Chinese UHF handhelds

So, how do they do it? You can now buy a pair of UHF handhelds with free airmail shipping for £13.86 a pair. Somehow, a profit is made too.

How long have ICOM, Yaesu and the other Japanese manufacturers got? Just a few years and the Chinese will wipe them out. The best I can see is they design in Japan, but make in China. The more likely scenario is they decide there is no longer money in amateur radio products and they just stop being in this market altogether. I can see this happening within a few years.

At the moment ICOM seem to be most likely to survive. The future does not look good.

Catalonia vote - NOT amateur radio

Although I am unclear about all the facts, the fact Catalonians in Spain are voting about independence says a lot. What is more disturbing is the heavy-handedness of the police. The outlook does not look great for Spain if this is how they want to be seen in the world.

Now on 630m WSPR RX

As of 2010z I went QRT on 10m WSPR TX and 6m FT8 RX and am now on 630m RX, G6AVK (78km) and DC0DX (467km) and PA0A (417km) have been spotted already within minutes of going on the band. As yet, no new stations spotted.

UPDATED 2045z: F1AFJ (607km) now the best DX this evening on MF.

Ploughing lonely furrows?

Although 10m WSPR has been quiet here so far today, I have copied 7 different stations on 6m FT8 including OZ6HQ (716km). There is life on these higher bands, although few seem to want to try.

UPDATE 1445z: Now spotting 4O6AH (1788km) in Montenegro on 6m FT8. Es? When he popped up he was very strong.

UPDATE 1715z: EA8BFK (2880km) is spotting my 10m WSPR strongly. I have spotted 9 stations in 4 countries on 6m FT8 today, so far.

UPDATE 1735z: now 10 stations in 5 countries today on 6m FT8.

UPDATE 1840z:  Now plenty of 10m WSPR spots today.

A Liverpool Street - NOT amateur radio

Apparently, this street, off Hope Street, is widely used when after old street scenes for TV and films.

10m WSPR and 6m FT8

No spots of my 500mW 10m WSPR beacon and just a couple of Gs spotted on 6m FT8 so far.

UPDATE 1035z: Still no 10m WSPR spots of my beacon. 4 G spots so far on 6m FT8.

UPDATE 1137z: Still nothing on 10m WSPR. 6 Gs spotted on 6m FT8, but no DX. Best G is G3OIL (196km).

UPDATE 1450z:  OZ6HQ (716km) spotted on 6m FT8, so there is some DX on 6m. No spots of my 10m WSPR beacon.

Sunspots - Saturday September 30th 2017

Where do the days go? It is already the end of the month! Someone once told me time appears to pass more quickly as you age - well I agree.

Solar flux is 88 and the sunspot number 39. A=12 and K=3.

630m WSPR RX overnight

8 unique MF spots last night with best DX IW4DXW (1190km). I've now returned to 10m WSPR TX (500mW) and 6m FT8 RX.

What attracts young people?

On my return from Liverpool, I see Southgate News has picked up on an address by the IARU president.

See http://southgatearc.org/news/2017/september/traditional-ham-radio-no-longer-so-attractive.htm#.Wc6odrpFzIU

Liverpool - NOT amateur radio

We spent a few days in Liverpool for a reunion with old friends as it was 50 years since we were there as students! One of our friends does guiding for cruise ships now he is retired and he took us on a walking tour of some of the city's highlights.

One of the places visited was the docks area, which has been renovated in recent years. At one time the docks were abandoned and avoided. Now they are the centre of the city and very attractive with lots of museums and cafes.