View Full Version : Ham-Com 2005
With Dayton coming to a close, some of you are preparing for the next best thing. Ham-Com 2005 in Arlington, TX. My plans, though not 100% final, is to drive up on saturday morning and spend saturday, stay overnight in Arlington, and then go Sunday. The plans changed from Friday and Saturday to Saturday and Sunday since my dad is doing VE sessions on Sunday. I hope these plans stick and I look forward to seeing some of the QRZ bunch there. I know of a couple that I believe mentioned going. Who else is going to be there? Look for me with my name badges and callsign hat wearing some nerdy clothes.
n5tjd
05-22-2005, 09:30 PM
Quote[/b] (KD5OWO @ May 22 2005,13:04)]#Look for me with my name badges and callsign hat wearing some nerdy clothes.
That shouldn't be hard to pick out of a crowd of several thousand...... that only describes 90% of those going. j/k.
Like I said, barring unforseen incidences, I should be there.
I will be the only one with the callsign "KD5OWO" on his hat. Or so I hope. Try for your Extra Sunday and you might run into my dad KB5RXA.
ai4ep
05-22-2005, 10:20 PM
Gee, I cant make it this year... limited income and the price of gas.
bummer EP.. you are really going to be missing out.
ai4ep
05-22-2005, 10:36 PM
When you get back, tell me & the rest of us all about it.
I will be glad to. #I am taking along a camera and shall have plenty of photos posted on my blog.
@ wzb if you are interested.. the nayn psk net will be on in 15 minutes. look for us on the waterfall on 14.075... we know that is not the psk frequency, but it is close enough and far enough so that the net does not cause interference to ongoing QSO's.
n5tjd
05-23-2005, 02:17 PM
Quote[/b] (KD5OWO @ May 22 2005,14:45)]I will be the only one with the callsign "KD5OWO" on his hat. # Or so I hope.
During last year's Texas QSO party, I heard a mobile working stations using my call, he wasn't using phonetics. So, as I was making a recording, a station asked for his call again in phonetics. He finally did and it was WZV, not WZB. They sound the same over the air. I was glad it wasn't a bootlegger, in fact I made contact with him.
Truth be told, I haven't gotten on the air any this month. My grandpa is in the hospital recovering from a large stroke. He can't talk, or move much of his right side. Since then, I've had to take care of his farm, and that has been an all-day, every day thing. When I get in, I am usually too tired to get on.
Anyhow, I'll keep an eye out for you and other QRZ regulars up there. I plan on going with my uncle who is the only other ham in the family.
I am sorry to hear about your grandfather, but grandmother had a stroke a few years back. It messed up her speech some and her vision. I also have a teacher that had a stroke about 6 or so years ago and from time to time she has spasms on the left side of her body.
As for Ham-Com I will kep my eye out for any calls that I know, and also I hope to meet some new people for some eyeball QSOs.
ad5st
05-24-2005, 05:41 PM
In addition to all the other normal goodies, we'll have a special event station (K5H) on the air from the convention center, connected to a Norwegian Lifeboat antenna on the roof of the convention center. How we're going to get the lifeboat up there and get a Norwegian in it, nobody knows http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif
If you hear K5H on the way in, give us a call; and be sure to stop by the station later to operate.
Lots of good eateries in the area, too.
I certainly would love to operate K5H when I get there. No mobile HF, YET, but maybe my dad will find what he is looking for at Ham-Com.
The Arlington ARC will be operating the K5H special event station as well as the talk-in (147.14 PL 110.9). Come by and say hi. I'm gonna take my turn at the mike. I think this might be the Norwegian lifeboat antenna: Norwegian lifeboat antenna? (http://www.comrod.com/mar/data/k4/k4004_al803.htm)
Rob
What made them decide to use the Norwegian lifeboat antenna? Is it just that great of an antenna, or is there a Norwegian lifeboat designer in the Arlington club?
ad5st
05-26-2005, 05:36 AM
Not quite sure why we're using that antenna -- perhaps it's a demo from one of the commercial outfits or some such. It's supposed to be a "really good" antenna, made out of some space-age carbon-fiber stuff, and apparently is good enough for the QRP crowd to like.
I'd be doubtful it's got significantly greater gain than a beam like an A3 or A4, but I've been wrong before; also, it's made of that space-age black-magic stuff. http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif
Is Icom going to have their rigs hooked up to antennas? I really wish more of the vendors would hook up the radios for accuatly getting signal reports and receiving, not just pusing buttons.
W5NIG
05-28-2005, 06:44 AM
I'll be there with coffee in hand and having a good time! I got a couple of booths this year right up the back ramp and a couple tables down the first isle to the left.
Guess I better start sorting out my junk drawer!! : )
@ NIG..I will certainly have to find a starbucks in the area for my coffee.. I will be looking for your booth. This will be my first time in that convention center and so I am not sure where the back ramp is, but I will look for it when I get there.
BTW: Does anyone know if Heil is going to have a booth? Bob Heil is hosting a forum, surley he will have a booth. I did not see it on the floorplan.. accuatly the floorplan I saw did not really have all that many commerical venders..
ad5st
05-30-2005, 04:48 AM
Not sure about this year, but in previous years Heil has had a decent booth there, as of course have Kenwood/Icom/Yaesu and all the other big names who'd be more than happy to sell you something.
For coffee, there are sevaral Starbucks and other coffee establishments not too far from the convention center.
KG6YTZ
05-30-2005, 05:01 AM
Quote[/b] (KD5WZB @ May 23 2005,07:17)]So, as I was making a recording, a station asked for his call again in phonetics. He finally did and it was WZV, not WZB. They sound the same over the air.
The repeater I use most frequently is also used occasionally by KG6YDZ. Tell me THAT doesn't create a little confusion from time to time. http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif That same repeater is also used quite frequently by both K6DXN and N6DXN.
Back to the topic: I'd go if I could, but I can't. I'll be at N6USO's pizza party on July 9th, though - me and my brand new call sign hat [from QRZ advertiser callsignwear.com].
Less than a week before ham-com.. the countdown begins.. I hope to be there bright and early saturday morning!
n5tjd
05-30-2005, 07:45 PM
Callsigns can get confusing.... especially when some slur out their calls auctioneer-style.
Anyhow, I believe I will be going. I am going to hitch a ride with my uncle, KC5LMM. Right now I am making a list of certain item types I need to be on the lookout for up there. I can't afford a radio or anything, but maybe I could catch a deal on coax, swr meters/analyzers/watt meters, antenna tuners, power supplies, dummy loads, etc, etc.
I will be looking for a Heil Pro-Set.. If Heil is not selling, hopfully one of the ham stores will have what I am looking for.
n5tjd
05-31-2005, 06:02 PM
I am going to keep an eye out for a lot of things. It should be loads of fun. Last time I went, in 2003, I had only been licensed for a couple of weeks and didn't know what hardly anything was.
I still am an amateur Amateur, but my knowledge and experiance has grown so that now I know what to look for.
So you were there when they were host the 2003 ARRL National Convention.. This will be my first time at Ham-Com. I will have the money for my big buy the Pro-Set.. and then alittle bit of spending cash if I see somthing I can't live without. The rest of my money is being saved for my Inrad filter.. should be ordered June 18.
KD5WYU
05-31-2005, 06:18 PM
I'll be there for a few hours on Saturday, looking around for the stuff on my list. If ya can't find it at Hamcom, ya can't find it!
I'll have my DCARA (http://www.dcara.net/) badge on and my VX-2 lanyard'ed around my neck.
I'm not buying any rigs this year, just accessories-- the big purchase is going to be a 70cm beam, maybe a 900 beam if I can find one.
Best 73,
Brent
I am sitting here right now listening to 7213.. heard them talking about Ham-Com alittle earlier. Too bad we don't have a mobile HF set-up at this time in the truck, if we did I could chat with everyone on 7213 on our drive up.
For those who are not aware. 7213 is commonly called the "Texas Mobile Frequency".
KA7RRA
05-31-2005, 11:37 PM
Quote[/b] (KD5WYU @ May 31 2005,11:18)]If ya can't find it at Hamcom, ya can't find it!
till you go to Dayton and look for it
n5tjd
05-31-2005, 11:53 PM
Yeah, I was there for the National Convention. You can find dang near anything there. I looked through all of the inside booths, and thought, wow, that took all of 30 minutes. Then I looked at my watch and saw it hadn't been 30 minutes, it had been over 4 hours! So, time and space must have been warped by the high concentration of HTs. Tjen I went and looked at all the outside booth and that took a couple hours also.
I think I'll only be there on Saturday. Sunday, I think I'll be in Paris.
Just a few more days to go.. Have fun WZB in Paris (Texas that is for those who don't know)..
ad5st
06-04-2005, 03:06 AM
For those of you who might have been looking for the signal from K5H thus far, we have unfortunately been off the air thus far due to antenna-falling-over-in-the-wind problems, as the Norwegian Lifeboat Antenna is apparently a vertical about 30 feet tall, and it didn't like even the slightest breeze as installed on the roof of the convention center.
We have an improved mounting (that is, sandbags for the tripod base) and also a backup antenna in the works for about 7 a.m. Saturday, and we expect to be QRV for the better part of the weekend, probably on 20 meter phone.
I will be there 7AM tomorrow.. so everyone looking for me.. going to get a few hours of rest right now..
n5tjd
06-05-2005, 04:02 AM
I looked but didn't see you. I was wearing an old faded brown Bugle Boy shirt.
It was pretty good, we got there a little before 9am, stayed until about 12:30pm, went to Furr's in Plano, then to Fry's, then off to Mesquite to CompUSA and Circuit City, and left for home at about 4:30pm.
There was a lot of people there and a lot of stuff to admire, but I noticed it seemed attendance was down since the last time I went in 2003.
I picked up an MFJ 259B Antenna Analyzer, and have experimented with a lot of it's modes already. Man this thing takes a lot of batteries. This thing will be a big help and time saver.
I also got a good look at the Icom 7800. Got to play around with it. It was really nice.... but I still wouldn't buy it even if I had the money.
Lastly, I got a free callsign tag. I didn't notice it until we were long gone but, instead of "Mt. Pleasant, TX", it said "Mt. Pheasant, TX." #The difference a letter makes....
Anyone else go?
Hey WZB.. we were there Saturday at 7:44 (running 44 minutes late...) looked around all day. Saw the bob Heil Forum and purchased a Heil Pro-Set 'Ic' element boom headset. Also got two motorola speakers, but since I only paid a dollar each, I am doubtfull on if they work or not.. and I will need to clean them up. I picked up three new T-Shirts (two Collins T-shirts and a Ham-Com T-Shirt). Got a Dayton Pin for my vest (thought I have never been.. and I was wearing my vest and my callsign hat. You will see when I get that picture of me and Bob Heil up on my blog (some pictures already uploaded http://kd5owo.blogspot.com).
We ate lunch around noon at Souper Salad in Arlington and then went back for about an hour and looked around. We came home Saturday evening (Gas was cheaper then the hotels in Arlington.. and it was nice sleeping in our own beds). We left again this morning so my dad could do his Security Volunteer Work.. found out they did not open till 9 this morning and would not need my dad from 7-9. So we rested for two hours and we got in. My dad went to the VE test session where he was supposed to work as a VE, but was told he was un needed and could leave. We looked around about an hour and a half, but there was not much that we missed.
Where were the tail gaters? We saw two small rows Saturday.. and like three out there this morning.
Overall it was a good fest...
Pro- Great Heil Forum.. Nice meeting Gorden West, Bob Heil, Jim Haynie, Fred/W5YI, seeing the IC-7800. It was nice that there was air in the indoor stuff and there were a majority of nice people. It was worth the trip and if things work out will will go for atleast one day next year.
Cons- I did not see the FTDX-9000 like I thought I would. I wish Icom would have hooked that 7800 up so people could transmit on it. Not enough tailgaters.. things that the Ham-Com people could not help..
HamExpo is October 1st.. hope to see some of you there!
n5tjd
06-05-2005, 10:46 PM
Yeah, the outside tailgate section attendance was down and the word on the local repeaters is that everyone that went thought attendance was down overall.
I looked at your pics, couldn't find myself in the pics. I looked at everyone's callsign as I past by them, looking for QRZed members.
I saw and visited each place you took a picture of. Even paid a visit to those birds on that stand.
Did you see the sugar gliders? Hopefully next year attendance will be back up. I might make it to another hamfest before HamExpo, there are several small ones.. I will just have to see what happens.
n5tjd
06-06-2005, 03:27 AM
I saw one guy with a sugar glider. It was running all over him. Pretty interesting.
I was amazed at the difference in prices for the same item at different booths. I saw as much as a $50-60 variation in cost for the antenna analyzer. Speaking of which, I've been using my new "toy" in the Distance to Fault mode to check the lengths of my coax. It seems to almost always get you pretty close. For instance, it showed 101ft for a cable that is 100ft. That is accurate enough for me.
It was funny.. WB0W only wanted $57 for the Heil Traveller yet they wanted 129.95 (without sales tax included) for the Pro-Set. Cedar City Sales wanted $80 for the traveller (they also offered to pay for sales tax if the customer paid with cash) and only $130 for the pro-set. I bought the pro-set from Cedar City Sales, my dad considered buying the traveller from WB0W but did not get one.
Thats the exact reason I checking with both vendors before getting my pro-set, seeing which one had a better deal. $130 flat for the Pro-set is a great price. No shipping charges, no sales tax.. 129.95 with sales tax would have been alittle more.
n5tjd
06-06-2005, 02:05 PM
I got my antenna analyzer (259B) from Cedar City Sales also. The MFJ booth wanted $259, and there was another booth on down close to the ramp that wanted it for $209.
At the Cedar City Sales, I got it for $205, which is a pretty good deal. Speaking of which, I have used it all over the place. The battery usage isn't too bad, though being that you have to disassemble the case to get to the 10 AA batteries, naturally, I'd like it to last longer. I really need to see about buying the charger unit and use rechargeable batteries.
Oh yeah, did they offer you a free Name/Callsign tag at the Cedar City Sales booth? They did after I bought the analyzer. They are the ones that put down "Mt. Pheasant" instead of "Mt. Pleasant." The sales lady had asked if it looked ok before she handed it to me, and for the life of me, I never noticed the "h" until I was gone. Still, it IS funny. Everyone I've shown it to has got a laugh from it.
They did not offer me that.. not sure if it is because my order was under $200.. did the offer to pay your sales Tax? It might have been because I had two on already plus my call hat.. HAHA!
n5tjd
06-07-2005, 02:14 AM
Yup, if you paid cash, no sales tax. Not so with credit card though. I paid cash.
I guess you had to make orders over $200 to get the free callsign badge... or maybe you were just a luck customer..
W5NIG
06-20-2005, 06:41 AM
Well my post hamcom addition here is late, of course! Steve I think I saw you but it being 2 weeks later and so many peeps that I met I don't remember! lol.
I had a great time! Attendance did seem to be down some from last year but I don't think too much. Those that did show seemed to be buyers! I made more money than I expected to anyway.
My wallet might have even been in the black if it wasn't for the fact that I needed to pay for a transfusion after the blood-letting to pay for food at the concession stands! <grin>
Tailgating was a bit thin on friday but filled in on Saturday, almost as good as last year.
There seemed to be more open tables this year, but I was talking with one of the organizers on the phone and he said they had actually laid out more tables this year.
I think Kenwood wasn't there this year. (correct me if I have the wrong dealer) Someone told me that the reason was that they only attend shows if they have a certified distributor there. (Texas towers I think, and I believe they had other obligatons or the like)
All in all it was a lot of fun and I didn't spend too much money!
I did accidentally throw out about 20 used silver teflon so-239 connectors accidentally! Had a few boxes I thought were just trash! Oh that hurt!
Oh, I know you've already bought your headset but if your looking for a backup later get on Ebay and do a search for 'ct pro headset' and add the dealer to your favorites list.
I bought the ct pro plus and have been very happy using it with my icom 737, plenty of audio and good reports. I don't think the ear padding is as thick as the Heil sets and that is my only complaint so far. Can't beat the 45 to 50 price plus shipping though! Not heil elements but I was once accused of using one! (heh, takes all kinds)
I think some time this summer I'll buy a second set as a backup.
...anyway back on topic.... I sold a decent number of 2m jpoles and a bunch of other goodies out of my junk box and can't wait till next time! I did forget to go around and get pictures though!
The most interesting non-ham stuff I saw though was the guy demonstrating and selling the lock picks! Very slick! heh.
M@