Author Archives: Bob K0NR

Back on 10 Meter FM

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I have been hearing everyone rave about the improving conditions on the HF bands, especially some great propagation on 10 Meters. Then I came across this posting by G4VXE: The Return of 10M FM. Ah, yes, I do recall having a blast running FM on 29 MHz years ago!

This triggered the thought that the FT-8900 transceiver in my car has 10 Meters in it. Lately, I have been using this quad-band FM rig (10M, 6M, 2M & 70 cm) like a dualband 2M/70cm rig. I almost forgot that it had the other two bands. I plopped a 10 Meter Larsen antenna on the SUV roof and reconfigured the coaxial cables and diplexers to get the right RF to the antenna. Suddenly, I was back on 29.6 MHz FM calling CQ. K8LF (Jerome, mobile in Virginia) came back to my call and we had a nice little QSO.

10M FM is a little bit counter intuitive (some people would say “makes no friggin’ sense at all!”). Here we have a high frequency band which can introduce fading and phase distortion (that destroys FM signals) being combined with our most inefficient modulation format (FM). Why on earth would anyone mess around with this combination?

I think FM is fun on 10 Meters for the same reason it is fun on VHF and UHF. You can be tooling down the highway with no radio noise at all and if the band is open, a signal pops through the squelch. Forget all of the static and Donald Duckness of SSB communication. When the signal is strong, FM is loud and clear.

Its good to have 10 Meters back again!

73, Bob K0NR

Results: 2011 Colorado FM Sprint

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The logs have been sent in, the scores tabulated and awards issued for the 2nd running of the Colorado FM Sprint. See my previous post, announcing the contest. The competition was tough significant weak not too bad rather slim and the following awards have been issued:

Call sign Category Place
KDØLLG Single Operator 1st Place
KØJJW Single Operator 2nd Place
KØNR Rover 1st Place

Come on out and play next year!

73, Bob K0NR

Tech License Class – Final Call

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We have a few seats open for the Technician License Class. Pass this along to anyone interested in getting their ham radio license.   – Bob K0NR

Monument, Colorado
Saturday Oct 15 and Saturday Oct 22 (8 AM to 5 PM) 2011
Location: Tri-Lakes Monument Fire Station 1
Sponsored by the Tri-Lakes Monument Fire Radio Association

 The Technician license is your gateway to the world-wide excitement of Amateur Radio …

  • Earn your ham radio Technician class radio privileges
  • Pass your FCC amateur radio license exam right in class on the second day
  • Multiple-choice exam, No Morse Code Required
  • Live equipment demonstrations
  • Learn to operate on the ham bands, 10 Meters and higher
  • Learn to use the many VHF/UHF FM repeaters in Colorado
  • Find out how to participate in emergency communications

There is no cost for the class (donations accepted)
However, students must have the required study guide:
Gordon West Technician Class guide, 7th Edition $20.95
And pay the FCC Exam Fee: $15.00

Advance registration is required (no later than October 8th, earlier is better!)

To register for the class, contact: Bob Witte KØNR
Email: bob@k0nr.com  or Phone: 719 659-3727

For more information on amateur (ham) radio visit www.arrl.org or www.wedothat-radio.org   

2011 Fall TechFest

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Announcing the 2011 Fall TechFest

Sponsored by the 285 TechConnect Club

Saturday, Nov. 5, 2011: 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Check in: 8:00 – 8:45 a.m.

Schedule of Workshops
(order and topic may vary)

9:00 – 9:50 Amateur Digital TV – Dr. Glenn Adams, NØGNR
10:00 – 10:50 DX-pedition : Zimbabwe – Roger Krautkremer, KØYY
11:00 – 11:50 VHF Contesting – Bob Witte, KØNR
12:00 – 12:50 Lunch (on your own)
1:00 – 1:50 SDRs as Panadapters – Frank Ivan, KØFEI
2:00 – 2:50 Antenna Tuners – Larry Benko, WØQE

Registration
Space is limited! Please e-mail k0nnc@arrl.net to pre-register.
Cost $10.00 (cash only at the door).
Includes 2012 membership dues for 285 TechConnect Radio Club, NAØTC

Where
The Inter Canyon Fire Department Station #1.
The address is 7939 South Turkey Creek Road, Morrison, Colorado
For complete info, download the TechFest flyer from the NA0TC web site.

73, Bob K0NR

Great Time with the Colorado QSO Party

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I had a great time working the Colorado QSO Party ham radio contest on Saturday.  This is your typical state QSO party where the rules favor working Colorado stations with an emphasis on activating Colorado counties.

I operated from our cabin located in the somewhat rare Park County, using my new FT-950. I am still getting used to the radio as it has more buttons and knobs than any other rig I have owned. I can tell that I am learning the radio as I was able to take more advantage of the contesting features.

Recently, I picked up a Heil Pro Set headset with the HC-4 mic element. I noticed that the serious contesters gravitate towards using a headset, logging computer and foot switch. This sets you up for a very focused operating setup with your hands on the keyboard and your foot pushing the transmit button. I was very pleased with how this worked out. I used N1MM software for logging and the antenna was a trap dipole in the trees.

I operated exclusively on phone as I don’t consider my CW skills up to the task of an HF contest. Maybe someday I’ll give that a try. Most of the time was spent on 20 Meters which produced contacts across North America. 40M was great for working stations around Colorado and picking up different counties.

Here’s my score:

 Band    QSOs    Pts  Sec   Mul
      7   81     162   30    1
     14  197     388   34    0
     21    8      26    2    0
    144    2       4    1    0
    420    2       4    1    0
  Total  290     584   68    1
Score: 40,296

 

Thanks to the Pikes Peak Radio Amateur Association for sponsoring this event.

73, Bob K0NR

Visit to the TWiT Ham Shack

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I’ve been blogging here and there about the TWiT Network’s Ham Nation show. I kept thinking that one of these days, I should pop into the TWiT Brick House Studio in Petaluma, CA for a look. I often travel to Santa Rosa for business, flying into San Francisco International Airport and driving up Highway 101 right past Petaluma.

When I noticed the announcement about the TWiT ham radio open house that was on the same weekend that I would be in Santa Rosa, I thought: Coincidence? Maybe. Fate? Probably. So Spousal Unit K0JJW and I swung by TWiT Headquarters late on Saturday afternoon.

The TWiT Ham Radio Station
Bob Heil K9EID and Leo Laporte W6TWT posing in front of the ham radio gear

It was great to chat with Bob Heil K9EID, Leo W6TWT and George W5JDX for a few minutes. I met a number of other hams that included Mike WT6H and Randy K7AGE (sorry, I don’t have everyone’s name & call written down). You may know K7AGE by his extensive collection of ham radio videos on youtube…if not, check them out. George W5JDX has been on Ham Nation multiple times now and has his own set of videos on amateurlogic.tv.

The TWiT studio with some of the ham radio crew hanging out.

The radio guys were commenting about the high noise level on HF but I didn’t get a clear picture of the spectral content and what bands were affected. Things were actually pretty quiet by the time we arrived, but take a look at the video that K7AGE put together with footage from earlier in the day. It really shows the studio and the activity during the day.

The Ham Nation show is still finding its legs but gets better every week. It is clearly having a positive impact on amateur radio.

73, Bob K0NR

Announcing: Colorado FM Sprint

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The Colorado FM Sprint

Sponsored by:  The Colorado VHF Group (KØYB) and the Tri-Lakes Monument Fire Radio Association (WØTLM)
Direct any questions to k0yb@qsl.net

Rules and FAQ are posted on the KØYB web site.

Saturday – September 10, 2011

This contest is held concurrently with the ARRL September VHF QSO Party, with compatible rules and operating procedures. The purpose of this contest is to:

  • Promote the use of FM VHF/UHF simplex
  • Provide an opportunity for radio amateurs to test the limits of their stations using FM VHF/UHF and to experiment with ways to improve their stations
  • Practice deploying portable and mobile operation as a means of identifying effective locations for temporary relay stations
  • Provide a simple and enjoyable radio contest experience (“Have fun!”)

Time:

 Saturday, Sept 10, 2011; 1200 to 1700 Mountain Time (1800 to 2300 UTC)

Objective:

To work as many stations as possible using FM simplex on the 146 MHz, 222 MHz and 440 MHz bands in as many different VHF grids as possible.

Frequencies:

Operate on FM simplex frequencies consistent with the Colorado Council of Amateur Radio Clubs (CCARC) band plans

(Consistent with the ARRL Rules, 146.52 MHz is not allowed to be used in the contest.)

Suggested Frequencies:

2 Meters: 146.58, 146.55

222 MHz: 223.5 MHz

440 MHz: 446.0, 446.100 MHz

Do not operate on repeater frequencies or 146.52 MHz, the National Simplex Calling Frequency.

Remember to be a considerate operator and share the frequency with other operators.

Contest Exchange

To complete a contest QSO, you and the other station must copy each other’s callsign and 4-digit Grid Locator. You may optionally exchange Name and geographic location (city, landmark, etc).

Entry Categories:

The following entry categories are available for this contest, consistent with the entry categories for the ARRL September VHF QSO Party. All categories (excluding Single Operator Portable) operate within these power limits: (146 MHz–200 W PEP, 222 MHz 100 W PEP, 440 MHz 100 W PEP).

Single Operator – same as Single Operator Low Power in the ARRL rules

Single Operator Portable – power limit of 10 W PEP, operating from a fixed location using a portable power source, portable equipment and antennas

Rover – operates from 2 or more grid squares with 1 or 2 operators, same definition as Limited Rover in the ARRL rules. Rovers must sign “Rover” after their callsign.

Multioperator – operates with more than with operator from a fixed location

Scoring                     

QSO Points: Count one point for each 146 MHz QSO and two points for each 222 MHz and 440 MHz QSO.

Multiplier: The total number of different grid squares worked per band. Each grid counts as one multiplier on each band it is worked.

Final score: Multiply the total number of QSO points from all bands operated by the total number of multipliers for final score. 

Rovers only: The final score consists of the total number of QSO points from all bands times the sum of unique multipliers (grid squares) worked per band (regardless of which grid square they were made in) plus one additional multiplier for every grid square from which they successfully completed a contact.                         

Miscellaneous:

1.  Use only one call sign per entry per station, except family members who share a station.

2.  A rover station may use only one call sign.

3.  Soliciting contacts during the contest on repeaters, e-mail, telephone, etc. is not allowed.

4.  Final interpretation of these rules is the sole responsibility of the contest committee.

Awards:

Certificates will be issued to top scoring entrants in each category. Other certificates may be issued depending on the level of competition present in the contest. Results will be listed on the KØYB web site at http://www.qsl.net/k0yb

Log Entry:

1.  Log entries must be received by September 30, 2011.

2.  A log entry contains the following for each contact completed:  Date; Time (Universal Coordinated Time); Station Worked; Grid Locator

3.  A summary contains:  Your name, call, and address; entry category; grid locator; score calculation; and this statement:  “I have observed all rules of the contest and have operated my station in accordance with FCC rules.”

4.  Entrants are strongly encouraged to submit an electronic log in Cabrillo format, using commonly available logging programs (configured for ARRL September VHF QSO Party). Send electronic logs to k0yb@qsl.net, with Cabrillo file attached and subject line containing your call sign and the words “FM Sprint”.

5.  Paper logs may be sent to:  K0YB – Contest Logs, 21060 Capella Drive, Monument, CO 80132

Grid Locator Information:

Grids are 2° longitude x 1° latitude squares designated with 2-letters and 2-numbers, such as DM78. To determine which grid you are operating from, refer to this web page: http://www.k0nr.com/rwitte/vhf_grids.html or use a GPS receiver that displays the location in Maidenhead (vhf grid) format.

Here are some general guidelines that may help in case you work someone who does not know their grid square:

  • Greater Denver is in grid DM79
  • Boulder is split between grids DM79 and DN70, so check the location carefully.
  • Colorado Springs and Pueblo are in grid DM78
  • Fort Collins, Loveland and Longmont are in grid DN70.

 

Radio Fun on Mt Antero

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My favorite radio partner (and wife), Joyce K0JJW, and I climbed up Mt Antero for the Colorado 14er Event.  See my post announcing the event here.

We got up at O’Dark thirty on the morning of the event and drove the Jeep Wrangler up the 4WD road to Mt Antero. This road got us to within 1000 vertical feet and maybe a mile from the summit, making the climb a lot easier. But it still was climbing over rocks at 14,000 feet (read: no oxygen to breathe).  The weather was outstanding…blue sky all around and none of those nasty thunderclouds anywhere in sight. (It turns out that lightning on an exposed mountaintop is not a good thing.)

Here’s Joyce operating with a handheld transceiver.

 And here’s the view looking out to the west from the summit: 

We worked quite a few 14er stations, including the KBØSA crew on Pikes Peak and the Goathiker WGØAT on Handies Peak. All QSOs were made on 144 Mhz and 440 MHz FM using handheld transceivers. We were on the summit for almost 3 hours and then descended back down.

   73, Bob K0NR

Colorado 14er Event – Sunday!

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I am getting ready for the Colorado 14er Event tomorrow morning. Here’s the brief description from the www.14er.org web site:

Amateur Radio Fun in the Colorado Mountains
Sunday, August 7, 2011

Amateur Radio operators from around Colorado will be climbing many of Colorado’s 14,000-foot mountains to set up amateur radio stations in an effort to communicate with other radio amateurs across the state and around the world. Join in on the fun on the Sunday of the first full weekend in August and see how many of the mountaintop stations you can contact. The prime operating hours are from approximately 9 AM to noon local time (1500 to 1800 UTC), but activity may occur at other times during the day. Most mountaintop stations will be running low power handheld radios. Stations running high power need to keep in mind that they can interfere with stations they cannot hear.

Radio operators with 14er climbing experience who plan to climb a 14er should log their name and intended peak at the HAM 14er Yahoo group.

Joyce K0JJW and I will be heading up Mount Antero, taking the Jeep as far as we can and then hiking the rest of the way. It should be fun!

There will be a crew of Boy Scouts on Pikes Peak, using club call sign KB0SA, so look for them.

You don’t have to be on a mountaintop to play in this event. Here are a few options:

  • See who you can work from home on 2 Meter FM and 70 cm Meter FM. The frequencies are listed on 14er.org.
  • Operate from a high spot that is line of site to the 14er summits. For example, Wilkerson Pass (west of Colorado Springs on Highway 24) is a great spot. Harder to get to but even better would be Mosquito Pass or Weston Pass. Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park is another great drive-to location.
  • Work the 14ers on HF. Many of the 14er stations will be up and running on HF and there is usually a pileup of stations wanting to work them. The Goat Hiker crew WG0AT will be out in full force  on Handies Peak, likely using N0B special event call sign.

See you on the air!

73, Bob K0NR

Finally, A New HF Rig

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My wife and I have a cabin up in the mountains that we use as a getaway as often as possible. Oddly enough, this place is a pretty good location for radio propagation. It sits at 9600 feet in elevation with low electrical noise and a decent radio horizon in most directions.

I’ve been putting up temporary antennas at the cabin for VHF contests, Field Day and the occasional HF contest. I am slowly building the ham station, with high expectations but slow progress. I wanted to get an HF rig to put in the Cabin Shack. Actually, I started out thinking I needed a DC-to-daylight rig so that I could cover all bands in one radio. I had my eye on the new ICOM IC-9100 that was announced back in 2009. I patiently waited for well over a year for this radio to become more than vaporware and they start to show up in the US in early 2011. Unfortunately, the street price turned out to be $3700, which seemed a bit too high to me.

This sent me back to rethinking the whole approach. I have to admit that I had not shopped for an HF rig since I bought my Yaesu FT-847 back in the 1990s. The 847 has been my all-time favorite transceiver based on how the controls are set up and the coverage of HF plus 6M, 2M and 70 cm. My only beef with this rig is that the receiver can get overloaded during heavy band usage (like popular HF contests and Field Day).  I started thinking about getting an HF + 6 Meter rig to complement the FT-847, which would give me two radios during contests. In particular, for VHF contests, I’d leave the new rig on 6 Meters all of the time and jump around 2 Meters and 70 cm with the FT-847. I also wanted the new HF rig to be very solid on HF and include some of the advanced features for DXing and contesting.

Soon I was looking at all of the radios that cover HF through 50 MHz. That’s when I really got sticker shock — the FT-DX9000D costs over $10k, the IC-7800 costs $12.5k, the IC-7700 is $7200, and so forth. All of these radios look like fine gear but I was unwilling to invest that much in a transceiver for the cabin. I quickly redirected my radio hunt to something below $2500, looking at the IC-7410 ($1900), FT-950 ($1350) and TS-2000 ($1575). In the end, I chose the FT-950 due to its price advantage and the ability to share accessories (microphones, mostly) with my FT-847.

I got the radio just in time for Field Day, where I gave it a good work out on 14 MHz, 21 MHz and 50 MHz. Wow, did it work great! The receiver performed very well even when the band was packed. In the heat of the battle, I pushed a wrong button or two and sent the rig off to some new and wonderful frequency. Yes, I did take the time to read the manual but I’ll have to spend some more time with it. This thing has enough features that it will take some time to master it.

-73, Bob K0NR

Yeah, We Are Doing It Again: Tech License Class

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Yeah, we are going to do it again…our two-day technician license class. It is still early but we want to get the word out since the class usually fills up!

– Bob K0NR

Monument, Colorado
Saturday Oct 15 and Saturday Oct 22 (8 AM to 5 PM) 2011
Location: Tri-Lakes Monument Fire Station 1
Sponsored by the Tri-Lakes Monument Fire Radio Association

 The Technician license is your gateway to the world-wide excitement of Amateur Radio …

  • Earn your ham radio Technician class radio privileges
  • Pass your FCC amateur radio license exam right in class on the second day
  • Multiple-choice exam, No Morse Code Required
  • Live equipment demonstrations
  • Learn to operate on the ham bands, 10 Meters and higher
  • Learn to use the many VHF/UHF FM repeaters in Colorado
  • Find out how to participate in emergency communications

There is no cost for the class (donations accepted)
However, students must have the required study guide:
Gordon West Technician Class guide, 7th Edition $20.95
And pay the FCC Exam Fee: $15.00

Advance registration is required (no later than October 8th, earlier is better!)

To register for the class, contact: Bob Witte KØNR
Email: bob@k0nr.com  or Phone: 719 659-3727

For more information on amateur (ham) radio visit www.arrl.org or www.wedothat-radio.org   

This Spewed Out of the Internet #19

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Lots of important stuff spewing forth from the Internetz.

TWiT’s HamNation netcast keeps on going, so give it a look.

The debate continues about potential likely interference to common GPS receivers from LightSquared’s proposed adjacent-channel transmitters. See this recent article  on the problem. If you want to dig deeper, the detailed documents are referenced here. LightSquared and the GPS industry are blaming each other. I tend to put the responsibility on the FCC, the regulatory agency that is supposed to keep spectrum and interference issues under control. This problem could be avoided by the use of basic EMC engineering but the FCC seems to be driven more by politics than engineering.

I have been playing around with Google Plus and, so far, I like it. It may be the optimist in me that says there must be an alternative to Facebook. If you need a G+ invite, send me an email: robtwitte at gmail.com

On twitter, I asked for suggestions on a big hamfest that is an alternative to Dayton. Most replies were for these:  HamCom in Dallas, TX; Hamcation in Orlando, FL; Pacificon in Santa Clara, CA. Well, HamCom is out, as it conflicts with the ARRL June VHF QSO Party (the biggest VHF contest of the year). You’ve got to be freakin’ kidding me!! The other two look pretty good.

73, Bob K0NR

2011 Colorado 14er Event – August 7th

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The Colorado 14er Event will be held on August 7 this year. This is the premier mountaintopping event for amateur radio. The basic idea is to have fun making ham radio contacts from the 14,000 foot peaks in Colorado.

Actually, we’ve started to see some of the 14,000 ft peaks in California on the air, too! Very cool. Rumor has it that some of the New Mexico hams might be active on the highest summits in that state (none are above 14,000 feet though). I don’t know whether the Kansas folks are going to brave the extreme conditions on Mount Sunflower this year or not. (That’s the highest spot in Kansas at 4039 feet, which makes it a “4er”.)

Some of these stations will be on HF, activating Summits On The Air (SOTA) peaks.

You don’t have to operate from a 14er to enjoy this event. Just get on the air and see who you can work. Being on a high spot always helps, of course!

For more information see:

The 14er Event Web Site

The Ham14er Yahoo group

I hope to work you during the event.

73, Bob K0NR

Amateur Radio is Not for Talking

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When the topic of ham radio comes up with normal people (that is, non-hams), I usually get asked the question “Who Do You Talk To?” I always come up with some vague and lame answer like “people all over the world” that gets me by.

I finally figured out what the problem is: amateur radio is not for talking to people. At least not for me. If you just want to talk to someone, there are much better ways to do it, such as the telephone…or Skype.  There was a time long, long ago when one of the hooks for ham radio was “you can talk to a family member” when telephone service was not available or too expensive. Those days are gone. Back in the 1970’s and 1980’s, the hook was often “make mobile phone calls via the repeater autopatch.” That was cool stuff that mere mortals could not do.  With everyone and their dog now having a mobile phone, those days are gone, too.

So where does that leave us? Back where we started: the Universal Purpose of Amateur Radio is to have fun messing around with radios. Of course, this takes many different forms: public service, emergency communications, chasing DX, chasing counties, competing in contests, building kits, running QRP…to name just a few.

Now you will hear actual conversations on the ham bands but if you listen closely they usually have a radio underpinning to them. Hams are always talking about their equipment, signal strength, why their antenna is so great, why their antenna fell down, etc. It is kind of like making a telephone call where you talk about the quality of the phone line, the type of telephone being used and potential improvements to your home phone system.

Wait, you say, what about those guys on 75 Meters every evening talking about their medical conditions and complaining about the government? Aren’t those guys actually talking to people?

Those guys — I can’t explain.

73, Bob K0NR

Time to Change the Rules for Field Day

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I just finished writing about how Field Day can be “seasoned to taste”…adapted to your particular interests. Overall, I think the ARRL has done a good job of crafting Field Day rules that provide some incentives for certain types of operation and activities. Get On the Air (GOTA) station, the free VHF station, and Class F (EOC location) are examples of positive rule changes that have been made over the years.

Still, I think there is room for improvement:

  • Eliminate the point advantage for CW and Digital contacts Why does Field Day have a scoring scheme that favors a particular mode? That is, CW and Digital contacts count 2 points versus 1 point for Phone. If these modes have some kind of efficiency advantage, then let that be the reward.  If not, then why the scoring incentive? The point benefit makes no sense to me, so I would eliminate that 2X advantage.
  • More Points for VHF/UHF Field Day is supposed to be about operating under simulated emergency communications. However, most real life EmComm activity makes heavy use of FM VHF and UHF to get the job done.  I would increase the number of points awarded for contacts on 144 MHz and higher to 2 points per contact, to compensate for the natural shorter range of these frequencies.
  • Remove Restriction on 146.52 MHz Also to encourage VHF operating, I would eliminate the prohibition against using 146.52 MHz. No other calling frequency is restricted in this way.
  • Make the Contest 24 Hours Field Day is set up to run 27 hours as long as you don’t set up at the start of the contest. It seems that must clubs set up early and just operate the first 24 hours. I would just simplify the event and make it 24 hours.
  • Bonus Points for VHF Packet or APRS Modern traffic handling uses digital methods, so I would encourage this by offering 100 bonus points for either establishing a functioning APRS station or packet radio system.
  • Require Electronic Log Submission Come on, this is the 21st Century….paper logs should be eliminated and all logs should be submitted electronically.

Well, my VHF+ tendencies are showing. These are my suggestions—what do you think?

73, Bob K0NR

ARRL Field Day: Season to Taste

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The 2011 Field Day is over. I have to admit that I am a bit ambivalent about Field Day…I can take it or leave it. But I have always thought that one of the great things about Field Day is that it can be tuned to whatever interests you or your club. It can be a serious radio contest (well, almost); it can be an EmComm Drill, it can be a Radio Campout;  it can be a food fest, it can be a beer-drinking party. Insert your idea here.

Here’s how my Field Day played out this weekend. The plan was to escape to our cabin in the mountains and set up a temporary HF + VHF station powered by a gasoline generator (1 transmitter, Class B). I used a basic trap dipole on 40M/20M/15M, a 6M5X Yagi on 6 Meters and a 2M9 Yagi on 2 Meters. I was hoping for some decent propagation on 20 Meters and 15 Meters, if 6 Meters opened up that would be awesome.

An urgent matter popped up on Saturday which took priority for most of the day. I finally got on the air Saturday evening and was pleasantly surprised to find 15 Meters still open. I worked quite a few stations on 15 M SSB until the band faded, then I slipped over to 20 Meters. Later, I noticed that 6 Meters had some life in it, so I turned my attention to that band, working back into the southeast.

The next morning, I checked 6 Meters and it was open again to the east. I was cranking out the contacts on 6 Meters but occasionally flipped around to the other bands. It was interesting to compare the 6 Meter activity on Field Day to the June VHF QSO Party. The propagation and number of stations on the air were similar. The skill level of the Field Day crowd was noticeably lower, with more dupes and sloppy operating. (That would be Field Day as a training event.)

Band  Mode  QSOs    Pts
 7    LSB      6      6
 14   USB     37     37
 21   USB     92     92
 28   USB      1      1
 50   USB    273    273
 144  USB      3      3
 Total       412    412

As you can see from the score, Field Day turned into a second June VHF contest for me, with 273 QSOs on 6 Meters.

A great time was had by me. How was your Field Day?

73, Bob K0NR    1B CO

June VHF QSO Party — Awesome Conditions

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The ARRL June VHF QSO Party should be the most fun VHF event of the year, but sometimes the propagation works against us. You see, June is supposed to be the primo time for sporadic-e propagation in North America but the ionosphere doesn’t always get the memo. This year was an absolute blowout with 6 Meters open for most of the daytime hours of the weekend!

As I prepped for the contest, I told myself  “don’t worry too much about 50 MHz, try to fill in some more grids on 2 Meters.”  This might have been my subconscious mind preparing for a crappy weekend on 6 Meters. I did manage to acquire a new and improved 6 Meter Yagi antenna (M2 6M5X), which turned out to be a very nice improvement over the old 3-element Cushcraft that I have been carting across the state for decades. I had decided to ignore the other bands and focus on 2 Meters and 6 Meters.

Here’s the antenna array, consisting of a 2M9SSB (12.0 dBd gain, 14.5 foot boom, 9 elements) and the 6M5X (9.4 dBd gain, 18 foot boom, 5 elements):

I operated from our cabin up in the mountains, grid locator DM78av. I don’t have a permanent station installation but instead operate in a portable mode. That is to say, I strapped a mast onto the front deck and supported the antennas that way. These two antennas are a really good choice for a portable station…not real small but they can be moved around.

The FT-847 puts out 100 Watts on 6 Meters and (with an amplifier) achieves 170 Watts on 2 Meters.

On Saturday morning, 6 Meters was open to the southeast, before the contest started. I held back until the contest began and then jumped in. It was pretty much a blur after that…mostly working 50 MHz but I flipped back over to 2 meters to see who I could work there.

The final score is my personal best for the June event:

 

Band       QSOs X pt =  QSO pts.  X   Grids   =     Points
---------------------------------------------------------------
50         500    1      500           170           85000
144        28     1      28            13            364
---------------------------------------------------------------
TOTALS     528           528           183           96624

 

After the contest, I sent my electronic log into the ARRL for the contest and then uploaded my log to the Logbook of the World. LoTW has had a slow start but they recently upgraded it to handle VHF grids and VUCC. So just a few hours after the contest, I uploaded my log and received over 75 QSOs confirmed! Wow, talk about instant gratification…this is how it should be. No waiting around a couple of years for the cards to show up. If you are not using LoTW, now is the time to get on board.

73, Bob K0NR