Biography

In loving memory of Harry M. Clare (SK).

About Me:
I was officially licensed in July of 2021, after passing my technician exam with Laurel VEC in Norwich, NY, on the 22nd. I was issued systematic callsign KD2WRZ. Shortly thereafter, on August 10th, I acquired WB2TAL as a vanity callsign. This callsign previously belonged to my great grandfather, Harry M. Clare (SK). After becoming licensed, I quickly bought a TIDRADIO TD-H6 off of Amazon, my first radio. I later purchased a Baofeng UV-5R EX as a second radio. Unfortunately, I had an extremely difficult time programming these radios, and ended up losing interest in the hobby until April of 2024. I eventually figured out how to properly program repeaters into my radios, and on April 14th I made my first contact with N2ATG on the Kirkland, NY 70cm repeater (443.850 T103.5 +5.0). After that, my interest in the hobby continued to grow, and I eventually made my first two simplex contacts on June 10th, when I contacted W2RJO/M and W2KEB/M on the national 2m calling frequency. A month later, on July 9th, I took (and passed!) my general exam with GLAARG VEC online. As of today, I am mainly involved in VHF simplex work, although you can often find me ragchewing on the Utica, NY 2m repeater (146.760 T103.5, -0.6), on the Kirkland, NY 2m repeater (147.240 T71.9 +0.6), and on the Burlington, NY 2m repeater (146.715 T167.9 -0.6). I have an interest in all things outdoors, and am planning to attend either SUNY Cobleskill or SUNY ESF (haven't decided yet!) to acquire a bachelor's degree in Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cobleskill) or Aquatic and Fisheries Science (ESF).

QSL and Logging Information:
I try to send QSL cards to every station I contact for the first time on a given band/mode. If you'd like to send me a card back, you can mail it to me at my listed address. I don't require any SASEs or even envelopes, so you can just send me one as a postcard if you'd like. I currently only log contacts on paper and via the QRZ logbook. I'm in the process of setting up an ARRL LOTW account, so hopefully I will be able to upload my logs there soon. I use two logbooks on QRZ, WB2TAL, which is my standard logbook, and WB2TAL/W8, which is reserved for contacts made via the Young Amateurs Radio Club remote station.
Operating Information

Base Operation:
I'm hoping to get a permanent antenna installation sometime this year, as I have both a Comet GP-3 and an MFJ MFJ-1752 sitting in storage. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to do that just yet, so, in the meantime, I'm running with a temporary setup. For 2m, I use a Yaesu FTM-3100 and an MFJ-1728B magmount antenna, and for 70cm, I use a Jetstream JT270M and a Nagoya UT-72 magmount antenna. These antennas are placed just outside my window, and use my house's gutters as a ground plane. Unfortunately, I haven't even been able to consider an HF setup, but I'm hoping that can happen before I go off to college next year.

Mobile Operation:
For mobile operation, I usually just run my Icom IC-V86 or Alinco DJ-MD5FXT with the standard rubber ducky antennas. I am working on setting up an actual mobile installation, and am hoping to have it finished before October of this year.

Portable Operation:
For portable operation, I usually run my Icom IC-V86 or Alinco DJ-MD5FXT with the standard rubber ducky antennas. If I'm out boating or kayaking, I usually switch to my Alinco DJ-VX50T with the standard rubber ducky antenna.

Scanning:
For analog scanning, I run a Radioshack PRO-2055 with a Comet BNC-W100RX telescopic antenna as a base station, and a Radioshack PRO-164 with the stock rubber ducky antenna as a portable setup. I also use a Uniden BCD436HP for scanning P25 systems, which I usually run with a stock rubber ducky.

Contact Information:
If you're interested in contacting me outside of a repeater, you can reach out to me at my listed e-mail, I am in the process of setting up a Hamshack Hotline VOIP line, and that will be listed as soon as I get it set up.

Club Involvement:
Utica Amateur Radio Club, K2IQ (Unofficially, hoping to sort out official membership very soon!)
Young Amateurs Radio Club, WY4RC
Youth Meme Culture Association, WE3BS

Equipment

Base/Mobile Transceivers:
Jetstream JT270M
Yaesu FTM-3100R

Handheld Transceivers:
Alinco DJ-MD5FXT
Alinco DJ-VX50T
Icom IC-V86
Retevis RA79

Base/Mobile Receivers:
RadioShack PRO-2055

Handheld Receivers:
RadioShack PRO-164
Uniden BCD436HP

Base/Mobile Antennas:
Comet GP-3
Comet MA-721
MFJ MFJ-1752
MFJ MFJ-1728B
Nagoya UT-72
Tram 703-HC

Handheld Antennas:
Comet BNC-W100RX
Intellitron HA-1711SF
MFJ MFJ-1717SF
Nagoya NA-771R
Radioddity RD-331
TIDRADIO TD-771

Accessories:
Daiwa CN-501V
Pyle PS9KX
Yaesu FP-1030A

Pending Deliveries or Repairs:
AudioCodes 440HD
General Electric 3-5805A
Kenwood TM-2570A