Fredbox schematic

Fredbox 2m AM transceiver

The Fredbox was my design for a 10mW AM transceiver for 2m use back in the 1970s. It was rebuilt a few years ago and a 6m version was spun off. The same basic approach would work on 10m and 4m too, but I have not completed versions for these bands.

Even 2m 10mW AM was enough to work across the English Channel handheld on 2m and the 2m Fredbox made several 60 mile handheld QSOs . For quite a while it was used to natter across town in Cambridge. The Fredbox was named in honour of local Fred G8BWI back in the 1970s.

The Fredbox and Sixbox have appeared in G-QRP SPRAT and in Practical Wireless mags. The schematics also appeared in several foreign language magazines too. The circuits are basic and certainly capable of being improved.

See https://sites.google.com/site/g3xbmqrp3/vuhf/fredbox.
See https://sites.google.com/site/g3xbmqrp3/vuhf/sixbox .
 

Declining sunspots

Sunspot count today was down still further to 38 yet 20-30MHz propagation remains "normal", With 10m open to the east (Japan) and west (USA) F2 conditions on 10m seem pretty good so far today.

First 10m WSPR spots from Japan and USA here today

JH1GYE (9380km) was spotting me at 0834z this morning and I have spotted him too. JH6LAV was also spotted this morning

WB4CSD (6025km) spotted my 2W 10m WSPR signal today at 1224z. This was the first (for me) in the USA today. Since then, WSPR spots have been exchanged with several stations in the USA. Since before breakfast Europeans have been spotted here and this has continued all day.

CX2ABP (11127km) - South America

CX2ABP (11127km) in Montevideo has been spotted here 27 times so far today on 10m WSPR until 1856z. He has been coming in most of the day and evening   Although the band was open to North America too, I think conditions have been better. CX2ABP was peaking at -15dB S/N here. Since 1900z only locals have been spotted.

Spots of CX2ABP today on 10m WSPR

WSPR-X woes again

With exactly the correct settings, my WSPR-X running on a Win 7 machine refused to upload spots to the WSPRnet.org database today. When I realised it was not working I did 2 things: (a) I closed the program and restarted it, and (b) reset the PC clock to internet time.

Since doing these things, my "lost" spots successfully uploaded to the database. I have no idea why WSPR-X seems to be so temperamental.Otherwise I like it, especially the realtime,scrolling waterfall and support for WSPR-15, although I have only tried this slower mode once, on LF. Stability needs to be pretty good (over a 15 minute period) for WSPR15.

QRP kits search on eBay

See http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_nkw=qrp+kit .

Occasionally I look on eBay to see what is on offer. Searching for "QRP kits" throws up quite an interesting selection of stuff, much of it only available by eBay and not otherwise advertised. Some of these items are good bargains.

Touch wood, I have never yet had a bad experience on eBay when buying or selling. Mind you, I would be very careful and not spend too much. Some dealers are good (the vast majority) but there are always a few "bad eggs".

Caveat emptor.

No 10m USA here yet

Although 10m WSPR is open here to South America with CX2ABP (11127km) spotted at -28dB S/N (weakly) at 1216z, there have been no North Americas seen here yet. This suggests conditions are not as good as they have been in recent weeks. To be fair, there are hours yet for the USA and Canada to appear. Even on bad days, the USA has appeared very briefly.

UPDATE 1252z:  KZ8C (6290km) has just spotted my 2W 10m WSPR.

UPDATE 1330z: The 10m band does seem to be waking up to the USA now after a slow start.

See post about WSPR-X woes above. 

RA3APW's 100mW 10m WSPR pounding in again

Karen  RA3APW's 100mW 10m WSPR to an indoor whip in Moscow (2443km) has been detected 10 times already this morning. He seems to put out a very decent signal. I assume this is single hop F2 propagation. Best DX on 10m WSPR RX today, so far, is South Africa.

Sunspots today

The sunspot count has slipped further to 54 (stable) yet 20-30MHz propagation remains "normal". Already on 10m WSPR I am seeing Europeans (SM and EA5) either on F2 backscatter or Es.

Later in the sunspot cycle, i.e when sunspot count is very low, it will be interesting to see how frequently Europeans are copied on 10m WSPR outside of the peak Es months. If stations stick with 10m, I suspect there will be Eu's copied most days, albeit just fleeting openings, ideally found using WSPR.

G1KQH blog

See http://g1kqh.blogspot.co.uk/ .

Steve, G1KQH has just started his own blog.  Steve has frequently supplied useful information to me. I usually post these gems to my blog. I wish him well with his new venture. Personally I find blogging compliments what I do in amateur radio, compliments my main website http://www.g3xbm.co.uk and acts as a diary for future reference. I find it fun to share my exploits with others. I hope my readers enjoy it too.

Steve, best of luck with your blog.

10m JT65 and JT9-1

As my wife was having "girly" friends around I was banished to the shack.  Usually, since my illness, I turn on WSPR in the shack and monitor progress in the lounge on another PC. WSPR beaconing usually suits my health as it requires minimal intervention.

As I was actually in the shack today, I took the opportunity to try JT65 and JT9-1 modes on 10m. On JT65 I worked the USA, Georgia, Ukraine, Bulgaria and Russia and on JT9-1 I worked the USA.  Time was limited and I am sure lots more could have been worked.

Since the guests went I QSYed down to 472kHz WSPR. As before, the same stations are being spotted and are spotting me, which is disappointing.

Driving again after 13 months

For 13 months I have not been allowed to drive because of my brain bleed. I have had to rely on my wife totally.

Today, I drove to and from the local garden centres at Fordham. This is a round trip of nearly 10 miles. Both the neurosurgeon and my doctor said "yes" and DVLA agreed I could drive again. I informed the insurer too just in case.  I would probably not want to drive too far for a while, but at least I can drive again locally. This is a major step for me. Just a little more independence.

With luck, I hope to be able to resume some amateur radio field experiments quite soon. I am still wobbly on my feet though. It would be good to try some earth-mode tests from this QTH.

10m to North and South America

10m is again wide open, with lots of stateside stations spotting my 2W or I am spotting them. In addition, CX2ABP (11127km) in Montevideo has already been spotted here 5 times so far.

10m WSPR spots from a single 2 minute TX burst today

RA3APW's 100mW to an indoor whip from Moscow is again blasting in here and Karen has been a good signal a lot of the day so far. In all, another good day on 10m WSPR.

146-147MHz to full UK radio amateurs soon

Today, OFCOM announced that 146-147MHz will be temporarily released to full UK licencees from Oct 31st this year, by NoV.  Personally, I would have preferred other parts of the spectrum to have been released instead as 2m is never that busy, at least it is very quiet usually around here. If you  plan to operate 146-147MHz in the UK you will need to get an NoV via the RSGB. Note that this is temporary.

I wrote to OFCOM suggesting officially allowing UK amateurs access legally to sub 8.3kHz, re-releasing the 73kHz band and a new allocation around 40MHz (ideal for Es experiments). In OFCOM's release they say I asked for a new band at 400MHz. I did not.

Japan on 10m WSPR

JO3VSR (9403km) using 5W was copied on 10m WSPR at 0854z this  morning at a strong -16dB S/N.   In addition, lots of stations across Europe have been spotted. Conditions on 10m are still pretty good.

UPDATE 0924z:  4X1RF (3519km) just spotted on 10m WSPR.

Sunspot activity

The sunspot count today is 65 (slipping lower gradually) and 20-30MHz propagation forecast to be "normal".  F2 long distance 10m propagation is probable.

I think we are seeing the slow post-peak decline now. It will be some years before conditions on 10m hit rock bottom though. This autumn and winter should still be very good on the higher HF bands.

472kHz WSPR - instant success

Since QSYing back to 472kHz (630m) I have met with instant success: up to 5 reports per 2 minute WSPR TX transmission. No new reporters as yet, but lots of support on 472kHz this evening. Last time I looked there were 59 stations active, a new record.   G3ZJO seems to be receiving better and putting out a stronger signal recently.

6m WSPR today so far - a non-event?

Well, I am trying! Despite the low level, apparently, of activity on 6m WSPR, I have been active most of the day on RX and TX. So far - it is now 1510z - I have spotted and been spotted by precisely nobody at all! No locals, no GDX, no surprise Europeans, nothing at all. I have checked and double checked that all is working and antennas are connected. All are. Today was just a bad day with nothing, so far at least, to show for my efforts. I even advertised my presence twice on the "chat" facility on WSPRnet. A station on the south coast of the UK said he was also trying 6m. I'll keep trying for a few more hours. Things just might change.

Even on 472kHz last night I was frequently getting 4 reports a call with just 5mW ERP. On 6m I am using an ERP of around 1W (30dBm) but it is doing me no good it seems!

There are just 16 spots for 6m in the worldwide WSPRnet database today. Not the best of days clearly!

UPDATE 1615z:  Just looked at the 10m database on WSPRnet. Although there is some transatlantic activity, it is not exactly great. Looks like today has been quite poor generally.

UPDATE 1922z:  Still no reports in/out on 6m.Will be QSYing to 472kHz WSPR shortly.

UPDATE 1924z:   Well, that was a waste of time on 6m today. Not a single report given or received all day on 6m, and others seemed to be having a bad time too. QSYing now to 472kHz WSPR.

Simple,but good,DC transceiver kits

At under $30 the Hendricks Kits DCxx series of direct conversion transceivers look good value. See http://www.qrpkits.com/. With a decent mixer, these rigs should do better than many. The image below is actually on the Hendricks Kits site. Link to image will be removed if this is a problem.

http://www.qrpkits.com/images/DXxxB5.jpg

Ploughing a lonely furrow on 6m WSPR

There are very few active stations on 6m WSPR, but I am giving it a try!  The best I can hope for are some locals, some GDX, and just maybe a fleeting bit of Es into somewhere in Europe. The latter is a low chance I think but not zero. I shall probably stick around on 6m until after teatime. In the Far East there has been 6m TEP JA-VK but the UK is a bit too far north.

On 6m I am using a vertical with about 30dBm ERP. This is usually OK for GDX out to about 200km off planes.

Sunspots

Today's sunspot count has fallen to 61 and 20-30MHz propagation is forecast to be "poor". I am currently on 6m and I have not checked out 10m today. Long distance F2 propagation may be more problematic on 10m today.

Time to QSY to 472kHz, 6m tomorrow?

10m has been in good shape again today, but at the moment it is getting too predictable, even a little boring! Every single day it opens to the USA and frequently much further.

So, I shall be QSYing down to 472kHz quite soon this evening where there are already 37 active stations on WSPR.

Tomorrow I may well try a different band, possibly 6m.

UPDATE 1940z:  G3WCB sent this screen shot of my signal last night to the RSGB's LF group. I am the signal near 693. Weak but clear.

10m to the USA

10m WSPR opened to the USA just after 1200z here today. The 10m band has opened to the USA every day now for weeks and weeks by F2.

UPDATE 1355z:  As well as all the  USA stations, there is a wide spread of stations from across Europe too. FZ5ZX and TJ3TS are also coming through reliably from the Indian Ocean and Africa respectively. Not sure if FZ5ZX is a Reunion Is local or a visitor? FR4OZ (9733km) was spotted at 1444z. He is a new station to me, the third on Reunion Is. He claims to be using 5mW but I think this is an error. Otherwise he was putting in a remarkable signal at -3dB S/N. I find it hard to believe 5mW somehow.

100mW from RA3APW on 10m WSPR

Yet again, my old work colleague Karen RA3APW in Moscow is putting an excellent signal into the UK on 10m WSPR using a genuine 100mW from his Ultimate 3 beacon. It really is very impressive. Last time we spoke he was using a small 10m antenna in the shack as well! Not sure if the same antenna is being used.

UPDATE 1345z:  So far, 11 spots of RA3APW's 100mW beacon on 10m WSPR.

Sunspots

Sunspot count today is 75 and 20-30MHz propagation "normal".   Judging by the stations copied on 10m JT65, and recent WSPR spots, conditions on 10m seem pretty good.

10m JT65

This morning, I gave JT65 a go on 10m and managed to work Russia, Ukraine and Georgia.  Copied, but not worked, were China, Japan and New Zealand. I have now gone back to WSPR as it requires less manual intervention.

21 unique (I think) with 5mW ERP on 472kHz WSPR

As far as I can tell, I have now had reports from 21 unique stations on 472kHz WSPR when using 5mW ERP (or less). A new reporter this evening is G3ZJO (79km). Up to now,  Eddie had been unable to decode me: I was just too weak and in the noise.  Maybe he has improved his RX?  His reports (4 so far this evening) are right on the edge at -28 to -30dB S/N.

My best DX report remains GM4SLV (896km) back in the summer. My best DX reception here on 472kHz is Italy at 1815km some evenings ago.  I have still to receive any stateside stations.

On 500kHz I had far more reports. I think my antenna at the newer QTH is poorer and there are fewer different stations active within my range.

Judging by my results with NOTHING special in antennas and grounds for 472kHz. I can recommend 472kHz WSPR to everyone. Even just a few new reporters  with RX only would be very nice.

UPDATE 2145z: IZ7PDX (1815km) already spotted at 2136z. Very early on 472kHz WSPR.

UPDATE 2212z:  About to reset the PC clock and turn down the TX percentage. I want to have a good chance of copying some decent DX tonight. Conditions look very good so far.

Stateside DXing on 10m WSPR

10m really is getting too easy this autumn. These are the most recent recent spots on 10m WSPR this evening.

10m WSPR spots this early evening

Oh, G8LCO told me in an email that I missed a great opening to the USA on 472kHz last night  - of course it was the night I had everything turned OFF because of storms - Sod's Law! In earlier years I have copied the USA from my old QTH, on 500kHz,  but not yet on 472kHz and at the new QTH.

From Southgate News - very low cost 70cm handhelds

See http://www.southgatearc.org/news/2014/october/price_of_70cm_handhelds_falls.htm#.VDP48MnTCSo  .
This is incredible: a 5W handheld for less than £8.

Looking on eBay, just £6.99 will buy a 70cms unit with charger from Singapore. Tell  me, how can ANYONE make money on these?

Thanks to G1KQH, a link to a review:
http://hamgear.wordpress.com/2012/08/11/review-baofeng-bf-666s-bf-777s-bf-888s-and-look-alikes/

Sunspots

Today's sunspot count has slipped back to 86 but the 20-30MHz forecast is "good".   Already 10m WSPR is producing yet more F2 DX. Long may it continue. If there are USA stations looking, I might even try 6m WSPR in case there is any transatlantic F2 propagation.

UPDATE 1427z: Sadly 6m WSPR activity is very very low. I'll stick with 10m for now.

Late 10m WSPR start today

Last night I went QRT quite early because of nearby storm risks: the lightning map showed flashes quite close last evening. Until a few minutes ago I ventured (on the bus) into Cambridge for a U3AC course. This was my first excursion on my own for over a year! The course is good on Human Evolution.

10m WSPR was turned on a few minutes ago. As well as lots of USA stations, I see my 2W was spotted in Australia by VK5MR (16144km) at 1358z today. The 10m band is in good shape again.

Great to log a HUGE signal from Karen RA3APW (2443km) in Moscow. He runs a genuine 100mW from an Ultimate 3 kit.

UPDATE 1440z:  RV3DQC (2523km) is a collosal +7dB S/N  signal on 10m WSPR. This is either single hop F2 (most likely) or Es.  I think the former is more likely.

Giant solar filament

More data c/o G1KQH again, this time something that appeared in The Register.

See

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/10/05/gigantic_solar_filament_snakes_around_the_sun/

10m WSPR results today

I have just been comparing my 10m WSPR results today with fellow local G0LRD (25km away). He is copying FAR more than I am this morning - stations across Europe, Russia and Australia whereas I have apparently copied NOTHING and I've only been spotted by the locals.  It could be antennas, WSPR-X playing up, or something else. I have just restarted WSPR-X in case this is the reason. Over the weekend I was getting spots from distant places with just 500mW.   It  is odd as G0LND was spotting RA3APW (2466km) running a genuine 100mW very well indeed. I used to work with RA3APW (Karen) years ago. I certainly should have copied this station. Odd.

UPDATE 1318z:  Well, I don't understand this at all. Nothing had changed (i.e all WSPR-X settings were as before which worked previously), but I had to switch WSPR-X  to Direct-X input before decodes were successful and were being uploaded. Now all seems to be well again after a wasted morning. I think I have to note which settings (i.e. PC assignment of audio settings) work, then make sure these are selected next time WSPR-X is opened, rather than assume the same PC settings are assigned when the software is opened. I think this was my problem earlier. Darn it.

Sunspots today

The sunspot count has dropped to 106 (stable) but 20-30MHz propagation is "normal". We should expect decent F2 DX today again on 10m. Yesterday was very good.

UPDATE 1535z:  The 20-30MHz propagation forecast has been upgraded to "good" from "normal". Since sorting out my issue (soundcard settings) with WSPR-X I am seeing lots of USA stations decoding now.  My best DX spot from the USA currently is WA7HL (8508km) in DM51ck square which is Arizona.   In"the old days" WA7 would have been Washington state or nearby.  No longer!

Time to QSY to 472kHz WSPR

Having been spotted in ZL this morning on 10m WSPR, I think it is time to QSY dowm to MF for the evening. At the moment, there are 56 stations active on 472kHz WSPR, which is a lot. It gives my 5mW ERP a chance of being copied by some new stations.

In the last 2 weeks I have been spotted by 14 unique stations as follows:

Unique WSPR spots of my 5mW ERP in last 2 weeks on 472kHz

I don't know how to check 472kHz spots received for the whole of this year as WSPRnet only allows me to look back for a maximum of 2 weeks. I can do it manually but would prefer an automatic way if one exists. Anyone know how to do this please?

UPDATE 1820z:   DH5RAE (995km) already spotted very early evening.  G4XRV (87km) is an all time new reporter (I think) since the table above was created, making 15 unique reporters of my 5mW ERP in the last 2 weeks on 472kHz WSPR.

UPDATE 1940z:  G8ALS (126km) is the 16th unique reporter of my 5mW ERP 472kHz WSPR in the last 2 weeks. 

UPDATE 2135z: Most of my 472kHz WSPR transmissions this evening are receiving 4-6 spots per 2 minute TX burst, which is not bad for a genuine 5mW ERP

10m WSPR - locals compared

G4KPX (14km away) seems to be using the same power as me (I suspect another FT817?) but I am not sure what antenna he is using. I know Richard is very keen on magnetic loops. Looking at his spots sent and received he seems to be getting quite a few more than me.

I know my antenna could be better, but in my present poor health think it unlikely it will be changed.  It seems clear to me that I am missing some stations because of my antenna on 10m.

G0LRD (25km) seems to get fewer spots than Richard, but usually gets better results than me.

UPDATE 1325z: The first USA spot with me was at 1226z whereas with G4KPX was 3 hours sooner than me!  Antennas matter if you want first class results on 10m. Presumably whatever antenna G4KPX is using has a lower take-off angle and is more efficient.

Receiving the Russian ZEVS transmissions on 82Hz (yes Hertz!)

See http://www.vlf.it/zevs/zevs.htm .

Quite a few VLF/ELFers attempt to copy the Russian ZEVS transmissions to deeply submerged nuclear subs at around 82Hz, yes, you read right, Hertz. At these frequencies even a few watts ERP penetrate deeply in the sea. The Americans used a similar system called Project Sanguine at around 76Hz , but this has now gone QRT. I think they use green lasers now?

The ZEVS data rate is low and usually there are a couple of transmissions a day. Usually Spectrum Laboratory software is needed for long term stability. Several people have been successful, although I have still to try.

I hope the transmissions are just tests these days!

ZL - my best ever 10m WSPR spot on TX

This morning on 2W 10m WSPR at 1044z I was spotted in New Zealand by ZL1RS (18047km) at a relatively strong -17dB S/N. He was in RF64vs square, which is in/near Kirikiri on North Island. Years ago I worked ZL on 10m QRP SSB just before heading to work. The 10m band is in great shape today.

Today's ZL report suggests, if he has a quiet location with a low noise floor, he might  have copied me with 20 times less power i.e. around 100mW ERP.

UPDATE 1135z:  South America is putting in an early appearance with PU2UIB (9524km) spotting my 2W WSPR as early as 1052z this morning at -22dB S/N.

Unique 10m WSPR reports of my 2W this morning

Sunspots and 10m conditions like Saturday?

Sunspot count today remains at 128 (as yesterday) and 20-30MHz propagation is again "normal".  I guess it depends on how stable things are, but already 10m WSPR is open to LA1IC (1044km). No real DX outside Europe seen yet though on 10m WSPR.

UPDATE 0930z:  Guess who spoke too soon?  VK7AB (17342km) near Hobart and FR5ZX (9740km) both spotted on 10m WSPR at 0918z.  LOTS of Europeans being copied from across the continent.

GB3MCB (144.469MHz)

You may recall I had not copied this 2m Cornish beacon, even on MS pings here in East Anglia and was wondering why.  Well, it turns out it is off air because it interferes with a local repeater.  I was actually quite pleased to read this - my kit was not deaf after all. On 2m I use the FT817ND with a 3el beam.The QTH is on an East Anglian "hill" i.e. a small bump. In UKAC Tuesday evening contests I can usually work 200km+ with 5W from home.  In the last UKAC 2m contest I worked a /P station in Scotland, which was much further.

UPDATE 5.10.14 0932z:   According to the beacon keeper, they plan to turn the 2m beacon back on at GB3MCB when coax has been replaced and antennas re-sited. It is a small group though and funds are tight.