Scottish Charity number SC045038
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LRS Messages of the Day:
YESTERDAY – LRS President Andy Sinclair GM4LLD officially retired from work.
TONIGHT – Wed 17 June – 20:00h – LRS AGM at Braid Hills Hotel.
LRS MEETINGS
LRS meetings are normally held on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of each month (except July and August) at 8:00pm at the Braid Hills Hotel, 134 Braid Road, EH10 6JD.
In July and August Pub Nights are held at 7:30pm at Wee Bennet’s Bar at Morningside Station, on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays. There are also occasional Wee Bennet’s evenings arranged during the main club season.
Most items are archived in Meeting Reports or Society Activities.
UPCOMING MEETINGS
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LRS Barbecue POSTPONED from Wed 24th June. New date TBA ~ Aug/Sept..
Wed 17 June – 20:00h – LRS AGM, Braid Hills Hotel.
TUES 16 JUNE – 19:30h MOC Goudie Lecture – The Remarkable Mary Somerville – Queen of 19th Century Science – by Ian Archibald. See below – Rallies etc.
RALLIES AND OTHER EVENTS
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Sunday 25 Oct 2026 – Galashiels Rally
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Friday 14th August 2026 18:00 to 21:00 Cockenzie & Port Seton Junk Night, Port Seton Community Centre, South Seton Park Port Seton EH32 0BG
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Sat 31 Oct 2026 – GMRT-2026 at MOC Burntisland & Dinner at Kingswood Hotel
The 2026 Scottish Microwave Round Table (GMRT-2026) will be held as usual at the Museum of Communication in Burntisland, followed by dinner at the nearby Kingswood Hotel.
https://gmroundtable.org.uk/
Speakers to present microwave related talks are urgently needed – contact Colin gm4hwo@gmail.comDetails will be available nearer the date.
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9 May – 30 Sept – Weds & Sats – MOC Exhibition 2026
CONTEST CALENDAR
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3-5 July 2026 – VHF NFD 2026 participation by LRS is CANCELLED. Sadly, the key players in the LRS contest group have decided this event will need to be cancelled. The main reasons are lack of resources and transport. Participation in the Sept 2026 VHF event is being discussed
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The LRS operates GM3HAM/P from a great site near Gatehouse of Fleet in Dumfries & Galloway.
5-6 July 2025 – VHF NFD – see report in About LRS – Contest / Portable.
(This photo by Andy MMØFMF / now GM4LLD, is in RSGB RadCom Sept 2025, p.80).
RSGB GB2RS NEWS
Every Sunday morning in the Edinburgh area at 09:30h from LRS member Peter Dick GM4DTH. 70.425MHz FM, 145.525MHz FM & 433.525MHz FM. Then call-in to Peter at 10:00h on 145.575MHz for local net. Several LRS members often there.
RADIO NEWS, RECENT MEETINGS, SILENT KEYS and FOR SALE / WANTED
Click on image or “read more” to open full article.
Send items to Alan GM3PSP:
webmaster@lothiansradiosociety.com
Items usually archived as News or Silent Keys in LRS Archive after 1 month.
1. RADIO NEWS ITEMS
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16 June 2026 – LRS President Andy Sinclair GM4LLD retired from work.
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11 June 2026 – US Army’s breakthrough sensor to pinpoint radio signals on battlefield
US Army develops ‘breakthrough’ Rubidium vapour cell quantum sensor to pinpoint radio signals on battlefields. See: https://interestingengineering.com/military/us-develops-breakthrough-sensor-for-battlefield
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RadCom June 2026 – LRS NARSA Rally Photo in RSGB RadCom
The LRS group photo taken at Pete GM4BYF’s table at the NARSA (Blackpool) Rally has been published in RSGB RadCom magazine, June 2026 issue, p.80.
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Sat 27 June 2026 – BBC to close Radio-4 198kHz Long-Wave Service.
The BBC will close its Radio-4 198kHz Long-Wave service from Droitwich, Burghead and Westerglen on Saturday 27th June 2026. It had operated since Sept 1934. The RSGB and the BBC Amateur Radio Group are planning to mark this event on the air. Click for info.
2. RECENT MEETINGS
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27 May 2026 – LRS D/F Hunt 2026
Mike Brunsdon GM8KCS (R) and his son Michael MM3MDB won the 2026… Read more
3. SILENT KEYS
There are no current silent key notifications. Click on the heading to see the silent key archive.
4. ITEMS FOR SALE
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13 June 2026 – Dell Monitor for Sale by Andy GM4LLD
Dell U2412M hires 1920 x 1200 LCD monitor Adjustable stand DisplayPort, DVI & VGA inputs 1920 x 1200 WUXGA resolution 4 port USB2 hub. Mains lead Very good condition, no screen blemishes. £35 Andy GM4LLD.
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26 Apr 2026 – Bencher BY-1 Dual Paddle for Sale by Andy GM4LLD.
Bencher BY-1 dual paddle key. Chrome mechanics on black base. Used and slightly worn but in very good condition otherwise. Pictures available on request. Price £125 or offer. Andy Sinclair GM4LLD (formerly MM0FMF
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10 Mar 2026 – For Sale: Sigma 2010 Skip Master 25-30MHz am/fm/ssb, fibreglass home base antenna
John GM4JRT has for sale this aerial a Sigma 2010 skip master 25-30MHz am/fm/ssb , fibreglass home base antenna , works well without an ATU on 10 m and 11m band I have the aerial at my QTH , photo attached – collection from QTH GM4HWO @ Liberton Sigma 2010 skip master 25-30MHhz am/fm/ssb , fibreglass home base antenna, power handling 1000 watts, length 5.48 m/ 18 feet, Gain 9.9 dB, impedance 50 ohms, frequency 25-30MHz (with tuning), construction fibreglass, swr 1:1.3, Mounting bracket pole, the sigma euro-comm ½ wave skip master 2010 is a high performance base station antenna.…
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29 Jan 2026 – Items for Sale by Norman MM0BMG (Reduced Prices).
Norman has reduced the prices of many of the items on his list: GM1CNH Equipment Sale Updated: 29 January 2026 Item Description Price Alinco HF Mobile Whip Antenna 2.7 m mobile whip; antenna mounting bracket and spring; adjustable vehicle mounting bracket; heavy duty; boxed. NEW – £150 Anritsu MT8820A Radio Communication Analyser 30 MHz to 2.7 GHz, spectrum analyser, 2G/3G mobile phone tester, output power, modulation, RF signal generation, £300 Badger Boards HF Antenna wideband folded dipole antenna with balun N(f) connector; heavy duty centre spacer; termination resistor; 1.5 MHz to 30 MHz; supplied with 2 x 50 ft antenna…
Lothians Radio Society activities – latest reports
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12 March 2014 – Astronomical Radio Sources – John Cooke GM8OTI
Image courtesy NRAO/AUI At the meeting of the LRS on 12th March 2014 LRS Past-President John Cooke GM8OTI gave a very comprehensive talk about Astronomical Radio Sources. John was an astronomer in his working life (though not a radio astronomer!) and described how the Universe is seen using radio waves. This included an outline of…
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26 Feb 2014 – SOE Radio Operations in WWII – Bob McFarlane
At the meeting of the LRS on 26th February 2014 we had the rare opportunity to hear an actual operator with the Special Operations Executive (SOE) describe his experiences 70 years ago during WWII. André Saunders GM3VLB introduced Bob McFarlane, who outlined the background, training and radios used by the SOE and then described his experiences in…
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12 Feb 2014 – Whither Windows XP? – Andy Sinclair MM0FMF
(Logo courtesy Microsoft Corp.) In light of the imminent loss of support by Microsoft for the Windows XP operating system from May of this year, LRS President Andy Sinclair MM0FMF (who knows a thing or two about computers) gave a timely talk “Whither Windows XP” at the LRS meeting on 12th February. Andy wrote: “I…
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22 Jan 2014 – Life at Sea as a Radio Officer in the 1960s & 70s – Eric Lamb
At the LRS meeting on 22nd January 2014 Eric Lamb described his experiences as a ship’s Radio Officer in the 1960s and 70s and brought a number of interesting demonstrations. The photo is of Eric in his last position, on the MV Providence Bay. Full report.
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Wed 8th Jan 2014 – Video Night
There was an excellent turnout of 25 including several visitors for the first meeting in 2014 on Wed 8th January – the annual Video Night in the excellent screening room of the Edinburgh Cine & Video Society, organised by Peter GM4DTH. The programme was: 1. “The Tower of Babble” (1964) – Post Office Tower. 2. “The…
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11 Dec 2013 LRS Christmas Curry
Twenty LRS members and visitors enjoyed our annual Christmas Curry at the Himalaya Tandoori Restaurant at Bruntsfield on Wed 11th December 2013. Full Report with many photos.
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21 Nov 2013 FUNcube-1 AO73 Satellite Launched
The AMSAT FUNcube-1 / AO-73 educational satellite was launched on Thursday 21st November 2013. (Photo courtesy AMSAT-UK) It has already been heard, and data decoded, by LRS member John GM8OTI. John reports it’s very loud on his 5-element yagi. Alan GM3PSP has also heard it using a vertical antenna. The nominal beacon / data frequency is…
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27 Nov 2013 – Home Spun Antennas by Malcolm Hamilton GM3TAL
At the meeting of the LRS on Wednesday 27th November 2013 LRS member Malcolm Hamilton GM3TAL talked on “Home Spun Antennas” including a 5/8λ vertical and a Bobtail Curtain for 10m. Full report.
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18-20 Nov 2013 Special Event Station GM100RSGB
The antenna dismantling crew on Sunday. L-R: Alan GM3PSP, Danny GM6CMQ, Peter GM4DTH, Brian GM8BJF, Vic GM3OWU, Mike GM8KCS, Bill T6/K5WEJ & Norrie GM1CNH. The LRS operated special event station GM100RSGB as part of the RSGB’s Centenary celebrations on Mon 18th to Wed 20th Nov. from a nice quiet site near Armadale, West Lothian, with…
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2nd Nov 2013 – GMRT – Scottish Microwave Round Table
LRS member David GM4ZNX attracted a lot of interest with his Noise Factor measurements. The third Scottish Microwave Round Table (GMRT) was held on Saturday 2nd November 2013 at the Museum of Communication in Burntisland with a number of LRS members involved as organizers and active participants. Afterwards there was an informal dinner at…
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4th Aug 2013 3cm Portable Operations by Pete GM4BYF/P & Brian GM8BJF/P
Pete GM4BYF/P (in natty hat)! Brian GM8BJF/P (who should have been wearing a hat)! Two keen Lothians microwavers Pete GM4BYF and Brian GM8BJF (our two “BF’s”) were out portable on 3cm on 4th August 2013 and posed for the camera. More information shortly.
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Sayonara Vic and Haste Ye Back
L-R: Mike GM8KCS, Peter GM4DTH, Vic JA5VQ, Bill GM8SQM & Malcolm GM3TAL. October 30th was the last LRS meeting for this year for our good friend Vic Imamura JA5VQ / MM0JVQ before he and his XYL Keiko JG5JUS returned to Japan. We look forward to seeing them again next summer.