8m experiments continued (Friday)

Later today I expect to continue my 8m experiments. As the TX loses power when warm, I have been on FT8 TX for a period, then RX, then QRT as the rig cools and then back to TX. 

Although I miss some of the DX others are seeing, it is interesting to see what a simple QRP station can achieve on 8m. My estimate is that I'm some 10dB at least down on the better stations, which can make a lot of difference on weaker signals. 

UPDATE 0753z:  After a brief TX period (no spots), I am currently on FT8 RX on 40.680 MHz USB dial (no spots). We are about to go shopping.

Swallows (Barn) - NOT amateur radio

At one time, these were a common summer migrant bird wintering in South Africa. They usually arrive here early in April.  In 2021, I only saw 2 all year. 

Swifts are also meant to be getting rarer, but we seemed to have similar numbers here to previous years. I have yet to see a single swallow here, which is very late. In the past, they were common by now.

My son, who has been wild camping, has seen and heard several cuckoos, but no swallows. Times, they are a changing...

See https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/wildlife-guides/bird-a-z/swallow/ .

Sunspots - Friday April 22nd 2022

Solar flux is 164 and the SSN 119. A=10 and K=1. 

Upcoming rallies

As far as I am aware the following rallies are happening, but it is always worth confirming with the organisers before travelling any distance. All are on Sunday April 24th.

Cambridge repeater Group Rally, Foxton near Cambridge. rally2022@cambridgerepeaters.net 

Northern Amateur Radio  Societies Association, Norbeck Castle Exhibition Centre, Blackpool.  dwilson@btinternet.com

Andover Radio Club Spring Boot Sale  Wildhem Villlage Hall (just north of Andover) arac@arac.org.uk .

Lyrid Meteor shower

Now and for the next few days were are experiencing the Lyrid meteor shower. Such showers often give rise to decent pings off the ionised trails, leading to short-lived, but strong, VHF signals. Things are often best in the early morning, but I am no expert.

See https://ei7gl.blogspot.com/ .

10m Tenner transceiver

With the Es season just starting in the Northern Hemisphere, perhaps now is the time to think about rigs. Some years ago I designed and built the Tenner which is a 500mW CW transceiver for 10m.

During the Es season, you should have no trouble at all working stations 1500km away with it. In the past, it has got far further!

See https://sites.google.com/view/g3xbm4/home/hf-mf-and-lf/homebrew/10m-tenner-qrp-cw .

The Wren Library, Cambridge - NOT amateur radio

There are some world famous buildings in Cambridge, UK including this library, designed by Sir Christopher Wren, which houses some of the most valuable books in the whole world.

Our church at night - NOT amateur radio

 

Our church is illuminated at night, as the photo shows. It can be seen for miles around. It is a very fine old building.

10m QRP WSPR TX (Thursday)

Yet again, I am on 10m WSPR TX with 500mW from the W5OLF beacon. It is now 0815z and, so far, just 37 spots from local G4KPX (14km).

UPDATE 2122z:  QRT.  5 stations spotted me today.

Swans - NOT amateur radio

These swans are very determined. 

Until quite recently, builders were making a facility for National Grid (electricity) storage batteries within a few metres!  It is good to see them trying again rebuilding their nest.

8m experiments (Thursday)

For about 1 hour I have been on 40.680 MHz USB dial FT8. Sadly nobody spotted  me. It is 0800z and I am FT8 RX only on 8m. No RX spots. 

UPDATE 1205z:  EI9KP (649km) has again spotted me.

UPDATE 2120z:  QRT. No other spots, but I feel certain that I will reach Slovenia this Es season.

Sunspots - Thursday April 21st 2022

 Solar flux is 160 and the SSN 80. A=9 and K=3.

Punting on the Cam - NOT amateur radio

The photo shows punts on the River Cam in Cambridge outside King's College. Very relaxing too. 

10m WSPR QRP TX (Wednesday)

As my 10m antenna is available, I am on 10m QRP WSPR TX with 500mW from my W5OLF beacon. Just local spots so far by G4KPX (14km).

UPDATE 1611z:  Just 2 unique stations spotting me today with the furthemost TA4/G8SCU (3010km). I shall stop on for several hours in case things improve.

UPDATE 1800z:  QRT.

8m experiments (Wednesday)

After a brief FT8 TX period on 40.680 MHz, I am now on RX only as we are going for a walk. I expect to be on FT8 TX later. So far today, no spots.

UPDATE 1606z:  Today has been disappointing. I have been on 40.680 MHz USB dial FT8 TX several time and RX the rest of the time. I am currently on TX. No spots at all on 8m today.

UPDATE 1805z:   QRT.  Disappointing with no spots given or received all day.

Geek?

OK, I admit it. I am a geek! 

This was me in 2013 testing my 481 THz optical kit in the garden. I don't think the neighbours were looking.  😁

See https://sites.google.com/view/g3xbm4/home/optical-nanowaves/over-the-horizon .

Sunspots - Wednesday April 20th 2022

 Solar flux is 135 and the SSN 68.  A=7 and K=1.

Friedrischafen, Germany 2022

This is the biggest amateur gathering in Europe, so I hope it takes place in person this year. No idea of the dates, although I am sure it will be on the internet somewhere. 

UPDATE 1600z: Found it! See https://www.hamradio-friedrichshafen.de/

Shack

Since we moved in 2013, I have had a dedicated shack. Funny how it still gets used as a dumping ground when we have visitors and want to look tidy!  

The shack has one of the best views in the house, not that I am complaining. The photo is deceptive: the shack is much smaller than it looks.

See https://sites.google.com/view/g3xbm4/home/other-amateur-radio/shack .

G3XBM book progress

The G3XBM Projects Scrapbook creation is underway. 

All being well, I hope to have this available as a free PDF by the end of May. There is quite a bit of work, so if it is a bit late do not be too surprised!  At least as a free PDF I can add to it or make corrections easily. 

I hope to publicise the link widely and hope it gives you some ideas, as that is its aim. It has been lots of fun on my journey. 

Many would prefer a printed book, but this would take much longer and there might be some copyright issues. As a free PDF these issues should be avoided. 

As I have said many times, my aim was never to make any money from a book, rather to put my ideas and projects in one place for those that want them. 

Our garden in spring - NOT amateur radio

At the moment our garden is at its best with lots of blossom. The blossom is ephemeral and will soon be gone. 

Where I come from in South Devon - NOT amateur radio

The photo shows where I come from in South Devon. 

10m WSPR TX beacon using 500mW

At the moment I am on 10m WSPR TX using 500mW to the W5OLF beacon. Just spots locally from G4KPX (14 km). It is early!! 

UPDATE 0745z:  Still just G4KPX (14km) spotting me.

Spring in the UK - NOT amateur radio

This photo was posted on 365project yesterday. Rapeseed is  now widely grown in the UK. I like the colour. 

8m tests (Tuesday)

My gear was turned on at 0530z. At the moment I am on 8m FT8 TX at 1W. Being on lower power which seems fine for Es, I hope to be on TX longer. My frequency is still 40.680 MHz USB dial. 

UPDATE 0805z:  For the first hour I was on 1W FT8 TX on 40.680 MHz USB dial. Sadly nobody spotted me. The power still dropped over time. At the moment I am RX only, but intend to be on full power FT8 TX later.

UPDATE 1337z:  Now on full power (for me - whatever the FT817ND manages on 8m!!)  FT8 TX on 40.680 MHz USB dial. 

UPDATE 1505z:  Only one local spot of me today by G0LRD (26km). Disappointing so far.

UPDATE 2000z: RX only now.  After my success being copied by EI9KP (649km) on 8m FT8 with just QRP and a low wire dipole yesterday, today was disappointing with just one local spot.  As EI9KP copied me strongly, I am pretty sure reports will be exchanged with Borat soon. It is unlikely I shall get outside Europe with my low power and antenna (just a low wire dipole), but I am getting excited about getting 8m FT8 reports via Es soon. I may use WSPR on occasions. Unless told otherwise, I propose to use 40.680 MHz USB dial for FT8 and WSPR and will use the FIRST period to TX on FT8. I know exchanging reports with G3XBM on 8m is not like working ZS stations, but each one will give me great pleasure.  FT8 exchanges are totally within my licence terms as long as you can TX legally on 8m.  There is nothing at all stopping SWLs without 8m TX permits spotting me.  After all, we are exchanging reports and locations, which is all I need to know.  My "experiment" is seeing how well QRP and simple low wire dipoles work at 8m. 

In case of ANY doubts I give my express permission for ANYONE to give me reports by any means e.g. PSKreporter, WSPRnet or email.

Sunspots - Tuesday April 19th 2022

 Solar flux is 135 and the SSN 79. A=8 and K=3. 

Echolink

It is a while since I have tried Echolink. With Echolink on your phone or PC, you can access repeaters on the other side of the planet, often used by locals to talk to others on VHF or UHF handhelds. You can even buy network radios that use the internet as the main bearer. 

I have an Android handheld with PTT that looks and feels just like a VHF handheld. I have to admit it is not used often as I prefer experimenting with "real" radio! 

If you cannot have big antennas or amateur radio in the conventional way, this may be a way to keep in touch.

See https://sites.google.com/view/g3xbm4/home/other-amateur-radio/network-radio .

Web SDRs

It is often interesting to see how others receive you in their part of the world. Also, on the other side of the world, the bands can sound quite different. These days, we can take a peek by listening to various web SDRs. 

Also, when local noise levels are very high, it allows us to hear the distant station without the QRN.

Recently, there is a new one in Iceland.

See http://bjarg.utvarp.com/ .

See also http://websdr.org/ for a list.

The Shard, London - NOT amateur radio

London has some tall skyscrapers on its skyline. One of the most famous is the Shard shown here. 

I was amused some years ago by a photo that our son took when he was performing jazz in the Shard. He sent us a view from sitting on the toilet in the Shard!! Luckily, we only saw the view at night out if the window!

Maggie - NOT amateur radio

Maggie the horse has been a firm favourite with children in the village and our grandchildren for many years. 

She loves to be fed grass.

10m WSPR QRP TX (Monday)

Yet again, I am on 10m WSPR TX with my W5OLF beacon. Several spots by local G4KPX (14km) who I think must have been away over Easter. As yet, no DX. I think Richard goes on 10m WSPR briefly then chooses another band or goes QRT.

8m experiments (Monday)

After a brief FT8 TX period on 40.680 MHz USB dial (no spots of me) I am again RX only, but will go on TX if there is any sign of Es. On RX, nobody has been spotted so far. I need a decent Es opening!

UPDATE 1415z:  My 8m power goes down with time, so I TX for a period, RX FT8 for a period, turn everything off, TX for a period, then RX again. So far today, no spots on RX or TX on 8m. Currently on 40.680 MHz FT8 TX.

UPDATE 1658z: DX at last!! EI9KP (649km) has spotted me strongly on FT8. This is the first time I have been received beyond the local area. I think this was Es. At -5dB on FT8, this is encouraging.

UPDATE 1827z: QRT. 

Sunspots - Monday April 18th 2022

 Solar flux is 135 and the SSN 74.  A=11 and K=2.

All quiet on the Oscar 100 front

Every few weeks I take a peek at the narrowband transponder of this geosynchronous satellite. This is Easter weekend so a few people may be away with parents etc. This could reduce activity, although with more people on leave I would have expected this to have little overall effect. 

It was very quiet when I looked on Easter Sunday in the early evening in Europe. Overall, I would say, "don't bother". With HF conditions improving, I cannot see many getting pleasure from this satellite. It is a lot of effort that I, personally, think is wasted.

See https://eshail.batc.org.uk/nb/ .

70cm activity contest last Tuesday

At the moment I have no 70cm horizontal antennas so I use my 2m big-wheel omni antenna. Because of my poor voice I usually stay on for about 45 minutes. I run 10W SSB  QRP. Last week I had 3 QSOs with the furthermost 105km.

Hawkweed? - NOT amateur radio

A few weeks ago this patch of grass near the post office in the village was a mass of daffodils. Now it is the turn of these yellow flowers that I think are mainly hawkweed. 

10m WSPR TX beacon (Sunday)

 With the W5OLF 500mW beacon, I am on 10m WSPR TX. So far today, no spots of me. 

UPDATE 1433z:  It look like the Es season has definitely arrived with 11 unique stations spotting me, mostly in central Europe.

8m experiments (Sunday)

After a brief period on FT8 TX (1 local spot), I am on FT8 RX now. 

UPDATE 1427z:  It looks like the Es season has started with strong reception earlier of Borat S50B on 8m FT8.  G9PUV was also copied earlier.

UPDATE 1713z:   It seems only a matter of time now in the Es season that I exchange reports with S50B.

Sunspots - Sunday April 17th 2022

Solar flux is 122 and the SSN 78. A=8 and K=3.

10m QRP WSPR TX (Saturday)

Once again, I am on 10m WSPR TX with 500mW from my W5OLF beacon. It has been on from about 0900z.  So far, just local spots by G4KPX (14km).