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BALANCED MODULATOR NEWSLETTER
Monthly newsletters are available to
members through one of three options:
(A) Receive the newsletter via NOFARSnet,
a distribution system sponsored by Yahoo Groups. To subscribe to NOFARSnet,
access
http://www.yahoogroups.com . In the search box, enter NOFARSnet and then follow the instructions to subscribe. There is no cost
but distribution is limited to NOFARS members so include your call sign or
name to allow authentication that you are paid through at least 2010.
Or you may
subscribe to NOFARSnet by sending an e-mail request to
n4uf@nofars.net
(B) The www.nofars.net web site will
announce when each monthly e-mail newsletter is available. Members may
request the current issue by sending an e-mail to
n4uf@nofars.net
after the
web site announcement is posted. No permanent list will be kept so it will
be up to each member to make a request each month.
(C) For those without Internet access, a printout of each monthly e-mail newsletter
is available by postal mail to members who send a supply of self-addressed,
stamped envelopes to the editor in
advance. Be sure to use “forever” stamps on your envelopes. Send your
envelope supply to Billy Williams, N4UF; P. O. Box 9673; Jacksonville,
Florida 32208-0673 or bring to a NOFARS meeting. 12 stamped envelopes will
be needed for each year. If a member without Internet access prefers not to
send in envelopes, a charge of $6 for 2009 may be paid. This does not include NOFARS dues.
The rate may be adjusted in 2010 if postage increases substantially.
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NORTH FLORIDA AMATEUR RADIO SOCIETY: FIFTY YEARS
By Billy Williams, N4UF
(Part One, 1957-1960)
Ike began his second term as President
and the Cold War ran hot. A few hundred American advisors were stationed in
a faraway place called Vietnam. 1957 was a year of Sputniks and beatniks.
The first artificial earth satellite, Sputnik I, launched the Space Age. Not
much larger than a basketball and weighing 183 pounds, the Russian Sputnik
took about 98 minutes to orbit the Earth. In 1957, future astronaut John
Glenn set a speed record by flying a jet from California to New York in 3
hours and 23 minutes. During the Spring, Elvis was #1 with “All Shook Up.”
The Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants started their final seasons before
moving west. International Geophysical Year, timed to coincide with a high
point of the eleven-year cycle of sunspot activity, was proclaimed by 67
nations.
US 1 was the main road into Florida and
those going west traveled a narrow, cluttered US 90. Construction began in
Jacksonville for an expressway system to connect the Fuller Warren (Gilmore
Street) Bridge to what would become Interstates 10 and 95. Nationally, Ike’s
Interstate Highway System began taking shape with the first stretch of I-70
opening in Missouri and Kansas.
Amplitude Modulation (AM) was king on
the Amateur Radio phone bands. AM enthusiasts scorned experimenters who used
SSB. They chided those who sounded like “duckywucks” on the air. Commercial
brands included Heath, Collins, Hammarlund, Hallicrafters and National.
Equipment was big and heavy. Transceivers were rare. Small “transistorized”
AM broadcast receivers started to appear, but 1957 ham gear contained no
integrated circuits and very few transistors.
A dozen or so hams gathered at a
backyard cookout on Chaseville Road (now University Blvd. North) in Spring
1957. One brought a reel-to-reel tape machine to play recordings he had made
of operators on the air. But the tape speed varied and the tape sounded
“wacky.” The cookout was fun and it was decided to form a group. A name was
needed. The wacky sounding tape at the wingding cookout led to formation of
the “Wacky Wing Ding Society” as an alternative to the Jacksonville Amateur
Radio Society (JARS)--formed in 1946 after ham radio operation resumed from
a suspension during World War II. Most attending the cookout were JARS
members but they wanted an informal alternative to the more rigidly
structured JARS.
The new group started an award, the
Wacky Wing Dingers certificate, for those contacting seven Jacksonville
stations. Foreign operators only needed three contacts. It contained a large
photo of Jacksonville’s downtown skyline and a motto--“a milliwatt of
public service and good fellowship returns a kilowatt of satisfaction.”
Subsequent informal meetings were held irregularly in members homes.
By 1959, interest in the Wacky Wing Ding
Society was declining. In early 1960, more formalities were adopted. Regular
meetings began on the first and third Friday of each month in a downtown
hair salon called Mike’s Harem at 33 W. Monroe St. On other Fridays,
on-the-air meetings were called on the WWD frequency of 21.375 Megacycles at
8PM. These on-the-air meetings were cancelled after a few months. An April
meeting program presentation was on cubical quad antennas. The Wing Dingers
certificate was re-designed and included a revised requirement of seven
contacts with club members instead of seven Jacksonville stations. The WWD
Award was announced in May 1960 CQ magazine. WWD Field Day sites under
consideration were Holiday Island in the St. Johns River under the Matthews
Bridge, Alderman Park in Arlington and the Jacksonville Zoo. JARS Field Day
was planned at Gateway Shopping Center. Long distance telephone calls were
costly so phone patches were popular. The May issue of “The Wing Dinger”
included plans for a “hum-free phone patch.” The purpose of the group was
described as being “to help serve the betterment of Amateur Radio, to be on
call in the time of emergency, and to promote good fellowship.”
Three new committees were formed to be
administered by an activities coordinator (K4YSP), a publicity coordinator
(K4YJA) and an emergency coordinator, K4HFH. A roster in “The Wing Dinger”
listed 21 members. Three persons on that roster are still members:
Carl, W4EAT; Deacon, K4YTB and Ed, K4YNM.
As 1960 progressed, the fortunes of
Wacky Wing Ding Society fell. The second monthly meeting was eliminated and
access to the central meeting place was lost. July and August meetings were
called off “due to vacations that are being taken at this time and due to
the fact that there just plain ain’t nothing doing in the club at this
time.”
In early 1961, the newsletter became “North
Florida Amateur Radio Society News” The first issue stated:
“December should be a month to be
remembered by this organization. It was during the month of December, 1960,
that our club became ‘The North Florida Amateur Radio Society.’ Your editor
hopes that with this new name and with the new calls added to our roll, that
we will begin 1961 with an all-out effort to make our club a success. During
the year 1960, we performed as a group a total of one public service to our
community; this being the Cerebral Palsy Telethon. We planned a field day
which didn’t come off. We sent out far less certificates than we should
have; we planned to build some form of radio equipment as a club project
which we didn’t; we had one social event and changed the name of our club.
When you look at a brief summary of our last year in black and white, it
looks more black than white doesn’t it? The funny part of it is that we have
only ourselves to blame. We certainly can’t blame our Activities Coordinator
as he did more than did his part. We were supposed to follow through but we
didn’t. No, we can’t blame anyone but ourselves. So much for the “heart and
flowers” department.
1961 is a new year. We have a new name,
our publication is resuming, our club has new faces, and I hope a new
inspiration. During this new year, if the opportunity arises to do a public
service, I propose that we jump in with both feet. If we succeed, we will
have the satisfaction of knowing that we helped our fellow man. I, for one,
would like 1961 to be a red letter year for Amateur Radio."
Part Two (1960-1969)
In the early ’60s, the primary application
of ham radio was long distance contact using frequencies below 30 MHz. Ten
years later, a major shift in focus toward reliable short-range VHF
communication was emerging.
In December 1960, our group became the
North Florida Amateur Radio Society. Members continued to use “Wacky Wing
Dingers” as the personal (internal) club name. The North Florida Amateur
Radio Society title was for external publicity and promotional purposes.
The Jacksonville Amateur Radio Society
(JARS), formed shortly after World War II, was in a slump. The April JARS
Beam newsletter said “for the
benefit of all those brass pounders and mike swallowers who have noticed
that something was missing but couldn’t quite place their finger on what it
was, let me be the first to tell you. It was their copy of the BEAM. Yes, we
confess, this is the first copy that has come off the mighty mimeograph
machine in months. We hope to do better in the months to come, and we can
too (with your help). At the last regular meeting, we discovered that we
only have 11 paid up members for the year of 1960. For a city that sports as
many amateurs as Jacksonville, this average isn’t too inspiring. Lets all
strive to call up our friends, talk about it on the air, send up smoke
signals and/or otherwise let people know who the JARS are and what they do.
Drag ‘em down to Peards and get the old ball rolling again. Our program for
the meeting of April 6th will consist of a film entitled
Challenge of Outer Space.”
In 1961, Jacksonville was expanding into
subdivisions like University Park, Normandy Village, Mandarin and Cedar
Hills. Interstate 95 was being completed to Dunn Ave. and I-10 came to an
abrupt end at Cassat Ave. Huge malls were still a few years away but
shoppers increasingly migrated to shopping centers and away from downtown.
The first issue of the North Florida
Amateur Radio Society News was mailed in February 1961. Walt, K4PJJ
hosted the January meeting at his home. Three new members signed up and
elected were Bill, W4HLE (President); Gene, K4IRF (VP) and Gene, W4IEA (Sec-Treas).
K4IRF was a weatherman for WFGA-TV Channel 12. A committee looked into
acquisition of a clubhouse in conjunction with JARS where meetings for both
groups could be held. Ten years earlier, JARS was offered a building on city
property as a clubhouse but costs were beyond the budget. JARS decided on
city library meeting rooms and Peard Electronics store downtown instead.
Again, a clubhouse turned out to be unfeasible.
By 1963, JARS was inactive. Except for a
brief resurgence in the late 60s, it was gone for good. The NOFARS Wacky
Wing Dinger certificate program also faded away; not to be revived until the
mid 70s.
The NOFARS roster in early 1963 listed 26
members. Annual dues were $2 plus a $1 initiation fee for new members. That
year, NOFARS first long-term meeting place was obtained at the Riverside
Avenue Christian Church on the corner of Cherry St. Newsletters were
published sporadically in 1961 and 62. In January 1963, the first regular
monthly printed NOFARS bulletin was mailed. 36 issues were distributed
between 1963 and the end of 1965. These bulletins had no title except for an
occasional reference to NOFARS News. Meeting activities were scheduled from
7:30 until 10:30PM on the second Thursday of each month. When time
permitted, a short film feature on electronics was shown.
In June, NOFARS sponsored “Operation
Shopping Center.” The main location at Hemming Park downtown had three
stations. City workers helped install antennas in palm trees. The Florida
Times-Union published a news story and photo. Other stations operated at
Arlington Plaza (in front of the Dad N Lad Shop), Cedar Hills Shopping
Center and Roosevelt Mall (in front of Hoyt High Fidelity). 21 members
participated.
Eighteen hams logged contacts totaling
1,872 points using five antennas and four stations at NOFARS 1963 Field Day
at the Rudder Club in Orange Park. The top station made 163 contacts, mostly
on CW.
Interference with television reception was
a major problem for hams. With no cable TV and weak television signals in
parts of town, many hams received complaints. Bill, W4CGG was Chairman of
NOFARS TVI Committee. The NOFARS meeting location in the church basement was
popular. 68 attended the August meeting and 41 ate at a dinner meeting at
the Pancake House on Beach Blvd. Thirty-eight enrolled in a novice study
class series. FCC came to town to administer commercial and ham exams at the
downtown Armory each April and October. Ambitious upgraders traveled to the
FCC office in Savannah. NOFARS requested K4JAX as a club call in 1963 but
FCC assigned us WA4QCN instead.
In early 1964, the Amateur Radio Emergency
Corps (now ARES) of Duval County began a weekly net on 21.3 Megacycles at
9PM each Weds. Our Duval County Emergency Coordinator was John, W4GUJ. The
NOFARS WA4QCN 1964 Field Day was on a big lot owned by Bill, W4BHW on
Townsend Rd. in SW Jax. A Duval County Callbook in January showed 583
hams. Hurricane Dora caused the September NOFARS meeting to be canceled and
left trees down and power off for weeks in some parts of town. Barry
Goldwater, K7UGA was running for President. He visited Jacksonville and had
dinner with several NOFARS officers during the campaign. Newsletter
editor W4BHW wrote “Let’s put an antenna on the White House, vote for Barry
Goldwater.”
Fortunately, NOFARS fared better than K7UGA
did in his campaign. Membership topped 50 for the first time. The 1965 Field
Day at Ray Greene Park in Highlands produced a big increase in contacts.
Incentive Licensing was a controversial topic. FCC proposed creation of
exclusive sub-bands for Amateur Extra and Advanced class operators. At the
time, a General ticket allowed operation on all frequencies. NOFARS dues
went up to $3 and the initiation fee was eliminated.
In January, 1966 Volume I Number 1 of the
Balanced Modulator was published. Editor Jesse Morris, W4MVB wrote
“to start the new year, you might
notice a change in the layout of the bulletin. You might also notice that it
has a name this month. It is not necessarily a good name and the layout
isn’t necessarily good either. It does represent what the editor thinks is
appropriate. If you agree, it would be nice to know. If you disagree it
would be nice to know. We could have a contest to see who could come up with
the best name for our paper. If you have any ideas on the subject pass them
along to this writer or to one of the club officers.”
Big news in 1966 was NOFARS new Field Day
site. The city granted permission to use the Gator Bowl. Two stations made
almost 1400 contacts from the press box. Beams adorned the top of the press
box and wires hung from stadium light poles. Florida Governor Haydon Burns
proclaimed Amateur Radio Week. NOFARS was the top scoring Florida group
edging out Gainesville by 100 points. The weekly AREC net moved to 21.44 mcs.
A two-meter FM Duval County Emergency Net was called on 146.94 mc. at 8PM
Weds. and 4PM Sunday. An article in the Balanced Modulator complained
about individuals who come to the meeting, sit in the back of the room and
talk through presentations.
“Certainly not every speaker is captivating nor is every subject engrossing
but it seems to this writer that common courtesy should require silence if
not attention!”
In early 1967, two important events: a new
constitution (our current one) was approved and NOFARS was issued a new club
call--W4IZ. NOFARS assisted Goodwill Industries with communications during
“Good Turn Day” in February. Boy Scouts collected 30,000 bags of donated
items. Most communications were provided through portable and mobile VHF ham
stations between Goodwill HQ on Lenox Ave. and semi trucks picking up bags.
W4IZ was used for the first time at Field Day 1967 in the Gator Bowl. The
10,660 point total was the highest of any Florida FD operation and was tops
for the entire 4th call area in the two transmitter category.
NOFARS meetings moved to Civil Defense HQ
on Market St. in September 1967. Incentive licensing was adopted by FCC to
become effective in 1968. Novice license terms increased from one year to
two. The AREC net moved to 28.690 Mc. Jacksonville and Duval County voters
approved a consolidated government structure.
W4IZ again scored high in the 1968 Field
Day in the Gator Bowl with 2,232 contacts. The new consolidated Jacksonville
government began on October 1, 1968 and NOFARS members spread the word about
Jacksonville’s new status as the largest city (in land area) in the U.S.
Two meter repeaters began to appear around
the US as experimental projects. Until the late 60s, two-meters was a
simplex band which required the use of bulky rigs and sophisticated antennas
for effective operation. Handee-talkees were almost unheard of. Several
Jacksonville hams formed an informal group to explore the possibility of
getting a local repeater going. In 1969, a water tower at 41st
and Pearl Sts. was chosen as a possible site for a 146.34 MHz. two-meter
repeater receiver. Possible locations for the 250 watt 146.76 MHz.
transmitter/amplifier system included the roof of the (old) Independent Life
building and a water tower near the Arlington Fire Station.
Amateur Television (ATV) was another
experimental mode that gained popularity in NE Florida in 1969. An
impressive 432 MHz ATV demo linked the 60 persons attending the March NOFARS
meeting downtown to WB4GCMs station in Arlington. Hollister Electronic
Supply, Jacksonville’s first ham store, opened in October 1969 near 8th
and Pearl Sts. Owner John Hollister, W4FWZ planned to carry popular ham
brands including Galaxy, Hallicrafters, Mosely and Hy-Gain.
Foremost Dairies donated a used home
delivery truck to NOFARS. Members renovated and converted the refrigerated
milk truck into a communications van. But after a few months, expenses for
licensing, insurance and maintenance led to the van being “sold” for $1 to
the city. Jax Civil Defense then assigned the truck back to NOFARS. The
truck/van broke down numerous times--once while providing communications
during a solar eclipse. It would disappear in 1970.
As the sixties ended, Amateur Radio was
evolving away from mainly providing HF long distance communication toward an
increasing emphasis on reliable local communications. The FM repeater still
was an experimental novelty but advances in technology and loosening of
repeater restrictions by the FCC would soon accelerate the rise of the
repeater as a mainstream application in Amateur Radio. The Florida Hamfest
selection was limited to Orlando, Miami and Melbourne. But hams in other
Florida cities, including Jacksonville, were beginning to consider
organizing weekend long hamfests in big buildings with major exhibitors.
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WAYBACK RADIO IN JACKSONVILLE
By Billy Williams, N4UF
The age of electronic communication was
rooted in the invention of the telegraph in 1831, Morse Code in 1835 and the
telephone in 1876. Wireless communications evolved from experimentation
about relationships between electricity, magnetism and wave radiation during
the last half of the 19th century by scientists that included
Faraday, Maxwell and Hertz.
Marconi used these discoveries to
develop equipment that transmitted a wireless message over a distance of two
miles in 1894. The range was extended to ten miles in 1897 and thirty miles
across the English Channel in 1899.
Two years later, wireless transmissions
spanned continents over distances in excess of 1,000 miles. Popular
magazines devoted to wireless telegraphy proliferated in 1904. The military
and government began relying on wireless systems. Breakthroughs made
possible new components such as the Fleming valve, silicon detector and
DeForest amplifier tube.
In 1908, commercialization of the new
technology led to development of two groups within electronic
communications; those who plied their skills for pay and those who were
amateurs--hobbyists and experimenters. The first amateur organization, the
Junior Wireless Club of New York City organized in 1909. Modern Electrics
magazine publisher Hugo Gernsback organized the Wireless Association of
America that same year.
In 1910, more local and statewide
wireless groups formed. Non-commercial in the early days, broadcasting
stations were heard in increasing numbers during the early 1910s.
Increasingly, commercial operators viewed amateurs as nuisances--possibly
leading to the introduction a derogatory term “ham.” Spectrum regulation was
non-existent and interference proliferated from crude sparking transmitters.
The Radio Act of 1912 classified radio
transmitters and operators. Administrative licensing of transmitters and
station inspections began but there was no required licensing. Amateurs were
limited to less-desirable spectrum above 1500 Kc. (200 meters). Commercial
users got frequencies below 1500 Kcs.
Wireless communications progressed from
stand alone operations toward assembly of networks capable of passing
messages over long distances using relay stations at close intervals along
designated paths. Clubs formed to coordinate message relays. One group in
Connecticut founded in January 1914 was the Radio Club of Hartford . An
offshoot organized by Hiram Maxim assembled relay paths covering several
states. This offshoot became independent as the American Radio Relay League
(ARRL). Its membership journal was QST. By 1916, ARRL claimed 1,000 members.
Better components allowed effective tuners to be built for the first time.
In 1917, the U.S. Navy took over as the
regulator of radio communications. The U.S. entered World War I. Hams were
told to stay off the air during the war and many volunteered to serve as
military officers and communicators.
After the war ended in 1919, ARRL
reorganized. QST resumed publication in June and hams returned to the air in
November. With technical advances came an ability to transmit better
wireless audio. Commercial broadcast stations started in 1920, often on
irregular schedules. Some amateur stations converted to broadcast outlets.
8XK became KDKA in Pittsburg. Other pioneer stations included KYW in
Chicago, WBZ in Boston and WJZ in New York City.
ARRL held its first national convention
in Chicago in 1921. The number of radio magazines increased. Regulation of
radio communications shifted to the Department of Commerce headed by Herbert
Hoover. A definition of amateur was “one who operates a radio station,
transmitting or receiving, or both--without pay or commercial gain, merely
for personal interest or in connection with an organization of like
interest.”
In the early 1920s the gap between
broadcasters and hams widened. Long distance tests and contests from 1922
through 1926 along with technical improvements led to intercontinental
communications on ham radio becoming more common. One call active in early
DX contests was 4IZ. Ham radio became an international avocation.
Broadcast radio arrived in Jacksonville
in July 1922. The Florida Times-Union started station WDAL on 833 Kc. and
another station started soon after. In August, WCAN began broadcasting. It
was owned by the Southeast Radio Telephone Company and transmitted
irregularly from downtown. WABG came on in May 1923 operating on 1210 Kc. It
was owned by the Arnold Edwards Piano Company. These stations operated
intermittently and disappeared by 1924.
In the mid 1920s, a half dozen or so
hams were on the air in Jacksonville. Operators included Doc Cheatham, 4DU;
Fred Weinberg 4FS; Ned Winter, 4HY; Reginald Sheppard, 4UX; Gifford Grange,
4HZ; Guy Carter, 4OB and Bob Reid, 4TK. Equipment was homebuilt and
receivers usually incorporated Reinhartz or Schnell tuners. A typical
transmitter was a Hartley oscillator using an RCA UV-202 tube to produce 5
watts on CW. 4DU was one of the earliest phone operators in Jacksonville.
In 1925, the City of Jacksonville
installed a broadcast station just south of Springfield near Laura and First
St. A building used to shelter horses was renovated as a studio. The
city appropriated $19,960 to put the station on the air and operate it
through 1926. The station manager/engineer, John T. Hopkins was paid $250 a
month and his assistant, James Brock made $165. The station, WJAX, made its
first broadcast on Thanksgiving 1925 operating on 890 Kc. with 1000 watts
using an antenna wire strung between two large tapered towers. WJAX shifted
to 880 Kc. in 1928 and 900 Kc. in 1930.
Expansion of the AM broadcast band
and a major national frequency shift moved WJAX to 930 Kc. in 1941. Over the
years, many hams with professional credentials worked for WJAX as announcers
or engineers including W4HZ, W4TK, N4UF and Ernie Harralson, W4DAA. The
original building remained in operation until the early 1970s when the
studio moved to the Civic Auditorium building on the waterfront. WJAX-FM
went on the air in the late 1940s. Both stations were sold by the city to
private groups in the mid 1980s.
License testing for hams began with the
Radio Act of 1927 and formation of the Federal Radio Commission.
International agreements led to the addition of letter prefixes to amateur
call signs in 1928. Continental U.S. stations were ordered to add a W to the
front of their calls. 4DU became W4DU for example. Hams in U.S. possessions
attached a K prefix. Ham bands in 1929 included 1715-2000 Kc., 3500-4000 Kc.,
14000-14400 Kc., 28-30 Mc. and 56-60 Mc.
Things changed quickly during the early
1930s. Local governments moved to regulate radio, sometimes with burdensome
requirements and even special taxes. Limitations were placed on receivers,
especially those capable of receiving police communications. This led to
Congressional action. The Federal Communications Commission was created
through the Communications Act of 1934. FCC took responsibility for issuing
licenses, coordinating spectrum usage and regulating communications. Local
and state governments were pre-empted from enforcing most laws related to
electronic communications.
An ARRL Southeastern Division Convention
took place in Jacksonville in 1931. It was organized by an ad-hoc group, the
Jacksonville Amateur Radio Operators Club. Conventions were much smaller
then. 100 people made a huge convention.
In 1934, local operators organized
formally as the Jacksonville Radio Club. A constitution and by-laws were
adopted at a meeting at 520 Long Branch Blvd. in Riverside. Radio operators
and short wave listeners were invited to join and attend meetings every
Tuesday night. Other active operators in the 1930s included John Hollister,
W4FWZ and Ed Renfroe, W4ATM.
Life got more difficult for criminals in
Jacksonville during 1933 and 1934. George Allen, chief of the signal bureau,
said in a 1934 newspaper interview that Jacksonville police station WPFG
increased power from 100 to 400 watts and added a “new-type” transmitting
antenna and “the latest type of receiving antenna” for inter-city
communications. Messages could be received “by deputy sheriffs all over
Duval County.” WPFG had capability to exchange bulletins by radio with other
police departments in Florida and even some in other southeastern states.
Allen said that during the first year of operation for WPFG in 1933, over
21,000 calls were dispatched to officers by radio. In 1934, the projection
was for 28,000 calls.
Jacksonville’s second broadcast station
started transmissions in 1935. WMBR moved to Jacksonville from Tampa. The
number of hams increased from 17,000 to 55,000 between 1929 and 1935. As
events in Europe intensified toward World War II, some were suspicious of
Amateur Radio as a haven for spies and “fifth columners.” In late 1941 after
the Pearl Harbor attack, Amateur Radio operators were mandated to dismantle
their stations and stay off the air. A few were given special licenses for
limited operation in the public interest as part of the War Emergency Radio
Service.
By 1942, Jacksonville had a third radio
broadcaster. Owned by Joseph H. Perry, publisher of the Jacksonville
Journal newspaper, station WJHP operated on 1320 Kc. WJHP-FM became the
first FM station in town in 1948 operating on 96.9 Mc. Within a year, it was
joined by city-owned WJAX-FM on 95.1 Mc. and WMBR-FM on 96.1 Mc. The first
Jacksonville television station, WMBR-TV went on the air in late 1949 from a
Quonset building near the south end of the Main Street (Alsop) Bridge..
During World War II, many hams served in
the U.S. military and Merchant Marine as radio operators. The modern era of
Amateur Radio dawned when hams returned from wartime service. Locally, the
Jacksonville Amateur Radio Society (JARS) organized in March 1946 with E.L.
Thompson, W4FJC as President and Bill Gardner, W4HWA Secretary. Bill would
be instrumental in forming NOFARS a decade or so later.
A 1948 JARS Beam newsletter
indicated that the group met at the Seminole Hotel downtown on the first
Tuesday monthly at 8PM. A goal was to conduct “a snappy business session
to eliminate some of the drawn out discussions we seem prone to get into.”
The NavAir Radio Club at Jacksonville Naval Air Station formed in 1948 when
the Commandant approved use of a 400-watt transmitter by operators the W4NEK
club station.
At the January 1951 JARS meeting in the
Seminole Hotel, Cy Washburn, W4AWE spoke on “transmission lines and coupling
methods.” A ten-meter hidden transmitter hunt was an early spring activity
on Sunday, April 1st.
1951 Field Day plans included three
stations at Pilot Town near the Mayport Ferry landing on Heckscher Drive.
Organizers included President Harry Miller, W4EEW; FD Chairman Wayne
Backenstose, W4JWX; Ellis Curry, W4IZ; Bill Gardner, W4HWA; Dick Sheffield,
W4GZJ and Bill Tattersell, W4EOE.
Plans for a JARS clubhouse and meeting
site were made in late 1951. JARS was offered a building at the new
Southside Power Plant. The 20x38-foot sheet aluminum/steel frame building
included a large 20x20 room for meetings and two 10x12 rooms for a station
and a shop. Eight JARS members visited the site with three mobile rigs and
found the location to be very quiet. No nearby residences that could lead to
TVI complaints. The closest building was the WMBR TV transmitter several
blocks away.
The catch was that the building needed
to be moved about 500 feet and a fence relocated at JARS expense. The
expense was estimated at $550. Funds were to be raised by taking $10
donations from at least 55 persons.
Later, the project was canceled because
of complications with reaching an agreement with the city and inability to
raise enough money.
JARS did find a new meeting location.
The Southside Branch Library on Hendricks Avenue opened in early 1952 and
the group used a private room in the new building. The March 1952 program
was a presentation on oscilloscopes by Miles Newton, W4EID and the April
meeting speaker was Glen, W4GNB--an engineer with AT&T in Jacksonville.
By-Laws were amended to eliminate monthly payment of dues. Annual dues were
set at $4. W4DAA and W4EEW experimented with amateur television. JARS
members lamented poor propagation on ten and eleven meters. Field Day 1952
moved to Cowpen Lake near Hawthorne. It was a 70 mile trip down two-lane US
301. But turnout was good and the same location was used throughout the
1950s.
John Hollister, W4FWZ served two terms
as ARRL Section Communications Manager for Eastern Florida. John was also
Jacksonville City Auditor. Florida Civil Defense had an office at 2585
Riverside Avenue and local hams maintained a close relationship with CD
officials. Duval County Emergency Coordinator Bill Gardner, W4HWA invited
Florida Civil Defense Director Col. R. G. Howie to visit his station in
Ortega to speak to hams on the air. Col. Howie asked Florida hams “to spread
the gospel of civil defense.” His talk was part of the 1952 ARRL Simulated
Emergency Test. W4HWA told the Florida Times-Union that the purpose
of the test was “ to actively demonstrate to the American Red Cross,
disaster officials and Civil Defense that the most isolated communities have
a reliable means of communication through local Amateur Radio operators.”
JARS set up a portable station on Armed
Forces Day--May 15, 1954--in Hemming Park. Visitors sent radiograms to U.S.
military servicemen and women. JARS W4DU club station also sent out
radiograms from a booth at the Jacksonville Agricultural and Industrial Fair
during the mid ‘50s. Television and radio broadcast interference were big
headaches for hams in the 1950s. Operators were unjustly blamed even when
operating legally within terms of their licenses. Television stations used
much lower power levels than today. TV receivers, antennas and feedlines had
shortcomings especially when receiving signals from UHF stations such as
Channel 36 in Jacksonville. JARS conducted seminars for electronic servicers
and the public to explain causes and cures.
By the mid 1950s, JARS was declining.
JARS had essentially been the only ham club in Jacksonville during the
decade after World War II ended. Complaints about inflexible, boring
meetings and bickering over trifles became more frequent. Membership slowly
shrank from a high point of 65 down to single digits in the early 1960s.
Along with the arrival of the Space Age
in 1957 came the formation of an informal new group of hams. It sprang up at
a backyard picnic on Chaseville Rd. near the old wooden Pottsburg
Creek/Arlington River bridge on what is now University Blvd. Someone brought
tape recordings of radio signals to play for a laugh.
As meat sizzled on the grill, the dozen
or so hams at the wingding listened to strange sounding audio coming from a
balky tape machine. Wowing caused by erratic tape speed led one wise guy to
say that the tape sure sounded “wacky.”
This was obviously a ramshackle group
that would never amount to much!
I wonder what ever happened to it?
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JAX FIELD DAY FLASHBACK: 1951
From the Jacksonville Amateur Radio Society JARS Beam comes this
account written by Wayne Backenstose, W4JWX about the 1951 Field Day
held near the ferry landing on Heckscher Drive in Pilot Town
Fellows, those of you who didn’t get out on our FD expedition missed the
best one we’ve had yet. It’s a little early for returns yet, but we’re
confident we topped the score we made last year. Your writer isn’t at
all sure we won the section, but is gratified at the turnout. We had
three times as many operators available at any given moment as we did last
year.
We can’t do anything about QRN, sunspots and conditions like that, but if
operators are available we can take advantage of every break we get.
This year, we had them.
The work of getting ready for the trip occupied the time of several of
the gang for a couple of weeks before the event itself. Harry Miller
built a complete 10 meter transmitter. He, Hill Tattersall and us
tried out a generator belonging to Bell Telephone. It was noisy.
Warren Watson came through with a transmitter for 80 and a communications
receiver, also a station wagon we couldn’t have moved without. Purdy
contributed his generator. Winslow Baker arrived with a truck that
held an awful lot of equipment and his wife who does a swell job in the
kitchen. That’s only the beginning. There were so many helpers
that we could fill the Beam with nothing else but the names of those
who had a part.
After being up at 1:50 in the morning after Friday night getting things
lined up, we set out at 8AM for Ft. George. Met at St. Nicholas
shopping center on the Southside. Bought $27.00 worth of groceries
(and later ate every damned bit of them). Drove out to Pilot Town (via
ferry) and started in. Erected antennas (and had to do some modifying
later) and went on the air with commercial power, to find out whether the
rigs really worked. Ten meter contacts not so hot, but got one or two.
Forty meters got a guy in Bartow getting set up too. Seventy five not too
good.
At post time the generators are fired up. The BT job is just too
damned noisy. Everything on, Purdy’s line voltage down, all the meters
reading low. Going to fight it out though. W4FIL arrives with XYL and
says a navy job is on the way. W4EOE and then W4IZ have been banging
away on 40 and having a time of it. Ten is even thinner, and we
haven’t had an answer on 75. Then W4LOO drives up in a navy truck
towing a generator mounted in a trailer. Start up and plug in.
From there on out, power is no worry. W4EFZ, W4IZ, Watson and the gang
struggled all night on 75, built antennas, charged feeders and everything
else, no luck.
W4EEW, W4EOE, W4IZ and W4JJX plugged away on 40. Conditions not too
good, a lot of QSB, but hauled one in every so often (I got that W7 in
Utah). Ten dead all night.
While this was going on the rest of the gang sat around and reminisced to
each other (after they got tired bulling they fell asleep). A few went
to the beach to a beer garden and it’s said--but that’s not part of this
story.
Daylight found 75 getting a little better. Forty dying out and ten
improving. Mrs. W4FIL, Harry Miller and Ellis Curry doing a swell job
on the eating department. QRN begins to get bad on the lower
frequencies and the QRM is always with us. Bill Gardner always coming
in from his mobile rig. He brought some beer last year. The shack is
getting littered up with paper, etc.
Most of the gang asleep, not used to these hours, as nearly all of them
are married. A couple go fishing. The 75 meter boys still are
struggling. Ten meter gang waiting for the band to open up. Forty
still fighting it out. Early afternoon, W3AKE/4 drives up, an old home
week with yours truly, met him 15 years ago. Ten starts going to town,
working them as fast as you can call them. On 40, the QRN builds up
til only the loudest can be heard (you’ve worked them already).
By mid-afternoon the 40 and 80 meter bands are swamped with QRN.
Ten going like a house of fire til the last possible minute. That’s
it, dismantle the rigs, take down the antennas, dispose of the trash, sort
out the gear, load the cars, lock up the place, wish you had a good stiff
drink, and start home.
After home, and a bath, we think it over. We had a good turnout,
equipment good, on the whole, but some improvement necessary.
Organization pretty good, we’ll try to improve it anyhow.
As always in these things, some faults show up after you’re started.
That’s how you learn.
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GIBSON GIRL AT NOFARS MEETING
By Billy Williams, N4UF
In the 1980s, I was given a military surplus AN/CRT-3 Radio Set by
NOFARS member Ed Harvey, K4YNM. The set was in mint condition and was
known as a "Gibson Girl." Ed joined NOFARS in the early days. He
recently passed away. Ed's son-in-law Randy Bahr, KI4RHQ is a regular on
the W4IZ repeater and at NOFARS meetings.
I brought the Gibson Girl to NOFARS Show & Tell Night #1 in March. We
got a chance to look inside and it generated curiosity.
I taught electronics at the FCCJ Geis Marine Center when Ed gave it to
me and the Gibson Girl was very useful as a teaching prop for
demonstrating principles of generating electrical power. I used it for
many years. Turning the crank produced enough power for a light bulb and
also for a transmitter that generated an automated SOS on 500 Hz and
8280 Hertz.
The Gibson Girl package included a box kite, two balloons and a canister
of hydrogen gas. When combined with water, the hydrogen would fill up
the balloons in case the wind wasn't blowing.
A 300 foot antenna wire reeled out of the main unit and attached to
either the balloon or box kite. A ground electrode attached to another
wire was thrown overboard.
According to the instruction book, the AN/CRT-3 was a simple, rugged
emergency transmitting system carried on aircraft and designed for
operation from a rubber life raft. The set was dropped over water using
a parachute. Radio transmission on two frequencies was intended for
reception on 8280 KHz by stations cooperating in long distance rescue
and on 500 KHz by aircraft and ships participating locally in a rescue.
The AN/CRT-3 was sufficiently buoyant to float and was colored brilliant
orange-yellow to give good visibility. The radio transmitted
automatically in code. Provision also was made to allow manual keying
using a push button.
In addition to transmitting RF, the radio set also supplied power for a
signal lamp (M-308-B). All electrical power for operating the radio
and/or signal light was furnished by the hand-powered generator inside
the transmitter cabinet.
RF power output was about 2 watts on 500 Hertz and 2 1/2 watts on 8280
KHz. The instructions indicate that possible ranges were up to 300 miles
on 500 KHz. and 1500 miles on 8280 KHz.
Including the generator/transmitter, kite, hydrogen generator,
accessories and equipment bag, the Gibson Girl weighs about 36 pounds. A
parachute also could be included and it weighed an additional 4 pounds.
Typically, if a plane was about to crash or be ditched, the rubber life
rafts and Gibson Girl were thrown out just before the crew bailed. Crew
members then would swim to the rubber life rafts and Gibson Girl.
The Gibson Girl also could be dropped from a rescue airplane to assist
survivors during a rescue operation. Extra padding was available to drop
it over land.
The concept was developed by the Germans during early phases of World
War II. The U.S. improved upon the German invention and produced the
Gibson Girl later in the war. It was used extensively during the Korean
War but was replaced by much smaller devices operating on VHF, such as
the EPIRB, in the 1970s.
The two tube layout includes a 12SC7 as an audio modulator (the unit
sent modulated CW to aid in reception) and a 12A6 as an RF
oscillator/output. A rotating wheel automatically produced SOS when the
generator was turned and keyed either the light and/or the transmitter.
The unit was shaped to fit between the legs of an operator sitting on a
life raft. It was important to turn the generator at a constant speed
and an additional pilot lamp was included in the unit to help the
operator keep the proper cranking speed. The term "Gibson Girl" came
from the shape of the unit.
The next time you watch an old war movie, look for a Gibson Girl
whenever a plane crashes or life rafts are in use.
Photos by KI4RHQ
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BUILDING ELECTRONIC KITS IN THE 50'S
60'S AND 70'S
By Ross Goodall, WD4NJV
During this time period, there were several companies offering
electronic kits for the hobbyist. They offered their products by mail
order. Allied Radio of Chicago offered Knight Kits, Heath Company
offered Heath Kits and Dynaco offered DynaKits while Radio Shack had
Realistic and Archer Kits. Southwest Technical Products as well as
Lafayette Radio had several kits. Remco kits were available in toy and
hobby stores.
Allied Radio in the mid 60's was acquired by Radio Shack and had great
growth by opening many stores, both companied-owned and franchised.
Lafayette opened stores but could not keep up with Radio Shack's variety
of merchandise and number of stores. Allied Radio also had an industrial
catalog that had selected items from the regular catalog and a wide
range of industrial items. The Allied catalog was a wish book for
hobbyists with parts, audio, test, and amateur merchandise.
If you wanted to keep receiving
catalogs, you had to order at least once a year or send in a tearout
post card from a magazine such as Popular Electronics. Lafayette and
Heath each had a store in Jacksonville but couldn't keep up with Radio
Shack. Mail order was fun to do and the mail was checked every day with
great anticipation until your order was delivered.
My first kit that I assembled was a Remco Kit. It was a one-transistor
radio that only picked up the closest AM radio station. For me, it was
WOBS 1360 AM in Jacksonville. Next, I graduated to the Remco broadcaster
which had a similar receiver along with a loudspeaker and microphone.
But it really didn't transmit as it was just a PA system. Radio talk
show host Rush Limbaugh got interested in radio using the deluxe model
that actually transmitted a short distance over AM broadcast. He has
talked about how hard it was to actually key the mike to use it. This
model is in the Excellence in Broadcasting Museum.
The next kit that I built was the Knight Kit AM broadcaster which had
three tubes (12AX7, 50C5 and a 35W4) which were exposed so one could get
burned from the heat on the tubes. I connected a Voice of Music tape
recorder and a mike and I covered the neighborhood. Billy Williams, N4UF
family owned Williams Radio and TV and kept the recorder in good
operating condition. Next, I built a pair of Knight Kit walkie talkies.
Due to my haste to build, one didn't work and I took it to Bob Nichols,
WA4BLQ to find my bad solder joints. I learned the hard way not to hurry
and to limit myself to one-hour assembly sessions. The solder was 60%
tin and 40% lead with a rosin core. After an hour of working with rosin
core, the kit building area had a great aroma of warm rosin.
Heath offered kits that were ready to build and also some that were
already built. Heath was known for a 2 and a 6 meter transceiver they
called a "two-er" and a "six-er" that some called a "Benton Harbor
lunchbox" because they resembled a school lunch boxes. Heath made
trainer kits for classroom teaching and even offered a color television
kit.
The digital display era arrived and I assembled a digital clock and
digital thermometer. Both were later taken out by a power surge. To get
people interested in building kits, Heath offered a free soil moisture
test kit. Heath had all their kits rated by skill level. They
actually had people read the assembly manual and assemble the kits and
Heath would check for clarity of the assembly instructions. Errors
that were made on assembly were noted so the manuals could be clarified
as needed before being released for sale.
Southwest technical products offered several kits. One which I built was
an SCA decoder kit that allowed one to connect it to a FM tuner to be
able to receive the subcarrier from FM broadcasts which contained Muzak
and specialized educational broadcasts. (Today Muzak is all satellite.)
Dynaco offered audio kits that had specifications that were comparable
to Macintosh audio but at one third the price. Dynaco had the toughest
part of the kit pre-assembled so it was harder for the beginner to make
an error in assembly.
As tiny integrated circuits made their way into the industry, soldering
became more difficult due to tight spaces and the use of heat sensitive
components that could easily be damaged caused more assembly problems.
Mass production could be done cheaply and kit offerings declined.
Incidentally, people who want to reach back in the past and grew up in
this era will pay top dollar now for unassembled Knight and Heath kits.
Check your closets and attics.
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CROWN ARES BOUNDARIES CHANGED; NEW DISTRICT CREATED
Recently, the 43 counties in Northern Florida ARRL were reapportioned
into 11 districts. One of the four new districts is New River District
which includes Baker, Bradford, Columbia and Union counties.
Crown District now encompasses five counties: Duval, Clay, Nassau, St.
Johns and Putnam counties and is led by District Emergency Coordinator (DEC)
Miller Norton, W4EMN.
ARRL officials say expansion from seven to eleven districts will lead to
a reduction in mileage and travel expenses for DECs. New River District
will be administered by NOFARS member Richard Nader, N8DER. Richard has
served as Emergency Coordinator (EC) for Baker county over the past several
years. Eventually, a new Baker county EC will be chosen.
In 1982, the district structure for the then 44 counties in the Northern
Florida ARRL section was created by Billy Williams, N4UF who was ARRL
Section Manager at that time. Counties were divided into seven
districts with each one led by a District Emergency Coordinator.
Crown District included Duval, Nassau, Baker, Clay, Bradford, Putnam, St.
Johns and Flagler counties. A few years later, Flagler county was
moved to a different district. But except for Flagler county and a
brief time when Bradford county temporarily transferred to the Gainesville
area district, the Crown district coverage has stayed the same over the past 27 years.
Prior to 1982, each county Emergency Coordinator (EC) dealt directly with
section officials and ARRL HQ.
Northern Florida was one of the early adopters of the new district
concept. Detractors opposed creation of an additional layer of management,
but over the years the district arrangement has proven beneficial. During
that time, one county, Pasco, shifted to another ARRL section.
Miller and Richard invite hams to volunteer to assist with emergency and
relief communications. For Duval county, access
www.duvalares.org For other
counties, do a search to find contact details for your EC.
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146.73 MHz STARKE REPEATER
The 146.73 MHz. Repeater in Starke has good coverage for those
traveling U.S. 301 and other roads in Bradford County. It is located on
the WEAG radio tower on SR100 and is operated by NOFARS VP Ben
Dickerson, K4EL. The Bradford ARES net meets each Thursday at 7PM on the
repeater.
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EQUIPMENT NEEDED FOR SEDAN
Florida SEDAN needs spare VHF rigs and accessories such as TNCs and
power supplies. This gear is placed at relay points (nodes) to connect
emergency operation centers and relief agency HQ into a backup system
which uses Amateur Radio. If you can help with a donation or a good deal
on your used gear, contact SEDAN Coordinator Tom Nolan, KD4MWO
TNolan1013@aol.com
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SCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE FOR HAMS
The Foundation for Amateur Radio
(FAR) administers 55 scholarships to assist Amateur Radio operators
who are planning post high school, full-time courses of study at an
accredited university, college or technical school. Awards range from
$500 to $2,500. For application forms, contact FAR Scholarships; P.O.
Box 831; Riverdale, MD 20738.
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YOUR INVITATION TO
JOIN NOFARS
At only $5 a year, NOFARS membership is a bargain that is hard to
beat. NOFARS membership offers many advantages and shows that you
support organized ham activities in this area. Whether you are a
newcomer or a longtime operator, you are invited to join our group.
To join or renew your NOFARS
membership, send your dues to Billy Williams, N4UF; P.O. Box 9673;
Jacksonville, FL 32208. Please make checks payable to NOFARS.
You may join for multiple years at this low rate.
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NORTHERN FLORIDA
TRAFFIC WEB PAGE
NOFARS member Earl Leach, WX4J has
established a web page which lists items of interest to traffic
(message) handlers. It can be accessed via
http://home.comcast.net/~wx4j
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LEARNING MORE ABOUT ELECTRONICS
A NOFARS meeting program covered tips on
learning more about the electronics theory on which Amateur Radio exams are
based. Reference books are valuable in this regard. Reference and textbooks
can be purchased cheaply at used book stores and online. The information in
entry-level and even mid-level texts has not changed much over the years so
an older edition is sufficient. The sequence of topics is fairly standard in
most basic textbooks regardless of the author. Some widely used textbooks
used in electronics courses include:
Electronic Communications
by Robert Shrader.
Basic Electronics
by Alexander Grob
Electricity And Electronics
by Allen Mottershead
Electronic Fundamentals: Circuits,
Devices and Applications by
Thomas Floyd
Digital Fundamentals
by Thomas Floyd
Data And Computer Communications
by William Stallings
The ARRL Handbook
(formerly Radio Amateur’s Handbook) is
also a good book to study.
Books and study guides also are
available for download via Internet. The progression of study is shown below
along with some of the main subject areas in each category.
Direct Current (DC) Theory: Atomic
structure, electronic units and prefixes, scientific and engineering
notation, conductors and insulators, Ohms Law, multimeters, series and
parallel circuits, DC voltage sources, voltage and current dividers.
Alternating Current (AC) Theory: Magnetism,
generators, oscilloscope, inductance, transformers, capacitors, reactance,
impedance, time constant, resonance, complex numbers and notation.
Electronic Devices: Diodes, bipolar
transistors, field effect transistors, thyristors.
Analog Circuits: Rectification, regulation,
amplifier, power control.
Digital Circuits: Numbering systems
(binary, hexidecimal), logic gates, combinational logic, sequential logic,
D/A and A/D conversion, multiplexers.
Microprocessors: Internal structure, basic
operation, busses, machine language, higher level languages, computer
architectures.
Basic Communications Systems: System
layout, RF transmission, receivers, modulation, measurements, transmission
lines, antennas, television, repeaters, trunking systems, communications law
and procedures, specialty modes.
Digital Communications Systems: Coding,
Decoding, Networks, RF, telephone systems, VoIP.
After acquiring an understanding in
these areas, one may progress further into the specialties of the
electronics field. Some of the more popular specialties include Computer
Electronic Technology, Advanced Communications Technology, Industrial
Electronics and Robotics. For basic electronics, a math background which
includes algebra and trigonometry is needed. High school texts and
electronic math books can be helpful. An understanding of calculus and other
higher level math is needed for advanced circuit design.
Hardware lab trainers and project kits
can help you understand the theory better through laying out circuits and
testing devices. You should become proficient in using the multimeter,
oscilloscope, logic analyzer and other basic test gear. Computer software
programs such as Electronic Workbench allow you to design and
troubleshoot circuits on your computer screen.
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BUYING A HOME WITHOUT ANTENNA RESTRICTIONS
No countywide zoning restrictions
against outside Amateur Radio antennas are contained in Jacksonville’s
ordinance code. While some city zoning employees mistakenly apply a 35-foot
height limit on structures to include ham installations, Amateur Radio
towers and antennas are exempted from classification as “structures.”
