I understand your comments Bill, but that is not exactly what I was
trying to say. I'm sure you don't do what I was trying to say.
I was trying to say these guys only pause to listen for their call being
sent from the DX station. If their call is not heard, or the DX station
is sending someone elses call, or in the middle of an exchange, they go
back to sending again. I have listened to guys who are in the transmit
mode 90% of the time.
In reference to what you are saying, I also do that. When you are sure
the DX station is listening, send your call once, pause for a response,
no response send your call again. If the DX station is slow at getting
calls, then on the first try you can repeat your call twice, then go to
listen, once, listen, once, etc. And as you said, you can only do this
when you can hear the DX station. And it isn't a good idea to do this
if the DX station is working simplex, because your last call will often
coincide with the start of transmission from the DX station, but it
works very well in split. In simplex mode, I only use one or two calls
max, but there are often times you can tell that the DX station didn't
get a call sign out of the pile, and so you can try him again. Hard to
describe this, but most good operators know when, and good timing here
will often get him. Also if the DX station is in simplex mode and there
is a big pile, and you can't just crush the pile, offseting your
transmit freq by plus or minus 150 to 200 Hz can make you stand out from
the rest of the pack.
It occurs to me that the guys who know most of the tricks to working DX
stations in a pile are those experienced operators who use low power or
poor antennas. A good bag of tricks is a necessity in this situation.
If you have a big antenna and lots of power, just go right over the top
of the pile.
Jerry
Bill Coleman wrote:
>
> On Nov 28, 2005, at 9:27 AM, K4SAV wrote:
>
>> I also notice similar things in other DX piles ups, not in a contest.
>> These guys start sending their call, pause and when they don't hear the
>> DX station calling them back, immediately start sending again.
>
>
> I do this. Particularly if I've determined the DX station isn't
> getting calls right out of the pile. The trick is to pause and
> listen. You don't just pause and then transmit. You have to be able
> to hear the DX.
>
> If the DX is really weak, or there's bunch of goobs covering him up,
> you can't do this. But a timed call like this will often put you out
> there in the clear. Worked for me a number of times this weekend. I
> don't believe I slowed down any DX station at all.
>
> My only complaint are the many guys who wanted to put me into eastern
> europe and insist I was TA4LR....
>
>
>
> Bill Coleman, AA4LR, PP-ASEL Mail: aa4lr at arrl.net
> Quote: "Not within a thousand years will man ever fly!"
> -- Wilbur Wright, 1901
>
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