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#Post#: 5805--------------------------------------------------
TGIF Friday Night Net Transcript Summary – January 23, 2026
DIR By: VE3RD
Date: January 24, 2026, 8:35 am
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TGIF Friday Night Net Transcript Summary – January 23, 2026
Net Control: Steve, KW0Z (Jefferson County, Kansas)
Talkgroup: 31665
Start time: ~8:30 PM Eastern
Duration: ~2 hours
Conditions: Very cold across much of North America; many
stations reported sub-freezing temperatures.
Announcements
[]ARRL Winter Field Day this weekend – stations encouraged
to participate and report.
[]Upcoming HamCation (Florida): Robert K4WZV announced a
high-powered hotspot will be available on Saturday on 432.700
MHz, Color Code 1, Time Slot 2, TG 31665 (Starlink-backed,
public mode).
[*]Mitch’s (EA7KDO/SK) birthday coming up Feb 6.
Check-ins
A very large net with multiple rounds of short-time, structured
(by suffix digits), and open check-ins. Total logged stations
estimated 70+.
Notable or mentioned stations (partial list):
VE3RD (Phil – Grimsby, Ontario) – topic originator | K4WZV
(Robert) | KW0Z (Steve – NCS) | WB3GTM (Mike – Vermont) | WC7V
(Kerry) | N4MNN (Marty) | KB3JQQ (Scott) | VE6PLC (Cliff) |
KB1PZS (Bob) | KE2KL (Angel) | KC8UKB (Eric) | KF6S/SK &
EA7KDO/SK honorary mentions
Many others including NY2S, K7DLB, N3TJK, VE5RS, KS4TAN, KB8IWO,
N6CZE, K2OZ, KA1PIT, KC5LA, N1XQX, W2SHR, KD6KWV, KC8USA,
WD9HGO, N6PPP, ZL2BEZ (New Zealand), and late check-ins KF5MGR,
KB8KES, KB7BYI, etc.
International check-ins: Canada (VE3RD, VE6PLC, VE1JWM), New
Zealand (ZL2BEZ).
Marketplace / Swap Shop Stories
[]Steve (KW0Z): Looks for heavy copper wire, coax, and
solder spools at hamfests/yard sales; also collects old
telephones.
[]KE2KL (Angel): GD-88 dual-band handheld developed a
strange fault after sitting unused – only Band A works reliably;
converted to single-band use for now.
[]KC8UKB (Eric): Bought a fanless 12 V “Reliant” mini-PC
(i7) for $20 at HamCation flea market – added SSD and Ubuntu
Linux; runs great.
[]WB3GTM (Mike): Memories of Dayton Hamvention in the
80s–90s – Yaesu hats, ICOM HTs, paracord, duplexers, etc.
[*]WC7V (Kerry): Has a large roll of ~20-gauge 6-inch-wide
copper strap (originally for serious grounding) – looking for a
ham-radio application or new home.
Main Topic: Home Networking for the Ham Shack
Initiated by Phil VE3RD who solved persistent packet loss and
slow performance.
Key contributions:
[]VE3RD (Phil): Added a 16-port managed switch to create
VLANs. Isolated his TP-Link Deco mesh Wi-Fi system (3 units) on
its own VLAN; other devices (including hotspots via a separate
hub) isolated. Dramatically reduced collisions and packet loss.
[]KB1PZS (Bob): New Wi-Fi 7 tri-band router caused issues
with older devices (Raspberry Pi hotspots). Solved by creating a
legacy VLAN using only 2.4/5 GHz bands.
[]N4MNN (Marty): Advocates enterprise-grade gear (WatchGuard
Firebox firewall → PoE switch → Ubiquiti APs). Avoid
consumer ISP routers, mesh extenders, and Wi-Fi extenders – they
add latency and failure points.
[]KB3JQQ (Scott): Runs pfSense on a dedicated PC
(firewall/router/DHCP), Pi-hole for local DNS + ad/tracker
blocking (speeds browsing), all switched Ethernet, Cisco AP in
reverse mode.
[]VE6PLC (Cliff): Uses ActionTec ISP router’s pass-through
LAN port to separate IPTV streams from local data traffic; also
explained Pi-Star Wi-Fi priority ordering (100 downward).
[]WB3GTM (Mike): Wi-Fi 6+ routers help with multiple
streams; central router location + extender critical for
coverage; 2.4 GHz penetrates walls better than 5/6 GHz.
General tips shared:
[]Keep it simple (KISS).
[]Separate hotspot/Pi traffic from high-bandwidth devices
when possible.
[]Use 2.4 GHz for longer range, 5/6 GHz for speed.
[]Same SSID on home and phone hotspot for seamless mobile
use.
[*]Elevate/centralize routers when possible.
Weather Reports (selected)
[]KW0Z: 5 °F (dropping), light snow expected (Kansas)
[]VE3RD: 6.8 °F (southern Ontario)
[]WC7V: 6 °F (Livingston, MT)
[]AF7FS: 51 °F (Las Vegas)
[]KC8USA: –11 °F (Holton Lake, MI)
[]KB3SVT: –5 °F (north-central PA)
[*]Wide range reported: –11 °F to 51 °F
Closing
Steve KW0Z thanked the TGIF team (Robert K4WZV, Andy G7LRR, Phil
VE3RD, Vic VE3JAR, forum team, and silent keys KF6S & EA7KDO).
Net closed ~10:30 PM Eastern with TG 31665 returned to general
use.
Another excellent, well-attended net with practical technical
discussion – perfect for cold winter Friday nights!
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