Sweepstakes and 40 meters

Tue Nov 5 13:16:31 EST 1996

 Well here in middle TN, things were very strange.

 I don't have the actual numbers in front of me, but I had something
 like 460 Q's on 80m and only about 240 on 40m.  Opposite of last year.

 W9WI (about 20 miles north of me) had a similar experience.

 BUT, comparing notes with Don N4ZZ (about 20 miles east of me) on the
 phone last night, he had something like 690 Q's on 40m and only 
 230 or so on 80m!

 ( By the way, N4ZZ wound up with 1212 x 78 low power; he was also sick 
   as a dog, and half blind in one eye.  What a _monster_ operator! )

 Don has a rotary dipole on 40m at 90', plus he also used a Windom at
 about 80'.  I use a rotary dipole at 98' (actually it's the boom of
 my PRO-57A fed via an omega match -- N4KG design) and also had a Vee
 up about 45'.  Couldn't get anything happening on either antenna.

 Go figure.

 73, Kirk  WR3O   ( WR3O at music-city.tdec.state.tn.us ) 

>From thompson at mindspring.com (David L. Thompson)  Tue Nov  5 19:42:33 1996
From: thompson at mindspring.com (David L. Thompson) (David L. Thompson)
Date: Tue, 05 Nov 1996 14:42:33 -0500
Subject: 40Meter DX
Message-ID: <199611051937.OAA15652 at answerman.mindspring.com>

 but Saturday 40 was so long that the
>|>Russians were trying to give me points in another contest being
>|>run in Europe!

At 0145Z Sat evg, W5KFT (with Trey operating)
>received an e-mail from Nodir EY8MM saying that they were 599 on 40M in
>Tajikistan. And I understand that Trey wasn't even beaming north!
>

I have been saying all along that with a decent antenna 40 meters is the
most consistent band.
I hear the Italians at 1800Z and can work them by 2000Z.   Recently I worked
5X1T at just before 2200Z.   VK6AS was 30DB over nine on long path at 2100Z
and stayed in until 2300Z (10 Over nine).

>From W4 you can work ZS at 0400Z and VK at 1100Z almost 365 days of the year.

Several years ago I worked all the FT (FB islands) on SSB with FT8WA running
20DB over nine
at 0200Z.

Look at the Oh2BUA web page at the Dx on 40 (75% Cw, 25% SSB) from 2000Z to
2300Z.   I had very limited time in the CQ WW SSB and only worked the last
40 minutes.  Just calling stations I put 64 stations in the log including 24
I's, 14 EA's and the rarest DX EX8, 3V8, C31, EA9, 5N0, and 5X.  Heard Oh0,
SU2, TA, A61, and A41 who were not listening up.

The other day XZ1HT was on 7047 working EU and went QRT just as he hit 5/5
to 5/6 on long path over PY (2235Z).    We surprised a YB on CW..he kept
asking if I was portable in DU or VK.

Remember 40 especially on SSB...you may be surprised at the contacts!

Dave K4JRB
2 el Cushcraft at 30 meters.

>From gclark at cel.cummins.com (Greg)  Tue Nov  5 14:45:52 1996
From: gclark at cel.cummins.com (Greg) (Greg)
Date: Tue, 05 Nov 96 14:45:52
Subject: SS and 40 meters
Message-ID: <9611051945.AA14663 at comet.cel.cummins.com>

40 was a strange band as was 80 from here in Indiana.  40 is usually
the money band but this year it was long as others reported.  I never
did feel loud on 40m, at least not like in the past few years. I also
had some EU call.  80m was the place to be for me.  The QSB was BAD (40
and 80) as reported by N9JF.  I don't believe that I have ever heard it
like that before during SS.  Kinda reminded me of 160m openings at
times.

It was fun but I'm still a bit fuzzy after all of that hash and QSB.

Thanks for the Q's!

Greg - KO9Y

*****************************************************************************************************
* Greg Clark					gclark at cel.cummins.com 	*	
* Technical Specialist				g.w.clark at cel.cummins.com	*
* Cummins Engine Company			www.cummins.com		*
* Development Systems Electronic Tools		812-377-7145			*
*****************************************************************************************************

>From 71111.260 at CompuServe.COM (Hans Brakob)  Tue Nov  5 20:15:07 1996
From: 71111.260 at CompuServe.COM (Hans Brakob) (Hans Brakob)
Date: 05 Nov 96 15:15:07 EST
Subject: SS and 40 meters
Message-ID: <961105201506_71111.260_EHM62-1 at CompuServe.COM>

Jim Funk said:

>  The strange part was the RAPID QSB.  
>  Wasn't unusual to hear part of a callsign and miss the rest of it
>  below the noise.

I noticed this same thing on 80  about 0200-0500 Sat night.  Later the effect
cleared.

Lost several Q's when the station faded to noise during the exchange cycle.
Seemed more prevalent on stations east of me.  If an eastern station called, I
went QRQ hoping I could get my exchange out and still hear him "on the over". If
I had been on 10 meters, I would have blamed it on a rapidly moving sporadic-E
cloud. A couple of times I thought someone was trying to steal my freq, but
decided I was briefly hearing another run station who was "sharing" the
frequency in my skip zone (on 80???).  They would fade "up" for 2-3 Q's, then be
gone down into the noise again.

The fading seemed independent of antenna (GAP Voyager, E-W double-bazooka, Inv
V.)

73, de Hans, K0HB

>From cooper at gmpvt.com (Tom Cooper)  Tue Nov  5 20:39:52 1996
From: cooper at gmpvt.com (Tom Cooper) (Tom Cooper)
Date: Tue, 5 Nov 1996 15:39:52 -0500
Subject: SS on 40M
Message-ID: <199611052039.PAA25825 at web.gmpvt.com>

Saturday night on 40M was hopeless for me, running QRP, in VT.  It was 
noisier than I ever remember, probably some faraway storms. I only 
managed 12 Q's!

80M was also noisy and long.  Instead of the usual East coast feeding
frenzy, most good signals were the same stations I had just worked on 
20 and 15M.  There were a lot of LOUD Europeans at the low end of the band.

I tried 160M and signals sounded fine, but the selection was small.  I worked
all 3 of them.  If or when we get lemons again, let's try 1.810.  

>From the window in my shack I can see both VE2 and NNY on a clear day, but 
I missed both of them.  The bands were just too long, I guess.

Tom WA1GUV

>From jfunk at adams.net (jim funk)  Tue Nov  5 19:58:31 1996
From: jfunk at adams.net (jim funk) (jim funk)
Date: Tue, 5 Nov 1996 13:58:31 -0600
Subject: SS musings
Message-ID: <9611051958.AA11097 at golden.adams.net>

Hi All,
        Just looking over my mult-distribution sheet.

        I can remember when SV was the *hard* CA mult to find.  Worked 18 
this year.  And NINE RI.  Eight NEV.  Seven VT.  Maine, SD, NE, MT are the 
scary US mults from here.  Without W0SD and AA7BG, no joy in Jerseyville....
I'd already worked VY1JA on 20 and heard him calling CQ 10db over S9 on 40 
late on Sunday afternoon.  I almost called him to let him know he was loud 
on a clear frequency.  Don't know why there were no takers.  He was well 
over S9 on 3830 after the contest.  New antennas or just condx?

        This contest is absolutely THE best domestic one going.  Was it my 
imagination, or were there more "QRL?"s this year and less plopping down and 
CQing without asking?  Only change we need to make is get the "CW only" guys 
on for the phone weekend and vice versa.  That would keep the rates up 
without changing the flavor of the event.

        BTW, NA7R was the *other* WYO I found.  I was only his NR 16; never 
heard him again.

        73, CU in two weeks, Jim N9JF
The Lane, The Pole, The 2-Yard Line, 14.002; Radio Contesting isn't for Sissies.