Amateur Radio (ham radio) is a popular hobby and service that brings people, electronics and communication together. People use ham radio to talk across town, around the world, or even into space, all without the Internet or cell phones. It’s fun, social, educational, and can be a lifeline during times of need.
New Date for Workshop is November 24th @ 9AM
Learning how to solder electronics properly offers numerous advantages, starting with the ability to create and repair electronic devices. Proper soldering skills enable you to join electronic components securely, ensuring reliable connections that can withstand the rigors of everyday use. This skill is essential for anyone interested in DIY electronics projects, as it allows you to build custom circuits, repair broken gadgets, and even modify existing devices to better suit your needs. By mastering soldering, you gain the confidence to tackle a wide range of electronic tasks, from simple repairs to complex builds.
Another significant advantage of learning to solder properly is the enhancement of your technical and problem-solving skills. Soldering requires precision, attention to detail, and a steady hand, all of which contribute to improved fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination. Additionally, the process of diagnosing and fixing electronic issues sharpens your analytical thinking and troubleshooting abilities. These skills are not only valuable in the realm of electronics but are also transferable to other areas of life and work, making you a more versatile and capable individual.
Lastly, proper soldering techniques can lead to cost savings and sustainability. By being able to repair your own electronic devices, you can extend their lifespan and reduce the need for replacements, which is both economically and environmentally beneficial. This skill also opens up opportunities for creative reuse and recycling of electronic components, contributing to a more sustainable approach to technology. Moreover, the satisfaction of fixing something yourself and the knowledge that you are reducing electronic waste can be incredibly rewarding, fostering a sense of accomplishment and responsibility towards the environment.
The Peterborough Amateur Radio Club is hosting a virtual Basic License Course that Starts October 21st 2024 @ 7PM
Cost is $60
The Course will be conducted Virtually via Google Meet. Any outside participants that wish to take the course with PARC are welcomed to do so, and in person or remote exams are available after the completion of the course, and included in the cost. The $60 fee also includes a free membership to PARC for the remainder of the Calendar Year.
Recommended Study Material Can Be Purchased Here, it is recommended that you purchase the book for later reference, but a loaned copy of this material (for peterborough area participants) can be arranged if you do not want to use the book after the completion of the course.
This course is focused on what you need to learn to pass the exam only, and a workshop will be hosted in Peterborough at a later date for New Hams.
Contact education@ve3pbo.ca for more information.
All meetings are hybrid meeting of combined in-person and Google Meet. The meeting location is at Otonabee Valley Public School’s Library, 580 River Rd S, Peterborough, ON K9J 1E7. Take south doors from parking lot and walk straight to Library.
Peterborough Amateur Radio Club meetings are “usually” held on the first Tuesday of each month at 7:30 pm. All amateurs including anyone interested in becoming an Amateur radio operator are welcomed to attend PARC meetings.
Meetings are not held for the months of July and August.
For the details of the next PARC meeting please visit the Events Page.
PARC Fox Hunts usually happen every two weeks on Sunday. Start location is the top of Armor Hill (Drive to the Peterborough Museum and Archives, and Drive to the parking lot at the top of the hill.
Fox Starts Transmitting at 13:00 on 146.580 reset your cars odometer lowest distance wins. Winner is the next fox.
Next Hunt is October 20th! Fox is Scott VE3TCG.
Fox Hunts are not a race, participants are expected to obey applicable driving laws.
The 2024 Corn roast was a great success at our new location at the Riverview Park and Zoo. Thank you to all who came out, and those who brought food. Special Thanks go to Barry VE3BLM for the use of his BBQ, Jordan VE3AVA for cooking, and arranging the new venue last minute, Clay VE3YCL for Cooking and the use of a burner for the corn, Martin VA3OMW for the pot and picking up the corn. If you have any more photos from the event please contact VE3YCL.
Thanks to a lot of hard work by the Tech Team. VE3TJR which is located near Buckhorn, on Deer Bay is now Linked to the network full time via Allstar.
The Yaesu DR-1X Repeater running at 15 watts, has been replaced by a commercial Motorola MTR2000 running at 40 Watts. This should greatly increase coverage of the cottage area, including handheld use on buckhorn lake.
The duplexer has been sucessfully finetuned to decrease loss.
A cell phone modem, and MikroTik Router have been installed to link the repeater via Allstar for now until the completion of the HamNET Project. The equipment has been successfully moved into a 2 post rack, that was donated last year in preparation for the installation of equipment from the Selwyn Fire Department.
Getting TJR to this point has been a multi month project. With donations of Equipment, and funds from members, the new repeater was purchased with funds from the spring donation program. We thank all members for their contributions. We would also like to thank Selwyn, and Selwyn FD for the continued use of this site for emergency communications.
Field Day this year was a great success! We have two new Amateurs who wrote their license, a 13 year old boy who was interested, and managed to get on the air and is on his way to getting his Amateur Radio License.
Thank you to Peterborough ARES/ACS, The City for Donating the use of Newhall Park, Harmen VE3EMA, John VE3VL, Dave VE3SD, Jordan VE3AVA, Nina VE3IRK, Andrew VA3AND, Phillis VE3PVB, Devon VE3DEV, Martin VA3OMW, Clay VE3YCL, Jon VE3XOE, John VA3NW, Chuck VA3NY, Peter VE3GYY, Wayne VE3WRL Rick VE3IQZ, Rick VE3RKY, Scott VE3TCG, Henry VA3ZRS, Terry VA3IX, Barry VE3BLM, Paul VE3AXT, Brian VE3NSI, and all the XYLs who helped with food.
Thank you to Every Club member who stopped by! Despite the poor weather we managed to operate for most of the 24 hours.
We have two new Hams:
Brian VA3BZT
Wayne VA3KVZ
We had a total of 11 operators, the score will be updated once Dave wakes up (he was there for the entire time).
We will continue to update the gallery as all the photo sources come in.
Contact Rick VE3RKY to join the sessions. First session is June 14th 2024 at 8PM via Google Meet.
The Morse code learning program will start with group sessions one day a week. The sessions will be Friday nights at 8pm for one hour.
Bob, VE3IEL will lead the group
We will be using the Koch method in these sessions.
Morse code characters are sent at full speed from the beginning.
We will start with a reduced set of characters initially.
Gradual expansion of characters over time.
Start with just seven characters (xyzjqhs).
These characters will be sent at full speed e.g., 15 words per minute, wpm, “words” (groups of 5 characters) will be sent at 5wpm
Students will listen to the characters in 5-letter groups for 3 minutes.
The goal is to copy (write down or type) the characters accurately.
Once 90% accuracy is achieved, students can move to the next lesson.
Each week, more characters will be added to each lesson.
Maintain the same overall speed (e.g., 5 wpm) while expanding the character set.
Students should practice daily for 45 minutes per session.
Scramble the characters to ensure varied practice.
Starting with the least often used characters provides more focused practice.
A group of PARC Members got together to Celebrate Rick Page’s (Our Repeater Technician) 80th Birthday. Happy Birthday Rick. Photos Courtesy of Bob VE3IEL.
