N9JN talks up Emergency radio in E.TX

John Newman, N9JN, visited the Rusk County Amateur Radio Club during its recent April meeting to talk about emergency communications in East Texas. John is a director of the East Texas Emergency Communications Services club in Tyler. He also works with the state-wide RACES group. John spoke about the organizations efforts to serve numerous agencies in the region during local disasters.

John also brought Gene Coldwell, WB5CTQ, and Mark Taylor, W5MCT, with him to talk about digital communications and training opportunities. All three amateurs have used amateur radio to provide assistance to local cities, counties, non-profit groups and even the state of Texas.

Mark also gave a brief demonstration of Fldigi, even receiving a form on an android tablet.

Tropo opening brings in 2-meter DX

By KN5G - There was a nice tropo opening (Tropospheric Propagation) Saturday morning around 10:15 a.m.  I managed to work three stations on 2 meter single sideband, to the Southwest. The farthest station, XE2OR, was down in Mexico!

Club shows off at Electric Co-op Expo

Craig (AF5RI) and David (W5CWT)
man the RCARC booth
at the  2015 RCEC Expo

Members of the RCARC were on hand at the Rusk County Electric Cooperative's (RCEC) annual expo, Thursday, April 9th. Club members showed off a little 20-meter activity, thanks to Richard's (K5RRB) coax and antenna. The RCEC holds a special place in local hams' hearts, since it hosts the club's repeater antenna on the co-op's 400-foot communications tower, just northeast of Henderson.

It is the second year the club has been on hand for the farm and ranch expo. The club participates in the emergency services and health and well-being section of the event, demonstrating the role of Amateur Radio in times of emergencies.

And as fate would have it, that role came in handy as a series of storms rolled into the area prompting an early end to the expo. Several local hams broke-down the booth and then headed out to spot storms. By the end of the evening three separate areas of rotation and at least one wall cloud were spotted by members of the SKYWARN net.

Featured Shack: K-Zed-5-Sugar! (Ken)

Ken's "Sugar-Sweet" Shack

This month, Ken, better known as "K-Zed-Five-Sugar," opens his shack to reveal the mysteries inside. Along the way, he tells how he got started in ham radio and became KZ5S, although didn't start with such a "sweet" callsign.

In fact, he took a break from it all and pursued a long career in the telephone industry where he was president of a contracting company with more than 500 people pulling telephone cable across the state of Florida.

Ken picks up the story...

"I got Interested In Radio Back in 1955 Living In Orlando Fl when some one gave me a CB HT, I heard some one on that radio and after many days of playing with it I talked to him and from there I went into CB big time. In 1976 I took my first ham test as Novice (WD4DDP) one month later I took my Technician test, and one month later In Tampa Fl at the FCC office I took my General test at 13 words a minute code (N4ALP )."

"My first Ham radio was a Yeasu FT 101 EE, down the road I got a Kenwood TS 130 S." "I enjoyed the radio but in 1984 my work took me away from my hobby. In 2005 I took my extra class, I got my Call (KZ5S) have been hooked on ham since. I joined the Amateur Club in Jacksonville TX and served as president for one term, and when I heard about the ham's in Henderson setting up a Club I jumped in where there is a great bunch of people."

 Here's a look at Ken's station...

Ken, KZ5S

"On the top shelf is a jetstream 75 amp power supply with a purple onion for good luck. On the next shelf down is my computer windows 7, an MFJ 962 D Versa Tuner 111, a Swan wm-3000 watt meter and an MFJ 4726 antenna switch. On the lower shelf left to right is a FT 2800 FM 2 meter set up, a Kenwood 25 amp power supply and an MFJ 993 Automatic Antenna Tuner."

"Under that is the IC 718 Transceiver. Next to it is an IC 125 power supply. On top is my Signalink USB and an IC 746 Pro Transceiver. On top is ten-tec code keyer and last is the lamp made from a D104 MIC. And just out of site is my AL-811 H amp. 73 De KZ5S"

NBEMS connects Hams in Emergencies

Software for emergencies

Emergencies breed chaos. Planning helps to minimize it. Let's face it, chaos and confusion will always be a part of emergencies, but knowing what tools to will use and being familiar with how they work can go along way to reducing the stress and urgency of responding to sudden situations. Recently, at a club meeting, I was giving a brief overview of how we might respond in an upcoming emergency drill. One of the hams in the room admitted, my overview when right over his head. I'm certain he wasn't alone. Now is the best time to learn.

So when an emergency happens, what tools will you use? Part of the joy of ham radio is the fact that it is such a varied and diverse hobby. There are dozens of modes, hundreds of radios, and an infinite number of frequencies to use. How will anyone ever communicate with anyone else?  That's where NBEMS steps in.

The Narrow Band Emergency Messaging System (or NBEMS) is a suite of software that connects hams in emergency situations. It provides a single set of programs and operating concepts that can unify a group of hams. NBEMS is based upon the idea of keeping the things cheap, using simple,

Winlink Packet Gateway Up at OEM

A new packet station is up and running at the Rusk County Office of Emergency Management, providing a Winlink gateway for local amateurs. The station is designated as W5CWT-10 and can be reached on 145.07 MHz.

The station is using the OEM's Icom V8000 radio at about 70 watts, connected to a large onmi-directional antenna above the building. KN5G was able to work the station from a little less than six miles away. Additional reports would be helpful in determining actual coverage area.

Although the station can be used as a digipeater, its primary function is to provide a local packet gateway to the Winlink system. Winlink is a volunteer-supported network of email servers located around the world. Access to the servers is provided by thousands of VHF and HF "gateway" stations.

HF gateways typically use the "Pactor" protocol or a similar open-source protocol called "Winmor." VHF station generally use packet the protocol. Radio amateurs can log into the system via a gateway and send or receive email messages, including ones to or from regular, non-amateur radio internet users.

To use the system, an amateur needs a radio, a computer and an interface to connect the two. In the past, a physical "TNC" or radio modem was required to act as an interface between the user's radio

Featured Shack: NU5G, Jon

NU5G, Jon, at his station in Henderson.

For this month's featured shack, we peek in on NU5G's station. Although Jon is a relative late comer to ham radio, what he missed out on in time, he's made up for with an avid spirit of exploration. Jon tells the story best in his own words.

I have always had a passion for electronics and when Christy and I got married, I got a formal introduction to Ham Radio. Her family was full of heavy hitters in Ham. Her dad, Gerald (AD5Z), got me hooked and then has been my Elmer when I was lost and scratching my head. Christy’s Grandmother, Nell (WA5JOC), embodied the spirt of ham like no other, serving nearly three decades in the Ladies Auxiliary at Henderson Memorial Hospital. Lynn Roy (W5LD) was old school Ham radio. He helped start and operate KGRI here in town, was the Roy in Roy & Siler Radio Shack and an owner of Lynn Roy-Wayne Freeman Co. which sold and serviced Air Conditioning, Radios, and Televisions. I have a lot to live up to in order to carry on the torch.

I decided in 2009 that it was time to get my license. I studied hard and could not wait for a local session. Christy, Alexis and I drove to Crockett so I could take the test and in June of 2009 was

First Club Meeting of 2015

Members of the Rusk County Amateur Radio Club met for the first meeting of the year this past Thursday evening, Nine members were present for this meeting. Incoming club officers for 2015 were recognized, President - David Chenault, Vice President - Craig Roquemore, Treasurer - Lester Davis, Secretary - Keith Ballow, and Public Information Officer - Michael Searcy.
Ken Johnson accepted the duties of Net Control Coordinator for 2015.

President, David Chenault speaking about WinLink

David Chenault presented outgoing, President, Keith Ballow with a plaque of appreciation for his service as the first president of the club.

Other items of business discussed included the report that the club repeater's, updated information had been sent to the Texas VHF/FM Society, the repeater coordinating body for the state of Texas, and reflected the club's callsign, N5RCA having been programmed into the repeater's controller for ID purposes.

David advised members of an upcoming regional emergency drill, planned for April 9th. Members also discussed some pending changes to the club's bylaws to support the club's efforts to acquire 501-C3 status.

Members Jon Brunner, Eric Smith, and Dudley Craig volunteered to serve on a newly formed "Awards Committee". More information on this will be forthcoming at future meetings.

David Chenault discussed and showed examples of the club's webpage and Yahoo E-Mail Reflector. David closed out the meeting with an informative presentation on WINLink and the various methods and modes by which it can be used for emergency communications.

Following the meeting, Eric Smith let members try their hand at flying his quad copter!


The Rusk County Amateur Radio Club holds a monthly meeting on the fourth Thursday of each month at 7:00 p.m. at the Central Fire Station on West Main Street in Henderson, Texas. Area Amateurs and the public are invited to attend.

2 Meters SSB Contacts

2 meter band opens up with clearing weather.

The 2 meter band was in pretty good shape on Wednesday morning from 5:30 to 7:30 a.m.. Made a few Single Side Band contacts on 144.200 MHz., from the DFW area all the way down to near Houston. You never know who you might work when the conditions are good on 2 meter SSB.

73 and Happy New Years to everyone !
KN5G

Digital Modes on 2 Meters

Well, we did have some success this past Saturday morning using PSK-31 on 2 meters. Rob, KC5RET and I were able to make a 2 meter, PSK-31 contact between Henderson, TX and Woodville, TX.

The path according to QRZ, was only 106 miles but it is a great start. There are more amateurs out there that we normally do not get to talk to, that are active and interested in 2 meter weak-signal work, be it with voice or digital modes.

This past Saturday morning we used the Rusk County Amateur Radio Club's chat page to coordinate with each other in real-time, which worked very well.

N5SSH, Frank in Laredo, K3TD, Tad, in George Town, KG5UN, Ed, in Abeline, and KA5DWI, Art, in Arizona, also joined the effort and checked in via the chat page.

I appreciate everyone taking the time to check in and increasing the activity on the weak-signal portion of our 2 meter band.

Wouldn't it be great if we had enough active 2 meter stations on the air each Saturday morning to be able to get on and make some SSB and Digital mode contacts with surrounding and distant stations for a few hours each week?

The "Sidewinders on Two" group is a collection of amateur operators, with an Internet presence, who are interested in 2 meter, weak-signal work, especially SSB Voice. I found this group and began to check into some of their 2 meter, SSB nets a couple of years ago. You can find out more about them and what activities they participate in at the Widewinders website and on the SWOTRC website.  

The various SWOT groups hold 2 meter SSB voice nets on most evenings of the week. Several are close enough that we can check into them from the local Henderson area with modest SSB stations and horizontal antennas.

73 and Happy New Years!
Keith - KN5G