https://n5xo.net/index.htmlHot News!enen2026-05-31T17:53:55-05:00 hourly 1 2000-01-01T12:00+00:00 Sun, 31 May 2026 19:47:33 -0500Blog2026-05-31T17:53:55-05:00https://n5xo.net/blog/files/218d2bff3123f240122bdb3eb0bfd041-5.html#unique-entry-id-5https://n5xo.net/blog/files/218d2bff3123f240122bdb3eb0bfd041-5.html#unique-entry-id-5N5XO Blog
Summer 2026 — Monsters, Microwave, and Complete Antenna Madness
Retirement was supposed to mean slowing down.
Apparently, my version of “slowing down” involves climbing towers, rebuilding antenna arrays, replacing equipment vaporized by lightning, developing new Amateur Radio software at 2:00 in the morning, and consuming enough Monster Energy drinks to medically qualify as an alternate power source.
Welcome to Summer 2026 at the N5XO house in Converse, Texas.
Honestly… I’m having the time of my life.
This summer is shaping up to be one giant Amateur Radio adventure, and I’m more excited about the hobby right now than I’ve been in years.
Of course, Mother Nature apparently noticed I was having too much fun and decided to get involved.
As many of you know, we recently took a lightning strike that turned several pieces of equipment into very expensive decorative paperweights.
Among the fallen heroes:

• My tower-top camera system that let me monitor antenna alignment, weather, and generally keep an eye on the horizon like some retired suburban NORAD operator.
• The Meshtastic relay system.
• One of my Flex 6400M radios.

I may or may not have stood silently in the shack holding a coax connector while staring at the dead Flex like a man attending a funeral.
But every ham knows the rules.
If smoke escapes the equipment… the project simply enters “Phase Two.”
And honestly?
I already had major upgrades planned anyway.
So instead of being depressed about it, I decided to lean fully into the madness and launch what can only be described as:
Operation: “Well… While We’re At It…”
The primary tower is scheduled for a full antenna makeover this summer.
Current plans include:

• Adding a 45-element loop Yagi for 900 MHz weak-signal SSB operation.
• Replacing the stacked 32-element loop Yagis on 1296 MHz with stacked 45-element beasts.
• Replacing my disappointing 220 MHz quad with a proper high-performance Yagi.
• Continuing the slow but exciting move into larger antenna arrays, microwave operation, and eventually 10 GHz work.

Now THAT part really has me excited.
Because I honestly suspect that microwave and 10 GHz operation may end up being the final summit of my Amateur Radio career.
There’s just something fascinating about pushing farther and farther into the weak-signal and microwave world where everything becomes more difficult, more technical, more precise… and somehow even MORE fun.
The higher you go in frequency, the crazier the adventure becomes.
And apparently, I looked at that and thought: “Yep. Sign me up.”
Of course, tower work is never complete without wildlife interference.
Specifically the local buzzards and hawks who remain fully committed to destroying my horizontal omni antennas for 2 meter SSB.
At this point I’m convinced they hold planning meetings nearby.
Every time I think I’ve solved the problem, one of them lands on the antenna system with the grace and subtlety of a bowling ball dropped from orbit.
I’m fairly certain they wait until I finish repairs before launching the next attack.
Meanwhile, software development insanity continues at full speed.
Along with all the antenna projects, I’m continuing development on several Amateur Radio software projects focused heavily on VHF/UHF operation, propagation support, logging, and communication tools.
But the project that currently has me REALLY excited is a brand-new Meshtastic terminal application.
My goal is simple: Build something flexible, useful, informative, and actually enjoyable to use.
A lot of modern software feels like it was designed by engineers who are personally angry at humanity.
I’m trying very hard NOT to do that.
The new software focuses heavily on:

• Better communication flow
• More usable information
• Increased flexibility
• Better situational awareness
• Real-world functionality
• And fewer moments where users scream at the monitor

Although yelling at computers does remain a proud Amateur Radio tradition.
But honestly, one of the BEST parts of this summer has been working with other Amateur Radio clubs and helping promote weak-signal VHF/UHF activity through the HAMsters group.
That part has been incredibly rewarding.
I’ve really enjoyed encouraging operators from local and regional clubs to step outside the normal repeater world and discover just how exciting simplex, weak-signal, SSB, microwave, and long-distance VHF/UHF operation can actually be.
Because once people experience it…
Once they hear a distant weak signal rise out of the noise…
Once they work stations hundreds of miles away on frequencies most people think are “line of sight only”…
Something changes.
Suddenly the hobby becomes an adventure again.
And THAT is what I want people to experience.
Not just talking THROUGH infrastructure… …but actually communicating station-to-station.
Building antennas. Experimenting. Learning propagation. Chasing openings. Improving stations. Trying crazy ideas. Having fun.
That spirit is still very much alive.
You just have to discover where it’s hiding.
So yes…
Summer 2026 currently includes:

• Tower work
• Antenna upgrades
• Microwave experimentation
• Meshtastic development
• Weak-signal operation
• Club activity
• Contesting
• Propagation chasing
• Fighting buzzards
• Replacing lightning damage
• Drinking alarming amounts of Monster
• And probably inventing several new curse words along the way

And honestly?
I wouldn’t change a thing.
73, Greg Lewis — N5XO

]]>Blog2026-04-22T09:49:41-05:00https://n5xo.net/blog/files/f470ff2823653af47f0d183f0d25e17b-4.html#unique-entry-id-4https://n5xo.net/blog/files/f470ff2823653af47f0d183f0d25e17b-4.html#unique-entry-id-4WHY I HATE FT8…
(…and why I’m also kind of in awe of it)
By Greg N5XO

Let me just say it right up front so nobody accuses me of dancing around the issue:
I hate FT8.
There… I said it.
Now before the pitchforks come out and someone fires up a 1.5 kW legal-limit keyboard response, let me follow that up with something equally true:
FT8 is one of the most brilliant things ever created in Amateur Radio.
And that, my friends, is the problem.

First — Credit Where It’s Due
The software behind FT8, developed by Joe Taylor (yes, a literal Nobel Prize-winning physicist… not your average weekend code hacker), is nothing short of astonishing.
FT8 can:

• Decode signals 20–24 dB below the noise floor
• Complete contacts in about 15 seconds per exchange
• Allow stations with modest antennas and low power to work the world
• Perform reliably under conditions where SSB just throws its hands up and goes home

In plain English?
👉 Signals you cannot hear… FT8 casually logs for you like it’s ordering lunch.
From a technical standpoint, it’s jaw-dropping.

The Part Where I Start Grumbling Like an Old Guy
Now here’s where I probably sound like those guys back in the day saying:
“When they dropped the CW requirement, the hobby was doomed!”
…and I used to laugh at them.
Well guess what…
I’ve become that guy.

“The Band Is Wide Open!”
…and nobody’s there
I cannot tell you how many times this has happened:

• 6 meters is wide open
• 2 meters is rolling with propagation
• Conditions are screaming “GET ON THE AIR!”

And what do you hear on SSB?
Crickets.
Dead silence.
Meanwhile, you slide over to FT8…
…and it looks like Times Square on New Year’s Eve.

The Contest Problem (This One Hurts)
During VHF/UHF contests, something has shifted — and not in a subtle way.

• SSB activity? Thin
• CW activity? Even thinner
• Actual conversation? Practically endangered

Unless you’re chasing:

• a rover
• a die-hard weak signal operator
• or one of us stubborn holdouts

…it’s quiet.
But FT8?
Packed. Wall-to-wall signals.
It’s like everyone showed up to the party… but they’re all texting each other from different corners of the room.

What FT8 Gets Absolutely Right
Let’s be fair — because this matters.
FT8 has:

• Opened the hobby to people with limited space, HOA restrictions, or modest stations
• Made DX accessible to folks who otherwise wouldn’t have a chance
• Provided a powerful tool for propagation testing
• Enabled scientific-level weak signal experimentation

From a technical and accessibility standpoint:
👉 FT8 is a massive win for Amateur Radio.
No argument.

What It Gets… Questionable
Here’s my issue — and it’s not technical.
It’s cultural.
FT8 contacts are:

• Automated
• Structured
• Efficient
• Predictable

Which sounds great… until you realize:
👉 You’re not really communicating.
You’re exchanging:

• callsigns
• grid squares
• signal reports

…and that’s it.
No personality. No conversation. No “Hey, what antenna are you running?” No “Where are you located?” No “Man, the band is on fire tonight!”
Just:
Beep… decode… log… done.

The “Texting” Effect on Radio
This is where I get myself into trouble…
FT8 is doing to Amateur Radio what texting did to society.
We used to:

• call people
• talk
• laugh
• share ideas

Now?
We send:

• 👍
• “k”
• “ok”

FT8 feels like the RF version of that.
Efficient? Yes. Impressive? Absolutely. Satisfying?
…eh.

My Unpopular Opinion
I would love FT8 if it stayed in its lane:

• Bad band conditions? YES
• Testing antennas? YES
• Pushing weak signal limits? ABSOLUTELY

But when:

• the band is open
• conditions are good
• and people still choose automation over interaction

…it starts to feel like we’re missing the point.

The Reality Check (Because I Have One)
Here’s the part where I have to be honest with myself:
FT8 isn’t destroying the hobby.
It’s evolving it.
And whether I like it or not:
👉 A lot of operators love it 👉 A lot of new hams start with it 👉 A lot of stations depend on it
And that matters.

Final Thoughts from a Grumpy Weak Signal Guy
So where do I land?

• I hate FT8 for what it’s doing to conversation
• I respect it deeply for what it can do technically
• I use it occasionally (don’t tell anyone)
• I wish more people would get back on SSB and actually talk

Because at the end of the day…
This hobby isn’t just about making contacts.
It’s about:

• sharing knowledge
• experimenting
• learning
• and yes… actually communicating

The Challenge
Next time the band opens:
👉 Slide up to 144.200 👉 Or 50.125 👉 Or wherever your weak signal calling frequency is
And instead of clicking “Enable TX”…
Pick up the mic.
You might be surprised who answers.

— Greg N5XO
]]>Blog2026-04-20T17:14:42-05:00https://n5xo.net/blog/files/e3aa83c391a88d032039880551811c93-3.html#unique-entry-id-3https://n5xo.net/blog/files/e3aa83c391a88d032039880551811c93-3.html#unique-entry-id-3How It All Started – Or, How I Accidentally Jammed Half of Texas
If you’re looking for a story about how I carefully studied electronics, followed all the rules, and respectfully entered the world of Amateur Radio… you’re going to be disappointed.
My journey started in the mid-1960s with a screwdriver, a curious mind, and absolutely no adult supervision worth mentioning.
I grew up fascinated with electronics. Back then, if a TV or radio stopped working, it didn’t get recycled—it got thrown out. Which, to me, meant free parts store. I spent my days dragging home old sets and tearing them apart like a mad scientist, collecting tubes, resistors, capacitors, and anything else that looked important.
The beauty of those old tube circuits? They actually made sense. You could see what was happening. Solid state came along, and I hung in there. But when integrated circuits and surface mount showed up… well, let’s just say somewhere along the line the electrons started hiding from me.
Fast forward to late 1960s small-town Texas. In science class, we were learning about Guglielmo Marconi and spark gap transmitters. Most kids probably thought, “Well, that’s interesting.”
I thought: “I bet I can build one of those.”
Now, as luck would have it, another thing that was easy to find back then was Model T spark coils. Why? No idea. But they were everywhere—probably just waiting for two unsupervised kids to make poor life decisions.
A buddy of mine, Bryan, and I got our hands on a couple of those coils and did what any responsible young scientists would do:
We built our own spark gap transmitters.
Now depending on your perspective, this was either:

• A brilliant early experiment in RF engineering
  or
• A clear warning sign to society

We set up shop using what I still consider one of the finest antennas ever constructed:
A long barbed wire ranch fence running behind my house.
Perfect? No. Effective? Oh… absolutely.
One cold, rainy Thanksgiving weekend, Bryan and I spent the entire day “communicating” between our houses. We used standard AM radios to listen to each other, and here’s the key detail:
No tuning required.
At the time, we thought: “Man, this is incredible!”
What we should have thought was: “If we don’t need tuning… what is this doing to literally every radio, TV, and electronic device within a 10-mile radius?”
But we were young. And apparently, not that bright.
Around 6:00 PM Saturday evening, there was a hard knock on the front door.
My father answered.
Standing there was a police officer… and two men in suits.
From the other room, I heard my name—loudly—and in a tone that suggested my life choices were about to be reviewed in detail.
I walked to the door, heart pounding, brain racing: “What did I do? What did I break? Who did I interfere with?”
Answer: Everyone.
The two guys in suits turned out to be ham radio operators who had tracked down a source of massive interference. The police officer was there… just in case this turned out to be something more serious than two kids accidentally recreating early 1900s radio technology across half the county.
After a brief investigation, it was determined:

• Not a Russian plot
• Not a military experiment
• Just two kids with spark coils and zero understanding of RF containment

And here’s the part that changed everything…
Instead of shutting me down and walking away, those hams did something unexpected:
They talked to my father… and convinced him to let me live.
Then they did something even more dangerous:
They started mentoring me.
They introduced me to the world of Amateur Radio the right way—licenses, proper equipment, real operating—and I was hooked from that moment on.
Fast forward about eight years: I graduate high school and join the United States Navy as… you guessed it… a radioman. Apparently, once RF gets in your blood, there’s no getting it out.
After my Navy tour, life kicked in hard—in a good way. I married my high school sweetheart, we bought a house, started careers, raised a family… and somewhere along the way, Amateur Radio took a back seat.
At one point I decided to get back into it, only to discover my license had expired four years earlier. That was discouraging enough that I set it aside again.
Life stayed busy.
Then, about 15 years later, I finally had the time—and this time, I came back with a vengeance.
For years, I operated almost exclusively on HF, running my trusty old Heathkit HW-101, which I was convinced would outlive most modern radios. But in 2006, everything changed.
I bought my first new radio in decades… and for the first time started playing around on 2 meters and 6 meters.
And then…
Fate stepped in.
I discovered VHF/UHF Weak Signal operating—and suddenly, a whole new world opened up. Distance, propagation, antennas, takeoff angles… it was everything I loved about radio, turned up to eleven.
And that brings us to today.
From tearing apart junk TVs… to accidentally jamming half the county… to getting “caught” by the very people who would shape my future…
I didn’t just find Amateur Radio.
It found me—and never let go.
]]>