[SECC] improving 160 results

[Tom W8JI]

Thanks for the thoughts on this. I'm pretty sure most of the work is

> I think what has happened is that the W1, 2, VY2

I don't think most people consider VY2 as NA when comparing scores. It is 
virtually in Europe, plus more points for being Canada working USA.

W1 and 2 may be 1000 miles (about 25%) closer over a land-path distance, but 
being on equal points working USA at least there is a chance to compete.

> I think a better RX set up would only help marginly

I think it would help us a great deal.  The question is what can be done and 
how many dB S/N improvement is still available. I think we are going to work 
hard for a few dB.


> as I have been told by VE1ZZ and VY2ZM that they can work Europe virtually
> all day.  Plus I have heard them working VK/ZL 2 hours before we get
> conditions here.

In the morning, we generally get them at the same time here. At the west 
direction DX sunset. Some days we do better early, some days worse, but 
generally we are better from here to anything west. The killer for us is 10 
point volume to Europe. It can't be anything else.

> gray line propagation.  I remember VE1ZZ alerting everyone that Heard 
> Island
> was on 1823 at 2045Z then W3BGN saying they were 579 at 2130.  Its 2230
> before we get grayline and most of the DX is now in daylight.  This even
> expands to 80 for say A52.  I had to scratch out a QSO with A52 on 40 even
> with my beam.  We missed the window by 45 minutes even on 80.

That's sunset, and that is where they have the advantage of earlier 
darkness. The further north in winter, the longer darkness. The further 
east, the earlier.  But we can work A52 and Heard Island at sunrise when 
they can't, so it all equals out. That aside those are not contest QSO's 
unless a certain W1 is faking DX calls again.  :-).

> But one big equalizer on 160 is the conditions.  There have been times 
> when
> the Up East Coast stations have little or no propagation to desired areas
> for a night while we are working them like gangbusters.  This happened to 
> me
> way back in 1970 in the CQ WPX SSB.  I was working all over Europe on 10 
> and
> only stations in the SE USA had conditions.  One SM5 said he was tired of
> listening to me call CQ for hours.  I rang up the NA record that was not
> beaten until 1978.

That's a good point. When the sunspots come up, they will have more 
blackouts then we have on low bands. During the last sunspot peak, when 160 
was mediocre to poor in the north, it was possible to work all over the 
world from here just like at the sunspot minimum.

> I feel that the Up East stations stepped up their operating to re-take the
> advantage they had.  K1DG and W5WMU are building stations in Maine so 
> there
> will be more Up East stations soon.

In think a Georgia coast station could beat them. They problem is doing it 
from inland with that path up the Appalachians. With the west and northwest 
advantage we have, and the southerly DX advantage, the real challenge is 
hearing those third layer Europeans and the very poor antennas from Canada.

73 Tom