Until recently I did not know that at first the FM broadcast band in the USA was around 42.5MHz. Later this changed to Band II. Occasionally, there are special transmissions at 42.5MHz to commemorate this.
I do hope that the amateur service gets a small allocation around 40MHz (8m) as we could all learn so much. Even 10W or less, digital only, 10kHz wide, would be a start. I suspect this will start with individuals applying for special permits, much as is happening in some countries around 70MHz. Such an allocation would attract serious experimenters only as no commercial amateur radio transceivers cover this band on TX without modification as far as I am aware.
I have an FT-817ND which was modified by ML&S at the time of purchase to give 5MHz coverage. It does, as a by- product, cover 40MHz as well and gives a full 5 watts into a dummy load. Mind you, even if I had an Ofcom permit I wouldn’t transmit on the air without checking the transmitter spectral purity as the filtering at 40MHz could be suspect.
ReplyDeleteAn easier way might be to use one of the Ukrainian transverters sold on eBay. They do a 40MHz version, and seem to get quite good reports from people who use the 4m and 6m versions. At the price, it’s almost worth getting one just as a receive converter!
Regards,
Keith G0RQQ