Non-Business Meeting Minutes

SUNLIFE Amateur Radio Club

Date: October 21, 2024

Meeting was called to order by President, Jim Steinmetz WX7G

Guests

• None

Returning/Leaving:

• Roy Gager KD9WRC first meeting this year

Health & Welfare

• Jim Steinmetz WX7G’s wife has started outpatient PT and is doing well

Announcements

• Jim Hood K5TT reminded us that some of the roads may be closed due to the resurfacing. 

Program

Steve Weber W0TNT presented on Portable Ham Radio 

 He started sharing his background in Amateur Radio. His interest started when he was 10 years old on his family’s shortwave radio. He and his brother then

moved to transistor radios. Life then intervened and in his 40’s one of his neighbors was outside and had a antenna tower and the ‘elmer’ invited him to look at

his shack. From there after a frazzling test and 5 minute code test he was officially a ham!

Several years later, his son became a ham and shared his love of radio.

He started his informational part of his presentation with describing the three types of portable ham radio.

1. Portable Self Contained - This is when all your radio components are assembled and ready to use in a portable bag, such as a backpack.
2. Portable Modular - That’s when you have all your radio components with you with you when you are out but you have to sit down and take the time to assemble to use. When you are ready to move to another location or go home, you have to  disassemble them.
3. Mobile Radios - these are the radios that most of us installed in our cars/trucks and listen or talk to them from our vehicles.

Next he showed a couple of PVC pipe units he made to hold his radio components. Looks pretty neat.

After that he showed and talked about the different mobile antenna’s he used. Most of them were Chameleon’s. He also has an Elecraft AX1 for 15 through 20

meters.

Next he discussed different accessories that he uses to make his setup safer and easier. He had a ground spike, Tony Ferrara K7AJF’s tripod stand that he builds and 2 different clamps that can hold antennas. For things to help let people know there is some things here that they shouldn’t trip, like caution tape, full size traffic cones and some mini cones.

Tips he had for everyone to think about in the processes of the equipment are as follows:

1. After charging your battery, use a bit of painters tape and put a piece under the connector. That way you can easily see which batteries are fully charged.
2. Use another piece of painters tape on the batteries to put voltage and charge time. 
3. Carry a thermometer on your radio trips to keep and eye on the temperature.
4. Use something like his collapsible wagon, which he purchased at Costco, to decrease the trips to and from the car.
5. When purchasing radio components, check the manufacturer’s blemished items. These are in working order but may have a scratch or dent. Also see if the company will give you a discount if you post a review of the equipment.

Good of the Order (Joke, 50/50)

• No Joke today
• 50/50 was won by John Lenahan K0RW in the amount of $8.50
• Two mini orange traffic cones were won by Pat Malin KE8MBG and Hugh McLaughlin KL7HM

Meeting closed 10:54 am Local time.

Respectfully submitted: Lana Young N7FVQ, Secretary