View Full Version : Had a good DX night
W5BRM
10-08-2014, 03:29 AM
Tonights DX:
Cuba, Canada, Brazil, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, England, Ireland, Romania and Australia! All JT65/9. Romania and Netherlands already confirmed LOTW. Havent looked at eQSL yet though.
Had a good night! Don't think I've run so many counties in one night before....of course I've only been doing this for a few weeks...lol. Sorry, just had to brag a bit!
I'm still seeing a few England stations in there even though its daylight there. Conditions are long tonight. Haven't seen but the one Australian station though and he was actually on Tasmania. I always thought Tas was it's own country but i guess not.
I have this vertical dipole but it seems I can only run NE to SW . I thought vertical dipoles were supposed to be omnidirectional. Oh well. I'll have to goof around with it tomorrow. I might rehang it. Not real happy with the way I strung it up.
Oh well. Im happy anyway, YAY!
Good on you!
I need to investigate that mode once I get the shack into its winter configuration. That is, either the Drakes or Ten Tecs back out in the two main operating positions.
K7SGJ
10-08-2014, 10:27 AM
Tonights DX:
Cuba, Canada, Brazil, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, England, Ireland, Romania and Australia! All JT65/9. Romania and Netherlands already confirmed LOTW. Havent looked at eQSL yet though.
Had a good night! Don't think I've run so many counties in one night before....of course I've only been doing this for a few weeks...lol. Sorry, just had to brag a bit!
I'm still seeing a few England stations in there even though its daylight there. Conditions are long tonight. Haven't seen but the one Australian station though and he was actually on Tasmania. I always thought Tas was it's own country but i guess not.
I have this vertical dipole but it seems I can only run NE to SW . I thought vertical dipoles were supposed to be omnidirectional. Oh well. I'll have to goof around with it tomorrow. I might rehang it. Not real happy with the way I strung it up.
Oh well. Im happy anyway, YAY!
When you're hot, you're hot.
By the way, try rotating your radio a little and see if that helps. :stirpot:
W5BRM
10-08-2014, 06:11 PM
Good on you!
I need to investigate that mode once I get the shack into its winter configuration. That is, either the Drakes or Ten Tecs back out in the two main operating positions.
It's a fun mode. It's NOT a ragchew mode though. Very limited messaging. 13 characters per msg. Each QSO participant has 3 exchanges. Each full exchange is about 6 minutes. Each msg is about 50 seconds xmit and 10 seconds rcv time in which you have to set up your response. Most responses are set up as macro's but now and again, you see a few free form exchanges.
The idea behind it is to use as little power as possible and see how weak of a signal you can send and copy. Unfortunately, a lot of the user's have the CB mentality of running everything wide open. Wide loud overdiven signal, too much power etc. Most qso's can be done with about 5w or less.. I had a QSO with a guy running 2w. I forget what his qth was. I'll look later for it. DX may take up to 15w if everything is set up properly and you have the right antenna setup. The weakest I have successfully copied is a full 6 minute qso at -22dbm below my local noise floor. But seeing as my local noise sits at about s6, well thats not really all that low. I don't know what it would have been if I had only flat to s2. I am using a hamstick dipole hung vertical from my front yard tree at 30ft.
wa6mhz
10-08-2014, 06:14 PM
I was tickled cuz I worked the T30D on RTTY last night for a New Country on Digital ONLY 4 more to go till I qualify for the LOTW DXCC on Digital!
W5BRM
10-08-2014, 06:21 PM
I was tickled cuz I worked the T30D on RTTY last night for a New Country on Digital ONLY 4 more to go till I qualify for the LOTW DXCC on Digital!
Wow Best of luck with that!
W5BRM
10-09-2014, 01:38 AM
Bands suck tonight. Think I'm gonna call it a night. Lot of garbage on the band and quite a few misadjusted transmitters making a lot of racket and interference. I DID get 1 italy contact though so it wasn't a total wash
https://forums.hamisland.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=13198&stc=1&d=1412836585
It was a bit rough last night, but i did get to bag the T30 and XR2T on Damas island (SA-086) on 15, and Nauru for a new band country on 12 meters. But thats it! The DX gods were smiling in 2-land a bit more, it seems. ;)
W5BRM
10-12-2014, 09:34 AM
Didn't get any new DX last night. ALMOST got Northern Ireland but gray line faded before we could finish the QSO. I got W1AW/4 on 40m JT65 but don't know which state he was in. I got W1AW/6 a few days ago on 40m JT65 as well.
I saw all kinds of EU last night but couldn't get through to any of them. Once again, a lot of overdriven and overmodulated signals wiping me out.
I DID have a JT9 contact with WB7QMR that was a true weak signal contact. I sent him -22 and he sent me -24 which is the weakest I've ever decoded for a full contact. I don't know what power I was running but it wasn't much.
I REALLY need to get an external PWR/SWR meter.
I got a few ZL's and a VK for the OC contest on cw. As well as 5W1SA and Hawaii...but just 5 contacts in 2 days. Conditions have been tough on this end lately, im hearing stuff but they arent hearing me (understandable :lol:). I was calling V85TL on 40 for a while last night, but he was to far off in the noise.
The /4 you worked was VA. I have been trying to collect at least one W1AW from every state and territory, its a nice way to bolster the state/band count. I still need to get W1AW/KH0, but the pileups are too big for my piddly ass. I did get C21GC on 12 meters the other day, however. And an all time new one with TY1AA...one of the "Terrible T's"...last month some time. Im always stoked to get an all time new one as i only use 100w and a wire. I like that kind of thrill.
Im always looking! :)
W5BRM
10-12-2014, 05:25 PM
heheh I found out that DXKeeper can download all my eQSL cards...
Just a sample of stuff I've received
1321113212132131321413215
The Austrian one is a SWL contact. No QSO, just a SWL card
I'm always surprised when I get one of those SWL reports via eQSL. I keep forgetting SWLs exist anymore.
W5BRM
10-12-2014, 05:47 PM
And some Paper QSL's as well
13216
13217
13218
And some Paper QSL's as well.
I get paper QSLs through the incoming bureau and direct. I know they still exist.
W5BRM
10-12-2014, 06:34 PM
I belong to ARRL but have never recieved a buro qsl card. I got no idea how it works. I direct mail stuff to US hams and haven't mailed anything to DX yet. That reminds me, my membership is up nxt month. Hope I get back to work so I can renew it!
Im not a member of the ARRL, but i am signed on at the buro. Just go here... http://www.njdxa.org/faq/faq-qsl-buro.php
All you will need to do is send them a stack of small manilla envelopes with your address labels affixed, and a check for however much postage you want to keep on file (start with $20, maybe?) and let them know how often you want them to send to you. I have every three months set up. It might be different for the second call district, but if you follow that linky, it should get you a lot more cards.
W5BRM
10-14-2014, 05:14 AM
Australia! Again! WOOHOO!!!...lol Only 2 contacts tonight.
http://i.imgur.com/oTqqu2i.jpg (http://imgur.com/oTqqu2i)
N2ADV
10-14-2014, 07:56 PM
I like the JT modes :)
I am on both 20 and 30 meters as we speak.
My usual arrangement (from yesterday evening). The third rig, a TS480, was powered down. Just running the K3 and FT817 last night.
W5BRM
10-16-2014, 01:50 AM
Kinda quiet tonight. Got Chile, Belgium, Cuba and several states. Looked up my WAS. I need 15 states to complete WAS. Also my logging is ALMOST entirely automated now...lol Getting a bit lazy.... Figured out how to automatically log to HRDLog, eQSL and Clublog. Still hv to enter a password to batch upload to LOTW. If I put stuff on QRZ, I need to manually add my .adif file. Can't do it automatically as I don't give any $$$ there...lol
kb2vxa
10-16-2014, 06:53 AM
"If I put stuff on QRZ" what doesn't sink in the swamp gets eaten by the geeters.
That E card from YO2LDU got me thinking of our boy Travis KB3LAZ, if you check out where he's located you'll understand why. Anyway, I'm waiting to see how you make out on 20...........
< snip >
I got W1AW/4 on 40m JT65 but don't know which state he was in.
< snip > That would have been W1AW/4 in Virginia. This week, W1AW/4 is in Alabama.
W5BRM
10-16-2014, 07:32 AM
"If I put stuff on QRZ" what doesn't sink in the swamp gets eaten by the geeters.
That E card from YO2LDU got me thinking of our boy Travis KB3LAZ, if you check out where he's located you'll understand why. Anyway, I'm waiting to see how you make out on 20...........
I didn't get the chance to do anything yesterday. The wife decided she wanted the garage cleaned out so I got half of that done and gonna finish the other half today. If theres still sunlight left, I might rehang it and see what I can do.
K7SGJ
10-16-2014, 10:23 AM
I didn't get the chance to do anything yesterday. The wife decided she wanted the garage cleaned out so I got half of that done and gonna finish the other half today. If theres still sunlight left, I might rehang it and see what I can do.
Rehang what? The wife or the antenna?
W5BRM
10-16-2014, 10:45 AM
ummmm lemme think.... :lol:
Band conditions on 20m must have been pretty good last night. Go to PSK Reporter (http://pskreporter.info/pskmap.html) and do a look-up of what my station saw overnight, even with my crappy antenna.
K7SGJ
10-16-2014, 11:17 AM
Band conditions on 20m must have been pretty good last night. Go to PSK Reporter (http://pskreporter.info/pskmap.html) and do a look-up of what my station saw overnight, even with my crappy antenna.
What rig are you using?
What rig are you using?
Icom IC-736 connected to a G5RV Jr.
K7SGJ
10-16-2014, 11:22 AM
Icom IC-736 connected to a G5RV Jr.
I usually run about 25-30 watts out, how bout you?
I usually run about 25-30 watts out, how bout you?
On PSK-31? Yeah, about that. I might crank it up a bit for a rare DX like the guy on Reunion Island, though. I checked the time I spotted that one and it's likely that it was a bit of grayline propagation.
W5BRM
10-17-2014, 11:41 AM
Almost got 20m ant tuned. Am at 1.1 at 14.600. gotta shorten an inch or so. looks like its almost 200khz wide 2.0 to 2.0 swr. Me likey!
W5BRM
10-17-2014, 12:24 PM
I just dont get it. At 16ft 7inches, I get 1.1 at 14.6 with r48 and x2. cant get much more perfect then that. I lenghten it 2 inches and I get no match ANYWHERE. 14.07 which is where im trying to tune it to is 3.5 and x/r are all screwed up. 14.300 is 3.0 r28 and x39 lowest swr i get is 2.9 at 14.5mhz. wtf is going on here?
You're probably getting an interaction between the two antennas.
W5BRM
10-17-2014, 12:59 PM
I dunno. 40m is 1.1 at 7.095 which is right where its been since i put it up. I just lengthened the 20m to 16f 9i and still no resonance anywhere
W5BRM
10-17-2014, 02:00 PM
Took the 40m elements off. No change. CHecked legs lengths to doublecheck I didnt goof. Both legs 16ft8inch (i adjusted them earlier) i get 3.0swr across the whole 20m band. checked to make sure the legs weren't twisted. checked my coax. no breaks. checked connection point to the dipole support. All connected solid/
I took the 20m dipole off, put on the 40m hamsticks. All matched at 7.095 swr 1.2 r47 x02 which is just about perfect. Rules out coax issue i think. rules out the dipole connection point.
W5BRM
10-18-2014, 02:13 PM
Well I built a 12m inverted V dipole. Put at 30ft. Perfect match! cut it right down to the 1/10th inch and no further tuning needed. gonna be on 12m the rest of today if anyones around on jt65/9
12m is a tough one for my tuner. But i also tend to think my tuner is getting long in the tooth. Shes old and tired. Im starting to see spurious SWR spikes while on 15 cw after rolling into a nice 1:1 match. 12m has always been a challenge, even though i get moments of peace that allow me a contact or two. 80m is simply a rough go because i dont have the hardware in the air that can cover it the way it needs to be. 160m? I have one contact on 160 in 18 years. That was during the WW 160m contest, and i picked the loudest guy on the band who was next door in UT. You should have seen my face when he came back to me though, i wasnt expecting that! :lol:
It looks like we will be moving to Maine in several months, but will be renting for the first year or two so it may be tough getting on the air in any major way. But we plan to build up there after that...then its on! I would be happy to try digital with you then because it just looks kinda fun.
W5BRM
10-18-2014, 06:20 PM
If you got a tree, just dipole it like I do. I don't have any plans on a permanent antenna here anyway as we rent. I plan on just doing the monoband dipole swap out. After you buy a place, make it look like Pat MHZ'z place...lol.
I just worked a good OLD OLD friend of mine from NY on 12m ssb. KB2NBY Kenny. Havent talked to him on radio in 10+ years. Caught him on 12 and we just had a great 20 minute qso! We got out tickets together back in '91. good times!
Finally got China! 10m PSK-31
BG6IMK: China: Jian She Zhang -- BG6IMK@126.COM -- B class -- QSL: LEM
Rm.13 Unit.7.NO.62 Xin Hua Dong Street; KaiFeng City HeNan Province 475000; China
OM74es 34.776521, 114.381661 [src: user] -- 10802.1 km, 320° from DM12lr
W5BRM
10-18-2014, 07:33 PM
Congratulations!!
Congratulations!!
Thanks. Been looking for China for years now. I guess there aren't that many hams there.
K7SGJ
10-18-2014, 08:51 PM
Thanks. Been looking for China for years now. I guess there aren't that many hams there.
You should have asked. It's due South of Mongolia, North of Thailand, South West of Korea, and North East of India. That oughta get you in the neighborhood.
You should have asked. It's due South of Mongolia, North of Thailand, South West of Korea, and North East of India. That oughta get you in the neighborhood.
True story...
I told someone that I lived near St. Louis and they said, "Where's that?" to which I replied, "Just west of East St. Louis!"
When people ask me where Lemon Grove is, I tell them "it abuts the unfashionable eastern city limits of San Diego."
W5BRM
10-19-2014, 08:19 AM
Got a 17m dipole up and running. took the 20m dipole I couldnt get to match and cut it down to to 155 inches. 1st cut at 18.118 center freq came out to 1.4 swr. 1.2 at 18.168. 1.6 at 18.068. Its a little bit short but acceptable. Next comes a 15m dipole then I'm gonna remake the 20m dipole and see if I can get that one right. Hope I can get it right. If i can't get THAT one to work right then it will have to be something in my yard its interacting with. Time will tell
Look up ZS6BKW and his redesign of the G5RV. 40, 20, 17, 12 and 10M with an acceptable match on each band. Put two up at quadrature and have fun.
kb2vxa
10-19-2014, 10:42 PM
A 40M dipole resonates on 15M, I never tried a loaded dipole but you might try it since you have one.
W5BRM
10-20-2014, 08:54 PM
A 40M dipole resonates on 15M, I never tried a loaded dipole but you might try it since you have one..
Couldn't get it to work on 15 either. that was one of the 1st things I tried when I got it up in the air
K7SGJ
10-20-2014, 09:52 PM
.
Couldn't get it to work on 15 either. that was one of the 1st things I tried when I got it up in the air
Just be grateful, many of the old hams can't get it up at all.
K7SGJ
10-20-2014, 10:36 PM
13257
Looking Good
....Dong street...... :bbh:
K7SGJ
10-21-2014, 07:18 AM
....Dong street...... :bbh:
Where all the Dicks hang out?
Where all the Dicks hang out?
That's QRDead.
....Dong street...... :bbh:
Where do all the ham ops meet?
Dong Street, Dong Street.
Where emissions are elite.
Dong Street, Dong Street.
Oh, baby.
Meet me, on Dong Street,
Oh, yeah,
Hurry on down.
Come on now,
Meet me on Dong Street,
The stiffest street in town.
kb2vxa
10-22-2014, 07:25 AM
Oh no, looks like I have some competition in the twisted lyrics department. (;->)
W5BRM
10-22-2014, 01:01 PM
South Africa! ZS6WN on 12m!
13265
Oh no, looks like I have some competition in the twisted lyrics department. (;->)
I've been doing it for years; that said, you and I may be the only people here who are old enough to remember that song.
Where do all the ham ops meet?
Dong Street, Dong Street.
Where emissions are elite.
Dong Street, Dong Street.
Oh, baby.
Meet me, on Dong Street,
Oh, yeah,
Hurry on down.
Come on now,
Meet me on Dong Street,
The stiffest street in town.
Winding your way down Dong street
Light on your head and erect on your feet...
K7SGJ
10-22-2014, 05:20 PM
I've been doing it for years; that said, you and I may be the only people here who are old enough to remember that song.
Don't hold your breath.
Got a 17m dipole up and running. took the 20m dipole I couldnt get to match and cut it down to to 155 inches. 1st cut at 18.118 center freq came out to 1.4 swr. 1.2 at 18.168. 1.6 at 18.068. Its a little bit short but acceptable. Next comes a 15m dipole then I'm gonna remake the 20m dipole and see if I can get that one right. Hope I can get it right. If i can't get THAT one to work right then it will have to be something in my yard its interacting with. Time will tell
That 17 meter antenna is working for you, you saved me the trouble of posting my "Brag" screen shot. I picked up a couple of good ones today:
13267
13272
I think this get 3/4 point for QSO; QSB!
.
.
South Africa! ZS6WN on 12m!
13265I have GOT to work that guy!
W5BRM
10-23-2014, 08:03 AM
I have GOT to work that guy!
I see him occasionally on 12 and 17m on jt65.
W5BRM
10-23-2014, 03:15 PM
TX7G Marquesas Islands DXPedition!!!! SSB 12m 24.960!! 100w! OMFG!! Whn I get the card, Ill post it up!!
As to other stuff, Belgium, Scotland, Germany, Slovenia and France plus some US contacts. I like 12m! Also worked w100aw yesterday in CT
Happy Me!!!
TX7G Marquesas Islands DXPedition!!!! SSB 12m 24.960!! 100w! OMFG!! Whn I get the card, Ill post it up!!
As to other stuff, Belgium, Scotland, Germany, Slovenia and France plus some US contacts. I like 12m! Also worked w100aw yesterday in CT
Happy Me!!!They're uploading the logs once or twice a day.
Check http://tx7g.com/log -- once the upload date/time is after your QSO, you should be in there.
W5BRM
10-23-2014, 10:23 PM
Ok Thanks. My time in my logbook shows 10/23/2014 20:05. apparently its not uploaded yet.
W5BRM
10-24-2014, 07:00 PM
put up my 10m dipole and I get THIS as my 2nd contact... AFTER DARK no less
13280
And then I get a followup by This guy!
13281
WØTKX
10-24-2014, 07:54 PM
Now you're cookin' with gas. :agree:
Now you're cookin' with gas. :agree:
Has Soviet natural gas-powered transceiver? Ees gud, da, tovarisch?
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