Kansas City Scouts Get Hands-on with Ham Radio

Boy Scouts in the Kansas City area will soon get to experience the fun and science of Ham Radio. Scouting 500, held at the Kansas Speedway September 22-24, will offer Ham Radio Explorations and a host of other science, technology, engineering and mathematics (S.T.E.M.) activities.

Scouting has a long history with Amateur Radio. Scouts have earned Radio Merit Badges since 1919. Many Scouts have gone on to earn their Amateur Radio Licenses, becoming lifelong Hams and professionals in a range of technical fields.

True to Scouting’s motto, the Ham stations set up at the weekend camporee will be well prepared. For example, coordinators will be using DX Engineering premium RG-8X 50-ohm Coaxial Cables to ensure all stations operate at peak performance for the event.

There will be six stations set up at Scouting 500:

Station 1

* Yaesu FT-8800 Mobile FM Transceiver with a Cushcraft 5-element beam antenna. The antenna will be mounted on an MFJ tripod antenna mast and pointed with a Yaesu 5500 Azimuth-Elevation Combination Rotator

* PacSAT 32 satellite locating software to visually geolocate different amateur satellites’ positions, including the position of the International Space Station

Station 2

* HF PSK using FLDIGI and operated via an Apple laptop

* Kenwood TS-590S Transceiver with Kenwood proprietary software, which will be remotely operated through GoToMyPC software installed on an Apple laptop

* This station will feed into a Bushcomm Three-Band End-Fed Antenna (40, 20 and 10 meters)

Station 3

* HF JT65 Packet using a Yaesu FT-450D Mobile Transceiver and a Signalink radio modem

* The station will feed into a 3-element Thunderbird Jr. yagi antenna

Station 4

* Pi-network running Y.A.A.C. software

* APRS geolocation software package

Station 5

* Local UHF/VHF station using a Kenwood TS-710 Transceiver feeding into a Comet discone antenna

Station 6

* HF CW Station/HF SSB using an ICOM 7200 Transceiver feeding into a Princeton 80 meter Windom antenna

The shack will also display a history of Amateur Radio in public service and have information available on radio science and the International Space Station. Two practice key sounders will be set up for Scouts to experiment by sending their names.

Equip Your Own Well Prepared Station

DX Engineering is pleased to offer three Getting Started packages for Ham operators of all ages to make building a station easy and affordable. All purchases are backed by the best technical support in the industry from the Hams at DX Engineering.

DX Engineering Getting Started Base HF Radio Package

* Beginner's Base Transceiver from Alinco (DX-SR8T), ICOM (IC-718),  Kenwood (TS-480SAT) or Yaesu (TS-480SAT)
* Samlex Power Supply
* Buckmaster OCF Dipole Wire Antenna
* 100 ft. of DX Engineering 8X Coaxial Cable with PL-259 Connectors
* Heil Sound Pro 6 Headset
* Heil Sound Headset Adapter Cable for the Transceiver
* DX Engineering Foot Switch

DX Engineering Getting Started HT Radio Package

* 2 Meter/70 cm Handheld (HT) Radio from Alinco (DJ-500T), ICOM (IC-V80-SPORT), Kenwood (TH-K20A) or Yaesu (FT-270R)
* RT Systems PC Software for Easy Radio Programming
* Portable Radio Antenna (15 Inch Flexible or 52 Inch Telescopic for the ICOM Radio)
* Headset or Speaker-Microphone

DX Engineering Getting Started Mobile Radio Package

* 2 Meter Mobile Transceiver from Alinco (DR-B185HT), ICOM (IC-2300H), Kenwood (TM-281A) or Yaesu (FTM-3100R)
* 2M Mobile Diamond Antenna (52.4 Inch Monoband or 40.2 Inch Dual-Band)
* Coaxial Cables with Installed Connectors
* 3 Mounting Options for Each Radio Combo: Magnet, Trunk/Hatch, or Luggage Rack