KE8QPX
Mike Staskiewicz

PO Box 111
Lamont, MI 49430 USA[email protected]CQ Zone 4, ITU Zone 8
EN73ba
County: Ottawa
SKCC # 25628

Mike in Lamont Michigan USA

Hello from Lamont Michigan. It's a nice little place. Pretty quiet, but that's just fine. Located on the north side of the Grand River, we are about 15 miles west of Grand Rapids and 20 miles east of Lake Michigan.Got into ham radio almost without knowing what happened. As a kid, enjoyed a crystal radio with a wire clipped to my bedspring. Later it was a small transistor radio that was the best Christmas gift ever. Then nothing radio-related for maybe 45 years or so. Didn't care, didn't miss anything.An Uncle was a ham radio operator from the 1960's thru the 1980's. Saw him run his station a couple of times, neat, but I did not have an interest. Was young and dumb did not understand what was going on.Maybe 2016 or so, shortwave grabbed my attention and listening to HF sideband was interesting. Didn't really know what it was.Kind of wanted an actual ham radio, probably a HT (didn't know there was no HF there), just to listen, some day. But nothing came of it.In December 2020, inadvertently saw a forum post about a Yaesu FT-65R. Seemed good enough, bought one. Really enjoyed listening, but I couldn't talk, no license. Early February 2021, got my technician license. Cool. Studies for the general have stalled for now.January 2022 started taking a Morse Code CW class. Ended in early February. Have the basics, now more practice and experience is needed. Early 2023, a local VHF simplex net has brought back the CW interest and has added another reason to practice and to continue improving head copy and keying.Equipment in use: HT is a Quansheng UV-K5. VHF base is a Yaesu FT-2980R and a Samlex SEC-1223 power supply using a N9TAXLABS VHF/UHF Slim Jim antenna on a Sotabeams mast strapped to my deck rail putting the top of the antenna about 25-27 feet above the ground. Mobile is another Yaesu FT-2980R with a Larsen NMO2/70B half wave antenna on a truck bed stake mount. Other equipment, Sotabeams Tactical Mini Compact ultra-portable 6 m (19.6 ft) telescopic mast and an Elk Antennas 2M/440L5 Dual-Band Antenna which are not used together--the Elk is on some PVC on a camera tripod. HF base is an ICOM IC-718 with a FL-53A 250Hz narrow filter and a N9SAB rugged nano dipole tuned for 40 meters. CW straight key is a J-37 (J-45), CW single lever paddle is an American Morse Equipment Mini-B Miniature Single Lever/Sideswiper. 2M SSB is a Kenwood TR-751 with a homemade horizontal dipole antenna 21 feet above the ground. GMRS call is WRUR463 on Retevis RB87's. All radios and batteries are powered by solar energy.That's about it. 73