N0AX Stewed!

[Ward Silver]

83 QSOs for 353 points x 2 for the 100W power mult = a score of 706.  Or,
for those of you putting this in spreadsheets:

83 353 2 706

Although we had no AC power from Thursday evening until Saturday morning,
the grid stayed with us throughout the contest until 1530 on Sunday.
Pshew!  Even got the coffee made before it went dark.  If only they could
make a radio that would run on Coleman fuel...

Several 8 pointers on the East Coast worked, and a surprising number of
callers to my CQs from 8,9,3, and 4th districts.  I failed to take into
account the societal discontinuity for JA and broke off too early,
choosing to get up early for the sunrise opening.  BZZZZT!  Looks like I
should have stayed up a couple extra hours as I heard no JAs on Sunday
morning between 1330 and 1500.

Only heard SM5EDX here as the EU DX representative...very solid signal for
over an hour, but was unable to raise him with 100W.  KH2D was also quite
solid but was unable to hear well and KC6VW showed up right at the end of
the test and the pileup got too big.  Where was KH6CC?

I took this opportunity to test some new rx antennas and the ANC-4 that
Santa brought.  A loop; the K9FD electrostatically shielded design (6'
dia 1/2" hardline).  And the W0CM coaxial snake antenna from the Nov 94
issue of Lowband Monitor.  The tx antenna was an inverted L with 4
1/4-wave elevated radials.  We had severe icing on Friday but everything
held up well, although I had to re-erect sections of the coaxial antenna.

The loop appeared to be the quietest performer, with the best signal to
noise ratio.  A 20dB preamp would be just the ticket for this antenna.  I
was able to copy many signals from across the continent that were
inaudible on the L and much noisier on the coaxial antenna.  The coaxial
antenna worked a lot better than the L, as well.  I can recommend either
the loop or the snake.  

The loop was on a rotor so I could check for nulling and peaking.  Nulls
were not particularly deep.  SM5EDX had a definite, if broad, peak, but
that might also have been a lowering of noise level.  Let's just say that
signal-to-noise ratio varied with azimuth.

The ANC-4 was not particularly helpful, except on the occasions when
impulse noise showed up.  I didn't see much total effect on atmospheric
noise, which was expected.  My local power pole didn't act up, so I
haven't had a chance to try the ANC-4 on strong, local noise.
Interestingly, the atmospheric noise null was at a different phase adjust
point than for local impulse noise from our furnace fan motor.  The noise
sense antenna was a 12-foot horizontal dipole, fed with RG-174, about 10'
from the shack.  Clearly there is a lot of experimentation to do. 

At any rate, a very successfull adventure.  I very much enjoyed the grid
square aspect and am much more familiar with what is where in the US.  I
heard one station handing out 'CN13'...which is out in the Pacific
somewhere.  Who was this?  I didn't get the call.

Anyone out there in the Tampa, Florida area need a spare op (or maybe a
humorous kibitzer?) for CQ WW 160?  I can't spend all weekend in the
Salvador Dali museum, you know...

73, Ward N0AX CN87



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