AGM
2022-03-08 19:30 - 21:30 UTC | Tromode Cadet Hall, Car Park Manx Water, Douglas
Notice is nearby given that the postponed AGM will now be held on Tuesday the 8th of March at the Tromode Sea Cadet Hall. The AGM will commence at 19:30 and all members are encouraged to attendant reminded subscritions will be due before the AGM.

NRSA Radio Rally
2022-04-24 11:00 - 17:00 | Norbreck Castle Exhibition Cemtre, Queens Promenade, Blackpool, FY2 9AA, United Kingdom
Northern Amateur Radio societies Association Exhibition held at the Norbreck Castle Exhibition Centre, Blackpool for more information contact Dave Wilson on 01270 761 608

Talk at Tromode next Tuesday
2023-03-10 08:00 - 17:00
On Tuesday 14th March at 19:30 at Tromode Sea Cadet Hall the Isle of Man Amateur Radio society will be given a talk on the Wreck of the British Brig of War HMS Racehorse by Brian King. The Racehorse sank off Langness 200 years ago with the loss of nine lives and inspired Sir William Hillary to encourage the UK Government to create a maritime lifesaving organisation which became the RNLI in 1824.
All members and their guests are welcome. Come early to secure your seat!
73
Your committee

Talk on wreck of the HM Racehorse
2023-03-14 19:30 - 21:30 | Sea Cadets – Tromode
On Tuesday 14th March at Tromode Sea Cadet Hall the Isle of Man Amateur Radio society will be given a talk on the Wreck of the British naval ship, Brig of War HM Racehorse by Brian King.
The Racehorse sunk of Langness 200 years ago with the loss of nine lives and inspired Sir William Hillary to encourage the UK Government to create a maritime lifesaving organisation which became the RNLI in 1824

Castletown Vintage Tractor Show 17 June 2023
2023-06-15 08:00 - 17:00
The Vintage Tractor Show in Castletown (just down from the S100 pits) opens at 09:30, we are setting up a station on Saturday so if anyone would like to come somewhat earlier to help put up the aerial, shelter and stall would be most welcome. We could do it again on Sunday if we have volunteers to do it. Bit much to expect the same people to do both days.
We will have an HF station using a Hustler vertical, anything else depends on time and people.
The Tractor show is always good and entertaining, so come along and support the club and maybe make a QSO.
The committee.

Coming up
2023-07-14 08:00 - 17:00
A couple of events coming up – we were donated an oscilloscope (open to offers) so I thought to give an intro into use of same next Wednesday 19th July at the Ballasalla clubhouse; a very useful tool for circuitry measurements.

Supper at the Hawthorn Inn, a most esteemed hostelry, is suggested on Wednesday 9th August. Their menu is online, so make a selection then we can let them know beforehand for prompt service on arrival. Members wishing to participate let us know with your menu selection by the previous week’s meeting (2nd). Should be jolly.

73

John

Change to next week's club night
2023-08-02 16:00 - 21:00
Due to the Scouts entertaining a visiting Scout Group from across there will be no meeting at Ballasalla next Wednesday 2nd. We are proposing an aerial event at Neil’s field on that evening instead so if you have an aerial project bring it along, there is plenty of room!

Talk by Brian King on the "Mary Rose"
2023-09-12 19:30 - 21:00 | Sea Cadets – Tromode
A date for your diary; Brian King will give another talk on his underwater exploits, this time on King Henry VIII’s sunken battleship the “Mary Rose”. This talk will take place at Tromode at 19:30 on 12th September 2023 and going by interest in his previous presentation will likely be popular so arrive early for a good seat.

Visit to Harbours Division at the Sea Terminal
2023-10-10 19:15 - 21:00 | Sea Terminal
Jon GD0BFN has kindly arranged a visit to the Harbours Division at the Sea Terminal at 19:15 on Tuesday 10 th October.
Due to limited space, we need to know how many people are planning to attend so we can plan the visit.
Please advise John GD0TFG at juanyd@mcb.net if you plan to attend, preferably in plenty of time.
Many thanks
The Committee

IOMARS AGM 13th December in Ballasalla
2023-12-13 19:00 - 21:00 | Ballasalla Shack
Ladies and Gentlemen,
A reminder that the AGM for the Society will be held at the Scout Hall, Mill Road, Ballasalla on Wednesday 13th December at 19:30.
Minutes of the 2022 AGM and an agenda are in your email.
Any and all suggestions as to how the Society will proceed in 2024, how best it may serve the membership, further Amateur Radio in the Isle of Man and whether we stay at Ballasalla for meetings and with what frequency are welcome.
Several committee members are taking a break after sterling service so if any nominations for the 2024 committee can be communicated to the committee before the AGM so we can prepare a list it would be appreciated, although on the night would be OK. 2 hours/month for the monthly meetings is not too onerous?
73
John Dowling GD0TFG
Secretary

Last IOMARS meeting of 2023
2023-12-20 19:00 - 21:30 | Ballasalla Shack
With the last club night this coming Wednesday mince pies, sausage rolls and maybe a wee drop of mulled wine will be on the menu.

73 to all and look forward to seeing you there.

John GD0TFG

Change in GB2RS News Schedule
2024-01-07 16:00 - 17:00
The GB2RS news team hereby announces a forthcoming alteration in the schedule for the Sunday news bulletin.
Effective January 7th, 2024, the time slot for the bulletin will be adjusted from 11 AM to 4 PM.
The format of the bulletin remains unchanged, retaining its existing structure and content.
Notably, the assistance provided from the Isle of Man by Nigel GB6AFB, Matty MD0MAN, Mike GB6ICR, and Gavin 2D0PEY will continue as before, despite the timing adjustment.

IOMARS meetings restart on 10th January 2024
2024-01-10 19:00 - 22:00
As we enjoy the Christmas festivities please be advised Club meetings restart at Ballasalla on Wednesday 10th January.

Don’t forget there are still competitions over the period!

best wishes from your Committee

Nollick Ghennal as Blein vie Noa errui.

Update to Testing evening January 31
2024-01-31 19:00 - 22:00
Testing Night 31th Jan 2024
I plan to bring the following test equipment to the Malew Scout Hut on the evening of the 31th Jan.

A Signal Hound SB44B spectrum analyzer which covers 1Hz to 4.4GHz complete with TG44A signal tracking generator.
A signal Hound VSG25A vector signal generator.
Directional couplers good to 3GHz.
Peak reading Bird Thruline power meter with assorted slugs.
Fluke Multimeter.
Agilent LCR meter.
Dummy loads.
Lots of adaptors and test cables.

What sort of thing can be measured?

Signal quality; intermod products and harmonic output.
Phase noise but only if the equipment is very poor.
Losses in coax-cable and connectors.
Filter band pass and insertion loss.
Power output and how it effects signal quality.
Return Loss (S11) against frequency of antennas and filters etc.
Insertion loss and isolation of coaxial relays.
Small signal gain of pre and power amps against frequency.

What sort of thing cannot be measured?

At my shack I can measure noise figure but this equipment does not travel well so best done there.
Very accurate frequency as I will not be able to get a GPS signal in the Scout hut so the spectrum analyzer will be running on its internal 10MHz reference signal which is not very accurate.
Low level phase noise < -100dBc/Hz, still work in progress on this challenge.
No vector network analyzer so no compound impedance.
Difficult to measure Rx performance in the time available.

If you have any specific request outside those mentioned above please e-mail me at GD8EXI@manx.net before the meeting.
Richard
GD8EXI

Testing evening with Richard GD8EXI
2024-01-31 19:30 - 22:00 | Ballasalla Shack
This month on the 31st January Richard GD8EXI will bring his analytical equipment along to the shack for a testing evening so bring along anything that might do with a check; cables, equipment, aerials (with limitations, of course).

73

The Committee

70cm AFS contest 4th February
2024-02-04 09:00 - 13:00
A team contest, fly the flag for the IOMARS, we have finished quite high previously; we need a minimum of 4 stations to count to towards the Club score. If more than 4 enter, then we can have a second team. Get the details from the RSGB VHF contest calendar. Runs from 0900 to 1300. For those of us who have to /P, lets hope for benign weather!

Bring and Buy at Ballasalla Wednesday February 28th
2024-02-28 19:00 - 22:00
Our last Wednesday in the month schedule continues on February 28th with a bring and buy sale. Bring along your old junk and you may well find it to be someone else’ would-be prize possession! That elusive bit of kit or component, maybe a starter radio for a newcomer to the hobby. The shack will be open from 1830 so that gear can be unloaded and brought in before the rush.
If you are pleased with your sale, you might like to make a contribution to club funds; the donation pot will be handy in the keeping of our highly esteemed treasurer.

Over the horizon on VHF and above. Wednesday 27th March
2024-03-27 19:30 - 21:00
Richard GD8EXI is the Island’s leading proponent of contests on 2M, 70cm and 1.3Ghz.
Always scoring high in the results in RSGB contests, he is a fund of knowledge in optimising transmission and reception in these bands; even if contests are not your bag, there is a lot to be learned from Richard’s many years of activity on these higher bands. He will welcome questions.
His talk starts at 1930 on Wednesday 27th March, so come early to get a good seat.

Reminder of Richard GD8EXI talk
2024-03-27 19:30 - 21:00 | Ballasalla Shack
A reminder that Wednesday week 27th March that doyen of VHF,UHF etc operation Richard GD8EXI will be giving an illustrated talk “Over the horizon on VHF and above” at the clubhouse at 7:30.

Winner of numerous awards and triumphs in competitions, if anyone can get a signal over the horizon it’s Richard, so not an opportunity to miss.

RSGB Regional Teams; a talk by Chris Wood GD6TWF
2024-04-24 19:30 - 21:30 | Ballasalla Shack
The April event is being given by Chris Wood GD6TWF, RSGB honorary Treasurer, with the theme of RSGB Regional Teams and their relevance to amateurs on the IOM and elsewhere. This to be followed by a 2-way link with Ed O’Neill M0TZX editor of Radcom, so if there are any items that concern Manx amateurs or any questions you would like to put to our 2 speakers then this is the time. As the RSGB represents our interests as Amateurs it would be most useful to get a better understanding of how it all works.

Talk by Brian King "Diving the Mary Rose"
2024-05-24 20:00 - 21:00
It looks although some of the text of the event was lost. I am posting again.
Many thanks again to Chris and Ed for the informative review of the RSGB and what it can do for us, and the history of Radcom.
Details have been finalised for this months’ event, “Diving on the Mary Rose” (Henry V111’s flagship that was lost in Portsmouth) presented by Brian King. We all remember his excellent talk of the “Racehorse” at Tromode some time ago, and this promises to be just as good.
Due to better acoustics, more comfortable and bar (!) the talk will be on Friday 24th May at the Isle of Man Yacht Club in Lime Street in Port St Mary commencing 8pm. All members and their partners are welcome, and will be signed in by YC members, who are keenly supporting this talk.
Just a note to the wise, Billown is hosting the pre-TT races that evening, and roads close at 6pm. The course may be bypassed by the country route but allow an extra 15-20 mins travel time. The road will be open again after the talk at the YC.

Themed /P stations this year
2024-06-10 08:00 - 17:00
Outdoor programme for radio stations
With Spring upon us amateurs are emerging from their shacks into the sunlight, so let’s enjoy the good weather and ham radio.
There are some /P events which may be given consideration by club members now that TT is past.
Tractor Show in Castletown this coming Saturday 15-16 June. John GD0TFG and Stuart GD0OUD will be operating Saturday; they would welcome some help in setting up and tearing down. The Tractor Show has always been fun, parades, ice-creams and people who like technical things.
RNLI-linked station. Douglas YC are having a combined Lifeboat Day in conjunction with Sailing for the Disabled on 27th July, Chris Wood is enquiring as to practicalities, also there is Port Erin lifeboat day in July.
Lighthouses on the Air August 17th we are allowed to use the Lighthouse grounds.
Churches on the Air September 14th with John GD4RAG – they have a nice high flagpole!
Contact any Committee member directly or on Club night.

Project evening
2024-06-26 19:00 - 21:00
With TT now a fond memory, let’s get practical and bring our favourite projects, antenna and radio, to our end of month event on Wednesday 26th June at the clubhouse. There is doubtless a wealth of projects out there which can illustrate the ingenuity of amateurs with their hobby. Look forward to seeing them.

Bring and show projects
2024-06-26 19:30 - 21:00
Just a reminder about the bring and show projects tomorrow night at the clubhouse. Antennas, radios, useful gadgets etc. Maybe give ideas about future projects?

Bring then along.

Lighthouses on the Air
2024-08-17 - 2024-08-18 | Point of Ayre Lighthouse
Lighthouses on the Air.
This annual event is coming up, over the weekend of 17th and 18th August.
There are lighthouses signed up all over the world and it would be great to put the Isle of Man on the map.
We have the use of the grounds of the Point of Ayre lighthouse thanks to the tenant and owner, and could make it a 1 or 2 day operation. I can only do the 17th due to MGP. A barbeque would be jolly if anyone has the gear.
There is room for a multiband longwire or G5RV, a multiband Hustler has also been used. Regrettably the Elf of Safety will not let us run a wire to the top of the lighthouse!
In the past we have had the use of a room off the garage. There are ablutions available.
Let me know if you intend to participate, if we can get a few members together I’ll register the Society as participants.
73
John GD0TFG
Secretary
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The Wadley Loop and it's inventor Dr Trevor Wadley
2024-09-25 19:30 - 21:00
Talk at the Ballasalla clubhouse on 25th September 19:30
Dr Trevor Wadley and the drift-cancelling Wadley loop.
The Wadley Loop was incorporated in numerous receivers by Racal, Realistic, Yaesu with its FRG- 7 and FRG-7000 and the locally made Barlow-Wadley manufactured in New Germany, Natal.
Dr Wadley, born in 1920 of a family of 12 children, excelled at maths and science at Durban High School, and after obtaining his degree, worked for the South African Corps of Signals during the war on radar systems. Post war he went to work for the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research working on an underground communications system for the Chamber of Mines and also conceived a variety of RF instruments including the Tellurometer ( for distance measuring), Ionosonde (Height of ionised atmospheric layers and thus MUF) and the drift-cancelling receiver utilising the Wadley Loop.
What is the Wadley Loop? There is no feed back so it is not strictly a loop, but effectively a triple-conversion superhet. Whereas a full coverage receiver of the time would require much band-switching and a super-stable local oscillator, the Wadley loop gave continuous tuning over the full HF range. I’ll explain how it works and it’s strengths and weaknesses.
John GD0TFG

Morse Code
2024-10-30 19:30 - 21:30 | Ballasalla Shack
Morse Code
Talk by Stuart GD0OUD
19:30 30th October
1st Malew Scout Building, Mill Road, Ballasalla IM9 2EG

Testing Night
2024-11-27 19:30 - 22:00 | Ballasalla Shack
I plan to bring the following test equipment along.
• A Signal Hound SB44B spectrum analyzer which covers 1Hz to
4.4GHz complete with TG44A signal tracking generator.
• A Signal Hound VSG25A vector signal generator.
• Directional couplers good to 3GHz.
• Peak reading Bird Thruline power meter with assorted slugs.
• Fluke Multimeter.
• Agilent LCR meter.
• Dummy loads.
• Lots of adaptors and test cables.
What sort of things can be measured?
• Signal quality; intermod products and harmonic output.
• Phase noise but only if the equipment is very poor.
• Losses in coax-cable and connectors.
• Filter band pass and insertion loss.
• Power output and how it effects signal quality.
• Return Loss (S11) against frequency of antennas and filters etc.
• Insertion loss and isolation of coaxial relays.
• Small signal gain of pre and power amps against frequency.
What sort of thing cannot be measured?
• At my shack I can measure noise figure but the equipment does
not travel well so best done there.
• Very accurate frequency as I will not be able to get a GPS signal in
the Scout hut so the spectrum analyzer will be running on its
internal 10MHz reference signal.
• Phase noise < -100dBc/Hz, work in progress on this challenge.
• No vector network analyzer so no phase data.
• Difficult to measure Rx performance in the time available.

Isle of Man Amateur Radio Society Dinner
2024-11-29 18:00 - 23:00 | Creg-ny-Baa
Isle of Man Amateur Radio Society Dinner
at the Creg-ny-Baa
Friday 29th November
Please make a booking by e-mailing info@IOMARS.IM
Menu can be found here: The Creg Ny Baa – Menus

The science behind the new electromagnetic field regulations.
2025-01-29 19:30 - 21:30 | Ballasalla Shack
By Richard GD8EXI
The possible interaction between electromagnetic fields and humans will be discussed.
