Biography

First amateur license, Novice: October 1962, WN4KFH, Raleigh, NC
Conditional / General / Advanced / Extra: 1963 to 1977, WA4KFH
Second station licenses: 1977 to 1981: WB0SVE and AG0T, Whiteman AFB, MO
Current station license: 1981 to present: WA4A

Active member ARRL, Former member Alamance Amateur Radio Club, RACES, AREC
Former member Navy/Marine Corps MARS, 1963 to 1974, N0WUD
Former member Air Force MARS, 1974 to 2015, AFB4KFH, AFB3FT, AFB2KJ, AFA2NE, AFA4RT

Main operating interests now:
-QRP (5-Watts or less) Portable and Mobile /HF,VHF,UHF/ CW,SSB,FM and some digital keyboard modes
-DXing, casual contesting and mountain-topping
-Homebrew and tinkering with QRP rigs and antennas
-SWLing on military,aircraft,marine, public safety and international short wave broadcast bands

The biggest thrill in this hobby has been and still is making contacts with minimal equipment, using flea power to antennas that shouldn't work while operating from unusual locations that shouldn't be worked out of, usually using manually keyed CW! IE, Doing it the "hard way!"

My amateur radio hobby as a teenager turned into my life's work and a successful career in telecommunications.
By high school I had earned the FCC Commercial Radiotelephone (formerly First Class)
and Radiotelegraph Operator's Licenses with Radar Endorsement. After college, I had opportunities to work in public safety, broadcasting and marine radio operations, installation and repair. During my 6-year Air Force enlistment, I was assigned as a maintenance technician NCO on UHF and SSB/HF air/ground radio equipment. After the Air Force, I held positions with ITT North Cape Canaveral, Northrop-Page in Saudi Arabia and Pan American World Services at Cape Canaveral AFS, Florida as an assistant engineer. After trying retirement the first time in 1990, I signed on as a Merchant Marine radio officer on the "USNS Potomac" during Operation Desert Storm and later worked at WAAP-TV. In May of 2016, my second career as a telecommunications technician with Elon University ended after over 18 years of telephone PBX and VoIP work. Now on my second retirement, I have an offer to assist my son, Rob, KC4RTT, with a new venture working in broadcasting and communications tower maintenance and telcom infastructure installation with his new company, TruittTronics!

Besides amateur radio my other interests include amateur astronomy and performing as a semi-professional trumpet player!

73 and God Bless to All!

DE Bob / WA4A

Equipment

My primary rigs are a home-brewed "Go-Box" and a packset consisting of the following gear as shown in the photos on this site:

-Yaesu FT-817ND, MARS modified, QRP (5-Watt) transceivers (MF/HF/VHF/UHF, multi-modes)
-LDG 817H automatic antenna tuner and 4:1 Balun
-Signalink sound card interface and USB jack
-LiFePO4 battery,12-Volt@12-Amp/Hr with charger and input/output accessory jacks
-Comet HFJ-350M, 160-6 Meter antenna
-Telescoping and flex VHF/UHF whip antennas for 146, 222 and 440 mHz
-Palm 817 Mini-paddle keyer
-Formotion 24-hour analog clock
-Detachable Mighty Bright 53510 work light
-Dell laptop with Fldigi software
-Baofeng UV-5RX3 tri-band,146/222/440 VHF/UHF-FM handi-talkies, battery eliminator and speaker/mic

The above equipment, except for the PC, is packaged around a compact, recycled Tektronix, hand-carried equipment case, as a self-contained, multi-band, multi-mode radio command post and includes its own power supply, on-board HF/VHF/UHF antennas and work light. In less than one cubic foot of space, the 18-pound "Go-Box" can be used as a hand-held, mobile, portable or fixed station for local and world-wide voice, telegraph, amateur satellite and digital communications. With its general-coverage, cross-band, transmit/receive capabilities, ability to use various power sources and antennas and being NTIA and FCC compliant, the "Go-Box" can be used on all 14 U.S.amateur bands, MARS, as well as many government and commercial frequencies between 1.8 and 520 mHz "off-the-grid" in emergency situations or for fun filled field days, vacations or contest outings.

This "Go-Box" design project has won first-place awards at hamfests in Charlotte and Raleigh, NC and in Richmond, VA.

In 2020, a new Yaesu FT-818ND transceiver, LDG Z-817 antenna tuner and a Talentcell LiFePO4 12-Volt@12-Amp/hr battery were configured in a new Sherpa pack with a mounting frame from Portable Zero along with a new Comet HFJ-350M antenna as a second QRP station. All analog modes and bands from 160 Meters to 70 Centimeters can be worked as a pedestrian mobile or portable with this amazing setup. In addition, the Go-Box and packset rigs can be used together for full-duplex satellite work with a dual-band handheld VHF/UHF antenna.