The York County Amateur Radio Club net met on our local repeater on Thursday, December 11th, focusing on how amateur radio operators use video resources to enhance their hobby. Net Control Operator Tony (AA3 HD), led the directed net, which serves to practice network procedures and provide technical support to both new and experienced radio operators.
The topic of the evening, exploring favorite YouTube channels related to ham radio, generated an engaging discussion, leading to many specific recommendations and practical advice for searching the platform.
Total Check-ins
A total of 10 operators checked into the net.
Announcements and Bulletins
The following announcements were shared during the net:
- Next Net Control Operator: Taylor (KE2EBR), will be the Net Control Operator next week.
- Net Control Interest: Those interested in becoming a Net Control Operator should contact Susan (KC1BSQ), the club president.
- In-Person Club Meeting: The club meets the first Sunday of each month (September through June) at 3:00 p.m. at the Wells town office, 208 Sanford Road, Wells, Maine. The next meeting is scheduled for January 4th, 2026.
- CW Net: Ed (K1RID) hosts a CW Net every Thursday night at about 7 o’clock on 7.118 MHz.
Special Event Stations and Contests:
- December 13th (1700Z–2359Z): NI6IW will be on the air from the USS Midway museum ship, commemorating Pearl Harbor Day, operating on 20 and 40 meters. A QSL card is available.
- December 13th (1430Z–2200Z): K3S will be on the air celebrating “Ike’s Atoms for Peace” from the nuclear ship Savannah, operating on 40, 20, 17, 15, and 10 meters. A certificate is available.
- December 13th and 14th: The ARRL 10 meter contest is taking place.
- December 19th through 24th (1500Z–2359Z Daily): KC5OUR will be celebrating Christmas in Bethlehem, New Mexico. A QSL card is available, with details on their website.
Recommended YouTube Channels
- Andy Kirby – British Musician, ham radio enthusiast and advocate for LoRa mesh tools
- Amateur Radio VK3YE – Videos about electronics and amateur radio from an Australian ham, who often builds equipment from scrap
- Coastal Waves and Wires – Walt Hudson shares custom antennas builds and how they operate with a saltwater ground plane by the sea
- David Casler’s Ask Dave – The OG shares tips and tricks, and deep dives into the technical aspects of the hobby
- Don Wilbanks – Amateur Radio Newsline
- Ham Radio 2.0 – Equipment reviews, amateur radio and FCC news, and how-tos
- Ham Radio 24-7, W2RE – A tower builder shares his adventures and knowledge
- Ham Radio Adventures With K0PIR – Focuses on ICOM radios and software applications
- Ham Radio Crash Course – Josh KI6NAS teaches ham radio science
- Ham Radio Tube with K8MRD – Mike shares tools, apps and gear, and some tutorials
- K6ARK Portable Radio – Adam shares his SOTA adventures and equipment
- KB9VBR Antennas – Michael shares his experience with various antenna systems and radios as he participates in Parks On The Air (POTA), as well as some recent ham radio news
- KM4ACK – Jason is a big advocate of homebrew gear, kits, and Raspberry Pi. He has produced software tools for Linux to aide in digital operations, and challenges us to do better when working in the field and during Field Day.
- KM6LYW Radio – Craig is the creator of the DigiPi, his attempt to make digital modes easier for the common guy, and is a huge advocate for APRS and packet radio.
- Mark the Ham Florida man – A retired radio and TV broadcaster who is dedicated to busting the many ham radio myths about antennas, antenna tuners and transmission lines.
- ModernHam – A younger fellow who focuses on digital communications and low cost amateur radio communication.
- Off-Grid Ham Radio – Julian OH8STN is a US Expat living in Finland who focuses on portable, off-grid, grid down power and practical ham radio communications for preparedness. His videos are well produced, and often gets into the outdoor experience with tents, cooking meals, and staying in touch from the wilderness.
- Outdoors on the Air – “Get out of the shack, get outdoors and get on the air. I’ll show you how.”
- POTA – Parks on the Air® (POTA) is an ongoing program encouraging amateur radio operators to develop their skills, fostering community, and demonstrating the hobby to the public. Their official channel shares how to successfully activate a park, and hunt for contacts with parks.
- Q5 Worldwide Ham Radio with Kevin Thomas (W1DED), a local Maine celebrity
- Radio Prepper – “This channel is dedicated to emergency radio communications in times of wide-area disasters and unrest. It emphasizes low power portable operations without grid power. Videos will include tutorials, product reviews and field operations.”
- Save It for Parts – A fun channel about general tech and radio gadgets scrounged from junk, not strictly ham radio.
- She’s On Frequency – A young lady shares her experiences getting into amateur radio and trying new equipment and modes.
- Signals Everywhere – Sarah shares a variety of discoverable radio related signals from satellite monitoring, amateur TV, weather fax, to emergency service trunking systems.
- Sn0ren – Electronics, wireless communication, ham radio
- Tamatha Skov – Dr. Skov is the Space Weather Woman. Learn how the solar cycles affect our planet and radio signals
- Temporarily Offline – Steve shows us how to build and test kits and radio gear
- The Comms Channel – Like Andy Kirby, this channel explores VHF/UHF radio, satellites, and LoRa mesh systems like Meshtastic and Meshcore
- The Tech Prepper – Gaston shares outdoor preparedness: testing and choosing the packs and how to pack them, reading maps, cooking outdoors, and of course, communications plans and radio equipment. He is often joined by his pup.
- Waters and Stanton – This is the Channel presented by PeterWaters G3OJV, founder of Waters & Stanton the major UK distributor of Radio Communications equipmentnd Company was established in 1973.
- Wireless Society of Southern Maine – Local Maine club that shares their presentations on the web.
- YL Raisa – A YL from Russia who travels the world to operate in the field, contest stations, and DX.
- York County Amateur Radio Club – Our club’s YouTube channel!
Participants recommend the following YouTube channels regarding amateur radio or related technical topics. Some were shared after the net.
Many operators also noted that they primarily use YouTube by typing in a specific question or topic, rather than watching a favorite channel, often consulting multiple videos to get the full picture of a procedure.