QCWA Peach State Chapter 49 October 2006 Newsletter MEETING NOTICE: SATURDAY October 7, 2006 High Noon Our next meeting will be at our usual location, Fire Mountain Restaurant, Norcross. The restaurant is just west of Peachtree Industrial (141) on Jimmy Carter Blvd (140). ----------------------------------- We have had no meeting minutes since the February meeting or newsletters since the April Newsletter. Also in the meantime, Mike K4HBI stepped down as president and the duties were taken up by VP Jerry Lofstead W3CDE who is now our President. There is no VP currently. We are still looking for someone to take over the Newsletter position as K4SZ is burned out and has little energy or enthusiasm for continuing. There may or may not be another newsletter from here. Receipt of the QCWA Journal today reminded me this time and mention on the Saturday morning net. Jerry did send the article below for the August NL, but it was lost in the junk mail folder for some time but has been recovered and is included here. ------------------------------------- FROM THE PRESIDENT: Good late summer Ladies and Gents, I hope everyone has been surviving the HOT summer so far. As the fall weather stars to cool off in the middle of September, we can start looking at getting new antennas up before the ice storm. As you know the best time to install an antenna is during a snow or ice storm.. I have done that at 3 AM so no one could see what we were doing and in a blinding snow storm. 8-) with the solar cycle still in a decline, the new target for the cycle bottom is now summer of 2007. I, for one, am looking forward to better conditions in a few years. If you have not been active on 160 or 80M during the "down cycle" you have been missing some great fun and DX on CW. Conditions have been great! After a lightning strike to the house at the end of July, we are slowly recovering from it. As of today, the burnt bedroom has been restored and half of the household electronics have been replaced. The insurance company is trying to get better prices than I got for replacement of the multitude of ham gear. Now is a GREAT!!! time to check with your insurance company on what if any of your ham gear is covered with your home owners insurance policy. Some companies cover it and some do not. My policy, with State Farm, will cover it with my deductible. I did not need a rider policy, check yours,before!! you need it... Being a "techie" I had lots of neat electronic stuff in the house. Replacement cost for the household stuff was $4500, ham stuff $8,000. Be safe not sorry!!! The lightning strike hit the house, bypassing some 80 foot pine trees that are 10 feet from where it hit. It also bypassed my dipole which it went right past and got the house...., 3 feet from my "GROUND WIRE!!!" Hummmmm.... ground wire, I wonder if....... Gear that was grounded using a single point ground technique survived, except for a MFJ 949E antenna tuner which give its life to save a FT847... Great work antenna tuner. In the last 23 years that we have been up here on top of the hill, we have had 5 lightning strikes with the biggest damage previously being answering machines, electronic telephones and the power transformer that feeds the house. My vertical has been struck twice, with no damage incurred. So as a final insurance thought, make sure you have "Replacement Value" on the house and contents, the money you save may be your own! You might also consider getting a "whole house" surge protector that is mounted at the power meter. I have one and it protected the rest of the house and all the appliances in the house. The cost is $75-$150. The "gas tube type " will work for many surges. Some are good for only a single strike. Do a GOOGLE search for mains surge protector power protector . to see an assortment of whole house surge protectors. C U at the meeting and have a GREAT WEEK!!!!! 73 Jerry -------------------------------------------------- SK News. (I apologize for this information being published so late. It was sent to Chapter membership by e-mail in May) We lost our 75 year member Bruce Montgomery W4BFR earlier this year. Here is the AJC Obituary. ATLANTA JOURNAL CONSTITUTION TUESDAY MAY 23, 2006 MONTGOMERY, Bruce Bruce Edward Montgomery, 92, of Sandy Springs, died May 21, 2006 of natural causes at Northside Hospital. Bruce was bom in Milan, Missouri on July 11,1913 to Dr. John S. Montgomery and Elizabeth Calfee Montgomery. His parents and only sibling, Hazel Montgomery Kanagy predeceased him. He is survived by his wife, Florence MerI Montgomery, whom he married on April 22,1950 at All Saints Church in Atlanta and his sons and daughters-in-law, Donald Montgomery and Denise Jennings of Sandy Springs and Carl and Barbara Montgomery and their children, Daniel and Sarah, all of Roswell, Georgia. Mr. Montgomery graduated from Park University, Parkville, MO with a degree in physics, and from Iowa State University of Engineering in Ames, IA with a degree in electrical engineering. He was a Professional Engineer registered in the state of Illinois. His entire career was in aviation communication, working first in research and development at Northwest Airlines and United Airlines in Chicago, and later for the Civil Aeronautics Agency (now the Federal Aviation Administration) in Atlanta and in . Washington D.C. After a time with the Air Navigation Development Board in Washington, he joined Lockheed Aircraft (now Lockheed-Martin) in Marietta, GA in i956, working in preliminary design. He was a pioneer in the field of avionics. In 1978 he retired from Lockheed. He was a life member of The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. He was an avid amateur radio operator for 75 years where he went by the call sign W4BFR, and was a charter and life member of the Southern DX Club and life member of the Amateur Radio Relay League, the Quarter Century Wireless Association (Chapter 49), and a member of the Northern California DX Foundation. He was also a member of Mount Vernon Presbyterian Church, the Lockheed-Georgia Management Retirees Association and the Clan Montgomery Society International. If memorial contributions are made, gifts to the QCWA Scholarship Fund sent c/o Mike Swiderski, 772 Camelot Way, Norcross, GA 30071, or to the charity of your choice would be appreciated. Graveside services were held Friday, May 26, 2006 at 2 o'clock at Arlington Memorial Park with Rev. Doyne Michie officiating. -------------------------------------------- QCWA PEACH STATE CHAPTER 49 Web address: www.qcwa49.org 2006-2007 CHAPTER OFFICERS President Jerry Lofstead W3CDE 770-979-5500 w3cde@arrl.net Secretary/Treasurer David Bruse W4DTR 770-623-0149 w4dtr@arrl.net Executive Committee: Fred Runkle K4KAZ 770-945-6326 runkle@charter.net Frankie Womack W4BJT 404-767-5382 w4bjt@mindspring.com Sandy Donahue W4RU 404-315-1443 w4ru@arrl.org NetManager Jerry W3CDE using the K4VN Chapter 49 Club Call: Chapter 49 QCWA VHF Net Wednesday 2000 145.410- MHz ( MATPARC repeater) Chapter 49 QCWA HF Net Saturday 0900 3.8575 Mhz.