All posts by Fred Kemmerer

I enjoy station building, contesting and helping new folks to join and have fun with our hobby.
Education and Training, Featured, General, Youth Activities

NARS Supports Local Scout JOTA Event

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Members of the Nashua Area Radio Society recently joined three local scout troops to support their Jamboree On The Air (JOTA) activation. Alan KC1PWB, Dave K1BER, Ethan KC1YZN, Frank KC1ONH, and Fred AB1OC spent JOTA weekend with the Scouts, helping them set up and operate an HF station. We also provided Fox Hunts and supported Scouts as they worked toward earning their Radio Merit Badge.

Antenna Set Up

Preparing To Put Up Our Antenna
Preparing To Put Up Our Antenna

The Scouts began setting up their antenna early on Saturday. They set up a 40-ft guyed mast at their campground and attached a 40m – 10m Off-Center Fed Dipole antenna to the mast.

JOTA OCF Dipole Antenna
JOTA OCF Dipole Antenna

The antenna went up smoothly, thanks in part to the pre-event build and test of the antenna and station held a few weeks before the event.

Station Operation

JOTA Station Transceiver
JOTA Station Transceiver

The scouts made quick work of setting up their station and got on the air in short order. The station was powered by a quiet Honda generator and included a 500W amplifier to facilitate contact. You can find more details on the station here.

Operating during JOTA Weekend
Operating during JOTA Weekend

The scouts took turns making contacts. It took a few contacts for them to get comfortable on the air, but they got the hang of it pretty quickly.

You can see part of one of the QSOs from our JOTA activation by clicking on the video above.

Scouts Working on Radio Merit Badge
Scouts Working on Radio Merit Badge

Frank, Alan, and Dave helped Ethan work with the scouts throughout the day to complete the requirements for their Radio Merit Badge. All in all, it was a very enjoyable weekend for everyone involved. We are all looking forward to doing more activities with the scouts in the future.

Consider Supporting Our Youth Outreach Work

The Nashua Area Radio Society is doing great work to bring STEM learning through Amateur Radio to young people. If you’d like to support our work, please consider donating to help fund our programs. You can learn more here.

Fred, AB1OC

Antennas, Featured, General, Youth Activities

NARS JOTA Station

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Nashua Area Radio Society members got together recently to build a portable station to support the upcoming 2026 Scout Jamboree On The Air Event for several local scout troops. Ethan Aho KC1YZN, Alan Whitney KC1PWB, Frank Baron KC1ONH, and I put the station together in my backyard and tested it. It is powered Field Day style with a Honda 2000W generator.

Antenna System

OCF Dipole on 35 ft Mast
OCF Dipole on 35 ft Mast

We are using a Buckmaster Off-Center Fed (OCF) Dipole on a 35-foot guyed fiberglass push-up mast for the antenna. This setup covers 40m, 20m, 10m, and 6m. It’s pretty quick to erect, and it’s a solid performer in the field. We are using 100 ft of LMR-400uF coax for our feedline.

Transceiver System

JOTA Station Transceiver
JOTA Station Transceiver

The magic in our JOTA station is in the transceiver. We want the Scouts to have fun and make lots of contacts. To this end, we’ve combined a top-notch IC-7300 Transceiver with a 500-watt amplifier. This should give our young operators a strong signal on the air. I’ve run this setup before, and it works well with the Honda EU2000 generator that we are using.

We are also using a MacBook Air computer running MacLoggerDX for Logging and WSJT-X to enable digital contacts.

Elecraft 500W Amplifier and Tuner
Elecraft 500W Amplifier and Tuner

Here’s a closer look at the amplifier/tuner combination. The Buckmaster OCF dipole needs a limited-range tuner on some bands to achieve a suitable match. The Elecraft KAT500 tuner paired with our KPA500 Amplifier handles this nicely. Our generator handles the amplifier’s full 500W rating with plenty of headroom. We will not be using the amplifier for WSJT-X operation, so we are not concerned about overloading the generator in FT8 and other digital modes.

Testing and Performance

So how did the station perform? Well, we did some limited testing before storms moved in during our test session. We received signal reports in the 59+ to 59+20 dB range from the US stations we worked on the 40m and 20m bands, and we made several DX contacts to the southern portion of South America using FT8 on 10m. Based on these test contacts, I’d say the Scouts are going to have some fun!

Join the JOTA Fun!

The 2026 JOTA event takes place on October 16th, 17th, and 18th. Our group will be on the air on Saturday, October 17th. Our Scouts will be on the 40m, 20m, and 10m bands. They will be operating mostly SSB phone in the General sections of these bands. We will be using the Club callsign N1FD. Get on the air and give the Scouts around the world some contacts!

Fred, AB1OC

Education and Training, Featured, Member Spotlights

Hamilton Stewart, A Friend and and a Great Mentor, SK

We received some very sad news recently. A long-time member and supporter of the Nashua Area Radio Society and Amateur Radio, Hamilton Stewart, K1HMS, has become a silent key.

I first met Hamilton at a NARS exam session where he earned his  Extra Class license, by passing the Technician, General, and Extra exams all in one session. He became active with NARS and began contributing almost immediately. Hamilton made many contributions to NARS.

Hamilton served as an instructor for our license classes and presented some of the most difficult topics in a way students could understand. He was famous for his Yagi antenna demos, which will be missed at our license classes.

Hamilton explaining a design of his at Project Night

Hamilton was an engineer’s engineer – one of the best that I have had the pleasure to know. He would always take the time to patiently explain the most difficult ideas in simple terms, helping them master technical concepts. When members need help repairing a radio or another piece of gear, Hamilton helps them get back on the air. His workshop was impressive, and he really knew how to use his gear.

Pierce, K1FOP and Hamilton, K1HMS Testing CW Stations
Hamilton, K1HMS Testing CW Stations

Hamilton loved Field Day and served as co-chairman. He was always there to help us build our stations and to operate them. We would find a way to pitch in and help with whatever the team needed to succeed at Field Day. He was always team-focused.

Hamilton was also a past Treasurer of NARS, and served on our non-profit incorporation/501(c)(3) committee

Hamilton loved to mentor and wrote many articles on our website to help newer folks learn about Amateur Radio station building, operating, and electronics. You can find his contributions in this area here.

It was a privilege to have known Hamilton. I have the highest respect for him as a person. Even when he was very sick and fighting to regain his health, he found time to continue contributing to NARS’ educational work and to share his knowledge and mentor others. I will miss him very much.

You can find information on the final arrangements and his obituary here.

Fred, AB1OC

Radio Amateurs Developing Skills Worldwide