Anybody know about the UMass amateur radio club?

[Coyote33]

Does anyone know anything about this club? Can't reach anybody there.

UMASS Amherst Ham Radio Club Homepage

UMASS Amherst Amateur Radio Club Members

I would think the library tower would be a FANTASTIC place to have a repeater for the entire Pioneer Valley!

"At 28 stories and 286 feet 4+1⁄8 inches (roughly 88 m) tall, it is the third-tallest library in the world"
As you can see, it really sticks up and stands out.

 

[n1oty]

Having built, repaired and serviced many amateur repeaters, not to mention at one time being the VP of NESMC, I can say that there are numerous hurdles to putting a repeater on the air. First and foremost, it is practically impossible to put an amateur repeater at a government location, period. Government entities are worried about a plethora of issues such as liability, site access, insurance, etc. Assuming you can get past that hurdle, you next run into the costs of buying, servicing and updating the equipment. You also have the issue of coordination.

In my 30 years of being a hamster and being involved with repeaters, our group has only had limited access to a good government site and that is because some of our guys are professional radio maintainers for government agencies.

Besides this location, what is your plan for equipment and which band do you intend to use?? Don't say "Two Meters". LOL.

 

[drgrant]

Having built, repaired and serviced many amateur repeaters, not to mention at one time being the VP of NESMC, I can say that there are numerous hurdles to putting a repeater on the air. First and foremost, it is practically impossible to put an amateur repeater at a government location, period. Government entities are worried about a plethora of issues such as liability, site access, insurance, etc. Assuming you can get past that hurdle, you next run into the costs of buying, servicing and updating the equipment. You also have the issue of coordination.

In my 30 years of being a hamster and being involved with repeaters, our group has only had limited access to a good government site and that is because some of our guys are professional radio maintainers for government agencies.

99% of getting a good site is all politics and connections. the rest of the excuses the gov types make is noise to get commoners to go away.

 

[Coyote33]

Well, UMass allegedly already has some ham equipment somewhere. I would think the EE people would love to use that to help promote their department.

Where there's a will, there's a way. Not my battleground, I was just pointing it out and asking the obvious question.

You gotta admit, that tower would reach in all directions quite magnificently, from Greenfield to Holyoke, Goshen to Hardwick, if not more.


Here's a 15 mile radius.

 

[Coyote33]

20 mile radius:

 

[breslau]

Does anyone know anything about this club? Can't reach anybody there.

UMASS Amherst Ham Radio Club Homepage

UMASS Amherst Amateur Radio Club Members

It looks like those pages haven't been updated in 20 years. The faq's talk about a $6 exam fee and testing for novice and advanced licenses. The club license (W1PUO) has a page on QRZ with the current manager (KC1IXJ) looking for a successor. He seems to be active in radio but the club not so much.

 

[drgrant]

20 mile radius:

View attachment 738808

A great coverage area, with nobody in it.

 

[drgrant]

@Coyote33 if i had stupid money id set up linked sites though.... like bridge a gap between central and western MA. That'd be pretty cool. Basically right now if you're in central MA it's impossible to get much west of Worcester through one repeater hop.

 

[JDL]

Is the Paxton repeater considered Central MA. If this is true I can reach the Paxton repeater from Wilbraham MA. and that is Western MA.

 

[Coyote33]

A great coverage area, with nobody in it.

A lot of it is water with the Quabbin, but it also picks up Northampton, Holyoke, Chicopee, Deerfield, Greenfield, Easthampton, and half of Westfield.

My thoughts were to be able to communicate with my kid at UMass from central MA. Maybe through Mount Tom repeater?

@Coyote33 if i had stupid money id set up linked sites though.... like bridge a gap between central and western MA. That'd be pretty cool. Basically right now if you're in central MA it's impossible to get much west of Worcester through one repeater hop.

This is kind of what I was thinking. I know nothing of this technology, other than the idea. My thought it that there is a long ridge right before the Quabbin. If someone could put up a tower along there somewhere, they could bridge that gap. Maybe some of the clubs surrounding that area could all chip in and buy the equipment, or a business could put it up, and have a corresponding website mentioning the repeater.

Is the Paxton repeater considered Central MA. If this is true I can reach the Paxton repeater from Wilbraham MA. and that is Western MA.

Yes. Rutland is next to Paxton, and is the geographical center of the state.

28.5 miles

 

[kerryman71]

UMASS Amherst has a list of all their clubs on their website. There are about 750 of them. Coincidentally enough, I was looking through them last night as my son may go there in the fall. I don't remember anything radio related, other than their campus radio station. They do have a Squirrel Watchers Club though

 

[JDL]

Getting a repeater up and running is highly unlikely.

 

[Coyote33]

@Coyote33 if i had stupid money id set up linked sites though.... like bridge a gap between central and western MA. That'd be pretty cool. Basically right now if you're in central MA it's impossible to get much west of Worcester through one repeater hop.

Somewhere in Hardwick would be able to hit probably both directions, over the Quabbin and Pioneer Valley, and to the East filling in the entire area between Route 2 and I-90.

Mt Tom is the Repeater that covers it mtara.org
Also here is coordination nesmc.org

Thanks.