DIRTY DISHES
and clean signals
the official publication of The 50 MHz and UP Group located in Northern California.
Volume 2 Number 9                   Aug/Sep 1997
Visit our web site at: http://www.nitehawk.com/rasmit/50UP.html

Next Meeting, SUNDAY, 9/7, 1PM at Lockheed Bldg. 202.
Important Notice:  There will be no full club meeting in October. Instead, people are encouraged to either attend the WSWSS meeting in the Sierra foothills or have small group meetings to prepare for the Pacificon presentations and antenna testing.

PROGRAM:  A demonstration of millimeter wave transceivers by Lars Karlsson, AA6IW.
Lars Karlsson, AA6IW will bring in several millimeter wave transceivers that he is putting together. These will cover 24GHz, 47GHz and 78GHz. He will discuss how he made these transceivers and will offer suggestions for ways others can get on these bands.

The meeting place will be the Lockheed Auditorium in bldg. 202 on Hanover St. in Palo Alto, California. Access Hanover from Page Mill Road (between 280 and El Camino). Follow Hanover as it curves right and up the hill. Watch for the Lockheed sign indicating Bldg. 202 on the left side, about 2/3 of the way up the hill.

Officers
President  Jeffrey Pawlan  WA6KBL  408-371-0256  jpawlan@pawlan.com 
Vice President  Bill Rausch  AA6PA  408-637-0622  billraus@ix.netcom.com 
Treasurer  Will Jensby  W0EOM  408-296-6071  w0eom@aol.com 
Secretary  Bill Ogilvie  KQ6FY   415-968-3707  wogilvie@best.com 
Board Member  Art Lange  W6RXQ  408-735-1594   art_lange@trimble.com  
Board Member  Jim Moss  WB9AJZ  408-746-2789  jmoss@berlioz.nsc.com 


Contests and Events

Aug 22-24    Eastern VHF/UHF Conference (CT)  http://uhavax.hartford.edu/~newsvhf
Sep 3        WSWSS Sprint (see article below)
Sep 13-14    ARRL September VHF QSO party
Sep 12-14    SW ARRL Convention - Riverside, CA Contact Jerry Verduft, AD0A, (310) 784-1295.
Sep 20-21    ARRL 10GHz and Up Cumulative Contest, 2nd weekend
Oct 17-19    Pacificon - 50 MHz and UP VHF+ Sessions  http://www.mdarc.org  (510)932-6125;
             Hotel reservations - 1-800-826-2644 for the special room rate.
3-5 Oct 97   Western States Weak Signal Society Conference http://www.qsl.net/n7stu 
23-26 Oct 97 Microwave Update '97, Sandusky, Ohio  http://www.wa8wzg.com/update97 
3-4 Apr 98   Southeastern VHF Conference, Atlanta, GA http://www.akorn.net/~ae6e/svhfs
Livermore Swap Meet - 1st Sunday of each month at Las Positas College in Livermore, CA, 7:00 AM to noon, all year. Talk in 147.045 from west, 145.35 from the east. Contact Noel Anklam, KC6QZK, (510) 447- 3857 eves.
Foothill Flea Market - 2nd Saturday of each month from March to October at Foothill College, Los Altos Hills, CA.


VHF+ WeakSignal NETS
Sunday  8PM  144.240  Southern California WSWSS 
Sunday  8PM  144.250  Central California WSWSS 
Sunday  8:30PM  432.100  Central California WSWSS 
Tuesday  8PM  144.250  Northern California SWOT 
Tuesday  8PM  144.200  Arizona WSWSS 
Wednesday  8PM  144.240  Southern California WSWSS SWAP 
Thursday  8PM  144.250  Northern California SWOT SWAP 
Thursday  8PM  432.120  SCAL General, Oceanside, DM13 

50 MHz & Up Club Minutes
Minutes for Meeting 8/3/97 Thanks go to Bob Stein

Meeting called to order by Jeffrey Pawlan.  Officers present were Bill Rausch and Jeffrey Pawlan. Board member Art Lange was also present.

Coming events were reviewed by Jeffrey with emphasis on our participation in Pacificon.

Because of possible conflicts with WSWSS conference the first week of October and the need to finalize the program for Pacificon, it was decided to forego a meeting the first Sunday in October.

The first program was presented by Bill Rausch on Phase IIID.  Because of increased shock and vibration requirements, it appears that the satellite will not fly in September as planned.  He then presented data on the expected orbital mechanics, the satellite antennas, the xmit/rcvr matrix, a suggested ground station equipment matrix, and antenna arrays.

The next pragram was presented by Jeffrey. He discussed the potential modiications to Japanese VHF/UHF transceivers to improve reception, with emphasis on the old, but popular Yaesu FT-726R.  First, Increase IF gain to improve AGC response. Then modify the AGC circuit to disable AGC when desired.  This was demonstrated by an FT-726R tuned to K6FV's 50-MHz beacon.  Another improvement to reduce IMD products is to replace cheap switching diodes with small relays such as those manufactured by Teledyne.

The Sept. program will be a demonstration of millimeter wave transceivers by Lars Karlsson, AA6IW.

Next Meeting will be on Sunday, Sept. 7 (the weekend after labor day) at the Lockheed auditorium.
Lars Karlsson, AA6IW will bring in several millimeter wave transceivers that he is putting together. These will cover 24GHz, 47GHz and 78GHz. He will discuss how he made these transceivers and will offer suggestions for ways others can get on these bands.

Important Notice:  There will be no full club meeting in October. Instead, people are encouraged to either attend the WSWSS meeting in the Sierra foothills or have small group meetings to prepare for the Pacificon presentations and antenna testing.

Amateur Electronic Supply (AES) has devised a 1 year promotion starting Sept. 1 and ending next Sept. 1.  If any club member buys anything from AES during that time period, give a photocopy of your receipt to the club treasurer, Will Jensby. AES will give the club a credit against purchase for 1% of the total receipts that we accumulate.


Pacificon -VHF Sessions
We are in the planning stages for the Pacificon show in October.  The club will be hosting VHF sessions. So far we have planned:

8AM: "parking lot", Antenna Measuring Session, by 50 MHz and UP Group
1PM: "Big Room", Getting Started with Microwaves - a panel discussion  and demonstration of microwave gear, oscillators, amplifiers, mixers, and antennas
2PM: "small room", Amateur Radio Laser Communications, Jim Moss, WB9AJZ
3PM: "small room", Low Noise Amplifier Design, Jeffrey Pawlan, WA6KBL
4PM: "small room", VHF Propagation, panel

Contact Art Lange to help out in anyway, including session chair, speaker, or panel member.


Club Spirit!
How about a club T-Shirt?  We've found a source that can supply just about any type and color with whatever logo we may want.  The prices look reasonable ($8-10 depending on type).  We don't have a logo yet.  We voted to give away a free tee shirt to the design of the club logo, as a contest. We'd like to hear from you. Let any of the board members know if you have interest, or mention it at the next meeting.

50 MHz and UP will host 1998 VHF Conference
Don't forget the 1997 WSWSS VHF Conference in October. (see announcement elsewhere in the newsletter)
This year's WESCON show and IC Expo will be held for the first time at the Santa Clara and the San Jose convention Centers. They will be held Nov. 4 - 6 and there will be free transportation connecting the 2 locations. Free admission passes for the shows are available from Jeffrey Pawlan, WA6KBL, at the meeting or by special arrangement if you can't come to the meeting.

Weak Signal Protection?
To all WSWSS Members:

Below is history in the making. The WSWSS was formed to promote and protect weak signal work on all bands above 50MHz. We are on the threshold of making this a reality. This proposal protects everyone on every mode which is the only fair and equitable means to accomplishing FCC protection. This will make it illegal by law to operate in any mode outside the band plan for that mode.

Please give your support and pass the message along to others in the VHF and above community that you know. If you have the address of another VHF Society, Club or Organization please see to it that they get this message.

Thanks for your Support.

Bob Earl KD6UIH
Western States Weak Signal Society
SMIRK #5844  SWOT #3141
 
Here is the motion that passed at the July 18-19 ARRL Board Meeting (Minute 63):

WHEREAS, the MSC was instructed by the Board to study the issue of compliance with Amateur Radio band plans and to make recommendations to the Board; and
WHEREAS, the MSC finds that the level of compliance with band plans is eroding, to the detriment of Amateur Radio operation;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the ARRL petition the FCC to amend Part 97 of the Rules to add the following sentence to Section 97.101(a): "Amateur operators should be familiar with, and should abide by, the voluntary band plans that are applicable to the frequency bands in which they operate."

Here is a little history of how this came about:   I made a motion (originally drafted by SW Vice Director W6XD) asking the Membership Services Committee (MSC) "...to study the issue of compliance with band plans, including potential revision to Part 97, and to report back to the Board on or before the 1997 Annual Meeting."  Despite the motion passing (page 66,  September 1996 QST), is was not acted on till this year under a new chairman (K4VX).  In fact is was K4VX who made the motion.  BTW, the recommendation by the MSC was much stronger (Minute 16). Regardless, we have our foot in the door.  If everything goes as it should, the League should be filling a petition by the end of the year and the FCC should in turn put out an NPRM, hopefully, by the end of next year.

It is important that supporters let their ARRL Director know they appreciate and support this important effort.  Compliance with band plans will help prevent interference from FM simplex users (not just repeaters).  There will be more than one period open for comments to the FCC and it will be important to get as many folks as you can to submit their input directly to the FCC by the deadlines.

Tnx for hanging in there with Art and I.
 73/Fried  (SW Division ARRL Director)


Rex's Place - KK6MK  http://www.netgate.net/~rexa/
On the page I have a list of mountaintop operating locations that may be useful for the 10 GHz contest <in September>.
I would also like to add to the list if anyone has more sites or corrections to my data.
thanks,
- Rex, KK6MK

6 Meter Talk by AA6DD
Will Anderson, AA6DD did a show on six meters on Ham Radio and More and this show is archived at http://www.tapr.org/hrm/ . You must have Real Audio and a sound card to listen...

From: ARRL Pacific Division Update  See: http://www.pdarrl.org/
FCC Asks for Comments on an ARRL Private Enforcement Proposal:-
 
On Aug. 1, 1997, the FCC announced that the public Comment period on the ARRL Petition for a Private Rules Enforcement Plan, now called RM-9150, will be available until Aug. 31, 1997. Reply Comment date is Sept. 30, 1997. Basically this proposal is to move the enforcement of FCC Rules from the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau to the Chief Administrative Law Judge function of the FCC. The original petition by ARRL was submitted on Mar. 28, 1997, but has been dormant at FCC until now with no warning as to when it would be given an RM number and the comment period would start. In submitting this petition, the ARRL hopes to obtain some enforcement of FCC Rules. The ARRL October 1996 Board meeting motion which initiated this Petition can be found in pages 63 - 64, January 1997 QST.
 
Unfortunately, the text of RM-9150 is not available on any known web site. The text is available in hardcopy form only from FCC in Washington DC. With the Comment deadline set at Aug. 31, 1997, it may be difficult to obtain the actual text in time although I continue to try to get it.
 
Please comment in a positive fashion to help encourage FCC to issue a Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) on this matter.
NOTE: Based on extensive investigation, the FCC has apparently made NO provision to receive email messages on RM-9150, so all Comments MUST be in hardcopy format. Please send an original and four copies of your Comments to the FCC.
 
It's always best to write using your own thoughts, expressed using your own words. However, as a guide, here's a sample message ---
 
Secretary, Federal Communications Commission
1919 M St NW,
Washington DC 20554.
 
RE: RM-9150
 
I support the ARRL Petition to have the FCC change its rules to permit members of the volunteer Amateur Auxiliary to bring evidence of malicious interference violations directly before the FCC's Chief Administrative Law Judge. The Chief ALJ would be authorized to determine if the complainants have a valid case, to issue show-cause orders, and to designate complaints for hearing.
 
Please issue a Notice of Proposed Rule Making on this matter.
 
Signed  (your name, call, address)
 
Good luck to all of us. Thanks for participating.

The 2nd Annual WSWSS VHF and Above Sprint
7 to 11 P.M. local time, Wed. Sept. 3rd, 1997

The Western States Weak Signal Society presents the Second Annual WSWSS VHF and Above Sprint.  The object is to QSO as many stations in as many different grids as possible on the bands 50 MHz and up during the four hour contest period. This event is a good opportunity to test your equipment in preparation for the ARRL September VHF QSO party.

Classes: Single Operator, Multi-Operator, QRP (25 watts or less) and Rover.  A rover is one or two amateurs operating from more than one grid; no captive rovers or ³grid circling² allowed.
Exchange: ARRL four character grid locators. Signal reports are optional.
Scoring:  Same as the ARRL June VHF QSO Party.
Results:  All entries received will appear in the WSWSS Newsletter. The highest entry from each ARRL-defined Region (West Coast, Midwest, etc.) and the highest entry from each ARRL section within the West Coast Region only in each of the above classes will be highlighted in bold.

Send logs, summary sheet, and S.A.S.E. within 30 days to Erik Dean NI6G, 3813 N. State Av., Fresno, CA 93722.  Electronic submission of logs is encouraged in any of the following formats to ni6g@amsat.org: ASCII, CT
(versions 7 or 8), or LOGPlus!, on DOS formatted 720k or 1.44mb floppy disks.


Noise Figure Help Needed at WSWSS '97
I would like to ask you assistance with a conference related matter.  Our  regular noise figure person and equipment will not be available for the conference this year.  Would you put out a request to the 50+ MHz Group to see if someone can assist us?  Looks to be a great conference.  Would be a shame to not have NF gear available.
73, Robert N7STU/YB2ARO, DM07aa/OI52ee
n7stu@psnw.com
WSWSS Conference Announcement
Western States Weak Signal Society 1997 Conference Announcement

*Antenna Gain Measurements and Noise Figure Testing
*Equipment testing and tune-up!
*ARRL VEC license exams
*W6JKV Banquet Speaker (Travelogue)
*Many high-quality technical presentations!!

The 1997 Western States Weak Signal Society Technical Conference will be held on Friday through Sunday, October 3 to 5, at the Montecito-Sequoia Lodge.  The lodge is located in the Sequoia National Forest between Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks, 65 miles east of Fresno at 7500 feet, just minutes from Grant Grove & the famous Giant Sequoia Trees!
For rates and reservations, call Montecito-Sequoia at (800) 227-9900.

The Conference Technical Program will include the following presentations:

NU8I  ---- VHF amplifier design using Svetlana tubes
K6QXY ---- 6m EME and large array engineering
W6JKV ---- VHF expedition travel log (dinner presentation)
W6GGV ---- Designing N-Way power dividers
K6WR  ---- Regulatory issues of interest to the weak signal enthusiast 
                  (Brad is the ARRL Pacific Division Director)
K6MYC ---- TBD

Conference pre-registration is $15; or $20 at the door.
For more information on our 1997 Conference, visit http://www.qsl.net/n7stu/ or contact Robert Brown, N7STU, at n7stu@psnw.com.


Laser Communications Home Page!
http://www.qsl.net/wb9ajz/laser/laser.htm
Lots of bright stuff and archives of the LASER mail reflector.