UVARC Maker Net — September 21, 2026
Net control: K0WLY (Carl), Saratoga Springs Frequency: 146.78 | Opened: 6:58 PM | Closed: 7:44 PM local time
Check-Ins
11 stations checked in tonight:
| Callsign | Name | City |
|---|---|---|
| K0WLY | Carl Cowley | Saratoga Springs |
| KC7XE | Stanley Dye | Pleasant Grove |
| KK7RRW | Wade Shearer | Lehi |
| AJ7KY | Kyle Butt | Pleasant Grove |
| KM7HET | Kalin Ekker | Hanksville |
| KJ7FKT | Justin Steele | Las Vegas |
| KM7CDK | John Todd | Eagle Mountain |
| N7BEB | Bruce Bray | Salt Lake City |
| KM7BLA | Spencer Ellis | Salt Lake City |
| KD7RR | Randy Rollins | American Fork |
| KI7GGG | Nick Capener | Lehi |
Bench Reports & Traffic
K0WLY (Carl) — No design or build work this week; sick for the first half, then catching up the rest. Hosted a small group build Saturday evening at his place for the K0WLY CW Keyer boards — a few makers came together to build and talk radio.
KC7XE (Stanley) — Finished another end-fed halfwave antenna, adapted from a spooled antenna design. Redesigned and 3D-printed an improved spool — trimmed unnecessary bulk for a cleaner build. It's a 40-meter end-fed with a crank-wound spool, a counterpoise attachment point, and a built-in 49:1 unun, all in a compact package. Field-tested on a trip with good results.
KK7RRW (Wade) — Nothing built this week but spent several days helping KK7RRU design an HF station: scoping antenna options, measuring available yard space, and discussing mast and mounting options. Landed on a solid plan — now just a matter of pulling the trigger.
AJ7KY (Kyle) — No report.
KM7HET (Kalin) — No report.
KJ7FKT (Justin) — Checking in, no traffic.
KM7CDK (John) — Working through 6-meter band fundamentals, comparing an end-fed wire (with tuner) against a mobile vertical (borrowed from a friend). Trying to understand propagation and get into the Farnsworth repeater on 6m, without success so far. Also troubleshooting a solar-powered Meshtastic node (ESP32-based, 3000 mAh battery) that isn't holding charge through cloudy stretches.
N7BEB (Bruce) — Checked in; reported later in the net (see discussion below).
KM7BLA (Spencer) — Checked in to say hello, no report.
KD7RR (Randy) — Late check-in, no report — just enjoying listening in.
KI7GGG (Nick) — Late check-in, no report.
KN0JI (Noji) — Late check-in, no report.
Group Discussion Highlights
- 6-meter repeater access: Wade (KK7RRW) confirmed the Farnsworth repeater is active and that he hits it reliably every Friday night, and shared offset/tone info. Bruce (N7BEB) described success working 6m with both a J-pole and a "flower pot" vertical raised to about 20 feet.
- Mesh node power comparison: Extended discussion comparing the NRF52840 (Nordic chip) vs. ESP32-based nodes/Heltec V4 boards. Consensus: Nordic-chip nodes are far more power-efficient, running multiple days on a 3000 mAh battery, while ESP32/Heltec V4 nodes often die within a day.
- Antenna connectors: KN0JI asked about the antenna connectors on an NRF52840-based board; the group identified them as U.FL (Hirose) connectors.
Program Announcement
Carl announced plans to add a monthly Zoom call alongside the weekly radio net, inspired by the Vienna Wireless Society's Maker subgroup (~20 members), which Bruce is also part of. Bruce offered to share a link to that group's approach, describing how video calls let members show builds live and get real-time troubleshooting help.
Magic Smoke Award
No submissions this week.
Net closed at 7:44 PM local time. Write-ups, links, or photos to accompany reports can be sent to k0wly.ham@gmail.com for inclusion on the blog (uvarcmakernet.blogspot.com). Join the discussion on the UVARC Slack, #maker-net channel.
Invitation to Join the UVARC Slack Channel and #makernet within.
- Audio Recording of this week's UVARC Maker Net
- Transcript of this week's UVARC Maker Net
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