SPARC | St. Petersburg Amateur Radio Club

Upcoming Activities

By Tom Schaefer NY4I on 09/23/2017

Besides this being the start of contest season, we also have some other events that you might want to check out.

On October 13 through October 15, there is the Makrothen RTTY contest at the club station. See here for more info….

On October 21, it’s the St. Petersburg Science Festival. Look for more info here and at the club meeting but this is a chance to spend a great day on the waterfront in St. Pete showing amateur radio to kids of all ages.

On October 28 in … Click for more

All About Batteries by Ed, NZ1Q

By Bob Wanek N2ESP on 09/18/2017

Everything you wanted to know but never got to ask. Perfect for this active storm season.

Ed will discuss the different types of batteries available to the amateur such as NiCad, Nickel metal, lead acid, Lithium based and new types like LiFePO4.

Topics to be covered include the best applications for each battery type and how to maintain and properly recharge the different battery types.

A table will be provided that summarizing the usage and care for each type of battery.

Be sure to attend our October meeting to enjoy … Click for more

KI4EN (SK) Ham Equipment Estate Sale Delayed Until 9/29 – 10/1

By Bob Wanek N2ESP on 08/17/2017

James Osborne, KI4EN, became a Silent Key at 93 at the VA hospital at Bay Pines on 7/27. He was a WW2 veteran. He lived for 40 years in St. Petersburg and was known by many local hams. He built and repaired of radio equipment for himself and others and has a large inventory of parts and tools.

James’ son, Jim K7LYQ, is advising us the estate sale has been postponed by hurricane Irma until September 29th through October 1st and will include the following ham equipment:

Henry 2K-4L amplifier

… Click for more

SPARC Lagniappe *

By Bob Wanek N2ESP on 08/10/2017

Free General Interest Ham Radio Newsletter

Want to learn more about the people and things that make up our hobby? The K9YA Telegraph is an amateur radio publication that is written by its subscribers for its subscribers. Downloadable once a month in pdf format, the publication’s motto is “Good News about Amateur Radio.” Articles range from human interest to history, nostalgia, old gear and just plain fun.

For sample issues and a free subscription to the K9YA Telegraph, visit http://www.K9YA.org

Unique Call Sign Gift

According to Zazzle, this item … Click for more

One Day General Class Upgrade Workshop Forming

By Tom Schaefer NY4I on 08/06/2017

Tom NY4I is forming a multi-club one-day General Workshop.

THIS IS NOT A CRAM SESSION. You must do pre-work from the book. Our goal is to work with the material you have learned by self-study, clarify some topics and teach you how to be a general. We want people to know what to do with their general class license when they get it.

We will start 6 weeks before the scheduled workshop day. Each student is REQUIRED to purchase a Gordon West General Class Study manual. The students have … Click for more

SPARC Contesters Win US 4th Call Area in CQ WPX RTTY

By Tom Schaefer NY4I on 07/24/2017

During the WPX Contest earlier this year, SPARC posted a score of 2,810,572 points in the Multi-operator, Single Transmitter category. This was good enough to win 1st place in the US 4th call area, 7th place in the country and 23rd in the World. This was a team effort of the following operators: KA4IOX, KB8ESY, KR4U, KP2N, N2ESP, N4BUA, N4RI, NY4I, VE3XD, W4CU ad W4TSP. The full results are available on the CQ WPX RTTY Website as well as the write up in the July 2017 edition of CQ … Click for more