Please join us May 28, 2024, for the GCARA General meeting held on Zoom.
Rick has been a ham for over 60 yrs
We will learn about making satellite contacts and some theory.
Our Speaker this month, Rick Rosen K1DS, has over 65 years as a licensed and active Ham Operator.
He will introduce us to satellite contacts and give us some pointers on doing so.
During his long career of amateur radio, he as authored many articles for QST on EME and VHS Contest reports.
His varied experience will lend to his presentation I am sure. Drop in
and have a listen to an interesting speaker.
Submitted by Melanie Fernandez KJ4VCT
Click to download and print the PDF version NOTE: Meeting minutes are posted online as a draft for review until approved at the following meeting. Corrections can be sent to the Secretary, currently rickiwitte4@gmail.com.
Board-Meeting-Minutes-2024-03-17
Come one, come all, to see what Ham Helpers has received in donated radio equipment. The Free Flea will take place at 2725 NE 14 Ave. Wilton Manors, 33334 from 8 am to 2 pm on Saturday, April 13, 2024.
It is open to all hams, family and friends. Free tailgating.
There will be an ICOM IC-7610 for auction with a starting bid of $750.00. The winning bid will be announced Saturday at 2 pm. Contact information : kennyh4600@gmail.com (ke4nc).
You must come and see what Kenny has scooped up in his trips around Florida. We will see you there!
Submitted by Melanie Fernandez KJ4VCT
Subject: Hurricane preparation
Robert Molleda is the Warning Coordination Meteorologist at the National Weather Service’s Miami/South Florida Forecast Office. He is a native of Miami and lives in South Florida.
Robert’s career has taken him through many South Florida tropical cyclones, from Category 5 Hurricane Andrew in 1992 to the record-breaking 2005 and 2020 hurricane seasons.
source:https://www.weather.gov/media/mfl/Bios/MolledaBio_Webpage.pdf
Click to download and print the PDF version NOTE: Meeting minutes are posted online as a draft for review until approved at the following meeting. Corrections can be sent to the Secretary, currently rickiwitte4@gmail.com.
General-Meeting-2024-02-27Click to download and print the PDF version NOTE: Meeting minutes are posted online as a draft for review until approved at the following meeting. Corrections can be sent to the Secretary, currently rickiwitte4@gmail.com.
Board-Meeting-Minutes-2024-02-25
CHANGE IN DINNER VENUE!! It’s ITALIAN!!
Sunday March 17, 6:30pm Club Monthly Dinner at Pizza Time in Coral Springs
This month, GCARA will be meeting at and eating at PIZZA TIME in Coral Springs 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm. They close at 9 so we are starting a bit earlier to be able to finish our food. The Board has decided to “eat around” at different restaurants until we find a possible “home” for us. Stay tuned each month for our restaurant addresses. This month’s meeting date will be March 17, 2024.
The meeting is open to all hams and guests but if you do not normally attend our meetings and are expected, kindly give Melanie a shout so she can make sure we can be accommodated in comfort. Thank you.
Pizza Time Italian Restaurant
11504 W Sample Rd, Coral Springs, FL 33065
Menu: pizzatimecs.com
If you have a favorite restaurant to suggest, all suggestions are welcome. Please contact Melanie Fernandez @ 954-560-3706. Thank you.
CQ, CQ, CQ Call all GCARA hams to breakfast at JJ’s Café.
This past Saturday, it was my pleasure to meet with one of the longest meeting breakfast ham groups that I AM AWARE of in South Florida. GCARA hams have eaten there since 1994 at its convenient location : 6051 NW 31 AVE in Ft. Lauderdale 33309.
I spent an enjoyable breakfast with Mike Spivak WB4RFC, Al Nevares N4ACN, Gary Evans N4TOT, Dirk Basting N4AN, and Roger Johnson AC4RL. These were among the first members of GCARA and have a lot of valuable insight to share. Unfortunately, many of the hams who occupied seats at the first table are SKs now and we all would raise a toast to their contributions of the GCARA. I have dined there in the past with many great people with a good ham spirit and good ham values.
I am going to make the e_ort to come every Saturday morning for the next 2 months and I invite all of you to give it a try. The food is good, the service is good and the conversation is always lively!
Buon appetito!
Submitted by Melanie Fernandez KJ4VCT
David S. Pomerantz
Amateur Radio License Call Sign: KO4DKN
Boynton Beach, Florida 33437-4073
Today while I was at Ham Radio Outlet in Winter Springs, FL I was debating about getting a second antenna. This one would be for my Kenwood D710G mobile. I already have both a Comet CA-2x4SRNMO antenna and a Comet SBB-7NMO antenna for my Yaesu FTM-500DR dual band mobile radio. So, which one do I get after I drove 3hrs to the radio store? Both antennas are very good Dual Band Antennas for any mobile VHF/UHF radio which operate on the Amateur Bands. Let’s Dig In!
Let’s do some testing using my Rigexpert 230 Stick Pro and take some antenna measurements for SWR to see which one has a better SWR reading. Then, let’s do some real world testing on the local repeaters in the Broward & Palm Beach County areas and see how well my audio sounds on each antenna.
The first reading I did was on the Comet CA-2X4SR, which on 2 meters was right out of the plastic sleeve. No tuning. The package indicated the antenna required no tuning…sure!
Very low SWR reading across 2m
the second reading I did is on the Comet SBB-7
As you can see the SWR increases the higher the frequency you go
Let’s take a look at the signal reports from these two antennas. The receiving signals from our local repeaters in Broward & Palm Beach County indicated to me that the CA-2x4SR was a little scratchy in certain areas as I traveled and at times it did not produce a good clean signal especially near the Boca Raton’s Club Repeater from the Sawgrass and Northbound Turnpike.
I decided to switch over to the Comet SBB-7. I noticed a significant improvement in receive and voice, but it must be noted that the SBB-7 does have a higher DB gain rating then the CA-2x4SR antenna and is a taller antenna. Side Note: While traveling the local roads the next day on the Turnpike South to Fort Lauderdale with clear skies outside, I didn’t seem to have any issues on the receive end with the CA-2X4SR antenna.
Both antennas do produce a good receive and transmit when you are on open roads like the Turnpike, I-95 in Martin, Indian River Counties and areas with open roads. Minimal trees and buildings were a plus. As Amateur radio operators we must also consider propagation, solar flare activity and weather as a factor to. Some days are just better than others no matter what we do, I have experienced.
I have really enjoyed both antennas on moderate distance travel, but I would probably to go with the CA-2X4SR antenna for long distance travel due to its smaller size when I’m traveling at higher rates of speed. If I was setting up for an Ares activation/drill, APRS, sending/receiving Winlink traffic or in a rural area I would use the Comet SBB 7. The is no magic bullet antenna out there for every situation, but our signal reports do help all of us determine if the antenna we are using is affective or not. In an emergency, that is not the time to determine that we have a subpar antenna.
I decided on the Comet SSB-7 antenna, but I do continue to enjoy both antennas. Please feel free to share with us what type of antenna you use for portable or mobile use.
’73 All
Stats for CA-2X4SR Antenna: VHF/UHF FRS Applications
2M: 4.5dBi 6/8 wave center-load
70 cm: 7.2dBi Three 5/8 waves in phase
SWR: 2:1 or less
Max Power: 150W FM
Length: 40″
Stats for the Comet SBB-7 Antenna: VHF/UHF Dual Band
2M: 4.5dBi 6/8 wave center-load
70 cm: 7.2dBi Three 5/8 waves in phase
SWR: 1.5:1 or less
Max Power: 70W FM Length: 55″
