What's New?

 

*** NOTICE ***
*** NEW MEETING LOCATION FOR THIS MONTH ***

TARC MEETING


Tuesday

21 September

7:00 PM


Meeting

Martin Regional Libary
2601 S. Garnett



(Click here for map)

 Pete, KF5RD, is now the DX QSL coordinator for ARRL.  He volunteered to talk about how the QSL buro works.
QSL BURO INFORMATION

We have a new ARRL W5 Incoming QSL Bureau Manager in Pete Mann, KF5RD.

Pete is going to need some help.  His immediate needs are some pre sorters in the Tulsa area and at least three letter sorters.  The individual letter sorters can be any where. Call Pete, KF5RD 918 437 4846 or e-mail at mann.p@cox.net if you are interested.

The new mailing address for the ARRL W5 Incoming QSL Bureau is:

PO BOX 690480
Tulsa, OK 74169-0480
TARC now on FACEBOOK

To follow the Tulsa Amateur Radio Club on FACEBOOK click this link or on "Facebook" on the left index.

W5L - Route 66

Back for 2010 by popular demand

September 11th-19th, 2010


 

The Route 66 Special Event continues to be a success each year.

Follow the links for some pictures at the 2005, 2006 and 2007 event.

See 2007 results here.

W5IAS operating as
W6L

September 2010


Route 66 On The Air Guidelines

QSL to
Tulsa Amateur Radio Club
P.O. Box 4283
Tulsa, OK  74159-0283

145.11 Status

Just to make sure there are no "rumors" being spread:

1.  The fire marshall ordered the repeaters (plural - also involved is the 443.000 UHF machine - the one that is not on the link system) "unplugged", because they were being powered by an "extension cord" that was not rated for the amount of power they draw.
    a.  This is technically not the case, because (1) 443.000 was actually down, and shouldn't have been counted, however the fire marshall doesn't see it that way - it WAS plugged in.
    b.  Both repeaters are powered by one 13.8V power supply, so while it is substantial, it actually only draws 4 or 5 amps even if both repeaters were transmitting, therefore the cord was actually still well within its ratings - basically, the fire marshall didn't "do the math", he just decided to be hard-nosed about it.

2.  The fire marshall (and the building owner's) position in this case is understandable - this inspection was shortly after TWO fairly spectacular fires in the building!

3.  While the extension cord may not have itself been a fire hazard, it is NOT code - no permanently mounted equipment is supposed to be powered by extension cords in a commercial building, PLUS no outlet is supposed to be installed in a closet (too easy for them to be damaged because they are "hidden", plus they get missed in inspections).  So in this case, the extension cord is to reach a "working" but illegal outlet because the "close" outlet we used to use was pulled out when another tenants equipment was removed.

At this point, we are negotiating with the building owner - we have an electrician who has done a quote for the work required to restore the original outlet to operation while at the same time bringing it up to code.  But we have to work with the building management company to get their approval, then the city to get a permit and then inspections.

There are also issues with the "lease" of this space and paying for power.  The building has changed hands (or at least management) since this space was originally donated to TARC, and apparently the records (if any) were lost.  In conjunction with getting the permit/building modifications negotiated, we will also renegotiate the lease.  However, we're dealing with not one, but TWO bureacracies here, and these things take time.

In the meantime, normal TARC operations (nets, special events, public service events, etc.) are held on the 147.045 repeater (positive offset, 88.5 tone).

Please be patient, once we get the legal side worked out, it should take us (or rather, the electrician) about an hour to actually get us back on the air - once he gets an okay from the building owner and the city.

73,
Jay


DIY Vertical Antenna Kit

The Portable-Convertible-Vertical that was the presentation at the July TARC meeting will be made available in kit form at the Ice Cream Social club meeting in September.  In order to take advantage of quantity discounts, we'll be collecting pre-payments for the materials through the August club meeting (August 19th).  The cost is $20.  Quantities are limited, so first come, first served.

For those that missed it, this antenna is not an antenna for permanent mounting, but is rather a portable quick setup antenna suitable for emcomm or similar use on 10-20m including the WARC bands.  It's made of 3/4" EMT conduit, wood and wire, and is designed to be ground mounted and guyed with rope.  It can be set up in 5 minutes and packs in a 4' 6" by 4" tube.

The conduit will be pre-cut into the appropriate lengths - base, 10m top, and add-on stubs for 12m, 15m, 17m and 20m.  Switching bands is done by adding the stubs with couplers, with each lower band requiring all the stubs for the higher bands.  The lengths will be cut for the middle of the SSB portion of each band, but tuning down for CW can be handled by adding a short (2" to 6" as needed) tuning stub to the top.

The kit is the wood base, conduit (pre-cut and drilled), couplers, conduit straps, screws, ring terminals, and radial wires (8), plus a PVC ring for the guy ropes.  Building requires a screwdriver and crimpers or soldering iron and takes 15 minutes.

73,
Jay, AD5PE


Edmond Repeater

The Edmond repeater is now online and a part of the TARC W5IAS Super Link System.  Look for it on 443.250 and a PL tone 88.5

Spreading Ham Radio into Cooper Elementary School
By Jay Eimer, AD5PE

One of the goals of the ARRL is education regarding amateur radio, with the intent of bringing new licensees into the fold. As a special service club, the Tulsa Amateur Radio Club strives to do the same in many ways. One obvious way is through licensing classes, but there are other ways we can reach out to non-hams as well, such as holding events in public, or giving presentations to other community organizations.

http://W5IAS.com/Cooper/Cooper.html

ARES ON-LINE
www.ARESOK.org

Take a look in your wallet, your desk drawer, glove box of your car... if you have a ARES ID card please ask yourself one very important question – Are you currently registered on line on the ARES OK website?

If you not currently a volunteer and would like to be, PLEASE go to the ARES OK website and register as a volunteer.

Why should you register on line? By registering on line we have one consistent information source for volunteer information throughout the state, as well as a resource listing for each county.

To register go to http://www.aresok.org/mkApplication.asp and click on the map of your county. Scroll down and fill in the blanks. Please register as a VOLUNTEER. The website is password protected, only persons that are registered on ARESOK.org can see your information.

If you are interested in becoming a leader with in ARES with in ARES OK you should contact the EC, DEC or ZEC in your area for more information about the duties and responsibilities. Most of the information is located on the website.

Also to help get information out to volunteers quickly - Oklahoma ARES is inviting all hams in area to sign up on the aresoklahoma yahoo group. To sign up go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aresoklahoma (then click on the big blue "Join This Group!" button at the top right).

These groups is how ARES will broadcast all area or state events, information, etc. that is of a timely or critical nature. This is not an email forwarding system. Please keep the posts to items that effect the Oklahoma State, i.e. weather updates, calls for assistance, ECOMM, situation reports. THIS GROUP IS FOR ALL HAMS THAT ARE INTERESTED IN HELPING OUT DURING AN EVENT.

Tulsa Amateur Radio Club Store

Check out the large selection of TARC items and apparel available for your purchase.  Tee shirts, golf shirts, sweat shirts, caps, coffee mugs, bumper stickers, buttons, clocks and stickers.  It's all there and at a reasonable price.  If you do not see something of interest to you, contact Tom, KE5EHX, at tom.white@gmail.com, with your ideas.

http://www.cafepress.com/tarc

ELMER Help is just a click away

For technical questions, email our 'elmer committee' at elmer@w5ias.com and we'll get you hooked up with a volunteer mentor with expertise in the field pertaining to your question.  Please include email or phone preference, and if you prefer a phone call be sure to include your number and the best time to reach you.
 

444.600 Is On The Air

Tim, KB5ZVC, and I finalized the installation of the 444.600-mhz machine into the Mounds Oklahoma site. This installation will be easier for us to support and provide a better coverage pattern to the south and west of Tulsa for storm spotting and other community support activities.

Please make use of this machine as you travel in/through the area south and west of Mounds and let us know about what coverage you experience.

Gregg Wonderly
W5GGW
 

FREE On-Line Incident Command Training

IS-700 National Incident Management System (NIMS), http://training.fema.gov/emiweb/IS/is700.asp

On-Line Emergency Communication Training ARRL Certification and Continuing Education (C-CE) http://www.arrl.org/cce/

73 Mark Conklin N7XYO
ARES A-SEC NE OK

 Google TARC REPEATER MAP

Thanks to the hard work of Gregg, W5GGW, you can now see where the Tulsa Amateur Radio Club repeaters are located and their status.  It is amazing to explore both the maps and the satellite imagery that this system provides.  It can keep you occupied for hours!

  Click here.

TESTING

First Saturday of ODD numbered month 9:30 to 11:00 A.M.
January 5th, March 1st, May 3rd, July 12th, September 6th and November 1st.
Hardesty Regional Library
8316 E 93rd Street
Tulsa, OK 74133
Walk-ins Welcome
Contact: Tom - K5EHX at tom@k5ehx.net or (918)835-7889 and leave a message

Second Saturday in EVEN number month 9:30 A.M.
Broken Arrow Church of Christ
811 North 4th, Broken Arrow OK
Contact Don, AC5II @ 918.379.0962

Third Wednesday in ODD numbered months, 7:00 PM
Red Cross building on east 11th St at Hwy 169, Tulsa OK
Contact: Merlin Griffin, WB5OSM @ 918.520.7668

Last Saturday of the month, 10:00 - 11:30 AM  (W5YI)
MARTIN EAST REGIONAL LIBRARY 26th and Garnett Tulsa, OK
*** Testing is by APPOINTMENT ONLY ***
Contact: Pete Mann, KF5RD at 918.437.4846 (before 9 PM) or mann.p@cox.net

 


The Tulsa Amateur Radio Club

SKYWARN

and

Eastern Oklahoma / Northwestern Arkansas Skywarn

As you may or may not know, the TARC is involved with the Skywarn network of community service oriented clubs. The W5IAS linked repeater system is the largest, the best and most efficient repeater system in the State of Oklahoma. When emergencies arise in our areas of coverage, the W5IAS linked repeater system serves both as a communications system and a community service. Covering some 50,000 square miles from I-35 to deep into Arkansas and from Texas in the South to Kansas in the North. During times of disasters and other emergencies the W5IAS repeater system will be used for relaying information from one area to another. Several times in the past this impressive system has played major roles in the safety of our communities. Everything from severe weather to the phone outage of the year 2000, which was covered by the TARC and the link system was used to cover the area hospitals. Thirty minutes after the phones went down the TARC was there with a net organized, hours before the EOC and others in the area even knew the phones were out. The TARC is very proud of this system and is always ready to help out in those times of trouble when we are needed the most. The W5IAS linked repeater system is still growing more impressive by the day and is always ready to leap into action.


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