Author: Kris – KZ7K

  • When Radios Fail: Whistle Codes, Mirror Signals, and Other Non-Verbal Backups

    Radios die and batteries run out. Here’s a simple non-verbal signal system to fall back on when they do.

  • Permanent Wire Antenna Installs: Lessons From My Backyard

    Everything I built for portable use eventually taught me something different once I tried to leave it up permanently. Here is what actually held up in my own backyard, and what I would do differently.

  • Special Event Stations: How They Work and How to Run One

    A special event station is one of the more approachable ways to organize something bigger than a regular contact, marking an anniversary, a local festival, or a historic date with a dedicated operation that other hams specifically seek out to work. What actually makes it a special event At its core, a special event station…

  • Finding a VE Test Session Near You (and What to Bring)

    The whole question pool is public and the studying is on you. The last piece is finding an actual test session and showing up with the right paperwork. Here is how.

  • What I’d Buy Instead of the Chameleon MPAS 2.0

    A modular HF portable antenna kit that beats the $625 Chameleon MPAS 2.0 on both performance and price, built around the CaHR Hydra and a Spooltenna EFHW.

  • Choosing a Backpack for a Portable HF Setup

    A backpack is easy to overlook when you’re planning a portable HF setup, most of the attention goes to the radio, the antenna, the battery. But the wrong pack turns a good kit into an awkward, uncomfortable carry, and the right one disappears into the background of a successful activation. Weight distribution matters more than…

  • Getting Your Ham Radio License: Technician, General, and Extra Explained

    Three exams stand between you and the entire radio spectrum. Here is what each one actually covers, and why the climb is more approachable than it sounds.

  • Icom IC-2730A Review: The Dual-Band Mobile I Regret Selling

    Part of our New Ham? This Is Where You Should Spend Your Money guide. I ran an Icom IC-2730A in the shack, in my Jeep, and in my truck, all at the same time, for years. I don’t say that to brag about owning three radios. I say it because that’s exactly the kind of…

  • Hex Beams and Cubical Quads: Compact Gain Antennas Compared

    A full-size multi-band Yagi delivers serious gain, but it also demands a serious tower and a lot of real estate. Hex beams and cubical quads exist for hams who want real directional gain without going that far. The hex beam’s folded-wire approach A hex beam uses folded wire elements strung between spreader arms in roughly…

  • Setting Up APRS on the Kenwood TH-D75A

    The TH-D75A is the easiest APRS setup in my whole lineup, and it is not close. Built-in GPS, a dedicated APRS mode button, dual-band RX so you can watch a data frequency and talk on another, and a real screen to read packets on. No Digirig, no laptop, no companion app required. Here is how…

  • Choosing Feedline Length to Avoid Common-Mode Problems

    There’s a persistent myth that feedline length needs to be some magic multiple of a wavelength to work correctly. It doesn’t, for a properly matched coax feedline, but feedline length does interact with common-mode current problems in ways worth understanding before you run a cable. Coax length and SWR: mostly a non-issue If your antenna…

  • Meshtastic vs. AREDN vs. APRS: Which Mesh Tool for Which Job

    Three different technologies all get lumped together as ham radio mesh. They’re not interchangeable. Here’s what each one is actually built to do.

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