When I started in the CQ WW Phone it was mainly AM
not SSB. My first attempt was in 1958 using a Viking Ranger and 75A2 that
I borrowed. I spent several hours
and worked about 40 stations all on 15 as I also
borrowed a 15 meter 3 el beam. Best Dx was PY0NA which was a Dxpedition by
a group of PY's to Trinidade.
In 1959 I had most of my K5MDX station assembled
which was a Single 4-400A amp modulated by 811A's
and my receiver was a HQ-110 with a HC-10 SSB
adapter. I had a 3 el Gonset Tri-Bander on a 50 foot telephone pole.
My 75 meter antenna was the Trap dipole right out of QST. The 40 meter did
not do well
so I ran a 40 meter dipole from a tree to about 46
feet on the telephone. This was broadside NE and SW. Actually
running a few Europeans on 40 at 0700Z including G2PU really got me
excited. Then working a group of ZL/VK several hours later was
great. I heard ZS6KD (Empty) on SSB but never could get him to hear me.
Same for JA1AN so I strung up another 40 meter dipole broadside NW/SE at about
65 feet. Wound up making just over 100K and making the top 10 USA. I
added a SB-10 so I could transmit SSB for 1960. And hay I worked ZS6KD and
two JA's.
The Gonset Tri-Bander was one of the first Contest
Station/Dx Station antennas. W1ONK and W1PDF both had them and I was
forced to listen to them work Europe and the middle east I could not hear.
A W6 won the CQ WW in I think 1960 using the 3 el Gonset which had an 18 foot
boom. He modified it and my dad and I did those mods but like NQ4I said it
was not the greatest Dx antenna. But in the ARRL Phone SS its was a
terror! WA2CLQ (now K1ZM) said I had a killer signal on 20. On most
bands I could point the antenna to the NE or N and run W1-3 and W8,9 and 0
for hours on a frequency. Boy being able to transmit SSB was so great that
by 1963 I almost quit using AM.
I won USA twice in the CQ WW Phone and then went to
College, started a career, and in 1973 got married. I do have several
Single band plaques for 40 or 10 in the CQ WW SSB.
Dave K4JRB .