YESSSSS!!!!!

martinedwards

had my 1st CW QSO this morning.

GI4BBE tolerated my stuttering and we had a short chat on 40m.

I reckon we peaked at about 5 wpm!!

hardly DX, as hes only 43 miles away, but it's in the log!

new years resolution is to improve my morse!

eiei0

Well done Martin, and for the first DX into VE as well

martinedwards

eh?

how'd you know that then?

but yes, I made my first CW DX today. a really nice feeling

eiei0

your not the only guy this side of the water who is on HRD


And no I'm not Gerry

Keep up the good work with the CW you will be rattling them off at 25wpm before you know it

martinedwards wrote: »

eh?

how'd you know that then?

but yes, I made my first CW DX today. a really nice feeling

martinsvi

newbie questions here - what equipment do you use to communicate? what does communication consists of? do you actually talk to each other or use Morse? (please don't laugh )

martinedwards

Laugh?

not at all!!

(unless you ask if a 2mFM set will work on CB freq that is... then I'll bust a gut!!)

OK, my setup is a 39 year old Yaesu FT0101B, a G5RV jr wire antenna and an army surplus Larkspur Mk2 Morse key.

total financial outlay.... £180.

power out is around 50w.

and do we talk? well, define talk.

we communicate using a language that isn't unsing our voices.....

a bit like Stephen Hawking but without the brain power I guess!!

Morse is a language like French or Latin, that needs to be learned, and like google translate there are programs that can translate for you if you need them.

you can chat all night using Morse, it just takes a little longer than using voice, with the added advantage that if you wear headphones, you can work away virtually silently and not keep the kids awake!!

Since this first trans continental contact I've now had a bunch of long distance QSOs using Morse, and including ALL morse contacts since I started I've had 284 since mid december.

my top 20 distance contacts are below, with SSB being sideband voice coms, and CW being morse.

the PT0S station is a pile of rocks about 200 miles off the north coast of Brazil.

the K1SM was yesterday just before lunch

ZL2IBF New Zealand 11381 CW
PT0S St Peter & St Paul Rocks 3943 SSB
KC9KBB USA IL 3869 SSB
W8PT USA OH 3414 SSB
5N4EAM Nigeria 3372 SSB
AF3R USA DE 3308 SSB
RC9O Russia 3297 SSB
K3MD USA PA 3274 CW
AA3B USA PA 3252 CW
N2NC USA NJ 3206 SSB
K2WCT USA NJ 3184 SSB
K2QBV USA NY 3152 SSB
K2TQC USA NY 3147 CW
K2WY USA NY 3096 SSB
K1PUG USA CT 3085 CW
KB2UZY USA MA 3052 SSB
K1SM USA MA 3007 CW
K1RAW USA MA 3000 SSB
KB1VXH USA MA 2996 SSB
W1KBN USA MA 2986 SSB

martinsvi

thanks for that. So I'm not going to buy a transmitting device before I have my licence. Instead I'm planning to take the route that IRTS and ComReg is encouraging to take - tune in a scanner, listen and learn. thus the question - is it is what I think it is - I scan the amateur frequency till I find some action? Is it that simple?

I understand that for these communications you use frequencies around 28 - 29.7Mhz. is that the case? The range for my scanner starts in mid 80ies and ends at about 177MHz, so I'll be looking to buy some new gear. Are there any extra features I should look for?

Also, even more importantly - I live in the heart of Dublin, there are a lot of buildings around me and I don't have a chance of setting up the antenna on the roof. However I do live in one of top floors and I have a balcony that gives me some access to clear sky. Is that a surrounding where I should forget about this hobby or is there still a chance for me?

martinedwards

OK weather and the sun's effect on the atmosphere cause all kinds of funny stuff for radio signals, but, generally.......

VHF, ie above 2m or 144Mhz, it's MOSTLY line of sight and relatively local. there are many repeaters which recieve a signal and retransmit it at a slightly different frequency. it means that with my 5w FM handheld in the car I can access the GB3NI repeater near belfast and talk to folks as far away as Donegal and Drogheda.

Sideband on 2m can work into Europe when the conditions are right, but you really need beam antennae for that sort of stuff.

HF is 6m and down.

you mention 28 -29.5Mhz. thats the 10m band, just below CB radio at 11m, 27Mhz.

its a cinderella band. sometimes the wold is open, sometimes you are lucky to reach the bottom of your street!

I spend most of my time on 20m (14Mhz) Europe is pretty much EVERY day, (just finished a chat with an Italian) with further afield coming in at least weekly.

40m stays active into the evening longer than 10 & 20 and I would drop down there after it gets dark. there are a lot of what are called inter-G chat there..... G being the first letter of older UK calls..... just folks chatting away about nothing.... from Aberdeen to Cornwall, with a fair few Irish guys in too. lots of far away stuff there too when the conditions are right.

80 & 160m? not really my field as I have a neighbour somewhere close whos plasma TV interference wipes out these two bands for me , but I've worked Germany, France & GB on 80m.

antenna wise, a single wire can do amazing things. I'm in the process of building a slinky spring antenna which was used by US forces in Vietnam, but now is used in hotel rooms all over the world......

you could also get a vertical antenna mounted on your balcony. I have spoken to a load of folks while thay were driving round Europe, so if you can mount an antenna on a car that'll throw a signal over 1000 miles on 20m, then a balcony on an apartment isn't unworkable!

for listening?

I'd get two radios.

the Baofeng handhelds cost under 40 Euro, and have recieve that covers a huge range. during the recent unrest up here it was useful to listen to the bus controllers as they guided the drivers round the hot spots......

then when you pass the test you'll have a radio that can open the repeaters (at least 2 around Dublin) for chit chat on 2mFM.

then a HF radio for the far away stuff.Not sure on the Eire licences but if you can jump in at 100w from your first licence, then I'd suggest an old valve set like I got. Yaesu FT101B. 39 years old and £100. and I'm working the world with it, but its hard to limit the power if your licence restricts output.....

If you can get a tranceiver for say 200 Euro, and a reciever for 150, then it aint rocket science to say get the tranciever so you won't need to buy anything else once you get your licence.

my best advice?

join a club

listen

and research before you buy anything! the interweb is your friend!!

Oh yeah, good forum is http://www.hamradiodeals.co.uk lots of chat, and even more stuff for sale!