In reading the report and order carefully, it's evident that the FCC, justifiably stated that Federal preemption should not apply because the contract (CC&Rs) is entered into voluntarily by the ham radio operator.  This is surely the case for any ham who's already licensed when he/she acquires property; it isn't necessarily the case when one acquires property, and then later becomes a licensed ham.

Possibly this is the "loophole" required to further the cause of hams.

Of course, hams simply boycotting all real estate having undesirable restrictions might help, too.  I see far too many whiners and far too few "doers" when it comes to this subject.  If you're already a ham and buy property in a restricted area, for shame!  I wouldn't do that, and I've owned more than a dozen homes in several areas of the U.S.  I've never found an area that didn't have lots of perfectly suitable homes free of restrictive covenants.  It pays to look.  I mean, really look.  We have to focus our sights way beyond new construction.  In most places I've lived, seen, and visited, the "older homes" in more settled areas have no restrictions at all.  I like them better, anyway.

WB2WIK/6

I'll send this to your personal e-mail account as well, but why not just list this as a "wanted" in the Classifieds section?  Dow Key relays are very easy to find, I must have a dozen laying around, myself.  See them at every amateur swap meet...not a rare item.

73 de Steve, WB2WIK/6

This subject has been beaten to death and there are volumes written on it, but since your question sounds sincere, if you want to "master" CW:

-Don't listen to it at slow speeds, at all.  Forget about how much you copy and focus on making sense out of complete (CW-sent) thoughts and sentences.
-Definitely _use_ CW, and feel very free to use it at a speed which is well beyond your copying ability.  Unless you're trying to save the next Titanic, it really doesn't matter if you copy everything, or even half, of what the other station sends.  Legally, the only thing required for you to do is to copy the other station's callsign.  That makes a contact.  Everything after that is details.
-Don't listen to, or count, dits and dahs -- it will drive you nuts, and serves no purpose.  Everyone who never "mastered" CW falls into this category, and if you really want to be proficient, you must learn to copy thoughts, not letters, and surely not dits and dahs.
-If you really _use_ CW (and don't just listen to it, but make contacts!), you'll quickly find your brain adapting to Morse patterns that make common words.  Dah  didididit  dit becomes "the."  Didahdit  didit dahdahdit becomes "rig."  Didahdah  dahdididah becomes "weather" (WX).  This is all mundane stuff that's part of the beginning of most ragchews.  When you recognize the patterns, and thus the words, your brain will know what's coming next.  WX will be followed by some report of the weather.  RIG will be followed by a description of equipment.  When you know what's coming next, it's easier to copy.
-Put the pencil and paper away.  It's impossible to write fast enough to work higher speed CW, although an excellent typist might be able to do it on a keyboard.  But it's most efficient to just listen and enjoy.  If you don't write down the other guy's name, but heard it, and then forget it -- just ask him again.  It's no crime to forget stuff.  It's more of a misdemeanor to try writing everything down...that _really_ inhibits speed.
-After 35+ years of working a lot of CW, the only things I ever write down during casual work is the other station's callsign, name and location, in a line of my logbook.  That's it.  Everything else is just "listened to," and recorded in my brain; no reason to write anything else down.  Writing is tiring, CW is not.  If you speak with someone in person, or on the telephone, you don't write down what they're saying, do you?
-Practice sending excellent CW using a paddle and electronic keyer.  Operating (making contacts) is the best way to practice, since it's interesting.  Solicit reports on your sending.  Unless you're already great, some of the early reports might be disappointing, but keep at it and they'll get better.  It's no crime to send poorly, it's only a misdemeanor to keep doing it for a long time.
-And most of all, have fun.  Practicing CW isn't fun, making contacts with it is.  Make contacts.  Lots of them.

73 de Steve, WB2WIK/6

I guess it depends on what you need to "work right."

Good-quality (mil-spec) RG11/U is fine cable and performs about the same as good-quality (mil-spec) RG213/U, which is its 50 Ohm counterpart.  The fact that RG11/U is 75 Ohm cable isn't terribly important in many applications.

In fact, using 75 Ohm cable to feed a half-wave dipole up 1/2-wave above ground, you'll likely have a better match than you would using 50 Ohm cable.  Problem: Most amateur test instrumentation (like SWR bridges and Wattmeters) are designed for use in 50 Ohm lines.  When used in line with 75 Ohm cable, you'll get errors in readings.  Whether this is important to you or not, is up to you.

73 de Steve, WB2WIK/6

K0RS: Thanks.  I had already contacted ICM, and they've already quoted.  I was "hoping" to find someone who might have had a xtal set laying around from a scrapped M2, but probably won't!  I'll try the others.

This isn't for me, I don't even like the M2, but for a friend in Israel who evidently has the rig but without the xtal set for some reason.

Thanks again.

73, Steve, WB2WIK/6

Anyone have, or know where I can buy, the following KWM-2 L.O. crystals?

40m  10.155 MHz  P/N 2909027-00
20m  8.5775 MHz  P/N 2909062-00
20m  8.6775 MHz  P/N 2909063-00
15m 12.0775 MHz  P/N 2909097-00
15m 12.1775 MHz  P/N 2909098-00
10m 15.8275 MHz  P/N 2909201-00

Thanks!

Steve, WB2WIK/6

You can buy the manual from http://www.w7fg.com

I don't believe there ever was a 99'er "service manual."  The owner's manual has a complete schematic diagram with all parts callouts and testpoint voltages.

Although the mike connector is a standard Amphenol 80M type, I'd change it to a 2-conductor isolated contact connector, such as an 80MC2M (Amphenol) or a 1/4" 3-conductor (stereo) phone jack, so that the PTT modification can be installed.  The rig is much handier to use with push-to-talk, and it's an easy modification to make, requiring just one small relay and a bit of wiring.

73 de Steve WB2WIK/6

These are not comparable.  The BY-1 is a paddle and must be used with an electronic keyer.  The Vibroplex Original is a semi-automatic "bug" key, which does not use an electronic keyer.  The technique to operating them is very, very different, as are the skills required.

In general, the BY-1 and a good electronic keyer will do things, and more easily, that the Original will not.

Steve, WB2WIK/6

A "ground plane" implies the ground you're looking to achieve is part of the antenna, and is an image plane that mirrors the main radiator.  As such, it must be installed directly beneath the antenna, typically right at the antenna feedpoint, where half the RF current is intentionally conducted directly into it.  If you're going to use indoor or attic-installed antennas, I don't see how a "ground plane" comes into this picture.

It sounds like what you're really looking for is an earth ground, in addition to the "safety" ground the utility company provides as the third wire to your electrical outlets.  Whether you need such a ground or not depends on the kind of antenna(s) you install.  Resonant, current-fed antennas, fed with coaxial cable, require no grounding system of any kind in order to perform exactly as they should; an earth ground to your station equipment in such a case is superfluous.  If you intend to use random wire, voltage-fed antennas, an excellent RF ground, provided by a very low impedance path to earth, or provided by a tuned, resonant counterpoise system indoors, will help a great deal.

In your case, it sounds like an outdoor earthing will be difficult to achieve.  I'd stick with resonant, current-fed and coaxially attached antennas if at all possible; otherwise, a wire loop running around the internal perimeter of the attic, fed with twin lead or ladder line (balanced line, not coax) to a good tuner having a BALANCED LINE connection, should work well and not create much stray radiation.  In such a case, you're using a balanced line to feed a balanced antenna and no earth ground is required.

73 de Steve, WB2WIK/6

I haven't had my hands on a Tempo One in many years, but from your description this sounds like the plate blocking capacitor, which isolates the HV power supply from the plate tank circuit while coupling RF from the PA tube plates to that same circuit.

It may have failed simply from old age...the Tempo One is a nearly 30 year-old rig.  Or, it would be very stressed if you tried loading the rig into "no antenna," or a higher impedance antenna than the pi-net output circuit can handle.  Try replacing it with a .001uF, 2500Vdc (or higher voltage rating) ceramic disk capacitor and give it a go, again.  Don't skimp on the voltage rating of this capacitor -- the actual (DC + peak RF) voltage across it is MUCH higher than the DC voltage of the Tempo One's power supply.

73 de Steve WB2WIK/6

I'd just use the WH6 call for HF work.  Hawaii isn't rare for anyone who didn't just get on the air yesterday, and although for DXCC and DX contest purposes, Hawaii counts as a DX entity, in all cases one must provide not only a callsign but a second piece of information as an exchange.  That second piece of information in CQ WW contests is a zone, and you'd now be in Zone 5 instead of Zone 31, so it's pretty obvious you're not in Hawaii.  In ARRL contests, US stations send their state while DX sends their power level, so again, it would be obvious.  In SS, as in Field Day, you send your ARRL section, so again: Obvious.  

The exceptions are: For VHF work or the CQ WPX contest, I'd stick the "/W3" at the end of the callsign.  Reason is, on VHF, Hawaii can be quite rare for anyone who isn't in Hawaii.  In the WPX contest, the prefix that counts is your prefix, as modified by your location.  In WPX, you can't sign WH6 unless you're really in Hawaii.  That is, if you care about WPX!

73 de Steve WB2WIK/6

I'm a fairly old-time CW op (37 years of CW and counting...) and the general interpretation is:

T9 is normal, and probably 99% of the signals on the bands nowadays really are T9.  Musical note, no hum.

T1 through T6 or so are almost unheard of and impossible, although a raspy signal from an unregulated power supply, powered by a generator running out of gas and on its last breath, just might achieve something in this range.  But it would be highly unusual.  I can't remember the last time I heard anything below a T7 signal.

The "whoop whoop" you hear on some signals, and this is more likely to occur with older equipment, and homebrew equipment, is really a "chirp," not a bad tone.  A "chirp" is reported by a "C" at the end of the signal report, like 569C.  It's caused by lack of stability in an oscillator that translates to a signal that pulls in frequency slightly as the transmitter is keyed.  Used to be a _very_ common problem with equipment from the 1940's, 50's and even a bit into the 60's, which used VFOs that just weren't engineered very well.  With modern equipment, unless the equipment is really malfunctioning, a chirp is rare.  Of course, anything goes with homebrew equipment!  I've built stuff in the past few years that had a chirp -- shame on me, but that happens when you're trying to run a VFO off a weak battery.

Signals that sound raspy due to auroral flutter, which is most prevalent on "over the pole" paths, still normally deserve a T9 report.  We all know about polar flutter.  Severe auroral distortion occurs during major disturbances, to the extent that a CW signal sounds like a shift in noise and has no tone at all; under these conditions, who cares about "T" reports?

Many receivers, including modern ones, create raspiness in the tone of received CW signals (as well as SSB signals) when their noise blankers are used.  This is because the blanker is effective at blanking noise only in the absence of a strong signal in the IF passband; when a signal appears, the original noise (unblanked) rides on that signal and modulates it.  A very common occurance, especially with poorly designed blankers that unfortunately exist in many of our rigs.  Can't blame the other operator for that, I'd still give a T9 report.  The noise I'm hearing isn't his fault.

73 de Steve WB2WIK/6

The grid and plate element signals are normally 180 degrees out of phase, but due to interelectrode capacitance, especially on higher frequencies, this can shift to be something less desirable, rendering the tube stage unstable and possibly causing it to oscillate (as opposed to amplify).  Neutralization is external circuitry, normally passive, which provides adjustment of this phase shift by introduction of a small amount of intentionally coupled plate signal back to the grid, to help maintain stability.  When tubes are changed, because of tiny differences in interelectrode capacitance, this circuit normally requires readjustment, since we're typically talking tenths of a picofarad in feedback capacitance shift.

WB2WIK/6

That's a matter of local zoning and ordinances, nothing Federal.  Contact your local building inspector's or zoning office.

However, in general, there's nothing prohibiting installing a tower right next to a pool.  My 51' tower is maybe six feet from poolside and the cement slabs adjoin, and this was approved construction.  The inspectors only want to assure you've installed the tower in accordance with manufacturer's specifications and local zoning, if any applies.  I doubt there's any specific rules about proximity to pools; if there was, few hams in southern California (where I live) would be allowed towers!

73 de Steve WB2WIK/6

Why fibreglas?  If it's skinny like a fishing pole, it will also bend like one.  If it's thick like a vaulting pole, it will be strong but very heavy and extremely expensive.

I'd be tempted to just use telescoping aluminum tubing sections, clamped or screwed together to make the desired length, and then painting the whole thing blue or whatever color you like.  Texas Towers sells 6063-T832 alloy aluminum tubing (light and very strong) in diameters that telescope into each other, in 6' and 12' lengths.  I'd probably use four 6' lengths of .750", .625", .500" and .375" each to make a 24' long aluminum whip that costs $20.40 total (Texas Towers' List Price for all four pieces) and is very, very strong.  It can be easily painted any color of the rainbow, and the sections are short enough to ship regular UPS.

When I worked in the antenna business years ago, we used to manufacture VHF antennas using fibreglass tubing as the outer protective (and mechanically supportive) cover for copper elements.  A perfect example of this is the famous "Stationmaster" antenna, developed by Communications Products Co., which became Phelps-Dodge, which became Celwave.  The 2 meter "Stationmaster" is 21' tall with a tapering fibreglas pole as the outer cover.  The fibreglas pole was the most expensive part of the antenna, and used to cost about $100 back in the 1960's.  I'll bet they're more expensive, now.

73 de Steve WB2WIK/6