- Saturday 27 July 9am start – Branch 42 Used Equipment Sale – Onepoto Speed Boat Club (Onepoto Road). For more information contact ZL2ABC (Bruce Packer) zl2abc@gmail.com or by phone to 04 938 7147.
- Saturday 3 August 2019: 9.30am – noon – Winter DV Talk by John ZL2TWS Start Time: 10:30 am (clubrooms open 9:30 am – morning tea/coffee at 10:00 am). At Upper Hutt Clubrooms Branch 63, Park Street, Upper Hutt.A registration fee of $5.00 applies to cover expenses. Please register with mark@foxtrot.co.nz Finishes no later than 12:00 pm. Learn about D-Star G3 Plus2 and ircDDB variants followed by a demonstrations of BlueDV for D-Star, DMR and Yaesu System Fusion (YSF). Instant D-STAR registration available on the day for new users of Peanut or BlueDV. The talk will then continue about Hotspots and Dashboards. Following the session many of the group will have lunch at the Cosmopolitan Club (pay your own way).
- Regional Councillor Meet Up at Branch 42 Clubrooms in Titahi Bay – Date and time to be confirmed – The combined regional meeting will be on either Tuesday 10 September or Wednesday 11 September. Both ZL2 councillors are expected to be present.
Sunspots … Sunday 21 July 2019
At the Branch 50 event held at Mike ZL1AXG’s QTH on Sunday 21 July, Mike gave a presentation about sunspots – what they are and how sunspots impact on the ionosphere – and therefore on HF propagation, what the next cycle may hold, and their possible impacts on climate.
Shared lunch @ Mike ZL1AXG QTH
Branch 50 had its annual mid-Winter shared lunch on Sunday 23 June 2019 at Mike ZL1AXG’s QTH (2 Derry Hill, Churton Park, Wellington).
Plates of hot and cold food were shared alongside memories of Ralph ZL2AOH (now regrettably Silent Key as of Friday). There were also tales of the diminutive alternative to the Magnetic Loop, the Poynting Vector Antenna. When it was shared that the antenna was just 3/100 of a wavelength long, there was some disbelief about its properties. However, Bernard ZL2BD and Mike ZL1AXG noted that there seemed to be genuine research about this antenna, and given it is intended to receive magnetic waves (as opposed to electric waves) this may indeed improve reception. Also discussed were the challenges in making conical elements that are quite sizeable (albeit short).
There were also memory prompts from the past from members
- A device of unknown purpose (Magnetron?, Phaser?)
- A Creed latching relay (somewhat larger and heavier than you might think)
- tales of great DX as a schoolboy when visiting the local ham radio operator in Cornwall, and a special QSL card from a Penzance Pirate
- Two giveaways …
- A tale of a repair of a Japan Radio Company (JRC) transmitter
Shed Workshop: Vintage Radio
At our shed workshop in the afternoon of Saturday 13 April, George ZL2AG opened up his garage and museum to the club to host a workshop on vintage radios. We were intrigued by the progression in designs – from expensive crystal sets (with galenium cat’s whisker diodes, through to feedback designs like the TRF, before the age of superhets.
There were also changes also in the shape of cabinetry – from cathedral, through to tombstone and chest designs. George was lamenting the sharp fall off in interest in vintage radio, and was concerned about where all the beautifully restored vintage sets will end up. Tea and coffee was served at the conclusion of the workshop. A further workshop on vintage radios will take place in May.
