Here is a short list of helpful radio websites and resources. This list is not an advertisement for any group or business. OTVARC receives no compensation for these links. Please email webmaster@otvarc.org for any issues or suggestions.
Amateur Radio Exam Study Resources
| Name | Description | Link |
| Hamstudy.org | Popular website with practice tests and flashcards | LINK |
| KB6NU No-Nonsense Study Guides | Popular study guides & teaching guides | LINK |
| ARRL – Getting Your Technician License | Lots of info and resources on the test and test requirements | LINK |
| Hamexam | Study website with flashcards and practice tests | LINK |
Publications & Periodicals
| Name | Description | Link |
| QST | The ARRL monthly membership journal, available to ARRL members | LINK |
| CQ Magazine | Monthly magazine from CQ Communications | LINK |
| ARRL On the Air | Bimonthly magazine from the ARRL. Directed at newcomers and beginners. | LINK |
| ARRL Store | ARRL store has many top-tier publications including license manuals and operating manuals | LINK |
| Hamwaves Archive | Collection of periodicals from around the world | LINK |
| N5DUX Archive | Collection of several newsletters and periodicals | LINK |
For Reference
| Name | Description | Link |
| Miklor.com | Lots of manuals for VHF/UHF and GMRS radios | LINK |
| BandPlans.com | Band plans for HF frequencies | LINK |
| RepeaterBook | Information for repeaters on all frequencies | LINK |
| ARRL Glossary | Glossary for radio terms and concepts | LINK |
Callsign Lookup & Information
| Name | Description | Link |
| FCC ULS Database | Master database for all amateur radio licenses. | LINK |
| 1x1callsigns.org | Lookup for special event callsigns. | LINK |
| ae7q.com | Lookup for vanity callsigns and callsign history | LINK |
| K2CR Vanities page | Prediction for vanity callsigns | LINK |
| QRZ.com | Most popular callsign lookup website | LINK |
Other Local Radio Clubs
| Name | Description | Location | Link |
| Williamette Valley DX Club – WVDXC | Focused on DX and contesting. Home of the 7th Area QSL Bureau. | Portland, OR / NW OR | LINK |
| Portland Amateur Radio Club – PARC | Active club based in Portland – W7LT. | Portland, OR | LINK |
| Western Oregon Radio Club – WORC | Very active club with a many local linked analog and digital repeaters | Beaverton, OR | LINK |
| Washington County ARES | Local ARES club with public service events and traffic handling events | Washington County, OR | LINK |
| Clark County Amatuer Radio Club | Co-Sponser of Sea-Pac | Vancouver, WA | LINK |
| Oregon Amateur Television Association – OATVA | Club focused on the art of amatuer television | Portland, OR | LINK |
| Clackamas Country ARES – CARES | ARES group with FEMA training | Clackamas County, OR | LINK |
| Amatuer Radio Relay Group – ARRG | Repeater club with operating many linked repeaters – K7RPT | Western OR | LINK |
| PDX Ultra Hams | Portland based group focused on local public service events | Portland, OR | LINK |
| Amatuer Radio Group of Oregon – ARGO | Local group that teaches classes and administers exams | Newberg, OR | LINK |
| Peak Radio Association – W7PRA | Local repeater group with repeaters in multiple states | Corvallis, OR | LINK |
| University of Oregon Ducks on the Air – N7DUX | College amatuer radio club at UofO | Eugene, OR | LINK |
| Amateur Radio and Relay League – ARRL | National association for amateur radio in the US | Newington, CT | LINK |
Local Ham Radio Events
| Name | Description | Link |
| SEAPAC Convention | Held in Seaside OR in June | LINK |
| N7CFO Calendar | Links and information for PNW hamfests and swapmeets. | LINK |
| ARRL Events Calendar | Events listed at the ARRL for any area of the US. | LINK |
Videos
| Name | Description | Link |
| ModernHam Youtube | Ham videos with a budget in mind | LINK |
| Ham Radio Crash Course | Very popular youtube channel with wide range of topics | LINK |
| Ham Radio 2.0 | Lots of product reviews and how-tos | LINK |
| David Casler KE0OG | Q&A’s and license study materials | LINK |
| K8MRD | Channel with large focus on portable operations and POTA | LINK |
| KB9VBR Antennas | Channel for beginners about all radio topics | LINK |
| Ham Nation | Popular channel, panel style show | LINK |
| DXCommander | Channel for antenna building, home of DXCommander antenna | LINK |
| Amateur Radio Roundtable | Hosted by W5KUB, panel style videos | LINK |
| HamRadioConcepts | Popular channel with product reviews and how to’s | LINK |
SWL/Receiving
| Name | Description | Link |
| Dave N9EWO’s Radio Receiver Page | Reviews of SW Receivers | LINK |
| Hamuniverse – Shortwave | Resources for SW and scanners | LINK |
| websdr.org | Online worldwide SDRs available | LINK |
| kiwisdr.org | More worldwide online SDRs available | LINK |
| ReceiverBook | Even more worldwide online SDRs available | LINK |
| OpenWebRx | Software project for SDR hosting | LINK |
Radio Forums
| Name | Description | Link |
| AmatuerRadio Subreddit | Forum/subreddit from Reddit | LINK |
| QRZ Forums | Forums from QRZ | LINK |
| eHam Forums | Forums from eHam | LINK |
Electronics & Circuits
| Name | Description | Link |
| PartSim | Online electronic citcuit simulator | LINK |
| M0UKD’s Calculators | Online calculators for circuits and radio | LINK |
| Digi-Key Calculators | Calculators for circuits | LINK |
| Starting Electronics | Tutorials for circuits and electronics. For beginners. | LINK |
Vintage Radios
| Name | Description | Link |
| Northwest Vintage Radio Society | Club located in Oregon City OR, specializing in vintage radios. | LINK |
| AntiqueRadio.com | Lots of resources and links for antique radios | LINK |
| Phil’s Old Radios | Guides and articles for old radios and restoration. | LINK |
| Radio Attic | Antique radio for sale page and price guides | LINK |
Radio Manufacturers
| Name | Description | Link |
| ICOM | HF, VHF & UHF + digital transceivers | LINK |
| Yaesu | HF, VHF & UHF + digital transceivers | LINK |
| Kenwood | HF, VHF & UHF transceivers | LINK |
| Flex Radio | Premium SDR based HF transceivers | |
| Radioddity / Baofeng | Budget VHF & UHF transceivers | LINK |
Amatuer Radio Kits
| Name | Description | Link |
| QRP Labs | QRP Labs, home of the QCX and QDX radios | LINK |
| QRPme | Massive website with kits, parts and schematics | LINK |
| 4 State QRP Group | Very popular ham kit website | LINK |
| HF Signals | Home of the very popular uBITX Radio | LINK |
VHF/UHF Antenna Building
| Name | Description | Link |
| 2 Meter TwinLead J-Pole | Great beginner antenna with some gain | LINK |
| 2 Meter Copper Pipe J-Pole | A J-Pole build from hardware store materials | LINK |
| Portable 2M Yagi | A portable yagi with great gain with common parts | LINK |
| Metal 2M Yagi | A detailed plan for a sturdy 7 element yagi | LINK |
| 6M Hula Hoop | Very inexpensive antenna for the magic band | LINK |
| 6M Moxon | Another inexpensive 6m antenna | LINK |
| EZNEZ Antenna Software | Free software to model antennas | LINK |
| N4UJW Antenna Links | Links for DIY antennas for every band | LINK |
HF Antenna Building
| Name | Description | Link |
| HF Dipole | Very simple antenna, for any band | LINK |
| End Fed Antenna | Antenna with matching box, multi-banded | LINK |
| HF Vertical Dipole | A dipole in a vertical configuration | LINK |
| Beverage Antenna | Recieve only antenna for the low bands | LINK |
Foxhunting
| Name | Description | Link |
| Byonics | Popular foxhunting transmitters | LINK |
| Hackaday – FoxHunting Article | Foxhunting article from Hackaday using an SDR | LINK |
| W5NOR – Build A Tape Measure Yagi | Article for building a tape measure yagi | LINK |
Satellites
| Name | Description | Link |
| amsat.org | The Radio Amatuer Satellite Corperation is the main org for amateur radio satellites | LINK |
| N2YO.com | Tracking for all satellites and orbits | LINK |
| ARISS – Amateur Radio on the International Space Station | Information on the amateur radio operations from the ISS | LINK |
| work-sat.com | Lots of articles, how tos and resources for first time satellite operations | LINK |
Data Communications
| Name | Description | Link |
| Hamwan | Data network connecting Seattle and Portland | LINK |
| HamShackHotline | VOIP for hams | LINK |
| Winlink | Popular emergency email service over RF | LINK |
| APRS.fi | Automatic Packet Reporting System maps and messages | LINK |
Digital Voice Modes
| Name | Description | Link |
| YSF/Wires-X (Yaesu) | Info on System Fusion | LINK |
| D-Star (ICOM) | Info on D-Star | LINK |
| DMR – Digital Mobile Radio | Popular VHF/UHF digital mode | LINK |
| PI-Star | Raspberry Pi software for using all digital voice modes | LINK |
Reverse Beacon, RX Reports
| Name | Description | Link |
| reversebeacon.net | Shows DX spots and reports if your CW transmissions were heard | LINK |
| pskreporter | Shows FT8 and digital spots | LINK |
| DXMaps | Shows spots for all modes | LINK |
| CQSSTV | Shows SSTV images received | LINK |
| WSPRNET | Shows WSPR spots | LINK |
CW/Morse Code
| Name | Description | Link |
| CWOps/CWAcademy | Large club of CW operators, classes and resources available | LINK |
| Long Island CW Club – LICW | Club dedicated to classes for all skill levels. | LINK |
| Straight Key Century Club – SKCC | Club focused on operations with straight keys, bugs and cooties. | LINK |
| CWMorse | US built CW keys | LINK |
| VBand Practice | CW sending trainer | LINK |
| Learn CW Online – LCWO | Koch training with MP3 downloads and forums | LINK |
| W1TP.com | Very extensive CW and telegraph/wireless History | LINK |
| Morse Code Ninja | Lots of practice files for all skill levels | LINK |
| ARRL Practice Files | Downloadable MP3 files from ARRL qualifying runs | LINK |
Portable/Mobile Radio
| Name | Description | Link |
| K0BG.com | Many helpful articles on mobile operations | LINK |
| POTA | Website of POTA – Parks on the Air | LINK |
| SOTA | Website of SOTA – Summits on the Air | LINK |
| IOTA | Website of IOTA – Islands on the Air | LINK |
Contesting
| Name | Description | Link |
| WA7BNM Contest Calendar | Most contests and dates are listed here | LINK |
| NG3K’s Contesting Page | Helpful links and resources for contests | LINK |
| RSGB’s guide on contesting | Basic info on contests | LINK |
| ARRL’s guide on contesting | Basic info and resources on contests | LINK |
Nets & Traffic Handling
| Name | Description | Link |
| ARRL NTS | ARRL program to handle traffic during emergencies | LINK |
| Radio Relay International | Group whose mission is to modernize and enhance NTS | LINK |
| WS1SM – Introduction to Radiograms | Basic info on radiograms and traffic | LINK |
Emergency Communications
| Name | Description | Link |
| Skywarn | NWS volunteer program for reporting severe weather | LINK |
| ARES | ARRL program for emergency communications and training | LINK |
| Military AuxiIiary Radio System – MARS | Ham radio communications for the US military | LINK LINK |
| | |
Logging Resources
| Name | Description | Link |
| CQRLog | Linux Alternative logger | LINK |
| N1MM | Popular Contest logging software – Free | LINK |
| N3FJP ACLog | Popular general use logging software – 60$ | LINK |
| HamRadioDeluxe | Popular logging software – 100$ | LINK |
| HAMRS | Popular logging software for POTA – Free | LINK |
QSL Cards
| Name | Description | Link |
| canva.com | Design your own QSL cards with custom photos and fonts | LINK |
| RadioQTH QSL Creator | Easy template to create your own card | LINK |
| WVDXC – 7th Area QSL Bureau | For incoming bureau QSL cards | LINK |
| ARRL – Outgoing QSL Service | Send DX cards cheaply using the outgoing bureau | LINK |
| KB3IH.com QSL cards | Very popular service for QSL design and printing | LINK |
| ux5uoqsl.com | Highly rated QSL design and print service from Ukraine | LINK |
| Chester Press Inc | QSL designs and printing, located in KS. | LINK |
Ham Radio Sales
| Name | Description | Link |
| ARRL Store | Storefront for the ARRL. Specializing in books and supplies. | LINK |
| DXengineering.com | Very popular website for amateur radio equipment | LINK |
| eham.net | Product reviews from other hams | LINK |
| Gigaparts.com | Website for new computer and amateur radio equipment | LINK |
| Ham Radio Outlet | Family owned business selling amateur radio supplies. | LINK |
| QRZ.com Classifieds | Large forum for buying and selling equipment. | LINK |
| R&L Electronics | Ohio based company with a large catalog. | LINK |
| eBay.com | Very common place where used equipment is sold. | LINK |
Misc
| Name | Description | Link |
| QSL.net | Free web hosting service for amatuer radio operators. | LINK |
| Ham Hijinks | Satirical articles for the average radio user, just for fun | LINK |
| AC6V | MASSIVE trove of internet links for every topic | LINK |
If any of these links are broken or have any suggestions, please email webmaster@otvarc.org
