CTARC Meeting - 22 Jan '22

The first meeting of 2022 for the Cape Town Amateur Radio Society will take place on the lawn outside our clubhouse on Saturday, 22nd January at 14h00.

The meeting will be a Show and Tell format, where members are invited to bring along any ham radio-related projects you have been working on, or items of interest, (whether complete or not!) and tell the club about it. If you have an interesting ham-related workshop tool or other gadget that you think will be of general interest, bring it along and tell us about it and how it works, (or was supposed to work!). Even tools or projects that didn’t work out as anticipated are interesting and your fellow members can learn something new. Show and Tell has always been one of our most interesting meetings.

We will also have a Swop Shop where ham-related items may be traded. The CTARC will also have some donated equipment up for disposal for club funds.

Club Regalia will be on sale... we now have a Credit Card facility, so come and buy your short-sleeved golf shirts for the summer.

QSL cards may be collected from me, as mentioned on the Bulletin some cards are from 2014!

If you have ordered a Club Name Badge that will be waiting for you too.

It promises to be a scorcher this Saturday; so please bring some water or refreshments, and be there on time, to get your spot under the trees.

****All Covid protocols will be in place as usual and your mask will need to be worn at all times covering your nose and mouth.

Don't miss this 1st meeting of 2022, it promises to be very interesting.... See you all on Saturday....

Regards,

Anne Bareham
(CTARC Sec:/ Treasurer / Editor)
072 268 1207

_________________________________________________

Note: this meeting has taken place. Read the report in the February 2022 Newlsetter.

CTARC End-of-Year Function To Go Ahead - 4 Dec '21

Hi Everyone

Our end of year function will go ahead this Saturday, 4 December 2021. (The weather looks doable so far). Start time is 13h00. (The fires will be lit at 12h00). Outside the clubhouse in Laidlaw Road Rondebosch.

The committee have agreed that the club will supply the fires and socially distanced chairs, plus all liquid refreshments will be complimentary until the stock runs out!

That means you will need to bring along... your meat and accompaniments, plates, cutlery, glasses and braai tongs and extra liquid refreshments if required. Even if you do not intend to braai, please come out and say hello to your friends at the event.

COVID 19 Precautions

Having the function in this format will be the safest for all and following the Covid-19 protocols. If you have been in contact with someone suffering from Covid-19 or feeling the symptoms yourself please do not attend. Everyone must sign in and wear a mask at all times except when eating. The club will provide hand sanitiser for entry and at the braai area. It is imperative that social distancing of 1.5 metres be maintained especially at the braai area. Please do not be offended if a committee member asks you to please wear your mask correctly or social distance should they see you are too close to another member. It is for our mutual protection. Remember that wearing a mask is mostly for the protection of fellow club members, not yourself. Show that you care

The Committee will have some donated items for sale on a table. If you have items you wish to sell, you may do so providing you only set up your goods from 13h00. Sellers will need to supply their own bottle of hand sanitiser for the protection of their customers to handle goods and cash. To keep the event small and safe we are not inviting non members to buy or sell. (They will be invited to our usual March flea bumper market).

*** Gentlemen please remind your XL's / XYL's that there will be two tables set up for lady crafters to come and show / sell their wares. Do let me know if I must keep you a space.

So that's where we are at right now, it will be great to see some of you again and we hope 2021 may get us all back to some kind of normality without all of these health safety restrictions.

Further updates may be sent out once the weather for the day has been confirmed. See you all there.

Regards,

Anne Bareham
(CTARC Sec:/ Treasurer / Editor)
Cell: 072 268 1207

CTARC Meetings Cancelled - Jan '21

Owing to the dangers of the Second Wave of Coronavirus in our country, the CTARC Committee has regretfully decided to cancel future monthly clubhouse meetings (held on the fourth Saturday of the month) for January and February 2021. It is also the law because parks and large meetings are still off-limits in terms of the regulations.

We are also considering whether the March meeting will still take place, and will keep our members informed in good time. The official announcements scheduled for 15th February should give further insights on the way ahead.

In the mean time, all radio hams rejoice in the fact that the Coronavirus doesn't propagate by electromagnetic waves (well, not yet, anyway) so we may maintain contact using that medium!

We do thank all our CTARC members for their understanding and support for our club throughout these extraordinary times we live in. Keep faith! These difficult circumstances will pass.

Hi Everyone

Our end of year function will go ahead on Saturday, 28 November 2020, (weather permitting). 

It will be in the form of a braai held on the lawns outside the clubhouse. Start time 13h00. (The fires will be lit at 13h00). 

The results of the survey are in, and we had 50 replies. (I would like to thank everyone who took the time to complete the survey for me).

We had 22 "yes" replies and of those 18 replied to "bring your own meat".

Therefore the committee have agreed that the club will supply the fires and socially-distanced chairs, plus all liquid refreshments will be complimentary until the stock runs out!

That means you will need to bring along... your meat and accompaniments, plates, cutlery, glasses and braai tongs and extra liquid refreshments if required. Even if you do not intend to braai, please come out and say hello to your friends at the event. 

COVID 19 Precautions

Having the function in this format will be the safest for all and following the Covid-19 protocols. If you have been in contact with someone suffering from Covid-19 or feeling the symptoms yourself please do not attend.

Everyone must sign in and wear a mask at all times except when eating. The club will provide hand sanitiser for entry and at the braai area. It is imperative that social distancing of 1.5 metres be maintained especially at the braai area. Please do not be offended if a committee member asks you to please wear your mask correctly or social distance should they see you are too close to another member. It is for our mutual protection. Remember that wearing of a mask is mostly for the protection of fellow club members, not yourself. Show that you care. 

The committee will have some donated items for sale on a table. If you have items you wish to sell, you may do so providing you only set up your goods from 13h00. Sellers will need to supply their own bottle of hand sanitiser for the protection of their customers to handle goods and cash. To keep the event small and safe we are not inviting non-members to buy or sell. (They will be invited to our usual March bumper flea market).

So that's where we are at right now, it will be great to see some of you again and we hope 2021 may get us all back to some kind of normality without all of these health safety restrictions.

Further updates may be sent out once the weather for the 28th has been confirmed.

 

(As of 25 December, the weather for Cape Town is predicted to be sunny, with a maximum temperature of 22 degrees.)

Regards, 

Anne Bareham
(CTARC Sec:/ Treasurer / Editor)
Mobile: O72-268-12O7

___________________________________________________________________

 

Note: This event has now taken place. A report-back with photos is [ here ].

CTARC International Lighthouse/Lightship Weekend - 22 Aug '20

The Cape Town Amateur Radio Centre will once again take part in the International Lighthouse Lightship Weekend, on the weekend of Saturday/Sunday 22/23 August  at Green Point Lighthouse in Mouille Point, Cape Town - but with a difference. Owing to the Coronavirus lockdown requirements, the Lighthouse's premises are unavailable this year. However, we may nevertheless do the following...

Going Ahead With Social Distancing...

Members are welcome to set up their own stations and operate parked from their cars near the Green Point Lighthouse and are free to use the ZS1CT/L call sign provided they fill out a Google form and ask Rob ZS1SA our chairman for formal permission.

What is the ILLW? Is it a Contest?

The event is NOT a contest. There are no prizes, certificates or other enticements to participate and therefore, participation is free. Each station's operators decide how they will operate their station regards modes and bands. Participants are not committed to being on the air during the entire period - only as much as they can. There are no restrictions on aerials or power. We wish operators to enjoy themselves and have fun whilst making contact with as many amateur radio stations as possible. We request that stations take time to work other lighthouses or lightships as well as the slow operator, or the newly-licensed or QRP stations.

How close to the Lighthouse do I have to be?

As most available space in many lighthouses is usually filled to capacity, our activity does not have to take place inside the tower itself. Field day type set-up at the light or other building next to the light is OK. Our guidelines require that the station must be AT or ADJACENT TO the lighthouse. Adjacent means next to or as close as possible. The intention behind this requirement is that the station should have a visible presence to the passing public who may be visiting the lighthouse over the weekend.

Please note that the exchange is CALLSIGN (ZS1CT/L), Report, and lighthouse reference ZA0006. Kindly send your call logs to Chris ZS1CDG.

To register your intention to setup a station kindly fill in the Google logging form here: shorturl.at/fhkmo

Note: There is no access to mains electrical power at the lighthouse this year, so operators must provide their own power sources / batteries.

Chris ZS1CDG

CTARC Indian Radio Kits - 7 Aug '20

DON'T GET BORED DURING LOCKDOWN! GET BUILDING...

INDIAN RADIO KITS: uBITX

The CTARC is organising an exciting construction project for interested club members:

A QRP HF transceiver covering the HF bands, with the following features:

• Up to 10 watts PEP on lower HF bands, dips to 5 watts on 28 MHz;
• SSB and CW modes;
• Simple to build and align;
• Minimal controls;
• Based on Arduino Nano controller and a Si5351 for all local oscillators;
• Double-conversion, superhet architecture

The cost of this HF radio transceiver is $209-00 (USD) = R3500-00 ZAR (at today's  exchange rates), excluding RSA taxes and VAT. The final costs  will be conveyed to purchasers on the kit's arrival in South Africa. We are hoping a bulk order will reduce these costs).

The full uBITX version 6 Kit is comprised of:

1. The Main uBITX board;
2. Main uBITX board with mounting hardware;
3. TFT - Arduino Board with Display with mounting hardware for the front panel;
4. Encoder with pre-soldered cable;
5. Tuning knob;
6. Volume control knob;
7. USB extender cable;
8. Mounting screws & nuts;
9. Microphone;
10. Power Supply jack;
11. Speaker;
12. Cabinet (box) - chassis, front, back & top panels.

Take a look at their website for all the specifications of the transceiver:

https://www.hfsignals.com/

TO ORDER, PLEASE CONTACT CTARC SECRETARY, ANNE BY E-MAIL WITH YOUR PROOF OF PAYMENT

 E-MAIL: ctarccapetownarc@gmail.com

PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU HAVE PLACED YOUR ORDER NO LATER THAN
31 AUGUST 2020

CTARC All Club Meetings & Events Cancelled - 23 Mar '20

Dear CTARC Members

Reminder: This Saturday, 28 March, Monthly Meeting Cancelled.

I am sure you will have heard by now either on the Sunday bulletin or on our blog spot that this Saturday's meeting has sadly been cancelled due to concerns over the current Covid-19 virus outbreak.

The Chairman and his Committee have decided that all CTARC events, workshops and meetings will be cancelled; this will include Committee meetings and work parties, until this current crisis is over.

Update: With the recently announced national lock-down from 26 March to 16 April, any club-related activities that would take people out of their homes are restricted anyway.

We wish you all well and please be safe, looking forward to chatting with everybody over the air.

Kind regards & 73

The CTARC Committee

CTARC Committee Meeting Cancelled - 23 Mar '20

CTARC Committee members please note that the committee meeting scheduled  for 19h00 on Monday, 23 March 2020 has now been CANCELLED owing to the Coronavirus situation.

The decisions that need to be made will be done by e-mail & WhatsApp instead.

With apologies for the sudden change in plans, but we live in interesting times...

CTARC Forthcoming March Meeting Postponed - 28 Mar '20

Following a considered decision by the CTARC Committee, the planned members' meeting for Saturday 28 March 2020 at the clubhouse at 14h00 has been POSTPONED. We apologise for the last-minute decision.

It is believed that the rapidly spreading Coronavirus is reaching the stage where it would be too risky for many of our members, many of whom are in the "target zone" age profile, to attend the meeting in the closely-packed clubhouse.

Also, large gatherings are now a potential risk too.

When the meeting does indeed take place, Lem ZS1LEM will do a presentation on Satellites and the equipment radio amateurs use to work them. It promises to be very interesting.

Further details will be published via the usual channels presently.

RSA Government Coronavirus Portal

  

Following a recent announcement, every South African website must prominently promote
the South African Government Portal on Covid-19.

On this website you will find news, statistics, resources and contact information
about the Coronavirus in the South African context.

Here is the link:

COVID-19 Corona Virus

South African Resource Portal

 https://sacoronavirus.co.za/