[VHFcontesting] [222Activity] Tuesday 222 Activity Night plans

[David Olean]

Hi Zack,

It all depends on whether yu can really receive!  Any coax between your 
driven element and the preamp is a killer on 222. I have a run of 1/2" 
LDF from each yagi to a power divider i think it is about 15 ft long. 
That is about a 0.15 dB loss.  I then have a 20" piece of coax from the 
power divider to the preamp box. Getting rid of a long feedline is the 
best thing you can do for 222 tropo or especially EME. Don't believe 
anything else.

I will be making noise and maybe you might decode something. On Q65, you 
will see the direct signal with no delay. The EME signal will have a 2.5 
second delay.


Dave K1WHS

On 2/11/2024 12:50 PM, David Olean wrote:
> As Tuesday approaches, I figured that it might be a good time to 
> evaluate your 222 setup with an EME test. The Moon will be setting on 
> Tuesday and my Moonset is at 0300 UT or 10PM in New England. If you 
> have a typical 222 antenna setup, your best angle for hearing an EME 
> signal is at 15 degrees and below. If you have stacked antennas, then 
> you will do best below 10 degrees.  When my Moon sets here in Mumbo 
> Jumbo land, it will still be up at about 5 degrees out near Rochester 
> NY.  If you live down near K3SK in Southern VA,  the Moon will be also 
> at about 5 degrees. I am hoping that someone else promises to be on 
> EME after the Moon sets here in Maine. That is one reason for this e 
> mail.  If you have EME capability, and can get on then, please let us 
> know. EME condx are pretty good for Tuesday.   A long single yagi and 
> a good receiver should work.
>
> I will be playing on 222 Activity Night up to about 0200 UT, but the 
> next hour from 0200 to 0300 UT I will be on 222.080 onQ65B with 60 
> second sequences. I will be on the 2nd sequence. This would be a good 
> time to familiarize yourself with Q65 and WSJTX if you have not done 
> so already. There are a few things that need to be checked.
>
> 1. Under the GENERAL TAB in the menu, be sure to check the DECODE 
> AFTER EME DELAY  box. You might also check the ENABLE VHF MODES box 
> too. It will come in handy at times.
>
> 2. Double check the Q65 screen after you select Q65 as your operating 
> mode. It is always a good idea to look at the sequence length. Set it 
> at 60 seconds, and make sure you have selected sub mode "B" .  Also 
> look at the F TOL box and select 500 or 1000 Hz if you are unsure of 
> your frequency accuracy.  It will scan a wider area for the signals 
> you want to decode. One problem I run into with WSJTX is that it 
> changes frequency on me when I adjust some small parameter and I do 
> not see it at first.  It is a vexing problem. The trick to avoid this 
> is to remove any pre determined frequency from the drop down frequency 
> list for WSJTX.
>
> 3. Remove a preset frequency for Q65 on the 222 MHz band. Simply 
> select  the SETTINGS TAB, and then select FREQUENCIES. Scroll down the 
> list looking for any 222 MHz entries. If you see one for 222 MHz Q65, 
> erase it.  That will eliminate the problem.
>
> There are other shortcuts and important things to do, so if anyone has 
> any more  traps that they have fallen into, be a good guy and let us 
> all know how to avoid them.
>
> So Tuesday evening promises to be another exciting evening for 222.  I 
> was up on the tower a few days ago and straightened out my twisted 
> antenna, so all are pointing together again and I am not as verklempt 
> about it looking so bad. The weather up here in the North has been 
> really fine, but some significant snow is predicted for Tuesday and 
> tuesday night.  We could get 10 inches of the stuff. All this is due 
> to Pete K1PXE who says it always rains or snows on Tuesday.  Thanks 
> Pete.  It will be enough to make things miserabobble.  Looks like 
> another snow shoe event for Dave. I am trying to get some diesel fuel 
> hauled up the hill today. There is still much snow and the truck gets 
> bogged down. I may have to shovel parts of the hill to get the fuel up 
> there.  More fun and games!!
>
> Circle the time for Tuesday evening on the 222 band. Shine up those 
> elements!!
>
> 73
>
> Dave K1WHS
>
>
>
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