What inspires today’s youth in the amateur radio hobby? Find out what’s on the minds of our youngest hams in this captivating round-table discussion on Saturday, August 23 at 4 P.M. Moderated by Bob Phinney, K5TEC, this is a great learning opportunity for teachers, scout leaders, or clubs wanting to attract more youth to their local radio clubs.
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QCWA: “Giving Back to Support Amateur Radio”
FEMARA, sponsor of the Northeast HamXposition, is pleased to announce that it has been chosen along with one dozen other organizations to receive a cash donation from the Quarter Century Wireless Association (QCWA). FEMARA will receive $2,600.
QCWA Acting President Anthony Perales, AI1U, made the announcement in the August issue of QCWA Journal.
“Each board member could choose an organization to benefit, and I chose FEMARA because of the good work you do for the New England region,” writes John Facella, K9FJ, a QCWA National Director who resides in Raymond, Maine.
FEMARA will use the money to improve its scholarship awards to youths in New England.
QCWA will be represented at HamXposition at a table, and also at a “Meet and Greet” session on Sunday morning at 10:00 AM.
Be sure to stop by and thank QCWA officials for their generous contribution!
YCCC Meeting at 2025 Northeast HamXposition
The Yankee Clipper Contest Club is a special-purpose amateur radio club devoted to the pursuit of operating and technical excellence. Our goals are simple:
- To promote the fun, satisfaction and competitive thrill of radio contesting
- To assist our members in the development of their operating and technical skills
- To win the club competition of the major amateur radio contests
The YCCC was founded in April 1977 and now boasts over 400 members located from New York City to Maine, Cape Cod to Upstate NY plus southern Quebec. YCCC members have excelled in all areas of amateur radio contesting, DXing, technical design, and public service.
Gather with the Yankee Clipper Contest Club on Saturday, August 23 at 12 noon for introductions, club business, and information for new members at the 2025 Northeast HamXposition.
The DX-Launcher is Almost Here!
Ray Higgins, W2RE, writes on Facebook:Many of you have been asking about the DX-Launcher, and we’re excited to announce that we officially go LIVE on August 22nd at HamX!
We’ll have approximately 20 units available at launch—10 standard DX-Launchers (like the one in the photo) and 10 Super DX-Launchers with insane take-off. These are expected to sell out quickly, and due to our upcoming large tower build in Maine, we won’t have time to produce more units until that project is complete.
Once that build wraps up in Maine, our primary focus will shift to full-scale DX-Launcher production.
We’re also pleased to share that we’ve reached a tentative agreement with one of the most reputable distributors in ham radio to serve as the exclusive U.S. distributor, outside of buying directly from us. More on this after we sign the agreement.
As someone who’s installed thousands of wire antennas in trees, I can say this product was designed by and for people like us. You could hire a tree climber to install a pulley, quite expensive —but that’s no guarantee it’ll survive the next storm. With the DX-Launcher, you can simply shoot another line right over the top if branch or rope fails. It’s not foolproof—ropes break—but I’ve had wire antennas last 20 years, while others come down after one storm. The key is to use high-quality rope (like Mastrant) and high quality stranded wire and don’t overtighten.
We’ll be offering DX-Launcher packages with upgrade options, including:
* Portable pump
* Extra tennis balls
* High-strength twine
* Reels for the pump
And we’re not stopping there—we’re also in the early stages of developing a slingshot option! This will be the cheaper option to the DX-Launcher. Our mission is to be “all things launcher” for the dipole ham community. You can be super loud with wire antennas. I’ve built 4-squares in trees that work just as well as a $7000 aluminum version—it just takes more effort to keep them up. But, the DX launcher will make this easy!
The DX-Launcher is a game-changer for installing wire antennas. See you at our booth at HamExpo 2025! Also, we have a RemoteHamRadio Booth, with live operations!!
“4 P’s Times 2 for Training Activities” at the 2025 Northeast HamXposition
Getting regular participation for ARES and similar drills can be a lackluster event. Without a good focus going to an exercise participants can have a lackluster attitude. Rory Griffin, W4RJG, will discuss 4 P’s for each group to truly make the most of each training event.
Bio:
W4RJG has been licensed since 1983. After 9/11 he was involved in central NJ ARES with special pandemic and dirty bomb planning. He’s participated in multiple NYC Marathons and the Salute To Israel Parade (100k marchers). He started a Salvation Army VHF net covering all NJ, NYC and eastern PA. In 2022 he put together the first Field Day site in his county in over a decade. Since then, he was appointed ARRL EC and ADEC, EDM (Emergency Direct Messaging) Steering Committee member. Rory presents Amateur Radio Learning Sessions weekly on all aspects of the hobby. He also runs a weekly license prep class and is an ARRL and W5YI VE. Rory maintains five Winlink RMS stations and is currently building a BPQ32 station.
New England QRP Club “Cento Receivo” Build-A-Thon at 2025 HamX
The 2025 HamXposition QRP Build-A-Thon kit will be the “Cento Receivo”, a 40m direct conversion receiver kit! Another feature of this kit is that there is very little soldering involved in building this kit. All the components simply plug into SIP (single in-line pin) sockets….which allows for a quick build with a minimal set of tools.
The NEQRP sponsored Build-A-Thon is on Saturday at 7PM in the Marlborough Room W-9 and is opened for ANY and ALL Attendees of the Convention, young or old..
We recommend purchase the kit in advance: (There will be a ‘small number’ of kits at the Build-A-Thon for purchase if needed. … Why purchase the Build-A-Thon kit in advance? … So we can supply ALL participants a kit at 7PM on Saturday the 23rd. Again, ALL are Welcome to participate in the NEQRP Sponsored Build-A-Thon.
Purchase a kit at:
https://qrpme.com/?p=product&i
Again ALL interested parties, young and/or old builders, are invited to take-part in our Annual Build-A-Thon, starting at 7PM on Saturday, August 23rd, at the end of the West Wing hallway (Marlborough Room W-9). Kids or old-timers are welcome. It’s a FUN, EXCITING, and, LEARNING, Convention Activity/Event.
[See also: Full NEQRP Schedule]“Antennas for Backyard, Balcony, Attic, or Wherever” at 2025 HamX
Many new hams and retiring hams are living in apartments or condos where they have limited ability to get on HF while others have constraints like HOAs or family concerns about the aesthetics of wires, masts or beams hanging on the house. It takes more than reading an ad or buying a mobile antenna to get on HF. First, they must understand the basics of antennas or they are stymied. This presentation by Robert Glorioso, W1IS, covers the principles and discusses examples of successful HF antennas in restricted environments.
Bio:
Co-Authors Bob Glorioso, W1IS, and Bob Rose, KC1DSQ, have written two QST Cover Plaque articles since June 2021 and the 2024 Antenna Design Competition for their All Band 160m OCF in August 2025. They wrote several articles for CQ including as Guest Antenna Editors. They just released the Second Edition of their book on wire antennas available at OCFmasters.com. W1IS and KC1DSQ are retired engineers who have been working for the last seven years on antennas of all sizes and shapes, single band beams including phased dipoles and multi-band configurations, with a goal of delivering less than 3:1 SWR across a wide range of frequencies.
“StratoScience 2025 – Ham Radio and Education to New Heights” at the 2025 Northeast HamXposition
Join Max Kendall, WØMXX, and learn how high altitude balloon programs can be used to inspire and engage youth to push themselves to new heights. As Amateur Radio operators, high altitude balloons offer us a low cost near-space platform for exciting engineering and radio projects. Learn from the New England Weather Balloon Society’s successes and failures and see what some of the work students are doing in the StratoScience Lab program this year. [See HamX program schedule for date and time.]
Bio:
Max is a rising 9th grader at Medway High School. He is the vice-president of STARS radio club at New England Sci-Tech, the president of the 4-H Science Explorers, a mentor at the Medway Library Arduino club and STEAM classes, and founder of the New England Weather Balloon Society. He earned his Extra license in 2021. He enjoys working with robotics and electronics, and has been tinkering since he was a toddler. He is passionate about sharing his knowledge with other kids and adults alike. He teaches many classes and workshops at New England Sci-Tech, an educational non-profit. He also enjoys eating sushi, reading classics, math, and climbing.
“When the Grid Fails: A Field Operator’s Guide” at 2025 HamX
When Hurricane Helene tore through western North Carolina in the fall of 2024, the damage was swift, unexpected, and widespread. In this photo-rich presentation, Thomas Witherspoon, K4SWL, will share his firsthand account of the storm’s aftermath and how amateur radio played a crucial role in staying connected when everything else failed. He will also offer practical advice for operators—no matter where they live—on how to prepare for natural disasters, build resilient communication setups, and foster stronger local networks. Even if you think you’re “out of harm’s way,” consider this your wake-up call to be ready.
Thomas Witherspoon, K4SWL, has been a ham radio operator since 1997, making most of his contacts in the field with low-power (QRP) gear. He runs QRPer.com, the SWLing Post, and the Shortwave Radio Audio Archive, and is a regular co-hosts the Ham Radio Workbench podcast. A 2023 inductee into the QRP Hall of Fame, Thomas has a deep love for chasing weak signals from the great outdoors.
“Reducing Insidious Digital Interference and Noise” at 2025 HamX
Digital signals sound just like noise in our narrowband receivers. You may not realize that some of the noise you hear is caused by DTV and other digital transmitters. Join Paul Wade, W1GHZ, who will help you identify this insidious noise raising your noise floor and reducing your receiver sensitivity, and what you can do about it.
Bio:
Paul Wade W1GHZ, previously N1BWT and WA2ZZF, has been licensed since 1962 . He has been a microwave experimenter for years and published numerous articles as well as writing the “Microwavelengths” column in QST. He was past President of the North East Weak Signal Group (NEWS). An ongoing project is the “W1GHZ Microwave Antenna Book” – online at www.w1ghz.org.
In 1997, he was honored to be named by the Central States VHF Society as the recipient of the Chambers Award. He has been honored by the ARRL with the 2000 Microwave Development Award, in 2001 with the Thomas Kirby Eastern VHF/UHF Society Award, and in 2009 by Microwave Update and the North Texas Microwave Society with the Don Hilliard Award for Technical Contributions to the Microwave Community. In 2025, he was honored to receive the ARRL Doug DeMaw, W1FB, Technical Excellence Award. Paul is a Life Member of the IEEE.
After a long career in electrical engineering, including microwaves, computer hardware, and signal integrity, he and Beth, N1SAI, are now happily retired in Vermont with a rescue dog named Daisy. He was also a ski instructor for a time, and now enjoys skiing on a new bionic knee, and skijoring with Daisy.