Author: Li'l Sparky

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Sparky’s Links for September 2024

Here’s what Li’l Sparky stashed in his nest of bookmarks this month.

Carol, KE6SRN filed new reports from Alaska and, closer to home, from Hoyt Mountain.

Savi, W1SAV worked some POTA at Crystal Cove and Rio de Los Angeles.

NASA’s Next-Generation Solar Sail Mission

Tony, K6TTP writes: It seems that hams could bounce radio signals off this reflective sail to communicate with other hams.  It would be a much larger target than a satellite, the ISS, or the moon.  But I think the location is problematic.
Hackaday also posted an article on the sail.

iFixit Empowers Makers with FixHub Portable Soldering Station
iFixit’s new FixHub Power Series empowers makers to solder on-the-go.

Positive reviews of this convenient tool make it sound like a great addition to the shack.

NRAO Offers Free Ham Radio Technician and General Courses
Self-paced courses also focuses on electromagnetic spectrum.

Another solid option for license test prep.

SOTAmāt – Summits-On-The-Air, Automāted
See Changelog / release-notes page for details.

This is an impressive iOS app that can help you self-spot SOTA and POTA activations without Internet access. Its developer Brian, AB6D had done some incredible work. Thanks to Ammed Ismail, KN6STX for posting about it on the SoCal SOTA Groups.io.

2024 Shakeout Amateur Radio Community Intensity Map Announcement
2024 Shakeout Amateur Radio Community Intensity Map Announcement

ARES LAXNORTHEAST and Oliver, K6OLI debuted a collaborative mapping project. The press release above explains how you can participate in Shakeout this year and contribute data to the map.

2024 California QSO Party

Savi, W1SAV encourages everyone to participate October 5 and 6. This year, there are some POTA challenges!

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Sparky’s Links for August 2024

Our adventurous avian presents a roundup of radio-related news and information from around the web.

Submitted by Savi, W1SAV

Big Bear HamEscape™
Join me at the Big Bear HamEscape™

A few hours away, the Big Bear Ham Escape is taking place for the second year in a row. There are seminars, networking, and some POTA. I plan to be there starting Thursday, April 24 and leaving on Sunday. I had fun last year, and made two activations. Will I see you there?

Submitted by Tony, K6TTP

WBCQ: A One-of-a-Kind Shortwave Radio Station – Radio World
There are all kinds of shortwave radio stations in the world, but WBCQ seems unique.
Ask Hackaday: Is Shortwave On Life Support?
Between World War II and Y2K, shortwave listening was quite an education. With a simple receiver, you could listen to the world. Some of it, of course, was entertainment, and much of it was propaga…

Another posting for OLD hams and SWL-ers, like me, who remember the good old days.  Listening to SW in the late Postwar ’40s is what led me to become a ham at age 10 in 1952.  Those days are over but I recall them nostalgically.  They will never be back, nor is there probably any reason why they should be back.  But it was fun once upon a time.

QRPblog: VHF/UHF Handheld Comparison


To the dismay of some and the exhilaration of others, here’s some good dope on some HT units.  May be useful to potential buyers of new/used HTs.

Is Inflation Making Off Grid Power Too Expensive? – Off Grid Ham
Let’s pick apart the phenomenon of off grid energy equipment inflation and see if there is anything to this reader’s theory.

Submitted by John, KK6ZVQ

A Reason To Get On The Air – The KØNR Radio Site
I don’t need much but I do need a reason to get on the air. This can take many forms as I wrote in this blog post some time ago. I see quite a few new hams struggling with the problem of “I got this license but now what?” Operating goals or awards are a fun way to keep focused Continue reading A Reason To Get On The Air→
An archive of RadioShack Catalogs (1939-2011)
Flip-through every RadioShack electronics & computer catalog. These catalogs include vintage electronics, stereos, speakers, CB radios, tube radios, computers, communication equipment, electronic test equipment, gadgets, technology & more!

Adrian, KN6MHG added that there is also a Facebook group that discusses vintage RadioShack catalogs.

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Exploring the End-Fed Half Wave Antenna

Ferrite core

Tony K6TTP sent us this article on the end-fed half-wave antenna written by John VA3KOT for Ham Radio Outside the Box. “This is probably the best overview article on end-fed half-wave antennas I’ve read in many many years. It broadly addresses in brief the fact and opinion that exists in the EFHW world, and explains the complexities, alternatives, and some variations on the type.” It’s a great introduction for anyone considering constructing one of their own. The caption for the image accompanying this post reads, “49:1 showing 2xFT140-43 ferrite cores. No case, insulated wire protects windings from moisture.”

You can tell us about your antenna building adventures on Instagram, Threads and Mastodon.

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Amateur Radio Booklet by Noël F4JJD

Flying around the web, I found this useful booklet created by Noël Martin, F4JJD. It’s called, simply enough, the Amateur Radio Booklet 2024 Edition (3.3 MB PDF). It includes:

  • Band Plans
  • Classification of Emissions
  • Q Codes
  • Morse Code
  • Radio Abbreviations
  • Digital Modes
  • Radio Waves Physics
  • Prefixes Allocations
  • Amateur Radio Grid Locator

Noël maintains the booklet as a project on GitHub. According to his personal site, he’s a ham and software engineer in France. You can follow him on Mastodon here.

TNX to Cale K4HCK, and his great newsletter Amateur Radio Weekly, for the link!