tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post4736852924441135037..comments2024-03-28T08:06:43.198-04:00Comments on The Silicon Graybeard: Where I Was, What I Was DoingSiGraybeardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00280583031339062059noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-68889640547849449872022-06-15T07:53:02.220-04:002022-06-15T07:53:02.220-04:00Around here, Hawaii is pretty workable on every HF...Around here, Hawaii is pretty workable on every HF band. I have them confirmed on 80 to 10. On 6m, they're very hard. It has to be either F layer skip or F and E layers combined. It's a combination of both the distance, the angles with respect to the magnetic equator and the population size. Same thing with Alaska. <br /><br />Right now, end-fed half wave (EFHW) antennas are rather popular among the guys who go portable with low power rigs and set up in a park or out hiking. I think it's the locations those guys are operating from that makes the EFHW seem to work well. <br /><br />Remember the Three Laws of Antennas:<br />First Law: anything you can put up works better than nothing at something.<br />Second Law: nothing is best at everything.<br />Third Law: whatever you can put up won't be as good as you'd like. Unless you have a Jeff Bezos-level budget including the property to match.<br /><br />If you haven't seen it, <a href="https://thesilicongraybeard.blogspot.com/2020/06/a-ham-radio-series-4-antennas-tuners.html" rel="nofollow">this post</a> may be helpful. <br />SiGraybeardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00280583031339062059noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-24651754377578441542022-06-15T07:38:42.653-04:002022-06-15T07:38:42.653-04:00I uploaded my logs onto LOTW Monday and checked a ...I uploaded my logs onto LOTW Monday and checked a few of the contacts that were there already (except one guy who goes through a QSL manager). I was going to give a few more days for everyone to upload their logs and see if he confirmed it. I had around 70 QSOs, so certainly not competitive in the contest, but had a lot of fun moments.<br />SiGraybeardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00280583031339062059noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-91738068998721516942022-06-15T02:02:46.758-04:002022-06-15T02:02:46.758-04:00I was out in the countryside listening to my litt...I was out in the countryside listening to my little shortwave, with a wire run to my literal flagpole Sunday night. GREAT DX. I spent a while listening to AH6U BOOMING in from Maui on 20m SSB. Crazy big signal. And I could hear his QSO with western Canada, then northern California (although quiet), and Missouri, also loud (in rural Texas, 2 hours north of Houston.) I also heard San Juan, PR, and Barbados checking in earlier in the evening. <br /><br />Yeah, I think I'm moving "get a proper antenna up, and find somewhere to put a real radio" up my priority list.... but in the mean time, it is a lot of fun to sit on the dock and just spin the dial.<br /><br />nicknick flandreyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09481936223334437463noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-53497191942718330882022-06-14T23:06:33.878-04:002022-06-14T23:06:33.878-04:00Cool...you snagged a JA on 6!Cool...you snagged a JA on 6!drjimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05647484115197408897noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1592992209402300549.post-53636681751672434562022-06-13T23:43:57.867-04:002022-06-13T23:43:57.867-04:00Sort of reminds me of dad and his CB radios in the...Sort of reminds me of dad and his CB radios in the early 70's in South Jersey. Said the only area he couldn't reach was CA. Couldn't get over the Sierras. <br /><br />And learning the etiquette of antennas and heaters. Seems someone local didn't bother to set up (or maybe use) a focused x/y antenna, and did it running a lot of boost. IIRC, he had his coax pinned or stapled as an object lesson. Dad had a 500w heater on his base system, and 50w in his car, with his antennas on top of a 4 story building.<br /> I don't recall why I was driving his car in No Jersey one evening, but I was listening to someone in GA, which seemed a bit unusual for a vehicle whip antenna and radio.Willhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00722792638246578812noreply@blogger.com