As a young ham, it can be challenging to know how to get more involved with the hobby. Even if you’re interested in exploring unfamiliar aspects of the amateur radio world, it often feels hard to break into each specific realm. Youth On The Air (YOTA) is a group that aims to help young people […]
New Summer, New Radio: Field Testing the Thunderbird
by Sam Duwe (WN5C) I really like homebrew radio. I’m also seeing a pattern: I build through the winter and the spring, get rusty at CW, and then spend the summer operating POTA until my ears bleed. So it’s good to be back! Here’s a quick report of a new radio I built and its […]
Take Advantage of 6 Meter Season: Learn What 6-Meter Antennas Other Hams Are Using
Hams have described 6-meter operating the same way Forrest Gump waxed folksily about life’s parallels to a box of chocolates: “You never know what you’re going to get.” OnAllBands blogger Mark, K8MSH, compared sudden and unexpected 6-meter flurries to a “flash mob.” And that’s what intrigues and excites operators about this most unpredictable of VHF […]
It’s All in the Cards! QSL Cards from Top Ten Most Wanted DXCC Entities, Part 4: Peter I Island
DX Engineering is a Major Equipment Sponsor of the February 2027 Peter I DXpedition. Today, OnAllBands’ global tour of the top-ten Most Wanted DXCC Entities per Clublog takes us to our first cold-weather location: Peter I Island, an uninhabited, glacier-covered rock 240 nautical miles from continental Antarctica. Ranked #7 on the list, this Norwegian dependency […]
A Peaceful POTA Stop at Lake James with the Penntek TR-45L
by Thomas (K4SWL) On Tuesday, May 20, 2025, I was on the final leg of my trip back home from Dayton. After spending some time with my father—who was in the hospital at the time (happy to report he’s now home and doing much better!)—I performed a pedestrian mobile activation of Tuttle Educational State Forest […]
Oh Canada! Looking forward to spending time on the air with you…
Over the next few weeks, you won’t see my US callsign, K4SWL, out there in the spots—but you will see my Canadian callsign, VY2SW! Yesterday, we finished packing the Subaru, handed our keys to a friend who’s house-sitting, and hit the road! We’ll be in Canada through the rest of June and most of July […]
Dean’s Compact KX2 Field Kit in a Pelican 1150
Many thanks to Dean (KG7WGX) for sharing the following article about his portable field radio kit, which will be featured on our Field Kit Gallery page. If you would like to share your field kit with the QRPer community, read this post. KX2 Field Kit by Dean (KG7WGX) I have used Pelican boxes in the 1150 […]
Who’s Zoomin’ Who? Making the Most of Online Video Conferencing in Amateur Radio
The Queen of Soul may have been way ahead of her time. “Who’s Zoomin’ Who” is the title of a 1985 Aretha Franklin tune. In the context of the song, zooming means trying to catch the attention of someone else or checking someone out. Today, zooming has been adopted to describe the use of video […]
New Products Spotlight Video: Meet the Multi-Use REZ SCOUT Portable Ham Radio Antenna System
If you’re thinking about ways to improve your Field Day 2025 performance (June 28-29) with a solid piece of gear that will serve your POTA and SOTA activations for years to come, you’ll want to watch today’s video spotlight on the REZ SCOUT Portable Antenna System. DX Engineering’s Michael Murphy, K8IR, reviews this versatile, well- […]
Memorial Day POTA activation in Maine
by Micah (N4MJL) As a junior pilot on the seniority list at American Airlines, it was no surprise to me when my May schedule had me flying all of Memorial Day weekend. Fortunately, it was a pleasant surprise to see that I had a decent overnight in Portland, Maine. I was scheduled for 15 hours […]
