San Antonio Hams

I’ve replaced the older calendar of events application that I had been using, with a new version.  I feel the new version will be easier and more intuitive for users to add their own events to the calendar.  All users, who have been bumped higher than the default “subscriber” level, should be able to add their own events.

With this new version, if you have a repetitive event (like a monthly meeting, etc.), you can create the first event, then return back to that event and change the date and click the “COPY” button at the bottom of the input screen.  That will duplicate the entry and place it on the date chosen.  I’ve started entering dates for most of the local ham clubs, but it becomes such mind boring / dumbing work after awhile, that I took a break.  I’ll resume when I have some more spare time.

I will be adding in future public service events as well as posting the info to the BLOG area (where you are reading this article).

Volunteers are always needed, so don’t hesitate about raising your hand. Prior experience is not a requirement, as we all started out with the same amount of experience in the beginning, that being “none”.  We’ll place you in a position or with another more experienced ham, according to your comfort level and equipment abilities.

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The Echo-Link Station K5NNN-L, is now running on 146.52 MHz national calling frequency.  It is located at my house, at 940ft M.S.L. The antenna is a 7.2 dbi gain antenna and sits  on top of a 2 story house on a 20ft mast so it sit a about 1,000 feet about M.S.L. in Bexar County (San Antonio, TX). The location is near Vance Jackson, between Callaghan and Wurzbach Rd. For a more exact location, look up my callsign on QRZ.com.   You can hook up thru you cell phone also, using the Android or iPhone applications…

This EchoLink is programmed not interrupt any stations and will allow better communications with hams traveling thru the San Antonio, Texas metro area, or hams traveling away from home who want to communicate back into San Antonio. There is a regular Monday night net on 146.52 by the Unusual Suspects ham group and this would enable members of that group to participate in the net, even if they aren’t physically within radio range of everybody else on the net.

The Station ID is set to go off at 7 minutes after the hour and only takes less than a second. If it detects the frequency is busy, it waits until a gap before announcing. When a ham connects via EchoLink from their computer or cellphone, it will announce the ham’s call sign who is connected, once when they are first connected.  After that, it’s up to the ham to properly identify their own call sign.  It’s output is a little over 150 watts. This EchoLink station can hear very well and reaches out to between 30 and 50 miles from this location, depending upon terrain.

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HT Rodeo!
Sponsored by your friendly neighborhood ARES group!

Saturday, April 19, 2014 @ Red Cross on E Houston St, 78219

This All-day event starts at 9:00AM

• HT Contests!
• Antenna Shootout (2M)!
• Prizes!
• Free Picnic Lunch!
• Educational workshops and seminars!
• Free!
• -No admission charge
• -No entry fee
• -No charge for lunch
  • (Desserts and snacks will be available for a small charge)
• -No charge for workshops

To Participate:

1. Pre-register by sending your name and call sign to HTrodeoRSVP@gmail.com Only those pre-registered by April 12th will be able to participate in the weeklong Roundup event leading up to the rodeo. Details on how to participate will be return emailed.
2. Bring your HT to the event -preferably charged up and ready to rodeo!

Ruth Lewis KE5MHJ
Bexar County ARES EC

HamEXPO is March 29, 2014!

Registration now active!

Your opportunity to sell and buy product or distribute and receive information to about 1,200 people on a Saturday morning. All indoor spaces have free electricity. There are a limited number of spaces against the wall.

Location: Bell County Expo Center in Belton, Texas (301 West Loop 121)

• Only 50 miles north of Austin!
• Just 130 miles north of San Antonio!
• 140 miles south of Dallas / Ft. Worth!
• 165 miles northwest of Houston!

Admission fee for the public is $5.00 per person at the door (children under 12 get in free). Includes one free raffle ticket (a $2.00 value).

The DEADLINE for registering online is 10:00AM, Tuesday, March 25, 2014.

Questions? Please contact us!

ARRL FIELD DAY -June 28-29, 2014

To work as many stations as possible on any and all amateur bands (excluding the 60, 30, 17, and 12-meter bands) and to learn to operate in abnormal situations in less than optimal conditions.

Field Day is open to all amateurs in the areas covered by the ARRL/RAC Field Organizations and countries within IARU Region 2. DX stations residing in other regions may be contacted for credit, but are not eligible to submit entries.

Field Day is always the fourth full weekend of June, beginning at 1800 UTC Saturday and running through 2059 UTC Sunday. Field Day 2014 is June 28-29.


This year, the BEXAR OPERATORS GROUP (W5BOG) will be running a good – old fashioned Field Day operation at the Callaham Unit at Choke Canyon Texas State Park.

In keeping with what Field Day should be about, we will be building our HF antennas from scratch and launching them, “site unseen”.

We will be operating out doors under canopies unless the temp exceeds 95 degrees in which case we will be operating from the air conditioned cabin we will be renting and sleeping in.

Anyone is invited to come and see what a real field day is all about. Our rigs will be powered by deep cycle batteries which will be solar charged. Please contact us at alonestaryank@aol.com  if you wish to join up with us for this fun event. We will be supplying the food and drinks.  Bob – W2IK

Note from webmaster – Bob knows how to conduct a really good, high scoring, field day operation. If you want to learn from one of the best, make the effort to drive a bit further and watch the master at work!  Other clubs will be holding Field Day in areas closer to San Antonio if you don’t feel up to driving so far, or if you want to support your local club’s activities. We’ll post those locations as soon as we have them confirmed. – Lee N5NTG

As a follow up to my tool box story earlier in the week, there is a question!

What is in your tool box?

Now, the reference is to your Emergency Preparedness/Public Service Communication Equipment!
This can be narrowed down to a county or regional (adjacent county(s) incidents, in which several common modes of communication have failed or not available.   Including cell service, internet and public service digital systems.

While I have procrastinated for several years now to create a formal go-kit/box, much of my equipment is here and ready for use, 80% of the time.

A drill last weekend showed me that was indeed not sufficient, as a serial-to-usb converter that was needed for a connection to my packet radio was missing in the laptop bag. Seems it was in the other laptop back that was at work. Why? Well, I had acquired another similiar laptop which was being formatted for my go-kit (per-se) and I had not completed merging both set-ups.

In preparation, I had also failed to charge 2 of 3 my ht’s, that were still packed from the last event in Bandera! Luckily, the 3rd HT had a spare battery which was fully charged.

Now, this was in preparation to deploy to a fixed station, that was for the most part supposedly ready to activate, although lacking a second laptop for VHF-UHF packet, while the laptop that was there was connected to the Winmor station.

Anyway, as a Amateur Radio operator, I am pretty much set for the standard stuff:

•  VHF/UHF Mobile
• VHF/UHF Portable
• VHF Packet Radio, Laptop and TNC (although this one has developed an low audio issue)
• VHF/UHF HT’s – several, although it helps to keep the batteries at full charge
• And a variety of antenna’s, coax and army still poles to elevate them
• HF Radio and 40/75 dipole (although I am now convinced that portable capabiliy in bands from 10 – 30 are badly needed)

Now for the non-standard stuff:

• HT’s that are programmed to cover all the personal non-licensed frequency’s:
  • –FRS,
  • –GMRS (I know, one is supposed to be licensed here, but the bubble pack user do not comply and the FCC is refusing to do anything about it and when the SHTF, the FCC is not going to complain.)
  • — MURS: both the color dot frequency’s and the narrow band 3.
• – Citizens Band/CB/11-meters (Yes, this wasteland of frequency’s has a large role in community communications when the SHTF. FEMA, MARS, Citizen Corps, and the list goes on has proven this, and one should be in everyone’s tool box. I personally used the CB in my truck several years ago during major flooding in Kansas to coordinate with a local ARES team for a Airlife extraction of a pregnant woman that was in labor and we were stuck between 2 flooded tributaries. The further north you go, the more they still believe in the value of the old CB.)
• Deployable Broadband-Hamnet nodes (5 planned), micro server with VOiP capability among other things.

Other things:

• 10×10 pop-up with a wall kit – quick portable station set-up and shelter
• 6 man tent – may need somewhere to sleep
• various battery’s (which need to organized better)
• portable gas heater
• small and large propane bottles
• various security and defensive items (will not delve into the details as those tend to cause bickering)
• other personal items.

And most if not all of this equipment gets used for community service events, to make sure it works, and to continue to learn how to use it, and fix it, or work around it when it breaks.

So, what is in your tool box?

Louis Upton K5STX
Hill Country REACT Team