Hey from Florida!

[badfenderaxe]

Hey everyone! I just happened to stumble upon this site looking for info on my first amp build and this seems to have a wealth of information. I am currently an IT security guy longing for a distraction that is not computer related :-). I have 3 grown kids and a lovely wife. I hold an advanced class ham radio license, N5LOS, and also am an ex-rocker, bass player, from the late 70s early 80s. I have always loved the tube sound and am looking to build some of the great tube amps we all know and love! Thanks for having me aboard!

Brad

[EL34]

Welcome to the forum

[Ritchie200]

Hey Brad!

Welcome aboard! I am also a 70's to early 80's rocker, guitar player. General Class, EM48.  QRJ antenna down...  You do know that our buddy, Joe Walsh, is WB6ACU? He is a regular guest on Bob Heil's HamNation podcasts.  Joe always makes it a point to have the camera facing him with his huge Keith Emerson-style Modular Moog in the background - showoff!  Whereabouts are you at?  We just got back from the Mouse and my wallet is very light for some reason...

73's KE0CXH 

Jim

[badfenderaxe]

That's awesome! Thanks for the warm welcome Jim and Nice to meet a fellow ham. I just did a search and found a HamNation show with Joe on it and you're right about the Moog. I love the Moog stuff. I used to play a little Moog Rogue with a set of Taurus II pedals... while playing bass. I wanted to be Geddy Lee LOL. I'm currently working out of the house in the Fla panhandle area near Freeport and trying to stay cool :-).

[Ritchie200]

No kidding!  Last week was like surface of the sun August temps in Orlando and I remember seeing this week would be worse!  A couple of years ago we stayed on the 30A (at the intersection of 383).  Good fun, great beach!  Went to the famous The Red Bar at Grayton Beach. What a collection of concert posters!  Live music was great too.  I'm sure you have heard that it burned down? Mysteriously burned down... VERY mysteriously burned down....

Were you always from Freeport?  Geddy Lee huh?  Did you also do the vocals?  I was in a Rush tribute band back in the 70's before they were considered cool.  I used to make fun of keyboard players and now find myself with several electronic keys and a Hammond L100 that I've done a lot of mods to - to sound like Keith Emerson's spitting B3!  HA! My early me would not be happy with my current me...   My ELP cd collection has also grown!  I have no idea what I'm doing but can finally "see" the fretboard on my keyboard!  I always used to drool over the PAIA synth kits in the 70's but they were always still out of my price range and I was spending all my money on guitar stuff.  We got talking about keyboards here a few years ago and somebody was saying that when Moog went out of business in '87, pallets of synths were going for literally $50 at the liquidation of assets.  Can you imagine!

What is in your shack?  I have a Icom 736 barefoot with a (don't make fun of me...) Turner +3 and a gold D104 for backup.  Hey the +3 sounds good!  I have a Carolina Windom 160 offset long wire multiband that is down right now but hope to have it re-hung shortly.  Man that thing works great. 160 to 10, low SWR across all the bands. Unreal performance and quiet as a church mouse hung above several electric fences.  Too bad he is not making them any more.

Jim

[badfenderaxe]

Graton is my favorite beach and the Red Bar will be back! They are in the process of rebuilding it. We have been down here for about 4 years now and I haven't been to the Red Bar yet, lol.

No, you don't want to hear me sing. I love the prog/fusion stuff and used to listen to ELP,  Chic Korea, Billy Cobham etc... And I always wanted the Oberheim OBxA but could never afford it.

As for the ham stuff, I have an Icom IC-7300 for HF and a Yaesu FTM-100DR to cover 2m/440. I had built a hex beam antenna but that kinda got blown around in the last hurricane :-). I think I'm going to stick with an easy dipole wire so I can take it camping in the Airstream. I don't have anything set up at the moment so I am off the air for a bit but will probly get back on later this year maybe.