Everyday Ham Podcast: Amateur Radio Conversations

Rory Locke (W8KNX), Jim Davis (N8JRD), & James Mills (K8JKU)
  • 4.9 (22)
  • Technology
  • Monthly

Welcome to the Everyday Ham Podcast, where three friends dive into the world of amateur (ham) radio with a casual, lighthearted twist. (Visit www.everydayham.com)From discussing what we're working on, current events, and lessons learned to sharing our gripes and off-topic banter, we bring a mix of fun, relatable conversations and radio expertise. Whether you’re a seasoned operator or new to the hobby, join us for engaging chats that celebrate the quirks, challenges, and joys of being on the air. 

  1. 14h ago ·  Video

    Ep. 23 – eBay's FCC Rule, Buying Used Ham Gear and Icom ID-5200A After a Month

    Send us Fan Mail Should a brand new ham buy used gear, and does eBay's new FCC rule change the answer? James, Jim and Rory dig into it in Episode 23, along with a month-long check-in on the Icom ID-5200A. Rory shares how the ID-5200A has settled into his car, what the color display and on-screen keyboard are like to use, and why native APRS is still on his wish list. The crew compares the buzz around the ID-5200A and the Kenwood TM-D750A, Jim's Xiegu G7250 order is on the way from Radioddity, and James talks IC-7110 hopes and a hotel-window CW attempt from New Mexico. Then it's the news: eBay's FCC requirement for radios that can transmit outside the ham bands, an update on the Amateur Radio Emergency Preparedness Act, ARISS and NASA signing a new four-year agreement for ham radio on the International Space Station, the new POTA site, and a sobering look at a helicopter strike on a radio tower in Florida. The hosts close with how to find a club that fits, what to check before buying at a swap, and how to send in topic ideas. Topics: Icom ID-5200A, Kenwood TM-D750A, APRS, Xiegu G7250, Icom IC-7110, eBay FCC rule, buying used radios, ham swaps and QRZ, HOA antenna bill, ARISS, POTA, CW. Don't miss a single episode! Follow the Everyday Ham Podcast on your favorite podcast platform (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, and more) and be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel. Short show intro audio clip Short outro audio clip The Everyday Ham Podcast is hosted by James Mills (K8JKU), Jim Davis (N8JRD), and Rory Locke (W8KNX) – three friends who dive into the world of amateur radio with a casual, lighthearted twist.  Follow us at: Website: https://www.everydayham.com/

    Ep. 23 – eBay's FCC Rule, Buying Used Ham Gear and Icom ID-5200A After a Month

  2. Oct 8 ·  Video

    Ep. 22 – World Radio League Founders: 100,000 Users, JTTY and Morse Mastery

    Send us Fan Mail Andy N0APX made his first JTTY contact shortly before we went live, using a pre-release build of the World Radio League desktop app, and we get the story right here. This month Everyday Ham sits down with Andy N0APX, product manager for World Radio League, and James N0WRL, the founder and CEO behind World Radio League and Ham Radio Prep. WRL has passed 100,000 users and 65 million logged contacts, and they explain how a simple web form became a cloud logger with mobile, desktop and web apps, CAT control, FT8, contest scoring and integrations with QRZ, Logbook of the World, WSJT-X and N1MM. We talk Winter Field Day live scoring, how a small team picks a roadmap, and how they use AI tools without letting the AI do the thinking. They also preview Morse Mastery, a free self-paced CW course, and Ham Radio Prep's plan to let you schedule your exam from inside the app. Before the interview, Rory shares his first impressions of the Icom ID-5200 in his Jeep, Jim gives his early ID-5200 versus Kenwood TM-D750A take, and James reports back on the Heil BM-17 headset after many POTA activations. Topics: World Radio League, JTTY, FT8, Winter Field Day, Ham Radio Prep, Morse Mastery, Icom ID-5200 Don't miss a single episode! Follow the Everyday Ham Podcast on your favorite podcast platform (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, and more) and be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel. Short show intro audio clip Short outro audio clip The Everyday Ham Podcast is hosted by James Mills (K8JKU), Jim Davis (N8JRD), and Rory Locke (W8KNX) – three friends who dive into the world of amateur radio with a casual, lighthearted twist.  Follow us at: Website: https://www.everydayham.com/

    Ep. 22 – World Radio League Founders: 100,000 Users, JTTY and Morse Mastery

  3. Sep 3 ·  Video

    Ep. 21 – DIY Digipeater at Detroit's Historic Masonic Temple

    Send us Fan Mail Jay Aho (N8QYQ) came back to ham radio after 20 years away and, about a year later, had an APRS digipeater and a Winlink gateway running 210 feet up on the Detroit Masonic Temple. In this episode he tells James (K8JKU), Jim (N8JRD) and Rory (W8KNX) how it happened: a childhood friend who happens to manage the building, trustees who said yes to emergency communications, and a whole lot of learning along the way. Jay explains why he picked a low-gain Diamond X30 and 30 watts instead of blasting the region, why the site runs as a WIDE1-1 fill-in digipeater to be additive to the network rather than competitive, and how it now shows 93 miles of coverage on aprs.fi. He gets into the build itself, a Raspberry Pi 4 running Dire Wolf for APRS and a hardened Windows mini PC for VARA FM Winlink, each feeding a Yaesu FTM-3100 at 30 watts, plus watchdogs, auto-boot after a power loss, remote access, LiFePO4 battery backup, and the surprisingly easy grounding story. He also introduces Detroit Never Goes Silent, a lobby exhibit where visitors scan a QR code and receive an email that traveled over radio, and talks about the effort to fund an ARPSC station at Detroit's Emergency Operations Center. Before the interview, the crew covers Jason KN4AL's 1000th POTA activation, Activate All RI 2026, the new POTA website beta, building shack dashboards with Claude Code, and everything they've learned about the Icom IC-7110 since Tokyo Ham Fair. Topics in this episode: Icom IC-7110 specs, pricing and release speculation Activate All RI 2026, September 11-13 The new POTA website beta at next.pota.app Shack dashboards built with Claude Code Jay N8QYQ's Detroit APRS digipeater and Winlink gateway Diamond X30, WIDE1-1 fill-in and 93 miles of coverage Raspberry Pi 4, Dire Wolf, VARA FM and a hardened Windows mini PC Detroit Never Goes Silent and the Detroit EOC station Don't miss a single episode! Follow the Everyday Ham Podcast on your favorite podcast platform (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, and more) and be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel. Short show intro audio clip Short outro audio clip The Everyday Ham Podcast is hosted by James Mills (K8JKU), Jim Davis (N8JRD), and Rory Locke (W8KNX) – three friends who dive into the world of amateur radio with a casual, lighthearted twist.  Follow us at: Website: https://www.everydayham.com/

    Ep. 21 – DIY Digipeater at Detroit's Historic Masonic Temple

  4. Aug 6 ·  Video

    Ep. 20 – Decoding QSL, From Paper Cards to Digital Confirmation

    Send us Fan Mail QSL is one of the most used words on the air and one of the least understood. When Jim asked what it actually stands for, all three of us stopped cold, so we spent an episode getting it right. James (K8JKU), Jim (N8JRD) and Rory (W8KNX) work through what QSL really means, why keeping a log and confirming a contact are two different things, and how to navigate paper cards, QRZ Logbook, ARRL Logbook of the World and Club Log without drowning in it. Rory tells the story of the operator from Oregon who wrote him a letter after waiting 42 years to work one rare Michigan county, and makes the case that refusing to confirm cheats somebody else out of the state, grid or county they have been chasing. James walks through his own workflow honestly, cumbersome parts included, and Rory does the same. If you are new to HF and have not started logging yet, this is the foundation nobody hands you. Before the main topic, Rory puts money down on the Icom ID-5200A and defends the price, Icom teases the X-026 ahead of HAM Fair 2026, Kenwood's TM-D750A firms up for September, and James argues the MacBook Neo is the best portable ham radio laptop you can buy right now. In this episode: Icom ID-5200A pre-order and the $999.95 question The Icom X-026 teaser and HAM Fair 2026 Kenwood TM-D750A, September and day-one APRS The MacBook Neo as a portable ham radio laptop A new-in-box Alinco DJ-C5 for $85 Xiegu G7250, remote operating and 100 meters of Ethernet What QSL actually means, and why logging is not QSLing Paper cards, QRZ, Logbook of the World and Club Log Our real QSLing workflows, start to finish Ohio and Hawaii QSO Parties, August 22 Watch the full episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/HhhoVukJI3s Don't miss a single episode! Follow the Everyday Ham Podcast on your favorite podcast platform (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, and more) and be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel. Short show intro audio clip Short outro audio clip The Everyday Ham Podcast is hosted by James Mills (K8JKU), Jim Davis (N8JRD), and Rory Locke (W8KNX) – three friends who dive into the world of amateur radio with a casual, lighthearted twist.  Follow us at: Website: https://www.everydayham.com/

    Ep. 20 – Decoding QSL, From Paper Cards to Digital Confirmation

  5. Jul 9 ·  Video

    Ep. 19 – How We Made Field Day Our Best One Yet

    Send us Fan Mail What happens when a club stops treating Field Day like an endurance contest and starts treating it like a neighborhood open house? In this episode, James (K8JKU), Jim (N8JRD), and Rory (W8KNX) unpack the South Lyon Area Amateur Radio Club's reinvented Field Day, a community-first event in the middle of town with big printed signs at every antenna, a Get On The Air station, and newcomers like Cruz (KF8GNL) making their first HF contacts. The club nearly doubled last year's score with 1,193 contacts across three stations, but the real win was the dog walkers, museum visitors, and first-timers who stopped to see what ham radio is all about. Before that, the crew recaps chasing the 13 Colonies Special Event through a wild solar storm, including a last-minute D-Star scramble to bag the Great Britain bonus station. They also give an honest, no-hype first look at the Buddipole BuddiHEX hex beam, cold solder joint and all, and break down the brewing showdown between the Icom ID-5200 and Kenwood TM-D750A mobile radios. Topics in this episode: 13 Colonies Special Event and rough band conditions Monroe Ham Swap finds Reinventing Field Day around community Getting new operators on the air Buddipole BuddiHEX first impressions Icom ID-5200 vs Kenwood TM-D750A Don't miss a single episode! Follow the Everyday Ham Podcast on your favorite podcast platform (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, and more) and be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel. Short show intro audio clip Short outro audio clip The Everyday Ham Podcast is hosted by James Mills (K8JKU), Jim Davis (N8JRD), and Rory Locke (W8KNX) – three friends who dive into the world of amateur radio with a casual, lighthearted twist.  Follow us at: Website: https://www.everydayham.com/

    Ep. 19 – How We Made Field Day Our Best One Yet

  6. Jun 11 ·  Video

    Ep. 18 – Has POTA Peaked? Campfires, Community, and the Future of Parks on the Air

    Send us Fan Mail Ep. 18 – Has Parks on the Air hit its peak? James (K8JKU), Jim (N8JRD), and Rory (W8KNX) debate the future of POTA, from its explosive growth to what the declining solar cycle means for portable operators, and whether the program is in its twilight or just entering its golden years. The conversation comes fresh off the Third Annual Michigan POTA Meetup, where the guys spent a weekend camping, activating, and sharing campfire stories with about 70 POTA enthusiasts at Hartwick Pines State Park. They talk about what actually brings hams together, why community is the best part of this hobby, and how to find or start a meetup in your own area. Also in this episode: the Everyday Ham merch store is officially live at everydayham.com, a Hamvention attendance stat correction, shout-outs to Penn (AC8XI) and Rob (N1RWJ), and around the shack updates from all three hosts. Learn more about the meetup at michiganpotameetup.com, and if you love POTA, consider donating at parksontheair.com. Don't miss a single episode! Follow the Everyday Ham Podcast on your favorite podcast platform and subscribe to our YouTube channel at @EverydayHam. Short show intro audio clip Short outro audio clip The Everyday Ham Podcast is hosted by James Mills (K8JKU), Jim Davis (N8JRD), and Rory Locke (W8KNX) – three friends who dive into the world of amateur radio with a casual, lighthearted twist.  Follow us at: Website: https://www.everydayham.com/

    Ep. 18 – Has POTA Peaked? Campfires, Community, and the Future of Parks on the Air

  7. May 22 ·  Video

    Hamvention 2026: Recap, Reactions, and a Brewing Showdown

    Send us Fan Mail A concept radio with "almost nothing" on display managed to dominate Hamvention 2026, and we can't stop talking about what that means for the future of ham radio. We're fresh back from Dayton, a little punchy, and ready to unpack the best conversations we had with vendors, makers, and listeners who recognized our voices across the noise of the fairgrounds. If you care about where mobile rigs, repeaters, and digital features are headed next, this recap is loaded with real impressions and honest skepticism. We dig into the biggest manufacturer moments first: Yaesu's DR-3 repeater direction and the next steps for System Fusion, Kenwood's long-awaited TM-D750A progress and why "ship it later" can be the right call when firmware isn't ready, and Icom's X-026 concept strategy that had people cheering, arguing, and even storming away. We debate whether asking the community for feedback is a bold move or a frustrating tease, and why market size, R&D timelines, and expectations at Hamvention don't always align. Then we get practical with gear that feels closer to daily use, especially the Icom ID-5200. We talk interface upgrades, smart mobile touches like auto-dimming, and the big headline that grabbed our attention: native APRS encode and decode via firmware update. We also zoom out to the rest of the show, from Four Days in May and small vendor innovation to CW key makers, swap meet pricing, and what the flea market "junk scale" looked like this year. If you like this kind of grounded ham radio coverage, subscribe, share the show with a friend headed to their next hamfest, and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Then come hang out with us in Discord and drop your take: is the X-026 hype brilliant or annoying? Short show intro audio clip Short outro audio clip The Everyday Ham Podcast is hosted by James Mills (K8JKU), Jim Davis (N8JRD), and Rory Locke (W8KNX) – three friends who dive into the world of amateur radio with a casual, lighthearted twist.  Follow us at: Website: https://www.everydayham.com/

    Hamvention 2026: Recap, Reactions, and a Brewing Showdown

  8. May 7 ·  Video

    Hamvention 2026 Survival Guide: Strategy, Gear & The ICOM X-026 Reveal

    Send us Fan Mail The fastest way to waste Hamvention is to treat it like a random walk. We're getting ahead of Dayton with the game plan we wish we had on day one: how to pace the weekend, when to hit the flea market swap meet, how to avoid the worst lines, and why the forums can be the most underrated part of the whole show. We also catch up from our shacks, because real ham radio life is never just shopping. Rory shares lessons from the Michigan QSO Party and why CW contesting is the best training ground for finally hearing callsigns at speed. James brings the portable angle with travel radio, Parks on the Air stories from Hawaii and the Grand Canyon, and what it takes to make a station work when you're far from home. Jim talks simple antenna building with a 9:1 setup and what he's learning by hosting a club System Fusion repeater and helping keep local machines on the air. Then we get into the big Hamvention gear energy: ICOM's X-026 concept has the internet buzzing about a mobile rig that could merge HF with VHF/UHF in a clean install. Kenwood's TM-D750A is still the question everyone wants answered. And Yaesu staying quiet has us all guessing what comes next in handhelds and battery life. If you're heading to Dayton, you'll leave with practical tips you can use immediately and a checklist mindset that keeps the weekend fun. Subscribe for our Hamvention field coverage, share this with a ham who's traveling to Dayton, and leave a review if the show helps you plan smarter. What's the one thing you refuse to miss at Hamvention this year? 📢 Subscribe & Follow! 🎧 Audio: https://www.everydayham.com 📺 YouTube: @EverydayHam 📷 Instagram: @everydayhampodcast 73! Short show intro audio clip Short outro audio clip The Everyday Ham Podcast is hosted by James Mills (K8JKU), Jim Davis (N8JRD), and Rory Locke (W8KNX) – three friends who dive into the world of amateur radio with a casual, lighthearted twist.  Follow us at: Website: https://www.everydayham.com/

    Hamvention 2026 Survival Guide: Strategy, Gear & The ICOM X-026 Reveal
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About

Welcome to the Everyday Ham Podcast, where three friends dive into the world of amateur (ham) radio with a casual, lighthearted twist. (Visit www.everydayham.com)From discussing what we're working on, current events, and lessons learned to sharing our gripes and off-topic banter, we bring a mix of fun, relatable conversations and radio expertise. Whether you’re a seasoned operator or new to the hobby, join us for engaging chats that celebrate the quirks, challenges, and joys of being on the air. 

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