8 Jun 2021
Vancouver BC - NOT amateur radio
7 Jun 2021
4el 70cm yagi
I usually use my 2m big-wheel omni, 10W, and stop on for less than an hour. Sadly, my 2m big-wheel has developed a high SWR, so tomorrow I will be using an old 4el homemade yagi indoors. It could be several dBs down. At least it can be hand-rotated from the operating position and the match is good. It will be interesting to see how I get on.
The last time it was used was early 2013.
6m FT8 RX (Monday)
As yesterday, I am again on 6m FT8 with the V2000 vertical omni that has a high SWR TX. So far, 115 European stations spotted apart from the Canary Is.
Summer - NOT amateur radio
6m FT8 RX yesterday
In all, 667 stations were spotted on 6m FT8 RX yesterday despite the omni vertical antenna being faulty and unusable on 6m TX. It looks like the YS1 station was a pirate sadly. I have copied the Americas and Caribbean before on 6m though.
6 Jun 2021
Website navigation
There has been some confusion over how to navigate to the various pages on my new website at www.g3xbm.co.uk .
For the avoidance of doubt, click the arrow next to the sub-menu not the words. There may be a way of making the sub-title clickable, but I don't know how at the moment, HI.
As an example, if you want to look at one of the pages on "antennas" click the arrow next to "antennas" first, then select the one you want e.g. "ferrite rod TX antennas".
I have made this a little clearer on the "home" page. If anything else is not clear or wrong, let me know.
6m FT8 RX with the V2000 omni antenna
On TX, my V2000 omni has a very high SWR, so I am RX only. After a very brief check on 10m FT8 RX I am on 6m FT8 RX with 31 stations spotted at 1124z, with the furthermost A45XR (5843km) in Oman. Well, this omni antenna still works fine on RX.
UPDATE 1450z: 112 stations spotted on 6m FT8 RX today.
UPDATE 2144z: 658 stations in 4 continents spotted today on 6m FT8 RX. Nothing yet from South America. It is probably worth leaving the setup running overnight in case North or South America comes through. This already a great day on 6m with an omni antenna that is not working properly.
5 Jun 2021
10m FT8 TX (for a change!) - Saturday
For a change, I am on 10m FT8 transmit with the FT817ND and the tiny indoor loop with the wire inductor. This is less good than the copper central heating pipe inductor, but I was concerned with RF voltages on the higher Q loop on TX. In RX, of course, this does not matter So far, nobody has spotted me on TX today.
UPDATE 1324z: As nobody spotted me on TX, so I am on RX only at present with the FT817ND and the loop. Perhaps I should put the higher Q inductor back on the loop?
UPDATE 14303z: K5YCM (7275km) spotted amongst 83 stations so far copied. At first I thought he was a pirate, but he seems to have been spotted by many in the USA and Europe so may well be genuine.
10m FT8 RX today (Saturday)
Since about 0800z, I have been on 10m FT8 RX with the 4 transistor 10FT8R direct conversion RX and the tiny indoor loop again. So far (at 0812z) just one German station spotted.
UPDATE 0845z: 7 stations spotted so far on 10m FT8 RX.
UPDATE 0942z: 14 stations spotted on RX.
10m FT8 RX yesterday
4 Jun 2021
Website issues?
Although I have tried successfully with Chrome and Windows 10, I have had a report that the drop-down menus cannot be seen. In the past I have had some issues where I can see things OK but others cannot.
On the www.g3xbm.co.uk new webpages (please make sure your browser cache is empty so you see the new pages) can you see the drop-down menus OK? If not, please tell me.
24GHz wideband FM
I see that similar units are available for 24GHz. although I am not sure if these are suitable for WBFM or how they can be moved in frequency, if necessary.
They are available from Amazon, but suspect they would be even lower cost on eBay.
E layer openings
We are familiar with the spring and summer Es (sporadic E) openings, especially on bands like 10m and 6m. These are usually about 1500km. Occasionally multi-hop openings occur. Some of the long distance contacts may be multi-hop.
However, I have long suspected that some very long paths are due to some other form of E layer propagation. Every June 6m opens up to Japan, which is a very long way. This regular propagation seems to be linked with mesospheric clouds that seem to form at this time of year.
EI7GL reports on his blog that there have been at least 2 openings from Australia to Europe on 6m this spring. The probability of this being multi-hop Es seems extremely low. My theory (totally unproved) is this is due to some sort of chordal hop E layer propagation. This could also account for some of the transatlantic openings.
We have a lot to learn about E layer propagation. This is one reason 6m is called the "magic band".
Latest modern gear
This morning's walk - NOT amateur radio
We needn't go far as one has already decided some of our garden flowers make a good snack! I have no idea how they get in.
The flowers in the photo were seen on the walk. By the way it is now raining, so we chose the best time.
10m FT8 RX with the 10FT8R and tiny loop
UPDATE 1454z: 188 stations spotted so far today on 10m FT8 RX.
UPDATE 1710z: 245 stations spotted on 10m FT8 RX today.
UPDATE 1922z: 278 stations spotted on 10m FT8 RX today. Best DX was UA6YW (3076km). No doubt I would copy far more with a decent outside antenna, but I am not complaining!
sBITX update?
Some months ago I blogged that the Indian designer was working on an SDR version of the uBITX. Since then I have heard nothing further and was wondering if there is an more news?
The uBITX is an interesting design and an SDR version could well be lower cost than the uBITX which is only $209 for the complete kit.
As there is hardly any wiring to do, this is probably one of the lowest cost and easiest ways to access the HF bands. Using an Si5351 synthesiser means it will be very stable on all HF bands. An SDR approach might be even better.
Roses - NOT amateur radio
Yesterday on 10m FT8 RX with the tiny indoor loop antenna and the 10FT8R RX
In the last day 433 stations were spotted on RX including South America and the Caribbean using the 4 transistor direct conversion RX with the tiny 50cm loop on the shack windowsill. 10m, when good, is a great DX band. As the sunspots climb again we can expect great 10m daytime DX. 10m remains my favourite HF band.
3 Jun 2021
Oakfield, Swindon - NOT amateur radio
This is trumpeted by the Nationwide Building Society as a development that is "off grid" using good insulation, heat pumps and no gas. As much as I tried, I could not see prices. Lots of stuff on how wonderful it was, but no prices! If there, the prices must be well hidden.
I am all in favour of sustainable houses, but please make the prices very clear.
See https://oakfieldswindon.co.uk/?et_cid=25726297&et_rid=4593245806 .
Reach walk - NOT amateur radio
10m FT8 RX with the tiny indoor loop antenna and the 10FT8R RX (Thursday)
Since breakfast I have been on 10m FT8 RX with the 10FT8R RX and the tiny indoor loop antenna. It is now 0958z and, so far, 21 stations have been spotted on RX.
UPDATE 1636z: 209 stations spotted today.
UPDATE 2005z: 317 stations spotted today with the 4 transistor homebrew direct conversion RX.
2 Jun 2021
Round church towers - NOT amateur radio
This one is at Snailwell, near Newmarket. There are far more in the county of Norfolk alone.
Solar update
My favourite website for solar data has been updated. It would appear cycle 25 looks very similar to the last one. I predict we'll see regular F2 openings to the USA this autumn.
Growing fast
Frightening to think the one on the left could soon be learning to drive!
Politicians and saying "yes" or "no" - NOT amateur radio
On UK breakfast TV they we interviewing Gavin Williamson, who is the UK Education Secretary. Instead of just answering a simple "yes" or "no" to a direct question, he insisted on giving a long and evasive answer that did not answer the question. You get the impression that most politicians are trained to do this. They all appear so stupid.
What is it about politicians? They seem incapable of answering direct questions or ever admitting to making mistakes! Maybe one day they will surprise us all by being totally frank and honest and actually answering questions!
Oh, there goes another flying pig....
10m FT8 RX (Wednesday)
It is now 0820z. I have been on 10m FT8 RX with the tiny indoor loop and the homemade 10FT8R direct conversion RX for about 5 minutes. So far today, 3 stations spotted on RX.
UPDATE 0944z: 28 stations spotted so far on 10m FT8 RX.
UPDATE 2019z: 61 stations spotted today.
10m FT8 RX with the tiny indoor loop antenna and the 10FT8R RX yesterday
Antenna fault?
Last evening was the 2m activity contest. I usually use the big-wheel omni antenna and 10W. Last evening the SWR was high. Perhaps after many years I have got some corrosion, or water in the coax. My problem is I cannot do ladder work because of my poor health and depend on other people for detective work. 😢
1 Jun 2021
PI4 decoders
A lot of beacons now have PI4 sequences. I have no idea how this compares with the more common WSPR digital mode. Looking around for decoders I spotted this from OZ2M.
8m beacons
On John Desmond EI7GL's blog there is a very useful list of 8m beacons. On his blog are also 5m beacons. I hope John does not mind me copying part of his image here. If there is a problem, I can remove the post.
There is always lots of good stuff on his excellent blog. I see he also reported a recent Australia-Europe opening on 6m.
See https://ei7gl.blogspot.com/p/40-mhz.html.
Many years ago - NOT amateur radio
Judging by the cow parsley it was at this time of year.
10m FT8 RX today (Tuesday) with the 10FT8R and the tiny indoor loop
It is now 0855z. I have been on 10m FT8 RX for about 30 minutes and have spotted 11 stations so far using the 4 transistor RX and indoor loop.
The complete crystal replacement?
Thanks for the feedback on the Si5351 as a replacement for crystals.
It would appear that a low cost micro-controller has to be put alongside the Si5351 synthesiser. I wonder if anyone has a complete solution designed and tested. Also, what about programming?
It would seem that there is a real need for a simple KISS way to replace crystals, so I'd be surprised if someone has not already done this. According to Peter Marks the controller should only be a few dollars. This feedback (that you have to tell the Si5351 the frequency every time) is also what Jay told me.
It looks like a total solution that also replaces the oscillator should be possible for under $10.
Please let me know of any links.
10m FT8 RX yesterday
 |
| Stations spotted yesterday |
Yesterday I was on 10m FT8 RX with the homemade 10FT8R RX with 4 transistors and the tiny indoor loop antenna. 127 stations spotted. Not bad for something so simple. Details are on the G3XBM website.
31 May 2021
Crystal replacement?
Unless you are able to find a low cost source of crystals, they can be very expensive these days. Some people have turned to Si5351 synthesiser boards as an alternative. I believe they can be programmed to provide outputs from kHz to VHF frequencies. But can these work with the programming source removed so this is a true crystal replacement? Please let me know if you know how.
If they can be used "stand alone" they become far more useful if they can be easily programmed. The ideal would be easy programming with a PC or Mac or even Android and then essentially a free standing oscillator module.
UK and Covid-19 - NOT amateur radio
The UK is doing pretty well in its vaccination campaign, despite a reactive rather than proactive government that always seems to be just behind, rather than just in front of, the pandemic. At the moment, the popular press is worried that the complete lifting of restrictions in a few weeks could be dangerous.
The concern is new variants of which the focus at the moment is on the variant that was first spotted in India. Most vulnerable people have been vaccinated. Of those, those who get sick are not likely to be hospitalised or die.
I guess the question is, "what danger does another another wave pose?" . Clearly, if all adults were vaccinated, the chances of the hospitals being overwhelmed decreases markedly. Personally I'd keep some restrictions for a few more weeks. Most things we can do and it would be wrong to throw this away for the sake of a few weeks.
Personally I would ban foreign holidays this year unless people are prepared to hotel quarantine at their expense. At least ban them until all adults that want them are vaccinated. I would also make all hospital and care home workers have to be vaccinated as a condition of employment.
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