RAE Backgrounder 2025-02-13

Some additional notes and musings about the content on the RAE course. 

Resistors 

Resistors nowadays don't have coloured bands or markings. SMDs come on a long tape. They are placed by a numerical controlled XY machine onto printed circuit boards. [Pick and Place machine] Then soldered into place.

Q So why do we make you learn the 'colour code'?

A Well the code values gets used elsewhere. e.g. Cables denoting the number of the wire. Pins 1 to 9. 

A Also you will be able to re-use old resistors for your projects. Most constructors these days re-use or re-purpose old equipment for their projects.

A lot of radio amateurs re-use older equipment to save cost etc. In doing this they need to identify components etc. One example is the conversion of a CB radio to use on the 10 metre band. 

 

Resistor Failings

• Inductive value [VHF/UHF] - they are measurably inductive.
• Carbon Composition [very rare] - for non-inductive types.
  
• Capacitive value or self-capacitance [VHF/UHF]
• Power dissipation - heating. [Capacitors do NOT dissipate power]
• Radiative heat - some resistors come with a heat sink mounting.
• Volume/Potentiometers - variable resistors used to control the sound output. Log (logarithmic) types are used to vary sound level. But linear types are used for adjustment of voltages or currents. Some are multi-turn for precision setting of voltages/currents.
• Hair Dryer and Electric Blankets - heat dissipating at high or low levels.
• FUSES - Where the resistor melts to 'open circuit' and stop the current. This has its own 'issues' as the time to melt has an impact. Higher the current the faster it melts! 

For more information find the informative article "Resistors" in Wireless World 1975-10-01 by R.A. Fairs, B. Sc.

 

Capacitors [Condensers in old docs]

Capacitors have a multitude of uses. "Super Caps" have a very large capacity value and can discharge high currents. Such that some trucks use them to start the engine. Charging from the normal truck battery when not needed.

At radio frequency they provide tuning for resonant circuits or parts of filters.

In pulse circuits they provide delay networks. [Differentiation and Integration]

They can also be used to "tune" an antenna. A "Capacity Hat" on the top of an antenna will reduce the frequency of resonance. Usually used on a short antenna to bring the resonant frequency down.

The majority of electrolytic capacitors get used as "decoupling" capacitors. Or as "coupling" capacitors. But at higher frequencies the ones used are generally ceramic. For filters and resonant circuits mica and air types are used. Being of higher quality and Q value.

For more information find the informative article "Capacitors" in Wireless World 1974-12-01 by R.A. Fairs, B. Sc.

 Both are available on:- https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Wireless_World_Magazine.htm

 

 

YL Beam #137 Feb 2025

Contents

• First International Meeting of YLs, Mar del Plata, Argentina
• Out-and-About: Elsie KB1IFZ & Eric KB1EHE (USA) Antarctica DXpedition
• Polish YL celebrates 50 years of Amateur Radio 2025
• DL3KWR Rosel Zenker - In Memory of:
• From Gertrud, DK8LQ; SYLRA; MVP; WRTC ; BYLARA OCT 2021
• Silent Keys G8KWD Glenys Bettley; Carol Lynn Boehler, KF4TJJ
• CONTACT

First International Meeting of Yls at Mar del Plata , Argentina
March 6, 7 and 8, 2025. to celebrate International Women's Day
There will be talks, workshops and activities designed for all levels of experience, as well as moments of recreation and camaraderie. It will be an ideal opportunity to meet other radio enthusiasts and create bonds that will last over time. Be part of this historic event!
We look forward to seeing you in Mar del Plata to celebrate women in amateur radio together!
Pre-register before February 14, 2025 at https://forms.gle/u2BkxJLQfoR5VQRC9
For more info. Contact Marina LU1VYL
Radio Club Argentino 25 Jan 2025
*****
eric-kb1ehe-and-elsie-kb1ifz-antarctica-testing-1-1536x1026.jpg

Out-and-About
Elsie KB1IFZ & Eric KB1EHE (USA) on an Antarctica DXpedition
28 January - 2 February. 2025. Operating 20m SSB and FT8.

Fly from Puerto Natales, Chile to King George Island (the largest of the South Shetland Islands, lying 120 km off the coast of Antarctica in the Southern Ocean. They will be taking a Zodiac (inflatable boat) to the National Geographic Explorer ship which is their floating lodging as they explore the Antarctic Peninsula.
 Due to recent avian bird flu (H5N1) concerns, and potential impact to wildlife and the fragile Antarctica ecosystem overall, visitors to Antarctica have to take significant precautions. For instance, to prevent the transmission of pathogens, the bottoms of boots and tips of hiking poles are disinfected prior to any excursion. Only boots and poles can touch the walking surface, complicating remote radio-station setup.

Eric and Elsie, in collaboration with their Connecticut-U.S.-based colleagues, have created an entirely portable (nothing touching the ground) 20m station, comprised of a Xiegu G90, laptop, and battery power supply that’s connected by a short piece of coax to a homebrew 5.6m / 18.4 ft. telescopic vertical antenna system with two substantially shortened counterpoise elements.
The couple report to DX-World that they have extensively rehearsed “donning and doffing” their backpack-stowed gear and have had successful worldwide QSOs from their home QTH in Connecticut. They said they “feel like astronauts” suiting up each other in an airlock prior to a spacewalk! The couple said they analyzed the 20-watt output of the G90 and their portable configuration’s SAR / RF exposure, and they are well within safe operating limits.

The Captain of the ship has also provided approval for Eric and Elsie to operate on the ship with their G90. As the ship is registered in the Bahamas, the couple needed to get their Bahamas reciprocal license, which they did. The ship’s Captain will also allow them to temporarily install a separate telescopic antenna to one of the ship’s outdoor masts and has indicated that the crew will help them run coax to an inside operating position.
While on the ship, the operating callsigns will be KB1EHE/C6A/MM and KB1IFZ/C6A/MM.
While physically hiking the Antarctic Peninsula, they will be operating with the callsigns KC4/KB1EHE and KC4/KB1IFZ.

The current long-range weather for the Antarctic Peninsula looks to be snowy and windy, so hiking and operating will certainly be a challenge for Eric and Elsie.
They will update LOTW when they have reliable connectivity.
*****

Polish YL celebrates 50 years of Amateur Radio 2025
Wanda Jakubowska, SP7IWA, SP5IWA will be active using special call sign SN50IWA from Pruszkow, Poland, celebrating 50th Anniversary of the Ham Radio activity.
She will operate on HF Bands.
Qrz.com: This photo (above) shows my first DX-pedition - student camp in the Polish mountains, in Magura, south of Poland. I went there with my radio and simple antenna dipole for 80 m band.
*****

Rosel Zenker DL3KWR became Silent Key early morning on January 15th, 2025
Go to her qrz.com page to read about this remarkable German Amateur Radio operator. RIP

From Gertrud, DK8LQ: On January 15, 2025 at 7:30 a.m. OM Hardy, DL3KWF was the first to report in the 80m YL round: "Rosel, DL3KWR passed away this morning at 4:00 a.m." We were all shocked and deeply sad. Rosel was the most active CW-ist of all of us.
She acquired her amateur radio license in 1975, DM2AEA. After that, she was heard on the bands under her home calls DT2AEA, Y21EA and from 1991, DL3KWR, also under 70 call signs from 22 different countries.
In the period from 1975 to 2025, Rosel has worked on 232000 QSO's and 270 countries. She has received 800 awards and participated in 945 competitions, 98.4% of which were on CW. She was a member of 3 CW clubs and 6 international YL clubs worldwide.
Right after the fall of the Berlin Wall we met Rosel and her OM Hardy, DL3KWF, at the INTERRADIO in Hanover. What a pleasant surprise.
A great experience for her was the WRTC 2018, where she met many CW-ists from all over the world.
Since 1993, Rosel has competed in the 80m YL Net on Wednesday mornings . She activated many club call signs for us, including DL0SOP, DL0YLV. In the group, she always reported enthusiastically on her activities and who she had met.
She personally handed over a large part of her extensive QSL card collection to the archive during a visit to Vienna. https://www.dokufunk.org/index.php?lang=EN
Rosel attended almost all YL meetings worldwide. Afterwards, at our annual 80-m-YL meeting, she showed us beautiful video shows from the events and the SYLRA meetings.
Rosel, we thank you for our many years of friendship and will never forget you.
We receive tremendous sympathy from SYLRA, DL88YLF and worldwide.
Our condolences go out to the family. On behalf of the 80-m-YL round on Wednesday morning. Gertrud Szyza, DK8LQ

SYLRA (Scandinavian Young Ladies Radio Amateurs). - Ingrid Kleveland 24/1/2025
In memory of Rosel DL3KWR
She meant a lot to SYLRA. Rosel was the first YL to become a SYLRA member outside the Scandinavian countries and she attended every SYLRA meeting from 2005 to the 20 years Anniversary dinner in Copenhagen 2023. She was always among the first YL to register for the meetings and several times the first YL. Rosel did a lot to make SYLRA known out in the world. One of them was when she visited Denmark every autumn and participated SAC (Scandinavian activity Contest CW) with SYLRAs special callsign in Denmark OZ6SYL. Rosel was an excellent representative to make the SYLRA-callsign known worldwide. She was a keen and active radio amateur, who had operated in 22 countries.
Rosel had a beautiful smile and was so relaxed all the time…. Except when she had a morse key in front of her! She was a lovely and friendly person who laughed often.
She will be deeply missed. Our deepest condolences to Rosel’s OM, Hardy, and family.
On behalf of the SYLRA Board Ingrid LA8FOA, Chairwoman

Anna Henriksdóttir TF3VB, from Iceland: I met Rosel and her OM Hardy Zenker often at SYLRA meetings in Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark. We had fun times on an island in France and our last meeting was in Tivoli Copenhagen 2023. Thanks for your friendship for 20 years. She will be sorely missed.

MVP: Rosel Zenker DL3KWR silent key
On January 15th, Rosel DL3KWR from the OV Greifswald (V11) passed away. Alongside her OM Hardy DL3KWF, she left behind an impressive log of around 232,000 QSOs, of which she conducted around 50,000 from her holiday QTHs in CT3 and CT9 (Madeira Island), . She was mostly QRV in CW - as it says on her homepage DL3KWR.de : "Actually, I just wanted to be able to understand telegraphy and so I became a radio amateur." She obtained her amateur radio license in 1975, initially under the then GDR call sign DM2AEA, later Y21EA. Since then, she has activated 70 different call signs from 22 countries during countless stays abroad and participated in a total of 945 contests. She conducted her last contest QSO on January 3rd of this year.
For over 30 years she sorted and distributed the incoming and outgoing QSL cards for the OV Greifswald (V11). Her services to amateur radio in Germany were recognised in 2023 with the award of the DARC Silver Badge of Honor.

yl.beam#57april 2018 (Repeat)
DF5A is on the air operated by DL3KWR Pictures from DL6MHW

Rosel Zenker DL3KWR – being part of WRTC test day in 2017
WRTC test day in 2017 – I was present Rosel Zenker DL3KWR
The WORLD RADIOSPORT TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP offers the unique chance to experience this sporty climax on the amateur radio directly - if not as competitor, then as assistant. In 2018 this big event should take place for the first time in Germany. My OM Hardy, DL3KWF, and I are enthusiastic CW Contesters and so it was clear for us: there we help with it.
At first a small anecdote: in preparation for the WRTC in 2000 the Slovenes had distributed at the contest meeting to HAM radio in Friedrichshafen small bottles which were declared as "HAMSPIRIT". We both got such bottles which has stood for years in our Shack beside the transceiver (we filled it then with Madeira wine again). One day I had a QSO with a OM who has looked on my QRZ.com page and had discovered on my photo this small bottle. Of course he would know which circumstance it has with this one, hi.
Since Moscow in 2010 the WRTC take place as a Field day. This meant for the first time same location terms for all participants: on level area for every team a tent with generator and an absolutely same aerial arrangement. So that to the WRTC 2018 everything functions so perfectly as possible, was built up and also tested by the test days at the end of June, 15 sites of the needed 65 sites in the next year. 100 assistants (OMs and YLs) met at the camping place near Jessen in the region Brandenburg.
The organiser team had performed extensive preliminary work: equipment selected/ordered/stored, the locations defined and approvals for their use caught up, the logistics planned and also one more a grill party prepared. The site managers and aerial bosses had been sent before in their duties. On Saturday 5 LKWs drove the material which stored in Jessen to the sites. The delivery contained aerials, radio mast, rotor, 2 step-ladders, Honda generator, fire extinguisher and the tent as well as tools and other materials inclusive garbage bags. DIXI looes marked already the locations. There was not shortage of nothing – not yet of nice weather
This could be begun with establishing the radio locations. For mounting the Spider beams and establishing the 15-metre mast, as well as for putting up the tent all hands were used, particularly it was not windless. Although we have met in the group (2 YLs and 4 OMs) for the first time, we worked purposefully hand in hand. Besides, all conspicuities were documented by the logistics up to the measuring of the aerials conscientiously. The SWR minimum must lie, finally, in the respective band. And the operating time of the generator per tank filling is for the contest expiry also not quite insignificant.
Now the self-brought Transceiver was put into operation and, besides, was checked the QRM-freedom of the location. Whoever wanted to operate, could do it up to the dismantling on Sunday morning. Under the contest call DF5A we distributed the Special-DOK WTTØ3 to incorporate also all those at home in the test day events. The test day was a great success. We have learnt a lot, worked in the team, have met in the grill party radio friends with whom we had 25 years ago or more QSO and we have got to know new Yls/OMs. Anyway Hardy and I want to be present in 2018. And we look forward to meet the best contesters and referees from all over the world. Especially we look forward to the New Zealand team: Holger ZL3IO and daughter Xenia ZL4YL. We have known Holger for a long time. Rosel Zenker DL3KWR
WARO BULLETIN September 2017 (Womens Amateur Radio Org.) New Zealand.}

Rosel, DL3KWR BYLARA AUTUMN NEWSLETTER OCTOBER 2021
OM Hardy, DL3KWF, and I started in June, a holiday trip to Friedrichshafen on Lake Constance. Our first trip since September 2020. We had planned to visit the HAM Radio, but it was cancelled again. But a group of six radio amateurs had a lovely spontaneous meet-up with Zita, DL4GA. Her team was for many years the ‘good spirit’ of the YL meeting point of the HAM Radio. We hope now that the HAM Radio will happen in 2022.

July is activity month in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern for the “Sea Of Peace” diploma (Baltic Sea). For this reason the special call sign DL0SOP was on the air. So we both operated on each of the four days.
Our university and Hanseatic town Greifswald celebrated in August the 70th birthday of its sail training ship (SSS) “GREIF”. The ship was christened Wilhelm Pieck, the first president of GDR, and was commissioned on August 2nd 1951 as a training ship for maritime youth education. Since 1954
Greifswald-Wieck has been the port of registry and since 1991 the new name of the ship is “GREIF”. Its longest journey was in 1957 to Odessa with stops in Albania, Bulgaria and Romania. On-board operator Heinz, DM2ACB, was QRV on sea as DM5MM/mm and in Albania as ZA2ACB.
We radio amateurs of Greifswald this jubilee worldwide with the special call sign DL70GREIF and the certificate “70 YEARS OF SCHOOL SHIP”, for which one needed 3 QSOs on different days and/ or modes in the month of August. With the award #161 and 354 QSOs in telegraphy as operator I was involved.

To my great surprise right into a pile-up, Lindy, G0GZN, my new BYLARA sponsor, called me. So I could have only a short QSO.
In September, at the time of the Scandinavian Activity Contest in telegraphy, we were on holiday again in Denmark near Faxe. From Inger, OZ7AGR, I had permission to activate OZ6SYL, the callsign of SYLRA. OZ6 is quite a rare prefix. The conditions were difficult through QSB. So I collected a total of only 843 QSOs in my log. But I was very glad that six YLs had called me. One of them was Linda, G0AJJ, to my great pleasure. We had seen her at several SYLRA meetings. Rosel, DL3KWR
*****

Silent Key
G8KWD Glenys Bettley, UK
1 Jan 2025, Hi Heather, I have been taking the newsletter on behalf of my wife, Glenys, G8KWD but sadly she became SK in September 2024 as the result of a brain tumour.
Whilst she was licenced for many years, she was never particularly active; other than helping with the local RAYNET from time to time; as she was busy doing many other things such as Girl Guiding, Scouting, family history, English Folk Dancing and Handbell Ringing.. She did however take part in a couple of small DXpeditions, to Mozambique in 2014 with C91WW and to the second trip to Botswana with the A25UK team in 2017.
73, Tony, G4LDL/G4L/G8KWC
*****
Silent Key
We are saddened to learn of the passing of Carol Lynn Boehler, KF4TJJ, on December 28, 2024. Carol was a long-time member of YLRL, and enjoyed coming to our Conventions. Her husband Denny reported today by telephone. At the Oklahoma City Convention, Carol gave us an acorn necklace as a gift, made by her husband Denny. He said he also donated some handmade gifts to us as prizes. Carol and Denny had lived in Leesburg, VA, but in recent years moved to Morton, IL.
YLRL - Carol Fraley Laferty 20 Jan 2025
https://www.csmico.com/obitua.../Carol-Lynn-Hiter-Boehler
*****
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All contributions, comments and suggestions are welcome.
*****
Calendar
Feb 1 – 2 Fourth edition of the American Parks Weekend.
Feb 7 – 9 Orlando Hamcation (USA)
Feb 11 International Day of Women and Girls in Science
Feb 13 World Radio Day Thursday
Feb 14 -16 17th "American Lighthouse Weekend",
Feb 15 Girlguiding World Thinking Day on the Air
Feb 18 – 25 TI1RRC Cano Island
March 8 International Women’s Day