Biography

My dad was a radio operator in a PBY Catalina reconnaissance and rescue aircraft in the Navy during WW2. He taught me Morse code when I was a cub scout and as much about radio as he knew. I was an avid shortwave listener and continued collecting any radio or electronic thing I could find. My 9th grade science teacher, who was a ham (now W5TWQ), sold me an ARC-5 transmitter to convert to crystal control for my Novice License in 1966. My high school in Kansas City, Kansas had 3 years of electronics class available which I took advantage of. This convinced me to pursue a degree in Electrical Engineering in college at the University of Kansas.

I repaired TV's, worked as a repairman in a 2-way radio shop, designed digital circuits and microprocessor controllers for aircraft radio equipment at King Radio in Olathe, Kansas before I moved to Huntsville, Alabama to do software for telephone equipment at GTE. I moved from there and got BSCS and MSCS degrees in Illinois. I then did software for the first digital cellular base stations at Motorola and finally retired from doing software for a company that provides interactive voice response services for fortune 500 companies.

I decided to get back into the hobby so got my General Class License in December, 2022 and my Amateur Extra Class in January, 2023. I am a member of ARRL, QRZ, Bolingbrook Amateur Radio Society (BARS), O.M. International Sideband Society (OMISS #14791), and one of the net control operators for the Hams For Christ Fellowship Net which meets at 3 PM CT daily, except Sundays, on or about 7263 kHz or via the K9DBV remote in WI. I am also an ARRL accredited Volunteer Examiner (VE). I enjoy hunting POTA and hope to activate soon as well.

Equipment

I operate with an Icom IC-7300 using an ALINCO DM-330MV switching power supply, Heathkit SB-200 amplifier and an MFJ-880 wattmeter connected to a PEZ-EF-8010-JRKW end fed half wave that's good for 80-10 meters. I use a vintage J-38 key for CW. For VHF/UHF I use an Explorer QRZ-1 handheld dual band transceiver.

I aquired an old Kenwood TS-520 hybrid HF transceiver, which I repaired, along with an MFJ-949E manual antenna tuner to use with it. I also have a second vintage J-38 key connected to it. I put up a homemade end fed half wave entenna with Balun for it and it's transmitting and receiving well in my basement shack. I also found 2 more TS-520's which I repaired for my 2 grandsons for short wave listening.

I put together some VHF/UHF equipment for the basement shack including a Kenwood TM-731A Dual Bander transceiver, Astron RS-12A power supply, Swan WM-6200 VHF wattmeter, and a copper J-pole dual-band antenna.

I also added the following to my basement shack:

Heathkit HW12a Single Bander (80 m) transceiver with power supply, speaker and microphone
Yaesu FT-891 mobile transceiver with MegaWatt power supply.