New Hobbies

[eytonxav]

Some great Ham Radio stories here.

DFW_M5 - QRP CW and digital modes such as PSK-31 can still work pretty well for you in a stealth situation.

omni550 - the kits that I build always work because I follow instructions to the letter, just like yourself. Good for you! That sounds like it was a fun kit.

MT, Its amazing what you can do with low power. While I call it stealth, believe it or not I have a 40' vertical in the backyard, painted green, to blend in with the trees. It was a major PITA to get approval from the HOA and town to erect it. I'm still laying radials and need to add about 30 more. Wish I could string up a nice dipole, but the only place for that would be in my attic which probably isn't the best location given all the AC and metal ducting.

 

[Major Tom]

Not boring at all braumeister. I've read a number of stories from hams who either worked for a consulate or had connections, with the resulting tales of getting on the air from all kinds of exotic DX locations. It always makes for good reading. Dave Bell's stories of getting himself on the air while in the army by utilizing the unused military gear and an old beam that needed fixing come to mind also.

Good stuff, and good to know that you did your bit for international understanding!

Dancer373 - I'm salivating just thinking of all the great used gear and parts at Hamcation. Have never been to a ham convention in the US, if you can believe it, though I did go to amateur radio rallies when young in the UK. I'm going to Pacificon this year, which should be a lot of fun. It will be my first ham convention ever in the US (and I've been here for 24 years - shame on me.) One advantage will be that I should get to see the Elecraft KX3 which is due to come out later this year. It's going to be a groundbreaking radio - first one with SDR architecture and a classic knob-based interface. WG0AT already got to use one, lucky guy

 

[want2xplore]

Good to see so many fellow hams on the board. I'm now entering my 42nd year in this insane hobby.

I started as a Novice in the days when Novices were limited to 75W input and crystal control. I was SO glad when I finally upgraded and could use a VFO.

Built plenty of Heathkits, fixed a few boatanchors, built plenty of antennas, worked DX from the mobile, and such. I made the pilgrimage to Dayton a few times (I missed this year's scat volcano in the flea market) and generally had a grand 'ol time.

Still on the air every day but now I mostly listen. Sunspots cooperate now and then but, for some reason, I seem to only find out about openings AFTER they happen. Oh, well.

Even after all these years there's still something magical about it. Cellphones and computers are fun, of course, but they can't touch Amateur Radio for sheer magic.

 

[Nords]

But Nords' Morse code flashcards? No way!

Back in the Evil Empire "good ol' days" of the Cold War, U.S. Navy submarine radiomen had to be able to copy at least 16 words per minute of CW and transmit something like 6 or 10 wpm before they could earn advancement to E-6.

Then you'd go to sea for 90-day patrols, copying this stuff continuously 24/7 for three months.

When your XO (USNA '71) could transmit CW good enough to joke with the other radiomen about your personal appearance and your ancestry, you stepped up your game. After all, I had a plebe year. Besides, I wasn't going to leave my Morse flashcards at home since my spouse already had her own set stored there for us to practice.

A few years later, when we all started spending our "peace dividend", I was on a different surfaced submarine transiting the maze of channels off the Canadian/U.S. border. A Canadian frigate pulled abreast and started transmitting flashing light, probably because he wanted to [-]trade insults[/-] enhance his interoperability with his allied counterparts. (Either that or they couldn't raise us on VHF Ch16.) Our CO called down from the bridge "Hey, XO, make sure we're logging this communications net!" which is CO-speak for "I have no idea what the heck he's saying, so you'd better be backing me up."

The XO looked around the control room and said "Can anybody read flashing light?" I had just gotten off watch and had plenty other things to do so I wasn't about to raise my hand. Luckily another enthusiastic submariner said "Sure, XO, I can do it!" He leaped onto the periscope, a sailor stood ready with his logbook & pen ready to record this vital tactical information, and our steely-eyed killer of the deep said: "Stand by to record: Dash! Dash! Dot! Dash! Dash! Uh, dot, no wait dash!"

After he'd been thrown off the conn, I was on the damn scope for over an hour.

 

[rescueme]

I'm not a ham, but it makes perfect sense to me.

I'm a ham, but don't have a radio

 

[Dancer373]

Great stories Nords!

Omni, I am a female as well and constantly kid the guys about following directions. I think it's in their genes.

Braumeister, I've had 3 calls. a 4, then a 6 (which was my great uncle's call) and now back to a 4 which is a 1X3 as it suited my nickname.

I had never thought of ham radio as having any special kind of language until I started reading all the posts here, lol. Might have to have a dictionary to decode

 

[oma]

Picked up tennis again after not playing for nearly 20 yrs. Just so happen that my community has some really nice clay courts that I didn't even think about when I bought my condo here in FLA.....after about a year into retirement, posted my contact info on the bulletin board at the courts, then started playing again. Has been an excellent way to meet new people, stay in shape, etc. I even purchased a ball machine, so I always have a way to hit when I can't find a game. Only problem is finding a balance between the golf game and now tennis.

 

[ERD50]

Apologies for the long ramble, but I'm a bit of a proud father right now!

Very cool. Question on that last pic - I see the copper is the ground plane, but what exactly are the little squares used for connections? Are they simply a little copper on an insulated substrate (epoxy board, FR4?), glued to the ground plane to provide a junction point? Or are they also caps to provide by-pass?

-ERD50

 

[TargaDave]

Surfing!

Still waitin on that video!

 

[TargaDave]

In the spirit of the thread; a little restoration project on a Buzzards Bay 14 (Herreshoff) reproduction boat produced in Falmouth, MA. Some day when I'm too feeble to kiteboard I might actually take it out.....

 

[Lsbcal]

I'm a landlubber but appreciate a nice looking sailboat.

 

[vicente solano]

Alan, thanks for the volunteer as moderator. Hope you like this hobby!

Yeah, Alan, Thanks. But be a moderate moderator when moderating

 

[eytonxav]

It would seem that posting here is a hobby to many given your post counts. Makes me wonder how some of you have time for other interests, but what do I know, I'm still working, ugh.

 

[davemartin88]

The XO looked around the control room and said "Can anybody read flashing light?" I had just gotten off watch and had plenty other things to do so I wasn't about to raise my hand. Luckily another enthusiastic submariner said "Sure, XO, I can do it!" He leaped onto the periscope, a sailor stood ready with his logbook & pen ready to record this vital tactical information, and our steely-eyed killer of the deep said: "Stand by to record: Dash! Dash! Dot! Dash! Dash! Uh, dot, no wait dash!"

After he'd been thrown off the conn, I was on the damn scope for over an hour.

In my working days, I was troubleshooting a problem over the phone with a telephone switch, working with a site tech that was very new to the business. He mentioned that there were some lights in the room that were blinking that might have something to do with the problem so I asked him to describe them, after a pause, "on, off, on, off", very helpful.

 

[Rambler]

Yeah, Alan, Thanks. But be a moderate moderator when moderating

Vincente, I just about spewed my morning drink when reading this. Who says you are boring?

R

 

[vicente solano]

Vincente, I just about spewed my morning drink when reading this. Who says you are boring?

R

Most things proposed by my group of friends just eliciit a non-committal, polite silent response from me, at best.

 

[Nords]

Still waitin on that video!

Sorry, missed this one the first time through.

My daughter and I have been trying to do this for the last couple years, but when the surf is good then the last thing we want to do is be fiddling with camera buttons. And when the surf is really good then fiddling with camera buttons is downright dangerous.

I think during her three-week college break (starting tomorrow) I'm going to call the Surf Shooter photographer and see what they can do for us.

 

[Helen]

We've re-discovered an old hobby - hiking and hill walking. For the last 30 years we have had kids to bring up, limited vacation time and lived in S. Louisiana or SE Texas, so it was a long way to go to find hills.

Me too. I moved into NE Portland (Oregon) last January; I had lived about 40 miles west of the city before that. Now I am 1/2 hour away from the Columbia River Gorge. I've been hiking 3k - 5k ft. elevation gain hikes most weekends. It is getting me in excellent shape for multiday backpacking trips.

I really want to hit the hiking trails on Mt. Hood, but the blasted snow hasn't melted enough yet.

It feels really good to do a long, hard hike. And, this part of the country is so beautiful - the waterfalls, ocean beaches, mountains, rivers, lakes... I need more free time!!! At least I am not on call every other week like I had been for the last seven years.

 

[Helen]

Same here. In fact, I'm currently looking for a new lightweight daypack. DH and I are taking longer day hikes, and I need a bigger pack for the 5-6 hour hikes.

I just bought an Osprey Exos backpack. They come in 3 different volume sizes. I got the medium (Exos 46) which is kind of big for a day pack, but it gives me room to carry liters of water (for conditioning), gym clothes, lunch and groceries (if I stop on the way home from work). I can also use it for a weekend backpacking trip. The Exos 34 would be a nice size day pack.

For multiday backpacking I just bought an ULA Circuit. Both packs weigh about 2 pounds. And, my new Tarptent Moment arrived today, ~ 2 pounds for a one person tent. Next will be an upgrade to my sleeping bag. I'm looking at either a Western Mountaineering or a Feathered Friends and aiming for a 2 pound 20 degree bag. Life is good!!!!!

-helen

 

[braumeister]

I just bought an Osprey Exos backpack.

+1 on Osprey; they make great packs. But Gregory and even REI have some terrific ones, so if anyone is looking at packs, I would strongly encourage them to do it in a 2-step process:
First, go through the specs online to make a list of models, weights, and capacities.
Second, and this is really important, go to a good store and try them on before buying one.

Next will be an upgrade to my sleeping bag. I'm looking at either a Western Mountaineering or a Feathered Friends

I got a new Feathered Friends bag last year (a Kestrel), and it is just as awesome as I expected.

 

[toreornot]

Interesting thread. I'm working again after a brief furlough during which I had a hard time adapting to a full time free lifestyle. Now I am desperately trying to plan for the activities I would enjoy doing, and that will really do when retirement for good comes.
Tennis for sure, as I currently play as regularly as I can. As long as my legs let me, that is.
Ham yes, although I had packed my stuff 5 years ago when moved overseas. Now that I'm back I haven't opened the boxes except for some components to tinker around - yes, the smell of melting solder is exhilirating even the Rohs version.
I think no one mentioned playing a musical instrument. I bang the family room piano occasionally and I like to think that I will dedicate myself to improving my skills when I have time.
I'll keep an eye on this thread to check on more activities people are succesfully enjoying in retirement.

 

[nafddur1]

Having raced karts for 11 years as a kid (1957-68), 42 years later I picked this sport up again, just last year. Staying competitive with racers 1/2 my age (or more) is the biggest challenge.

 

[harley]

Having raced karts for 11 years as a kid (1957-68), 42 years later I picked this sport up again, just last year. Staying competitive with racers 1/2 my age (or more) is the biggest challenge.

For me the biggest challenge would be getting back up out of the cart after the race. Bring in the derrick!

 

[nafddur1]

For me the biggest challenge would be getting back up out of the cart after the race. Bring in the derrick!

Funny you mention that. I'm reasonably agile, so I wasn't too worried about the physical part of getting in and out of a kart, even in pit stops for driver changes where you have to move quickly. At 60 years old, however, I was more concerned about my general physical endurance. Though the arrive and drive karts aren't the 100+ mph machines `real' racing karts are, they still do 40-50 mph and take some muscle to get around a track at racing speeds. Before I started endurance racing, I knew how much sweat even the 3-5 minute sprint races produced. Doing 3, 15 minute stints in a 1 1/2 hour race (and even longer stints in the 3 hour races) had me a little worried. But once I got through my first race, I knew I was still physically able to do it. And sweating off 3-5 pounds every race is a pretty exhilarating workout!

I DID break a rib recently, however (the first broken bone I've ever had), and have since resorted to wearing a carbon fiber rib protector. Oh well - I guess age does make one more `brittle.'

 

[Nuiloa]

I don't enjoy walking for walking's sake, but give me something to look for and I'll walk for miles.

The ideal hobby for me is geocaching. There are nearly 1.5 million geocaches worldwide, ranging in difficulty from 1 to 5 and in all different terrains (also ranked 1 to 5 for difficulty). It's reasonably cheap (after you buy a hand-held GPS or download the App) and it's addictive.

I've found 92 - still trying to get my hundred. Wish I'd taken a photo of my legs after the last hunt..... they were literally BLACK with mosquitoes! Never did find that one, either. I'll go back in the Fall.

Nui