly due to some planned projects.
It was pointed out that the Club is entering into some commitments to provide emergency communication assistance to several local agencies, and that a reliable, efficient repeater system could be the backbone of our assets. Also, it was noted that a club’s reputation can hang upon how well it maintains and uses its repeater. Finally, but not least, the southern part of Shelby County has been suffering from lack of repeater coverage which will be improved by the new system.
A motion was made, voted, and passed that the Club purchase and install the new repeater and antenna as recommended and presented by the Repeater Committee. The motion was carried by 17 affirmatives, 0 nays, and 2 abstentions.
Attachments:
· SCARC Meeting Roll
· Secretary’s raw notes
· Kenwood TKR-750/850 series and Andrew DB228E technical notes
· SCARC Repeater Committee Update Dated May 3, 2007
· SCARC Repeater Committee Estimated Repeater System Upgrade Costs
Friday, May 4, 2007
Club votes to buy new Equipment
Last night, May 3, 2007, the Shelby County Amateur Radio Club (SCARC) had a special called meeting to discuss the SCARC’s repeater and hear a report by the repeater committee. The repeater committee consists of Lee Aured, KI4NMD, Mike Burns, KE4DZU, Michael Spanos, KA4VCA and is chaired by Bob Thomas, KC4AF.
The report detailed recent problems and fixes for the SCARC’s 25 year old repeater. The committee suggested that SCARC replace the existing Micor repeater with a Kenwood TKR-750. They also suggested that the antenna be replaced with a DB-228. The 3db loss in output power would be balanced by the 3db gain of the new antenna which prevents any coordination issues. The 3db gain will “hear” better than the older antenna which had been exhibiting some problems.
The club is actively committed to a two repeater solution to the club and to our served agencies. The old repeater may be able to fulfill that solution by being a “hot standby” repeater located at a different site (perhaps Pinnacle Point). The old antenna, a DB-224 might find use at Pinnacle Point, or some other use, or may be sold.
A motion was made, seconded and carried to make the recommended purchases. For those of you who want to find out more about the new repeater and antenna try the links below.
Special thanks go to Michael Spanos, KA4VCA for resuscitating the old repeater and to the entire Repeater Committee for their work to bring us up to this point and taking us forward.
As has been mentioned in previous posts, thanks also go to everyone who participated in the numerous “repeater parties” to improve our repeater system in the past. We always stand on the shoulders of everyone who came before us.
73,
Rod, N1YZ
http://www.morriswireless.com/downloads/kenwood/TKR-750-850.PDF
http://www.andrew.com/search/BN_095010-000.aspx
http://www.andrew.com/products/antennas/bsa/_pdf/cat29-pg323.pdf
The report detailed recent problems and fixes for the SCARC’s 25 year old repeater. The committee suggested that SCARC replace the existing Micor repeater with a Kenwood TKR-750. They also suggested that the antenna be replaced with a DB-228. The 3db loss in output power would be balanced by the 3db gain of the new antenna which prevents any coordination issues. The 3db gain will “hear” better than the older antenna which had been exhibiting some problems.
The club is actively committed to a two repeater solution to the club and to our served agencies. The old repeater may be able to fulfill that solution by being a “hot standby” repeater located at a different site (perhaps Pinnacle Point). The old antenna, a DB-224 might find use at Pinnacle Point, or some other use, or may be sold.
A motion was made, seconded and carried to make the recommended purchases. For those of you who want to find out more about the new repeater and antenna try the links below.
Special thanks go to Michael Spanos, KA4VCA for resuscitating the old repeater and to the entire Repeater Committee for their work to bring us up to this point and taking us forward.
As has been mentioned in previous posts, thanks also go to everyone who participated in the numerous “repeater parties” to improve our repeater system in the past. We always stand on the shoulders of everyone who came before us.
73,
Rod, N1YZ
http://www.morriswireless.com/downloads/kenwood/TKR-750-850.PDF
http://www.andrew.com/search/BN_095010-000.aspx
http://www.andrew.com/products/antennas/bsa/_pdf/cat29-pg323.pdf
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