For the past two club meetings, it’s been announced that the Desert Rats Amateur Radio Club owns and maintains a 222 MHz repeater, with an IRLP node attached to it. It’s located in Cathedral City, and it’s available for your use 24 hours a day! Best of all, it’s free of access codes!!!! But, how do you use it?
First of all, you’ll need a radio with 222 MHz capability that contains a DTMF (touchtone) pad. The repeater/node requires a PL tone of 110.9 Hz, so you’ll need to set up your radio accordingly. On the 222 MHz band, the offset is minus 1.6 MHz, which means that you’ll be transmitting on 222.880 MHz. When you access the club’s repeater on the 222 MHz band, you will be able to talk with other amateur radio stations around the world, because the 222 MHz DRATS repeater has an IRLP node attached to it. The greatest news of all is the fact that every amateur licensee (except “grandfathered” novice class license holders) has access to the entire 222 MHz band! This more than likely means you!!! Mobile and handheld radios that operate on the 222 MHz amateur band are available from Yaesu, Kenwood, Alinco, Wouxun and TYT, to name just a few manufacturers. Specifications vary between models, and not all manufacturers make both mobile and handheld versions of their 222MHz radios. Prices of a brand new radio can vary between $140 and $300. There are quite a few handheld radios that operate on the 222 MHz band, although some of them work at reduced power (generally under 2 watts), so check the specifications of your future purchase carefully. There are at least two manufacturers that make handheld radios that operate at 5 watts output, which is considered “full power” for a handheld. There’s lots of good used equipment available for the 222 MHz band too, for those on a strict budget. 222 MHz antennas are easy to make. A simple outdoor ground plane antenna should work for most of us who live in the Coachella Valley, and can be made in less than 15 minutes at a cost of just a few dollars! Since a 1/4 wave antenna for 222 MHz is only about 11 inches tall, operating under CC & R’s or municipal antenna restrictions is entirely possible.
The best news of all is that the 222 MHz band offers a mix of the most desirable characteristics of 2 meters and 70 centimeters, without the crowding and “exclusivity” of those bands. The DRATS IRLP “node” is open, in that you don’t need an access code to use it. All you need to do is simply dial the four digit node that you want to call, and listen before you transmit. That’s because you may be coming in on an established QSO on the repeater or reflector that you’ve dialed up. When you’re finished with your QSO, just dial “73” to break the connection. If you forget to do that, don’t worry because the connection will time out after a period of inactivity.
IRLP is an abbreviation for Internet Radio Linking Project, and is the brainchild of designer Dave Cameron, VE7LTD. It’s a system of “repeaters” and “reflectors” that links stations (called “nodes”) around the world, via the internet. Reflectors are special “nodes” that allow multiple stations to connect simultaneously. Quite a few well publicized wide area amateur radio repeater systems connect stations together by means of an IRLP reflector. There are literally hundreds of special nets on various topics on the reflectors, including technical nets for those who want to learn or have questions about various technical issues related to ham radio.
Every IRLP station (node) has a unique 4 digit number assigned to it. The DRATS node carries the number 3053. Reflectors also carry a four digit number, and begin with the numeral “9”. IRLP conversations MUST originate from a radio, because there is automatic authentication code within the IRLP software that’s transparent to the users to make certain that’s always the case.
There’s complete information about IRLP on the web, under the URL “IRLP.NET.” On the IRLP site, you’ll find a complete list of active nodes and reflectors, including node 3053, owned and operated by the Desert Rats Amateur Radio Club. You’ll be able to sort the list of nodes by callsign, location, or number, as desired. You’ll also be able to see which node is connected to which other node (or reflector), which nodes are “out of order” and when a particular node was last used.
Have fun! Get on 222 MHz and use the DRATS 222 MHz repeater and node to talk to the world!
Rick Fearns, K6VE
