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VK7AX > BCAST 22.02.25 12:57l 458 Lines 23894 Bytes #9 (0) @ WW BID : 2537_VK7AX Subj: VK7 Amateur Radio News 23Feb25 Path: JH4XSY<N3HYM<K5DAT<W0ARP<ZL2BAU<VK7AX Sent: 250222/0350Z @:VK7AX.#ULV.TAS.AUS.OC #:2537 [Ulverstone] $:2537_VK7AX From: VK7AX@VK7AX.#ULV.TAS.AUS.OC To : BCAST@WW VK7 Amateur Radio News 23Feb25 Text edition: -------------------------------- VK7 AMATEUR RADIO NEWS BROADCAST FOR SUNDAY 23rd February 2025 -------------------------------- Welcome to the VK7 Amateur Radio News. This was first broadcast on Sunday, February 23rd, 2025 and we bring you the latest from the world of amateur radio in VK7. This week, joining you from the Tasmanian Amateur Radio News desk is Idris, VK7ZIR. Tune in as we share updates and insights across VK7, broadcast through an array of platforms and frequencies: On DMR Talk Group 5 and D-Star Reflector 91C, managed by Gavin, VK7HGO. On Medium and high frequency rebroadcasts thanks to our dedicated operators: 1.862 MHz by Graham, VK7GS 3.670 MHz by Dale, VK7DG 7.140 MHz by Ross, VK7ALH 14.130 MHz by Any Takers 28.525 MHz by Garry, VK7JGD and UHF CB Channel 24 in the Hobart area, hosted by Mark, VK7FMAC If you missed today’s broadcast then you can catch the replay on Tuesday night at 8:00pm on repeaters VK7RAA in Northern VK7 and VK7RHT and UHFCB24 in Southern VK7. Thank you for tuning in and enjoy the broadcast! -------------------------------- VK7 Broadcast Digital Help Needed Our Digital broadcast team of Clayton VK7ZCR, Gavin VK7HGO, Phil VK3PG and Ross VK7WP are urgently looking for some more people to help put the DMR Talk Group 5 and DSTAR Reflector 91C broadcasts to air each week. If you listen to the Digital broadcasts on TG5 or 91C then it is a small step to help out and put the broadcasts to air once a month and then take callbacks after the broadcast and report numbers back to VK7WI. If you are interested then please have a chat with Clayton VK7ZCR on email at: clayton7008(at)gmail.com. 73, Digital Broadcast Team -------------------------------- WWFF, SOTA, POTA and IOTA Weekly Wrap Up There’s nothing more frustrating than arriving at a location ready to activate, only to be met with a boom gate or "no entry" sign, forcing you to find an alternative access point or completely change your plans. Before heading out, it’s recommended to research the location thoroughly. Understand the site boundaries, terrain, access rules, access roads & trials, and that the site fits your physical and equipment capabilities. Always have a backup plan in case your initial plan doesn’t work out. To research your location, check the relevant program's website for site-specific information, including location maps, coordinates, and notes from operators who have activated the site before. You can also use apps and websites like Google Maps, Google Earth, SOTA Goat, or SOTLAS to help with your planning. In VK7, we’re fortunate to have access to ListMap, a free online mapping tool provided by the Tasmanian Government. This tool offers invaluable details, including land tenure, park boundaries, access roads, and other geographical features. By adding a tenure layer in ListMap, you can identify land ownership, distinguishing private and public land, and view their boundaries. This feature is especially helpful for determining park boundaries and finding suitable access points. The map can be viewed in either topographic or satellite imagery. ListMap has many more layers that can assist with planning activations. For more information on using ListMap, visit the ListMap website or reach out to Matt, VK7MAT, via email. Last week, an activation occurred at Long Reach Conservation Area, a POTA park that had not been activated before. The park is situated about 12 km south of George Town. The activation was carried out by VK7HAM, VK7AN, and VK7ZPE. Keep safety in mind and plan ahead to ensure a successful and enjoyable activation. 73, Matt, VK7MAT -------------------------------- Sewing Circle Net MEET THE VOICE 2025. This is a revival of this social outing after some years of recess. Where? Ross Caravan Park by the river’s edge. Date: Sunday 23rd March 2025 Time: 11.00am There will be the Meet The Voice Swap and Sell and a Special Gourmet BBQ sponsored by two Northern Hams. Bring along your surplus ham gear for swap or sell. There will be trophy presentations for the sewing circle’s “most loquacious” ham and ham of the year. All Hams welcome. 73, Al, VK7AN Sewing Circle Net -------------------------------- Statewide SSTV Nights A busy net night that saw the following participants, VK7s – DMH, ZAB, AAX, TW and ZCF all sharing forty photos. Some photos didn’t make it north, so remember to turn on the CTCSS tone of 141.3Hz to link RAF to RJG. The main theme was vintage radio: With the front cover of Radio Amateur News from January 1920 Manually tuned radios and listening via headphones or large horn speakers The broadcasting of The Grand Opera and reporting the news with a transportable transmitter Other photos of interest were: A 3D printed HF loading coil assembly with a variable tap used as part of a portable antenna. This was presented at a recent NTARC Club Room Technical Night The portable HF antenna setup on a lawn, including the version with radial counter poises A model of the NV Nella Dan, the supply ship that ran aground on Macquarie Island in 1987 and was latter scuttled in deep water A very special QSL card from Base Concordia, a French-Italian research station in Antarctica with some very unique post marks AI generated radio operator and space pilot The Norse God Thor with his arsenal of basic electronic weapons A steam punk Wild West gunman Cooking and bottling of Satsuma Plum jam and 73 from a tribe of men wearing Borat “Mankini” swimsuits Note - Ken VK7KRJ’s and Steve VK7OO’s fully automatic 24/7 monitoring sites allow anyone who has sent an SSTV picture the ability to check them on their pages almost immediately, any time, both South and North Tasmania. If you missed the net there are archives of these SSTV nights. These photos can be seen on Ken’s and Steve’s SSTV websites or on NTARC’s website under blogs. Please remember to use your own photos or those that are copyright free. SSTV VK7OO Tasmania Australia (tasme.com) VK7KRJ's 2m SSTV scrolling web gallery Blog 3 — NTARC Inc. 73 from Andre’ VK7ZAB -------------------------------- News from the North West North West Tasmania Amateur Radio Club Mt Duncan Repeater update We have more great news, - the two brand new repeaters for 2m & 70cm, are now in Tasmania, and will undergo programming and testing, ready to be installed on the mountain. The Club is very grateful for the unexpected donations to assist with the repeaters funding. We recently have had an anonymous $500 donation from a Club Member, $500 donations each from Club Members Mike VK7TM, and from Brenton VK7HP, as well as a $500 donation from a North West amateur Dick VK7DIK. So including Andrews VK7XRs prior $500 donation , and the initial anonymous $1930 donation , the two new repeaters are fully funded. The Club has been discussing making the repeaters more accessible, with some interesting connectivity options being considered, as well as a discussion on some back bone infrastructure upgrades on the mountain., A very big thank you to the financial donors, we were not expecting that to occur. 73, Eric, VK7EV, News Officer, NWTARC -------------------------------- NEWS FROM THE NORTH SOTA/WWFF PARKS GROUP The Summits On The Air/World Wide Flora and Fauna parks group meets twice weekly – Mondays and Fridays 10.30AM till 12.00 at the Glebe Gardens Cafe, Henry Street, Launceston. For more information contact Al on 0417 354 410. 73, Al, VK7AN -------------------------------- Northern Tasmanian Amateur Radio Club Incorporated www.ntarc.net Last week’s club technical night saw Colin VK7ZCF with the next instalment of his HF antenna project incorporating a 5.2 metre telescopic antenna. This version of the antenna has extended its usefulness by now making it 40 Metre band friendly. It incorporates a 3D printed loading coil former which has subsequently been wound with 1.6mm stainless steel tie wire. Sliding externally over the loading coil is a 3D printed adjustable tap ring. Once tuned the tap ring is held in place by tightened its 3D printed winged bolt. I believe that to make the setup even more field versatile Colin has decided to try for the 80 Metre band as well. He is currently waiting on the arrival of aluminium tubular stock so he can fabricate some screw together extension sections that can be installed under the loading coil to extend its length and usefulness onto the 80 metre band. For some pretty good pictures of the antenna setups actually in use and close-ups of the 3D printed loading coil and the adjustable tap ring, check out the state-wide SSTV archives for last Thursday night. Just for information the green heat-shrink sleeves seen around the antenna base are actually the screw ends on the ground plane radials or counterpoise wires. Well done Colin, this project is certainly generating much interest. Eric VK7ZPE brought in one of his acquisitions, definitely intended for QRP use. It was a “Z-Match Tuner” purchased from the internet. Designed for HF use it is allegedly capable of 10 Watt PEP and allows for manual matching to antennas in the range of 25 to 2500 Ohms impedance. This is a very nicely presented unit in a black aluminium extruded case. Being palm sized and light weight it may also be very popular for portable field use in SOTA and POTA activations. Ross VK7ALH brought in a Kenwood TS-520S. A classic HF transceiver using hybrid construction incorporating vacuum tubes for driver and finals and is capable of 100 Watts output on either of its two operating modes SSB or CW. The rig covers amateur allocations from 160 through to 10 metre in 8 selectable bands. The rig can be used in VFO mode or one of four selectable memory channels when fitted with a crystal for a desired frequency. Manufactured in Japan, circa late 1970s, it is evidently still in mint condition internally and certainly still in very good condition externally. Considering its age even the leather handle was in excellent condition. I reckon, unlike normal amateurs counting the number of rigs they have with their fingers, Ross must measure his in linear metres of shelf space. HiHi As always pictures will be available on the NTARC Web site under “Blogs” for this broadcast. NTARC Blogs https://www.ntarc.net/blogs UPCOMING EVENTS TestNet and TechNet session - Every Wednesday, TestNet/CW course on 3.580MHz from 7 pm, then a TechNet on 3.567MHz from 7.30 pm till 8.30 pm. Your host for the evening is Nic VK7WW. Club Room Technical night session - The next session will be on Wednesday the 5th March, at the usual time of 6.30 pm at the Club Room Archer Street, Rocherlea. Coffee Morning - held every Friday in the NTARC Club rooms. Time is from 10 am to noon and we look forward to seeing you all there. So why not pop in check the QSL cards and join us for a cuppa, there is endless tea and coffee along with biscuits available for a donation. Finally - A reminder to all members that if you have any items of news you would like added to our weekly roundup, no matter how trivial, then please email them to the Secretary at the following address news(at)ntarc.net all items to be received no later than 5 pm on the Friday prior to the Broadcast. That’s all folks, 73 from Stefan, VK7ZSB, Secretary NTARC Inc. -------------------------------- NEWS FROM THE SOUTH Radio and Electronics Association of Southern Tasmania https://www.reast.asn.au/ https://www.facebook.com/reasttas/ https://www.youtube.com/reasthobart/ -------------------------------- Annual General Meeting 2025 Wrap Up https://www.reast.asn.au/news-events/upcoming-events/?event_id1=2670 REAST held its AGM last Sunday with the following committee members elected: President Hayden VK7HH Vice President Justin VK7TW Secretary Lance VK7TO Treasurer Greg VK7GM Committee Members Murray VK7ZMS and Richard VK7ZBX It was announced that the WICEN and REAST merger was complete including the REAST Rules changes. There are many ex-officio positions and a few new committees including a WICEN Subcommittee, IT Sub-committee and expanded Membership Sub-committee along with many other positions that were almost all filled at the AGM. For more information take a look at the link on the email edition of the broadcast. https://www.reast.asn.au/about/committee/ Thanks to all who came along and those online and the committee and sub-committees look forward to working together to further improve the club. REAST Committee. -------------------------------- Future REAST Events March Forum Night - Rig of Choice https://www.reast.asn.au/news-events/upcoming-events/?event_id1=2707 To mix things up - we are holding our REAST March Forum Night on the first Wednesday night as we are visiting the ABC Studios on the second Wednesday night. This Forum Night is one where we ask everyone coming along and on the stream to bring their experience with their favourite rig / radio of choice. What is the rig you cannot do without - if your house was on fire and you had to make a choice of which radio to take - that's the one you pick-up! The good - the bad and the ugly about the rig. Wednesday 5th March from 7:30pm Queens Domain Clubrooms and Streaming. REAST March Event https://www.reast.asn.au/news-events/upcoming-events/?event_id1=2695 In the place of a Presentation night in March - REAST Members are invited for a guided tour of the ABC Studios and Control Rooms. This tour will include the radio and TV studios and the upgraded control rooms and we might even get to meet some talent if we are lucky! Huge thank you to Damien VK7DS and Allan VK7KAN. 12th March - REAST members be at the front doors of the ABC well before 7:30pm and we suggest that you use the Railway Roundabout foot tunnels to safely get to the ABC entrance. Parking is available on the Queens Domain near the Aquatics Centre. -------------------------------- Wednesday Experimenter’s Nights https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWM7AgSW1GI Last Wednesday night we started with Ron VK7WRC in the studio with an update about his Arduino Keyer Project that uses the Morse Magic phone application and an OTG USB Cable. Ron then updated on some interesting involvement in the Australian Radio Yacht Championships. We talked about the studio upgrades thanks to Anders Marchant and then had a Blast From The Past with a 1924 Boy's Wireless Book. We took a quick look at two articles in the latest AR Magazine - VK5FLI DXpedition and Tassie Ham-E-Con. Finishing up with a brief history of the Vibroplex company and then showed some semi automatic keys. This week is our last WEG’s night broadcast for a month as we head into March and the WEGs nights will be club ADX Transceiver build nights for the third and fourth Wednesday night of the March. On a Wednesday night people start arriving at the night around 6pm and many bring their dinner to enjoy. There is always much discussion, experimenting, playing, talking, drinking coffee and tea, serious cunning plan development and general amateur radio shenanigans and world problem solving in the clubrooms as well!! https://www.reast.asn.au/news-events/live-stream/ https://www.reast.asn.au/special-interest-groups/amateur-tv/ https://www.youtube.com/c/ReastHobart/ We stream the nights on the REAST YouTube streaming channel and we also go out on RF - DVB-T 7MHz Standard Definition on 445.5MHz. So, if you have a TV, Set-top box or USB DTV Dongle that you can tune and scan 445.5MHz and you can see the Queens Domain, then you have a good chance of receiving the DATV Experimenter's Night Signal. Look out for VK7OTC. See you there or on the stream. 73, Justin, VK7TW -------------------------------- REAST Training and Assessment Update https://www.reast.asn.au/information/amateur-licence-assessments/ Looking to join the world of amateur radio or upgrade your license? REAST has you covered with regular Training and Assessment Days for all license levels! Key Dates: Foundation Training and Assessment Days: Held every two months with the next one on 12th April 2025. Standard, Advanced, and Regulations Assessments: Held on alternate months, starting 29th March 2025. Stay updated with the full schedule on the REAST Events Page. https://www.reast.asn.au/news-events/upcoming-events/ Do you need to secure your spot or ask a question - email: reast.assessor(at)gmail.com and your inquiry will go directly to the Learning Organiser, who be in contact. We have learning resources available including our Foundation Licence Training Videos that are a must-watch for beginners. Find them on the REAST YouTube Training and Assessment Playlist. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsnsP_zjw831mdC6sY4XqavRUY-53ZWUn Practice Makes Perfect so, prepare with the WIA Foundation Trial Exams and the link can be found on the email edition of the broadcast. https://www.wia.org.au/licenses/foundation/onlineexams/foundation.php Whether you're starting your journey or leveling up, REAST is here to guide you every step of the way. 73, Reg, VK7KK -------------------------------- Technology News Victorian Government awards Motorola $500 million comms contract The Victorian government has awarded Motorola Solutions a fresh 10 year, $500 million contract to maintain and enhance the Metropolitan Mobile Radio network used by the state’s emergency services agencies. The contract with the state’s Department of Justice and Community Safety will extend operation of the land mobile radio network through to 2035. Motorola Solutions originally designed and deployed the network for the state government in 2005. As part of the contract, the Marine Search & Rescue department will be brought on board the network for the first time. Existing users include Victoria Police, Ambulance Victoria, Fire Rescue Victoria, Victoria State Emergency Service and Life Saving Victoria. The agreement also involves the delivery of 24/7 support and service, to help keep the network and its fleet of more than 32,000 radios optimised and performing well. Meanwhile Motorola will deploy its cloud-based SmartConnect service to expand coverage of the network by allowing radios to switch to broadband, Wi-Fi and satellite networks when outside of radio coverage areas. Ambulance Victoria’s regional fleet will also be provided with state-wide coverage through the deployment of 1600 cutting-edge APX NEXT all-band smart radios and an additional 750 APX services multi-band mobile radios. Motorola Solutions MD for Australia and New Zealand Con Balaskas said first responders need to be provided with safe and resilient communications that are available in even the harshest conditions. “The ability to connect and collaborate with other emergency services [is a requirement] for multi-agency responses. We’re extremely proud that Motorola Solutions’ MMR network has supported Victoria’s emergency services for 20 years, providing essential communications while they’ve faced some of the most extreme events and disasters in the state’s history,” he said. “Now, through new software and broadband innovations, MMR’s interoperable communication will extend to the farthest reaches of our state, from Mildura to Mallacoota, while enabling more agencies to connect to the network.” The network has been used to support public agencies’ response to major crises including the 2023 flood crisis and 2009 Black Sunday bushfires. In the past 12 months alone, more than 50.5 million push-to-talk radio calls were made using the network. https://www.govtechreview.com.au/content/gov-mobility/news/victorian-government-awards-motorola-500-million-comms-contract-8427757 Written by By Dylan Bushell-Embling from Motorola Solutions for the Gov tech Review Web E-Zine -------------------------------- Regular VK7 gatherings and events over the coming months: Regular gatherings: Sewing Circle Net – Daily on 3.640MHz commences at 6:30pm AEST. Statewide SSTV Net - held every Thursday night via the North/South Link on VK7RAF/VK7RJG from 7:30pm. In the North and North West - VK7RJG on 438.55 -7MHz and in the South - VK7RAF (146.650 -600kHz) CTCSS tone 141.3Hz to link RAF North-South. State-wide – MICROWAVE QSO Party – following the Sunday broadcast call-back on 1296.15 MHz FM. One group in the greater Hobart area and another in the greater Launceston area. Then North-south digital contacts on 1296.2MHz using Q65-60B. Stations in the Launceston area transmitting on the odd minute. Southern stations on the even minute. REAST - WAGs - Wednesday Afternoon Group from 12 noon in the REAST Clubrooms Queen’s Domain. REAST - WEGs - Wednesday Experimenter’s Group on the third, fourth & fifth Wednesday nights of the month from around 6pm in the REAST Clubrooms Queen’s Domain and streamed. REAST - 6m AM Net on 53.1MHz Everyday from 4:30pm SOTA/WWFF Group – Meeting Mondays and Fridays 10.30-12.00 midday at Glebe Gardens Cafe, Henry St, Launceston. NTARC - Club Room Technical night session - Wednesday the 5th March from 6.30 pm at the Club Room Archer Street, Rocherlea. NTARC - TestNet and TechNet sessions every Wednesday night. TestNet/CW course on 3.580MHz from 7pm till 7.30pm and a TechNet on 3.567MHz from 7.30pm till about 8.30pm NTARC Coffee Mornings are held every Friday in the NTARC Club rooms. Time is from 10am to noon in the Rocherlea Clubrooms. NW VK7 – Wednesday from 8:00pm local – NW Tassie Amateur Repeater Group Net on 70cm VK7RMD NW VK7 - Thursday commencing at 8:30pm local - N.W. Tassie 2m DX Net 144.190 USB Events: REAST - March 5th - REAST March Forum night - your favourite rig from 7:30pm in the Queens Domain clubrooms and Streamed REAST - March 12th - REAST members tour of ABC Studios Hobart - from 7:30pm @ studios VK7 - March 23rd - Meet the Voice BBQ - Ross Caravan Park from 11.00am REAST - April 2nd - Fire Detection Technology + more - Queens Domain Clubrooms from 7:30pm and streamed -------------------------------- A reminder to those people rostered for next week’s broadcast: Newsreader: VK7WW Repeaters: REAST, NTARC and in the NW thanks to NWTARC, WCRG, NWCRRA, VK7AX, VK7JH and VK7DC 160m: VK7GS 80m: VK7JGD 40m: VK7DG 20m: VK7ALH 10m: VK7VKT UHFCB24: VK7FMAC DMR: Talk Group 5 and D-Star: Reflector 91C VK7ZCR -------------------------------- A huge thank you to all people and organisations that assisted with this broadcast. -------------------------------- That wraps up this week's edition of the VK7 Amateur Radio News. We hope you found it informative and enjoyable? You've been listening to VK7WI, or if you’ve just tuned in, you've just missed our live broadcast. But don’t worry if it’s not Tuesday night then you can catch the rebroadcast on Tuesday night at 8:00pm on repeaters VK7RAA in Northern VK7 and VK7RHT and UHFCB24 in the South. We encourage you to share your news, stories, and updates with us. Email your contributions to vk7arnews(at)gmail.com. For more information about the broadcast and to join the discussion, visit our VK7 Amateur Radio News Groups.IO Group. groups.io/g/vk7arnews. Remember, the deadline for submissions is 21:00 on the Friday before the Sunday broadcast. Stay tuned for callbacks on the frequency you’re currently listening to. Relay stations will use their own callsigns during this time. On behalf of the entire VK7 Amateur Radio News Team, this is Idris, VK7ZIR wishing you 73, and good DX to all. -------------------------------------------------------------- (Posted to the packet network courtesy Tony VK7AX)
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