2025-06-17 Net Minutes

Check-ins (28)

David Bailey (K5DKB)

Regular monthly club meeting is this Saturday
- 2025-06-21 09:30
- Also the Summer Solstice!
- Talking about ARRL Field Day, which is the following weekend (2025-06-28/29)
W5BCS has a lot of things that we’ll be selling at the swap tables
- Here’s a quick list of just a few available things:
  - Coax cables
  - Begali and Vibroplex keys
  - Soldering station
  - Crystal radio kit
  - Gin pole set
  - Buddipole with coils
  - MFJ 40-ft mast
  - Oscilloscopes (yes, more than one)
  - Mag loop antenna
  - Yaesu azimuth elevation rotor
  - …and much more!
- Swap will open after license exam, around 14:00

Tom Johnson (KI5ZPG)

Matthew Barry (KG5LYE)

Minutes will be sent out after the net.
This weekend, two weekends after Pentecost, the Catholic Church celebrates the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi)
- Eucharistic procession in downtown Bryan this Saturday, 2025-06-21 09:00
- St. Joseph to St. Anthony: will have to cross Texas Ave at some point
- Traffic will be blocked for a while

Lorna Flansburg (KI5FIZ)

75 members
Bank balance: $9,874.13
Special thank-you to the 9 members who spent last weekend in my garage pricing things from K5ENL/SK!
No ham license exam after club meeting this Saturday
- Will be part of ARRL Field Day, 2025-06-28 13:00
- Remember: you must have your FRN in order to take the exam!

Question #228 for conversation: Have you worked with surface-mount electronic components? (the really small ones)

(If interested in submitting a weekly question, email n5zkf@arrl.net)

Good to be back in town
CEOC meeting this Friday, 2025-06-20 09:00
- If you’re running late, call (979) 821-1012 or on 443.425 MHz FM (KD5DLW) repeater

Surface mounts:
- I’m impressed at how small they’ve gotten!
- Only experience is with removing them
- I can’t imagine holding a soldering iron steady enough to put them on

0603 size can be done surprisingly easily with electric skillet, heat gun, toaster oven, etc.
Surface tension from solder and flux aligns components for you

2-element high-gain beam antenna available
6-ft boom
On a Hazer: can crank it down to roof level, but you’ll have to get on the roof to take it off
asking $100
Good on QRZ
…
N5ZKF:
- DX Engineering catalog
- Software for designing beam antennas
- Insulators
KF5WGJ: source for aluminum antenna elements is Texas Towers in DFW area