10m FT8 QRP with the QDX (Thursday)

Shortly, I intend to try 10m QRP FT8 with the tiny QDX transceiver.

UPDATE 1110z:  80 reports of my QRP 10m FT8 TX. Now RX only.  Panic at first when my SWR bridge showed no power and a high SWR. It turned out it was the lead to the SWR bridge, not the QDX!  Stations across the planet spotted on 10m FT8 RX.

UPDATE  1248z:  220 stations spotted on 10m FT8 RX.

UPDATE 1319z: Briefly on 10m QRP FT8 TX with 13 stations spotting me in the last.15 minutes.  Now back on 10m FT8 RX only with 261 stations spotted so far today.

UPDATE 1544z:  376 stations spotted on 10m FT8 RX. 106 stations have spotted my QRP 10m FT8  today. I am operating as a beacon and not really after QSOs.

Sunspots - Thursday April 27th 2023

 Solar flux is 137 and the SSN 81. A=15 and K=3.

8m WSPR for anyone, without a licence

Correspondence with OFCOM in the UK has convinced me that anyone may TX with a WSPR, FT8 or QRSS beacon in the ISM segment of 40.66 - 40.70 MHz without the need for any licence as long as the technical requirements and IR2030 are met. In the UK this means 10mW ERP. 

This is NOT the Amateur Radio Service.

Today, on 10m WSPR many stations (with a quiet noise floor) would have copied me with 5mW ERP, so I am convinced that at 8m, such signals could be widely copied. In Australia we know that 5mW of 8m WSPR has spanned 5000km.

What I am advocating is stations check the ISM rules in their country and set up a network of 8m WSPR beacons. If possible, randomise frequencies to avoid interference and stick within the WSPR window 40.680 MHz + DF 1400-1600 Hz. This will give us all maximum chances of being copied on 8m.

In the UK, callsigns for ISM beacons are optional, but I suggest something that WSPRnet can report and QTH locators are essential. This is an experiment and the more people taking part the better.

The Es season has arrived

Judging by the results on 10m WSPR, the Es season has arrived. I must give 8m another go and 4m. As the season gets underway we can expect widespread openings from the UK to Europe and similar distances in North America. On 8m, the main issue will be too few people monitoring.

My free PDF G3XBM Project Scrapbook

In my life in the amateur radio hobby, I have been very fortunate. If others can have as much fun as I have, it will please me greatly. My website has a link to the latest version of this book. It is totally free and money is not expected. Just have fun!

You can just browse it, download the lot or just the bits that take your fancy. As I always say, I am sure my projects may be improved, so treat these as starting points.

At some point, I must update it as there have been a few changes of late.

See https://sites.google.com/view/g3xbm4/book .

Peacocks in Ely - NOT amateur radio

 

This was where we had lunch today: Peacocks in Ely, Cambs.. It is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. We tried to take a friend there on a Tuesday, but found it closed!

Behind King's College Cambridge - NOT amateur radio

Behind King's Cambridge

The field behind King's College has been cut in half so one part is cut and the other left as a wild flower meadow. At the moment it is ablaze with cowslips. Not visible in the photo (just in front of the cows) is the River Cam beloved by punters.

10m QRP WSPR TX (Wednesday)

 Just before breakfast, I turned on my 500mW W5OLF 10m WSPR beacon. At 0836z, no spots received.

Does anyone know if Jay, W5OLF is still around? If you know, please let me know. I have used his beacon (excellent) since before the last sunspot peak. No PC needed. Just sync time initially. It is about the size of a pack of cards.

UPDATE 1408z: 11 spots of me today so far. Es?

UPDATE 1841z:  15 spots of me today. I am convinced many were by Es.

Sunspots - Wednesday April 26th 2023

Solar flux is 137 and the SSN 87. A=16 and K=3.

Getting more information

Just to remind you that I have a main website and video channel that have more information about my projects. As I always advise, treat my projects as starting points. You can probably improve most of the things I have done!

For most "one off" projects, my own view is a PCB is a waste of time. Me Pads and Me Squares or similar can make very neat solutions.

You can also find a link to the free PDF G3XBM Project Scrapbook there as well.

Overall, have fun. 

As someone once said, "the journey is better than the destination". This reminds me of our younger son as a child. He always wanted to get to wherever we were going, but as soon as he got there he wanted to come home!

See www.g3xbm.co.uk .