It would appear that Es has been good in Europe today. Until I mend my 8m antenna and coax and the BNC plug on the coax to my V2000 vertical, I am confined to 10m.
See https://www.tvcomm.co.uk/g7izu/radio-propagation-maps/europe-sporadic-e/ .
9 Jul 2023
10m QRP FT8 (Sunday)
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| 10m QRP FT8 at 0800z |
On RX, much further afield spotted.
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| Stations spotted on 10m FT8 RX at 0950z |
UPDATE 1106z: 47 stations have spotted me today on 10m QRP FT8.
UPDATE 1441z: 66 stations have spotted my QRP today.
UPDATE 1607z: Still 66 stations have spotted my 2.5W FT8 and I have spotted 194 stations today on 10m FT8. At some point my PC must have gone off as I had a message saying "error in soundcard".
Screaming swifts - NOT amateur radio
Suddenly they will all be gone. They fly south to central Africa, where insects are more plentiful. It beats me why they migrate as I would have thought there would be a plentiful supply of flying insects there all year around. The journey is a hazardous one crossing deserts and much of Europe.
Numbers seem to be holding up here. There is a concern about losing nest sites on old buildings and barns. I can't say numbers appear lower here. Indeed I have also seen more swallows than last year.
Once they have gone it takes a few weeks to realise they are not here. In this part of the UK most are back by mid May. When they are here they are one of the most common birds seen. They feed and sleep on the wing. It gladdens my heart when they return. They have been making his journey for thousands or even millions of years completely oblivious of wars that trouble humans.
See https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/wildlife-guides/bird-a-z/swift/ .
8 Jul 2023
European Es
As the summer Es season winds down, there can still be good openings, but these become less frequent. Some days can be good, whereas other days can be quiet. This is where FT8 can be useful on bands like 10m and 6m as the FT8 slots are well monitored and very brief openings can be captured.
As my 8m antenna and coax seem to be sick, perhaps now is a good time to get it fixed before the autumn F2 season really kicks in.
See https://www.tvcomm.co.uk/g7izu/radio-propagation-maps/europe-sporadic-e/
Yaesu FT-710 and ICOM IC-705
Both are excellent radios.
On the Sherwood tests the FT-710 came 4th, which is very good. It is disappointing Yaesu has chosen to, effectively, ignore the QRP market it once dominated. It is almost as if Yaesu has given up.
The FT818 was really about component obsolescence and really had none of the features expected in a modern QRP rig. To many, it was a total disappointment.
Yaesu introduced the FT-710 which is SDR based. Personally, I found the ergonomics easier than on the IC-705. The FT-710 includes 4m, but does not do 2m and 70cm which I missed. It also has an auto-ATU.
ICOM launched the IC-705 some years ago. It is a 10W portable unit covering 160m-70cms, all modes, but it omits 4m and the auto ATU. It is also too expensive. Having tried 4m both in the Es season and before, 4m has proved a disappointment. Personally, I was expecting more from the band.
In the end, I went back to the IC-705 as I missed 2m and 70cm more than I missed 4m and the auto-ATU. It is a 10W radio and far smaller. As a QRPer, 10W is quite enough, especially on FT8 and WSPR. On its battery it is a 5W radio. Had Yaesu announced a new QRP rig, I might have traded my FT-710 in for one. Sadly, I see no new QRP rigs from Yaesu on the horizon.
Personally, I give Yaesu a maximum of 36 months in the amateur radio business.
As a Yaesu fan of old, I very much hope I am wrong. They have had chances and blown them. To my mind, they are a company floundering.
Pergamon Museum, Berlin - NOT amateur radio
"It is better to remain where it is seen by millions than be returned to its country of origin".
Basically, though, this is the bad side of colonialism.
One such questionable "acquisition" is the huge collection of things in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin, Germany. Yes, by visiting these in Berlin, it is far more likely I would see them than had they remained in the Middle East. At the same time looting is totally wrong.
In the UK we are under pressure to return the "Elgin Marbles" to Greece. Personally, I think we should make exact copies and return the originals to Greece.
8m QRP FT8 (Saturday)
My intention was to go on 8m QRP FT8 today having returned from our break in Berlin. When I tried, I noticed the SWR was 3:1 (it is usually about 1.7:1), so I went QRT. Unless it is something trivial, I may need to re-do the BNC plug. The BNC on the coax to my triband V2000 also needs re-doing.
In the past, putting on BNC plugs would have been easy. Now I find it very hard. My fine motor skills are far worse.
UPDATE 1500z: By a process of elimination (dummy load, change of coax into SWR bridge), I have concluded the rig, SWR meter and coax in the shack are NOT the reason for the 3:1 SWR. This leaves just the antenna and coax. As far as I know nothing has changed since before my Berlin trip. Although I do not possess one, an antenna analyser on the BNC connection to the coax up to the 8m dipole would tell me if something is wrong with the coax or antenna. I am puzzled.
10m QRP WSPR TX (Saturday)
As we have returned from a break in Berlin, I am again on 10m QRP WSPR TX with my 500mW TX beacon. So far, 10 unique stations have spotted me.
UPDATE 1342z: 13 stations have spotted me, mostly by Es propagation.
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