The Club Station

One of the most valuable resources for college and university radio clubs is the club station. It provides members with an opportunity to be active in Amateur Radio on-the-air activities, even if they can not afford the equipment or have the space in which to put up their own station. The club stations at the University have gone through a lot of changes over the years.

5XU

Grebe CR7 receiver, 1918 model

The experimental station 5XU was established on the University of Texas campus on October 1, 1921. As an "experimental" station, 5XU was licensed for both Amateur and certain limited broadcast uses. The station was used to transmit crop and market reports, and was also used to receive concert broadcasts from around the country, in addition to passing Amateur traffic. Contacts were made with stations around the continental United States, and the station was also reportedly heard in Canada and Hawaii.

The transmitting equipment at 5XU included a 1-2 KW Marconi ship set, a 1.5 KW Navy Simon set, and a 2 KW DeForest Telephone and Telegraph set which was said to be "one of the largest in the United States." The DeForest transmitter could be used for "C.W., buzzer modulated, or voice transmission." The receivers consisted of Grebe CR6 and a Grebe CR7. The antenna was a seven wire T Type commonly used in those days. The spreaders for the wire were 24 feet long and the steel antenna support masts were 110 feet high and spaced 300 feet apart.

W5GJC

According to UT student Jim Headrick W5CPB (now W3CP,) the head of the Electrical Engineering labs, E.H. Schulz, decided in the 1938-1939 school year that the University needed a vacuum tube research lab, and an Amateur Radio Club and station. A group of hams on campus go together and built a station that eventually held the callsign W5GJC.

The Amateur Radio Club station was located in the Electrical Engineering research lab space in Taylor Hall. Jim Headrick W5CPB built the club station's transmitter, which included an 852 tube in the final stage, producing about 500 watts input. Steve Kershner W5FZD built the receiver, a superhet design using plug-in coils. The antenna was a 135 foot long dipole strung up over the Engineering Building. Not much more is known about the club station, which was only on the air for a couple of years, as ham activity ceased with the onset of World War II. A QSL card for a contact made from that station has been saved, however.

W5NLH

Hallicrafters BC-610H HF transmitter

The club station on the UT campus int the late 1940's and early 1950's was licensed to a loosely organized group of Amateurs known as the Longhorn Amateur Radio Club. The station was granted the callsign W5NLH.

According to Jess Bain W5SYN, the club station was located at the corner of 24th and Speedway. The Engineering Building located there (present day Taylor Hall TAY) contained an Electrical Engineering lab in the northwest corner which housed the club station. The station consisted of a Hallicrafters BC-610H transmitter for CW and AM, "possibly a National or RME receiver," and dipoles for various bands.

The club station was on the air as several QSL cards for contacts made with the callsign exist. They may have also operated in the ARRL November Sweepstakes one year. It is not clear whether or not this club station was actually the personal station of a club member at which the club callsign was also used. The Longhorn Amateur Radio Club was also active in the annual Round-Up parades and in demonstrations on the West Mall with portable equipment for the ten meter band. It is unclear if this was club property, or the personal equipment of members brought out for the cause.

It is unclear when, exactly, the Longhorn Amateur Radio Club and their club station W5NLH dissolved, but the license was allowed to lapse in the late 1950's. A new organization would form in 1960, under a different name, and begin the process of building another club station.

W5EHM

A radio station for the Texas Union Amateur Radio Society, founded in 1960, was a priority for the club members from the very beginning. Since money was scarce, club members often pooled together their own equipment to hobble together a complete station.

The callsign assigned to the club, W5EHM, was not new. It had actually been assigned to another Amateur (Joe Patterson, later W5VY, now SK) during the 1940's. At the time, Amateur Radio licensees could request specific callsigns. It's not clear why the club did not attempt to acquire another call, especially considering how easy it is to miscopy W5EHM when it is sent in Morse code.

Drake 2B HF Receiver

The University provided space in the Texas Union for the first club station in 1960. The shack was located on the third floor near the Student Activities Office on the west side of the Union. The earliest known equipment for the first station was in 1962 and consisted of a Hallicrafters HT37 transmitter for SSB and CW, and a Drake 2B receiver.

Getting permission to put up antennas at the Union was a difficult task. Club president William "Mac" Lingo K5DKA eventually got permission to put up an end-fed wire that was placed along the top of the Texas Union lobby. Since the indoor antenna did not work well, an unauthorized outdoor antenna was strung over the tile roof. Eventually, a dipole and vertical antenna on the top of the Texas Union made up the W5EHM antenna farm. These antennas could be seen out the window of the shack as well as from a meeting room next door.

Over the years, equipment came and went. The Drake receiver seemed to have stuck around for most of the 1960's, but the Hallicrafters transmitter gave way to a Collins transceiver by 1967. A homebrew linear amplifier gave the station some more punch. The club at that time also appears to have gotten hold of an old taxi radio that had been converted to two meters. A cubical quad antenna was used on the HF bands in the late 1960's.

Despite the revolving door of equipment, members were able to make some impressive contacts with what was available. In 1969, Barton Smith WA5YHO's (now N6HDN) first contact was with a station in India. He was using the club's Heathkit crystal-controlled transmitter that put out all of five watts.

A New Location

The club shack at WRW

By 1970, the club had outgrown its space and its welcome in the Texas Union, since the club rarely participated in Union events. When asked to leave, the club tried to find a new home with the help of, among others, Mechanical Engineering professor Billy Amstead . Billy had actually been a licensed Amateur for a time after taking a Novice class taught by Zeke Harvey W5NFC (when??) but let his license lapse.

The club eventually acquired a location on the top of the Engineering Labs building (now W. R. Woolrich Labs, WRW). The club was given half of a penthouse that stood on the roof of the building. It apparently had been used to house the more dangerous chemical engineering experiments of the past, but had fallen into disuse. While shack space was less than ideal, the location allowed for easy antenna access, which was often a problem for the station when it was housed in the Texas Union. The roof of WRW has remained UTARC's home to this day.

The move by UTARC was not the first time that the Engineering Labs building had been exposed to Amateur Radio. In the spring of 1963, club member Stuart Rohre K5KVH was looking for a location to try out 160 Meters with his TCS Collins gear that he had just brought to campus. Stuart's roommate, Bill Mays, apparently could get into just about anywhere on campus and knew his way around the off-limits underground tunnel system. He helped Stuart carry his equipment to the top of the Engineering Building where they strung up a temporary antenna on the roof (probably where the club's 40 and 80 Meter wire dipoles now reside) and got on the air.

The Collins set was military surplus, and required 24 VDC for the dynamotor that generated the high voltage. As it happens, the penthouses on the roof of WRW at the time had 24 VDC patch panels connected to power supplies in the engineering labs below. Unfortunately, 160M was restricted to only slivers of the current band, and no contacts were made that first afternoon. However, Stuart remembers that an RF ammeter on the Collins went up to 1.5 Amperes RF current on key down! In later efforts, the antenna worked well from that location, and several Amateurs believed that he was running more power than he reported. UTARC moved to the Engineering Labs building in 1970, seven years after Stuart's experiments.

Access to the club station was originally under strict control. The University of Texas Police Department, located in Memorial Stadium, kept the key to enter the shack. Members had to first retrieve the key from UTPD, visit the shack and then return the key. Around 1980, the club came up with the idea of using a lock box next to the roof door to store the key. Members were given the combination to open the box and retrieve the key. The original lock box is still in use today and was designed and built by then faculty adviser Lloyd Edmonds WA5CVL .

The original setup at Engineering Labs included a telephone for club use. It was occasionally used to help run phone patches on HF nets, but someone also liked to use it for making unauthorized long distance phone calls. UT disconnected the phone in 1972.

A Long Wire

ENS and the famous long wire, as seen from the club station

The station setup on top of Engineering Labs did not allow for very long antennas on the roof itself. Several members in the early 1970's decided to use the next best antenna support they could find: the Engineering Sciences (ENS) building next door. Jerry "Ron" Johnson WA5RON , like Bill Mays, enjoyed having access to restricted areas and helped a team that included George Haysler WB5NCF, Kelley Pace WB5LCE, and team leader Jon Dahm WB5PCV to secretly erect a longwire under the cover of darkness.

The group acquired a spool of #14 gauge insulated wire from an unlocked UT warehouse storeroom. They brought the spool to ENS and gained access to the roof based on Ron's skills as a lock picker. At the top of the building, a length of wire was lowered to the ground and tied off to the railing, it was 2:00 AM.

The plan continued to develop on the roof of Engineering Labs. Again, wire was lowered down the side of the building. George let the spool of wire out while Ron, Kelley, and Jon attempted to get the wire across the parking lot without causing any damage to parked cars. Kelley went to the top of ENS as Ron and Jon attached the long wire to the feed wire they had lowered earlier. Just as Kelley hauled up the wire off the ground, a UTPD patrol car pulled into the parking lot. But by then, the evidence was sky high!

Jon believed that it would have been impossible to get permission to put up such an antenna, but equally impossible to take down once it was in place. It's easier to ask for forgiveness than permission. Their work has been well appreciated over the years. When first put up, the longwire generated some positive signal reports. Jon reports that New York stations thought the club was running a 10KW transmitter. Thirty years later, the longwire continues to be used for 160 meters, and was the only antenna to remain functional after the disastrous September, 1995 wind storm.

Station Equipment

At times, it was difficult to keep track of the club's equipment. Mike Mahaffey WB5BHM (now K5RFT) was President of the club in 1970-1971, the year after the move to WRW. The Hallicrafters HT-37 transmitter that the club acquired in 1962 was moved to the new station. One of the things Mike had to do was "re-align" the HT-37 each time the club received an "OO" (ARRL Official Observer) Report of splattering, usually caused by student operators not knowing how to adjust the phasing controls on the transmitter properly. The club finally decided to acquire a Heathkit SB-102 kit transceiver to replace the Hallicrafters transmitter and Drake receiver, which ended the string of OO Reports. The Heathkit required some maintenance as well, though; Mike had to restring it a couple of times - it wasn't nearly as sturdy as the old reliable Drake 2B receiver. It was a short time later that the club also acquired a second-hand SB-200 Heathkit HF linear amplifier. Some time after that, a Collins rack mounted receiver served the club well and was considered top-quality equipment. One club member sold it at a hamfest, much to the shock and horror of the other members. They somehow managed to reacquire the receiver.

N5FEL poses on the W5EHM tower ca. 1980

Jerry "Ron" Johnson WA5RON made many significant contributions to the club in the mid-1970's. He was very instrumental in getting the club up on VHF for the first time. The first two meter rig at W5EHM was a modified taxicab radio which was previously in the trunk of his car.

W5EHM's capabilities started to increase in the late 1970's. In 1977, the club's HF triband beam was a TA33Jr on a push-up mast. In 1980, Randy Thompson K5ZD was president. According to Randy, things were grim, and some members were even considering throwing in the towel when a British grad student stepped forward and donated $500 to the club station. Randy, unfortunately, cannot remember his name or call. Randy convinced the other club members to invest in antennas, since that is the hardest thing for students to bring to campus. With the new capital, the club purchased a new 40' Rohn 25G tower, which Randy put up one afternoon without a gin pole. ("Funny story, I broke the gin pole while driving from K5TM's in Round Rock to the campus. It broke when it snagged a sign on the side of the highway. I had to buy him a new one!")

A Wilson System One triband HF yagi came from a local Austin ham who had to move in a hurry. Randy had operated in the ARRL November Sweepstakes, CW, at his place, so he called Randy when he needed to take it down in the summer of 1980. One of the traps was blown, but easily repaired. Another UTARC member, Larry Gunter WB5BEK, who helped Randy take the antenna down, broke his arm when a tower section fell on him. Larry was an Electrical Engineering graduate student at the time, and recalls that the cast on his right wrist created a bit of a problem taking notes in class. The club still did not have a working rotator, so turning the new beam required the "Armstrong" method. In the early 1980's, the club acquired a Heathkit SB-301/401 transmitter/receiver pair for their HF work. Having a real antenna for the HF radio seemed to perk up some new interest in the club.

The club's relationship with the occupants of WRW have not always been pleasant. One of the professors residing in WRW did not like the idea of the club being on the roof. In 1985, the surface of the building was redone and to make room, all W5EHM antennas had to be taken down, with the exception of the longwire. The agreement with the club at the time called for guy anchors to be placed on the new roof to add support for the tower when it was put back up. However, the professor who wanted the club gone took it upon himself to tell the workers on the roof to not put in the guy anchors as promised. They never were.

With the club's expansion in the 1980's, the drive to improve the station was strong. Shortly after the roof of WRW was resurfaced, the tower was erected once again, and the 40 and 80 Meters dipoles were back up. After the tri-band beam was in place, a quick CQ on 20 Meters netted a long path contact with an Australian station. W5EHM was back on the air!

In 1986, the club made a big jump in capability by replacing the Heathkit twins with a Kenwood TS-830S HF transceiver. While the 830 still had tube finals, it was a generation ahead of the Heathkit gear and served the club well. Purchasing the radio represented a large financial move for the club. The club's bank account was not large enough to cover the cost, so several members donated additional money to cover the rest. George Fremin WB5VZL (now K5TR) alone contributed close to $200. The tradition of donating money to purchase new gear for the club would continue for years.

WB5NED and WD5IYT in the shack ca. 1985

The 1980's was a decade of Amateur experimentation with packet radio. The club station got its first taste of the new modes in the spring of 1987 with the purchase of a brand new Kantronics KAM all mode box. This gave the station instant capability for almost every mode used in Ham Radio at the time, including HF/VHF packet, RTTY, AMTOR, ASCII and CW. While many RTTY contacts have been made, VHF packet operation was the main mode, and in recent years the DX PacketCluster has been used as much, if not more, than HF itself.

Through much of the mid-1980's, the club borrowed HF amplifiers from club members for use in contests. In 1989, the club purchased a Heathkit SB-220 amp from club member Kevin Mandaville KA5ZVB (then KG5KI, now KT5I) . The amplifier gave the club the power it need to push contest scores higher and to break through the DX pileups.

VHF operation was becoming more interesting to the club members, so in 1989, the club purchased a used Kenwood TS-600 six meter multi-mode radio from club member Curt Black WR5J . Members would eventually work six meter stations around the U.S. and some stations in South America with the radio even though the radio delivered only 10 watts into the club's six meter dipole. A lack of tower space prevented the club from putting up a more suitable directional antenna.

The drive to VHF continued in 1994 with the purchase of an Icom IC-290H two meter multi-mode radio and Mirage solid state amplifier. Capable of 150 watts output power, the setup was nevertheless limited by the only two meter antenna available, a vertical also used for FM voice and packet. The power supply for the two meter radio and amplifier created lots of RF noise on the six meter and HF bands. During VHF contests, it would often be necessary to turn off the two meter radio in order to try and work some stations on six meters.

Tower Destruction

Tower Destruction, September 1995

On September 7, 1995 the club station suffered it's worst disaster. A large thunderstorm generated raging winds that toppled the Rohn 25 tower that supported most of the club's antennas. Judging from the wreckage, a couple of tower bolts failed and one leg became free to move. This allowed the tower to pivot on the remaining two tower legs as it folded over the station penthouse. According to George Fremin WB5VZL (now K5TR,) the bolts on the tower appeared to be old and brittle, and the tower would have held up had the hardware been new.

Actually, the way in which the tower fell was the best that could be hoped for. The top of the tower rested on the far edge of the penthouse, and the antennas mostly escaped severe damage. The 40M rotatable dipole suffered the worst, having been broken into two pieces. The triband beam and 2M vertical antennas were bent in several locations but appeared salvageable. The wire dipoles for 40 and 80 Meters, which used the tower for half of their support, also came down. A cleanup effort was organized by club members a few days after the event. The antennas and tower had to be carefully dismantled while trying to avoid damaging the equipment further and without getting anyone hurt in the process.

The club took its time in rebuilding the station. Throughout the fall of 1995, the station was limited to the longwire antenna, the 80M dipole that Derek Wills AA5BT put back up, and a 40-10 Meter vertical that was loaned to the club by George Fremin WB5VZL (now K5TR). Procrastination and the University bureaucracy hampered the effort to rebuild. Offers of donations were held up while club officers tried to master the paperwork required by UT for corporate matching funds purposes. The first order for new equipment was not placed until January of 1996. Some donations to the club that involved corporate matching funds took years to process, in large part because there seemed to be no established process for handling them. A very large loan made to the club by Robert KA5WSS was not repaid until late 1997.

The new tower and antennas were erected in April, 1996. Seeking a new start, the club purchased a brand new Force 12 HF antenna to cover the 40, 20, 15, and 10 meter bands, along with new wire and coax and tower sections. A later purchase of a 2M yagi and a donation of a 6M yagi provided the club with the largest antenna selection in the club's history. The new setup was designed by George Fremin WB5VZL (now K5TR) to provide more capabilities, while lowering the overall wind load placed on the club's tower.

VHF/UHF Weak Signal Equipment

The N5XU VHF/UHF weak signal station, 1999

Starting in the fall of 1996, the club began a long process of acquiring equipment for the VHF/UHF "weak signal" bands. The club had purchased a Kenwood TS-600 50 MHz all-mode radio sometime in 1988, and an Icom IC-290H 144 MHz all-mode radio in 1995. With the new tower, small yagis were in place for both bands. The club entered the 1996 ARRL September VHF QSO Party and was excited to find out that the very modest score was good enough to win third place in the Midwest region. Ken Harker N1PVB (later KM5FA, now WM5R,) in particular, was hooked on operating SSB and CW on VHF, and began an effort to build up the station's capabilities on those bands.

In 1996, the 50 MHz and 144 MHz equipment at N5XU was very simple, and performance on the 144 MHz radio, in particular, was disappointing. In part, this was because the switching power supply off of which the radio was running developed lots of RF noise on 50 MHz. Fortunately, the summer of 1997 was a very productive time for VHF station development. An opportunity to buy a good, used Yaesu FT-726R came up, and the club purchased it in part with funds collected from selling the Icom IC-290H and its power supply. The Yaesu FT-726R had both 144 MHz and 432 MHz modules in it, and after some scrounging, the club was able to borrow a 432 MHz yagi to get on the air. At the Austin Summerfest Amateur Radio Convention held in Austin that summer, the club sold a lot of junk it had been collecting, and was able to buy a small 60W Tokyo Hy-Power amplifier for 432 MHz with the proceeds. Eventually, an 85' run of 1/2" Andrew Heliax hardline was found at a Belton hamfest.

Also in the summer of 1997, club member George K5TR decided to loan to the club station on an extended basis, an amplifier for 50 MHz, which was based on a 3CX800A7 tube and put out 800 watts. It was a retired Henry commercial signal generator, but was substantially similar to the Henry 2006, and George made all of the necessary modifications to get it on the air. George would eventually reclaim the amplifier when he began building his own VHF contest station west of Austin.

Not content to rest with just three bands and high power on 50 MHz, club officers requested funds from the Student Government to help purchase equipment for the 222 MHz band. The Student Government at the time gave out thousands and thousands of dollars to student groups through a process that involved petition, presentation to committees, and eventually defending the request in front of the entire Student Assembly. The club was eventually awarded $310, much less than what it had requested. It was also publicly railed against in the editorials section of the Daily Texan for being a "special interest group," apparently not deserving of student group funds because not everyone on campus was a ham radio operator. One of the most vocal Student Assembly members writing against smaller campus organizations later ran for Student Government president in 1998, and lost.

With the money from the Student Government, the club was able to purchase a Down East Microwave transverter, which was interfaced to a Realistic HTX-100 transceiver that the club had previously purchased at a Bastrop County hamfest. The funds also financed the purchase of a length of Time Microwave LMR-400 coaxial cable, and the club was once again able to get a yagi antenna, this time one that was donated to the club by George K5TR. Because the transverter was purchased as a kit to save money, and the IF radio required some modification, the first 222 MHz QSO did not happen until March, 1998.

Also in the fall of 1997, the club received funding from the Student Engineering Council to purchase computer equipment for the club station, and over the course of the next year, the club's computer systems grew to include two 90 MHz Pentium machines with 17" monitors at the MF/HF and VHF/UHF tables, respectively, and an 80486DX4/100 machine in the back room that acted as an IP gateway, IP firewall, and web server. All of these computers would eventually be replaced as better hardware became available.

The N5XU tower, summer of 1999. The box at the top holds a 1296 MHz transverter and T/R switching.

The summer of 1999 saw the next major VHF/UHF project at N5XU. With funding help from Robert KA5WSS and Ken KM5FA, the club acquired a Yaesu FT-290R 144 MHz all-mode transceiver and a UHF Units 1296 MHz transverter at the Spring, 1999 Belton Hamfest. Over the course of the spring and summer, a PIN diode switch, an attenuator, a coaxial relay, feedline, heavy gauge wire, a rain-proof box, and a loop yagi antenna were all acquired to complete the system. The transverter, attenuator, switches, and relay were all put inside the rain-proof box and mounted at the top of the tower. The Yaesu FT-290R serves as the IF radio in the shack. The first N5XU microwave QSO was made in late July, 1999.

During the fall semester, 1999, UTARC discovered a new, untapped source of project funding. The University Co-op Society was giving out thousands and thousands of dollars to student groups, and the club asked for $239.00 to buy an AM-6155 amplifier for 222 MHz. The funds were approved, and the amplifier purchased. The AM-6155 was a retired FAA ground-to-air transmitter amplifier, designed for continuous-duty AM at 50W output from 250 to 400 MHz. With a few modifications and a coaxial transfer relay, the amplifier should put out 400W on 222 MHz.

A Satellite Ground Station

In the fall of 2001, the club began getting serious about putting together a satellite ground station at N5XU. Ken Harker WM5R came up with a viable plan to mount a 15' tall mast to the staircase on the side of the penthouse on top of WRW. The mast would be bracketed twice to the railing of the staircase, and twice with custom brackets made of aluminum channel and attached to the side of the building. The bracketing material and U bolts were all acquired locally, and after a search, a shop was found that could sell (and deliver to) the club a galvanized mast. At 21' long, it was more than was wanted (the satellite antennas only really needed to clear the penthouse roof, and any additional length would only make the structure less stable.) Chris Wilkinson N8DVM had to fetch a reciprocating saw from one of the engineering workshops to cut the pipe to length at ground level, because at 21', it would not fit inside the stairwell! The cut end was sealed with a cold galvanizing spray paint.

The N5XU Satellite antenna system, February 2003.

Over the spring, 2002 semester, through donations from the University Co-op Society and club members, the rest of the hardware and software for a satellite ground station were purchased or collected. George K5TR came up with a short 145 MHz yagi, and Robert K5PI donated a 13 element 435 MHz cross-polarized yagi. Ken WM5R worked late in the evenings to install the 15' mast, the Yaesu G-5500 azimuth/elevation rotator, an 8' fiberglass boom (painted black,) the antennas, and all the feedline and rotor cables. The satellite radio was a Yaesu FT-847, purchased in 2001 with help from the University Co-op Society. A very nice, compact solid-state radio, it also operated on the six meter band (replacing the Kenwood TS-600, which was sold at a hamfest) and all the MF/HF bands. Gary Raney KM5TY set up the Nova for Windows software as well as the NovaTune interface hardware and the computer interface to the rotator. At hamfests, the club eventually found a nice cross-polarized two meter yagi, as well as a "barbecue grill" dish antenna for 2.3 GHz to improve the station. The club never did get the cheap 2.3 GHz downconverter that came with the grill antenna to work. Nevertheless, by the fall semester of 2002, Gary was regularly making satellite contacts on 145 MHz and 435 MHz all over the western hemisphere.

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