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Amateur Radio in Western Washington


Criminal

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KF7LSE :):rolleyes::(

 

I guess the call sign was posted yesterday, but I was searching the name as it appears on the paperwork. Didn't know you need to search last name first.

Congrats!

 

W7WT “W7WT”

TotemLake “KE7MDT”

Ironman114 “KF7AWY”

LindaLu "AB7YL"

K7-Wave "K7WV"

JHolly "NK6L"

AndrewRJ "KC7RSR"

Douglas_Clan "KC7YUA"

N7RIJ "N7RIJ"

FluteFace "W7VYL"

fastford "KB7UTQ"

John_E_Cache "N0AAZ"

thecatdaddy "WI7F"

GeoDiver "KF7LQK"

KD7CTV "KD7CTV"

blue2824 "N7AVN"

uxorious "KF7LSE"

Criminal “K7XFE”

 

Sol seaker TBD

Moun10Bike TBD (K7MNT or W0MTB are available as a vanity call)

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I just figured out I crashed a W-WA thread, sorry. I live in the Vancouver/Portland metro area, though.

 

This thread got me interested in getting a radio for the back country. I stopped at Ham Radio Outlet and a guy gave me a demo of a D-Star radio. It uses D* digital repeaters connected to the internet. The repeaters are connected with VOIP internet telephone protocol. The guy couldn't reach a D* repeater so he plugged in a 2 meter simplex transceiver dongle into his Wi-fi connected laptop. He then connected to a repeater in Georgia and talked to a guy in Atlanta using his D* ICOM hand held 2 meter rig. I have been gone a while from ham radio. My old tube rig is now obsolete.

 

Congrats to the new hams. If they are looking for radios:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D-STAR

http://www.dvdongle.com/DV_Dongle/Home.html

 

Some D* radios come with GPS and packet radio built in. Wonders never cease.

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Glad I saw this tread. This last weekend I charged and tried out my old YAESU VX-150. too bad the menu key is not working anymore. Got to go looking for another radio, I think the radio market is even more crazy than trying to find a GPS. Too bad that ham radio store is gone from seattle. No where to handle some radios anymore in the seattle area. got to buy them online.

 

Thomas & Dingo KD7WLU

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Glad I saw this tread. This last weekend I charged and tried out my old YAESU VX-150. too bad the menu key is not working anymore. Got to go looking for another radio, I think the radio market is even more crazy than trying to find a GPS. Too bad that ham radio store is gone from seattle. No where to handle some radios anymore in the seattle area. got to buy them online.

 

Thomas & Dingo KD7WLU

 

There's HRO in Tigard

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Glad I saw this tread. This last weekend I charged and tried out my old YAESU VX-150. too bad the menu key is not working anymore. Got to go looking for another radio, I think the radio market is even more crazy than trying to find a GPS. Too bad that ham radio store is gone from seattle. No where to handle some radios anymore in the seattle area. got to buy them online.

 

Thomas & Dingo KD7WLU

 

There's HRO in Tigard

 

Tigard is not really in the Seattle area. (being just south of Portland Oregon.)

Anyone know of a radio store closer to Seattle Tacoma?

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My Yaesu 897 lost receive in the FM mode. I called HRO and they recommended COMTEK in North Kitsap, north of Poulsbo. The tech use to be at ICOM in Seattle but now works out of his home. His e-mail is w7jv@aol.com and his name is Kuni Okuma. He has a good reputation here in Kitsap County. Send me an e-mail if you want his phone no. W7WT

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Tigard is not really in the Seattle area. (being just south of Portland Oregon.)

Anyone know of a radio store closer to Seattle Tacoma?

I did the reverse one day trip from Tigard to Safeco Field to watch a baseball game a couple of weeks ago. I'm a die hard Twins fan. HRO has a pretty good catalog. You could read about the radios at least. Don't forget you save sales tax by making an Oregon trip.

 

http://www.hamradio.com/

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Tigard is not really in the Seattle area. (being just south of Portland Oregon.)

Anyone know of a radio store closer to Seattle Tacoma?

I did the reverse one day trip from Tigard to Safeco Field to watch a baseball game a couple of weeks ago. I'm a die hard Twins fan. HRO has a pretty good catalog. You could read about the radios at least. Don't forget you save sales tax by making an Oregon trip.

 

http://www.hamradio.com/

 

Yea I bought my Yaesu 150 from them over the internet, I was never really happy with the placement of the control knobs, fat fingers. Guess when I get my new Garmin 1450T, I will break it in by doing a road trip down to Tigard.

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This is a great idea for caching and much better than using talk abouts.

 

Our family licenses/call signs lapsed a few years ago. I would be willing to test and get a new one for myself. Until then I will just have to listen to you all on my scanner. Good call Criminal!

 

I too would need suggestions on gear since it has been awhile. I will do some research and study up.

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I like HRO but I find their website frustrating to navigate. HamCity has better prices and their site is much easier to find what you’re looking for. I especially like how they match up the appropriate accessories like antennas or software right on the same page with the radio. My VX-8 radio purchase went smoothly, and they handled the transmit/receive mod painlessly.

 

Updated list:

W7WT “W7WT”

TotemLake “KE7MDT”

Ironman114 “KF7AWY”

LindaLu "AB7YL"

K7-Wave "K7WV"

JHolly "NK6L"

AndrewRJ "KC7RSR"

Douglas_Clan "KC7YUA"

N7RIJ "N7RIJ"

FluteFace "W7VYL"

fastford "KB7UTQ"

John_E_Cache "N0AAZ"

thecatdaddy "WI7F"

GeoDiver "KF7LQK"

KD7CTV "KD7CTV"

blue2824 "N7AVN"

uxorious "KF7LSE"

Thomas & Dingo “KD7WLU”

MtnMutt “W2MTN”

Criminal “K7XFE”

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Ok guys need help playing a treasure game and a hint is morse code can you decode this for me and email me back at wingrider1998@wavecable.com.

 

Link:http://www.brightempires.com/hunt/

 

Thanks, Larry

don't see a link to the code, might take a peruse if I had a link to the code.

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I loved those (i think 877s) mercury vapor rectifiers that would glow in step with your AM modulation. I actually understood vacuum tube circuity and could easily fix any radio. I just picked up my FT897 from Comtek today. Have a hard enought time just operating and setting up these solid state rigs. Not capable to fix any of them. I learned CW as a Naval Aviation Cadet in WWII. I have no musical talent which means I have to work at it. i did manage to get DXCC on 30 meters which means I worked and confirmed over 100 different countries on CW. Dick

Edited by W7WT
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KX7L

 

Another for the list. I'm not active much on VHF FM, but I was one of the ops at GW8. I guess I was the one who made a few contacts on 20, if W7WT is still following this. Sorry we missed you. I don't think we had much of a signal. Spent most of our time working the attendees on 2m.

 

I know EFHutton is a ham, I worked him at GW8 but I can't remember Dave's call

I think so is Hike a Photo. I don't know his call though

 

Charlie/LostSparky

Edited by LostSparky
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Hello

 

Welcome to the world of Amateur Radio. This is Richard AB7OH in Mead, WA, I enjoy Geocaching with my wife Rich & Rox), My good friend John KD7AAT (Rosco Bookbinder) is my geocaching mentor. He got me hooked on caching in Sept. of this year.

 

73's and Happy Caching and QSLing

AB7OH Richard

Mead,WA

Edited by Rich & Rox
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Ham Radio for Geocachers\Hikers

 

Several years ago I decided to get my amateur radio license so that I could have a more reliable method of communications while I was out hiking. As I began to enjoy the peacefulness of solo hikes, the radio became even more valuable. The radio has proven itself essential during group hikes as well, as I’m sure TotemLake would agree. I thought I’d put a few of my thoughts down here in case anyone was considering ham radio for hikes or pretty much anything else, and to try to dispel some of the common myths around amateur radio. I’m not going to get into too much detail since it’s easy enough to use a search engine and find the information. Also, I’ll only discuss the Technician Class License, since that is all you’ll ever need for hiking or geocaching.

 

Getting the license is easy and inexpensive. You have to pass a 35 question multiple choice exam. The test questions are taken from a pool of 396 questions (current number of possible valid test questions). It’s really not terribly technical or difficult to pass this test! Just scroll down to the list and you’ll notice several chuckleheads (myself included) who have passed this exam on the first try. Trust me, you can do it. There are several websites that will randomly choose 35 questions and create a practice exam and automatically grade it for you, free of charge. You just keep practicing with the online tests until you’re confident that you can pass the real exam. There is no Morse code requirement anymore, so don’t sweat that. Taking the test will cost you around $20.

 

The radios are not terribly large, heavy, or expensive. In fact, there are several small handheld ham radios that are just as small as those (often useless) FRS radios. (The Yaesu VX3R comes to mind) Obviously a bigger radio will have more features and often more transmit power, but neither is absolutely necessary, especially if your hike includes summits. Both TL and I spoke to a ten year old girl on Mercer Island while we were climbing around on Big Hump! That’s over 40 miles away and without the use of a repeater. I’ve made a radio contact from every summit I’ve been on (when I brought the radio) over the past few years. People are out there and willing to talk, provide directions, or call aid for you if something bad should happen.

 

Don’t or cannot hike? If hiking doesn’t blow your kilt up, or you’ve suffered an injury/illness that has you sidelined, you can always keep tabs on the hikers from wherever you happen to be. We would welcome that! Just keep an eye on the forums and if you see a hike (or cache machine even) announced, just ask what the radio plan is. Then keep your radio with you during the day and listen for us calling. W7WT did that while we hiked Big Hump, and it was great to know he was there listening.

 

Other benefits of ham radio. During national emergencies, being a licensed amateur radio operator means you can communicate or monitor communications while everyone else is scratching their heads. Hurricane Katrina was the latest emergency that left large pockets of people without any way of calling for help or getting emergency information. Your earthquake/volcano kit will be more complete with a small radio and spare batteries.

 

Here’s a list of Washington geocachers (that I know of) that are licensed. If I’ve missed you please let me know!

W7WT “W7WT”

TotemLake “KE7MDT”

Ironman114 “KF7AWY”

LindaLu (She just sent me an email and I can’t find it!)

K7-Wave "K7WV"

JHolly "NK6L "

Criminal “K7XFE”

 

EDIT to add.

EDIT to add.

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I finally got in touch with the Vashon Island radio club. I am signed up to take a weekend technician license course May 20-22, testing for my license on Sunday. I believe there are a few more spots open if there are any folks interested.

 

Vashon-Maury Island Radio Club: http://w7vmi.org/

May class details: http://www.w7vmi.org/class.pdf

 

Cheers,

Maggie

Good for you. If you are ever in Bremerton stop by and I will show you my station. We live on the corner of Almira and E.33rd. I have a big Pro 57B antenna that is cranked down now. I am not very active but will be when the bands open up again. N 47 35.654 W122 37.371

88 Dick

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I finally got in touch with the Vashon Island radio club. I am signed up to take a weekend technician license course May 20-22, testing for my license on Sunday. I believe there are a few more spots open if there are any folks interested.

 

Vashon-Maury Island Radio Club: http://w7vmi.org/

May class details: http://www.w7vmi.org/class.pdf

 

Cheers,

Maggie

Good for you. If you are ever in Bremerton stop by and I will show you my station. We live on the corner of Almira and E.33rd. I have a big Pro 57B antenna that is cranked down now. I am not very active but will be when the bands open up again. N 47 35.654 W122 37.371

88 Dick

You go girl! (Maggie I mean) Good luck and don't let it overwhelm you, it's really not hard. Remember the study advice given earlier in the thread; go to the back of the book and read the question and only the correct answer. That way the only thing that will look familiar to you on the test are the correct answers.

 

Dick, I will get over there some day. I do occasionally try you on the VHF repeater at 145.310/179.9 (Gold or Green Mountain, can't remember which) on my drive home from work. I'll give you a try between 1530 and 1600 in case you're sitting around at that time.

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Hello Chris and Maggie, The old body is getting worn out. Just got home from the hospital where I had three hernia operations yesterday.

They are in the same place as some old ones I had a few years back. Then they let me come home after each operation but I am older and I have much more pain. Going to take a pain pill shortly. Chris, no wonder I was never able to contact you. I was using the 146.62 that is up there at the channel 13 TV site. I hope to recover quickly from the last operations, so we can start doing a few things. It would be helpful if I knew what frequency to monitor when they are on a hike. 73 Dick

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I ordered a VX-6r yesterday from gigaparts and didn't hear anything from them the rest of the day but when I got home I had this email waiting for me.

Dear Customer,

 

We have received your order and although our facilities in Huntsville, Alabama are currently without power, we are still operational, all delivery guarantees are still in effect, and your order should arrive on-time. Tracking information may not be avialable until Monday evening.

 

Thank you for your business!

They are some of the folks that got hit with a tornado thursday.

Even mother nature doesn't want me on the air.

I have been studying for the test and I have been getting between 70-74% on them but the real test is on may 28th so I should be able to ace it by then.

Cant wait.

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I ordered a VX-6r yesterday from gigaparts and didn't hear anything from them the rest of the day but when I got home I had this email waiting for me.

Dear Customer,

 

We have received your order and although our facilities in Huntsville, Alabama are currently without power, we are still operational, all delivery guarantees are still in effect, and your order should arrive on-time. Tracking information may not be avialable until Monday evening.

 

Thank you for your business!

They are some of the folks that got hit with a tornado thursday.

Even mother nature doesn't want me on the air.

I have been studying for the test and I have been getting between 70-74% on them but the real test is on may 28th so I should be able to ace it by then.

Cant wait.

I'm impreessed by their devotion to customer service. B)

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I ordered a VX-6r yesterday from gigaparts and didn't hear anything from them the rest of the day but when I got home I had this email waiting for me.

Dear Customer,

 

We have received your order and although our facilities in Huntsville, Alabama are currently without power, we are still operational, all delivery guarantees are still in effect, and your order should arrive on-time. Tracking information may not be avialable until Monday evening.

 

Thank you for your business!

They are some of the folks that got hit with a tornado thursday.

Even mother nature doesn't want me on the air.

I have been studying for the test and I have been getting between 70-74% on them but the real test is on may 28th so I should be able to ace it by then.

Cant wait.

Good luck and welcome to the air!

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Good luck on your test. It was about 65 years ago that I traveled from Charleston, Illinois by train to take the exam at the Chicago office of the FCC. I had learned the code as a Naval Aviation Cadet and use to copy the plain language code that was sent out at about 15 WPM. Passed my test and was issued the call of W9ZKU. Had several calls since then. Got the W7WT call around 1972 when the FCC was granting two letter calls if you had an extra class license and had been a ham for 25 years. It is not a vanity call. Been active on and off. Not doing much now as Geocaching keeps me busy. 73 Dick

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Not only did I pass the Technician Class license test today, I aced it - 100%! It was a very intense weekend course but between the great volunteer instructors and self drilling the questions over and over, I did it. Looking forward to getting my call sign very soon (likely by next weekend). I'll post it here first! Can't wait to get on the air and make my first contact.

Congrats! Have fun!

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Not only did I pass the Technician Class license test today, I aced it - 100%! It was a very intense weekend course but between the great volunteer instructors and self drilling the questions over and over, I did it. Looking forward to getting my call sign very soon (likely by next weekend). I'll post it here first! Can't wait to get on the air and make my first contact.

 

Way to go hope they give you a nice call. Dick

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Not only did I pass the Technician Class license test today, I aced it - 100%! It was a very intense weekend course but between the great volunteer instructors and self drilling the questions over and over, I did it. Looking forward to getting my call sign very soon (likely by next weekend). I'll post it here first! Can't wait to get on the air and make my first contact.

Congratulations! Have you decided on a radio yet?

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Not only did I pass the Technician Class license test today, I aced it - 100%! It was a very intense weekend course but between the great volunteer instructors and self drilling the questions over and over, I did it. Looking forward to getting my call sign very soon (likely by next weekend). I'll post it here first! Can't wait to get on the air and make my first contact.

 

See? And you thought you couldn't do it just 'cause you're a girl. :anitongue:

 

Congrats! I'll be listening for you once your callsign comes.

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Updated list:

 

W7WT “W7WT”

TotemLake “KE7MDT”

Ironman114 “KF7AWY”

LindaLu "AB7YL"

K7-Wave "K7WV"

JHolly "NK6L"

AndrewRJ "KC7RSR"

Douglas_Clan "KC7YUA"

N7RIJ "N7RIJ"

FluteFace "W7VYL"

fastford "KB7UTQ"

John_E_Cache "N0AAZ"

thecatdaddy "WI7F"

GeoDiver "KF7LQK"

KD7CTV "KD7CTV"

blue2824 "N7AVN"

uxorious "KF7LSE"

Thomas & Dingo “KD7WLU”

MtnMutt “W2MTN”

SudsyMaggie "KF7QCI"

rambudo "KF7HGU"

Rich & Rox "AB7OH"

LostSparky "KX7L"

Criminal “K7XFE”

 

EDIT: Realized there were several not on the list!

Edited by Criminal
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I am pleased to introduce myself as KF7QCI as of now! Just showed up in the FCC ULS database :)

 

73,

KF7QCI

Congrats and Kilo Foxtrot Seven Quebec Charley India is a great call. I managed to cut one of my RG8U coaxial feed lines into and it took me all morning to get it spliced together. Seems to work OK and I am not sure which radio it goes to I now have my antenna cranked up and the 2N6 (2 and 6 meter ant on the same boom) is back up around 60 feet. Hope to work you sometime.

 

88 Dick, W7WT

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Wow, another new ham! Congratulations and I look forward to making contact sometime. SudsyMaggie was able to reach a friend on Vashon last weekend from inside a bowl shaped basin. It always amazes me what kind of range we can get with just our little hand-held radios. So the last two were KF7QCI and now KF7QGM. Is anyone good at math?

 

Updated list: (25 now)

 

W7WT W7WT

TotemLake KE7MDT

Ironman114 KF7AWY

LindaLu "AB7YL"

K7-Wave "K7WV"

JHolly "NK6L"

AndrewRJ "KC7RSR"

Douglas_Clan "KC7YUA"

N7RIJ "N7RIJ"

FluteFace "W7VYL"

fastford "KB7UTQ"

John_E_Cache "N0AAZ"

thecatdaddy "WI7F"

GeoDiver "KF7LQK"

KD7CTV "KD7CTV"

blue2824 "N7AVN"

uxorious "KF7LSE"

Thomas & Dingo KD7WLU

MtnMutt W2MTN

rambudo "KF7HGU"

Rich & Rox "AB7OH"

LostSparky "KX7L"

SudsyMaggie "KF7QCI"

magking1971 "KF7QGM"

Criminal K7XFE

Edited by Criminal
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