CQ 160-Meter Contest, CW - 2021
Call: N3QE
Operator(s): N3QE
Station: N3QE
Class: Single Op Assisted HP
QTH: MD
Operating Time (hrs): 17
Summary:
Total: QSOs = 1001 State/Prov = 59 Countries = 41 Total Score = 302,600
Club: Potomac Valley Radio Club
Comments:
Contest started fine with everything working great! Had several great hours
working locals, very impressed that I was working Illinois and Michigan with
such great signals before it was even sundown here!
But as temperatures got colder Friday night I found my receive antenna relays in
the field were flaking out more and more. I could go out there and slap them
around and they would be OK for a few minutes, and then first NE direction would
go, then the other directions would go, and I would be back to my receive
antennas being deaf. Additionally the neighborhood whines and buzzes seemed much
worse as usual. Toughed it out (with some DX callers making it through)
listening on the transmit antenna, but took a big break for supper and went QRT
just after midnight.
Saturday morning at dawn the problem with the relays was more clear. I had
subbed in some non-sealed relays early in the fall and they had done fine for
several months. BUT with temperatures below freezing they had ice on the
insides. Heh! Now I see why they are called "ice cube" relays :-)
Anyway I subbed the 12V unsealed relays with 24V NAIS sealed relays that W3LPL
had recommened to me many years ago but I had never gotten around to using. Had
to hot-wire the remote switching box to use 24V, but I had plenty of alligator
clips so no problem. Listening to local BCB stations during the morning
everything sounds great!
Saturday night, WOW, what a difference having the receive antenna makes.
Additionally the neighborhood whines and buzzes were just intermittent S7 rather
than solid S9+. I was getting a couple 10-point EU callers each hour up until
about 0540Z when suddenly EU peaks up incredibly loud and the vast majority are
10-point EU callers! Wow that was HUGE! As Sunrise swept through EU the
concentration became further and further west. The last DL was 0723Z, and after
that it was F's, G's,EI's, GM, GD. Finally went to bed at 0759Z.
Just a little cleanup Sunday morning up to sunrise.
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