FWIW. . .Also don't forget to check for skewed path (about 210 degrees -
some call it long path) which occurs most commonly about midway between
the DX SS and NA SR. It's not common but does happen on rare
occasions. My only QSOs with Ross/9M2AX have always been around either
the fall or spring equinox. My last skewed path QSO that I can recall
was with Ross on 30 September 2010. . .he had a true S6 signal and was
not copyable direct path. The DU path (at least from here in the
Midwest) is somewhat easier then 9M2 and not so dependent on the
equinox. . .YMMV
73. . .Dave, W0FLS
in snowy Iowa
On 1/9/2024 9:57 AM, Steve Harrison wrote:
Another frustrating morning on 160: BOTH 9M2AX and DU7ET CQing
endlessly; I don't think either worked any west coasters, tho. I first
heard either starting around 1400Z after I woke up and turned on the
radio and amp: 9M2AX on 1821.5 listening up 2, DU7ET on 1820.5
simplex, neither hearing me, nor apparently AA6AA, KL7KY (who only
called DU7ET, that I heard of), nor apparently W7RH. The noise levels
at the DX guys' must be pretty bad. In general, once the sun comes up
and illuminates the desert floor here, it's all over for me, which is
right around 1445Z at present. DU7ET is still in there as of 1515Z but
becomes way too weak to call after about 1445Z.
9M2AX is typically an easy Q5, S1 to S7, usually S3 to S5. DU7ET, when
I chased him last week, peaked an astounding S7 at one time but this
morning, was down a bit at no more than a max of S5 a couple times,
usually S3, but mostly Q5.
KL7KY was a strong S7 to S9 whenever I heard him, far stronger than
I've ever heard KL7SB. The other day, I CQed while running just 100W,
and was called by KL7QOW, whom I've never worked before. We had a good
QSO; Mike was S3 to S5, peaking at S7 near the end.
These "S-readings" are actually all "S-hearings", what I perceive
folks to be by ear compared to the noise floor. My S-meter is a bit
stingier than that, of course.
Last Friday morning, 9M2AX almost copied me but not quite: at various
times, he got an X, then later he got a zero; but he just couldn't
string them into anything coherent to his ears. Although we've worked
on a higher band or two at some time, he doesn't know my call so he's
not familiar with what I sound like. That's why I've been mixing up my
calling schemes: calling him a couple times, or maybe four times,
fast, slow, and sometimes interspersing his own call in there just so
he might make out the rhythms of morish-code characters and thus make
sense of callsign characters. To date, no dice 8-(
Both will be a new one for me on 160m, when (or if) I ever work em.
Ifn I can get up the gumption, I'm gonna try laying out a few more
radials today on the north side of my existing fence, in an effort to
get my inv L impedance closer so I don't have to waste a few hunnerd
watts in the antler tuner (the dang thang gets hot enuf that I've had
to put a muffin fan on the roller inductor at my old QTH!). At
present, I'm only using the north face of a 125-foot-square chainlink
fence as my counterpoise, which, of course, ain't zactly cricket for
an efficient radiator; but it's worked pretty well for working a lotta
DX so far from this QTH. This morning, I dared run my drive up high
enough to get 1300 watts output, which results in over 170 amperes of
current drawn by my 12 DC to 120 VAC sinewave inverter, uncomfortably
close to the 300 amp battery fuse rating; but the cheap fuse holder
gets hot enough to melt the plastic at anything over 200 amps, despite
its 300A rating. I'm entirely off-the-grid here in the hi desert, so
am always happy to see the sun, and no, or at least very thin, clouds 8-D
73,
Steve K0XP
DM24ad
_________________
Searchable Archives: http://www.contesting.com/_topband - Topband
Reflector
_________________
Searchable Archives: http://www.contesting.com/_topband - Topband Reflector
|