we are still on 3.988

morning gab on 3.988, 10 am ish and on!

we are still on 3.988 7 pm or later. bands permitting

the rats are now on 3.988 every evening at 7pm-9pm pacific time.. this site needs to be updated!!

hello from ok falls

just popping in to say alls well in the big town of Okanagan falls. got the new truck and the radios installed

staying warm in the nest

does anyone still come here

ve7ren here... just checking to see if any of the rats still come on blogger.. I cant believe its been 2 yrs..alls well here in ok falls.. the evening frequency is 3.993 or 3.989.. hope to talk soon

J-36 Find

Recently while browsing the QRZ equipment for sale, I found a Army Signal Corps J-36 made by Vibroplex.  It turned out to be a 1941 Lightening Bug which was diverted into the Signal Corps Morse training program early on in WWII.  It has a serial number of 2145 and was used in classroom training.  Its condition is excellent, after a lot of elbow grease for cleaning.

Much Smoke

For last few days the smoke from wildfires across the region (Washington mostly) has settled into our little valley.   Although it is detracting from the beauty of the area, it is creating some  spectacular sunsets.   Last evening the sun was blood red at sunset.   Very striking, but pictures didn't turn out.

Bev and I went out for a short drive and noticed lots of deer out feeding in the hour before sunset.  We drove up the St. Maries River road and on the way back decided to take a count and between there and home we counted 32 deer in groups of two to six.   Mostly fawns and their mamas..  Got a few pictures and here are a couple..

Reporting on  the latest keying device at the  W7WEL "Rat" station, a Touch operated set  of electronic paddles..
Touch Switch II kit
Q: How do they  work?
A:  Very well!  Seriously, the principle of operation is switches.   Just  like any mechanical switching setup such as a Bencher or Vibroplex set of paddles used to operate a keyer.  Instead of mechanical switches, the Touch Paddles contain two electronic switches activated by touching one of the two pads. (one for the dit input and one for the dah input  on your keyer) ..  Very smooth operation..

Now, for some more info.  The kit is available from Jackson Harbor Press..(Use the link above to gain access to the website)  This was an easy, inexpensive way to get on the Touch Paddle bandwagon!  Here's a picture of mine. As you can see (Click on the picture to enlarge) it is mounted in a Bud snap box and glued to a 4" square ceramic tile for stability.  (Although you don't need to apply pressure to the pads for it to operate.)

Also, there are other souces for finished paddles, just google "Touch Paddles" to find them. 

One of the most popular sites: http://www.cwtouchkeyer.com/
These folks have a nice line-up, surf the site and you'll discover some simple and affordable paddles.

W7WEL - WR #5

What's this one, Frank?

Who knows the identity of this duck?

St. Joe River Animal

Just to spice up the blog, here's a photo I took up the St. Joe River.   There were several goats feeding on a north slope above Avery and this one turned out OK..  (They were several hundred yards from the lens (A 400 mm prime).)

Allen and Carol's Catch..

A fish story from last season.   The photo says it all. 

New Frequencies

Due to band conditions on 75 meters, Woodrats are now using 40 meters in the mornings and usually begin to show up as early as 9:00 AM on 7.180.

Also: Those Woodrats with a penchant for CW can be found throughout the day by tuning to 7.043.   Local propagation is usually good from about noon til 4 PM, or there-about.  (Until the band begins to stretch out.)

40 meters
SSB  7.180
CW    7.043

Wood Rat Fishing Contest

When in QSO with casual contacts, steer the conversation to fishing and subtly get the fellow to tell you what his biggest fish was, either in inches or pounds.  Record the information and include with your normal QSO logging information so you can track the fish catches through the year.  At the end of the year, you enter five of the largest fish recorded in two categories, Pounds and Inches.



Note: Big fish reported by fellow Woodrats are not eligible because their stories are usually doubtful and laden with prevarication.

To summerize;
1.  Track fish size either in inches or pounds.   Only one from each QSO.
2.  At the end of the year enter the total weight of the five largest and enter the total length of the five longest.

So, there are two categories and you can submit to either or both.

Suggestions and feedback are welcome.

Cooties Again

This cootie was made by Dennis, N5DRB, my nephew.  You've seen some of his work before.   This is a first for me, the magnetic tensioning makes adjustment very precise and stable.  I'm having a blast sideswiping!!!

its alive!!! brent that is.

hey rats.just thought ide touch base and let you know we are alive and well. was busy working...ouch..OT alot.

back on the reg routine now. just talked to ae7li on 985 tonight. didnt know where on 160 you guys were, nut now i do.

hope averyone is having a wonderful early winter staying inside and talking on the radio while us young guys have to work!! ha.
will be on the airwaves again soon.

take care.

ve7ren brent

Winter Photos

It's been a while since I've been to town and had access the the internet. So here's a few photos of what we've been up to recently.

The first is a shot of my 1976 Power Wagon with the BOSS snow plow. I'd just bought this truck in January of 1977 a few months before meeting Lori. It still works great even with balding tires.

This next photo is of my home brew firewood processing gizmo we have on the back porch.  We get these dry 5 foot long logs and then we zap them into 16 inch hunks.  Bada Bing, Bada Boom!

This next one is a photo of a Swan on Little Beaver Lake that seems to be staying over for the winter.  We think it may have been injured.  But it always seems to be content and has several duck buddies that it hangs with.  Plus there's always a spot of open water on this lake where it comes out of the spring.

Here's a view of our house from the driveway below.  I took this photo while plowing on a nice day.

Have a great December if I don't get back to the blog before next year.

New Cootie

Not really new, just the second one modified a bit.  (Added a steel base and painted an ugly black.)

Woodrat Woodtrip

This is a view of the road to Chesaw from our place. The needles of the Tamarac trees have all turned gold and fallen to the ground covering the roadsides.

Here I am splitting wood for the winter. WOO HOO!

MY POST AT THE FAIRE ... ONLY DAMN PIC I GOT ... WHAT A FUN, BUSY , AND COLD WEEKEND