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Eeting D
Bergen Amateur Radio Association
BARA Bulletin February 2016
Volume 53 Number 2 www.BARA.ORG
NEXT MEETING
Meeting Programs
Are there any topics of interest to the
club that you would like to see a presen-
tation or demonstration? Is there a sub-
ject you could lead a discussion on?
Please contact Tony Izzo, K2AMI
K2AMI ‘at’ ARRL.NET
February 14, 2016
7:30 PM
Municipal Building Senior Center
350 Hudson Avenue
Township of Washington, NJ
07676
BARA Dues 1
BARA Auction 1
February Meeting Presentation 1
South Georgia 2002 1
VE Exam Schedule 2
Public Service Information 2
Link of the Month 2
Upcoming Events 3
January Meeting Minutes 4
Morse Trainer 4
IC-7600 Firmware Update 4
Illegal Mongolia Operations 4
Radio Parity Act 5
What is “Tropo” 5
Member Contest Scores 6
DX Insights 6
New DXer’s Handbook 6
New Operating Event 7
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
Our 53ed Year
2016 BARA DUES
It’s BARA dues time again.
BARA Dues for 2016 are $25 for
an individual member and $35 for
a family membership.
Please pay at a business meeting,
kit night, or mail to the Treasurer.
Make check payable to BARA.
February Meeting
Presentation
Ron Bosco, WB2GAI, will
discuss his design and con-
struction of a “Stepper IR”
type vertical antenna that he
made.
BARA
Annual Auction
Sunday, March 6th
At
Westwood Regional Jr/Sr
High School Cafeteria
Sellers 12 Noon
Auction starts at 1 PM
Refreshments available
If item sells, seller pays 10%
fee per item, maximum $20 per
item.
Recycle your no longer used or
seldom used equipment to other
hams and buy something new for
yourself. If it’s only function is
gathering dust in the garage or
on a shelf, time to sell it.
Consider donating items to
BARA.
South Georgia
DXpedition 2002
If you have an hour “free” time,
watch the video of the 2002
DXpedition to South Georgia.
The whole expedition was hard
work, but they all seem to be en-
joying it and having fun. Look at
what these guys went through so
you can add one more country to
your totals.
https://vimeo.com/121317595
Tnx to WA2PNI and WX2S
Page 2 Bergen Amateur Radio Association
PUBLIC SERVICE
BC RACES NET 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of each month.
7:45 PM on the W2AKR Repeater
146.790 Mhz; PL 141.3 Hz.
Net control is NJ2BC
Directed training net for all authorized
Bergen County RACES stations and
authorized liaison stations.
K2BAR NETS
VE EXAM SCHEDULE
The next Ham License
test session is scheduled for:
Feb. 19
7:00 pm
at
Westwood Regional
High School
Enter school grounds from
drive at right side of school.
Cross in front of school and
turn right into parking lot.
Enter side door with
Gymnasium sign over door.
The FCC has imposed a
Testing fee of $15.00 per
exam/retest.
Required documents:
Two forms of ID required
for all transactions.
Social Security Number
if unlicensed or FRN
Number if licensed.
Original CSCE if prior
test credit is claimed.
If license upgrade, a
signed copy of current
FCC license
Questions may be directed to:
Don Younger, W2JEK
201-265-6583
Question Pool Revision:
The General exam question pool
was revised on July 1, 2015.
Current Question Pool:
Technician, Element 2-July 1, 2014
General, Element 3 - July 1, 2015
Extra, Element 4 - July 1, 2012
Sample tests available at QRZ.COM
http://www.qrz.com/p/testing.pl
Daily FCC report of new and re-
newed callsigns available at:
http://www.qrz.com/new_hams.html
Link of the Month
Bill Hays, AE4QL's tabletop demon-
stration of what SWR is and how to
deal with it. You might not under-
stand EVERYTHING Bill's talking
about, but you'll know a lot more
about SWR than you do now.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=oejsHzurzv4&feature=youtu.be
Tnx to WI2W BC RACES
Communications Unit Any licensed ham operator in Bergen
County, if not already a member, is
asked to join the BCRACES team by
sending an e-mail to:
with your name, callsign, e-mail, and
municipality.
SSB Net:
Mondays 9:00 pm
10 Meters – 28.375 MHz
Net Control: Jim, K2ZO
FM Nets:
Wednesdays 9:00 pm
2 Meters: 146.79 MHz.
PL 141.3
Net Control: Hector, W2NPR
Thursdays 8:30 pm
70 cm: 444.100
PL 141.3
Net Control: Marco, KC2ZMA
Thursdays 9:00 pm
Technical Net
2 Meters: 146.955 MHz.
PL 141.3
EchoLink NO LONGER AVAILABLE
Net Control: Gordon, W2TTT
The FM Nets use the BCFMA repeater.
New HF Digital Net
Focused on EMCOMM
The New Jersey Narrow Band
Emergency Messaging System (NJ
-NBEMS) Net meets every Sunday
Morning at 9:30 AM on 7.073
MHz using OLIVIA-8-500. This
net is NOT affiliated with RACES
or ARES, so any Radio Amateur
with appropriate operating privileg-
es may participate.
FLDIGI is the preferred sound card
software because FLAMP and
FLMSG are used for message han-
dling. This is a training net for
new users, so operator error is ex-
pected and well tolerated.
For additional information contact
Bill, KC2VUT at arrl.net, Rick,
N2PHI at comcast.net or Karl,
W2KBF at arrl.net.
Page 3 Bergen Amateur Radio Association
BARA BULLETIN
BARA RESOURCES
The BARA Bulletin is published monthly by the Bergen Amateur
Radio Association. Subscriptions are included in the annual member-ship dues. Membership is open to anyone interested in radio communi-cation.
QSL Bureau:
Warren Hager, K2UFM
Public Service:
Club Contesting:
Phil Barber, WA2LXE
VE Exams:
Don Younger, W2JEK
Donnan917’at’aol.com
Hamfests:
Jim Joyce, K2ZO
Webmasters:
wm’at’bara.org
Tony Izzo, K2AMI
David Levine, K2DSL
MEMBERSHIP
APPLICATION
Interested in learning more about amateur radio and meeting new
people? Then join the Bergen
Amateur Radio Association (BARA). Dues are $25 per year. Send your application request to:
David Levine, K2DSL
11 Mackay Ave.
Waldwick, NJ 07463
e-mail to k2dsl’at’arrl.net.
Please include your name, address, town, zip, call sign, license class, and phone number.
Upcoming Events
February 14 - BARA Business Meeting
February 16 - Kit Night at Senior Center
February 19 - VE Test Session
February 23 - Kit Night at Senior Center
February 26 - 28 - CQ 160 Meter Contest - SSB
February 27 - 28 - North Amer. QSO Party - RTTY
March 1 - Kit Night at Senior Center
March 4 - 6 - ARRL Int’l DX Contest - SSB
March 6 - BARA Auction
March 8 - Kit Night at Senior Center
Welcome New Member:
Melissa McGourty, KD2KFG - Bloomingdale
BARA KIT NIGHT 7:00 PM to 9:30 PM
Township of Washington Senior Center
350 Hudson Ave., Township of Washington, 07676
Build a kit related to Amateur Radio (partial BARA funding available)
Diagnose/repair a defective piece of equipment
Discuss radio and computer problems
Technical assistance available
Seek/give technical opinions
Page 4 Bergen Amateur Radio Association
BARA Meeting Minutes
Jan. 3, 2016
The meeting was called to order by
Club President Jim, K2ZO.
Following the salute to the Flag,
the club officers were introduced:
VP – Tony, K2AMI; Treasurer –
David, K2DSL; and Secretary -
Bill, KB2OCJ.
Health and Welfare: Tony,
K2AMI, noted a recent communi-
cation with Noel. N2OEL that he is
going to the hospital for knee re-
pair.
Guests: KD2KBD, Al; KT2F,
Kathryn; and N2BKC, Emil.
Announcements: J im, K2ZO,
announced that:
1. Sunday, Jan. 10 will be the
Ham Radio University in Long
Island.
2. Due to the Super Bowl. The
next BARA meeting will be on
Feb. 14 at which Mike Lisenco,
N2YBB, is expected to speak
about ARRL issues.
3. The BCFMA meeting will be
held here at the Senior Center on
Sunday. Feb 21.
Jim. K2ZO, turned the meeting
over to Gene, K2KJI, and Randy,
WA2RMZ, for their presentation
on the new Yaesu Fusion Radio
System.
Jim, K2ZO, thanked Gene and
Randy for their presentation and
reminded all the next meeting is on
Feb. 14 and the BCFMA meeting
is on Feb. 21. Jim also announced
that Gordon, W2TTT, has filled
the open Trustee position.
The meeting was closed on a mo-
tion be Gordon, W2TTT, and se-
conded by Bill, WA2JKY.
Respectfully submitted,
Bill, KB2OCJ
BARA Secretary
Morse Trainer
Morse Trainer is a free windows
morse code training program de-
veloped by G4FON using the
Koch method. The Koch method
of CW training was developed by
a German psychologist, Ludwig
Koch back in the 1930's. The
concept is based on initially
learning two characters transmit-
ted 15 wpm, for example, and
adding a character when you
have mastered the first two. You
learn to react to the sound of the
character in CW at your target
speed.
The Morse Trainer software al-
lows you to set the speed at
which the character is sent and
the overall effective wpm. There
are many other settings including
changing tone and adding QSB
and QRM to the transmission.
The software may be downloaded
from: WWW.G4FON.NET
A demonstration video is availa-
ble at:
WWW.DXZONE.COM/CW-TRAINER-
DEMO/
Illegal Mongolia Operations
There are several hams Operating
on HF without proper amateur ra-
dio license in Mongolia. Communi-
cations Regulatory Communication
of Mongolia and MRSF are working
to stop such a illegal operations
here and will announce to the pub-
lic the callsigns used illegally. And
will ask DXCC Committee not count
the QSL cards of those Callsigns for
DXCC award.
Please visit www.mrsf.mn for valid
licensed Opeartor's list of
Mongolia.
Batu, JT1CS
From QRZ.COM
Firmware Update for the
IC-7600 HF Transceiver
Last May, Icom announced a signif-
icant firmware update for the IC-
7600 HF Transceiver. The update
provides a new range of functions
including waterfall screen for the
band scope, amongst many!
Please note that before you install
the firmware, you should download
the installation guide using the link
on the firmware update page:
Improvements:
• Waterfall screens, mouse opera-
tion, and other additional functions
have been added to the spectrum
scope.
• An APF AF Level setting has been
added.
• CI-V commands for antenna con-
trol, logging software and RIT/
DELTA-TX have been added.
• TX Delay (HF/50M) settings have
been added to adjust the TX delay
time.
• A Standby setting has been added
to remotely turn ON the IC-7600
transceiver by a command from the
REMOTE jack.
• “MOS-FET” is now the default
value of “SEND Relay Type.”
For more information, please refer
to IC-7600 Information for Firm-
ware version 2.00.
• Firmware can be updated using a
USB flash drive. Thoroughly read
Section 14 (UPDATING THE
FIRMWARE) of the instruction
manual to know what the update
requires.
• Backup your transceiver’s data
onto a USB flash drive as it is possi-
ble that your data could get lost or
corrupted during the update. Thor-
oughly read Section 10 (File saving)
of the instruction manual for details.
Never turn OFF the transceiver
power during the update.
From QRZ.COM
Page 5 Bergen Amateur Radio Association
also spoke and recognzied the work
all parties are doing to insure the
passage of the bill in the House.
H.R. 1301 would direct the FCC to
extend its rules relating to reasona-
ble accommodation of Amateur Ser-
vice communications to private
land-use restrictions, such as deed
covenants, conditions, and re-
strictions. The bill has attracted 120
cosponsors from both sides of the
aisle. An identical US Senate meas-
ure, S. 1685, has attracted three co-
sponsors. It cleared the Senate Com-
mittee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation last November.
From the ARRL ...
US house Subcommittee
to Consider Amateur
Radio Parity Act
The Amateur Radio Parity Act,
H.R. 1301, was among three bills
that the US House Subcommittee
on Communications and Technol-
ogy considered in a Thursday,
February 11 "markup" session.
Subcommittee members voted to
send the measure to the House
Energy and Commerce Commit-
tee for further consideration.
The Subcommittee on Communi-
cations and Technology is chaired
by Rep Greg Walden, W7EQI (R-
OR), who, during a January 12
Subcommittee hearing on H.R.
1301, called the measure "a com-
monsense bill" and urged his col-
leagues' support. Subcommittee
members submitted in advance
any amendments they might have
to any of the bills being consid-
ered in the February 11 markup.
The House bill's sponsor, Rep
Adam Kinzinger (R-IL), also
spoke in favor of H.R. 1301 at the
January 12 hearing, explaining
that hams in some neighborhoods
"are outright prohibited" from
erecting antennas on their proper-
ties. He cited Amateur Radio's
role in emergency communication
support, and said his bill's
"reasonable accommodation
standard" would not mandate
placement, size, or aesthetics re-
garding an outdoor antenna, leav-
ing ham radio operators and
homeowners associations to de-
cide those issues.
Reps Walden and Kinzinger made
impassioned statements at the
markup session, in favor of the
bill. Representative Anna Eshoo
What is “Tropo”
Tropospheric (a.k.a. "Tropo") DX
modes are defined by the mechanics
behind them. A Tropo DX mode is
any condition that scatters, reflects
or refracts signals in the Tropo-
sphere allowing long distance recep-
tion (and hence interference) to oc-
cur in the VHF, UHF and/or micro-
wave radio bands.
Refraction occurs when the normal
Index of Refraction has been
altered. Vertical boundaries between
different types of air masses usually
cause this..where a temperature in-
version (warm air over cooler air)
exists. This causes signal enhance-
ment. When the vertical boundary
becomes especially sharp, the
amount of refraction becomes so
severe that signals extend a great
distance as though caught in a
duct...thus the reference to tropo-
spheric ducting.
Although a temperature inversion
is key, the most important influenc-
ing factor is water vapor
(humidity). Thus..a warm dry air-
mass on top of a cooler humid air-
mass produces the best conditions.
Dry Mexican air flowing across the
Gulf of Mexico or Dry Saharan air
flowing across the Meditteranean
are two examples of prime tropo-
producing conditions. High pres-
sure subsidence (the sinking and
drying out of air)..if it occurs over
the oceans..can produce reception
across several thousands of
km! Hawaii to California recep-
tion..both on UHF and VHF..is not
as uncommon as one might think.
On the other hand..high mountains
can physically block tropo DX..and
deserts are generally too dry for
tropo. Thus..tropo is rare in the very
mountainous or dry regions of the
world.
As far as classifying tropo..there is
not a sharp line between enhance-
ment and ducting. Rather than clas-
sify the type using the actual phys-
ics involved, the heights of the in-
versions can be used as a general
rule of thumb. So typically
"enhancement" is caused by inver-
sions below 450 m (1500 ft) above
ground, and "ducting" is caused by
inversions above 450 m. (The layer
of the troposphere below 450 m is
called the "boundary layer" in me-
teorology).
Tnx to WA2PNI
Government's view of the
economy could be summed
up in a few short phrases:
If it moves, tax it.
If it keeps moving, regulate
it.
And if it stops moving,
subsidize it.
-- Ronald Reagan (1986)
Page 6 Bergen Amateur Radio Association
MEMBER REPORTED CONTEST SCORES SUBMITTED
FOR AGGREGATE CLUB SCORE
North American QSO Party (NAQP)
Power Mode QSOs Mults Score
K2DSL Low SSB 75 43 3,225
WA2ALY Low SSB 68 43 2,924
WA2ALY Low CW 62 32 1,984
CQ 160 Meter Contest
Power Mode QSOs Score
WA2ALY Low CW 191 19,135
W2JEK QRP CW 80 4,862
BARTG RTTY Sprint
Power QSOs DXCC States Cont. Score
K2AMI Low 40 2 8 2 800
ARRL VHF QSO Party
Power QSOs Points Grids Score
K2AMI High 213 281 40 11,240
W2JEK Low 36 37 7 259
DX Insights
KERGUELEN ISLANDS FT/X
#17 ON THE MOST WANTED LIST
Kerguelen Islands, a French possession, are a
group of islands in the southern Indian Ocean,
they are some of the most isolated places on
earth, located 280 mi northwest of uninhabited
Heard Island. The climate is raw and chilly with
high wind throughout the year. France maintains
a permanent base with 45 to 100 scientists, engi-
neers and researchers. There are no airports on
the islands so all travel must be conducted by
ship. The main island Grande Terre has an area of
2,786 mi which is surrounded by 300 smaller is-
lands and inlets forming an archipelago.
Over the years several Ham DXpeditions have
taken place. Recently Nicolas, FT4XU, has been
active from the island but is now QRT. DX
World Bulletin reports that FT5XT, Gildas, is
now active from Kerguelen and will be active for
a period of time. Gildas is captain of a fishing
boat which will be sailing in the area for 3
months, so activity will be sporadic. When he is
sailing Gildas will sign FT5XT/MM.
Hopefully some of the BARA DXers worked
South Sandwich Island, VP8STI, before they
departed for their next stop at South Georgia.
VP8SGI, South Georgia Island, was operational
Friday Jan.28 but went QRT early due to severe
weather. QSL manager for VP8STI, South
Sandwich, is N2OO. QSL manager for VP8SGI,
South Georgia, is KU9C.
Good hunting.
73, W2FT
The New DXer’s Handbook
“The New DXer’s Handbook” © Second Edition, written by:
Bryce K. Anderson, K7UA, was released on January 10, 2015.
The author grants permission to individuals to reproduce this
document for personal non-commercial use under the condition
that credit is given to the author
The complete pdf document is available at:
http://www.k7ua.com/uploads/4/9/9/0/4990079/
new_dxers_handbook_second_edition_01-29-
2015_optimized.pdf
Chapter – 1 Listening – The key to successful DXing
Chapter – 2 DX Cluster Basics
Chapter – 3 The Pinnacle of DXing-The DX Century Club
Chapter – 4 The DXer’s Toolkit
Chapter – 5 Split Operation & How to Be Heard in a Pileup
Chapter – 6 DX Propagation Basics
Chapter – 7 Phonetics
Chapter – 8 The Art of QSLing
Chapter – 9 DX Intelligence
Page 7 Bergen Amateur Radio Association
David, K2DSL, holding his
plaque for First Place in the
Hudson Division in the 2015
ARRL RTTY Roundup.
Tony, K2AMI, operating dur-
ing the 2016 VHF contest
from his “humble” shack at
his QTH. He operated four
bands, high power, multi-op
with Steve, WI2W.
NRRL Promotes Hot, Fresh Idea
NEWINGSTEAD, VERMONT – In a media briefing
today held at the organization’s headquarters, the
National Radio Retransmission Legion (NRRL)
announced a year-long operating event for ham
radio operators wanting to add “flavor” to their
operating habits.
“The National Pizza Ovens On the Air event
(NPOOTA) will begin immediately and run through
this calendar year,” says legion president Ray
Fergie, dabbing a spot of pizza sauce and parme-
san cheese from his bolo tie.
“We hope to foster a unique radio experience for our members, while
promoting the American values embodied in a good deep dish, stuffed
crust, bacon laden 3-cheese pizza prepared by your favorite local pizze-
ria.”
Portable station NPOOTA activators are asked to post upcoming activa-
tions on the NPOOTA home page. Throughout the year, both activators
and chasers will be tallied on a leaderboard which includes total stations
worked and total calories consumed.
Although details are still being finalized, the NRRL released the following
list of FAQs:
Q: Can I operate from the parking lot of my local pizzeria?
A: To be considered a valid NPOOTA activation, the transmitting anten-
na must be located with 10 feet of the pizza oven.
Q: Can the “10 feet” rule be interpreted as positioned ABOVE the pizza
oven?
A: If you can get permission to operate a portable station on the roof,
then “yes.”
Q: What modes are considered “authorized” for this event?
A: CW, SSB, Digital and All You Can Eat
Q: Do I need documentation to prove my activation?
A: The NRRL will conduct random audits throughout the year. A photo of
the radio operator and pizza cook will be required.
Q: Since I am on a diet, is it possible to activate only the salad bar por-
tion of the pizzeria?
A: We hope to implement Salad Bars on the Air (SBOTA) later this year.
From www.HamHijinks.com
Page 8 Bergen Amateur Radio Association
Bergen Amateur Radio Association
169 Woodland Ave.
Westwood, NJ 07675
President
Jim Joyce, K2ZO
K2ZO ‘at’ ARRL.NET
Vice-President
Tony Izzo, K2AMI
K2AMI ’at’ ARRL.NET
Secretary
Bill Montague, KB2OCJ
KB2OCJ ’at’ AOL.COM
Treasurer
David Levine, K2DSL
11 Mackay Ave.
Waldwick, NJ 07463
K2DSL ‘at’ ARRL.NET
Trustees
Bennett Norell, KO2OK
KO2OK ’at’ ARRL.NET
Gordon Beattie, W2TTT
W2TTT ’at’ ATT.NET
Chuck Lemken, KC2SST
CLEMKEN ’at’ HOTMAIL.COM
BARA Bulletin
Phil Barber, WA2LXE, Editor
WA2LXE ’at’ ARRL.NET
Next Business Meeting
Sunday, February 14 at the
Twp. Of Washington
Senior Center
Presidents Emeritus
Bill James, WA2QHL - SK
Dominick Interdonato, NB2F - SK
Steve Mendelsohn, W2ML - SK