September 15 2025 #269 - 160m on the Workbench! | W3GMS Workbench

W3GMS Monday Night Workbench Net

Broadcast on: W3GMS Repeater – 146.985 MHz
Host: Jim (AF3Z)

📌 Episode Overview

This week’s 985 Workbench brings hams together for a night of updates, troubleshooting, and good old-fashioned experimentation. Host Jim (AF3Z) guides the net through a round of check-ins, weekly activity reports, and then dives into questions about antennas, coax, and creative setups.

🗣️ What You’ll Hear

• The “One-Pile System” – A lighthearted look at shack organization (or the lack of it).
• Coax Comparisons – Tips on testing and upgrading feedlines, with practical advice on NanoVNAs, losses, and alternatives like Davis RF’s Bury-Flex.
• 160 Meters on a Budget – A lively discussion on inverted Ls, radial fields, and whether you can press an old invisible dog fence into service as a ground system.
• Portable Projects & Go-Boxes – Members share their experiments with Apache cases, mobile installs, and remote operating setups (including a 75-foot Ethernet cable rigged Icom 7100 shack-on-the-deck!).

💡 Why Listen?

The Workbench isn’t just Q&A — it’s part Elmering, part show-and-tell, and part shop talk:

• Practical Guidance – Real-world advice from active operators.
• Experimentation – Ideas that range from tried-and-true to delightfully improvised.
• Community Spirit – Every operator, from seasoned CW vets to students finishing geometry homework, has a voice.

📡 Takeaway

If you love the sound of solder smoke, the thrill of antenna experiments, or just swapping stories with fellow hams, this episode of the Workbench has something for you.