Biography

I was originally issued a novice class license back in the 70's when they were only good for 1 year and non renewable. I was a Radioman in the US Coast Guard from 75-79 at Commsta Kodiak, AK and morse code was very much in use back then. Jump forward to 2006 when my friend and elmer K1OUM (sk) suggested I get back into the hobby. I currently hold an extra class license and I try to stay active. I'm about 85% CW and the rest is digital modes. I enjoy JT-65A, RTTY and PSK31. I try not to miss any of the bigger contests. I enjoy kit building and have recently built a VEC-1320 qrp-cw xceiever and an LCR meter. My current antenna is an Alpha Delta DX-CC (my 1st and only store bought antenna). Previously I had a long wire antenna and a G5RV. Not sure the DX-CC is an improvement over the G5RV, but it sure is nice not having to re-tune after each band change in contests!

Equipment

My main station consists of:

Icom IC-756Pro
MFJ-949E Tuner
Winkeyer USB
Alpha Delta DX-CC wire antenna up around 20ft (80 to 10 meters)

My backup rigs are:

Kenwood TS-130e
Kenwood VFO-120
Kenwood TS-830s
Viking Valiant II
Hallicrafters S-108
VEC-1320 QRP-CW Transceiver