From the perspective of a young person who doesn’t have their amateur radio license yet, the hobby may seem quite obsolete. One confused look at the swap section of a hamfest, a glimpse of a boat anchor in an Elmer’s basement…these aren’t the most appealing parts of amateur radio, especially to young people or teenagers […]
Field Report: N2YCH’s POTA Activation with a Magnetic Loop Antenna
By Conrad Trautmann (N2YCH) I tried using an Alpha Antenna 100w 10-40m mag-loop antenna for a POTA activation. I operated on FT8 so I could monitor where my signal was being received by using the PSKreporter.info real-time signal reports from stations that spotted my transmission. I really didn’t know what to expect or how a […]
DX Engineering to Celebrate 25th Anniversary with a Mobile Radio-Equipped Jeep Gladiator at Dayton Hamvention® 2025
Dayton Hamvention® has always been a signature event in the amateur radio year for DX Engineering—a chance to meet, greet, and talk shop with hams from every spot on the globe. If you’ve never managed to make the trip to the Buckeye State for this hamfest of all hamfests, you owe it to yourself to […]
First Look at the HF Signals zBitx QRP Transceiver
When life gives you lemons, you make lemonade! by Vince (VE6LK) Dear readers, it’s been a hot minute since I’ve had time to activate POTA and write about it, and today I tried to activate a park, but a combination of equipment issues and nobody responding to my calls ended my activation. Anyways … when […]
It’s All in the Cards! More QSL Cards from DXCC Entities on the Air in April 2025
In late March we highlighted a few DXCC entities that will be activated in April 2025. Turns out we only scratched the surface of opportunities to fill bands or record ATNOs this month in your pursuit of operating awards. OnAllBands is pleased to present an encore post of April DXpeditions along with QSL cards from […]
The POTA Babe Loses Weight
By Teri KO4WFP I love living in the state of Georgia. The state contains diverse natural spaces – mountains and valleys in the north, rolling hills and forests in the middle, and a plain extending to the coast with wetlands, marshes, and forests. The Georgia State Parks on the Air event celebrates and draws attention […]
Ham Radio Tech: Linear Loading—Long Wire in a Short Space
For some amateur radio operators, putting up a full-length HF dipole is not always feasible. With today’s postage-stamp-sized lots, some hams can only dream of installing a dipole for 80 meters—or even 40 meters. The most common solution has been to add loading coils to reduce length. The Alpha Delta DX-DD, for instance, offers 40/80m […]
Ham Radio Workbenches On The Air Field Report: Part 2
As promised, here’s Part 2 of my extended HRWBOTA activation report from March 16, 2025! As I mentioned in Part 1 of this activation, I’d planned to operate for the full four-hour window of the March 16th Ham Radio Workbenches On The Air (HRWBOTA) event—a rare luxury for me. Most of my field activations typically […]
New Antenna: Elecraft announces the AX3 compact vertical antenna
Check out the following announcement posted to the QRP-L discussion group by Wayne (N6KR) at Elecraft: We’re pleased to announce the AX3 whip antenna. This highly integrated antenna covers six HF bands, handles up to 30 W, and has many features to facilitate quick-deployment POTA/SOTA and general QRP field operation: Coverage of 30/20/17/15/12/10 meters (+ […]
Celebrate 100 Years of the Organization that Helped Save Amateur Radio
In the early 1920s, it was discovered that the shortwave spectrum could be used to support worldwide propagation through ionospheric reflection. It was great for a plethora of applications like international broadcasting, emergency communications, and more. However, despite hams being some of the first to discover this phenomena, amateur radio was actually at risk of […]