Weekend of Nov. 23rd and 24th

Not much going on, indeed! Perhaps everyone's getting ready for NEXT weekend's big CQ WW DX contest?

There's only one this weekend:

LZ DX Contest - http://lzdx.bfra.org/rulesen.html

EDIT: It was pointed out to me by Jeff KE9V (Thanks, Jeff!) that CQ WW DX does occur THIS weekend. I guess I was fooled by this on the WA7BNM Contest Calendar:

Which Bruce had posted on the Perpetual Calendar. BTW, rules are at https://www.cqww.com/rules.htm

And when I opened the link, I saw this:

So sorry for the confusion folks!  How does W2LJ say he's not a big contester without saying "I'm not a big contester!" HI HI!

And there are no Special Event stations on the ARRL calendar for this weekend. (And NOW that makes sense! Although, it still kind of doesn't as most Special Event stations are SSB, anyway) Is everyone in the USA too busy getting ready for Thanksgiving? Maybe so. So there's not much to report on as far as action on the bands this weekend, but you can bet your bottom dollar there will be plenty of POTA and SOTA activity, as always. (DON'T bet your bottom dollar, at least not in the CW portions.)

Oh, this is NOT a good way to start off on a Friday!

Last night was the 80 Meter QRP Fox Hunt. I had a long day at work and was debating whether to head down to the shack, or upstairs to bed. Curiosity got the better of me and I headed to the shack. I was curious because the two Foxes were Tim KR0U in CO and Randy NC4RT in NC. I worked both of them last week during my stint as the 80 Meter Fox, so I thought I'd stand a good chance of repeating this week.

Randy was easy. He was 579 and I didn't have to listen for his Hounds to find him. I found him right off the bat, tuned VFO B about 1 kHz up and worked him on my first try. When I looked at his Fox log this morning, I saw that I was the second Hound to nab his pelt! I'm not sure I've ever been that quick at working a Fox before.

Tim - he was only 339 when I worked him last week and he was 009 (if there is such a thing) last night. I found his Hounds and this time tuned about 1 kHz down, and heard nothing.  I was going to just sit in the chair for a while hoping propagation would change and that Tim would become audible. Then at 9:30 PM (02:30 UTC) 3RN, the 3rd Call District Area Net came on frequency, blasting away, and that was it for me. I shut everything down and headed off to sleep.

When I had a spare moment this morning, I looked at Tim's Fox Log and QSOs to the Northeast were sparse.

From the K4OAQ live logging map, you can see that Tim got into the Virginia area and had one Upstate New York QSO, but nothing towards the NYC Metropolitan area.

And this is Tim's Reverse Beacon Network Map from last night, which I just looked up.

And RBN is reporting that Tim sat on 3.5574 MHz, so I was not too far off. I was listening primarily at about 3.5569 MHz, but I was carefully tuning both up and down a bit, so if Tim was audible at all, I certainly should have heard him.

Since next week is Thanksgiving week, there are no "regular" 40 or 80 Meter Fox Hunts. Those two nights have a 160 Meter "Foxtravaganza" scheduled, which is basically a free-for-all. All Foxes and alternates can get on 160 Meters to call "CQ Fox" to see who they can hear and work. It's tempting to get on to see how the MFJ-1982 might work on 160 Meters. I'm not sure if I can even get a match. I know the HF9V will work on 160 Meters, because I've done it before. 

I will tell you one thing of which I am certain right now. Come 9:00 PM on Thursday, Thanksgiving night, W2LJ will be sawing wood. That's guaranteed after a big day of cooking and having family over.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Rain!

OK - only an inch and a third since Midnight, but when you've only gotten a third of an inch of rain in about the last six weeks, this is so very welcome! According to the weather prognosticators, we may get another inch before this front clears out of here tomorrow. This is not a drought buster by any means, but it's a start.

It will get chillier and the Poconos and NY State around the Binghamton area are supposed to get snow tonight. I can wait for that.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

WA1NPO

One of, or perhaps the very first Special Event Station that I worked, after I upgraded to General, was put on the air by the Whitman ARC in Whitman, MA.  For several years they put WA1NPO on the air to commemorate the Plymouth Plantation around Thanksgiving. When you sent in your QSL card, you received a nice certificate. I still have the two that I earned for working them a couple of years.

Sadly, they don't do that anymore. I checked the ARRL Special Event Station calendar and there are NO Special Event Stations on the air this weekend.  I widened the date from today until December 1st and there are NO Thanksgiving Special Event Stations to be found, anywhere. THAT surprised me. With all the rich history in New England, I would have thought that some club would do something special for Thanksgiving.

I went to the Whitman ARC Webpage and there's no mention of them having done a Thanksgiving Special Event in the past. You'd think they'd want to include that in club history, but I guess not.

When I was with the Piscataway Amateur Radio Club, we were "into" Special Event Stations. We did them for Hallowe'en, we put the Edison Memorial Tower on the air as a Special Event Station, and every year we commemorated the Voice Of America transmitter that was once located in Piscataway, using the club call sign K2VOA.

• 

The South Plainfield ARC has only done one that I can recall. We put NJ2SP on the air to celebrate the 90th Anniversary of the establishing of our Boro. The banner that I had made for that still hangs in our meeting room.

When I was with the Raritan Bay Radio Amateurs, we put W2CG (borrowed) on the air for an entire weekend to celebrate the birthday of the Coast Guard. We were granted permission to operate from the Coast Guard station located at Sandy Hook. Our station was in an all purpose room, we were allowed to eat in the Mess Hall, and we were given places to sleep (if we wanted) in the Officer's Quarters. That was a weekend I'll always treasure.

I have always thought about putting the Middlebrook Encampment on the air for Flag Day. The encampment is located on Bridgewater, which is not far from South Plainfield. This is the place where the 13 Star Flag was first flown for the Continental Army. The encampment was granted permission by Congress to be the only place in the US where the 13 Star Flag could be flown continuously, 24/365.

The only problem is that Flag Day is sooooooo close to Field Day weekend and the W2QW Hamfest Saturday. I might have to do it by myself one of these years, as I think it might be a tough road to hoe to recruit volunteer operators.

Special Event Stations can be tedious to organize, put on the air, and then deal with the QSL aftermath. But I guarantee that when the station is actually on the air, making contacts, the club members will not only enjoy themselves, but will have something to talk about in years to come.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

What a difference

a week makes!

I'm talking of propagation and the 40 Meter Fox Hunt which occurred last night. I was tired after a long day at work, and I wasn't going to ...........but then my Polish stubbornness licked and I headed downstairs at about 8:45 PM.

I turned on HamClock (I don't like to leave computers plugged in and running while I'm not home)  and I saw that Dave AB9CA was spotted in the POTA box, so I tuned to the frequency and was able to hear him at about 449-559. He was in Oklahoma and after a few tries I was able to grant him a QSO towards his activation.

Was that a portent of things to come?  Sort of.

When the clock struck 0200 UTC, I was able to find Jim N0UR rather easily. I didn't even have to look for his pack of baying Hounds, He was in the clear and the Minnesota to New Jersey pipeline was in full function and I worked him at 0206 UTC. I went back and worked him a second time closer to 0300 UTC because for some reason, I wasn't showing up on the live QSO map that some of the Foxes use. A look at his log this morning confirmed the 0206 UTC QSO and he deleted the dupe. Sorry for that, Jim!

Randy NC4RT was a whole different story. I worked him last week when I was the Fox and he was the Hound, so I expected that would hold true last night. You know what they say about making assumptions.

I found the chasing Hounds easily enough at about 7.0325 MHz and tuned down 1 kHz, where I expected Randy to be. Nothing. I think I may have heard a whisper of him once, but that was probably just my mind playing tricks on me. What didn't help at all was a slow speed QRO rag chew taking place right on the frequency! I thought I might stand a chance when the rag chew was over, but the one station started calling CQ again, so I just gave up a little bit after 0300 UTC. I was beat and tired and I didn't think propagation was going to improve enough in the last 25 minutes to make it worth my while. BUT, before I left the shack, I did fire up RBN to see where Randy had planted himself and I was right! He was being spotted at 7.0315 MHz, just where I thought he'd be. I just couldn't hear him at all .......... and just last week he had a decent signal into NJ on 40 Meters. Go figure.

I've said this so many times that it shouldn't surprise me.  When you think you have this whole propagation thing figured out? Think again!

On another subject - I removed the little globe -visitor map widget from the right side of the page. They hadn't renewed their security certificate and Google Chrome (which I use) won't display it, so rather than leave a hole, I deleted it. When I get some time, I'll look for an alternative.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Epiphany

 

With the one in my left ear and the "over the ear" headphones on, I can hear signals much better than with an earbud type of headphone. My right ear is too far gone to be helped by an OTC hearing aid, but this will do for now.

I was actually able to hear 90% of the St. Max Net participants last night on 40 Meters without a struggle. The short wave broadcast station heterodyne was absent on 7.241 MHz, making listening a non-effort.

My hearing loss is attributable to my days as a photographer. Back in 1979 I worked for a summer as a photographer for the Public Relations Dept. at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, NJ. One of my tasks was to photograph all of the Friday night concerts. Typically, I photographed from the left side of the stage, exposing my right ear to the full volume of the speakers. I would drive home with that ear ringing. Hearing protection was not even coming into vogue back then. It was only a couple years later that it was brought to the attention of the public as a health concern.

About a year ago, I went for a hearing evaluation at a local office of Miracle Ear. They determined that the hearing loss out of my left ear is "moderate", but the right ear is "severe". They were able to hook me up with a pair of prescription hearing aids that worked very well, but at $4K, I had to say "No thanks." for now.

I'll make due for the meantime.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you  care to send the very least!

This is so freaking stupid ........I can't stand it!

I always share my blog posts to my "QRP -When You Care to Send the Very Least" Facebook page.  Just another way to possibly increase readership and garner interest in Amateur Radio, particularly with CW and QRP.

Yesterday's weekend post was removed by Facebook because ....... because of , well here:

What the heck? 

Of course that's what I was trying to do! I was trying to inform the Amateur Radio community about what's going on this weekend! There was NOTHING misleading about it! You've posted the same type of entries literally tens of times before!

For the love of Pete ............. AAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHH !!!!!!!!!

Bots ........... can't stand 'em!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Weekend of November 16 & 17th

The weekend is once again upon us!

Contests:

ARRL SSB Sweepstakes is this weekend - the CW bands may be on the quiet side.

South American Integration Contest CW - https://sacw.cwsp.com.br/en/2021/09/21/pdf/

Run for the Bacon QRP Contest - http://qrpcontest.com/pigrun/

Special Event Stations:

11/02/2024 | Operation Able Archer '83

Nov 2-Nov 16, 0001Z-2359Z, W9A, Salem, WI. W9AFB. 14.250. Certificate & QSL. Scott Grams, General Delivery, Salem, WI 53168. Commemorating the 1983 Cold War Able Archer Exercise. See W9A QRZ page for operating times, modes, and additional details https://www.qrz.com/db/w9a

11/02/2024 | Operation Able Archer '83

Nov 2-Nov 16, 0001Z-2359Z, W0A, Lincoln, NE. KF0NWQ. 14.250. Certificate. Tyler Sandberg, General Delivery, Lincoln, NE 68512. Commemorating the 1983 Cold War Able Archer Exercise. See W0A QRZ page for operating times, modes, and additional details. https://www.qrz.com/db/W0A

11/11/2024 | In Support of the Annual Pow-Wow Being Held on the University of Southern Mississippi Campus

Nov 11-Nov 16, 0000Z-2359Z, W0W, Hattiesburg, MS. Pine Belt Amateur Radio Association. 7.033 14.033 14.260; digital any band. QSL. N5CW, P.O. Box 52, Petal, MS 39465. ww.qrz.com/db/w0w

11/16/2024 | 1st Transatlantic Ham Radio QSO (1923)

Nov 16, 1400Z-2200Z, K3S, Baltimore, MD. Nuclear Ship Savannah ARC. 7.1 14.1 21.1 28.1. QSL. K3LU, 980 PATUXENT ROAD, Odenton, MD 21113. Single transmitter SSB and CW aboard N/S Savannah. Please check spotting networks for frequencies. Info on QRZ.com www.qrz.com/db/k3s

11/16/2024 | Collins ARC 41st Anniversary

Nov 16, 1500Z-1800Z, W0CXX, Cedar Rapids, IA. Collins Amateur Radio Club. 14.263 MHz. QSL. Brice AntonJensen, 1110 Lyndhurst Dr, Hiawatha, IA 52233. www.qrz.com/db/W0CXX

11/16/2024 | W6SFM Bug Roundup

Nov 16-Nov 18, 0000Z-0000Z, W6SFM, Fair Oaks, CA. Samuel F. Morse Amateur Radio Club. 3.533 7.033 14.033 28.033. QSL. John Geyer, 4901 Minnesota Avenue, Fair Oaks, CA 95628. This is an operating event. https://w6sfm.org/bug-roundup

11/17/2024 | Celebrating the 153rd birthday of the NRA operating from Gunsite Academy in Paulden, AZ

Nov 17, 1500Z-2359Z, K7GST, Prescott Valley, AZ. Yavapai Amateur Radio Club Prescott, AZ. 7.250 14.250 21.335 28.340. Certificate. Printable PDF, available at, , http://w4gkf.com/k7gst . End time is 2400 UTC https://www.w7yrc.org/nrabirthday

As for my 80 Meter Fox duty last night. I can describe it in one word ........Argh !!!!!!!

I was going great guns, working split on 3.565 MHz, listening up one. I seriously thought that I might beat my 49 QSO total from 40 Meters on Tuesday night.  Then 4RN happened. No "?", no "QRL?" - just take over the frequency and if you don't like it, tough noogies, guy! 

I actually got out a bit farther west (KS, CO) and south (TX) than RBN indicates here.

I know it's an established net, which I forgot about, but aren't these guys supposed to be big, bad, expert traffic handlers? They can't handle moving a kHz or two? What are they going to do if the SHTF some day and someone with even more power takes over "their" frequency? I know, I know "You were QRP and they didn't hear you."  Nuts to that! I was getting 599's from Hounds from the 4th region.  Then, when the net was over and I thought I could go re-grab my original frequency, some digital signal, which I think was Olivia by the musical tones of it, took over. I had to resort to going down yet again, work simplex and hope for the best. Things crawled after that, but I was still able to hand out 43 pelts by the time 90 minutes was over. I was so hoping to break 55 or 60!

Disappointed in myself that I couldn't do a better job and frustrated by interlopers. Oh well, C'est la Vie!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Fox again tonight

This time on 80 Meters. Subbing for Steve WX2S again. The problem is that I have to work late tonight. I'll be home in time for the Hunt, but I know right now that I'd rather be in bed than on the radio. Wired or not, I don't think I'll have trouble falling asleep tonight. Just hope I don't fall asleep at the key tonight when the pileups dwindle and I start calling CQ Fox on simplex.

Just a final word about Tuesday night's 40 Meter Hunt. I ended up with 51 QSOs, Tim KR0U had somewhere around 75. Slight difference there, eh?  Maybe Tim being smack dab in the middle of the country had something to do with it. More likely is the fact that he's a superb op and that I'm just a "ham and egg'er" way out of my league.

On another topic, after I replaced the stub and matching coil on the HF9V, it remained kind of deaf. I went out to the backyard again this past Saturday, and undid the tape covering the stub/coax connection. Everything looked kosher, but I brought along two wrenches and "gently" tightened the connection better than I was able to do with just my hands alone. The bottom line is that the problem is solved.  The HF9V is just as loud as the wire. In fact, during the 40 Meter hunt this past Tuesday night, I was switching back and forth between the two. Neither seemed to have an advantage over the other. The HF9V has always been a better player for me for nabbing DX on 20 Meters and higher.

A funny thing about this whole HF9V episode, which deserves a little recap. As I've said before, I discovered that I had a problem after the landscapers left when I switched to the HF9V and signals were way, way down. Going out to the backyard, I then saw that the matching stub had been chewed up by their weedwhackers. Looking back on it,  the weak signals that I was hearing were not coming from the antenna, but were being picked up by the coax!  So when you read that the feedline is part of the antenna system - there's nothing that brings that home better than the incident that I went through. Some 125 feet of coax sitting anywhere from 2 - 4 feet of the ground was picking up HF signals. Not very well, but was still picking them up.

Last thing on my mind this morning as I blather on. I think we can safely say that the warm weather is behind us for the year. I awoke to 34F (1C) this morning, and when I got to work which is a good 20 or so miles farther inland from the coast than South Plainfield, the temperature here was 29F (-2C). It's quite easy, for me at least, to see how being closer to the Atlantic, even by a few miles ,affects the temperatures and the weather. If it were to start precipitating this instant, it would probably be snowing here and raining at home.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Field Day Results for 2024

Results came out a few weeks ago - I forgot to mention this. This is how SPARC placed in our category:

You can't come in any more "middle of the pack" than SPARC!

I was looking at the 1st place holders, the NE TX QRP Contest Federation and I was thinking how do only three guys make 730 QSOs? That is phenomenal! But then again, from their description, they are contesters.  Most likely very experienced contesters. We're not. 

I'm sure their antenna setup is probably significantly better than ours and we were curtailed by thunderstorms and the educational activity that we put on this year. And there was a lot of "meet and greet" with visitors going on at our site this year, which I guess is really part of the purpose of Field Day. But all that took time away from the radios.

Marv K2VHW jokingly commented that his goal for SPARC is to equal those 730 Q's next Field Day. In response I told him that several things will be necessary:

1) No educational activity - took too many people away from the radios.

2) No food. there will be no time for eating.

3) Unlimited coffee. Need to keep going full bore for then entire 24 hours.

4) Ample supply of "Depends" You know why - no time for Nature breaks, either.

5) Defibrillator on site. Because one or more of us will probably have a heart attack.

This is all in good humor, of course. We don't take Field Day as a contest that seriously and we realize that a major purpose of Field Day is to educate the public about Amateur Radio and its role in Emergency Communications.

But still, it would be nice to finish 1st Place in our category one of these years. So on the drive to work this morning, I was thinking about a possible way to increase our QSO count. Since we're limited to 5 Watts by our battery category, we've relegated ourselves to being Hunters and Pouncers. But after a few times of going up and down the band, say 40 Meters, it seems like you've worked everyone you can hear. Then it's time to switch to a different band .......right? Maybe instead of changing bands, it might be a good strategy to go up the band, find an unoccupied frequency, and call CQ for a while. It might not generate a lot of QSOs, but it's better than wasting time hunting on a band that you think you've pretty much fished out. And if we find ourselves calling CQ with no takers, say after 10 minutes or so, THEN we can switch bands.

Now, for my duty as one of the 40 Meter Foxes last night - it wasn't as bad as I thought it might be, although QSB was really bad. I'd have a Hound call me at 579 and I'd give my half of the exchange and then they'd come back to me at 449 or even 339. Wow!

According to the Reverse Beacon Network, this is where the skimmers were picking me up last night:

And sure enough, the s/n figures for Europe were pretty pathetic - only a computer or Superman was hearing me there!

If you count the two Foxes, KR0U and myself, then there's 51 Hounds in the log. There were a couple of dupes that I edited out. I don't think I did too badly for being a rusty ol' Fox. I posted a preliminary log to the QFOX iO Group. Let's see how many corrections come back.  I am not like the other Foxes. I do not use N1MM. I still log with pencil and paper. Were I to attempt to computer log, by the time I would type in the call signs, I'd probably only work 1/2 the stations I ended up working. I'm not multi task capable in that regard. I'm lucky i can key and write at the same time!

There is one thing about being a Fox that I dislike. The Hunts here on the East coast are from 9:00 to 10:30 PM. When Fox duty is done for the night, I'm so wired that I generally can't fall asleep until around Midnight. When you have to get up at 5:00 AM for work the next day, that makes it a bit tough.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

And now, coming to bat..............

pinch hitting for Babe Ruth #3 ...............Joe Shlabotnik, #109 !

That's how I feel this morning.

I got an e-mail last might from Dale WC7S that Steve WX2S is not able to fulfill his Fox slots for 40 and 80 Meters this week ....... "Could you fill his slots? Please?"  I guess I got asked because I'm in New Jersey and I'm only about 20 miles north of Steve's QTH. In a moment of total irrationality, I answered, "OK, I can do that." What was I thinking?

Steve had mentioned on Facebook that his Mom is in the hospital. I know that's his pre-occupation at this time. So, dear Readers,  if in your kindness can you keep her in prayer?

This is a tall order, and I'm kind of feeling the weight of it. If you were to keep tabs of the Fox logs, you would see that no matter who the Fox is, no matter where the Fox is, Steve is usually always in the Top Ten of first Hounds to have worked the Fox. And then, when he himself is the Fox, his log of Hounds worked is always huge!

His station outclasses mine, his antennas outclass mine, his skill and abilities outclass mine. I just hope I don't totally embarrass myself tonight. This is like David and Goliath ........only in reverse. It's one thing to fulfill my own slots towards the end of the season, where the Hounds probably don't expect all that much. But this? This is a bit daunting.

Thanks for letting me spill my guts.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Veteran's Day 2024

Here in the U. S. of A, it's Veteran's Day where we honor and celebrate those who have sacrificed their time in order to have served our country in our Armed Forces. A HUGE THANK YOU!

We are free because we are the home of the brave!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Visitors from Colorado

I got home from work late last night.  I made myself a grilled cheese sandwich and was eating at the kitchen counter when my cell phone started ringing. I looked down at the display and the call was coming from Colorado. The only persons that I know in Colorado are Steve WG0AT and Tim K0UR and I'm pretty certain that neither of them have my cell phone number.

It turned out to be a woman who is in the Tri-State area with her teen aged son, who is having some oral surgery done by specialists in Manhattan. She told me that they've been here for a while and have also both been studying for their Technician Class licenses for a while. She looked up the exam schedule and was calling me to see if there was any room for them in our session that we had this morning.

Wow! Up to this point, we only had one candidate scheduled, so there was room a-plenty! I sent her my standard candidate e-mail and she responded that we would see them this morning.

And we did!

They were both obviously well prepared as they both got only three answers wrong on their respective versions of their tests. Since they passed, we gave them their free look at the General exam, and as expected, got about 1/2 correct. They were both very gracious and thankful and mentioned that it was nice to get out of Manhattan for a bit and that they really liked what they saw of New Jersey.  I suspect that visitors from other parts of the country expect the NorthEast to be one big concrete jungle.

Our other candidate, who made a second try at Extra came up 2 answers short of passing. So close! I asked her how she was going on practice exams and she told me she was coming in at about 70% correct. I encouraged her to study a bit more and told her that when she consistently scores in the 80 to 85% range, she'll be ready.

Other than that, there were just chores to be done and no actual  on the air time. Maybe that will change tomorrow. But having those two guest candidates from Colorado come in AND get their licenses - THAT made my day!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Weekend - Nov. 9th and 10th

We have our regular 2nd Saturday of the month VE Session tomorrow. As of right now, only one candidate - a General looking to upgrade to Extra.

Contests:

Not going to go into detail on these, but there are three digital contests this weekend that will probably end up coming deep down into the normal CW portion of the bands - so if you hear digi on you favorite QRP frequency, it's probably one of these:

PODXS 070 Club Triple Play Low Band Sprint

WAE DX Contest, RTTY

10-10 Int. Fall Contest, Digital

Other contests this weekend: (from this weekend going forward, I will mainly mention only contests that will have an effect on the CW portions of the bands)

SKCC Weekend Sprintathon - https://www.skccgroup.com/operating_activities/weekend_sprintathon/

OK/OM DX Contest, CW - http://okomdx.crk.cz/index.php?page=CW-rules-english

CQ-WE Contest - https://w8zpf.com/cqwe/

4 States QRP Group Second Sunday Sprint - http://www.4sqrp.com/SSS/sss_rules.pdf

Special Event Stations:

11/09/2024 | USS Cobia Veterans Day Special Event

Nov 9-Nov 10, 1500Z-2100Z, NB9QV, Manitowoc, WI. USS Cobia Amateur Radio Club. 7.240 14.240. Certificate. E-certificate only, email QSL information to, kc9yl@arrl.net. www.qrz.com/db/nb9qv

11/09/2024 | W2TE MEMORIAL SES

Nov 9, 1230Z-1930Z, W2GSB, Babylon, NY. GREAT SOUTH BAY AMATEUR RADIO CLUB . 28.340 21.250 14.246 24.940. Certificate. W2GSB/W2TE , PO BOX 1356 , West Babylon, NY 11704. WWW.gsbarc.org

11/09/2024 | Walt Grosser (W2TE) memorial SES

Nov 9, 1400Z-2000Z, W2GSB, Lindenhurst, NY. GREAT SOUTH BAY AMATEUR RADIO CLUB. 14200 7200. Certificate. W2GSB GSBAC, PO BOX 1356, West Babylon, NY 11704-0356. In Memory of Walter Grosser, our 2nd President of GSBARC We will be setting up at 09:00 and hopefully be on the air by 14:30 and operate till 20:00 All modes CW operators must bring their keys gsbarc.org

11/09/2024 | Windycon 50 - Science Fiction Convention

Nov 9-Nov 10, 1500Z-2100Z, W9W, Oak Brook, IL. DuPage Amateur Radio Club. 14.070 14.230 14.274 145.430 (local 107.2 PL). Certificate. DuPage Amateur Radio Club, P.O. Box 71, Clarendon Hills, IL 60514-0071. Operating times are Nov 9 0900-1700 and Nov 10 0900-1500 local time (CST). Certificate and other information http://www.qrz.com/db/w9w. https://www.w9dup.org

Last night's 80 Meter Fox Hunt was a 50/50. I worked Jim N0UR pretty easily. The MN to NJ pipeline wasn't quite as strong as usual, but I did get him in the log. Cathy W4CMG was another story. She was at ESP levels to begin with, but eventually got as loud as about 339. Strong enough to work, but I didn't. Kept calling but kept getting "CQ FOX" back in my face. Obviously the TN to NJ pipeline wasn't working for me, although it did for Steve WX2S and Charles W2SH. C'est la vie.

Something a bit interesting that I was reminded of again, though - frequency response. I worked Jim with an ear bud in my left ear - my only good ear, and that was fine. When I went to look for and eventually found Cathy, I discovered that I was able to hear her much better when I switched over to conventional headphones. The earbuds do not do quite as good a job responding to lower frequencies than the headphones. They're great at responding to higher frequencies, including the noise! The headphones were much better at helping me dig her signal out of the noise. 

Unfortunately, nothing will help my right ear until I can afford some prescription hearing aids. I've tried a couple of OTC brands and one pair does work better than the other, but I do need "real ones" if I'm ever going to hear out of my right ear again. First I have to finish paying off my car - then hearing aids. Yeah, I'll be working until I'm 70 - no doubt about that! LOL!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

New tablet

I purchased a new Android tablet from eBay. Nothing fancy, an off brand, not a Samsung. But it has a newer version of Android on it and a faster processor than the piece of stone I was using, which is probably almost 7 or 8 years old by now. This one also has a bigger screen, more memory and more storage space. It came with a case and a Bluetooth keyboard, and a wireless mouse. The mouse has a USB-A receiver and the tablet has no USB-A outlet, so that was superfluous. But still, not bad for under $75.

This one will be used primarily for blogging and Amateur Radio purposes. So far I have installed VLS Logger, SpaceWeatherLive, RepeaterBook, HamAlert, ARRL Magazines, and I made icon links for Morsel and the POTA spotter page.

I need to add SOTA Spotter, and one of the DX Cluster apps, either DXPocket or NKCCliuster. and perhaps PoLo, although I kind of like VLS Logger.  The accessory keyboard is the same size as the tablet and seems to be very nice. Maybe this will finally be the "what it takes" to get me to computer log portable ops instead of paper and pencil logging.

The other primary purpose for this tablet will be weather apps, WeaterBug, AWN Net, the Lightning app, RadarNow! and probably Weather Underground.

Of course, it comes with Gmail and Chrome pre-loaded. I will add Facebook and Skype and probably Zoom as most of the radio club meetings that I attend are hybrid, in-person and Zoom.

I wish AC Log by N3JFP had an Android app. The only way I can use AC Log out in the field would be to bring a laptop and IMHO, that's just a pain in the hindquarters. When I use VLS Logger, I have to export an ADIF via e-mail to my laptop so that I can add the contacts to AC Log. Not an end-of -the-world issue, that's for sure - but you get spoiled by convenience.

Last night was the inaugural 40 Meter QRP Fox Hunt and I was debating whether or not to participate. I was really tired and wanted to to hit the hay, but I relented and found and worked John K4BAI rather quickly. I listened for Kevin W9CF for a bit, but he's in Arizona and that's a long haul. I found him and heard him pop out of the noise a couple of times, but not loud enough or long enough for me to work him. Then, when someone decided to start calling CQ at 10 over 9, right on his frequency, I decided to hang it up for the night. Just before heading upstairs, I looked him up on RBN and the single East coast skimmer had him in single digit dB numbers above noise level. Experience tells me that's not good if you want a QSO. But I bet when I eventually see his log, band conditions will have changed and all the other New Jersey Hounds will have nabbed him. Never fails.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least.

I'm NOT crazy! (Depends on who you ask)

Last month, when I wrote about my POTA activation at Krings Point State Park in New York, I mentioned I had worked a station in Alaska. That astounded me. 5 Watts to an Elecraft AX1 antenna, sitting on a picnic table in New York, sending RF all the way to Alaska?

After that, I kept asking myself - did I really hear that right? Maybe I botched the call sign?  Maybe it's an Alaskan call sign living somewhere in the lower 48?

Nope! Confirmed on Logbook of the World! I still find it hard to believe - it really does defy all logic that this little antenna can work so well.

I wonder what I could do with a wet string of spaghetti?

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least1

Gotta apologize

publicly, to the QRP Fox Hunt Committee. The final schedules for 80 and 40 Meters came out over the weekend. I was not forgotten like I thought I was. So I apologize for any premature false accusations  or sour grapes "trash talk" that I may be guilty of.  I am on the 80 Meter schedule for January 17th and Valentine's Day, February 14th. I'm also listed as an alternate for the 40 Meters schedule.

The season starts tomorrow - Election Day - of all days. I hope I can manage to stay awake to join in the Hunts for most of the season. I'll make my assignments, but ss far as the rest of the season goes, this was me yesterday:

Next weekend, I am going to have to re-take a look at the connection between the HF9V's matching stub and my coax.  I'm 100% sure of that connection. When I switch between the wire and the vertical, signal strength is much louder on the wire.  Maybe I didn't make as good a connection as i thought I had. Maybe I need to replace the coax. I hope not, but from looking back at past blog entries, next year this run of coax will be 20 years old.

I checked into the St. Max Net last night and from the conversation, I think the decision to move to 40 Meters is a permanent one. I was able to hear check in stations and Net Control much better on 80 Meters, but I guess I have no choice but to make due. Even with the HF9V "problem" that I may be having, I was switching back and forth between antennas and it was interesting to see how a given station was louder on one antenna over the other. My guess is likewise antenna polarization and/or the distance between us and the size of the skip zone. Frequency response of my headphones played a part, too.  A couple of stations I heard much better on that little golf ball speaker that I have as compared to the headphones.

In closing, for you newbie Amateur Radio ops out there who may be reading this, here's a YouTube video I cam across. I know that this is an expensive hobby and that as a newcomer that can be overwhelming. Here's a video that might be able to help you save some bucks when it comes to the antenna department:

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least.

I worked them!

 

I was able to work Special Event Station WJ0H, honoring the Edmund Fitzgerald, this afternoon. I added the call sign to Ham Alert and it was chirping a ton on Saturday, but the day was way too busy to try and fit them in. Luckily, they were still on the air today and I nabbed them on 15 Meters USB on 21.360 MHz at 17:18 UTC. I fired up the KXPA100 to 85 Watts as they were kind of weak. It was probably about 5X4 each way. 

Gosh! SSB and QRO! I really wanted to work them, though. Now that Marianne and I have been going up to Alexandria Bay and I see those big ships traversing the St. Lawrence River, it has deeper meaning now. i used the MFJ-1982HP which has been performing very well for me since I got it up in the air two weekends ago. BTW, when I double checked the HF9V yesterday, I saw that the radial to antenna connection was fine, just fine. The thick piece of copper braid I used was still intact and not bothered by the landscapers. I still have to make that "shield" out of an old power plastic flower pot, so that this can never happen again.

After WJ0H, I worked several POTA stations (all at 5 Watts) on 17 Meters and on 20 Meters way above the ARRL Sweepstakes traffic on 20. One of the stations I worked was N9ANA, The Voyagers ARC with Eric K9VIC at the key. N9ANA and K9VIC are Skeeters, so that was a special treat! 

I was going to go to the PAL parking lot and put the Washington-Rochambeau on the air, but it's pretty chilly here today with a pretty constant stiff breeze which makes it feel even colder. I'm already decked out in shirt and hoodie sweatshirt inside the house! I'm not quite in the mood to be outside for a prolonged amount of time.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP  - When you care to send the very least!

The weekend: November 2nd and 3rd, 2024

Ohhhhhhh! This weekend is another biggie contest!

ARRL Sweepstakes Contest, CW - https://www.arrl.org/sweepstakes

High Speed Club CW Contest - http://www.highspeedclub.org/

Ukrainian DX Contest - http://urdxc.org/rules.php?english

Monday night - ARS Spartan Sprint - http://ars-qrp.com/Spartan_Sprint/Spartan_Sprint.html

Again, I'm not a big contester. I just post these so you all know what's happening on the bands.

Special Event Stations - a lot of them!

10/31/2024 | Knights of Columbus Celebration of Date of Beatification of Blessed Michael J. McGivney, Founder of the Knights of Columbus

Oct 31-Nov 2, 0000Z-2359Z, K0C, Bridgeton, NJ. New Jersey Knights of Columbus Amateur Radio Club . 7.18500 14.2500 18.1400 21.3500. Certificate & QSL. Thomas M. Perrotti, N2JIE, 785 Vineland Ave, Bridgeton, NJ 08302. This, and the other Knights of Columbus Special Event Stations sponsored by the New Jersey Knights of Columbus Amateur Radio Club, will be operating with Knights/hams from throughout New Jersey, the United States of America, Canada and Europe. NJ2KC.org

11/01/2024 | 49th Anniversary, Sinking of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald

Nov 1-Nov 15, 0000Z-2359Z, W8F, Livonia, MI. Livonia Amateur Radio Club. 14.260 7.260 7.050 14.050. Certificate. See website, for information, https://livoniaarc.com/qsl/ . Saturday. Nov. 9,1530-2030 UTC, W8F will operate from Dossin Great Lakes Museum, Belle Isle State Park, Detroit, MI. (POTA US-1487 this date only)., Nov. 1-15 Club members signing as W8F on all bands/modes-see spotting sites. QSL INFO ON W8F Page at QRZ.com https://livoniaarc.com

11/01/2024 | Royal Netherlands Air Force Retirement of F-16

Nov 1-Nov 30, 0000Z-2359Z, PF16F, North Limburg region , NETHERLANDS. Radio Club Limburg . TBD. QSL. sending a QSL is not necessary., All contacts will receive a QSL , via bureau., NETHERLANDS. PF16F is a special event station to say farewell to the fighter aircraft F-16 or Fighting Falcon. After 45 years of service - from 1979 to 2024 - the F-16 will retire from the Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF). Members of Radio Club Limburg will activate the callsign PF16F from 1 up to 30 November 2024 and work amateur radio operators across the world, as many as possible. Whether you are an amateur radio operator hoping to contact a new country, a new call sign or you are a casual visitor, we welcome you to our website: https://rclb.nl/pf16f

11/01/2024 | Special Event 16th Annual Veteran Honor Guard Vigil at the Ottawa IL War Memorial

Nov 1-Nov 2, 2200Z-2200Z, W9TAL, Ottawa, IL. The American Legion Post 33 Amateur Radio Club.. 3.573 3.9 7.074 7.2. QSL. Joe Tokarz c/o The American Legion Post 33 Amateur Radio Club, 901 LaSalle St, Ottawa, IL 61350. The American Legion Post 33 Amateur Radio Club, 901 LaSalle St. , Ottawa, IL 61350. For the 16th year, 96 military veterans, family and friends will stand guard for 15 minute segments during this period at the Ottawa IL War Memorial. W9TAL@winlink.org (begin subject line with //WL2K) QSL SASE https://www.ottawaalpost33.com w9tal@winlink.org

11/02/2024 | 2024 Remembering the Edmund Fitzgerald - I'm going to put this one in Ham Alert!

Nov 2-Nov 3, 1500Z-2355Z, W0JH, Stillwater, MN. Stillwater, MN Amateur Radio Association (SARA). 3.860 7.260 14.260 21.360. Certificate. Request certificate by email and certificate will be emailed to you., W0JH QSO contact: , W0JH24Fitz@outlook.com. QSL certificates may ONLY be requested and will ONLY be sent via email. Send requests WITH W0JH QSO CONTACT INFO to: W0JH24Fitz@outlook.com. IMPORTANT: ONLY W0JH confirmed contacts qualify for POTA US-2524, US-8095, ARLHS USA 783 validations and submissions to LOTW. This is the 20th consecutive year the club has conducted this Special Event. Visit www.radioham.org and QRZ.com (W0JH) for more details. This year marks the 49th year since the famous iron-ore carrier was caught in a fierce fall storm on Lake Superior. The event pays tribute to the crew of 29 who all perished. www.radioham.org

11/02/2024 | 90th Anniversary Celebration of the Nashville Amateur Radio Club, Inc.

Nov 2-Nov 10, 2100Z-0600Z, K9O, Nashville, TN. Nashville Amateur Radio Club, Inc.. 7.060 7.180 14.060 14.230. Certificate & QSL. Nashville Amateur Radio Club, Inc., 205 Downeymeade Drive, Nashville, TN 37214. Will be active on all amateur bands using all modes. nashvilleamateurradio.club

11/02/2024 | Concours d'Elegance & Motoring Festival

Nov 2-Nov 3, 0400Z-2000Z, K4C, Hilton Head Island, SC. Islander Amateur Radio Association. 7.267 14.267; see spotting nets. Certificate. See website for information, on receiving a, certificate. www.qrz.com/db/k4c

11/02/2024 | Massing of the Colors

Nov 2, 1400Z-2100Z, W0AK, Des Moines, IA. Des Moines Radio Amateurs Association. 14.260 21.375 28.450. Certificate. DMRAA, P.O. Box 88, Des Moines, IA 50303-0088. Information on Massing of the Colors is at www.moww.org www.dmraa.com

11/02/2024 | Operation Able Archer '83

Nov 2-Nov 16, 0001Z-2359Z, W9A, Salem, WI. W9AFB. 14.250. Certificate & QSL. Scott Grams, General Delivery, Salem, WI 53168. Commemorating the 1983 Cold War Able Archer Exercise. See W9A QRZ page for operating times, modes, and additional details https://www.qrz.com/db/w9a

11/02/2024 | Operation Able Archer '83

Nov 2-Nov 16, 0001Z-2359Z, W0A, Lincoln, NE. KF0NWQ. 14.250. Certificate. Tyler Sandberg, General Delivery, Lincoln, NE 68512. Commemorating the 1983 Cold War Able Archer Exercise. See W0A QRZ page for operating times, modes, and additional details. https://www.qrz.com/db/W0A

11/02/2024 | South Orange Amateur Radio Association 50th Anniversary

Nov 2-Nov 3, 1700Z-0000Z, K6SOA, Mission Viejo, CA. South Orange Amateur Radio Association (SOARA). 7.200 14.275 21.350 28.375. QSL. SOARA Special Event, P.O. Box 2545, Mission Viejo, CA 92690. soara.org

11/03/2024 | 118th Anniversary of SOS and Maritime Calling Frequency 500 kHz

Nov 3, 0000Z-1200Z, various, Many locations. AA8SH. 600 meters, CW from 472 to 475 kHz and WSJTX; FST4 (60 second pass) at 474.2 kHz USB. Certificate. QSL to, station, worked. This event provides an opportunity for clubs or individuals to put a vintage MW transmitter back on the air, or try one of a number of solid modern approaches. Those interested should be sure to register with the Utilities Technology Council prior to October 3, 2024 (30-day waiting period). https://utc.org/plc-database-amateur-notification-process/; https://www.arrl.org/news/fcc-opens-630-and-2200-meter-bands-stations-must-notify-utc-before-operating. Questions and more information, email aa8sh@aol.com

11/03/2024 | Mill Mountain Star

Nov 3, 1400Z-2000Z, W4CA, Roanoke, VA. Roanoke Valley Amateur Radio Club. 7.265 14.265. QSL. Roanoke Valley ARC, P.O. Box 2002, Roanoke, VA 24009. https://w4ca.com/special-events

My personal goal for the weekend (which looks to be busy with a lot of "stuff" to be done) is to get my radial field (somewhere between 50 -60 radials) hooked back up to the HF9V. The weather looks like it will be favorable.

If I get the chance, I'd like to try and activate the Washington-Rochambeau Trail again from nearby my house. I'll have to use the KX3, though, as I'll probably have to make use of 17 Meters. I'm sure the non-WARC bands will be buzzing with Sweepstakes activity.

Semi-related to POTA. I see on Facebook and hear on local repeaters about these guys who visit multiple parks in a day - on continued days. They make 100s of QSOs. How do they find the time to do this? Retired? Independently wealthy? I'm lucky when I can find an hour or two on an occasional weekend!

I think I need to retire.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Happy All Hallow's Eve!

 "Honey, have you seen my HT?"

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Ever feel like Homer?

 

I did. Last night.

Flashback to Saturday. I got all my chores done extra early, so I could spend the afternoon replacing the weed-whacked parts on the Butternut. You know what took the longest? Getting the tape off which was protecting the connection between the coax and the matching stub! I couldn't find or feel where my wrapping ended, so I ended up having to cut away the old tape. Talk about a sticky and gooey mess! When I finally got that done and connected the new matching stub, I left a tiny fold over flap of tape at the end of my new wrapping, so if I ever have to do something like this again, I'll have a tab to tell me where to begin unwrapping.

The job went quickly after that, but last night the Homer part came in. I was sitting on the living room couch, thinking about the weekend's events and I suddenly remembered that I forgot to re-attach my radial field to the antenna! DOH! I'll have to do that next weekend, weather permitting. I'll have to dig up the sink strainer that I used as a radial connection point and re-establish the connection to the earth side of the vertical. The strainer is not deep, just even with the surface of the ground so this chore shouldn't take very long at all. The problem is of course, that we have not had any rain since September 28th. So you know what's forecast for next Saturday .........right?

Now that I've displayed MY stupidity to the world, I want to tackle something I saw on Facebook yesterday that kind of irked me. Here's the post:....undoubtedly great intentions, but ............

As you can see, he got a lot of answers. I did not, because I would have undoubtedly been a bit sarcastic, and like Mom always said, "If you can't say something nice ........."

A - This guy is an Extra!!!!!!  He doesn't know this answer? This wasn't covered in any one of the three tests he had to have taken?

B - He doesn't know where to go to look up the answer? It HAS to have been covered in one of the license manuals that he studied from. Right?

Or here's the rub. Did he even use a license manual to study from? Or did he just go to one of the plethora of sites that just give you questions and answers that you can memorize until you feel ready enough to sit down and take the test?

Being an Extra class Ham used to mean something. I dare say it doesn't any more. It used to mean that you spent some time, years maybe, working your way up, gaining experience from operating and building, combined with studying to finally get to that top plateau.

Sadly, I personally know Extra class Hams who have no idea how to build a dipole, program an HT, or even put an HF station together, or how to put up an HF antenna, or even follow directions on how to check into a net! Each time, I've eagerly and courteously helped them all, but each time I also kind of internally shook my head that I even had to! A brand new Tech who has just been licensed for the first time? Yeah, I could see that - most definitely.  But an Extra class Ham who is supposed to have enough experience to be an Elmer (him or herself) to others?  They should know this basic stuff - and even if they don't know it, AT THE VERY LEAST, they should know where to go to find the information that they need (and I'm not talking about asking on Facebook)

It's a sad state of affairs. Really. And again, I'll say it. These stupid Ham Crams aren't helping any. Memorizing answers without learning the theory or practical what and why behind the questions is building up a class of operators who will undoubtedly just get frustrated with the hobby and leave before the first license renewal opportunity comes by.

Harumph!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Weekend of October 26th and 27th

Tonight is the Zombie Shuffle:

http://www.zianet.com/qrp/ZOMBIE/pg.html

I will not be able to join the BOOs tonight as I have a ETS of NJ meeting, and as Secretary .......... (goes without saying, right?) And we all know why it's the Zombie Shuffle, right? Because Zombies can't run! (Sorry for the Dad joke).

But as far as contests for the weekend - there's only one!

CQ Worldwide DX Contest, SSB - https://www.cqww.com/rules.htm

Special Events:

09/29/2024 | Re-enactment of the First Trans-Global Two-Way Radio Communication

Sep 29-Oct 26, 0000Z-2359Z, GB2NZ, Many locations, UNITED KINGDOM. Radio Society of Great Britain and New Zealand Association of Radio Transmitters (Otago Branch). All bands and all modes depending on operator availability. QSL. See website, for, information, UNITED KINGDOM. www.gb2nz.com

10/26/2024 | North Carolina State Fair Ham Radio Exhibit

Oct 26, 1000Z-1400Z, N4C, Raleigh, NC. NC Ham Radio Operators. 7.230 14.230. QSL. Travis Russell, 121 Pebble Dr, Clayton, NC 27520.

10/26/2024 | WOC-TV 75th Anniversary

Oct 26-Nov 11, 0000Z-2300Z, W0C, Davenport, IA. Davenport Radio Amateur Club. 14.310. QSL. Davenport Radio Amateur Club, P.O. Box 1523, Davenport, IA 52809. Recognizing the 75th anniversary of pioneer broadcaster WOC-TV (now KWQC). Multiple bands and modes depending on operator availability. Send SASE to: Davenport Radio Amateur Club, P.O. Box 1523, Davenport, IA 52809 drac.club

10/27/2024 | 86th Anniversary of the War of the Worlds Broadcast

Oct 27, 1600Z-2100Z, W0W, Grovers Mill, NJ. Delaware Valley Radio Association. 7.225 14.255 21.300. Certificate & QSL. Delaware Valley Radio Association, P.O. Box 7024, Trenton, NJ 08628. www.w2zq.com

This is a cool one! The DVRA will be operating from a park (non-POTA) in Grover's Mill, NJ - the landing spot for the Martians in Orson Welle's radio broadcast. It's a very nice park and I used to drive past it all the time when my Mom was still alive and was living in West Windsor. There's a nice pavilion there, where they will probably be setting up and the park itself edges a small lake. They should have a sunny dry day on Sunday for this event. They MAY be on CW as well, so look for W0W on the DX Cluster.

10/27/2024 | North Carolina State Fair Ham Radio Exhibit

Oct 27, 1000Z-1400Z, N4C, Raleigh, NC. NC Ham Radio Operators. 7.230 14.230. QSL. Travis Russell, 121 Pebble Dr, Clayton, NC 27520.

My main goal for the weekend is to get the HF9V up and running again. The long range forecast is calling for some rain next weekend. Finally!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Realization is settling in

that Autumn is actually here. We've been teased with Summer like temperatures for the past few days, and that's about to end. What's really announcing the change of seasons is the loss of daylight. The early first lights of Summer are long gone, and I leave for work in the morning in darkness. When I arrive home, the sun is already setting. Next weekend, we will change from Daylight Savings Time back to Standard Time and the sun will be setting as I start home from work, and the drive home will mostly be in darkness.

Not sure which I dislike more, the cold or the dark. Probably the dark, as one can always put on an extra sweater or a heavier coat or jacket, but you can't make the mornings or evenings brighter. That takes time and the Earth's axis to make that happen.

The silver lining is that as we head into colder temps, the static crash noise on 160 and 80 Meters goes "pretty much" away until next Spring. I like 80 Meters a lot. In fact I volunteered for Fox duty on 80 Meters for the 2024-2025 QRP Fox Hunt season a few weeks ago. It seemed they were desperate for Foxes, so I figured "Why not?". I was asked if I would do 40 Meters as well, and I agreed, although I stated that 80 Meters was my preference. I guess that must have annoyed "The Committee" as since then, I have not heard back, and I have not been placed on either band schedule, nor have I even been named as an alternate. 

Maybe that's their polite way of telling me that my services are not wanted. Whatever. It may seem like sour grapes, but that sure takes the wind out of my sails from even desiring to participate in the hunts. It's kind of like being picked last to be in the baseball or basketball game when you were in gym as a kid. I've had enough of being told I'm not good enough to last a lifetime.

A day later than expected, my HF9V parts arrived via FedEx from DX Engineering yesterday. As a bonus, the forecast for this Saturday now appears to be another dry day. I know we need rain desperately. It's to the point where New Jersey has instituted an open fire ban. The state is very dry and currently, two wildfires are being battled down in the Pine Barrens. So while I am hoping we get some much needed rain, I am selfishly hoping that it will hold off for just a few more days until after I get my HF9V repair out of the way.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

The dangers of lithium batteries

I don't know if I mentioned this or not, but while Marianne and I were away at Alexandria Bay, I was receiving notices from our Ring doorbell about heightened activity on our street. It turned out that our neighbors, two doors down had a fire in their garage. totally destroying it.

Luckily, the house was not involved as the garage is detached and no one was injured in the incident. According to reports I have heard, my neighbor thinks the blaze may have started from lithium batteries that were charging - possibly for his ride-on lawn mower. Or maybe from some kind of other yard tool. It's not totally clear at this point.

While I was putting up the MFJ-1982 HP antenna on Saturday, and I was moving that center support mast further back into our yard, I was able to see past my neighbor's backyard into theirs..

As you can see our common neighbor's vinyl fence melted, but what you can't see is that the vinyl siding on the back of the house where the garage fire occurred has totally melted, also. That's how intense the blaze was.

Call me paranoid, but this is why I NEVER leave lithium batteries charging at home if we're away. I don't care if it's HTs or laptop computers or tablets or phones. If we're away and no one is home, those devices are off and unplugged. Period. Same with any lithium batteries that I use for my HF radios. The risk is just not worth it.

Stay safe, my friends.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

When I was a kid

we used to call this "Indian Summer". I don't know why or how the term originated, and I suppose it's not politically correct to use it anymore. After the first frost or series of really cold nights of Autumn, there's usually a return to a few days of Summer like weather. We're going to experience that today, tomorrow with a tail off on Wednesday with a high of 81F (27C) today, 82F (28C) tomorrow and 78F (26C) on Wednesday. From there on it's down to seasonable temperatures again.  As much as I prefer the warm weather to the cold, I've started getting used to chillier "sweater weather", and the onset of early darkness. I wouldn't mind the warm up if it would hang around for more than just a few days. This is just a tease of my favorite season that I'd prefer to do without. Breakups are best when you don't look back. LOL!

I was delighted to see an e-mail from DXEngineering in my inbox this morning. I placed that order for the Butternut replacement parts yesterday morning and according to FedEx tracking, I will have them by end of day tomorrow. That is fast service! The extended outlook for Saturday is for partly cloudy skies with a high of 66F (18C), so it should be a good day for Butternut repairs. Not sure when Saturday as Hadley Communications Technologies, the 501 C3 company that provides funding for SPARC is having a clothing drive fund raiser and I promised to help out at the drop off point. I will get the repairs done on either Saturday or Sunday, though, as I don't want to place all my bets on continued good weather for the long term. I don't want to go the entire winter without having the HF9V available to me.

Speaking of the early darkness - that means that conditions for 80 and 160 Meters should be improving as we head further into Autumn and Winter. I checked into the St. Max Net last night which has been on 40 Meters for the Summer. The QRM from shortwave broadcast stations has been horrific. I hope the net plans to return to 80 Meters soon, as it was hard copying weaker stations over the heterodynes. 80 Meters may cut down on the reach of the Net a bit, but it's a lot more comfortable listening there.

So far my MFJ-1982 HP seems to be performing as well as KD2FSI's has been performing for SPARC Field Day the past few years.  The antenna fits nicely into a slightly different configuration, as it is a bit longer than the W3EDP. I had to get a little creative to make it fit. My midpoint mast used to be even with the backend of my neighbor's garage. Moving it to the last chain link fence upright post on that side of the yard did the trick.

Of course, the UNUN is bigger on this version, than the one on my 1982 LP, as that was designed to handle 20 Watts maximum. I had really wanted to purchase the MFJ-1982 MP version, which was designed to handle up to 200 Watts, but they were sold out already. Since I run up the power for the St. Max Net up to 85 Watts, the 1982 HP is a bit of overkill, but it was my only recourse.

I suppose I could have gone with an antenna from a different vendor, but I am familiar with the MFJ-1982's from Field Day, so it seemed to make sense to go with what you know that works.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

First the good:

The weather was perfect yesterday and down came the W3EDP and up went the MFJ-1982HP EFHW. The procedure wasn't quite as tortuous as I was anticipating. I'm currently bothered by some bursitis and arthritis in my left hip and bending over to pick up parts and pieces from the ground can be .... let's say extremely annoying, for lack of a better term.

I was able to move that midpoint supporting mast that I use farther back into the one corner of the backyard, so the entire antenna is more stealthy than ever. Not that I live in an HOA or anything, but from my experience from when I lived in East Brunswick before I got married, I don't need any imaginary RFI problems from neighbors.

After finishing the installation, I immediately ran down to the shack and completed a few quick POTA QSOs, just to make sure everything was working right. It was! I got a 559 from Dave AB9CA in Indiana and a 599 from another POTAteer in Virginia. Later in the evening, just for the heck of it, I tuned to 160 Meters to hear the Stew Perry Challenge in progress. The KX3 was able to get a 1.7:1 match and I even made a successful contact with K1EP in Massachusetts with 5 Watts, on the first call.

Now for the bad. As I was finishing up securing the end of the wire antenna to its end point, I happened to look down at my Butternut HF9V.  The coax was no longer at the bottom of the antenna! In fact it was neatly folded back onto one of the garden stakes that I use to keep the coax off the ground.

That's how it looks now after I took a closer look at it and fooled around with it for a bit. It was so neatly folded back that I didn't even notice it until yesterday. The landscapers we had do some cleanup obviously did a number on it with their weedwhackers, To err is human, so I'm not upset by the fact they mistakenly broke it; but I am bothered that they didn't say anything. I wouldn't have made a fuss, but I would have appreciated the honesty.

Now for the ugly. At first look, it didn't seem like such a bad repair. I was thinking that all I would have to do would be to strip back the wire a bit, put on a couple spade lugs and I'd be back in business. When I went out this morning to take a closer look, to see what tools I'd need to bring out, I was checking on the condition of the stainless steel hardware when the matching network coil snapped off in my hand. CRUD!

The antenna is over 20 years old and has survived some harsh winters and even about four hurricanes, so I'm really not surprised. When I bought my HF9V it cost me around $500. Today it is close to $1000, and I cannot afford to replace it.

I can afford replacement parts, however. So it was off to Google to find out the best bet for replacement parts was DXEngineering.  The matching network coil hasn't changed a bit, but the matching stub has undergone a serious design improvement!  The existing stub is just a piece of 75 Ohm coax with the two conductors exposed with spade lugs on each.  From the picture this upgrade looks tons nicer.

Delivery should be Tuesday or Wednesday and the 10 Day weather outlook for next weekend is looking favorable, so I should only be without my HF9V for a week. I can live with that. I've decided that in the meantime, I will purchase a small plastic flower pot, or perhaps a small plastic pail (small Trick or Treat buckets are in all the stores now, it seems). I will cut the bottom out and will cut a slit up the side so that I can effectively create a protective shield and place it around the matching network at the base of the antenna. Believe me, I know myself all too well, and that I am not beyond making the same mistake the landscapers made with their weedwhacker!

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

The weekend - October 19th and 20th

 Contests filling the bands this weekend:

YBDXPI FT8 Contest - https://contest.ybdxpi.net/rules/

10-10 Int. Fall Contest, CW - http://www.ten-ten.org/index.php/activity/2013-07-22-20-26-48/qso-party-rules

New York QSO Party - https://www.nyqp.org/

Stew Perry Topband Challenge - http://www.kkn.net/stew/

Worked All Germany Contest - http://www.darc.de/der-club/referate/conteste/worked-all-germany-contest/en/rules/

Asia-Pacific Fall Sprint, CW - http://jsfc.org/apsprint/aprule.txt

Illinois QSO Party - https://w9awe.org/ilqp/

Run for the Bacon QRP Contest -  http://qrpcontest.com/pigrun/

and not this weekend - but next Friday: 2024 Zombie Shuffle - the rules are at:

 http://www.zianet.com/qrp/ZOMBIE/pg.html

Special Event Stations:

10/17/2024 | Wooly Worm Celebration

Oct 18-Oct 19, 1600Z-2000Z, W4W, Johnson City, TN. Kingsport Amateur Radio Club. 7.187 MHz 14.240 MHz. Certificate. John Williams, 303 Autumn Creek Lane, Johnson City, TN 37615. jrwilliams37620@gmail.com

10/19/2024 | 90th Anniversary of Tri-County Radio Association

Oct 19-Oct 20, 1400Z-1800Z, W2LI, Union, NJ. Tri-County Radio Association. 14.250 7.250 other HF frequencies possible. QSL. Tri-County Radio Association, PO Box 3393, Union, NJ 07083. https://www.tricountyradio.org

10/19/2024 | Lester Dent - Doc Savage Special Event

Oct 19-Oct 21, 1400Z-0600Z, W0D, Macon, MO. Macon County ARC. 28.400 14.280 7.250 3.950. Certificate & QSL. Dale Bagley, K0KY, 1402 Eastern Dr., Macon, MO 63552. On October 19 to October 21, the Macon County Amateur Radio Club will operate the Lester Dent-Doc Savage Mystery Special Event WØD, in Macon MO. The purpose of the Special Event is to honor of the accomplishments of Lester Dent, one of the most prolific writers of Pulp Fiction, and an Amateur Radio Operator, WØCBL. It is also the 91st "Birthday" of his creation, the first modern "Superhero" Doc Savage https://www.maconcountymissouriarc.org/

10/19/2024 | North Carolina State Fair Ham Radio Exhibit

Oct 19, 1000Z-1400Z, N4C, Raleigh, NC. NC Ham Radio Operators. 7.230 14.230. QSL. NC Ham Radio Operators, 121 Pebble Dr, Clayton, NC 27520. Special Event stations running during the NC State Fair on multiple days, weekends only.

10/19/2024 | Yorktown Special Event

Oct 19, 1400Z-2000Z, K4RC, Williamsburg, VA. Williamsburg Area Amateur Radio Club. 7.265 14.265. Certificate & QSL. QSL Manager, WAARC, PO Box 1470, Williamsburg, VA 23187. Celebrating the 243rd anniversary of the British surrender to the joint American and French forces under Gen. George Washington in Yorktown, VA. This ended the American Revolutionary War on October 19, 1781. FOR CERTIFICATE: The Virginia Historic Triangle Certificate is available for contacting the Jamestown, Williamsburg, and Yorktown Special Event Stations. You don’t need to contact these stations in the same calendar year. For a Certificate send QSO info from the three stations to qslmgr@k4rc.net. https://www.k4rc.net/events/special-event-stations

10/20/2024 | North Carolina State Fair Ham Radio Exhibit

Oct 20, 1000Z-1400Z, N4C, Raleigh, NC. NC Ham Radio Operators. 7.230 14.230. QSL. Travis Russell, 121 Pebble Dr, Clayton, NC 27520.

Personally, another dry and warmish weekend (with not many commitments) may mean that I might finally get a chance to replace my W3EDP with the MFJ-1982 HP End Fed that I purchased a few months back. Marianne had a landscaper come by earlier this week to clean up all the overgrowth coming over from our neighbor's backyard. I think I may have better access to the "terminating mast" that I have in that corner of the backyard, with less of a chance for wires and ropes to get tangled up in foliage and branches.

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Can't say enough about this stand

 The AX1 stand by TUFTELN, that is.

If you have an Elecraft AX1 antenna, and you are using the "adjustable bipod stand" that Elecraft supplies, you are going to love this stand.  This stand is way more robust, sturdy and just overall better! Use this once, and you will forget you ever used the Elecraft bipod stand.

The only caveat is you have to make sure you don't overtighten it. Because if you overtighten it, it can be very hard to unscrew the two pieces from each other without damaging it. Take it from me - wink, wink

The beauty of this stand is that it gives you a choice. Since it cradles the AX1 so nicely, you can either connect the AX1 to the radio directly, OR  if you so desire, you can use coax jumpers and connect to your radio with the antenna physically removed - as shown in the photo above (as well as my header photo). If the radio you're using doesn't have a built in autotuner, such as the QMX, this is an absolute necessity. The reason that I don't like the Elecraft bipod is that IMHO, it puts too much stress on the radio's BNC connector. I know that on the KX3, the BNC connector is held in place to the chassis by a nut and not just by solder joints, but even so, I feel that bipod is an awkward arrangement at best.

Again, not an agent for TUFTELN - no kickbacks here! Just a satisfied customer.

AND ..... an announcement from Paul NA5N - mark your calendars !

QRP Zombies,

The 27th annual (1998-2024) ZOMBIE SHUFFLE will be held FRIDAY, OCTOBER 25, 2024.

Pretty much the same silly rules as always.

The QRP Contest that's actually fun. Pick some strange, ghoulish name to use on the air.

Full RULES ARE HERE:

http://www.zianet.com/qrp/ZOMBIE/pg.html

72 and BOO, Paul NA5N

and from me:

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!