ED willett W7MAD/SK
Pano view of Ed's shack
If there is such a thing as an antenna farm, Ed has one. There’s quite a story behind the 75 foot pole that hoists the M2 four-element mono-bander dipole antenna Ed uses for 20 meters. The pole once was one of two that held a bank of lights in Kindrick Brewers Park. When it was no longer needed there, Ed lobbied city officials for it, finally obtaining the pole for $5. However, having the pole transported and installed cost $1100. Ed obtained his 60 foot steel antenna for free from Helena High School when they disbanded their amateur radio station. This is the tower that holds the two element mono-bander he uses for 40 meters. It is hard to get a photo of the loop antenna he uses for 75 meters, as that is a wire 280 feet in circumference around his property.
Antennas are only part of the story. Ed’s shack comprises three very complete setups, one for each of three bands. For 20 meters a Yaesu FT DX 5000 transceiver connects to the very powerful Alpha 775x linear amplifier. He uses another Yaesu FT DX 5000 transceiver for 40 meters, amplified by a Ten-Tec Titan 425. A Ten-Tec Centurion amplifies his 75-meter transmissions, where he uses a Yaesu FT 2000 transceiver and an industry-standard Johnson Matchbox tuner. This tuner, together with his open-wire feed line, insures high impedance and low loss. When Ed was in grade school he read about amateur radio in a Boy’s Life magazine. He and his friend Duane, who is still a ham, decided to get the license just for fun. ARRL provided the questions for the Novice exam, but not the answers. Ed credits a very smart science teacher for helping him understand and learn the needed information. The Novice license was only good for one year, so he and Duane went right on to earn the General license. Of course by this time Ed was hooked, and his dad was so impressed with his achievement that he bought Ed’s first receiver. Ed de-tasseled corn to earn the money to buy his first transmitter from World Radio Lab. Band conditions were good, and Ed was so busy during CW-only days that his sister in the bedroom next to his learned to recognize the Morse code for his call sign. Through ham radio Ed has friends around the world, and his bulletin board has the photos to prove it. He is especially proud of a boomerang sent to him by an Australian ham. He has racked up contacts in every country except Monaco. However, Ed says he is not a “wallpaper guy,” and he hasn’t bothered to obtain the many certificates he could have. Look for this avid DXer on 20, 40, or 75 meters. October 2017 Ed died December 22, 2022
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