Getting ready - NOT amateur radio

Our grandson has rung in 109 towers now including this one at Isleham where they seem prepared for the coronation next weekend. 

In general, the whole preparation for the coronation feels very low key. I am old enough to remember the 1953 coronation of Queen Elizabeth II!! I guess we were still getting over WW2 and this was a bit of light relief. 

I remember going to watch the coronation on a neighbour's tiny TV screen in black and white. We did not have a TV until 1957 and that was just one channel and back and white. At the time we thought it was amazing. Before then, we used to watch a snowy TV picture whilst sitting on the floor a a local radio/TV shop. At that time we were about 150km from the nearest TV transmitter.

10m QRP FT8 with the QDX

 

Since about 1120z, I have been on 10m QRP with the QDX. So far, mostly Europeans, I presume by Es.

UPDATE 1340z:   80 stations have spotted my QRP.

Crabapple - NOT amateur radio

We only have one crabapple tree. It seems to be good every other year, so we are hoping for a good crop this year and some good crabapple jelly, as last year was poor. 

Sunspots - Sunday April 30th 2023

 Solar flux is 156 and the SSN 82.  A=20 and K=1.

Multiband antennas

Quite a good multi-band antenna is the end-fed via a 9:1 balun. At the end of the wire it presents a high impedance and the 9:1 balun drops the impedance to a low SWR, certainly less than 3:1 that can be tuned via the auto-ATU in many modern rigs. On many radios an ATU will not be needed at all. With QRP, RF on the coax is not usually an issue. With high power, more care or a counterpoise may be needed.

At the moment I am using an end-fed antenna. I have not found a counterpoise necessary.

Commercial versions are available (e.g. from Moonraker), although many make their own.

Amateur Radio Weekly

Thus comes to me as an email on Saturdays. It is a precis of amateur radio news and very good it is. There are links to the originating articles.

See https://hamweekly.com/ .

8m tests to restart

This next week, I hope to restart my QRP tests on 40.680 MHz FT8. I have been off for a few weeks. 

The Es season is just getting under way. This season, I may try WSPR sometime probably in the WSPR window at 40.680 MHz (DF 1400-1600 Hz).

It would be good if lots of countries came on 8m FT8 or WSPR this season, ideally TX, but RX if nothing else.

I am convinced that just 10mW ERP WSPR will be copied across Europe on 8m at times. In the UK anybody would be able to TX 10mW ERP WSPR in the 8m ISM band without a licence as long as the technical requirements and IR2030 are met. This is not the Amateur Radio Service. It is an experiment under ISM rules.

Breakfast time? - NOT amateur radio

This thrush was hunting for worms and insects when we were on our walk earlier. Must be breakfast time!

10m QRP FT8 with the QDX

Since breakfast, I have been on 10m FT8 with the QDX QRP rig. 16 spots of me so far with the furthermost H44MS (14814km) in the Soloman Is in the Pacific. I think this genuine too.

UPDATE 1824z:  65 stations have spotted me so far today (see map).

Sunspots - Saturday April 29th 2923

 Solar flux is 150 and the SSN 111. A=19 and K=3. 

QDX

Just would like to put on record how amazing the tiny 20-10m QDX digital transceiver is from QRP Labs. 

It works extremely well on TX and, as I have found out in the last day, works extremely well on RX down to at least 40m. It will probably go even lower! 

If you have no other rig, this tiny transceiver is a real winner. It can be used with WSJT-X on all modes I think. So far, I have used FT8 and WSPR. It is nominally a 5W rig, but my QRP signal is daily copied all over the world.

It is incredible how something this tiny works so very well.

See https://qrp-labs.com/qdx.html .

40m FT8 RX (Friday)

It is intriguing to see how low I can RX on my tiny 20-10m QDX transceiver. At the moment I am on 40m FT8 RX with the earth-electrode "antenna" in the ground, which seems to work better at 40m than my end-fed 10m antenna. It would probably work on TX too but the low pass filter is probably ineffective.

Nothing has appeared on PSKreporter, although I can see many stations locally on my screen. Perhaps there is a delay or a reset is needed?

UPDATE 1310z:  WSJT-X reset. Still no PSKreporter spots on 40m FT8 RX.  Just looked on the "all bands" view and I can see my 40m RX spots - odd.

UPDATE 1401z: 51 stations spotted on 40m FT8 RX on the 20-10m QDX RX with the earth-electrode "antenna" in the ground.

OFCOM updates

Just a reminder that OFCOM updates the information it holds every week. There is also a list of its publications. See the OFCOM website.

Dayton Hamvention - reminder

This is mid-May in Ohio USA. It is one of the biggest amateur radio gatherings in the world. It is often the place where major manufacturers announce new products, even if they are still some way off. I have never been. Let's hope Yaesu do not miss the boat again, or I fear curtains.

See https://hamvention.org/ .

Progress report

 Some weeks ago, these were my aims. Some have been achieved.

Done

• Put Spectran software on the shack PC.
• Been on 80m and 160m with the earth-electrode "antenna".
• Local 481 THz tests.

Not done

• QRSS tests on 136 kHz.
• 481 THz QRSS tests with Spectran.
• Yet to restart 8m tests.

Trinity flowers - NOT amateur radio

These were the flowers on the path to Trinity College, Cambridge earlier this week.  Last year we were too late.

10m QRP FT8 (Friday)

Since 0915z, I have been on 10m QRP FT8 with the QDX transceiver. Poor conditions?  At 0928z, just 2 stations spotted and just one local has spotted me so far.

UPDATE 1208z:  15 stations have spotted my 10m QRP FT8 today.

30m FT8 RX in the last day using the 20-10m QDX

As stated yesterday, my QDX covering 20-10m is used with a 10m end-fed antenna. As an experiment I wanted to try it on 30m FT8 RX. I am amazed. Having been on since last evening only, with a totally non-resonant antenna, 654 stations have been spotted!!

Sunspots - Friday April 28th 2023

Solar flux is 150 and the SSN 136.  A=21 and K=3.  Conditions seem poor.

30m FT8 RX with the 20-10m QDX (Thursday)

My 10m band end-fed antenna is way off tune on 30m. As an experiment, I tried my QDX for 20-10m on 30m FT8 RX this evening.  I have no idea how sensitive it is on 10.136 MHz. So far, 384 stations have been spotted at 2131z. The map shows the stations spotted here by 1935z.

15m QRP FT8 with the QDX (Thursday)

Stations spotting my QRP FT8 on 15m today

As 10m FT8 is so poor, I have QSYed to 15m. So far, I have been spotted by 14 stations with the furthermost WA4MIT (7015km) and I have spotted 21 stations.

UPDATE 1643z: 45 stations spotted and I have been spotted by 41 stations.

Adder snakes - NOT amateur radio

At 74 years old, I just realised I have never once seen an adder snake in the wild! 

I believe they bask in the sun, but they cannot be that common. They are most often seen on heathlands and woodlands. They are the only venomous snake in the UK. They are also known as vipers.  Their venom is rarely harmful to humans although medical treatment is advised. The photo is attributed to Benny Trapp on Wikipedia.

See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vipera_berus .

See https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/reptiles/adder .

Ely yesterday - NOT amateur radio

This was Ely yesterday by the River Great Ouse.  Ely is a nice place with a cathedral on the hill and an attractive waterfront. The railway station seems always to be busy.

Rally at the weekend

The following has been notified to me. As this is an automatic email, it is advisable to check it is on and the information is correct.

Sunday April 30th - Ripon Radio Rally, Ripon, HG4 2PT. Contact  https://www.g4sjm.co.uk/contact-us .

Low key? - NOT amateur radio

On Saturday week, our new King Charles III is crowned. At the moment things feel very muted. For example, John Lewis in Cambridge, a major department store nationally, has nothing for the coronation, that I could see, on display. I guess they are worried about excess stock on their hands in hard times. This small display was at the back of a pub in Ely yesterday.

It is a very long time since Queen Elizabeth II was crowned and this was shortly after WW2 when there was a national support for the monarchy. These days, many younger people are not in favour of a monarchy and do not like wealth and privilege just because people inherited it. The problem is who would be president? 

Personally, I think (just) I am in favour of a symbolic monarchy as long as it is considerably slimmed down.

Worked all Cambridge(shire)

The Cambridge club (CDARC) is launching a scheme like a mini WAB scheme called "Worked all Cambridge (or is it Cambridgeshire?)". The object is to work stations in all the Ordnance Survey 10km squares in the county. For example, I am in TL56 square. I think it runs for a year, but as I do not have details yet, I have no idea how many squares there are. I can imagine some in the Fens are quite hard. What a fun scheme for a club.

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 .

Screaming swifts - NOT amateur radio

To my mind, the screaming of swifts feeding on the wing is a sign of English late spring and summer. In this part of the UK they usually arrive in mid-May, although in some parts they are seen earlier. Often they are heard before they are seen. Usually they are heard screaming, one looks up and there are the swifts! The sight of these in the sky warms my heart. By mid-August most have flown south.

Cambridge church cafe - NOT amateur radio

A number of churches now have cafes. I guess they raise funds for the church as well as providing a useful function for visitors and locals. In Cambridge, one such is Michelhouse in Trinity Street. When we popped in this morning it was busy.

10m QRP WSPR TX (Tuesday)

My 10m 500mW beacon was turned at about 1330z. Time was set using an atomic sync'ed clock.

UPDATE 1403z: No spots.

UPDATE 1438z: Just local G4KPX (14km) has spotted me.

Spots on my 500mW 10m WSPR beacon today

UPDATE 1827z:   A better day than I was expecting with 5 unique stations spotting my 500mW 10m WSPR TX today.

UPDATE 1922z:  6 unique stations have spotted my 500mW 10m WSPR today (see map).

Local 481THz QRSS tests

This was going to be last night, but I was too exhausted. Maybe this evening?