About W3ACH
The Cumberland Valley Amateur Radio Club has been active in Franklin County since 1956. The club runs the 147.120 repeater on Clarks Knob, supports county emergency communications, and operates from Field Day sites, parks and special events around the valley.
First place — ARRL 2026 Year of the Club website contest
Judged first out of more than eighty club websites nationwide. Presented at the ARRL National Convention in Huntsville, August 2026.
70
Years on the air
42
Active members
17
Nets logged in 2026
120
Net check-ins this year
About the club
W3ACH is the club callsign of the Cumberland Valley Amateur Radio Club. There are about 42 active members across Franklin County and the surrounding area, ranging from operators licensed for decades to people who passed the Technician exam this year.
The club meets on the third Thursday of each month at the Franklin County Emergency Operations Center and runs a net every Sunday evening on the 147.120 repeater. Members maintain the repeater, operate Field Day and special event stations, and help newer operators get equipment and antennas working.
Amateur radio keeps working when commercial networks do not, and the club supports Franklin County emergency services on that basis. Members also provide communications for community events through the year.
Licensed operators are welcome on the repeater and on the Sunday net. If you are not licensed yet, come to a meeting or get in touch.
70 years in the Cumberland Valley
The club affiliated with the American Radio Relay League on March 9, 1956. The hobby changed several times over the decades that followed - FM and repeaters, packet radio, satellites, digital modes, software-defined radios - and what the club does changed with it.
Records from the club's earlier years are thin. If you have photographs, logs, newsletters, QSL cards or meeting minutes from past decades, we would like to scan them and add them to this page and the photo album below.
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1956 Founding
ARRL affiliation
March 9, 1956
The Cumberland Valley Amateur Radio Club affiliated with the American Radio Relay League on March 9, 1956. That date is still listed on the League's affiliated club roster, and the club has operated in the Chambersburg area since.
Source: ARRL affiliated club record -
2023 Hamfest
Hamfest designated the ARRL Pennsylvania State Convention
July 29, 2023
The club's annual hamfest at the Cumberland Valley Antique Engine & Machinery Association grounds in Chambersburg was designated the ARRL Pennsylvania State Convention for 2023, with tailgating, forums and license exams.
Source: ARRL convention listing -
2025 Field Day
Field Day at the Steam Show grounds
June 28-29, 2025
ARRL Field Day ran from the Cumberland Valley Steam Show grounds near St. Thomas, with four stations operating on different bands across the 24 hours. A thunderstorm downburst temporarily halted operations. State Representative Chad Reichard visited the site and was shown how the stations worked.
Source: Franklin County Free Press -
2025 Special Event
K3A special event station
November 15-16, 2025
The club operated special event station K3A from Fort Loudoun during the Fort Loudoun Siege event, with certificates available to stations that made contact.
Source: K3A event site -
2026 National Honor
First place in the ARRL website contest
August 21-23, 2026
w3ach.com placed first in the ARRL Year of the Club website contest, judged from more than eighty club websites nationwide. The award was presented at the ARRL National Convention at the Huntsville Hamfest. Sierra Foothills ARC (W6EK) placed second and Ventura County ARC (K6MEP) third.
Source: ARRL news release
Club photo album
Field Day, special event stations, antenna work and club activities. Click a photo to open it full size.
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What the club does
Sunday night net
Every Sunday at 7:30 PM on the 147.120 repeater. Club announcements and a roll call. Visitors and non-members are welcome to check in.
Clarks Knob repeater
147.120 MHz, +600 kHz offset, 100.0 Hz tone. The site sits about nine miles northwest of Chambersburg and covers Franklin County, parts of Fulton County, the Hagerstown area and into West Virginia. Open to any licensed amateur, 24 hours a day.
Emergency communications
Amateur radio works independently of commercial networks. Club members train and operate with Franklin County emergency services so the county has a communications path that does not depend on that infrastructure.
Field Day and special events
Summer Field Day in June, Winter Field Day in January, and special event stations such as K3A at Fort Loudoun.
Community service
Communications support for the Buck Ridge Burn, and helping in the kitchen at the Cumberland Valley Antique Engine & Machinery Association's Spring Fling and Steam, Gas & Tractor Show.
2026 officers
Officers are elected by the membership and serve as volunteers. Any of them can answer questions about membership, the repeater or getting licensed.
KC7MRY
John Stein
Club President
N3LJP
Bill Gray
Vice President · Net Control Administrator
KC3WHF
Matt Sheaffer
Treasurer
KC3FUN
David Arnold
Public Relations / PIO
N3LTQ
Milt Engle
Trustee / Technical
KC3VPB
Caleb Jacobs
Youth Director / Webmaster
Visit a meeting
The club meets the third Thursday of every month at 7:00 PM at the Franklin County Emergency Operations Center, 390 New York Ave in Chambersburg. Meetings are open to the public and you do not need a license to attend.
Monthly meeting
Third Thursday
7:00 PM Eastern
Weekly net
Sundays 7:30 PM
147.120 MHz, PL 100.0
CVARC, PO Box 121
Chambersburg, PA 17201
cvarcw3ach@gmail.com