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W2A  At the historic Armstrong Transmitting Tower, Alpine NJ

Ken W2DTC at the microphonium

130 foot doublet, fed with open wire, at 110 feet.
Antenna runs roughly N-S.

Hi Paul,

Is this any kind of special event with regard to Armstrong or W2XMN, etc.?

Nice looking R-390A there, OM!

73,

Bruce

Here's what it looks like

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:USA_NJ_ArmstrongTower.jpg

It's an artifact from the development of FM technology. Alpine NJ is  considered the birthplace of FM

Here's another good site

http://www.fybush.com/sites/2005/site-050610.html

al

Al,

Thanks for the photo of the classic tower at W2XMN. That was the call for Armstrongs experimental site in Alpine.

I have been to the site in Alpine, albeit many years ago. Just off of the Palisades Parkway in Northern New Jersey, a few miles north of the George Washington Bridge.

But any idea as to whether this is a special event operation (with Ken/DTC) pertaining to W2XMN?

Thanks & 73,

Bruce

Bruce come on by. We are here until Sunday. Would enjoy seeing you.

The "special event' is an unusual bit of access, and the availability this particular weekend of a number of us to pull a station together like we've done.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHeQUHOTGjc (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHeQUHOTGjc)

There's a security gate, but we are next to the monitoring post.

I'd be glad to walk over there and add your name to the security list to come in.

That goes for anyone else on here too who'd like to enjoy some historic radio.

Call me.

202 215 3885

Hi Paul,

Many thanks for the invite. Not sure that I can make it that way on Saturday, but if you can advise the frequencies of operation along with the related mode(s) and I'll see if I can QSO W2A. 75 meter AM (or SSB, heaven forbid!) would be fine at this end.

73,

Bruce

Great to hear that the Alpine site is OTA!  The big tower has always fascinated me from even before I got into radio (I grew up in West Nyack, NY, not too far north of Alpine just off the Palisades Interstate Parkway), It always has loomed above the Palisades, can be seen from the TZ Bridge and from Armstrong's boyhood home in Yonkers. 

Hi Ken, Kerri, and Paul!

Sounding great here in Fort Wayne.  Thanks for the nice QSO with the special event station at the Armstrong tower in Alpine!

73,  Jack, W9GT

Sounded nice here in waterfall earlier too.
Shelby KB3OUK

I dun woiked them this afternoon!  ;D

I think I be number 9 contact... FB OM!!

           _-_-bear

Just had a QSO with W2A....Does anyone know where QSL's go to?

thanks

Tom - AB3FL

Not only did I work W2A on 75 AM, but I also worked W2A, with WA3VJB on the mike, on 2 meter sideband!

I was tricked, I tell ya !
Kerry KC2UFU said, "here, talk into this USB," so naturally I thought c o m p u t e r, right ?

Well anyway, everyone wanted to talk with her instead of the guys standing around, so it worked out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=okWyyZ63aJc (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=okWyyZ63aJc)

Kerri

You gotta get your General!  You need to be heard on 75M etc.

Yeah, do you guys want QSLs and where do they get sent?

Al

Hi Nick, Paul and the gang - great signal from the 32V/30S1 on 3885 this morning. After working you there, I went out to the mobile and could hear you in and out on 146.52 FM simplex on the 5/8 wave mag mount.  Drove down to Stonington Point where there is a straight shot down LI Sound to the west, and water all around except to the north.  Didn't raise you there but could hear others working you.  Al. W2NHC(?) was DFQ and my mobile likewise on the path from Stonington to down on the NJ coast in Manisquan.  With your WNBC-TV  bow tie at 800 feet above sea level maybe you were out of the duct!

Later you said that the NBC bow tie is horizontally polarized, so trying to work you about 120 miles out with the mobile whip was at a disadvantage.  Will look for you later on FM  on .52 from up at our cottage in Charlestown RI with an 11 el 2M yagi.  We are up about 100 feet above the east side of a big pond and have a good shot to the west and NW from there.

Chris it was good working you this morning. 
Yes, we've been getting great reports on 144.200 but not so much on 52 simplex. 
Right now we are moving the station 40 meters where it may prove a bit twitchy.

Haven't figured out the QSL logistics yet.  This is Dave's project, I'm just a participant, but we will get something figured out soon so we can tell folks on the air who've been asking.

This morning, comiing back from a 7-11 with semi-hot coffee, I saw this shot shaping up with the sun still low in the sky. 

I can see putting the call letters in the upper right, with maybe some text details and a white box to fill in with a Sharpie pen as to station/time/frequency worked.

Look for us around 7285 shortly.  2M is still up too but we are all out in the yard with the tuna.

QSL Idea

Just a thought guys.  This was designed in PowerPoint.  You can have it.  You probably have an expert at this available

Al

NICE idea, Al, I didn't think of making the photo an inset.

In that case, I shot a vertical too, and we could make a left or right vertical column for the QSL info.

More thought later.

Here's a vid of the antenna logistics.
Right below the radome on the right-side tower is one end of the dipole.
Draw a line to that height (100 feet or so) to the 1936 tower, and you've got our run.

This morning we've been on 40m with Nick's GRC tx/rx, working pretty well.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sdAc9XmyBw (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sdAc9XmyBw)

Just worked the crew on 7290 kHz. Good signal, 10-20 dB over with 90 watts from KG2IR's GRC-19. That 110' high antenna is working FB. Look for them on 7295 kHz.

After a short intermission, the party has now moved to 7160Kc.

Have worked Dave W9AD so the band has some life.


Come see us.

Dave W2VW at the microphonium.

I worked Ken/DTC and KC1MA around 315PM.  I think I was number 6. A fair amount of static which wasn't to bad to work through but the QSB at that time was big.

Hey Paul,
Great to work you tonight on 75.
As I said you were 30 dB over S9 up here in Scituate, MA 17 miles south of Boston.
I tried to work your 2 meter SSB station but no joy. I did hear a 2 lander as few kc down but nothing heard from W2A on 2 meters.

Again  TNX fer the contact.
Regards
Q
W1QWT

Are there still any remnants of the old WRUL short wave transmitter site in Scituate?

Great to work another round tonight on 40m and 80m.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8GJOTYa09g

After we talked on the phone, I came down to the shack and fired up on 40 around 4:30 PM, but you guys were just at the noise level. I guess you were hopping right over me. Also listened around midnight tonight but heard no W2A activity on 75 or 40.

Was this event also part of the North American QSO Party or the NJ QSO Party?  ;D

Contests this weekend, Aug 15-16:

    * ARRL 10 GHz and Up Contest
    * North American QSO Party, Phone
    * SARTG WW RTTY Contest
    * Dominican Independence Contest, Phone
    * Russian District Award Contest
    * Keymen's Club of Japan Contest, CW
    * Silent Key Memorial Sprint, CW
    * New Jersey QSO Party

breif history of WRUL, includes a copy of their transmission schedule from 1956http://pl703.pairlitesite.com/Stations/WRUL-WYFR.pdf (http://pl703.pairlitesite.com/Stations/WRUL-WYFR.pdf)

Shouldn't the QSL card say "Celebrating Dave Calhoun's genius." ?

Hi Don,
Yes the transmitter building is still there but pretty run down. Also there are a few concrete bases from the antenna structures. When I first moved into Scituate I lived about 1 mile from the site and I heard them everywhere. I couldn't operate 15 meters at all. I got a tour of the transmitter around 1975 before they moved to Florida.  A local HAM who used to work there gave me the following pictures.
(http://home.comcast.net/~w1qwt/images/wrulqsl.jpg)
Below looking across Hatherly Road to the transmitter building. Taken circa 1962.
(http://home.comcast.net/~w1qwt/images/wrul-xmtr.jpg)
They have been talking about turning the property into a housing development. I have heard that there is some soil contamination however because before it was WRUL it was an Army base during World War 1.

Regards
Q, W1QWT

I designed the QSL Card for the event, let me know what you guys think.

The qsl card as well as some pictures can be seen at:

http://www.flickr.com/johngo1

 Just a quick note thanking Dave, W2VW for the idea and perseverance to make this event happen. To Paul WA3VJB, who has been an historic radio caretaker for years, and traveled many miles to the station and operated professionally and smoothly to make many contacts.. as did Chris W2JBL, Nick KG2IR, and others..

 And to Ken W2DTC and others who made a video "diary".. A great event..
Wish I could have been there..! (guitar and all Chris..!

It was a privilege to work W2A..

W2NBC

Hi Jeff,

Nice rundown today on the W2A event!

Nice to work you today from the Mobile. I am running 18 Watts with an ARC-5 and my antenna is a joke. You were strapping with Armrest copy.

Mike WU2D

There's that for sure, but Tom I have to say one of the high points of our time at the Armstrong site was the fellow who checked in one night using a homebrew transmitter that HE built in 1945.

Pair of 812Hs, apparently never had a crapout in 60+ years, only replacing a couple of low-level tubes.

It's your father, W 3V V S, who turns 90 on August 30th.

Wish I coulda joined you guys, or at least worked you.  Looks like everyone had a Fine Business time!

Yeah John if I thought you were set-up with HF by now I would have pinged you and we could have tried something.  We had enough altitude on the antenna for long-haul, but didn't seem to have a path.

Meantime, it looks like the Pacific AM community knew about us but also was not able to poke through some conditions.

Ken, W2DTC kindly forwarded an email from Mike KO6NM that I want to share --



---- Original Message -----
Sent: Saturday, August 15, 2009 9:23 PM
Subject: Kudos Re: Armstrong Special Events Station!

Paul,
 
I just wanted to drop a note of thanks to you for running the Armstrong Special Events Station from the historic tower at Alpine.  Many of the West Coast AMI group were listening via a live 'Stickam' Internet feed courtesy of Al Parker, N2SAG.  The excitement peaked when you mentioned efforts to contact West Coast stations.
 
We were hoping that the band would lengthen out Friday into Saturday morning but we had a wall of SSB operators to contend with.  Many associated with the AMI Net were operating with one ear on 3.870 while listening with the other to Al's 3.880 feed.  If we had our full AM window (3.870~3.890 MHz) such an event might be enjoyed coast-to-coast without web assist.
 
Paul, you can hear and see the AMI Net by watching Stickam any Wednesday night from 8:00 Pacific Time, generally at www.stickam.com/ko6nm or www.stickam.com/wj6w.  Most weeks we start the festivities at 7:00 PM to establish a presence on 3.870 and to call for early check-ins.
 
73 & Thanks,
Mike Dorrough
KO6NM