G3RJV - special SPRAT

As you may recall, the Rev George Dobbs, one of the founders of the GQRP club died recently. To many of us he was an inspiration. Certainly I owe him a lot.

This morning I received a very special SPRAT, the magazine of the GQRP club. This special edition was filled with tributes to this great radio amateur. As the years roll on, I hope we can continue to work QRP in his honour.

See http://www.gqrp.com/

G3RJV (SK) - Mr QRP

Yesterday I received my Spring 2019 copy of SPRAT, the excellent GQRP quarterly magazine.

On the cover was a picture of G3RJV with fellow QRPers G3MFJ and G3VTT. This was taken in a care home and George G3RJV looked frail and thin, a shadow of his old self. The magazine was obviously prepared before he died.

G3RJV was an inspiration to me and many others. RIP George. We shall miss you, but carry on with QRP. You were a beacon to many of us.

G3RJV Silent Key - Mr QRP

Sadly, as reported elsewhere, the Rev George Dobbs G3RJV who helped start the GQRP Club in 1974 has died. He had had dementia for some while, but this is sad news. I am sure he will be greatly missed in the amateur community. He certainly inspired me.

See https://www.amateurradio.com/ .
See also http://southgatearc.org/news/2019/march/rev-george-dobbs-g3rjv-silent-key.htm#.XIjpcPZ2u00

Rev George Dobbs G3RJV?

One of my fríends has expressed concern about George. Several emails have gone unanswered, which is not like him. Does anyone know if he is OK?

George, if you read this blog could you update us please? We are concerned for you.

UPDATE 0905z next day:  Does anyone have any news please? I do hope George is OK.

A photo in QRP Basics (2nd edition)

My wife has bought me a copy of QRP Basics (2nd edition) by G3RJV for Christmas. It came this week so we opened the pack to check all was well, before putting it away for a month.

Imagine our surprise when we spotted a photo in it of me with our grandson (when he was very young) at my operating table.  He is the little lad (now 5) who was tapping out CW on one of my YouTube videos and playing with my audio kit on another. As I never did manage to get either of my two sons interested in ham radio, I'll be lucky to get any of my grandchildren interested, but I shall try.  Regarding the rest of the book, I'll let you know on Christmas day after reading it with a minced pie in hand. As it is written by Rev George Dobbs, I am sure it will be another excellent book about QRP.

SHAMateur radio

Today the December 2012 RadCom dropped on my doormat.  P16-17 contains a review of the Acom 1500 1500W linear amplifier for HF and 6m. Now, I am sure this is a very well engineered piece of kit, but at £2750 including VAT surely this is not for real amateur radio?

Anyone buying this has probably spent a few thousand on a big Yaecom black box multi-mode HF rig, another £400-500 on a beefy rotator, another few hundred on a mast and another few hundred on an HF beam to put on the top. Total bill for all this approaching £5000 if not more! They may be able to work some DX slightly more easily than me with a 5W or less radio and a small wire antenna strung up in the tree, but I bet they have less fun.

I have no objection per se to people spending the money they earn as they choose, but what I object to is this sort of expensive kit being projected as a necessity to enjoy our hobby.

To my mind this is SHAMateur radio, not amateur radio. It is a cheque book hobby far far removed from the hobby I wish to be associated with.

I wish our national magazine would publish more articles about REAL amateur radio, the sort that young kids and people on tight budgets can afford and enjoy. If the RSGB is short of material then it should ask the GQRP club for some ideas and circuits! Amateur radio is a very varied hobby and I do not want to be a killjoy, but anyone picking up RadCom would believe you need a very deep wallet to be able to enter the hobby. This simply is NOT the case. OK there is some good beginners content (for example the excellent series by Eamon Skilton) but not nearly enough.

One thing that IS good in this month's RadCom is the review of QRP Basics by G3RJV on p39. The first edition of this was a very good book that showed what amateur radio is really all about. I expect the new second edition will be even better. I commend it to you!

Are you a radio amateur or a radio shamateur?

G3RJV QRP lecture on the BATC streaming site

A talk called "QRP Why and How" by G3RJV is available now on the BATC website. Go to http://www.batc.tv/ and click on the 'Film Archive' icon and select "G3RJV QRP Lecture" from the drop-down list on the left hand side. The BATC site has a wide choice of videos available to view on-line as well as streamed outputs of amateur TV stations and repeaters.