[RTTY] Tips for contesting...

[John Barber]

Great advice so far. Good rates come from being on a busy band and CQing from a quiet spot, even if it seems a long way from .090. Trying to edge in to the middle is hard without a big station (or rare call).

One tip from me. You need tight filters, but switch them out when looking to find that quiet spot. You can't tell what's happening around you with a good 250Hz filter .. that's the point of it!

The station here has 2 verticals and a wire, all homebrew,  with nothing higher than 40ft. 14 hours in the Sprint for 650Qs ... so it is possible to get those rates up. Might not be so easy in W7 though ....

73
John GW4SKA

Wes Quinn wrote:

> >>Dave NK7Z/NNN0RDO wrote:
> >>
> >>"So just what do you guys do to get the high Q rate?  I currently run a
> >>vertical, and a KW for equipment, and can not even come close to the rates
> >>you are getting..."
> >>
> >You should be working plenty of guys with that setup.  I typically RTTY contest with 100W, and nothing more than single-element antennas here.
> >
> >The secret is to RUN.  Sit on a (relatively) clear frequency and call CQ.  You are loud enough, and you will get answers.
> >
> >The hard part is making the psychological jump from being busy all the time (tuning around, calling guys, etc.) to calling CQ and *not* feeling busy >all of the time (lots of CQs go unanswered).  The former is an inefficient use of time.  That's why one seems to do more work for less return than by >calling CQ.  The way to fill this "not busy" time of course is to add a second radio which you can tune around and look for people you have not >worked, WHILE still maintaining a run (CQ) frequency.
> >
> >But I'm not recommending this for you at this stage.  Just make a commitment to call CQ more.  Lots more.  I have lots of problems with this myself >(puny station).  I can work about 30/hour tuning around, or 40/hour by CQing.  And CQing is less stress.  Which would you choose?
> >
> >Besides, by CQing, you are guaranteed at least 1 QSO on every band - AA5AU will find you!
> >
> >73 - Jim AD1C
>
> The other thing is to be on the right band at the right time.  Don't spend time calling on a dead band, even though there is plenty of room to call CQ.
>
> It is tough to find out when to move to the next higher or lower band, unless you check the other band's conditions.  Unless someone has a better suggestion?  That is the biggest problem I have.  It would be nice to hear how the pros do it.  :-)
>
> What kind of vertical are you using and how high is it?
>
> 73 es GL,
> Wes K4WES
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