When the conditions are like this... It's really nice to be able to get heard.
Monday, May 29, 2023
Making progress on MST
Sunday, May 28, 2023
Shack finally in order
I've been trying to get the shack moved to the new location (same QTH, different building).
It's still a bit rough, but the shape is right and all I need is to fill that space with the KPA-500 (heh)
Everything is easy to get to, and cables routed conveniently.
I'm close to the coffee maker and I put the Yaesu Map Under the Plexiglass. All notes and references around the outside under the glass. This is exactly what I use and was hoping for. A lot better than the old QTH for 16 years!
Equipment (clockwise)
- Steinberg UR-22 for FT-8
- IC-910
- UTC Clock
- FT-897D (and FT-891 on top)
- Palstar AT-AUTO (Kessler design)
- Heil Pro-7
- Vibroplex Keyer Deluxe
- Elecraft K3 /100
- Palstar DL2K
- IC-9700
- MFJ 25A power
Saturday, May 27, 2023
WPX CW Re-cap 2023
Every time I work a SST or MST contest I think "why is it only an hour long"? They are just so much fun.
- After the SST contest, grabbed bite and then got into the WPX CW
- It was S/P all the way through -- I couldn't (with 90W) really get a hold of a frequency without being nudged around. So, S/P was the main operation.
- 15, 20 and 40m were all fairly in decent shape, even until pausing 4am and then resumed in morning around 8 am. 15m was really doing well this morning. 10m (which I would have liked to work more today ) was actually in good shape. Re-worked some other stations I had on 15/20/40. But even until 3-4 am today, the bands were still quite active and productive.
- Blazing fast CW though. It's remarkable. By comparison my 19 wpm seems quaint in the WPX CW Contest setting. Crawl, Walk, Run. I'm going to focus on MST level speed as a goal prior to Salmon Run.
- I saw and missed several WWDXC people whom I wanted to log, but they were here and gone.
- By comparison the SST contest is like riding in the back of an Uber while the WPX CW contest is like being on the F-1 circuit.
Class: SOAB LP
QTH: WA
Operating Time (hrs): 24
Location: USA
Summary: Compare Scores | |||||
Band | QSOs | ||||
160: | |||||
80: | 4 | ||||
40: | 112 | ||||
20: | 137 | ||||
15: | 50 | ||||
10: | 2 | ||||
Total: | 305 | Prefixes | 221 | Total Score | 159,562 |
- There's a few things that I need to fix and repair -- the way in which I sent SN was based on what I heard -- and what I heard was the use of cut-symbols like "T" rather than "0" and I misunderstood this. I thought it was a marker BEFORE the number like SN 134 would be sent as "T134" So early in the contest I was getting plenty of "huh?" questions and so that slowed me (and the DX down, and I am sorry about that).
- I worked stations that had small pile-ups or no pile-ups. When the pile-up was 3-4 deep, I moved on knowing I could come back (and did many times to get those that were popular 5 minutes earlier).
- I did have to adjust my speed to re-send numbers and my call sign -- is that usual? The DX would be CQ'ing at 30 wpm and I sent my call at 21 and band conditions I suppose (or QRM) made me have to re-send a few times. And I am also sorry about that because it slows other people down who just want to QSO after me.
- About 1/4 of the QSO there was no way I could copy the SN. 30+ wpm and with cut-symbols to abbreviate -- it was pure noise on my end. I could hear the calls and recognize precisely when to drop mine, but the SN reports were also at 30+ wpm which was blazing fast.
Thursday, May 25, 2023
Monday, May 22, 2023
Cracked my goal
Sunday, May 21, 2023
SST results are getting better
Saturday, May 20, 2023
Hooked on CW QSO Parties
Thursday, May 18, 2023
The Swing
Wednesday, May 17, 2023
CW Contests working good
Monday, May 15, 2023
Keeping Track of Contests for CW
SST First Try
- I learned how to get my N1MM macros fine tuned. Thanks to W6SX.
- I figured out that Run without QSO's wastes valuable time. So I should switch to S/P time to time to keep rate up.
- I also started working in a section of the band (although recommended frequencies) were no stations.. They were lower -- Had I watched the spot window more carefully I would have noticed. My mistake. In total, added up I probably wasted about 20-25 minutes just working the band without a QSO in the log due to my mistake in locating the patch of operators in SST and trying to find them in 15 meters as well as 20 meters. I found them eventually!
- I had so much fun. Looking forward to the next SST. It's really a lot of fun.
Saturday, May 13, 2023
K1USN - SST
- You can copy slow speed (below 20 wpm, but above 13-15 wpm?) In that fuzzy area between "fast and really slow". I'm around 16-17.
- You want to do CW
- You want to practice CW Contesting
- You have an radio that can do CAT (like Elecraft K3) and a Windows PC with N1MM
- You want to have fun learning how to use CW and do so in a Contest.
"BILL OR"
When Alice presses F5, Alice's radio transmits the callsign she entered into HER N1MM (we hope she typed in W2BOB before pressing F5 !)
Monday, May 8, 2023
Solid state linear?
7QP M/S W6OAT HP Results
I worked the 7QP with Rusty, W6OAT.
Here's our work:
https://www.3830scores.com/showrumor.php?arg=BlaNzkygfimmj
7th Call Area QSO Party - 2023
Sunday, May 7, 2023
Deep end of the pool
What I assumed was that I would work mostly SSB and Rusty would work CW, but that is not what happened -- and I am grateful. I am grateful because the opportunty Rusty gave me was to work CW and keep working on that mode hour after hour. At first I set the speed of the keyer to what I knew I could probably copy, 16-17 wpm. Most stations came back to me at that speed -- so I had a good chance of copying most of their call. Rusty helped me fill in the blanks during the exchanges. I relied on Rusty's ear to pull out the call signs perectly but there is more to it than that. The exchange, the tempo, the pattern all was what I was learning.
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