April marks the beginning of severe weather season in the U.S. It also signals a good time to get your station ready for lightning season (typically June, July, and August). While more than 60% of annual lightning strikes occur during the summer months, April and May are no slouches when it comes to harsh weather that can damage expensive equipment and potentially cause physical harm to operators.

Thunderstorms can affect both your outdoor and indoor operations. It is important to follow all safety guidelines when lightning is present or anticipated. These include:

• Stop operating immediately if you hear thunder or see lightning. As a general rule, don’t resume operations until 30 minutes after the last flash of lightning or sound of thunder.
• Unplug coaxial and power cables from the radio before the storm hits, if possible. Move these cables away from the radio to avoid possible arcing. Disconnect control lines for accessories like rotators and tuners. It is also a smart idea to connect the disconnected antenna lead directly to an external ground rod.
• As POTA guidelines note when operating outdoors, “Be aware of your surroundings. The weather can change quickly. Be ready to shut down your activation if conditions threaten your safety.”
• If you must remain on the air, switch over to a battery-powered handheld transceiver.
• Install inline lightning arrestors where the feedline enters the building. (You’ll find several models of lightning/surge arrestors at DX Engineering.com from Alpha Delta, CITEL, Diamond Antenna, DX Engineering, NexTek, and PolyPhaser.
• To keep equipment at the same potential, ensure your station’s antenna ground is properly bonded to your home’s electrical service ground as required by the National Electrical Code (in the U.S.). 

In addition to lightning arrestors, find everything you need for proper grounding and bonding at DX Engineering, including:

• Wire to Ground Rod Clamps
• Ground Rods
• Copper Grounding Straps
• Grounding Clamps, including DX Engineering’s UCGC-Z Universal Grounding Clamp

• Grounding Bars, Utility Enclosures, Radio RF Ground Plane Kits
• Coax Shield Grounding Kits
• Tinned Copper Braid Assemblies
• DX Engineering Rotator Control Line Protector

• DX Engineering Ladder Line Surge Protector

• Antenna Disconnect Actuators
• DX Engineering Shack Grounding Package, which includes coaxial cable surge protector, copper ground bus wall mount, radio RF ground plane kit, tinned copper braid assemblies, universal copper grounding clamps, and ground rod.

Plus, here are two books you’ll want to add to your amateur radio library:

• “Grounding and Bonding for the Radio Amateur 2nd Edition” by Ward Silver, N0AX: Get the details on ensuring that your station follows current standards for lightning protection and communication systems. You’ll learn effective grounding and bonding techniques for home stations (including condos and apartments), portable and mobile stations, towers, and outdoor antennas.

• “Lightning Protection: A Comprehensive Guide for Amateur Radio” by Ron Block, NR2B: Targeted specifically to hams, the book presents the theory behind the protection scheme starting with lightning theory and our vulnerability to its destructive effects and continues with a practical implementation guide. It covers what needs to be protected, your zone-of-protection, the creation of a Single Point Ground Panel (SPGP), bonding of that SPGP to an external ground system, and more. Numerous examples and drawings included.

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While you’re getting your station’s grounding and bonding in order, here are a few April contests, including a deluge of State QSO Parties and state park activations, to mark on your calendar:

• JIDX CW Contest: April 11, 0700Z to April 12, 1300Z. Visit the Japan International DX Contest page for complete details.

• IG-RY Worldwide RTTY Contest: April 11, 1200Z to April 12, 1800Z. The Interest Group RTTY (IGRY) was founded in January 2017 to promote radioteletype. All amateur operators are invited to contact as many stations as possible using RTTY Baudot Mode (45, 45) on 3.5, 7, 14, 21, and 28 MHz.

• QRP ARCI Spring QSO Party: April 11, 0000Z to 0600Z. QRP Amateur Radio Club International—a club for low-power enthusiasts worldwide—sponsors this annual spring event for hams who strive to do more with less. The HF CW-only contest offers all-band, single-band, high-band, and low-band entrance categories.

  In addition, the EA-QRP CW Contest (sponsored by the EA-QRP Club) will be held April 18-19. Find details here.

For a comprehensive look at QRP operating, DX Engineering carries these reference books from the Radio Society of Great Britain:

• QRP Scrapbook—a collection of articles from UK’s G-QRP Club’s journal, SPRAT, featuring the latest low-power techniques and loads of projects (paperback, 240 pages)
• QRP Basics, 3^rd Edition—solid advice on choosing QRP equipment, simple antennas and operating tips, and practical wisdom on building your own gear (paperback, 208 pages)
• International QRP Collection—noted hams from around the globe explore everything QRP, including building your own devices, modifying equipment, reviews of gear, QRP theory, and operating (paperback, 173 pages)

• ARRL Rookie Roundup, SSB: April 19, 1800Z to 2359Z. Rookies exchange information with as many other stations as possible on the 80-, 40-, 20-, 15-, and 10-meter bands. If you’re new to the game, the ARRL recommends that you read the article, HF Contesting-Good Practices, Interpretations and Suggestions.

U.S. State and Canadian QSO Parties

• Mississippi: April 4, 1400Z to April 5, 0200Z
• Louisiana: April 4, 1400Z to April 5, 0200Z
• New Mexico: April 11, 1400Z to April 12, 0200Z
• Missouri: April 11, 1400Z to April 12, 0400Z; April 12, 1400Z to 2000Z
• Georgia: April 11, 1800Z to April 12, 0359Z; April 12, 1400Z to 2359Z
• North Dakota: April 11, 1800Z to April 12, 1800Z
• Michigan: April 18, 1600Z to April 19, 0400Z
• Ontario: April 18, 1800Z to April 19, 0300Z; April 19, 1200z to 2000Z
• Quebec, April 19, 1300Z to 2400Z
• Florida: April 25, 1600Z to April 26, 0159Z; April 26, 1200Z to 2159Z
• Nebraska: April 25, 1400Z to April 27, 0200Z

State Parks on the Air

• Florida: April 17, 18, 19, 20 (1200Z to 2359Z all days)
• Georgia: April 18, 1200Z to April 19, 2359Z
• Texas: April 18, 0000Z to April 19, 2359Z

The post Guide to April 2026 Ham Radio Contests: Lightning Edition appeared first on OnAllBands.

In this digital age of ham radio licensing exam preparation, many hams learn the answers, but few take it to the next step and learn the whys and wherefores behind the questions. As a result, they get frustrated in “putting it all together.” We are going to look at a few basic skills that will make amateur radio much more enjoyable for you.

Antenna Theory & Building 

Antenna building is not rocket science. The basic idea is to make the RF energy inside the radio radiate outside the radio in the most efficient manner possible. I often suggest starting off by building simple dipole or long wire antennas. Wire antennas are a great low-cost method of learning basic antenna theory. To make it easy, I suggest the DX Engineering Single-Band Low-Power Dipole Kit or one of the DX Engineering Low-Power Portable Dipole and Winder Kits. “Salty Walt’s Portable Antenna Sketchbook” is a great resource to get you started.

Cable Preparation

I am thankful I learned early on to make my own coaxial cable assemblies. DX Engineering makes some of the best Coaxial Cable Assemblies in the business. If you can’t find an assembly that meets your needs, the exclusive DX Engineering Custom Cable Builder lets you choose your desired cable from many options, select the precise length you need up to 300 feet, and choose what connectors you want on both ends.

But for do-it-yourselfers, learning the basic skills and investing in a quality tool kit lets you make practically any cable you need.

I recommend using the DX Engineering Next Generation Crimp/Solder PL-259s. These are quality connectors, and there’s plenty of installation support from the manuals and videos showing how to use the DX Engineering cable prep tools. 

To make cable preparation a breeze, I use the DX Engineering Cable Prep Tool Kit for Crimp Connectors. It cuts all levels of the coax to the precise measurements in one smooth action.

Finally, I use the DX Engineering Ultra-Grip 2 Crimp Tool Kit to ensure the proper crimp around the shield of the coax . I finish off the center conductor with the Milwaukee M12 Soldering Iron.

Soldering

Which leads me to the skill of soldering. I am the first to admit that I’m not an expert in the art, but I can do what needs to be done. Whether you’re considering battery, butane, or electric models, take some time to review a variety of soldering guns and irons. Think about how you will most use it and what fits your needs and budget. It should be paired with the right solder for the job. And remember, flux is your friend. It helps the solder flow nicely and where you want it to go.

Sometimes to get to the problem or solve an issue, you need to remove the solder. This is also a skill that takes some finesse. There are a couple of desoldering tools available to make that job easier. Always remember, whether putting it down or picking it up, soldering in the wrong place can be a very bad thing.

These are just a few skills that are not a part of the amateur radio exam, but will, nonetheless, make your time in the hobby more enjoyable and less expensive. 

Until next time, 73 de AC8OW   

The post The Most Overlooked Ham Radio Skills appeared first on OnAllBands.