Hey Wayne...
 

Ever mess around on 60 meters?

That's a very interesting band - in particular the beacon operations
in the UK.

Hey Wayne...
 

On Thu, 13 Nov 2008 11:40:26 GMT, Tom Francis - SWSports
wrote:

Ever mess around on 60 meters?

That's a very interesting band - in particular the beacon operations
in the UK.

No but I guess it would be possible given the continuous tuning of the
rig and antenna on the boat. Is there any info on the web?

20 meters was pretty good yesterday around lunch time - easily worked
Texas and Michigan, even heard a station in Italy for the first time
in several years but he was generating a massive pileup. My 150
watts PEP and 21 ft tuned whip just don't cut it against an armada of
shore stations.

Hey Wayne...
 

"Wayne.B" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 13 Nov 2008 11:40:26 GMT, Tom Francis - SWSports
wrote:

Ever mess around on 60 meters?

That's a very interesting band - in particular the beacon operations
in the UK.

No but I guess it would be possible given the continuous tuning of the
rig and antenna on the boat. Is there any info on the web?

20 meters was pretty good yesterday around lunch time - easily worked
Texas and Michigan, even heard a station in Italy for the first time
in several years but he was generating a massive pileup. My 150
watts PEP and 21 ft tuned whip just don't cut it against an armada of
shore stations.


Now don't go nuts on me, but years ago I had a Radio Shack "Base Station"
CB radio. I bought it because it was easily "peaked up" to about 30 watts
PEP on sideband, and a few other illegal modifications. On quiet Sunday
mornings I could occasionally talk to a guy in Italy from the south shore of
MA using it and a "Big Stick".

Eisboch

Hey Wayne...
 

On Thu, 13 Nov 2008 09:47:58 -0500, "Eisboch"
wrote:

Now don't go nuts on me, but years ago I had a Radio Shack "Base Station"
CB radio. I bought it because it was easily "peaked up" to about 30 watts
PEP on sideband, and a few other illegal modifications. On quiet Sunday
mornings I could occasionally talk to a guy in Italy from the south shore of
MA using it and a "Big Stick".

You need very cooperative sun spots for that sort of thing. Right now
we are near the bottom of a *very* low 11 year cycle, probably leading
to global cooling before you know it. :-)

Hey Wayne...
 

On Nov 13, 9:47*am, "Eisboch" wrote:
"Wayne.B" wrote in message

...





On Thu, 13 Nov 2008 11:40:26 GMT, Tom Francis - SWSports
wrote:

Ever mess around on 60 meters?

That's a very interesting band - in particular the beacon operations
in the UK.

No but I guess it would be possible given the continuous tuning of the
rig and antenna on the boat. *Is there any info on the web?

20 meters was pretty good yesterday around lunch time - easily worked
Texas and Michigan, even heard a station in Italy for the first time
in several years but he was generating a massive pileup. * My 150
watts PEP and 21 ft tuned whip just don't cut it against an armada of
shore stations.

Now don't go nuts on me, but years ago I had a Radio Shack "Base Station"
CB radio. *I bought it because it was easily "peaked up" to about 30 watts
PEP on sideband, and a few other illegal modifications. * On quiet Sunday
mornings I could occasionally talk to a guy in Italy from the south shore of
MA using it and a "Big Stick".

Eisboch-

Back in the day, I had a "white-face" Johnson CB, a Turner "+3" mic,
and a Shakespear Big Stick. The Johnson had the rectifier tube
replaced with diodes, and along with a couple of other mods it would
put out over 15 watts. That, along with the 100 watt linear amp,
provided some entertainment.

Hey Wayne...
 

On Thu, 13 Nov 2008 09:43:43 -0500, Wayne.B
wrote:

On Thu, 13 Nov 2008 11:40:26 GMT, Tom Francis - SWSports
wrote:

Ever mess around on 60 meters?

That's a very interesting band - in particular the beacon operations
in the UK.

No but I guess it would be possible given the continuous tuning of the
rig and antenna on the boat. Is there any info on the web?

Yep.

http://www.arrl.org/news/features/2003/07/02/1/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/60_meters

20 meters was pretty good yesterday around lunch time - easily worked
Texas and Michigan, even heard a station in Italy for the first time
in several years but he was generating a massive pileup. My 150
watts PEP and 21 ft tuned whip just don't cut it against an armada of
shore stations.

Odd that the DX'ers who are prefix hunters can hear November Mexico in
the middle of a massive pile up. :)

One advantage of a call like mine - it's now a rare one.

One time a IOTA expedition to Fiji popped up on 20 meters and as usual
there was a huge pile up. I stuck my call in a couple of times, got
him on the third try and as I cleared, I heard my call - "Down 5".

So I tuned down five, put my call out there and guess who pops up -
9N1MM - Father Moran himself. I moved the TH-11 a couple of degrees
North and had him solid - almost FM quality. He asked me to pass a
message to a priest in Boston, got the message and signed clear, there
was a HUGE pile up - everybody moved from the Fiji operation.

He was still there an hour later working stations like there was no
tomorrow.

I got a very nice letter from him along with the QSL card which is one
of my all time favorites.

Hey Wayne...
 

On Thu, 13 Nov 2008 09:47:58 -0500, "Eisboch"
wrote:


"Wayne.B" wrote in message
.. .
On Thu, 13 Nov 2008 11:40:26 GMT, Tom Francis - SWSports
wrote:

Ever mess around on 60 meters?

That's a very interesting band - in particular the beacon operations
in the UK.

No but I guess it would be possible given the continuous tuning of the
rig and antenna on the boat. Is there any info on the web?

20 meters was pretty good yesterday around lunch time - easily worked
Texas and Michigan, even heard a station in Italy for the first time
in several years but he was generating a massive pileup. My 150
watts PEP and 21 ft tuned whip just don't cut it against an armada of
shore stations.

Now don't go nuts on me, but years ago I had a Radio Shack "Base Station"
CB radio. I bought it because it was easily "peaked up" to about 30 watts
PEP on sideband, and a few other illegal modifications. On quiet Sunday
mornings I could occasionally talk to a guy in Italy from the south shore of
MA using it and a "Big Stick".

Nothing wrong with that. It's one plus of the no-code license now -
all the CB'ers with the technical knowledge can move to the ham bands
quickly and easily.

Last night after I shut the cmputer down, I was messing around on 30
meters - one of my favorite bands and I heard a Maritime Mobile call
on the lower end of the band. I tried him out, but while I could hear
him, he couldn't hear me much at all - my wires weren't oriented
correctly and I was end on to him (I found out eventually).

So I took the cover off the home brew "california kilowatt" amp which
uses a Yaesu 500 watt amp as an exciter, warmed it up, tuned it and
got him just fine when I switched over to my Butternut vertical.

Turns out he was a Brit on his way to the Falkland Islands on a stop
over to Antartica on a research vessel.

Damn I love CW. :)

Hey Wayne...
 

On Thu, 13 Nov 2008 10:32:36 -0500, Wayne.B
wrote:

On Thu, 13 Nov 2008 09:47:58 -0500, "Eisboch"
wrote:

Now don't go nuts on me, but years ago I had a Radio Shack "Base Station"
CB radio. I bought it because it was easily "peaked up" to about 30 watts
PEP on sideband, and a few other illegal modifications. On quiet Sunday
mornings I could occasionally talk to a guy in Italy from the south shore of
MA using it and a "Big Stick".

You need very cooperative sun spots for that sort of thing. Right now
we are near the bottom of a *very* low 11 year cycle, probably leading
to global cooling before you know it. :-)

Bands have been dead except for occasional sporadic atmospheric
activity. Nothing is even following the gray line from what I've been
hearing.

As I rag chew on 75 CW when the mood strikes, I haven't been paying
much attention to the upper bands. 30 has been good occasionally even
at odd hours, but the rest - 20/15/10 have been deader than a zombie
when I've been tuning around.

I blame Global Cooling.

And Canada. :)

Hey Wayne...
 

"Tom Francis - SWSports" wrote in
message ...

Bands have been dead except for occasional sporadic atmospheric
activity. Nothing is even following the gray line from what I've been
hearing.

As I rag chew on 75 CW when the mood strikes, I haven't been paying
much attention to the upper bands. 30 has been good occasionally even
at odd hours, but the rest - 20/15/10 have been deader than a zombie
when I've been tuning around.

I blame Global Cooling.

And Canada. :)


I read or saw a report recently that the sun was in a very unusual
condition, with virtually *no* sunspot activity on it's surface at all.

Is it about to burn out? Time to change the bulb?

Eisboch

Hey Wayne...
 

"Eisboch" wrote in message
...

"Tom Francis - SWSports" wrote in
message ...

Bands have been dead except for occasional sporadic atmospheric
activity. Nothing is even following the gray line from what I've been
hearing.

As I rag chew on 75 CW when the mood strikes, I haven't been paying
much attention to the upper bands. 30 has been good occasionally even
at odd hours, but the rest - 20/15/10 have been deader than a zombie
when I've been tuning around.

I blame Global Cooling.

And Canada. :)


I read or saw a report recently that the sun was in a very unusual
condition, with virtually *no* sunspot activity on it's surface at all.

Is it about to burn out? Time to change the bulb?


Could be. Better send a union crew for the changeout. They can build a new
one onsite that is as close to perfect as anyone has ever seen.