Cushcraft 402CD

Thu Oct 12 22:49:46 EDT 1995

Several people told me to forget the HyGain 40 meter antennas, and go with
the Crunchcraft 402CD. This seems to be very weak mechanically ( W6QHS has
written volumes on how to prop it up!)
but plays well electrically. Has Cushcraft beefed up their design based on
all the mods that have been suggested? How have you guys kept yours up, and
what is your overall opinion of this antenna?
Are there any others that I should consider (Force perhaps?)

Thanks,

Will

>From Frank Donovan <donovanf at sgate.com>  Fri Oct 13 03:29:35 1995
From: Frank Donovan <donovanf at sgate.com> (Frank Donovan)
Date: Thu, 12 Oct 1995 22:29:35 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: No more printed contest rules in QST?
Message-ID: <Pine.OSF.3.91.951012220720.24055D-100000 at jekyll.sgate.com>

KM0L's note reminds me that seeing my K1LPL callsign in QST was very 
strong motivator for my teenage contesting efforts in the early 1960s!

Many of you remember the CD parties, and the magic 100K score needed 
to make the QST high claimed score listings on CW and the mere 5K needed on 
Phone!  (Phone wasn't easy with my Harvey Wells TBS-50C, Hallicrafters S-108
and dipoles, but it didn't prevent me from getting listed - - consistently!)

A similarly powerful motivator was the band-country boxes used in the 
ARRL DX Competition results, which allowed an operator with a modest 
station to get his results prominently listed in QST!

Lets face it, contesting is fun (isn't that why we all do it, some after 
30 years or more?)!  Anything the sponsors, such as ARRL and CQ, can do to 
encourage more hams to take the plunge is bound to help.  Space in their 
magazines is best used to promote the contest and document the results rather
than detailing the arcane rules.  Surely serious competitors will not be 
handicapped by not having detailed rules printed in the magazine.

73
Frank
W3LPL
donovanf at sgate.com

On Thu, 12 Oct 1995, Stephen Lufcy wrote:

> When I started contesting (so long ago I can't remember when) my main 
> motivation for submitting my results was to see my call published in the 
> national magazine. I believe the removal of contest rules and results in QST
> would result in a drastic reduction in submitted logs, which is how they 
> gauge the success of the event. I hope they don't do it.
> de KM0L (ex WB0LFY, KN0OXJ)

>From Tony Brock-Fisher <fisher at hp-and2.an.hp.com>  Thu Oct 12 17:35:58 1995
From: Tony Brock-Fisher <fisher at hp-and2.an.hp.com> (Tony Brock-Fisher)
Date: Thu, 12 Oct 1995 12:35:58 -0400
Subject: ARRL RULES BOOK
Message-ID: <9510121635.AA09817 at hp-and2.an.hp.com>

I think in general the idea of moving the rules to a separate book
sucks. So now to keep current, I have to go buy a book full of fine print?
Probably once a year, to keep up with every rules change? I agree that
this will not help in encouraging new blood to contesting.

The only thing that might make this more palatable would be if ARRL 
would also put the rules up on their WEB page. At least that way
I wouldn't have to go buy a new book every year. At K1DG's Dayton
contest seminar, survey results showed that 100% of serious contesters
are on the internet.

-Tony, K1KP, fisher at hp-and.an.hp.com

>From w7ni at teleport.com (Stan Griffiths)  Fri Oct 13 04:11:07 1995
From: w7ni at teleport.com (Stan Griffiths) (Stan Griffiths)
Date: Thu, 12 Oct 1995 20:11:07 -0700
Subject: FW: No more printed contest rules in QST?
Message-ID: <199510130311.UAA01116 at desiree.teleport.com>

WB4iUX wrote:
>Ladies and Gentlemen, the pen is mightier than the keyboard.  Please write
>your directors and K1ZZ if you find this as unsettling as I do.  (NB:  count
>the number of pages in Contest Corral and see what a very small percentage
>of pages they occupy in a typical monthly issues of QST.)

It seems to me that if contestors occupy as much of the band as the
non-contestors say we do (meaning contesting is a very popular activity),
then it follows that we should occupy a proportional piece of QST . . .

Stan  W7NI at teleport.com

>From George Cook <george at epix.net>  Fri Oct 13 04:47:15 1995
From: George Cook <george at epix.net> (George Cook)
Date: Thu, 12 Oct 1995 23:47:15 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Rad Shack DSP
Message-ID: <Pine.SUN.3.91.951012234536.969C-100000 at peach.epix.net>

On Wed, 11 Oct 1995, Greg Becker wrote:

> 
> I saw a bunch of traffic recently (within the past few months) about the 
> Radio Shack DSP unit, but can't find anything in my archives.
> 
> Local store has them on clearance - any comments for use on the 
> second/S&P contest radio? I have an IC-725, which doesn't have the best 
> filtering...
> 

Let me give you my quick summation
This item is THE single worst piece of radio equipment I have ever 
purchased.  This would include even the MFJ 2 meter ground plane I once 
purchased while really drunk.
GC

*************************************************
* George Cook   AA3JU  Bangor, PA  FN21         *
* george at peach.epix.net  AA3JU at N3IQD.EPA.USA.NA *
* If you're not FRC remember:...............    *
* .......There's no shame in being 2nd best!    *
*************************************************

>From George Cook <george at epix.net>  Fri Oct 13 05:07:04 1995
From: George Cook <george at epix.net> (George Cook)
Date: Fri, 13 Oct 1995 00:07:04 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: PA QSO Party
Message-ID: <Pine.SUN.3.91.951013000423.2205A-100000 at peach.epix.net>

This weekend is the annual Pennsylvania QSO PArty.

I hope that all of you will get on for at least a few contacts.  Good way 
to get your teeth sharp for the upcomming CQWWs!

OK well maybe not but get on anyway especially if you happent to live in 
Alaska, HI or Idaho!

See you on the air

Alpha Alpha Three Japan United

*************************************************
* George Cook   AA3JU  Bangor, PA  FN21         *
* george at peach.epix.net  AA3JU at N3IQD.EPA.USA.NA *
* If you're not FRC remember:...............    *
* .......There's no shame in being 2nd best!    *
*************************************************

>From Tony and Celia Becker <becker at shell.portal.com>  Fri Oct 13 02:44:31 1995
From: Tony and Celia Becker <becker at shell.portal.com> (Tony and Celia Becker)
Date: Thu, 12 Oct 1995 21:44:31 -0400
Subject: PED and SS
Message-ID: <199510130439.VAA13866 at nova.unix.portal.com>

At 10:11 AM 10/12/95 -0700, Jim, WA6SDM wrote:

>Is there a way to get PED to send and receive SS format messages?

The file format is documented in the file PED.DOC.  

<<Data file>>

 Ped has so simple data structure that you can make your own data easily.

 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
 |<---  CALL SIGN  ---->|  |<------>| 
                               |
                               +------ CONTEST NUMBER

 Extension must be '.PED'.(ex. ARRL.PED)

I have made up exchange files for CQWPX and ARRLDX using the calls in the
MASTER.DTA and they are available via ftp.  Look for the files AE0MVPED.ZIP,
AE0MPED.ZIP and AE0MREAD.ME on John, K2MM's ftp site, MasPar.MasPar.com in
the /pub/k2mm/ped directory.

You or I could make up some files for SS, but the format allows all exchange
data to fit in require 4 bytes sent _after_ the callsign so we would have to
leave off more than half of the exchange.

Author JE2MAS has been transfered out of Japan, is no longer providing
support for this version of PED, and is devoting his limited spare time to a
new greatly extended version, XPED.  

PED is freeware, so I wouldn't expect him to have much motivation to do
something just for a USA domestic contest anyway.  I have been trying to
find some software person (I'm not one) who is interested in writing an SS
only CT simulator too.

AE0M, Tony Becker - becker at shell.portal.com - Silicon Valley, U.S.A.