Gadgetry, camaraderie draw amateur radio enthusiast

Photos by Benjie Sanders / Staff
Ham operator John Slusser can receive and transmit images by hooking together his radio and computer equipment.

John Slusser • Age: 61 • Amateur radio enthusiast since 1984 • Radio call letters: WD7F

I have such a good time with the gadgetry of it all.

By Bryn Bailer
ARIZONA DAILY STAR

John Slusser has talked with people all over the world, without leaving his home radio room - or "ham shack" - and without using a telephone or
e-mail.

The Tucsonan is an amateur radio enthusiast, more commonly known as a ham-radio operator.

"The communications part of it is just one thing," the retired electronics engineer explained. "I have such a good time with the gadgetry of it all."

Slusser, who has been involved in amateur radio since the mid-1980s, has built up an impressive home station that includes a computer system, radios that operate on a variety of broadcast frequencies and a soaring antennae tower.

"If you had to go out and buy it all, it might cost $10,000," he said. "But you've got to remember, I've been collecting this stuff for 18 years."

Ham-radio enthusiasts have different goals, Slusser said. Some try to talk with at least one operator in every country by bouncing their radio signals off the Earth's atmospheric layers, in an attempt to send their signals as far as possible.

Still others get involved in the Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service, which provides emergency-management communications assistance in times of disaster.

Unlike CB - or citizens band - radio users, ham-radio operators must be licensed by the Federal Communications Commission. To become licensed, operators must demonstrate knowledge and expertise in radio theory and procedure via a rigorous testing procedure offered through local amateur radio clubs.

In addition to the electronic gadgetry, Slusser said he also enjoys the camaraderie of other "hams" - whether they're from Tucson or the other side of the world.

Last month, he and another radio enthusiast kept in touch with a friend vacationing in Australia.

Although engineers and "computer gurus" seem to predominate in ham radio, hobbyists have ranged from politicians to musicians to kings.

Slusser said he once talked with King Hussein of Jordan, whose wife, Queen Noor, also was an amateur radio hobbyist. Hussein died in 1999.

According to the Ham Radio Spectrum Web site (ku4ay.net/famous.html) other famous hams have included: TV anchorman Walter Cronkite; singers Chet Atkins and Ronnie Milsap; former Sen. Barry Goldwater; and cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin.

"This last space shuttle crew, almost everyone was a ham," Slusser added.

Those interested in learning more about amateur radio might consider joining a local ham-radio group. The Catalina Radio Club - which is only open to employees and retirees of Raytheon Missile Systems Co. - has a comprehensive Web site listing links to other Tucson clubs. Its Web site is http://www.w7sa.org/.

Or check out Slusser's home page at www.wd7f.com.

* Contact reporter Bryn Bailer at 573-4119 or bbailer@azstarnet.com.

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