Table of Contents
07 : Blog
0 Post(s) for April 2025
Sat 5 Aug 2023
The day's radio action started slowly, with what looked like very difficult propagation conditions.
The data as of 0905z:
| SFI | 171 |
| A | 13 |
| K | 5 |
The K index was still rising, up to K=7at 1015z
Solarham https://www.solarham.net/index.htm showed there had been a solar flare at 0936z reaching M2.1.
All pointed to a poor day's radio - STORM G3 - and the bands were very quiet, only one or two weak signals on 30m.
I sent a few CQ calls on 30m at 1030z, and despite the poor condx I still got spotted on the RBN system at 15 different locations around Europe.
After calling CQ for a few minutes without any replies I gave up and did some other work in the shack (trying to tidy some space for comfortable operating, and to make the work area clear in preparation for building my new K2 if/when it arrives).
Later in the afternoon I tuned around and heard SM5DAJ calling CQ at 1438z and we managed a short QSO, with RST 569 reports both ways, but deep QSB which sent signals into the noise at times. Still, it was a QSO when there didn't look like much chance of anything.
As part of the tidy-up I'd re-installed my homebrew 60m transceiver and connected it for RX only (using a feed from the Wellbrook loop) and heard G4AFU calling CQ on 5262kHz, not very strong, but certainly workable. I swapped to the IC7200 and replied.Then followed a QSO with Paul in Bedale, N.Yorks, not a great signal report from him (RST449) but at least we exchanged details ok. I tend to find 60m is difficult during the day inter-G from this more distant location, much like 80m, with D-layer absorption. Nice to have a daytime CW QSO on 60m.
I came back to the shack in the evening.
The solar data looked a bit better
| SFI | 171 |
| A | 13 |
| K | 2 |
but there was evidence on Solarham of another big flare at 1910z reaching at least C6.7!
Still on 60m, 5260kHz, I called CQ few times, and then heard Rupert G4XRV call CQ, to which I replied. We had a really good long ragchew starting at 2023z and ending at 2135z. We chatted about the Elecraft K2 and also K1 and K3 etc. Rupert has built several and still uses one as his main station rig. I built one in 2006 but sold it a few years later (and regret this) and I'm now awaiting a new K2 kit from Elecraft so that I can build another and this time I won't dispose of it! We had a nice long bug - bug chat and at the end we were called by G0IIK (Nigel) to say he'd enjoyed listening to a good Bug QSO. We exchanged reports a few overs (Nigel recommending a Cootie Key for an interesting alternative to the bug).
I was very pleased to have held up a long 2-way bug ragchew for an hour, very comfortable, informal chat, very little written down, all just “in the ears and straight to the brain” - as it's meant to be.
Later I tuned around the 30m band and found Ian IK4EWX and Jim SV8ANW in another bug-bug 2-way QSO. Conditions a bit more challenging on these more distant stations. The QSO was almost finished, both guys saying they were heading for bed… so at the end, just to say “Hello” to Ian, I called IK4EWX and we exchanged RST559 reports and a few short overs. Conditions not great, and getting worse. A good time to stop.
Ian's QSO with Jim SV8ANW is now on You Tube : https://youtu.be/MWvBj8R-PBw and at the very end you can hear my call to Ian!
I had a QSO myself yesterday (Friday 4th August at 2203-2225) with Jim SV8ANW - another bug-bug QSO, and it's contained in another of Jim's You Tube videos, this link should get to the point of the start of our QSO https://youtu.be/YYNCK6KCKds?t=2343
Saturday proved to be an interesting bug-related CW day, despite the poor conditions. I saw lots of RBN spots that were totally inaudible here, but fortunately I still managed to reach somewhere and have some QSOs.
Thu 27 July 2023
- Have been thinking about building a K2
- I built one in 2006 but sold it, along with the K1 I'd built in 2003
- The K1 #1672 now lives with Will GM0HKS, in a new wooden enclosure https://gm0hks.weebly.com/shack-photos.html
- I don't know where the K2 #5542 ended up, I'd love to find out where it is now….
- The K2 had several options : SSB / 160m & RX antenna port / 60m / Auto-ATU
- I contacted Elecraft yesterday - the K2 is shown as “Back order, waiting parts” - to check that they aren't going to discontinue it and received a reply confirming that they have no plans to discontinue it at present. Kits will be available as soon as the parts arrive from suppliers - typical of the global problem with semiconductors at the moment.
- I decided to “get in the queue” for back-orders and placed an online order for the basic K2 kit and the 160m/RX antenna port module. Sadly the 60m module is no longer produced, and I have no interest in using SSB or digimodes with this K2. I want it as a pure CW transceiver.
- I've re-joined the Elecraft reflector https://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
- Looking at the archive, at June 2006, I see my own posts
- announcing the arrival of my first K2 kit on June 8th 2006 https://mailman.qth.net/pipermail/elecraft/2006-June/056712.html
- and announcing completion and first QSO on June 17th https://mailman.qth.net/pipermail/elecraft/2006-June/057085.html
- I remember having fun building it, but I didn't realize I'd done it so quickly.
- The next one will be done over a longer timescale, to enjoy the process more without rushing through it.
- I plan to document the build - perhaps even with some YouTube videos.
Thu 20 July 2023
- SFI = 189 A = 5 K = 1
- IC-M710 - set up serial control and my own Python control panel - modelled somewhat loosely on the Skanti TRP series control panel
The IC-M710 is a marine HF radio - SSB/CW/FSK - up to 150W. It's tuned by selecting pre-programmed channels, with separate RX & TX frequencies. There is no VFO tuning as we'd use it on the amateur bands - and this makes it awkward to use.
(There's a MIC plugged in mainly because the RX audio loops via 2 pins in the mic, so unless it's plugged in, or the link is made in another way, there's no RX audio!)
I wrote a few different control programs in Python to make things a bit easier. This one seems to work ok. There's also a user-programmable bank of presets - presets can be added from the main control panel by pressing the Store button.
- if I offset the RX tuning by +200Hz I can get a more pleasant 800Hz resolved CW tone.
- I'll do something in the code to do this automatically when CW mode is selected.
- 30m
- Heard CQ from SM5OMP and replied - with 60W from the IC-M710 & BVp
- QSO with SM5OMP - Georgios - Skaerblacka - BVp - RSt
- Using the M710 isn't going to be a frequent operation, but it's fun to do something different. There's no narrow CW filter - so it's 3kHz wide. The QSK works nicely though.
The desktop with both M710 windows open:
- Period 2 : 2015z
- IC-M710 @ 60W
- 30m : CQ call 10123kHz
- Answered by ON4KCD - Claude - Liege - BVp/BVc - RSt+ - Age 63, ham 40 years, Begali key
- Discovered major drawback with IC-M710 - not “single signal” CW reception due to SSB filter and the position of the BFO - during QSO on 10123kHz heard strong signal from 2E0ISD on 10121kHz. Not good in crowded bands - I think using IC-M710 for CW is a bit of a dead loss, really. I've come to this conclusion every time I try it. Time to accept it, and move on.
- Back to the IC-7200…..
- CQ
- Called by EA1ARW - Luis - nr Burgos - BVc - RCh - Age 46 - Nice long chat about keys, cooties, paddles, homemade keys, noise, QTHs, Summer & Winter in Shetland etc. Luis is on vacation away from his home QTH's urban noise and enjoying the bands noise-free.
Wed 19 July 2023
- SFI = 219 A = 16 K = 1
- Period 1 : 0700z
- 30m
- Heard G4XRV working N1GKE - bug/bug - N1GKE only 339 here, so no point trying to call him
- CQ @ 10123kHz - BVc
- Called by G4XRV - Rupert - nr London - B.U.G member - BVc - RCh - nice catch-up and chat about bug group & our bugs - Rupert using McElroy 1937 - had to cut QSO short to get ready for work - will have more QSOs (last one in 2021)
- Period 2 1700z
- 30m
- Had an idea to try using the IC-M710 marine transceiver on CW - it's not a nice CW radio for the crowded HF bands but might be okay on 60m?
- Wired up the rear-panel DIN plug with the switched key select line (allows me to switch the bugs/keys between different rigs) for “rig #2”
- and sent a few RBN TEST DE GM4SLV GM4SLV calls to see how it fared
- Called by OS5Z - Marc - nr Tournai
- I don't think I'll be using the IC-M710 much on CW - perhaps with my Python Control panel it'll make a “fun alternative” rig - like an old Skanti marine radio - but not for most HF operations - the fixed BFO offset of 1kHz is not pleasant, either.
- Period 3 : 2215z
- IC-7200
- 40m
- Band very quiet - not much activity heard…..
- Heard a CQ from DL2FCN and replied - Bo - nr Darmstadt - BVc - RSt
- 30m
- Sent a few CQ calls on 10.123 - no replies
- Heard a CQ on 10.108 from SA0BFW which sounded manual/bug sending - I replied and…
- QSO with SM0BFW - Wittich - Stockholm - BVc/BVp (& SKh briefly) - RCh - he was using Vibroplex Original Standard from 2022 “bought it direct from Vibroplex in USA” - had a nice >30min chat about bugs etc. Will look for him again - always good to have a Bug-Bug 2-way QSO
Tue 18 July 2023
- SFI = 180 A = 24 K = 3
- Membership of Bug Users Group confirmed : #318
- Period 1 1015z
- 40m
- Heard end of a QSO of GM4OAS - Gordon - Mallaig - so I tail-ended and had nice catch-up chat - BVc - RCh
- Period 2 2015z
- 20m - thought I'd try 20m for a change…
- CQ - called by LZ2UG - Angel - Tirnovo - BVp - RSt - + Age = 79
- Called by RU9UX - Geo, Belovo (Siberia) - BVp - RSt - + Age = 73
- Called by 4O6DN (Montenegro) - Don, Podgorica - SKh - RSt
- Called by SP3DGV - Genek - Przeclaw - BVp/SKh - RSt
- Called by IZ1NQY - Enzo - Camburzano - BVp - RSt + Born 1942/ham 1977
- Called by HB9DAX/qrp - Fred - BVp - lost him when I tried to QRP to match his 5W…. QSB?
- A strange sort of evening - all the people calling me were on the slow side which is fine, but it tends to make me switch to a straight key in case my slowest bug speed (~18wpm) is either to fast or too buggy for someone who's only sending at 16-18wpm themselves.
- 30m CQ…. no replies…..
- Just before leaving shack heard CQ DE PH2CV on 30m…
- Worked PH2CV - Okko - Rotterdam - BVp - RSt