[CQ-Contest] Budgeting and planning for a young contest station

[Pete Smith]

OK, I'll take the bait.

You're totally right to go with the tower improvements first.  Beyond 
that, I don't see any of those projects as really high priority.  Some 
of the premier SO2R contesters on the east coast do it entirely with 
manual radio and antenna switching.  From the West Coast, with a focus 
on domestic contesting, automated rotator control will mostly be turning 
your antennas from 45 degrees to 135 degrees - not worth the 500 bux.  I 
would not go SO2R unless you really want to explore it technically, 
because there's an awful lot to be learned by being a single op first.  
The C-31XR upgrade would be nice, but unless you're going SO2R I 
wouldn't consider a high priority.  As for the auto-tune amp(s), to me 
that is a waste of time - your SB-220 and SB-221 are excellent 
candidates for the 5 cent fix - tape an index card to the panel behind 
the load and tune knobs, mark your settings, and you'll be good to go.  
They are not very fussy at all about being right on the button.

What I suggest instead are the following:

Model your terrain using HFTA -  and take a look at this webinar - 
http://www.casadelcrappo.com/pvrc/2009-08-05%2020.01%20Contest%20Antennas%20_%20DX%20or%20Domestic_%20What_s%20Your%20Pleasure%20_%20Dean%20Straw%20N6BV.wmv
Those mountains may not be such a big deal.  Decide what angles you need 
to cover for your goals and look at how your planned antenna heights fit 
the need.

Be careful about potential interaction on that mast.  You will have an 
awful lot of resonant metal in fairly close proximity, even with 20 feet 
of mast to play with, rather than 6.  For contesting, I'd be tempted to 
leave the A3WS out of the picture for now - you can probably use your 
other antennas with tuner.

Try low dipoles or inverted vees for 40 and 80 meters as alternatives to 
your primary antennas, to give you better results in the nearby areas of 
highly concentrated population where higher angles are needed.  Even if 
they only pay off for a few afternoon hours in SS on Sunday, they'll be 
worth the snall effort.

73, Pete N4ZR

The World Contest Station Database, updated daily at www.conteststations.com
The Reverse Beacon Network at http://reversebeacon.net, blog at reversebeacon.blogspot.com


On 4/20/2010 9:17 PM, Timothy Coker wrote:
> ...
> Here are the sub-project groups that I have identified that I want to do for
> my contesting:
>
> A.)  *Automate antenna switching* using Array Solutions Eightpak and
> Bandmaster II.
>
> B.)  *Automate rotator by upgrading* T2X with Green Heron RT-21 control box.
>
>
> C.)  *Upgrade to SO2R* by purchasing FT-950, two sets of W3NQN FilterMax II,
> another Bandmaster II, (already have Array Solutions SO2R Master). I might
> get a 20m monoband GAP vertical dipole if I don’t already have the C31
> setup.
>
> D.)  *Upgrade to C31XR* with separate feed lines for SO2R and upgrade T2X to
> M2 Orion rotator. (This should be done with the tower or after)
>
>
> E.)   *Upgrade amplifiers* to auto-tuned ACOM’s or Alpha’s (when I win the
> lotto!)
>
> With my above goals in mind, which sub-project would you tackle first? I’m
> honestly stumped. Should I improve my automation to relieve errors during
> band changes with the antenna switching? Should I instead just point and
> shoot my rotator to a new heading via software or one touch of the Green
> Heron and keep my hands on my radio/keyboard/paddle? Or maybe SO2R with
> manual switches/rotator is going to give me the edge of more multipliers,
> but not really be useful during normal DX chasing?
>
> I wish I could do the above all at once, but reality does have its place.
> What are your thoughts? Is there a clear path of succession here, or simply
> a couple must dos followed by some that would be “nice” but not essential?
>
> Thanks for your input, it is much appreciated!
>
> Tim Coker, N6WIN.
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