Kendall Amateur Radio Society

KB5TX

Welcome to the Kendall Amateur Radio Society (KARS). We are in the South Texas Section and located in Boerne, Kendall County, Texas around 30 miles NNW from Downtown San Antonio.  Our Club was formed in October 1980.  We have a current membership of around 70, and offer a variety of ham radio activities to amateur radio operators in the surrounding Texas Hill Country, and greater San Antonio areas.  We are an American Radio Relay League (ARRL) affiliated club and strongly support our National organization.  Our skills run from technology, to CW, SSB and Digital, working HF contests, chasing DX, 50 MHz, VHF and above.

We are growing because we always look for new members and we mentor those new to our hobby.  New Hams and experienced Hams find a home with us because of our welcoming atmosphere. Once you meet us and see what we are about, we hope you will join. Your participation will be welcomed.  Please come visit.

We have 11 VE's and can test from Tech to Extra.  One does not need to be a member to test with us.  Follow this link for more information about testing. 

KARS provides the following repeaters using the Club call KB5TX.  The VHF and UHF repeaters are Yaesu DR-2 analog/digital machines.

      
VHF: 146.64(-)  pl tone of 88.5.  DR-2 at about 1970 feet above MSL on Tower Road.
 
VHF: 145.19(-)  pl tone of 88.5.  DR-2 at about 50 feet AGL at Fair Oaks Ranch.

UHF: 444.9 (+) pl tone of  88.5. DR-2 using the upper UHF antenna on Tower Road.

KARS Net meets every Tuesday night at 7pm on the 146.64 repeater.  All are welcome.

 
Hot News

Congratulations to Layla Rutherford who has received her Technician License.  Her call is KI5MRL.

It is too early to know if we will have a face-to-face element for the meeting on Thursday, 4 February, 2021.  We have had very good attendance using SKYPE.  The link is published on meeting night around 6pm on groups.io.

Testing at KARS is suspended for time being.  We will announce when we think it safe to resume.  Those wishing to test should continue to prepare.  See the Testing link below-left and then make your appointment so the Club VE's will know what to expect.  You do not need to be a member of KARS to test with us.

Covid-19 precautions for face-to-face club activity will be re-published here when we determine we can safely return to limited in person meetings and testing.  But, even though our seniors will probably be vaccinated during January, this stuff isn't going away until a large percentage of the population is vaccinated.  Common sense tells us to be cautious.

The FCC is now requiring those wishing to test to register with the FCC first to to obtain their FRN (Federal Registration Number) prior to their testing session as we will now need this and can no longer accept your SSN.  Please log into the ARRL web page at http://www.arrl.org/what-to-bring-to-an-exam-session which describes all requirements.  You do not need to be an ARRL member.

FCC to Require Email Address with Applications and on File. Log into the ULS License Manager System with your FRN and password to update your FCC license record.  See FCC to Require Email Address on Applications Starting on June 29, 2021 (arrl.org)

Dues for 2021 will be due in January.  The amount is $20 for the Member or $25 for Member and Spouse.  Please remit to KARS, PO Box 1732, Boerne, TX 78006.

For the latest discussions, see our GROUPS.IO page here.

For Current Sunspot and Radio Flux progression, see https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/products/solar-cycle-progression.

This site is current a/o 20 January, 2021.
Introduction  The seed for Amateur Radio was planted in the 1890's, with Marconi experiments in wireless telegraphy. Soon he was joined by hundreds; now thousands worldwide.  This section tells you what we are about 131 years later.
Radio Choices Many new to Amateur Radio wonder what radio to choose after their hand-held.  Here is information about Yaesu, Icom and Flex, along with links to others.  There is more about Flex in Presentations.
Station Design for HF to 50MHz Our members operate stations from simple to elaborate.  We can give you ideas for yours.
Station Design for VHF The Hill Country has many locations that are good for VHF and UHF.  With proper antennas and low loss coax, one can work much further than could be imagined.
QRP Want to get started in QRP?  KARS past President, Bob Rosier - K4OCE, recently inducted into the QRP Hall of Fame, tells you how.
Weak Signal World & Digital New modes like FT4 and FT8 seem to be the fastest growing segment of our hobby.  See this page for FT4 and FT8 updates from Dave Moore, N7RF.
Space See the Presentations Folder below-left for information about ARISS --  Amateur Radio on the International Space Station.  The ISS call sign is presently NA1SS.  Downlink frequency:145.8 MHz.  Astronaut: Shannon Walker KD5DXB.  See https://www.ariss.org/current-status-of-iss-stations.html  for latest information.
Contesting and DX This page encourages one to get on HF and to work contests. You will find an ARRL link to nine pages of information how to begin contesting along with all the dos and don'ts.  This page also provides some "how to" ideas about working DX, telling how to find who is on the air and find current propagation reports.  
LoTW and Club Log This subject discusses Ham software, how to get the rare one in the log and then how to get the confirmation.
Repeaters The 444.9 and 146.64 are both DR-2 machine are located ten miles north of Boerne on Tower Road.  145.19 is a DR-2 machine located at Fair Oaks Ranch.  Click on "Repeaters" our current status.
Field Day

There were many stations on the air for FD 2020.  ARRL says CW operators provided 44% of the total activity.  KARS had six entrants and a club score of 4530.  See the Field Day link at left for more.
Presentations & Discussions We have frequent programs on a variety of amateur radio subjects.  Latest addition is a presentation by Ben, K5AYR, about trouble shooting barrel connectors.
Meetings, Training and Testing We normally meet the first Thursday of each month.  Find directions at the link. We also provide direction, mentoring and when you are ready, testing before the general meeting.  See this page for tips how to prepare.  We have 11 Volunteer Examiners and can test from Tech to Extra.   See Training, Meetings and Testing for requirements, and then call Brad Peace - N5PBP.   Follow the "testing" link for phone number and/or email address to make an appointment.  You do not need to be a member of our club to test.  We are open to all.
Links Here are links to various websites of interest.  If you want to hear how ship to shore CW was done just 25 years ago, check out the Maritime Radio Historical Society.
Community Activities We have a strong association with Kendall Co. EMS, the Kendall County Sheriff's Department and other organizations.  See our communication plan for interoperability with local agencies.  
Swap Meet Four items listed for sale:  Icom ID-5100 Deluxe.  Comet 250B.  Tar Heel 100HP.  Alinco DR-635T VHF/UHF FM.  Send text and picture to the webmaster, K5NOF@ARRL.net.
Forms KB5TX agenda template, Membership Application and other club related forms.
Officers In addition to information in the footer, you will find the mailing address, email address, and a listing of KARS officers for 2021 here.
Constitution and By-Laws Our Constitution and By-Laws are current as of Summer, 2016.  These are updated for approval by the membership as circumstances dictate.
History of the Club KARS commenced informally around 1975 and was formally incorporated in 1980.  See this link for all the details.
Ideas for Improvement Please direct your flaming arrows at the webmaster.  A web site lives or dies depending on its content.  Judging from the hit-counter, we must be doing pretty well.  Your ideas are welcome. K5NOF@arrl.net

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KARS -- P.O. Box 1732 -- Boerne, TX 78006

For more information, email K5NOF@ARRL.net