Giant Scale Seaplane

I already have a build thread going on RC Canada so I figured I would just post a link to the build thread. This airplane is a work in progress, it is in the condition it is in these pictures - not done. Don't let the pink foam fool you - it will be fiberglass'ed and painted when its done.

To introduce the idea of this airplane Ill start off by saying this one is a MONSTER. I have a 2 cycle leaf blower engine that I converted to an RC airplane engine. So that's the basis for the airplane size.

The wing span is 10', that's 120". Yep. Big.

The title of the build thread is "Giant Trainer". Don't let that fool you. It is designed to be a docile, easy flying airplane, yes. However, the construction and the size of the airplane are anything but a trainer.

Check out this link for more information: http://www.rccanada.ca/bb/viewtopic.php?t=23284&highlight=giant+trainer

3D Foamie Fun-Fly Airplane

I have a build thread going on RC Groups, so I figured I would just send a link to that since I already have so much written.

First, an introduction to this airplane. This is a 3D airplane. 3D is a category of aerobatics in RC flying. There is no such thing as 3D in real airplanes, that I am aware of. If you attempt to do high-G 3D aerobatics in a real airplane you will die, and likely snap the wings off. Some maneuvers are the most extreme, stressful, high-G aerobatics you can imagine. On the other hand, 3D can be the slowest "flying" (technically, you are no longer flying - the fixed wing is no longer generating lift - the airplane stays in the air from the power of the engine/prop) in an airplane - down to not moving at all. Loops, rolls, 90+deg turns, hovering (on the prop like a helicopter) are all part of the package - some of those may seem elementary, but if you add in the power and 3D variations of those it gets pretty crazy. One of the neatest ones I like to do is a "harrier". You can't do this with a "normal" airplane. If you do it with a "normal" airplane what makes it "abnormal" is the wing loading - it must be very light, the airplane must be correctly balanced (tail heavy - which poses a snapping problem), flight characteristics of the wing design (back to the snapping problem - some wing designs are more forgiving than others) and you need to have a LOT of power - 1.5x, or more, power than a similar size sport/aerobatic airplane. Normal sport/aerobatic airplanes are built for efficiency and control while moving - little drag and good size control surfaces. Most airplanes don't have a lot of power to utilize. 3D airplanes typically have 1.5 times the power on the same size airframe as a regular sport airplane. The reason "normal" airplanes can't do 3D is you are letting the airplane fall in a controlled stall - nose up at about 30deg (the angle of decent determines how much forward movement you have - the greater the angle the less forward movement). The big fat wing of my airplane has extremely gentle stall characteristics. Combined with the LARGE control surfaces and short fuselage I can maintain a stall and descend in a controlled environment. A "harrier" is also the general entrance maneuver to hovering on the prop - the airplane's forward airspeed is already near 0 and there is no lift

Mine is made of foam insulation. Why? Because its inexpensive, easy to repair, and is easy to build with. To make a wing you use a Hotwire cutter (exactly what the name says - you pass electricity through a wire under tension and it cuts the foam like a hot knife through butter).

Check out the thread for more information: http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=551484

Edit: 10/22/07

I just re-built the front end and got the airplane back together for the most part. There are a few details that need to be attended to but is mostly ready to go. The engine started right up. I flipped the prop a few times getting new fuel through the engine and it fired up on 3 flips. Not bad for an engine that's been sitting for a year.

Ill update this again when I get a chance to fly it. Hopefully I can fly it somewhere where I won't hit anything landing (check my build thread in the RCGroups link for info on the last flight).

My Work Truck

I shouldn't say this is "my" work truck. This is the company truck. Another guy has been driving this more than I have in the past several months. However, I make/have made money with it so I can write about it.

It is a 2005 Ford F-350 with a diesel engine. Its only 2 wheel drive, unfortunately.
It really needs to be 4 wheel drive, even though its only purpose in life is to pull a trailer. When you get on slippery roads in the winter time, 4 wheel drive can make the difference between keeping the truck on the road and sliding in to the ditch. With 10,000lbs of steel pushing you down the road from behind the front wheels don't like to steer to well sometimes.

The car on the back is a GS450 hybrid, one of the first ones in the country. This one was the boss's car, and it was my first haul working here. What a welcome to the position - I got to haul my BOSS'S car... If I screwed anything up I would have been toast. I hit construction traffic, narrow lanes, and thunderstorms right at dusk on the way back with the car. The car was picked up in Chicago, IL, and the crap I hit was on I-70 around I-75 (one of the larges intersections of major highways in the country). I guess you could say I passed my initiation.

This was a memorable trip. The car I hauled here is an SC430. It just so happened to be the only one like it in the country at the time that was that color and with the features the customer wanted. We had it here in Columbus. Originally, the guy that bought the car went through his regular dealership (I forget where it was) to get this car. The dealership called us up wanting to trade us something for it. However, since this was the only car in the country like it, the managers were not in any way going to get rid of it for someone else to get the sale on it. So, the customer had to come to us if he still wanted the car. So he did. The only issue is, he lives in LaCrosse, Wisconsin. He wasn't in any way going to come to Columbus, Ohio to get his car. So we delivered it to him. Or, more specifically, I delivered it to him.

The guy that bought the car was trading in a Cadillac. So I had to bring that car back with me. That was pretty cool.

This was the first "delivery" I had ever done. I had to have him sign all the documents and everything. That took a while. There were LOTS of papers, so I tried to remember everything and not screw things up. The hard part was remembering everything. I forgot to have him give me one document, and it had something to do with registering the car, that's all I remember.


This is a trip I took to Mentor, Ohio. It is North East of Cleveland. Yep, NORTH EAST of Cleveland. What is Cleveland known for in the winter? LAKE EFFECT SNOW! Mentor is even further north and east. That sounds like a lot of fun to drive through, and hauling valuable cargo at that.

This is as far in to the snow as I dared to snap a picture. After this, the weather went to shit. I'm not kidding. I wouldn't have been very worried if I was driving my truck, but I was driving the work truck (2 wheel drive, remember?) and I had expensive, heavy merchandise on the back. Can you say "WHITE KNUCKLES"?


Have you ever been to a truck stop that was covered in ice? This was a trip. I have to admit, it was a lot of fun. The other drivers there were having a heck of a time trying to get out of the fuel island as there was a little bit of an incline. It usually took a second truck behind them to get out. I got stuck a few times trying to maneuver myself. I got out of the fuel island fine, I spun the wheels a bit but I made it up. I got stuck about 200 feet in front of the fuel island in this picture:
I couldn't turn left to get out because of the other trucks having trouble. So I had to drive straight through and around the parking lot. On ice that's easier said than done.

My Personal Truck

My personal vehicle is a truck. It is a 2003 Chevy Silverado Z71 (its a 1500, but they don't label the Z71 as a 1500 any more.. not sure why).

Why do I drive a truck? Well, I couldn't do a LOT of things if I didn't have a truck. Trucks are cool. Trucks can do more than any other vehicle. Trucks are meant to be used. Trucks are powerful. 4 wheel drive trucks, when set up properly, can go through just about anything. Trucks are big (safe on the road).





OK, so trucks are cool and they can do more than any other vehicle. Right. Do I actually use my truck?

Yes, I do use my truck.

If you are going to get a truck and baby it then fine, have at it. However, you are not using and appreciating the vehicle in the manner in which it was designed.

Construction on my Dad's house



Loaded up for Canada trip summer 07' No, its not full yet.


Set up and operating in the 07' ARRL September VHF contest. If you haven't seen my posts about operating my radios in Canada and my Portable Rotatable Mast, then check those out. This is an extension on the mast idea - only, its mounted in the back of my truck. The upper mast is 3 sections, telescoping, so it is collapsed going down the road - but all the antennas are installed. This makes set up a matter of a couple minutes and I'm on the air. Everything is as hooked up and ready as it can be to minimize set up time.


My truck isn't just a tool and transportation. I value it more than a lot of things. It is my freedom to go where I want and to do what I want to do. I work on my truck myself. I take it to the dealer for routine maintenance (oil changes, break service, ect). However, all the extras I do myself - lifting, suspension adjustment, exterior accessories, electronics (radio equipment, wiring, lights).

As soon as I got this truck I was making plans for it. I have always wanted a truck with a lift and big tires. So, that's what I'm working on. It is a SIGNIFICANT expense to do so, however. I am doing what I can when I can and it makes sense.

The first thing I ever did was put the body lift on. It is a 3" Performance Accessories kit. Basically, what the kit does is it lifts everything mounted to the frame except the engine, gas tank, transmission, drive train, etc, off the frame. That leaves the bumpers and body pieces. Piece of cake, right? Nope.

I knew what I was getting in to when I got the lift. I had researched it before hand and made sure it was something that I could handle with the help of a few grease-monkey friends. It was an ALL day project.

The bumpers were lifted with brackets and the body pieces (cab, bed) were lifted with blocks. Ground straps had extensions added to them, the steering shaft had an extension put in, the bumpers had to be modified (cut) to accept the lifting brackets, and the fuel fill tube had to be extended.

My friends and I did everything in front first, then worked our way back. Lifting the body off the frame was an interesting feat. We used two floor jacks and lifted up one side, put the blocks and bolts in, then lifted the other side and did the same thing.

The hardest part about the lift was the time and effort it took. We forgot to hook up one ground strap on the back of the engine (towards the firewall) and the engine didn't start when it was all done. We checked all the grounds and connections and found the unconnected strap, put it back on, and the truck has been fine since.

The body lift really adds to the stance of the truck. It has the right proportions now. The stock truck sits too low, in my view. The other issue with stock trucks is the front end is always riding on the ground. New trucks don't have this problem, but as the truck ages the front sags. This is due to the torsion bar suspension in front. To fix this, you crank down on the torsion bar adjustment screws. Where the torsion bars connect to the frame (under the center of the cab) there is a piece called a "key". This is basically like a giant wrench for the torsion bar. There is a set-screw on the bottom of the bracket that this all mounts to that pushes up against the key. The further this is cranked the tighter it makes the bars, thus the higher the front sits.

Note: don't tighten bars too much or the front will sit higher than the back. That's not cool. The bigger issue, though, is the shock absorbers. You can NOT use this method to "lift" the truck, it is merely to level out the front and rear. The shock absorbers can only take so much travel. If you crank the bars too much the normal ride height may be right at the lower limit of the travel. That means the weight of the truck is twisting the torsion bars just enough to keep the pressure off the shock absorbers. When the weight is taken off of the torsion bars (IE, when lifted with a jack, off-roading) the strength of the torsion bars can RIP the shocks apart. The two halves will literally be yanked apart. That's not good. So, why not change the shocks out with longer ones? This brings up another issue - the angle of the CV's. Too steep of an angle and you put a lot of stress on the bearings and drive train as a whole. That's also not good. It is better to get a lift and drop the whole drive train than increase your angles. Its more expensive, but it is the RIGHT way to do it.

I do just enough to balance the front and rear. This, however, causes the front to be real high when I load the truck down - either weight in the bed or pulling a trailer. I think its a small price to pay for a cool, balanced looking daily ride.

The tires on the truck are Bridgestone Dueller Revo's, 285/75-R16 (33"). Stock tires are 265/75-R16 (30"). I got the bigger tire because I want a bigger tire! The only issue is the wheels are a tad narrow for them, but it really isn't a problem. I have never noticed any ill-affects from that.

I had a heck of a time picking out tires. For one, I wanted an aggressive tread. I wanted something that was going to be really good in the mud and snow. I was originally looking at the BFG Mud Terrains. A buddy of mine had these on his Jeep Cherokee and they wore down too fast and were loud going down the road. So, I decided against these. The reviews on Bridgestone's duellers were great online so I looked in to them further. I was also looking at some Firestones. I had Firestone wilderness AT's on the truck and they were crap. They were quiet, rode real nice on the highway, and gas mileage was great. However, that's all on dry pavement. Get them wet and they spin like no other. Get them on ice and snow and you do donuts in intersections. The first winter I went through with the truck I had to run in AutoTRAC or 4 wheel drive so I could keep the back end on the road. 2 wheel drive was hairy. That is why I got new tires! So, I figured I would go with Bridgestone and try them instead.

The Dueller Revo's are excellent tires. I would recommend them to anyone with a 4 wheel drive. They are quiet on the road (amazingly), they are good in mud (Ive never been stuck in mud with them), and they wear really nice on the road. I have at least 40,000 miles on mine and they have PLENTY of tread on them. They are rated for 50,000 miles, but I bet I can get double that on them. One great design aspect of these tires is the pointy tread design. If you look them up online you'll see that the blocks aren't square rectangular. The blocks taper around the tire. These points cut through water on the road to prevent hydroplaning (an issue I had with the Firestone Wilderness AT's, really bad too). They also keep the hammering of the blocks on the road down - this makes them quiet. The blocks hit the pavement gradually due to the taper. Now, they are still noisier than a street tire.. but compared to any other all-terrain tire, they ROCK!

Other additions for the future:

I want a Cognito 7-9" kit. From what I have found it is the best engineered kit available. I will keep it at the 7" level as I don't want to put too much of an angle on my drive shaft (too much of an angle and you wear out the bearing in the transfer case and put lots of resistance on the drive line). Plus, the 3" body lift is 3" I already have. The majority of the "ground clearance" comes from the size of the tires, not the suspension lift.

Another idea I should address is the difference between "ride height" and "ground clearance". A body lift does not increase "ground clearance". It makes you sit up higher. The purpose of a body lift is extra clearance for larger tires. The tires are what add to the ground clearance. With the 3" body lift and the 33" tires over the 30" stock I get a total of 4-1/2" more "ride height", yet only an inch and a half of "ground clearance". See how that works?

Now.. a suspension lift is a little different. You can argue that it increases the ground clearance. It does to a certain extent, but not entirely. There are items that hang down from the frame that you must consider - the drive shaft being one and the front torsion bars (unless you go to a straight axle conversion). As the distance of the rear axle increases from the frame the steeper the angle of the drive shaft. It is always going to be there. The torsion bars are the same way, only the angle of these has to remain relatively the same. The torsion bars need to be perpendicular to the swing direction of the A-arms. Therefore, they must be dropped when lifting. They will always be hanging down. If you are in to off-roading and want the most capability out of your vehicle, watch out. Everything that hangs down is something that will hang up on the terrain.

So if lifting doesn't increase the ground clearance properly, what's the point? The purpose of lift kits is to increase suspension travel and increase clearance for larger tires. The larger the tire the more distance between the outside of the tire and the axle, or radius. Take the radius of the tire you want to put on and subtract the radius of the tire you currently have (in my case the diameter is 33" now, 30" before with the stock tires. That's 16.5" radius minus a 15" radius, and you have the increase in ride height and ground clearance. In my case an inch and a half.

The tires I want are 38" Super Swamper TSL's or 37" Parnelli Jones Dirt Grips. I haven't decided which. Maybe I'll have a couple sets. The PJ's will be great on the road and the Swampers will be good for the mud. These tires will require a 10" wide rim, however. Another set of items Ill need.

When putting bigger tires on a vehicle you have to consider the drive train. It is an absolute must. The standard gear ratio is too high for the 38" tires. It would be like starting a manual car in second gear instead of first. So, I need to change the gear ratio.

When changing the gear ratio you are putting more power to the wheels. As the tire size increases so does the torq needed to rotate it. When off-roading you put yourself in situations where the wheels need a lot more torq to get the vehicle moving. The tires grip the terrain and pull the weight of the vehicle along. Think of climbing a rock wall compared to walking down the side walk. What is harder to do?

Because of the torq issue, the stock axle isn't strong enough to take the load. Going down the road it would be fine. It would be under more stress than a non-lifted, non-big tire truck but it wouldn't be a big problem - the stock truck is rated at 7800lbs towing capacity with 3.73's, 8800lbs with 4.10's. I think the axle can take a few more inches of tire. The problem starts when you stop the tire. If you are crawling up a hill over rocks or logs then you are going to stop the tire. It takes a lot of force to get the tire to climb up over an object, rather than just rolling.

So, to help on the strength, the axle should be swapped out for a GM 14 bolt. The stock axle is a 10 bolt. This will give me more strength for more assurance against breakage. The axle swap won't be a direct bolt-in replacement. The spring mounts will need to be re-done on the 14 bolt to get it to mate with the spring locations on the 1500 frame. Not a big deal, just a little more work. Also, Ill need to get some 6-lug axle shafts. I forget if you can get 6-lugs on a 14 bolt. I know they come in 8-lugs though, the 14 bolt is used on GM's heavier trucks - 2500's and there is another version of the 14 bolt used on the 2500HD's and 3500's.

Along with the rear axle I'll need a locker. What a locker does is lock the two axle halves together. If you watch a vehicle make a tight turn you'll notice the outer wheel spins faster than the inner wheel. That is because the outer wheel has more distance to cover in the same amount of time. The "differential" in the axle allows this to happen. It is a gear system that has one large ring gear attached to a housing that holds smaller gears (one on the ends of the axle shafts and a set on opposite ends connecting the two shafts). If you jack the vehicle off the ground and spin one wheel with your hand, the other wheel spins in the OPPOSITE direction. This is because of the smaller gears. A locker takes the place of the differential. Actually, a locker is a type of differential. The difference is it is designed to either manually or automatically (my stock axle has an automatic locker) lock the small gears in place. So, the same vehicle that is jacked up off the ground would have both wheels spin in the same direction when you spin one. Only, you would be turning the drive train as well. This is a must when off-roading. If you don't have a locker then when one wheel is in the mud spinning it takes all the power out of the drive system. The power takes the path of least resistance. When you lock the axle shafts together they act as one. Therefore, if one wheel has no traction it takes NO power. All the power goes to the wheel WITH traction and you are able to move.

The front end needs to be protected more. The truck has skid plates on it (part of the stock Z71 off road package). However, the skid plates are only on the underneath side of the frame. When transferring from flat ground to climbing hills (or the other way around) the front end can touch the ground. Therefore a heavy duty bumper and skid plate should be used to help lift the truck up any tough spots.

Getting stuck in the mud isn't fun. I have gone on rescue missions to extract some of my friends who were not so smart. Having a way out is really nice to have. If your buddies are already a mile down the trail then having a means of getting yourself out is handy. Or, if you really screw up and put yourself in such a bad position that no one can get NEAR you (I saw this once, we couldn't even walk within 50' of the blazer).. a way to get out yourself is a good thing. Electric winches to the rescue! The one I am looking at is the Ramsey Patriot 9500 or 12000. I want something strong enough to pull the truck, and whatever gear is in it, through the toughest spots.

Driving - State Count

I like to travel. I like to drive. I like to fly, however I will avoid the airlines at all costs.

If I am going to get anywhere Ill jump in my buggy and roll my way wherever I need to/want to go.

I have family spread out over the country and in to Canada, so that is the basis of the majority of my travels. My Grandfather lives in south western Ontario, Canada, in the summer. We have a small island on Lake of the Woods. Since as long as I can remember I have been going there with my family. It is a 2 day trip any way you cut it. The drive time is roughly 20 hours.

You can make the argument that 20 hours is less than a day, but I invite whoever reads this to drive that in one day. If you can do it and have proof of doing it then please, by all means, write to me and tell me you did it. If you have never been on the road that much you have no idea what is coming your way. I can assure you - if you do drive that much you are putting yourself in serious danger, and EVERYONE ELSE on the road. I can take about 12-15 hours of straight driving before I'm done for.

By the way, the legal limit for drive time for a commercial driver (I know this because I drive a transport truck for Lexus too) is 10 hours. After that 10 hours you need 10 hours of CONSECUTIVE time off. You can have 14 hours in a work day (14+10=24) because you are aloud 4 hours of on-duty time, not driving (loading/unloading/paperwork/load check). You can push your time to 11 and 12 hours, but if you do it several times and have your logs checked and are caught by the DOT you get a hefty fine. Not fun.

The sates I have traveled through on the trip to Canada alone are: Ohio (I live in Ohio, so I need to drive THROUGH it, right?), Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. If I take the northern route you can take out Indiana and Illinois and add in Michigan (which I hate, I did it once and never again - U.P. is REMOTE!). So, just with this trip I have Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota under my belt. That's 6 states.

I have an aunt, uncle, and cousins that live in Virginia. I have been out there several times by myself. To get to Virginia you go through West Virginia and, again, Ohio. So I can add Virginia and West Virginia to my count. That brings me up to 8.

One of my friends from elementary, middle, and high school moved out to Omaha, Nebraska, a few years ago. I have made two trips out there, combined with my Canada trip, to visit him. To get to Omaha, Nebraska, I need to go through Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, and Nebraska. So, I can add Iowa and Nebraska to the state count. That makes 10.

However, going from Omaha, NE, to Canada, or the other way around (Ive done it both ways) I need to drive on I-29. That takes me up through North Dakota and South Dakota. So, that's another 2 states I can add to the count. That's 12 states.

My brother went to the University of Kentucky. Since I have a truck I helped move him in and out of various places he lived while there. So I have made several trips to Kentucky. That makes 13 total states now.

I mentioned I drive a transport truck for Lexus. Its not what you think - its an F-350 with a 2 car goose-neck open car hauler trailer (see "My Work Truck" post). I do dealer trading between the dealerships in Columbus, OH, and anywhere they send me to.

Since I am driving solo on these trips I can include them in my state count, although not in my personal truck.

I have made several trips to Pennsylvania and Kentucky. I have been through Tennessee to Atlanta, Georgia. I have driven to Chantilly, Virginia. To get there I had to drive through West Virginia, Pennsylvania, more West Virginia, Maryland, and then Virginia.

So.. if I have done my math correctly, that's another 4 states - Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Georgia, and Maryland. That brings me up to 17 states. That is all solo driving.

If I add in a few family trips to the Outer Banks, North Carolina, I can add NC. I can also add New Jersey and New York as my step dad's family is from that area. That makes 19 states I have traveled to. The bigger achievement for me, personally, is the 17 I have been to/through alone.

If I had to guess at how many miles I have driven...... Boy, that's a hard question. I have driven at least 30,000 for Lexus. I have over 71,000 miles on my personal truck, minus 9,000 it had when I got it.. so that's 62,000. I went to Virginia about 3 times in the two other vehicles I had before so add in another 2,400 (800 round trip) miles. That right there is 94,400 as a rough estimate. I got my drivers license about 3 days before I turned 17, so I have been driving a little over 5 years. That's quite a bit in 5 years, almost 19,000 miles a year on average.

W8LT - The Amateur Radio Club at The Ohio State University

The Ohio State University has an Amateur radio club. The club was founded in 1926, so it has been around a LONG time. There is a lot of heritage in the club. I am a Ham radio operator (obviously), so it makes sense that I am a member of the OSU Amateur Radio Club.

I would have ended up with W8LT no matter what, but I have a neat connection to the club. Here's a quick story about it:

I came to OSU fall quarter 2006. I had already known about the club before I came here. W8LT is one of the most well-known university call signs for the reason of past contests. Many well-known contesters were cultivated at W8LT. Back about 20-30 years ago, W8LT was one of the biggest signals on the bands. The club members were knowledgeable and dedicated to the understanding of radio systems. They got on the air and made the W8LT signal heard. They placed high scores in dozens of contests.

Enough of the history. Before school started up at OSU, that summer I was in Columbus as my mom and step dad live here. I was on the local 146.760 repeater and was talking to someone, I believe it was Tony KC8PZU (now KC8PZ). AB8VE broke in and Tony told him he was talking to "Steve, KC8QVO. Hes from your hometown, Dayton". I didn't know this at the time, but Dan, AB8VE, had changed his call sign. Talking to him, I didn't recognize who he was. I had AB8VE talking back to me. It just didn't register in my head who he was.

Fortunately, I haven't changed my call sign (yet). Dan recognized the call sign and was a bit shocked. He asked to make sure I was the same "qvo" he talked to on the 145.110 repeater in Dayton. He mentioned his previous call sign was KC8UDJ and that's when it hit me who he was! I used to talk to him all the time. He and I were the only younger guys on the repeaters in Dayton, so we had a unique connection. Its not often being in your late teens that you have someone else close to your age to talk to on Ham radio. Granted, there are even younger kids on the bands. Having someone right in your hometown to talk to that is your age is pretty cool.

Long story short, it turned out he was the president of W8LT. They were going to be having their Field Day operation at Matt KD8ANP's house in Delaware and invited me along. So I changed my Field Day plans and headed out there. Boy, what an experience! The people were great. I had a spectacular time!

Now, I am actively involved with the club. I don't hold an official position yet because I wasn't sure if I was going to stay at OSU after last winter or not (read my post on "OSU-School" if you want to get in to that). So I didn't want to run for office.

However, I have a deep interest in W8LT. I talk to people all the time on the radio who remember how W8LT used to be. I wish the club was as great as people say it was. Unfortunately, these days interest in Ham radio is fizzling out. Its not just with our club, its the hobby/service as a whole. Since we don't have many active student members to begin with, the club really has been hit hard. We aren't as active as a whole because of it. We need to generate new interest in W8LT. We need to spark enough interest with people that they become dedicated to helping and preserving the club. To do this, we need to spark interest in Ham radio. We need to get new people together to show them what we do. We need to get them on the air and able to feel the magic of radio. Its one thing to be sitting next to a box with a microphone and talking to someone else, but to share that magic with someone who doesn't know about radio and has never experienced anything like it before is very powerful.

Field Day is one BIG exception to our lack of interest, however. Field Day brings people out of the woodwork you would never know about otherwise. If there is any one event that shows what ham radio is, can do, and how fun it can be - Field Day is it! There just is no other event like it. To bring everyone together and have such an intensely enjoyable event is so great.

I wish we could bring people together like this more often. It can't be done by one person, or a handful of people. It requires the interest and dedication of the club as a whole.

One of my goals being at The Ohio State University is to spark off some interest in Ham radio in others. Because Ham radio can be a technical subject (see some of my posts about Ham radio on here), many people shy away from it. I am a technical person. I dive right in to how it works and why it works. In explaining Ham radio, that flies over a lot of people's heads. For me to spark interest in Ham radio in others I need to come up with a way of explaining Ham radio that is interesting to people. Its not a very easy chore, but I think it can be done.

I made a flyer for the Fall 07' Welcome Week Involvement Fair. I took the initiative to do it because no one else really showed much interest. The day before the event I hit the flyer hard. I got it printed out at the Union about an hour before the event started.

In the flyer I explained Ham radio briefly. I only had so much room and I didn't want it to be over-loaded (back to explaining Ham radio so its not so technical.. its hard for me to do). I put pictures in it and tried to lay it out in an interesting way so that people would want to read it. I am a creative person to a certain extent, but this flyer really wasn't easy for me to make. I got it done and I think it is a decent, informative piece of information on what Ham radio is and what the club does.

I hope the flyer is the beginning of an interesting period in my time at OSU. It still can be improved. With the collaboration of club members I think it will turn in to a wonderful document. I planted the seed, now hopefully it grows!

Edit:
I am now the Treasurer for the club. We sorta had elections at the start of the school year and needed someone to step up to the plate. I figured Ill be here long enough, now, that I can hold an official position. So that's what I'm doing!

OSU - School

This is a long ride I have been on for a while now. Currently I am
in the Technology Education program. How I came to this program is
because I have tried a few different programs and found out they aren't
for me. I was in an engineering program the last two years of high
school. This is what has kept me on this engineering/technology/hands-on path. I learned a lot in that program and I don't want to waste that experience.

After high school I got a 2 year scholarship to Sinclair Community College to continue on in an engineering-related field. So I took advantage of that and
decided to major in Mechanical Engineering. That is what I wanted to do
anyway - I like mechanical things the most, but I also like electronics. I also knew I wanted to go to OSU . That left me one option at Sinclair - a 2 year university parallel program that was laid out to transfer to a 4 year university. That is what I had set in writing, but in practice it worked differently.

I couldn't get in to any of the physics and basic engineering classes until I took calculus. So I had to build up my math courses to get there. I ended up not taking
calculus until the last quarter I was there, spring 06'. I had applied to OSU that winter and had already been accepted. However, once I got in to calculus everything changed. I realized how hard of a ride it was going to be and decided to do something else besides engineering. I dropped calculus half way through. It was either finish it and not have a life other than calculus (which I had other classes I needed to study for also) and MAYBE have a chance at passing, or drop and keep my GPA up. I chose to drop and move on with things.

Since I was already accepted to OSU, and that's where I wanted to be in the first place, I looked around at other options. It appeared the only other option was Industrial Design. However, the entrance process is very competitive. They only accept 18 students a year and you have to submit entrance exam/portfolio for evaluation. So I took some basic courses in design (mainly drawing, perspective, drafting) and took a chance at getting in last winter. Well, it was a LOT of hard work for nothing. They didn't accept me. So, I could either risk everything again the following year and just finish my prerequisite courses (which I have most of them completed already) or I could find another program. Since I have been in college for 3 years I decided to find another program and get going in something.

At OSU the only other program was Technology Education. To be quite honest, I
looked at the curriculum and it just looked like a program for the people who were not so smart. It looked like a way to go to OSU and get an easy degree. That's not exactly what I was after. I wanted something that applied more to engineering. The name of the program is Technology "Education" - so yes, you can get a teaching license with it. Also not what I wanted to do. However, you can get a BS degree and not teach, instead get a job somewhere. So I figured I would at least give it a try.

School has started and I have been to a couple classes. I wasn't thrilled going in
but once I sat through some class material it actually seems pretty interesting. The topics we have covered in class so far have all been ideas I have thought about before and I know about them. Even more, once I picked up the books I flipped through one (energy, power, and transportation) and every chapter of the book was something I am knowledgeable about or at least have some idea of how it works! So, that is a good thing.

The other good thing I realized is there are other people in the program
who didn't want to beat their heads against the wall to get through engineering, like myself . There are also people in here that have made quite a bit of progress in engineering, math, and physics too. So, the people in the program seem like an intelligent, cool batch of folks. I can't wait to get deeper in to the program.