The RWK publishes a monthly on-line newsletter, “The Chawed Rag“, for members and others interested in the Klub’s activities. The latest issue is below and you can find the most recent issues to the right. The back issue archive of our printed newsletters is here!
- The Chawed Rag – September 2025
Volume 55 Issue 1 – Sept 2025 Here’s The Chawed Rag for Sept 2025 (back after a “brief” absence). We’ve got a chance for you to voice your opinion on HOA restrictions, obsession about Balloons!, an upcoming SSTV event, Foxhunts are Alive and Well at RWK, belated Field Day 2025 results, our RWK Meeting Video Archive is back, call for 2026 Officers, the usual upcoming events and news and so much more. Hope you enjoy! – KD4C
President’s Update
Greetings RWK!
It’s been a minute since you’ve seen a Chawed Rag! (To save you from looking, it was last year). It wasn’t a conscious decision. The Chawed Rag just went on vacation for a month and then got lost wandering around. Thankfully he found his way back.
Re-inventing the Chawed Rag was (in my opinion) one of my best accomplishments . Most Club Newsletters just plain suck, with nothing but boring meeting minutes and financial reports (which we make available on our website), clip-art graphics, and *gasp* a listing of members’ birthdays, and – maybe – an interesting (but too long) section every once in awhile. I’ve hated most of them, including the ones I produced (and mailed) many years ago in Knoxville. I also hated that they continue to be laid out for printing (although most clubs just produce PDFs now), so you couldn’t read them easily and they weren’t searchable online. They basically got dumped in a “newsletter archive” folder somewhere never to be heard from again.
I wanted to have a newsletter that a club of RWK’s size and stature could be proud of. Not quite QST – but something that contained timely and interesting subjects that many members would otherwise miss. I also wanted to have a mixture of “news” (timely bits such as upcoming events) and “features” (technical bits, how-to’s, or projects that could continue to be useful long after the newsletter was read), as well as regular sections such as humor and member activities. I also wanted to embrace all the power of the web and embed video and links to other sites. Also, you may have noticed that most longer features appear as teases to separate “read more” posts on the RWK website – this is by design so that they are searchable and findable without having to plow through various issues of the CR.
RWK has (at this writing) over 350 members, one of the largest clubs in Texas, if not the US. We usually average between 50-65 people at the average RWK meeting, which is somewhere around 20% of members (but we could do better!). Since the new “online” Chawed Rag appeared, we can track the statistics of how many people have at least opened (and hopefully read) the newsletter, and (before the extended CR vacation) we were averaging from 175 to 250 openings! Far more than the 20% of people listening to me drone on at the RWK meeting. So the Chawed Rag seems to be a far more effective way of communicating with the RWK members.
I did get an interesting “get off my lawn” hate email from a *former* RWK member basically commanding me to resume the PDF newsletters so he could print them out and read them. That’s when I knew this was the right direction!
So why the extended vacation? Well first of all, this is *my* vision of a club newsletter and we don’t have someone focused on just the newsletter (like many clubs do). In addition to doing all that being President of RWK encompasses, I usually spend 5-6 hours every month creating and “curating” content for the Chawed Rag. Sure there’s some overlap, but it’s a time-consuming endeavor to put out this version of the CR. Even with the occasional outside contribution, it takes time to put everything together. I try (tried) to get the Chawed Rag out by the end of each month. Not sure what was happening last year – Field Day maybe – but one month I wasn’t going to make that self-imposed deadline. So after being late a few weeks, there were no questions from other members about “missed the Chawed Rag” or “when is the next one?” or even “I liked xxx or yyy from the last issue”. Nothing. Crickets. Honestly, it made me wonder if anyone cared and if it was worth the effort. I *knew* that it was a (mostly) quality product and what RWK had was miles better than any of the other local clubs, but if nobody else cared??? Makes you wonder if it was time well spent.
So, after the extended vacation, I’m giving it another go. RWK deserves it. As you have probably noticed, I like to write. And I think I have a pretty good sense of what people find interesting. And as demonstrated by the statistics, it is the most effective way of communicating with a club as large as RWK. I’m again asking what you would like to see in the CR (hopefully no one says minutes and financials!). And maybe one or two of you will write something interesting (nothing that looks like a textbook though!).
Both you and the Chawed Rag deserve another chance. All I ask is that, if you find it at all worthwhile, let us know. Share it, mention it to your friends, use it as a resource, build something that you saw referenced. Show us (all who contribute to the CR and RWK in general) that the time spent is worthwhile. Silence = Death
Hopefully in 2026, RWK will have a new President (after 5 years, it *is* time for some new blood and ideas), and whomever that is will see fit to maybe keeping me around to continue with the new and improved Chawed Rag. But that’s up to you!
I’ll leave you with this final (but not related to the CR) thought. How much do you think our amateur radio spectrum is worth? Do you think that hams “deserve” all of our currently-allocated RF spectrum? Do we do enough to keep it? I’ll share with you a recent news item: Recently, 50MHz of spectrum was sold for $23 Billion dollars. That’s BILLION with a B. That would value our 440-450MHz subband (not including our 420-440 secondary allocation) at almost $5 Billion dollars. In this day of government-assisted “everything to the highest bidder” mentality, how long do you think we would keep that 10MHz for ham radio if someone made an offer? Are you doing everything you can do to justify our current spectrum allocations?
Read on for some important developments that could affect all hams, as well as some things you might have missed over the last few months.
Thanks for being a RWK Member! – 73 de KD4C (feedback: president@k5rwk.org)
Please share any interesting ham-related stuff you’ve seen or have been doing. Doesn’t matter how raw or badly written, we’ll make you look good and help you show off what you’ve been doing – see the right column for details. With over 300 members, if everyone in the klub sent just one contribution to the Chawed Rag each year, we would have plenty of content for each issue.
This Month’s Chawed Rag Features
Make Your Voice Heard on the pending HOA Restrictions Legislation
From The ARRL
The ARRL is focused on reducing legal restraints on the ability of American Amateur Radio Operators to engage in the active practice and enjoyment of Amateur Radio.
One of the most insidious and increasing threats to the survival of Amateur Radio and our ability to serve our communities and Nation, as we are required to do by Federal regulation, is the proliferation of private land use restrictions that prohibit the installation of outdoor antennas and that sometimes actually deny Federally licensed Amateurs from operating any amateur radios, regardless of where their antennas are located — in their attics, hidden in trees, or mounted on their vehicles.
Federal law — since 1996 — has guaranteed to every American — except Amateur Radio Operators — the right to erect antennas outside or on their residences for the purpose of TV reception, satellite TV and internet access, wireless internet access, and even wireless internet redistribution. But Amateur Radio operators are denied the equal right to erect comparable antennas.
Since 2005, Federal law has also guaranteed to every American the right to proudly display the American Flag by installing flagpoles in their yards. But, despite that right to install vertical poles in their yards — American Radio Amateurs are denied the right to use those vertical flagpoles as vertical antennas.
We believe the denial — to licensed Amateur Radio Operators — of the rights guaranteed to all non-Amateur Radio licensed American homeowners — the right to install antennas on the land they own — is without justification and should not be permitted to continue.
To eliminate these private land use restrictions, the ARRL has worked over the past several years with our elected officials to draft Congressional legislation — H.R. 1094 in the U.S. House of Representatives and S. 459 in the U.S. Senate — that, when passed will extend to all Hams the right to operate from their homes and the right to install antennas on the land they own. We have bipartisan support for this legislation.
BUT, WE NEED YOUR HELP TO PASS THIS LEGISLATION!!! How can you help? By sending a letter to your Representative and Senators asking that they co-sponsor and support H.R. 1094 and S. 459.
How can you send these letters? It is easy.
Go to — https://send-a-letter.org/hoa/ — enter your call sign and click on “Send My Letters” and your letters will be delivered to our Washington legislative team for hand delivery to your Representative and Senators.
Does your individual letter matter? YES. Your Representative and Senators need to know that the passage of this legislation is important to you. Your letter could be the difference in whether we are able to pass H.R. 1094 and S. 459.
Balloons Balloons Balloons!
By Chip Coker KD4C
“What’s with all the recent RWK activity with High Altitude Balloons?” Well first of all, it’s pretty cool to be able to launch something and get it to over 100,000 feet, and then recover it a couple of hours later! “But it’s not related to Ham Radio…” Well, yes it is. Let me explain…
There are lots of ham radio clubs that launch high-altitude balloons. In fact, at any given time there may be 1-2 in the air somewhere over the US. The high-altitude platform is a great way to experiment with RF as well as get some really great scenery from the edge of space. In addition, radio technology is used heavily for the tracking and telemetry downlink of the balloon payloads. In the past, many people used an APRS package to track balloon position, but we can do so much better (and without making the world-wide APRS community mad at us). A group of really smart people scattered around the globe (including our own KE5GDB) are actively developing a ham-radio-based tracking and telemetry system that uses free radios that fall from the sky! (in the US, the National Weather Service launches weather “sondes” twice a day to collect data from the atmosphere. These radios fall to the ground, are free for the taking, and can be reprogrammed to be used as ham radio based balloon trackers).
So RWK is doing our part to launch some high-altitude balloons, in part to develop and refine the tracking and telemetry system (including some fantastic HD still-frame video!).
What’s of interest to the average ham? We’re flying some mini-repeaters that provide multi-state coverage when the balloon is at apogee – think being able to talk from DFW to Arkansas or Houston on an HT. We’ve flown a DMR repeater and a cross-band analog FM repeater package, and both have performed spectacularly!
We’re planning some other ham radio based payloads on upcoming launches as well, and maybe some HF-based and microwave stuff.
So, we hope that some of you will get excited about our recent balloon obsession. It really is pretty cool and allows you as a ham to do things you wouldn’t normally be able to do. It’s been a great way to try and get kids involved, as well as mix with some of the other area clubs. And we are doing our part to “advance the radio art” (one of the purposes of amateur radio).
How can you get involved? Come to the launches and see the action, and chase if you want. It’s a great social activity.
Participate on whatever balloon payloads that you’re capable of. Most everyone has an analog FM radio to talk on the cross-band repeater. Some people have a DMR for when we are flying the DMR repeater. Watch the Balloon Launch posts to see what the payloads are scheduled for that launch.
If you’re interested in the tracking and telemetry technology, you can build a fairly cheap (under $100) tracking station and receive and see the data in real-time, or you can watch it all live on the internet. Watch for the Balloons & Tea meetings and join the core group to see how the sausage is made. Hopefully it will expose you to parts of ham radio that you hadn’t though of before. And isn’t that the point?
(For a look into a balloon launch, see the video at the bottom of the CR)
ARISS Space Week SSTV Event – Fri Oct 3 to Sun Oct 6th
Are you ready for some SSTV from space? The next ARISS SSTV weekend will start on Fri. October 3. Series 29 will be 6 images related to Space Week! The event will take a break for a scheduled contact Saturday, see the full schedule in the graphic.
The International Space Station (ISS) orbits around 250 miles overhead and the orbit period is around 90 minutes, which means that you can usually hear a couple of passes per day, and since the ISS is in Low Earth Orbit (LEO), you can hear it with a handheld and usually don’t need any special antennas (although they certainly help). And one of the easiest ways to hear the ISS is when they are operating Slow Scan Television (SSTV).
For more information on how to receive SSTV from the ARISS, check out the RWK SSTV page and the post on the previous ARISS Event from July 26th.
RWK Foxhunts are Alive and Well!
For those of you that have been under a rock (maybe even for several years), the RWK Foxhunt program is alive and well! RWK has been doing Foxhunts most every weekend for over six (6!) years. I think that is outstanding.
It’s a great “get out of the house” activity, great fun if you go with friends, and a great way to introduce ham radio to kids (or just prospective hams).
In the past, we were sending weekly emails (usually on Saturday mornings) announcing each hunt. After getting some complaints about the emails (even though groups.io provides a great way to “mute” the foxhunt announcements for people that weren’t interested), we are now just relying on the Foxhunt Logs themselves to show that the foxes are out and ready to be hunted. The logs also sometimes have some cryptic hints that may be of use. There’s also a #foxhunt channel on the RWK Discord that can be helpful if you need to ask a question.
John KC5JMD has recently done a great job in creating a semi-custom Fox Logging System, and beginning Oct 1 we are transitioning to that system full-time, after running parallel old and new logs for a few weeks. The system seems to be working fine and provides a lot more interesting and useful data for both the foxes and the hunters (think real-time contest leaderboards) as well as some interesting mapping of the fox locations.
So now that the weather has cooled, get out and hunt our foxes! And if our two (sometimes three) Foxes aren’t enough, there are others in the area (UTD, McKinney, White Rock Lake, and sometimes Denton) after you find the originals. New to foxhunting and want to know how to get started? The best way is to do a “ride-along” with an experienced hunter. Contact one of our “regulars” and ask if you can tag along. I’m betting that you will be hooked.
RWK Again Leads in Field Day 2025
This may be old news in September, but RWK’s Field Day 2025 operation again racked up some serious points! The hybrid approach that we’ve been using (since COVID) of Saturday traditional Field Day at the Richardson EOC and an after-hours operation at members’ home QTHs has allowed us to do really well in points and QSOs. Last year (2024), we had 23 total logs submitted that were tagged with “Richardson Wireless Klub” – that was the largest tagged group in the US. This year (2025), we only had 21 logs submitted, but the total point score was higher than 2024 (thanks to Brian WB8QZM for bugging people to get and add up their points).
Field Day results are typically published in the December QST, so we don’t yet know the “official” scores, but I’m willing to bet that we might be the top club in the NTX section and will be in the top club results listings.
What I don’t know is – where were you? Our in person attendance was way down from 2024. I’ve also heard from other area clubs that their in-person attendance was way down as well. Field Day has changed a lot over the years, but it still is Ham Radio’s most popular annual event. If you have come to previous recent RWK Field Days but didn’t come this year, we’d sure like to know why.
RWK Membership
Call For RWK Officers for 2026
By Chip Coker KD4C
It’s that time again! As I may have hinted at in my rant about the Chawed Rag (above), 2025 marks the fifth year that I have been lucky to be RWK President. It’s been a privilege, but I think it’s time for some new blood and new ideas, so I’d really like someone else to step up and lead RWK for 2026. I know what you’re thinking:
good riddancebut isn’t being President a big commitment? Well, yes and no. I have done a lot in addition to the typical President duties, but (unlike some former presidents) I don’t plan on going anywhere. Which means that I can continue doing some of the “other stuff”, as long as the new President wants. For instance, being Foxmaster to Fox#1 isn’t a duty of being President, so you won’t have to worry about that.What the President really needs to be is the strategic leader of the klub and to set the direction for the next year. That doesn’t necessarily take time, but it does take ideas. We have plenty of smart people in RWK, so I hope that you will consider it and say yes if someone asks if you are interested.
We also need a new Vice-President for next year. The Vice-President typically sets the calendar for the RWK meetings, ensuring that the members have an interesting and relevant activity or presentation every month. Once again, it doesn’t require that much time, but it does require ideas.
The positions of Secretary and Treasurer are also up for election, but our current people might be on board for another year.
So, like previous years, we will have a Nominating Committee that will contact people and put together a ballot for 2026. If there are more than one nominee for any of the positions, we will have an election (via HCOL ballot) in December. But unlike the last few years, this election will really matter!
It’s time for some new blood. Will it be yours?
RWK Meeting Archive Is Back!
After a 7-ish month absence, the internet connection at our Palisades repeater site is back!(!!!) Long story, don’t ask, not our fault. But with it, means that the access to our meeting archive is back. We have almost five years of meeting recordings and 2+ years of our QRV Tech sessions that are (again) available for viewing, in case you missed them the first time or want to take a second look. As a reminder, each meeting recording is always available on the General Meetings page on the website, and the QRV Tech recordings are available on the QRV Tech page. But here’s a short list of what you might have missed in 2025:
General Meetings –
General Meeting – September 2025 – APRS What, Why & How
General Meeting – August 2025 – Communications for the July 2025 Kerr County Flood Event
General Meeting – July 2025 – Everything You NEED To Know About Grounding
General Meeting – June 2025 – Field Day/DFW Ham Expo/Balloon Launch Results + Remote Radio Operating
General Meeting – May 2025 – Double Inverted Delta All-Band HF Vertical
General Meeting – April 2025 – RWK Spring HA Balloon Launch & Solar Power for Your Shack
General Meeting – March 2025 – Easy Digital Ops With DigiPi
General Meeting – February 2025 – Solar Cycle 25 Update
QRV Tech –
QRV Tech – September 2025 – JS8Call
QRV Tech – August 2025 – GOES Satellite Reception and Decoding
QRV Tech – June 2025 – All You Need to Know about RWK Field Day
QRV Tech – May 2025 – How To Participate In The Balloon Launch
QRV Tech – April 2025 – Linear Amplifiers
QRV Tech – March 2025 – Build & Configure a DigiPi
QRV Tech – February 2025 – A Short Discussion of Coax
Upcoming Ham Radio (and Related) Events
These ham radio related events are coming up soon.
Belton Fall Expo – Oct 4th
Belton is usually a good show, assuming the weather cooperates and doesn’t run off the tailgaters. This weekend looks good! Bell County Expo Center (Temple TX) – https://tarc.org/hamexpo/
Richardson Electronics Recycling Event – Oct 25th
If you have old electronics and computer stuff to get rid of, now’s your chance. This twice a year event, sponsored and benefiting the Richardson Citizens Police Academy Alumni Association (RCPAAA), will happen at Heights Church (note the change from previous years) from 10am-2pm. You can drop off documents and electronic devices to be recycled or shredded. For full information, visit www.rcpaaa.org
Richardson Christmas Parade – Dec 6
This year’s Richardson Christmas Parade has been scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 6th. Due to last year’s parade cancellation, this year’s parade will again be on the East Side Plano Road Route. We will again be providing support for the parade so be on the lookout for more information and a signup sheet soon.
RWK Holiday Meeting – Monday Dec 8th
We will again be having our holiday-themed meeting on Dec 8th at the St B church (our normal meeting location and night). It will be similar to the last couple of years, with Pizza, desserts, trivia contest, and lots of door prizes.
Chawed Rag Pic of the Month
Richardson Palisades North 4K Weather Camera We recently installed 3 new (CoR-purchased) Ubiquiti G6 Pro 4K/HD video cameras at our Palisades repeater site, to replace the G3 cameras that had been in place for several years. These cameras are useful to the NWS FWD forecasters, the City OEM staff and to our SKYWARN teams when bad weather approaches Richardson. In addition to the 3 Palisades cameras, we also have 3 cameras on the Holly Water Tower (with a temporary technical issue), and soon will have 2 cameras on the MRMC roof at Renner and Shiloh. There are also several more cameras in Denton county that provide good views of our North Texas weather.
Ham Radio Bits & Bytes
New Icom IC-7300Mk2
You may have heard that Icom announced (surprise!) at the 2025 Tokyo Ham Fair a new and improved “Mark 2” version of their venerable IC-7300 HF Transceiver. The new IC-7300Mk2 addresses many of the shortcomings of the original 7300 that had been surpassed by newer radios such as the Yaesu FT-710. Martin Lynch got their hands on one and shows the new radio in detail. The price and official release date have not yet been announced.
The newly-announced Icom IC-7300Mk2 HF Transceiver A New Local YouTube Creator Worth Following
Meet Elle Marie, KJ5LXP, a new ham from the McKinney area. She’s been creating YouTube videos covering her journey as a new ham. Her production is pretty good and I think she’s doing a good job. She showed up to our August High-Altitude Balloon Launch in Celina and documented it for you to see.
Last Month’s Program
Last Month our program was on APRS (the Automatic Packet Reporting System). Andy Smolenski KI5YLX from over at Metrocrest (MARS) will be here to tell (remind?) us about APRS, what it is (and has become), why it is still a popular method of ham communications, and how to get started if you’ve never used it before (or even if you have and forgotten how). APRS has been around for many years, but it’s got some new tricks up its sleeve and is easier than ever to use (no nasty hardware TNCs needed) and there are more radios today with built-in APRS than ever before. There are even some cheap Chinese radios that are a self-contained solution. So come reacquaint yourself with an “old” mode.
If you missed last month’s (or any previous) RWK General Meeting, you can always watch the video available from the RWK website.
Upcoming Events
You can always view the RWK Calendar to see our monthly events.
https://k5rwk.org/events/ RWK New Members
We have several new members for the month, including some new hams that our VE Team tested recently. If you see them at RWK events or hear them on our repeaters, please say hello.
RWK Membership – 354 Active Members
To check your renewal date and Renew your RWK Membership, go to https://www.hamclubonline.com/ and select Pay Club Dues from the menu.
RWK Hats Are Back!
We have a new supply of the popular RWK Hats. They are available at any Hungry Hams lunch or you can order from the website and we will mail it to you!
For Sale
The Klub has a few ham assets available for sale to Klub members at a deep discount. Please email president@k5rwk.org if interested. Have something to sell? Send a short description, photo, and offer price to us.
Weekend Foxhunts
RWK holds at least one foxhunt every weekend and many weekends there are two foxes available to hunt. A monthly prize drawing is held for klub members that successfully find the fox.
You can always “watch” the hunt in real time by viewing the foxhunt logs:
Fox#1: http://www.kd4c.com/foxhunt-log/
Wheatley: https://www.kd4c.com/wheatley-log/
To read more about foxhunts and learn some hunting tips, see our foxhunt page: https://www.k5rwk.org/foxhunt/
Hungry Hams
We always have a good group for our weekly Hungry Hams Lunches every Weds at noon at Sonny Bryan’s BBQ on Campbell at UTD. Why not join us?
Recent Hungry Hams Lunch at Sonny Bryan’s BBQ (Photo: KD5OUG) Don’t forget about the Hungry Hams Monthly Breakfast every third Saturday at 8am at Southern Recipes Kitchen on Plano Parkway.
Recent Hungry Hams Breakfast (Photo: KD4C Share Your Activities In The Chawed Rag
The RWK is always looking for content to publish in The Chawed Rag. If you have an article, technical subject, project or fun story you would like to contribute, please submit it to the editor at editor@k5rwk.org.
To submit an article to the Editor for consideration, please put your article into a single Word Document, or if that is not possible, collect all of your article’s components into a folder and create a zip archive of all of it. Then simply email the Word Doc or zip file to editor@k5rwk.org.
Need to Renew Your ARRL Membership?
If you are joining the ARRL for the first time, the RWK is entitled to $15 of your ARRL dues, and if you renew your ARRL membership, the RWK is entitled to $5.
You now can just apply directly on the ARRL website (instead of filling on a paper form). When you apply (or renew), there will be a place on the application form for you to designate the Richardson Wireless Klub as your primary club. If you do that, then RWK gets the money that we are entitled to. (this change is effective June 1 2022)Web renewals with club is still in work at ARRLHere’s the link to join/renew your ARRL Membership: https://home.arrl.org/action/Membership/Join-ARRL
Interested in Helping the Klub?
The Klub needs YOU! We are looking for members that want to help with the following:
- Website content updates
- Ham Activities (Field Day and Public Service events)
- New Ham Coordinator
- Foxhunt Data Administrator
Contact KD4C for more information.
Support RWK by Buying Stuff!
We also are members of Kroger Community Rewards, so if you shop at Kroger, we can get $! Here is information on how to sign up.
The Chawed Rag
A monthly publication of the Richardson Wireless Klub, PO Box 830232, Richardson TX 75083. The Club Callsign is K5RWK.
Original content from this newsletter is Copyright 2024 by the Richardson Wireless Klub and the bylined author(s). Content may be reused by other Amateur Radio organizations with appropriate credit, notification (to the Editor), and source linkage.
Contributions are welcome – please send material to editor@k5rwk.org
Club Officers:
President – Chip Coker KD4C
Vice-President –
Secretary – Josh Barfield N4NZ
Treasurer – Michael Masterson WT9V
Trustee – Andrew Koenig KE5GDB
Directors:
Activities – Adam Butt KG5MMK
Public Service – Don Klick KG5CK
Education – Shawn Prestridge KI5PXG
Membership – Brian Murphy WB8QZM
Quartermaster – Jon Suehiro NN5TMeetings of the Board of Directors are held monthly on the first Thursday of the month and are open to any member in good standing of the club. Please contact any club officer if you would like to attend.
Share your experiences
The RWK is constantly looking for content to publish in The Chawed Rag. If you have an article, technical subject, project or fun story you would like to contribute, please submit it to the editor at editor@k5rwk.org.
To submit an article to the Editor for consideration, please put your article into a single Word Document, or if that is not possible, collect all of your article’s components into a folder and create a zip archive of all of it.
Then simply email the Word Doc or zip file to editor@k5rwk.org.
If your file is too large to send by email please feel free to upload the files(s) to our Public Upload folder and follow up with an email to the Editor notifying him/her of the upload.
Why “The Chawed Rag?”
Ham radio operators love to talk! In addition to the potential emergency communications services or special event communications provided to their communities, hams enjoy chatting with fellow hams on the air. Hams exchange information about their locations, radio equipment they use, antennas, tuners, etc.
Additionally, hams often discuss the weather and exchange personal and family information. With regular communications, they develop on-the-air friendships. Such discussions are characterized as “chewing the rag” with a friend or several friends over a network or a roundtable. That is the origin of this newsletter’s strange name.
Rag chewing with fellow hams is something that you must experience to appreciate. Ham radio is fun! Nothing beats a nice round table discussion on the repeater or on 3.890 AM if you have HF and 100 watts of carrier.
Pre-2020 Archive
Prior to 2020, The Chawed Rag was produced as a print-oriented PDF. The back issue archive of our printed newsletters is here!
Most Recent Issues
Here is an excerpt of the most recent Chawed Rag issues. Click on the title to read the full issue.
- The Chawed Rag – September 2025Here’s The Chawed Rag for Sept 2025. We’ve got a chance for you to voice your opinion on HOA restrictions, obsession about Balloons!, an upcoming SSTV event, Foxhunts are Alive and Well at RWK, belated Field Day 2025 results, our RWK Meeting Video Archive is back, call for 2026 Officers, the usual upcoming events and news and so much more. Hope you enjoy! – KD4C
- The Chawed Rag – April 2024Here’s The Chawed Rag for April 2024. We’ve got a huge solar storm, what’s to become of MFJ, more on the hackable Quansheng UV-K5(8) HT, RWK Newest Hangout, Tracking the Skies Overhead, an update from W5RLP, the usual upcoming events and news and so much more. Hope you enjoy! – KD4C
- The Chawed Rag – March 2024Here’s The Chawed Rag for March 2024. We’ve got a potential Baofeng killer, FCC changes, upcoming hamfests, rebuilding the K5UTD antennas, spring antenna maintenance, the usual upcoming events and news and so much more. Hope you enjoy! – KD4C
- The Chawed Rag – January/February 2024Here’s The Chawed Rag for January/February 2024. We’ve got my “State of the RWK”, our 10M Propagation Beacon (and how to use it), Upcoming Hamfests and SKYWARN training, Katherine Goes To Antarctica, a couple of recent SKs, a look back on our first year of QRV Tech, the usual upcoming events and news and so much more. Hope you enjoy! – KD4C
- The Chawed Rag – November 2023Here’s The Chawed Rag for November 2023. We’ve got details on our Holiday Meeting, the upcoming President’s Dinner, our new UHF Multi-Mode Repeater, FCC Rules Changes, Field Day 2023 Results, our New FT-DX10, a bit of nostalgia from Larry KI5UXC, the usual upcoming events and news and so much more. Hope you enjoy! – KD4C
- The Chawed Rag – October 2023Here’s The Chawed Rag for October 2023. We’ve got SSTV back on the ISS, some good and bad FCC changes, a special birthday for W5XJ, a ham demonstration for 500 4th graders, kit building fun, lots of upcoming events and news and so much more. Hope you enjoy! – KD4C
- The Chawed Rag – September 2023Here’s The Chawed Rag for September 2023. We’ve got a (very) brief history of the origin of Collins Radio in Richardson, National Preparedness Month tips, our Sept POTA event, N4NZ Activating a historic park in Las Vegas, secret morse code in music, a W1AW tour, the usual upcoming events and news and so much more. Hope you enjoy! – KD4C
- The Chawed Rag – August 2023Here’s The Chawed Rag for August 2023. We’ve got a packed issue this month – Shawn’s DXpedition to Turks, an RWK opportunity for North Texas Giving Day, Ed Fong antenna group buy for RWK Members, a ham radio propagation experiment for the upcoming eclipses, Marshall KI5YIA upgrades to Extra, some Wheatley news, Carl W5SU has a “poor man’s remote”, the usual upcoming events and news and so much more. Hope you enjoy! – KD4C
- The Chawed Rag – July 2023Here’s The Chawed Rag for July 2023. We’ve got some news from ARRL, RWK members Summer of (being) DX, a cheap Shack Power Supply, upcoming ham events, and short features on coax, and so much more. Hope you enjoy! – KD4C
- The Chawed Rag – June 2023Here’s The Chawed Rag for June 2023. We’ve got Field Day 2023 Wrap Up, the annual 13 Colonies Event, the Future of DXpeditions, John AF5MN works POTA after Belton, build your own Battery Box, “Passionate” hams, and so much more. Hope you enjoy! – KD4C
- The Chawed Rag – May 2023Here’s The Chawed Rag for May 2023. We’ve got DFW Ham Expo this Saturday, Field Day 2023, 6 Meter propagation basics, WB8QZM caught foxhunting on video, Contest University 2023 at Dayton, a new approach to a foxhunting attenuator from N5HD, the “Best Coax Connectors” (IMHO), vintage ARRL ham radio promo video, and so much more. Hope you enjoy! – KD4C
- The Chawed Rag – April 2023Here’s The Chawed Rag for April 2023. We’ve got Earth and Space Weather, a foxhunt milestone, 6 Meters, HamClock, a new RWK learning series, expanding your POTA antenna to 40M, time sync for portable FT-8, group foxhunt fun, and so much more. Hope you enjoy! – KD4C
- The Chawed Rag – March 2023Here’s The Chawed Rag for March 2023. We’ve got some fun past and future events, an upcoming foxhunting milestone, a new Digital Voice mode for HF, an improvement for a Wolf River Coil, upcoming events, Bits & Bytes, and so much more. Hope you enjoy! – KD4C
- The Chawed Rag – February 2023Here’s The Chawed Rag for February 2023. We’ve got February updates, a Spring POTA event and an antenna made for it, Straight Key Century Club, 4th Annual Go-Kit Challenge, another lost ham radio balloon(?), Winter Field Day wrap-up, Dual-booting a “Pi-Beater”, upcoming events and so much more. Hope you enjoy! – KD4C
- The Chawed Rag – January 2023Here’s The Chawed Rag for January 2023. We’ve got great propagation, Winter Field Day, President’s Dinner Highlights, the Warren Bruene Award for 2022, RWK Elmer of the Year, part 3 of KG5P’s Pico project, lots of upcoming events, a new dish(!), and an easy vertical for POTA or your backyard, and so much more. Hope you enjoy! – KD4C
- The Chawed Rag – November 2022Here’s The Chawed Rag for November 2022. We’ve got a preview of our December “Holiday Snacks” meeting. the 50th Richardson Christmas Parade, a look back at our year of RWK meetings, Chris White builds a “cootie” key paddle , KG5P continues with a Pico W, lots of coming events, and so much more. Hope you enjoy! – KD4C
- The Chawed Rag – October 2022Here’s The Chawed Rag for October 2022 (it’s still October, right?). We’ve got more on Show & Tell night, QRP “Foxhunting” on HF, the History of the RWK Repeater, an inspiring story of a new ham (and RWK member!), Chris White builds a “brick” for his QRP KX3, KG5P shows us a Pico W, lots of coming events, and so much more. Hope you enjoy! – KD4C
- The Chawed Rag – September 2022Here’s The Chawed Rag for September 2022. We’ve got POTA pics, repeater maintenance, a $1000 shack challenge, a $70 SDR kit, siren test monitoring, upcoming events, and so much more. Hope you enjoy! – KD4C
- The Chawed Rag – August 2022Here’s The Chawed Rag for August 2022. We’ve got Josh N4NZ on Pike’s Peak, some news from the ISS, more on our upcoming Parks on the Air outing, a great antenna for 10 Meters, Opto-Isolators!, upcoming hamfests and events, a new Icom radio, fire(!), and so much more. Hope you enjoy! – KD4C
- The Chawed Rag – July 2022Here’s The Chawed Rag for July 2022. We’ve got a fun Parks on the Air outing, record Field Day submissions, how to use Ham Club Online, more on the Nano-VNA from KG5P, and so much more. Hope you enjoy! – KD4C
- The Chawed Rag – June 2022Here’s The Chawed Rag for June 2022. We’ve got Field Day 2022 Wrap-up, a really inspirational piece from Brian WB8QZM on how ham radio is helping him to live his best life, Ed Terry W8QH does Belize, 13 Colonies, News and Geographic Data from our VE testing program, more on the Nano-VNA from KG5P, and…
Read more - The Chawed Rag – May 2022Greetings RWK! Here’s The Chawed Rag for May 2022, including Propagation and Tropo Ducting, Group Foxhunt & Ice Cream Social, Ken Hansen’s Dayton Pics, Updates on renewing your ARRL membership, CQ WPX CW contest, Upcoming Events, Learn CW program Field Day Edition, KG5P Using the Nano-VNA Part 3, and more!
- The Chawed Rag – April 2022Greetings RWK! Here’s The Chawed Rag for April 2022, including Foxhunting for Real, RWK Polo Shirts, The Importance of Phonetics, Upcoming Events, Learn CW program update, KG5P Using the Nano-VNA, and more!
- The Chawed Rag – March 2022Greetings RWK! Here’s The Chawed Rag for March 2022, including return to in-person “hybrid” meetings, FCC Fees info, How to manage groups.io, Learn CW program update, Upcoming events, KG5P Using the Nano-VNA, and more!
- The Chawed Rag – February 2022Greetings RWK! Here’s The Chawed Rag for February 2022, including details on our “Learn CW” program (and a simple code practice oscillator), Rob Forson’s search for an emergency generator, Contest News, Upcoming events, KD5OUG vs the Texas DOT, and more!
- The Chawed Rag – January 2022Greetings RWK! Here is The Chawed Rag for January 2022. Details for a new program to learn CW, WT9V wins the Warren Bruene Award, Antenna Modelling, and more! Comments welcome… – 73 – Chip KD4C
- The Chawed Rag – December 2021Here’s The Chawed Rag for December 2021 (it’s still December, right?). I’m still interested in what everyone thinks and what else you would like to see. Also, we always need your content so snap some pics of your latest tinkering or if you have seen something that has really helped you in ham radio, send…
Read more - The Chawed Rag – November 2021As promised (and on schedule!), here’s The Chawed Rag for November 2021. Thanks to all of you that sent me notes on the September relaunch – I appreciate the thanks and the feedback. I’m still interested in what everyone thinks and what else you would like to see. Also, we always need your content so…
Read more - The Chawed Rag – October 2021As promised (and on schedule!), here’s The Chawed Rag for October 2021. Thanks to all of you that sent me notes on the September relaunch – I appreciate the thanks and the feedback. I’m still interested in what everyone thinks and what else you would like to see. Also, we always need your content so…
Read more - The Chawed Rag – September 2021Greetings! It’s been a minute, but welcome to the new and improved RWK Chawed Rag. When I accepted the job of RWK President, one of the tasks that I took on was to “reinvent” The Chawed Rag for the year 2021. The goals were 1) Make the CR more “accessible” (which means that you would…
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