Mt Airy VHF Radio Club

Advocacy

Details

Category: Uncategorised

Published: Saturday, 09 November 2019 20:07

Written by many

Hits: 15790

Spectrum Advocacy

Posted 10/26/2020  Current proposed changes 

FCC NPRM MD Docket No. 20-270 changing FCC fee structure, including Amateur Radio. $50 for new licenses and renewals and Vanity License Applications

The proper method of contacting the FCC on this “FEE issue” is to respond with comments to MD Docket 20-270

The current band under consideration for elimination to radio amateurs

use is 3.5 GHz      reference  NPRM WT 19-348 when you write

To protect our use of the 3.5 GHz band it would be a good idea to write letters.

It's best to do this within the next week.

We currently have over 25 members with 3.5 GHz capability.

The following  may give you some ideas for your own customized letter

Adding a personal line at the beginning of the letter helps the reader know it’s not just a form letter.

 I am FCC licensed amateur radio operator (insert call sign) and I have been an active radio communicator on 3GHz for X years. “ add your type of license eg Amateur Extra. Perhaps an anecdote about you uW activity.

                                                              OR

The members of the Mount Airy VHF Radio Club* are greatly concerned by a current proposal to remove amateur radio privileges from the 3.1-3.55 GHz frequencies and the potential future loss of the 2.0 GHz band.

                                                    Main Body

In the current NPR** from the FCC, numbered FCC-CIRC1912-03, it states: "we propose to remove the existing nonfederal secondary radiolocation and amateur allocations in the 3.3-3.55 GHz band and to relocate incumbent non-federal operations out of the band, in order to prepare the band for possible future shared use between commercial wireless services and federal incumbents."

Members of this club have been pioneers in communication at these frequencies. By building and using radio gear, digital communications software, and antennas for use at these frequencies, we have contributed to the state of the art. Amateur radio operators have used a band allocation centering at 3.456GHz and 2.304 GHz for decades. We have been active amateur operators using these frequencies for maintaining communication with other amateur operators using our FCC issued licenses. We have recently added additional capabilities for use of this frequency.

For terrestrial radio communication, amateurs have been active on a few hundred kilohertz at 3.456 GHz. By international agreement, amateur radio operators have been using a few hundred kilohertz at 3.400 GHz for successful moonbounce communication. We recognize the demands for band allocation to commercial communication. Please have the FCC reserve these slices of frequency for continued amateur radio use as the amateur radio service supports emergency communication in times of disaster. Thank you.

*Mt. Airy VHF Radio Club website: www.packratvhf.com

**Facilitating Shared Use in the 3.1-3.55 GHz Band

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking - WT Docket No. 19-348

              Thanks to Rick, k1DS for the previous text suggestions 

                                               ***************************

General useful information

Addresses for the ARRL, the FCC, and your elected Federal Congress

ARRL Headquarters

Dan Henderson N1ND

225 Main Street

Newington. CT 06111

Federal Communications Commission

Marlene H Dortch

Office of the Secretary, Room TW-B204

445 12^th Street SW

Washington, DC 20554

on the ECFS (electronic comment filing system)

use  https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/filings

To find you Federal Representative in Congress use Google or

use this link    Representatives | house.gov

You may have to give your ZIP code or even your full address to get the right representative

To find you Federal Senator in Congress use Google or

use this link    U.S. Senate: Senators

You will have to enter your state

If you feel the NTIA ( the FCC equivalent for Government spectrum users)

needs to hear from you. Since they share several of their frequencies with radio amateurs

( we are secondary users) they sometimes make good allies.

This contact must be used with care - do not contact them unless you have a strong reason to believe 

They have a vested interest in agreeing with our continued usage.

On-The-Air

Details

Category: Uncategorised

Published: Monday, 08 January 2018 13:14

Written by Bill WS3O

Hits: 36988

Roll to the bottom of the page for some additional local nets

Information on Packrat Nets, Beacons, and Repeaters

The Pack Rats initiated VHF nets on Monday night the first year the club was formed. The nets are open to all radio amateurs. The purpose of the nets is to promote activity and share information of a common interest to the VHF community. You do not have to be a member of the club to participate in any of the Pack Rat nets!

This section last Updated 3/19/2023  at 12:10 am 

Day	Time (Local)	Frequency	Control Station	Grid or Net
Monday	6:45PM	This net will be found on the new repeater 224.900   See Coverage Map at very bottom of page	Michelle KB3MTW and Elliott K3JJZ	FN20ji (repeater)
	7:00PM	Packrat Talk Group 8804 on a DMR Network See a complete list at very bottom of page of all repeaters on the Packrat Talk group -	George KA3WXV	Check out delmarvaDMR.com for information and coverage maps
	7:30PM	50.150 MHz	Ray N3RG	FM29ki
	8:00PM	144.150 MHz	Dave W2KV	FN20ok
	8:30PM	222.125 MHz	Jim KC3BVL	FM29jw
	9:00PM	432.110 MHz	Mike WB2RVX	FM29mt

The Pack Rats maintain several VHF+ beacons, which serve as propagation indicators and allow operators to test their receivers. Some of our beacons are in Mountain Top, Pa and on Fancy Hill near Pottstown, Pa.  Some are just south west of New York City. The 10 GHz is in are located in Center City Philadelphia. 

The 10 GHz beacon is in an unheated/uncooled room and is subject to frequency changes. 
  Our FN20DH, FN20TK and FN21BE beacons are GPS disciplined.

 * * * * * * * * *

This section last Updated 8/20/2023  at 12:30 pm 

            Packrat Beacons   W3CCX/B

Frequency Power Level Status Grid  50.300 MHz   0.3 W Not yet Operational   TBD 144.300 MHz 10 W On the AIR  FN21BE 222.060 MHz 4 W On the AIR  FN20TK 432.300 MHz  10 W On the AIR  FN20TK 903.300 MHz 10 W On the AIR  FN21BE 1296.300 MHz   9 W On the AIR  FN20DH 2304.300 MHz  1 W  Down for repair  FN20DH 3456.300 MHz   5 W  Not yet Operational  TBD 5760.300 MHz   5 W  On the AIR  FN21BE 10368.017 MHz   3 W  On the AIR  FN29JW W3SZ Beacon Frequency Observations

 * * * * * * * * *Packrat  Repeaters

We have a new Repeater  Output: 224.900      Very wide coverage used especially for nets                     Input: 223.30 CTCSS: 77.0 (currently enabled) Grid Square: FN20ji in Roxboro And a 432MHz Repeater:Output: 442.900 Input: 447.900 CTCSS: 123.0 The original PackRat 222 Repeater    Output: 224.580   W3CCX/R   Limited coverage but still operational Input: 222.98 CTCSS: 136.5 (when enabled) Grid Square: FN20ij in Hilltown

Try the Sprints   They are short and fun!

 Use this link for more details

VHF & Up Sprints - 2023 Information (Fall link to be updated)

 

 This section last Updated 7/10/2023  at 7:30 pm 

Tuesday and Friday Night Nets

As you know many Packrats belong to more than one radio club. Jim, KC3BVL at FM29JW   mentioned he enjoys the following nets

Microwave Tuesdays:   7:30 PM -  903.100,   8:00 PM - 1296.100,   8:30 PM-  2304.100    

Bottom 4 Fridays:  7:30 PM- 144.160,   8:00 PM- 50.160,   8:30 PM 222.150,  9:00 PM  432.160 

 Stop by and say hi some evening !

 

Attachments:

List of Packrat DMR repeaters	[ ]	37 kB
224.90 Roxboro repeater coverage	[ ]	434 kB

VHF Conference

Details

Category: Uncategorised

Published: Saturday, 05 May 2018 11:38

Written by Bill WS3O

Hits: 13756

2018 Mid-Atlantic States VHF Conference Fri-Sat-Sun Sept 28-29-30

On-line registration and payment is now closed.

You may register and pay at the door for the conference. Banquet buffet registration and payment also at the door when you register for the conference on a space available basis.

The UPDATED CONFERENCE PROGRAM can be found >>> here.

• Friday afternoon special seminar
• Friday evening hospitality and table-top swap
• Saturday VHF Conference speakers and topics, Lunch included
• Saturday evening buffet banquet dinner
• Door prizes
• Sunday outdoor VHF flea market mini-hamfest
• Meet your VHF buddies
• Buy and sell VHF gear, parts, and accessories
• Hosted by the Packrats, Mt Airy VHF Radio Club

A printable copy of the flyer is located >>> here.

Holiday Inn Bensalem-Philadelphia
3327 Street Rd, Bensalem PA 19020
215-639-9100

Special conference rate $109/nite + tax, mention VHF Conference
Includes Breakfast for 2 room registrants
Conference Early Bird Registration: $40 ($50 after Sept 16)
Includes Fri hospitality, Saturday coffee, snacks, pizza lunch, disc
Banquet Early Bird Reservation $40 ($50 after Sept 20, if space available)
You must be registered and paid for both to be eligible for door prizes

On-line registration and payment at: www.packratvhf.com Or download and postal mail this PDF Form: Questions? Wish to submit a paper or give a presentation? Email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Contacts

Our club contacts: