KT-34A

[David_B_Curtis at ccm11.sc.intel.com]

de wa2syn:
>  ... and when you get all your parts (prepare to 
> spend at least twice the time they claim to put it together), 

twice?? As I recall from several years ago when I had one, the
instructions said to allow 8 hours for a KT-34XA, and it took me
more like 4X, working carefully. ("Measure twice, cut once", school
of construction.)

I only had it up for a year before moving from that house, but
FWIW, it was a good performer and survived one Minnesota winter
very well.  One thing... the KT34-XA is not torque balanced, so
it is quite a weather vane. Get a rotator with good brakes. (Only a
problem with XA, I suspect.)

73, Dave NG0X

>From mraz at rdxsunhost.aud.alcatel.com (Kris I. Mraz)  Thu Feb 22 17:20:26 1996
From: mraz at rdxsunhost.aud.alcatel.com (Kris I. Mraz) (Kris I. Mraz)
Date: Thu, 22 Feb 96 11:20:26 CST
Subject: What REALLY makes you good?
Message-ID: <9602221720.AA18556 at maverick.aud.alcatel.com>

Here are the secrets of the REALLY major-league contesters who are
too modest to talk about themselves. No names will be used.

Top Ten Secrets of the Big Time Contesters

10. Send the wife and kids to Disney World for the weekend.
9. When buying a house, instead of "location, location, location" its
   "Conditions, Covenants, and Restrictions".
8. Attend the "Seven Habits of Successful People" seminar.
7. Don't learn your logging program during the contest.
6. Take sleep breaks only when there won't be any new multipliers on.
5. Get a Big Time Contester to guest op using your call.
4. The contester's best friend: F1
3. Work as many people as you can as fast as you can.
2. Can you say "two holer"?
1. Three words: 50 gallon barrel.

>From Patrick Barkey <pbarkey at wp.bsu.edu>  Thu Feb 22 17:23:57 1996
From: Patrick Barkey <pbarkey at wp.bsu.edu> (Patrick Barkey)
Date: Thu, 22 Feb 1996 12:23:57 -0500
Subject: Personal Heroes
Message-ID: <s12c61bd.017 at wp.bsu.edu>

A very inspiring message from Trey ...

It makes me think of who my personal heroes are in contesting.  There
are many.  Most were added to the list in my younger years.  Nowadays
my ego gets in the way of recognizing outstanding operating, even when
its right under my nose.

For gentlemanly, classy, professional, stylish operating, its gotta be
W4KFC.  Nobody else is even close.

My hero for running a pileup is K1GQ.  Hearing him when he was at
KH6RS was the best lesson I've ever had in how to transform an unruly
bunch of W/VE alligators into a neat row of ducks, to be knocked off
crisply and with a minimum of fuss.

K8MFO is the best guy I've ever heard getting through a pile.  I remember
when Don had a Gotham quad in Saginaw, MI.  I heard him break a 15 m
pile to XV5AC when Vietnam was rarer than anything.  He just knows
where and when to call.

For seriousness and dedication its gotta be N4AR.  Who else do you
know who never calls in a pileup unless he knows what it is?  Opening
his station up to a bunch of neophyte ops like myself in the 70's must
have been like handing the keys to a Corvette over to a 16-year old kid.

This is nothing other than a nostalgia-trip, obviously.  But what else is
there to do when there are no sunspots other than to embarass these
fine contesters?  :-)

I now resume my usual role as reflector "lurker."

   -- Pat
      WA8YVR