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Author Topic: 80m Activity over the Weekend  (Read 22167 times)
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Todd, KA1KAQ
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« on: April 11, 2011, 03:08:10 PM »

Conditions were pretty rough Saturday night, but Sunday ended up being decent overall. Was able to carry on with Steve K4HX, Gene WA4PGI and Glenn N4AX until 9PM before the static got annoying. Worked Steve and Ralphie earlier with excellent conditions around 6PM until 7 or so. At times Steve was booming in at 50 over S9. The S-meter only goes to 60(well past 11). Most of the night he was at least 40 over.

Temps in the high 80s here today with humidity means T-storms around tonight for sure, but there will still be some good nights on 80 going into summer. Hope to hear more of the old gang down there.
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k4kyv
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Don
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« Reply #1 on: April 11, 2011, 03:26:56 PM »

Condx were absolutely excellent Thursday night, but I stayed on 160, and was out of town Friday and Saturday nights.  Apparently I missed out on quiet bands Friday night, but by early Saturday the T-storms began moving in, with tornadoes reported in Iowa.

Band alerts can be useful this time of year.  I have seen many nights over the years during static season when the bands would be whisper quiet with winter-like conditions, but no-one would be on the air, and I would call CQ till I was blue in the face and get no replies; apparently everyone just assumed the bands were noisy and didn't even bother to listen.
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Don, K4KYV                                       AMI#5
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Steve - K4HX
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« Reply #2 on: April 11, 2011, 03:33:09 PM »

FB Conditions indeed last night on 3709 kHz.

* w3glka1kaq10apr112300z3709.mp3 (1407.5 KB - downloaded 823 times.)
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K1JJ
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« Reply #3 on: April 11, 2011, 04:25:16 PM »

There was a huge gang on 3885 Sunday from about 3:30PM until after 8PM. Quite the ruckas at times. Classic 75M AM break-in and carrying on.

The static started to get unbearable after 8PM, so we shut down. They didn't have to shut down, I mean they could have stayed, but they shut down. They didn't have to shut down though. They just shut down.

T
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W2PFY
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« Reply #4 on: April 11, 2011, 04:43:35 PM »

Quote
The static started to get unbearable after 8PM, so we shut down. They didn't have to shut down, I mean they could have stayed, but they shut down. They didn't have to shut down though. They just shut down.

Please repeat this for me, I don't understand Grin Grin Grin
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w5omr
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« Reply #5 on: April 11, 2011, 07:06:04 PM »

The static started to get unbearable after 8PM, so we shut down. They didn't have to shut down, I mean they could have stayed, but they shut down. They didn't have to shut down though. They just shut down.

Just so I'm clear, Tom...

... did they shut down?
 Huh

 Grin
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WA3VJB
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« Reply #6 on: April 11, 2011, 07:13:50 PM »

Man, I miss blown-away Bob.

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K1JJ
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« Reply #7 on: April 11, 2011, 08:20:38 PM »

Yep, Bingo.  I was hoping someone would recognize those lines.

Back in the 80's? Blown-Away Bob was in QSO with Irb on 75M.  Someone started using profanity, IIRC, and Bob signed out abruptly. The next day Bob went on for a few minutes about why he shut down.  "I shut down. I didn't HAVE to shut down - I just shut down.  I couldn't listen to it anymore so I shut down. I could have stayed around, but I shut down............"   Grin

Anywho have a clip of that?  It's around, somewhere.

T
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There's nothing like an old dog.
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« Reply #8 on: April 11, 2011, 09:19:09 PM »

Quote
Yep, Bingo.  I was hoping someone would recognize those lines.

Got me, I didn't know your were paraphrasing old Blow Away Bob!

I went to visit him a long time ago. Too bad he's gone! We all will be remembered by someone but some stand out more than others.
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Steve - K4HX
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« Reply #9 on: April 11, 2011, 10:44:45 PM »

Please keep the chit chat in the QSO section. These Band Watch forums are for "activity reports and QSO requests," just like the header sez. Thanks.
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K1JJ
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« Reply #10 on: April 11, 2011, 10:59:28 PM »

Whoops... so solly.   Thought this was a QSO topic but see it's a new 75/80M category.

Just on with the Tron and a few others on 75M.  Local condix are pretty good. At 10:30PM put out a west call and worked a few midwest stations. The static from west is brutal peaking +25 over tonight. All good hams are in bed dreaming of better days... Wink


T
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There's nothing like an old dog.
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« Reply #11 on: April 12, 2011, 07:52:28 AM »

Heard Tom JJ and Steve QIX last night on 3880 with huge signals here around 9 p.m. to 10 p.m.   Read the mail for a while using the small 75 m. rx loop and 75A-3 with some xtal filtering switched in and the RF and AF gain and tuning carefully adjusted for best S to N ratio, but both had so much carrier the channel was quieted enough to allow for listening with the outboard p.p. amp and big speaker.  While I think of it Tom, I never acknowledged and thanked you for your advice re my high band dipole--I have been using the 1/2 w. 20 meter center fed dipole at 40 feet and Matchbox to check into a net on 20 m. and I no longer ever need to run any kind of QRO power--the antenna + exciter get me 10 to 20 over 9 reports from all over the U.S. and Canada--best high band antenna I have had yet (and short of a beam or quad, probably will ever have  Cheesy ).

BTW Tom I was listenening when you flipped your phased loops and there was a very noticeable signal strength change--looked like at least 10 dB carrier loss on the scope when you went east.

Rob
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K1JJ
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« Reply #12 on: April 12, 2011, 01:10:21 PM »

Thanks for the reports, Rob!  Always good to hear thangs are working out there.

Yep, you have the best antenna system you can get up for your lot. It always pays to give antenna design and placement a lot of thought, as you have.

Break in the next time you hear us. On 75M, there is usually a scarcity of stations out your way in the late spring/summer.  I may be on tonight listening your way, depending on static.

T

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Use an "AM Courtesy Filter" to limit transmit audio bandwidth  +-4.5 KHz, +-6.0 KHz or +-8.0 KHz when needed.  Easily done in DSP.

Wise Words : "I'm as old as I've ever been... and I'm as young as I'll ever be."

There's nothing like an old dog.
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« Reply #13 on: April 12, 2011, 06:27:23 PM »

Okay Tnx Tom; FB

Right now WX looks like it is gg to be better tonight here in the midwest, but there is an annoying low, centered over W VA that has T storms rotating around it and it doesn't seem to be moving fast.  That could cause probs for mid Atlantic and southern New England low band ops tonight.
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« Reply #14 on: April 14, 2011, 12:41:41 PM »

Wuz listening to listening to Don (K4KYV) last night on my R-390A that I recently repaired. The antenna is one wire connected to the chassis about 30 feet long strung across the cellar. The other half is plunged into the antenna socket with no antenna tuner leading outside strung around a clothes line about 30 feet long and up about 15 feet. Loud and clear here with this simple lash up near Albany, NY. Grin Grin Grin
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k4kyv
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« Reply #15 on: April 14, 2011, 01:20:22 PM »

Once again, the band was absolutely perfectly quiet.  No audible QRN.  I heard Jean, F6AQK coming in well on 3705, but he was in QSO with another station just below the noise floor, so I didn't try to join in. Finally did work a couple of stations in the Ghetto region.  One-on-one for a long time, and then one breaker, followed by a call by another station after the others had signed. 

I was getting sleepy, so finally went into the house for the night.  Hated to abandon such perfect band condx, but by then there was hardly a signal to be heard on the band, and absolutely nothing on 160.  Some activity on 40m but I didn't feel like staying up any longer.
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Don, K4KYV                                       AMI#5
Licensed since 1959 and not happy to be back on AM...    Never got off AM in the first place.

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« Reply #16 on: April 14, 2011, 02:31:03 PM »

Like Terry I was also listening.   Heard Don + K1KBW and W1ATR? forget the callsign now, working each other.   The amp blew one of the mica load caps and I was working to get another one in but when I fired it up and gave it a test the tune cap started arcing so I gave up and am gg to bite the bullet and order some new HEC RF doorknobs.  I remember you posted somewhere Don, that you had around 100 used micas you tested, and something like 60 were bad so I guess I learned a lesson about hamfest micas.
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