Author Archives: Gnarc Webmaster

Present In Person (6): Hugo AA1XV (President), Steve K1RF, Jeff KB1C (Recording Secretary) , Dave N1DPD (Treasurer), Steve W1SMS (Vice President), Rusty K4SAA

Present Virtually (6):  Toy K1WYQ, Rich K1CYW, Steve N1CM, Tom WB2HTJ, Jess ND1L, Andre W2ART

Business Meeting: called to order by President Hugo AA1XV at 7:11

Hugo welcomed Steve N1CM, president of SARA, and Tom WB2HTJ, now in North Carolina.

Minutes of the February meeting as previously distributed were approved, with the modification that the summer party should be changed to summer picnic.

Old Business:

President’s Report: by Hugo AA1XV: We were reminded of the loss of N1ZD last month, and all the memories we have of him, particularly pictures.

He related that no one joined the HF Net last Thursday night, noting band conditions were noisy and hoping this week’s is more active. We have not had a lot of feedback on presentations about antennas in the past, perhaps tonight’s session will help. The more general question is: how many are operating HF with any regularity?

Treasurer’s Report: by  Dave N1DPD: Last month, a paid expense was flowers for N1ZD’s calling hours. A goodwill donation to the Westport Astronomical Society to maintain a future relationship is in the works. We may consider selling some equipment to generate revenue. As of today, paid membershipship is at 44.

Secretary’s Report: by Jeff KB1C: Not much feedback of any kind has been received on the newsletter, it’s impossible to determine the extent of readership. Please consider contributing content if there’s anything you think club members might be interested in: announcements, items for sale, suggestions, and especially corrections, etc. Your ideas are welcome! Watch for the April issue…a new puzzle, and a new feature – “Ask Elmer!”

New Business:

Newsletter issues will be archived on the club website.

Steve N1CM will be attending the upcoming Southington Hamfest on 3/22, he may be selling equipment there; he will check with other SARA members. If they do have a table there, he has offered to include GNARC equipment. He was asked if any VE sessions are in the works; as of now testing is on demand, exams are generated using an online tool, and no requests are pending.

Dave N1DPD is running the upcoming Bloomin Metric event in May, for which we offer radio support services. He will be looking for helpers for this, stay tuned!

Rich K1CYW has some equipment to donate to the club, which is much appreciated.

Main Event: Presentation:

Steve K1RF’s talk “End Connected-Off Center Fed Dipole Antennas” (EC-OCFD) was loaded with technical detail on history,  construction, testing, and comparison with other types of antennas for various bands. To achieve his goal of building low-cost, easy to build, efficient, hi-power multiband antennas, Steve has extensively researched many different wire models. Accompanied by the origination and evolution of each model, we learned who designed each, what materials are involved, and what works well on various bands.

The precursor models to the EC-OCFD included the City Windom, sleeve dipole, end-fed monocord, banana half wave end fed choked coax model, and single band end fed and center fed portable antennas. Each antenna was presented in detail, including construction and effectiveness. Charts and graphs showing efficiency, and lists of parts needed and where to obtain them were included.

Steve’s highly informative and interesting presentation thoroughly outlined the pros and cons of EC-OCFD vs end fed half wave antennas. Thank you, Steve!

Powerpoint will be available on the club website.

Any questions or more information needed?  Contact Steve at K1RF@ARRL.net.

Bonus Presentation: “Operating Opportunities-Get On The Air!”

 Rusty K4SAA shared details of some DXpeditions he knows and has participated in. Many stations present uncommon, even rare CW, voice, or digital contact opportunities; details about locations, time frames, and even folks you’ll meet describe terrific goals for Hams to try, some being more challenging than others. Rusty will supply his detailed list for inclusion on the club website. Thank you, Rusty!

Hugo AA1XV informed us that next month’s meeting location will be changing to room 216 here in the Westport Library. The meeting is expected to be on April 8.

The Meeting was adjourned at 8:42.

Respectfully submitted, Jeff KB1C, Secretary

GNARC Meeting Minutes,  January 8, 2025

Location: Westport Library, Conference Room 216

Attending:  Officer members –Hugo AA1XV, President; Marty K1MGD, Vice President; Dave N1DPD Treasurer; Tom KB1FBX, Secretary

Other members in attendance: Toy K1WYQ; Steve W1SMS ; Steve K1RF; Rusty K4SAA; Mark N1MG; Jeff KB1C; Pete KC1PWH and Chuck K1CWT   

Minutes:  Meeting called to order at 7:30 PM by President Hugo

Election of New Officers for 2025:

Nominating committee: Toy K1WYQ and  Paul W1PPL (who was not present) reviewed their slate of candidates:

Current officers – President Hugo AA1XV, Vice President Marty K1MGD, Treasurer Dave N1DPD, and Jeff KB1C for Secretary. Nominations from the floor were sought by Toy: Mark N1MG nominated Steve W1SMS for Vice President, which was duly seconded and who was elected by majority vote of attending members. Remaining officers and candidates in the proposed slate were also elected by majority vote.

Treasurer’s Report: 

Treasurer Dave N1DPD reported 25 attended the Holiday Party in December, which after costs were subtracted from expenses was a net cost of $569. A financial statement form 2024 was presented which showed income from club dues, donations and sale of equipment against expenses related to taxes, form 990 filing,UPS mailbox,  picnic supplies, holiday party, website, insurance, and new repeater and antenna at a cost of $2800, which overall meant( a net loss of $1553 for the year). 

So far in 2025, 3 members have paid annual $35 dues. Members are asked to PLEASE pay using PayPal, via the link on the club website:  http://gnarc.org/join/.  

Dues can be mailed to: 
Greater Norwalk Amateur Radio Club, 304 Main Avenue #115, Norwalk, CT 06851

Overall the club is in good shape financially.

There was some discussion of moving the club PO mailing address to someone’s private residence which would save $300 per year. Currently we are paid through March. Disadvantages of this would be the need to change mailing addresses registered to the club in lots of places, and this would need to change whenever the hosting member required us to change it (i.e., moved, quit the club, etc.) We would also need to retain both addresses for a one year overlap. Advantage of keeping things as they are is that the address remains permanent, No conclusions were reached. 

Old Business:

Steve W1SMS reported the new repeater is working and will undergo a bit more testing. There was some discussion of antennas located at Norwalk Hospital and FOX radio station. The current tower on Strawberry Hill Ave is still in use though the site has been sold twice and we have had no contact with the present owners. We should wait until the new antenna is in place and has been tested before removing anything from anywhere.

Our trailer, which currently stores Field Day equipment, is currently located behind Fire Station #4 and we must find a new home for it within the next 6 months. There may also be some club “stuff” still stored in a closet there, and some antennas, which must be removed.  We are seeking a volunteer or someone with contacts who can assist with this. Rusty K4SAA and Marty K1MGD may be able to help with this. (Update: on 1/9 we received an email from Marty K1MGD relating that there is in fact nothing in that room.). The trailer itself needs to be power washed and unusable “junk” inside remove, a possible springtime club project. 

New Business:

Hugo AA1XV related a conversation he’s had with Steve N1CM, president of SARA about possibly connecting GNARC more with the Stamford club. SARA has their own way of doing Field Day, and so far we have not found common ground. The idea of trying other joint activities was explored but needs further research, GNARC and SARA did join forces to work at  last summer’s “Bloomin Metric” bike race, which was successful in some ways but had some technology glitches. The question was raised: could we pair with SARA on other (non Field Day) activities, maybe contests?

A more general discussion followed revolving around the question posed by Steve W1SMS: What do GNARC members want? The idea of a survey of membership asking for thoughts/ideas/reactions was advanced. 

More specifically, some discussion of exploring moving our Field Day back into Vets Park, but perhaps not as extensively as we’ve done it in the past. A lot of discussion and volunteering of antennas that would be simple to erect and give us good coverage of the band we need, perhaps making setup easier. No conclusions were reached; Hugo will survey the membership before the next club meeting. We have 4 meetings before FD to discuss and plan. 

Next Meeting: Wednesday, February 12, at the Westport Library, room location TBA   

Meeting adjourned 8:55 PM

Jeff KB1C, Secretary

(Note: Thank you for this opportunity to serve the club. Please address errors and corrections directly to me at gnarc.webmaster@gmail.com so I can keep accurate records!)

Monthly Members Meeting
June 12, 2024 – Meeting Minutes

This month we were unable to secure a room at the Comstock Center of Wilton. A virtual meeting was held.

Called to order by the president, Hugo AA1XV, at 1930 hours.

Attending: Officer members – Hugo AA1XV, President; Dave N1DPD, Treasurer. Other members and guests in attendance: Pete, KC1PWH; Paul, W1PPL; Jon, AI1V; Toy, K1WYQ; Steve, W1SMS; Dan (callsign?); Jim, KC1FB; Steve, K1RF; Johnny,W1DYN; Andre,W2ART.

Treasurer’s report: Our club is solvent. No changes since last meeting. No new paid members nor new expenses.

Committee Reports:A committee previously appointed on the matter of club assets, credentials, and technological evaluation of the repeaters and GNARC licenses and coordination, integrated by Steve W1SMS, Paul W1PPL, and Peter KC1PWH, presented a report on the current state of GNARC’s repeaters. This is a first step towards ensuring continuous availability of VHF communication by creating enough redundancy to address power loss, hardware failure, site inaccessibility, or any other unforeseen situation.

Peter KC1PWH put forward a motion for the Board of Directors (B.O.D.) to consider, and if adopted, authorize the expenditure of funds to cover the purchase of a new Yaesu Fusion repeater, a new collinear antenna, and other necessary hardware complemented with donated material to be installed at the Norwalk Hospital.

Subsequent steps for the broader scope of this committee will include:

• Installing an Echolink node
• Securing access to the current 2-meter repeater site
• Creating necessary maintenance documentation
• Ensuring rights to access the locations of the equipment
• Assuring the club’s rights over these locations.

Old Business:

Johnny, W1DYN, and Dave, W1DPD, provided a brief overview of the Bloomin Metric Bike race held this past month. Firstly, there were no injuries or accidents among the participants. However, it was noted that some areas on the route do not have reliable cell phone coverage, highlighting the convenience and reliability of radio communications to support the event.

New Business:

Toy, K1WYQ, expressed concern about the gnarc.org website. His concerns included outdated information and the vulnerability of membership email addresses to spam and exploitation by malicious actors. In this vein, I’d like to ask again for help: We’d like to have a permanent webmaster or someone willing to take care of our webpage on a more permanent basis.” Jon, AI1V, stepped in to help when Paul, W1IP, stepped down as webmaster after many years of dedicated service, for which we are very grateful. We are looking for volunteers who can dedicate a few hours a month to keep the website current and secure. If you are interested, please step forward and let us know.

Announcements:

This June 22 and 23 is the annual ARRL Field Day. GNARC will not participate as a club, but some members will join the event at the Westport Astronomical Society, collaborating with two other clubs. Setup will be on Friday, June 21st. If you want to reserve an operation slot, please visit: Field Day Signup Form.

The meeting was adjourned at 2100 hours.

We passed four (4) new Technician class hams at our session on May 11