Joe Eisenberg, KØNEB

Joe will talk on techniques for kit building and look at numerous tools and items that he has found helpful in making the build go as easily as possible and with more chance of success. Instead of talking as much about the various kits that are out there, he will spend more time on actual ideas for building them better and improving the experience. The presentation will include things like the best way to wind and tin toroids, parts handling, and test techniques as well as soldering tips. Joe will do a show and tell of some kits and there will be plenty of time for a question and answer at the end.

Introduced to the hobby at an early age by my mentor, Leo Meyerson, WØGFQ (World Radio!) I was first licensed at the age of 14 in 1969 as WNØWRI, (later WAØWRI and now KØNEB). My first HF rig was certainly not QRP, being a Galaxy GT-550 that I got to follow as it was built, step by step at World Radio in Council Bluffs. In high school, I made the most interesting contact I ever made with JY1, King Hussein from my high school club station (HT32B/SX-101A and Collins KW-1 to a TH6 up 66'!). After high school, I went to the University of Nebraska where I studied Broadcast Journalism. After college, I went into the IT industry working on anything from PCs to mainframes, with a few years thrown in of being an RF bench tech in making repairs, testing, and prototypes of VHF/UHF receivers.

I am currently the Kit Building Editor at CQ Magazine, and write a monthly column appearing in CQ since 2009. I am also currently a Field Engineer for an Omaha IT services company, specializing in various types of printers, computers and networks. I have served as Nebraska frequency coordinator and I co-founded the largest multi-state regional repeater frequency coordination organization in the USA, the Mid-America Coordination Council (MACC) and served as national chair of the ARRL VHF Repeater Advisory Committee for 2 years. I have spoken at the Dayton Hamvention 22 times, 7 of which were for frequency coordination, and the last 15 years on Kit Building. In ham radio, I enjoy just about everything, I enjoy contesting, like November SS, operating Field Day, and of course, QRP and building kits. My first QRP kit was a Heathkit HW-7. I didn't let its performance deter me and I went on to trying various QRP radios and kits since then. Besides my QRO radios, I have a Yaesu FT-817 and Elecraft KX-1, as well as numerous other kit radios. I have found that amateur radio has so much to offer, that if I got tired of one aspect of the hobby, I can step into another one, like storm watching, satellites, VHF, antennas, or APRS. But, QRP and kit building has always stuck with me.

My other hobbies include traveling and artistic photography, and I have won several first place awards at the Nebraska State Fair. I combine photography and ham radio by making slide shows that are carefully set to music of the annual Dayton Hamvention and now have my shows online for download or viewing. They are available to be seen on YouTube by searching under my callsign as a key word or by going to http://www.youtube.com/k0neb . In 2011, the Dayton Amateur Radio Association awarded me with a paid life membership in DARA for my efforts since 1975 to photograph and preserve the images and spirit of the Hamvention.

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