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Amateur Radio: The Ultimate STEM Activity

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External display output on the IC-7610 makes instruction easy.

How time does fly. It seems like just last week I made a post about my Field Day adventures in and around the Atlanta area. I explored the concept of Field Day as Amateur Radio’s open house and spending time with several different groups to learn what makes Field Day special for them. In truth, of course, it’s been a full 12 months and yet another Field Day is in the log. This year, I took Field Day on the road and spent the weekend with a marvelous group of young men and women up in the Boston, Massachusetts area. Read More...

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50 Years in Oshkosh — People, Planes, and Radios!

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Oshkosh AirVenture 50 Year Celebration

The EAA AirVenture fly-in started in 1953 in Milwaukee and moved to Oshkosh in 1970. This year marks the 50th anniversary of that first Oshkosh based fly-in.

Rick Larsen, EAA’s vice president of communities and member programs, who coordinates AirVenture features and attractions states:

“Over 50 years, nearly every significant aircraft type in the world has landed on the runways at Wittman Regional Airport to be part of the EAA fly-in. More important are the stories of the people who have come to be a part of this event and the legacy of what is now known simply as Oshkosh. That is what we will be celebrating in 2019.” Read More...

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A Winning Combination

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Ding. The sound rang through the house. I was up in the kitchen, my shift for the day having come and gone, but the small sound from downstairs could have been a gunshot for the immediate effect it had. All conversation stopped and every set of eyes in the room snapped over to the small computer monitor glowing in the corner. The screen showed the combined logs for the weekend and the top line showed highlighted text. The small ding, the source of our excitement, was from one of a set of call bells, like what you might find at the front desk of a hotel, placed at each of the six stations downstairs, poised to be struck each time a new multiplier entered the log. Read More...

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IC-7300 – The Shack’s Newest Addition

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I was recently enjoying an afternoon in the shack, and while the HF bands were a bit flat that day, I still had fun looking at pictures of fellow amateurs’ stations as shown on the various ham radio websites. It’s always fun to see how various shacks are configured.

I tend to study the ergonomics of each layout, down to the vintage and models shown. Before long, I came across a picture of a guy’s re-staged novice day station. The receiver shown was far better than my trusty Hallicrafters S38, but it was this fellow’s novice transmitter that caught my eye! It was the mighty Ameco AC-1. This small-framed two-tube powerhouse featured crystal controls (novices could not use VFOs back then), two tubes (6V6 and 6L6) and plug-in coils for 80 or 40 meters–my choice (it did not cover 15). I spent my hard earned $20 on this baby, which may as well have been $2000 to this young op. Within minutes of my delivery, I had my soldering iron hot to the touch, and began building what was my very first kit project. The next day I completed the transmitter, plugged it into the AC outlet, and watched my new (and only) HF transmitter go up in smoke… a lot of very black, acrid, foul smelling smoke! My bedroom was spared the embarrassment and cost of a full-blown, working fire. I cannot recall there being actual flames, but I learned what burning insulated wire smelled like. My youthful and distressingly intrepid ego went up in smoke in that moment as well! The AC1 never fully recovered and my ego took a lot longer to be restored, such as it was for a 15 year old east coast kid. Read More...

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New Challenges / New Rig! IC-9100

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In some ways, 1966 seems like a week ago! I vividly recall a sunny Sunday afternoon out on Long Island at a schoolmate’s house, as I prepared myself for what would be my very first QSO. I had not yet assembled a station of my own, but Donny had a pretty nice one, so I was slowly tuning his receiver on the 40 Meter Novice Band. I had a handful of crystals that would establish my transmit frequency, as transmitter VFO’s were not allowed to be used by Novice Class operators.

I had slowly called CQ and before long, I received a response from a fellow in Paducah, KY. I had an instant case of ‘key fright’, and, armed with a Boy Scout Morse Code guide, used it to decipher letters that I was unsure of. It was a very intense few minutes as we traded the needed information for a complete QSO. The memory of that on-air encounter was worth every awkward second, and destined to be high on my list of firsts. Read More...

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The New Icom Rig In My Shack: IC-7610

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When it comes to Amateur Radio, I am an HF “meat and potatoes” guy. When I was first licensed in the mid-sixties CW and “phone”-along with some RTTY, was the “main event” for most.

We each have our favorite modes. Mine has always been CW. I see it as a language fluency–an art form, if you will.

CW is still my personal preference. Using this mode, I enjoy random QSO’s “rag chewing” with like-minded acquaintances and new friends about various topics such as family, geography, weather and the like. I also like chasing DX as well, and will switch to S SB on six meters to increase my grid square count. Read More...

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Field Day: Ham Radio’s Open House

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Field Day 2018

On a cold December day back in 1901, a faint Morse code letter ‘S’ was heard by a brilliant scientist and his intrepid assistant atop Signal Hill in Newfoundland, Canada. This was the first ever-transatlantic radio communication, received by none other than Guglielmo Marconi and George Kemp. Not long after this faithful day, enthusiasts and experimenters from all walks of life began to adopt this new wireless technology for their own use, eventually giving way to the hobby we all know and love. Read More...

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Secure Nature of LTE Network

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Icom LTE-Connect IP501H LTE Radio

How is Icom’s IP501H LTE network radio different from other offerings in the market? Wide area communications, size and a robust network design are all assets of our new LTE-Connect solution.

But what about security? The IP501H offers communications on a completely secure, sturdy and private LTE network. Here is what that means:

The LTE (Long-Term Evolution) standard is an all IP-based system. This means it can be susceptible to security weaknesses associated with IP, such as ever changing standards, risk of data loss, denial of service attacks, loss of privacy. Although security is incorporated in LTE architecture design, service providers are still responsible for ensuring their own network security. Icom has addressed these security issues by setting up a fully private LTE carrier approved network. The majority of other push-to- talk LTE devices, many of which are not approved, or certified for use on the carriers LTE Network, use the public Internet to carry voice traffic between the network and the control servers. By hosting these servers on the public Internet they become susceptible to denial of service attacks. The performance is limited to the capacity, and robustness, of the ISP network that is hosting them and the security of their physical location. Read More...

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F52D: It’s More Than Just the Size

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For public safety, service and security workers, communication tools are key. There are numerous devices on the market designed for these individuals. But do these devices have everything? Do they have all the features you have become accustomed to, and are they compact in size for easy handling? Or do you have to sacrifice one for the other?

The F52D/F62D series is the newest edition to the Icom IDAS™ portable line-up. This new radio has it all, impressive features, modern design and compact in size. Building on the success of the F50V and the innovation of the F3400 series, this new radio will easily fit in the palm of your hands. The F52D/F62D is the smallest series on the market, which makes it perfect for discrete use and convenient carrying. Read More...

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Connecting Icom Customers with AIR. LAND. SEA. Interoperability

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Customer service is the heart of any successful business. It is not just about providing the basics, but going above and beyond is what makes a company’s customer service soar. We have all experienced good and bad customer service, and the good service is what creates customer loyalty.

At Icom we pride ourselves on providing top quality and service to all our customers. Anyone who does not believe in going the extra mile for a customer would have recently been proven wrong.

A couple of weeks ago, James Mueller of the King County Search and Rescue Office approached Icom’s Service Manager Dywane Black. They wanted five of their Icom F5601 radios to be interoperable. King County Search and Rescue Association (KCSARA) is a volunteer organization. Members respond to numerous incidents every year involving lost or injured hikers, missing aircrafts and assist with natural disaster incidents as well. Having interoperable equipment is vital to complete their missions. Read More...