Qso Today - A Conversation For Amateur Radio Operators

From his first long nose pliers, at the age of six, to his private use of the chemistry lab at his junior high-school, Pete Friedrichs, AC7ZL, has had a fascination with technology, chemistry, and radio.  Often this is old but amazing technology that he recreates with the remnants of discarded objects.   Pete is a renaissance man whose study and fabrication of "simple" technology rivals that of some of America's great inventors.  He is a published author of books based on his experiments, as well as fiction and ghost stories. AC7ZL is Eric's guest on QSO Today.  

If we could apply the term “grand dame” to amateur radio, then the grand dame of amateur radio must be Ellen White, W1YL.  Ellen began her amateur radio career, as a love story,  just as World War 2 ended.  Her ham radio career spans over 70 years.  And today as Ellen enters her nineties, she  is still an active ham operating on 40 meter CW.  I am so grateful that Ellen is a listener to the QSO Today podcast and is my QSO Today.

One of the best ways to get some real hands on experience in electronics, especially as a beginner, is to build electronic kits.  Even the seasoned veteran ham can enjoy even the more complex kits.  In amateur radio circles, the kit building guru is Joe Eisenberg, K0NEB.  Joe spends his free time, in addition to operating his favorite contests and attending hamfests, testing kits, making recommendations, and teaching others how to be successful in kit building. Joe is Eric, 4Z1UG’s, QSO today.

With almost sixty years in our amazing hobby, Bob Epstein, K8IA, and his wife Sandy, N7RQ, pursue their love of the contest through their Arizona Outlaws Contest Club and their multi operator contest station, based in their home.  Bob shares his story with me in this QSO Today.

Jack Falker, W8KR, has been a ham for over 60 years.  He now divides his time between ham radio, rose gardening, and writing an international blog on rose gardening. Now that his tower and beam are retired, Jack uses phased vertical antennas above the rose garden to work DX around the World. Jack discusses amateur radio, vertical antennas, and the mystical side of amateur radio with Eric, 4Z1UG, in this QSO Today.

Gregory Andracke, W2BEE, is an accomplished news cameraman and documentary cinematographer, with Academy and Emmy awards to his credit.  He is also an accomplished amateur radio operator, with over fifty years in the hobby. His love for ham radio is as strong as it ever was. Greg joins Eric, 4Z1UG, in this QSO Today.

Jim George, N3BB is an active contestor, DXer, and rag chewer.  Jim has many contest awards and was a team member in the 2000 World Radiosport Team Championship, or WRTC,  in Slovenia.  Now retired, Jim divides his time between ham radio, his wife, Diana, grandchildren, and authoring books.  His most recent book, Contact Sport, about the 2014 World Radiosport Team Championship, brings the excitement and suspense of this uniquely ham radio experience to the non-amateur radio audiences.  N3BB is Eric’s QSO Today.

After a successful career in finance, Tom Gallagher, NY2RF, embarks on a new career as the ARRL’s new executive director succeeding the retiring David Sumner, K1ZZ.  Tom joins Eric, 4Z1UG, in this QSO Today to discuss his ham radio story and his future role at the ARRL.

When it comes to home brew single side-band transceivers and test equipment,  Ashhar Farhan, VU2ESE, is the master of building amateur radio equipment on a budget, with common parts. Ashhar is the designer of the BITX "open source" HF SSB transceiver, and has an international reputation as a home brewer, and is referred to as the “home brew hero” by Bill Meara, N2CQR, of the Soldersmoke podcast. Ashhar Farhan is Eric, 4Z1UG's guest on QSO Today.

If you wanted to homebrew QRP radios with vacuum tubes, or thermatrons, then the goto guy would be Grayson Evans, TA2ZGE, author of the book, Hollow State Devices.  Grayson joins Eric, 4Z1UG, to discuss his ham radio life, thermatrons, home brewing, and operating QRP, from his QTH in Turkey.  

Amateur radio was the early beginning for a career in radio for Art Bell, W6OBB, who became one of America’s number one late night talk show hosts.  Art's audience on Coast to Coast AM grew to 15 million listeners in over five-hundred markets. Art discusses ham radio and his broadcast radio career in this QSO Today with Eric, 4Z1UG.

The local city dump was the source of parts for Peter Parker, VK3YE's first ham radio projects. This humble beginning made Peter one of the most prolific contributors of videos and articles on the art of amateur radio.  Peter builds his own gear, operates QRP from the local beach, and gives valuable advice on how to be a successful operator. VK3YE is 4Z1UG's guest on QSO Today. 

Jim Kutsch, KY2D, has enjoyed almost fifty years of amateur radio because a local ham club reached out to him as a teenager after a life altering accident. It was through this act of kindness and mentoring from the ham fraternity that started Jim's passion for amateur radio leading to a successful career as a computer scientist, professor, and CEO of a remarkable non-profit organization. He is Eric, 4Z1UG’s guest on QSO Today. 

Keith Kaiser, WA0TJT, works every single day to bring kids into the Boy Scouts and amateur radio and has been doing it since 1988. He shares his love of digital modes, ham radio operations, high altitude ballooning, the Boy Scouts, and geocaching in this episode of QSO Today.

Propagation, especially in the HF bands still remains a mystery for many amateur radio operators. Eric is joined in this QSO Today by Tad Cook, K7RA, author of the weekly ARRL Propagation Bulletin to discuss our hobby and the effect of Space weather on low band propagation.

If you were stranded on a desert island with Mike Rainey, AA1TJ, and a compact fluorescent light bulb, the chance is good that Mike could build you a low frequency QRPP transceiver to send your distress messages. Eric, 4Z1UG, discusses with Mike his approach to amateur radio and the satisfaction that he gets from his home brew projects and operating at the 50 milliwatt level.  

Bob Allphin, K4UEE, has traveled to 126 countries and has gone on forty DXpeditions to the far corners of the Earth to active exotic and remote locations. Bob discusses his early amateur radio beginnings, his love of our hobby and DXing, and provides some advice on how to attract new hams to the hobby in this episode of QSO Today.

Bob Hopkins, WB2UDC, joins Eric, 4Z1UG, in this QSO Today about the importance of ham radio Elmers, especially in the lives of kids, and how to pay it forward to future generations of hams. Bob is an active elmer with kids through the New Jersey Boy Scouts of America as well as creating opportunities for kids to speak to astronauts first aboard the Space Shuttle and now to the International Space Station.

Radio kit design for the Four State QRP Group is one of the passions of Dave Cripe, NM0S.  As a amateur  radio generalist, with a strong discipline and technical background, Dave enjoys a wide range of operating modes and power levels, and home-brewing in addition to mentoring prospective hams through the Boys Scouts of America. NM0S is Eric, 4Z1UG’s guest on QSO Today.

Doug Crompton, WA3DSP’s, interest in ham radio began as a kid in Pennsylvania in the ‘60s. Doug’s careful attention to detail and documentation of his projects make him an Elmer’s Elmer.  Doug joins Eric, 4Z1UG, in this QSO Today about boat anchors restoration, Allstar linking using the Raspberry Pi, and WSPRnet.