F E E D - P O I N T
| August, 2009 | Vol. 19 No.8 |
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After the cool, wet, sunless days of July, the hot, sunny days of August have given the garden a big boost and improved everyone's spirits. It is raining as I write this, which means I won't have to water any container plants today. K1XI and N1HBY are headed to Fort Kent today (August 21) to replace the 146.640 repeater with a new one. Thanks to N1EVO, who is able to give them a room at Northern Door Inn. | KB1OWW and I went to Lowe's on August 11th. We purchased grounding wire for the tower, grounding wire for the guys, clamps, Noalox, solder, and electrical tape. We had hoped to get the guy wires tightened and grounded by the time K1XI came up. The brutal heat was too much to do that work. N1JHD has had bypass surgery following a heart attack. He is in the hospital in Bangor. We hope for a speedy recovery. Gale Flagg 108 Franklin School Rd Fort Kent, Maine 04743 Phone: 207-834-6670 E-mail: galeflagg@sjv.net Next Meeting: Tuesday, September 8, 6:00 PM UMFK, Nadeau Hall, Alumni Conference Room |
| Schedule of Coming Events | ||||||
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| Date | Event | Place | Contact | Sponsor | Time | Freq |
| SUN | Net | NB | VE1PIN | IRG | 2000 | 145.130 |
| MON | Net | Fort Kent | N1FG | SJVARA | 1900 | 146.64 |
| MON | Net | Presque Isle | WA1YNZ | AARA | 2000 | 146.73 |
| Page 2 | Feed-Point, August, 2009 |
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Start Time: 14:11 Members present: N1FG and Stan, W1TCP, N1EVO, KA1SJV, K1FTK, KB1OWW and Karen, KB1EBE and Linda and her mother. Treasurer's Report: N1FRX: Not available for the meeting.
Old Business: 1. Rocky Mt.: K1XI has the repeater. It was brought down by Mike Daigle and friend. N1CHF has been contacted for a schematic and parts list. We have not heard from him. 2. 146.640 Repeater: AA1XD and K1XI came up with the new antenna on July 24th. It was a rainy weekend. The new antenna and their equipment was unloaded on the 25th. At 6:30 AM on the 26th they were at the tower. The new antenna was installed. John Dearborn gave them a helping hand. The repeater was put on a dummy load during the installation. Extensive testing was done afterwards. Repeater sensitivity good. Receive had a problem. K1XI did not have what he needed to test receive at the duplexers. KA1CQX heard us loud and clear, but could not key the repeater. K1XI is getting a Kenwood repeater ready to bring up for us. |
3. Other Business:None New Business: 1. Honorary Memberships: N1FG suggested that AA1XD and K1XI be given honorary memberships in our club. They are giving a lot of time to help us. KB1EBE made a motion to give AA1XD and K1XI honorary memberships in S.J.V.A.R.A. KB1OWW seconded. Passed. 2. List of Recommended Improvements to our tower: AA1XD and K1XI sent a detailed list of things that should done to the tower. The details are on page 3. There was a lot of discussion about it. KB1OWW said he would go to Lowes to buy the needed materials. N1FG said she would accompany him. 3. National Weather Service Open House: August 29th. Tours start at 10 AM and go til 2:00 PM. It was perfect weather for our picnic. It was clear. It was warm. There were new picnic tables at Cross Lake. As usual, plenty of good food, and lively conversation. KB1OWW brought his canoe. He took N1FG for a nice lake ride. Linda Berry brought a spectacular fruit dessert. It was a watermelon half with spikes of luscious fruits. Next Meeting: Tuesday, September 8, 2009 UMFK Nadeau Hall, Alumni Conference Room Adjourned at 2:36. Submitted by Gale Flagg, N1FG |
| Happy Birthday | |
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| W1AW New Digital Modes: W1AW has replaced AMTOR and ASCII transmissions with PSK31 and MFSK16. RTTY will continue to be the first used digital mode. Tues and Fri Keplerian data bulletins will be sent using RTTY and PSK31. | |
| Page 3 | Feed-Point, August, 2009 |
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1. Tighten the guys on the tower. Start with the bottom guy on one leg and tighten it 1/2" to 1". Go to the the next leg and do the same. After doing the third one, start on the next guy cable up. Be sure to tighten all the legs the same amount. Check the tower for straightness. If the tower starts to bow, tighten the necessary leg before you continue. (Bug spray for ants. They are vicious!) 2. Ground the guy cables. Lightning tends to go in a straight line. Aim the ground rods so they are aimed in the same direction as the guy cables. Have the ground cables connected so there are no sharp bends. Make sure you don't crimp the guy cables when you fasten the ground cable to them. Do this at all three anchor points for the guys. |
3. Ground and bond the tower. Start at the top and run a ground all the way from
the base of the antenna, to the
static diffuser, to the base of the tower. Connect the bonding cable or wire to
each section of the tower. (Loosening
one of the nuts, cleaning the leg, and inserting the wire under is fine.) Also, try to snug up all the bolts that
hold the tower sections together. Even just a little tightning will help. 4. Ground the feed line. They make kits for bonding the feed line to the tower. It needs to be done every 30 feet. It involves removing some of the plastic coating from the outside of the hardline, attaching the grounding kit to it and fastening it to one of the tower bolts , then resealing it. 5. Make sure all cables are secure to the tower. Cables moving around can cause noise. |
Heavy duty 40' galvanized steel tower, 16" X 16". Includes mounting hardware. $200. N1FRX. Force 12 EF-510, 5 ele 10m Beam w/balun New in the box, never installed Retails at $470/$480 ... asking $350 Call Don, K1FTK, at 543-6033 | Richard Lederer on student writing |
F E E D - P O I N T August, 2009
Published by the St. John Valley Amateur Radio Association
| and distributed free to members and friends of Amateur Radio.
| President: Gale Flagg N1FG
| Vice President: Gil Daigle, N1JHD
| Secretary: Sandra Daigle, N1QMC
| Treasurer: Charles Zafonte, N1FRX
| Public Information: Charles Ames, N7GLR
| Technical Advisor: Carl Pelletier, N1EVO and June Despres, KB1OWW
| Editor/Publisher/Printer
| Gale Flagg - N1FG / Stan Flagg 834-6670
| Associate Editor/Web Edition
| Charles Ames N7GLR
| Membership Information (Annual Dues):
| Regular Membership $ 12
| Associate Membership $ 6
| Articles may be submitted by anyone with a good idea, and may be re-printed
| only in their entirety and with credit going to this newsletter.
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