W5AWW Amateur Radio Service[w5aww]
Packet Radio docsCrawford TX Packet Node

Crawford TX Packet Node

At a glance

Item Value
Location Crawford, TX · Grid EM11hn
Sysop W5AWW
Switch LinBPQ
Status Operational · access open to licensed amateurs
Node website ctxpn.w5aww.net
IP / AXIP peers See AXIP / 44net links
Personal APRS trackers (144.390) APRS stations — SSID map

Two VHF channels (do not mix them up)

Channel Role at this station Callsigns
145.030 MHz Packet node, BBS/chat access, optional node position beacon / digipeat (APRS-format on the packet port) W5AWW-7 (+ apps -10/-11/-12)
7.104 MHz HF packet access W5AWW-8
144.390 MHz Continental-style APRS trackers, Voice Alert, aprs.w5aww.net RF dashboard W5AWW-4 / -5 / -9

The node’s optional APRS-format beacon or digipeater runs on the same VHF packet frequency as the node (145.030). It is not a digipeater on the national 144.390 APRS channel and is not what the APRS dashboard is listening to for local mobiles/home trackers.

If you want… Use Not
Position / messaging on 144.390 W5AWW-4 / -5 / -9 — APRS stations Node or BBS SSIDs
Connect to BBS / chat / node W5AWW-7 (VHF 145.030) or W5AWW-8 (HF 7.104) Expecting a 144.390 map pin to mean “connect here”
Node identity / beacon on packet RF W5AWW-7 on 145.030 (when enabled) Confusing that with home tracker -4 on 144.390
Full SSID index APRS stations Guessing from SSID number alone

RF access ports

Port Frequency Modulation Callsign Role
VHF (Port 1) 145.030 MHz 1200 bps AFSK (2 m) W5AWW-7 Primary local access; mobile/portable LOS
HF (Port 2) 7.104 MHz (40 m) 300 bps AFSK W5AWW-8 Longer-haul when VHF is limited

Both RF ports use AX.25 via a KISS path into LinBPQ.

Applications

Service Callsign Alias Notes
BBS W5AWW-11 CTXBBS Message store-and-forward (FBB-style)
Chat W5AWW-12 CTXCHT Multi-user text chat
Node W5AWW-7 / W5AWW-8 — Connect here first, then jump to apps

How to connect (RF)

  1. Tune 145.030 MHz (1200 baud) or 7.104 MHz (300 baud).
  2. Connect to W5AWW-7 (VHF) or W5AWW-8 (HF).
  3. Once connected, useful commands include:
    • NODES — reachable neighbors
    • BBS — bulletin board
    • CHAT — multi-user text chat

Hardware (high level)

Piece Detail
Transceiver Yaesu FTM-400 (dual band)
Modem / TNC Dire Wolf (software TNC) via DigiRig Mobile
Antenna Tram dual-band vertical, ~7 m height
Controller LinBPQ on local compute; RF + IP ports as configured

Internet / 44net attachment (MikroTik, WireGuard, isolated server LAN) is documented under Network design—not required for RF users.

Telnet / IP application access

Remote IP access for authorized users may be available on configured TCP ports (for example secure Telnet / FBB-style ports on the LinBPQ host). Treat these as sysop-controlled; prefer RF or coordinated AXIP unless you have been given access.

Node beacon & digipeater on 145.030

LinBPQ can run an APRSDIGI-style function on the VHF packet port. That is optional infrastructure for the packet channel, not a second home tracker.

Item Detail
RF channel 145.030 MHz (same as the VHF node) — not 144.390
Identity W5AWW-7 (same call as the node — one RF face for this box on packet)
What it may do Position / status beacon for the node (EM11hn, map comment) and/or digipeat APRS-format UI frames heard on 145.030
What it does not do Serve as the digipeater or IGate for normal North America APRS traffic on 144.390
Policy Ops-configurable — may be beacon-only, digi limited (e.g. short WIDE/TRACE), or largely receive-oriented
Locator flavor EM11hn · Crawford TX
Personal trackers Still -4 / -5 / -9 on 144.390 — APRS stations
RF dashboard for 144.390 aprs.w5aww.net
Node website ctxpn.w5aww.net

Full bpq/Dire Wolf config stays off the public site (credentials, internal ports). This page is for what RF users need.