Archive for the ‘qrp’ Category
Three Summits in the Wichita Mountains
January 14th, 2014 | 
Author: This trip to the Wichita Mountains in SW Oklahoma was not a firm plan. Unlike many of my SOTA expeditions, I only carried my radio gear in case I was able to use. Unfortunately, I was in Ft. Worth, Texas to attend the funeral of my Aunt and as always, at funerals and weddings, there are always lots of family and friends to catch up with. I figured that the reunion might last through the weekend. However, after the funeral on Friday most of my relatives dispersed back to their busy lives. I suggested to Cris, my XYL, that we sneak off to the Wichita Mountains for a SOTA date. She agreed, so we set out for Lawton, Oklahoma, which is a 2.5 hour drive from where we were. Upon arriving in Lawton around 10:00p.m., I opened up my iPad and put together a plan.
I had lived in Duncan, Oklahoma for eight years in the '80's and early '90's and had visited the Wichita Mountains multiple times with my family and our Boy Scout Troop, but never with summits in mind. So the must do summits in the Wichitas are Mt. Scott and Elk Mountain. Mt. Scott is a drive up and Elk Mountain is a nice 1.1 mile hike, one way. I knew if I started early, three summits were doable, maybe even four. But which one would be the third? I remembered KC5CW and KD5ZZK operating from a four point summit not far from Mt. Scott, so after a little research, Mount Cummins was added to the list. Below is a report on the trip.
For this trip I used an MTR 20/40, 500 mah Lipo battery, 21 foot collapsible carbon fiber pole and a LNR 10-20-40 "trail friendly" End Fed Half Wave antenna.
Mount Scott W5O/WI-002
This is an easy summit. The weather was on the chilly side with temps in the mid-30's when we started out. Upon arriving on the base of the mountain, there was a squad of army soldiers getting ready for a run up the mountain, something that would appeal to Fred, KT5X, but I was happy to drive up this one. At the summit, there was only one other car, so I had a pick of operating sites. I elected to get out of the wind and down a ways from the summit.
I had lived in Duncan, Oklahoma for eight years in the '80's and early '90's and had visited the Wichita Mountains multiple times with my family and our Boy Scout Troop, but never with summits in mind. So the must do summits in the Wichitas are Mt. Scott and Elk Mountain. Mt. Scott is a drive up and Elk Mountain is a nice 1.1 mile hike, one way. I knew if I started early, three summits were doable, maybe even four. But which one would be the third? I remembered KC5CW and KD5ZZK operating from a four point summit not far from Mt. Scott, so after a little research, Mount Cummins was added to the list. Below is a report on the trip.
For this trip I used an MTR 20/40, 500 mah Lipo battery, 21 foot collapsible carbon fiber pole and a LNR 10-20-40 "trail friendly" End Fed Half Wave antenna.
Mount Scott W5O/WI-002
This is an easy summit. The weather was on the chilly side with temps in the mid-30's when we started out. Upon arriving on the base of the mountain, there was a squad of army soldiers getting ready for a run up the mountain, something that would appeal to Fred, KT5X, but I was happy to drive up this one. At the summit, there was only one other car, so I had a pick of operating sites. I elected to get out of the wind and down a ways from the summit.
Operating Site on Mt. Scott
The views from Mt. Scott are fantastic, mainly because the mountain rises above the relative flat plain of grasslands. Lake Lawtonka is part of the backdrop. But it was a little chilly. The tree in the foreground of the picture is what I used to support the end of my antenna which I then brought to the operating position down my carbon fiber fishing pole.
Operating on Mt. Scott with MTR
Signals were good and I made 18 QSO's on 20 meters. When I QSY'ed to 40m I didn't get spotted by RBN so I self spotted. Nothing. I wrote it off to poor propagation. However, as I figured out on the next summit, changing bands on the MTR requires changing three switches, I had only switched two and wasn't putting out a signal, so my apologies to the 40m chasers.
View From Mt. Scott
While I was operating I heard some cadence based singing. I thought my wife was listening to something on her iPhone, but it was the army squad. Not looking as fresh as when we saw them at the bottom, but the worst was over.
Elk Mountain W5O/WI-007
Elk Mountain 8 or 9 miles west of Mt. Scott and it is a great SOTA summit. It has an easy to follow trail that isn't too long (1.1 miles one way) and great views at the top. This would be a great summit to practice on to get prepared for higher elevation, longer climbs. My wife and I made the climb in 30 minutes.
The trail head is at the Sunset Picnic Area and begins where the bridge crosses the creek. By the time we got on the trail the temps had warmed to the upper 40's and the sky was clear, a beautiful day. The climb is straight forward and the summit is large so you have a lot of room to set up. However there no substantial trees on the summit, so this necessitated a different set-up for the antenna. I set up a little below the summit and used an inverted L configuration, running the wire up the pole and then letting it slope down from the top of the pole.
Operating on Elk Mountain
Propagation was good and signals were strong. I received several reports greater than 559 and several 599, so everything was working. I made 22 QSO's on 20m and 4 QSO's on 40m. Included in the log was S58AL.
Toward the end of the activation, a group of boy scouts gathered to watch. I gave them an impromptu lecture on ham radio in general and SOTA in particular. They were very attentive. I told them that the internet was hard wired, but ham radio was magic.
Cris captured my impromptu talk with the Scouts
View from Elk Mountain
Mount Cummins W5O/WI-031
Mount Cummins is also a relatively easy summit, however finding the way to the top was a little more of challenge than I expected. My GPS took me to the wrong side of the mountain. The cell phone tower is the landmark, so I kept driving until I found the road to the tower. The cell tower site is in the activation zone, however, I wanted to get up on the summit to get the antenna deployed, so I did a little bushwhacking.
On my way up Mount Cummins
There is a lot of scrub oak on the mountain that makes getting to the top a little more challenging than you would think. In the picture above, the cell tower fence can be seen in the right. The antenna above me in the picture must be a repeater antenna. The summit is relatively large, I set up on the summit ridge.
Operating Position on Cummins
You can see the beautiful day, with clear skies, temps now in the lower 60's. I made a total of 27 QSO's with all but four on 20 meters.
Running the Pile with the MTR
This was a fantastic day of SOTA fun. I earned 22 Activator points, enjoyed a beautiful day outdoors and enjoyed a SOTA date with my wife Cris. She loves photography, so this trip gave her some material and a good excuse to use her camera.
This is the first time I've done three summits in a day. My equipment performed well and I received better than average signal reports. I don't know if it was simply propagation or the inverted L/sloper configuration was better. At any rate, it was fun.
I had planned on maybe doing a fourth summit or maybe getting up early Sunday to do one more before driving home to San Antonio. However we received news that our daughter-in-law, who is six months pregnant, was having an emergency appendectomy, so we made the 7.5 hour drive home instead. Both mom and baby are fine.
Thanks to all the chasers. This SOTA stuff is fun.
More WSPR with 20mW
I’ve been WSPRing on 30m today, still with a power of 0.2W. I think WSPR is more interesting when you use low power: it’s always interesting to see how far you can get.
20mW is not the lowest power you can use, though, it’s just the lowest power the K3 will comfortably produce. (You can set the output power to 0.0W but I’m not sure how accurately the rig will maintain the power at such a low level – something to check.
Today my 0,02W into the MFJ magnetic loop in my attic was received by 30 different stations. Here’s the list:
| Timestamp | Call | MHz | SNR | Drift | Grid | Pwr | Reporter | RGrid | km | az |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014-01-13 11:52 | G4ILO | 10.140243 | -11 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | ON7KO | JO21ce | 637 | 124 |
| 2014-01-13 11:52 | G4ILO | 10.140209 | -23 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | DL8HAF/P | JO53dm | 899 | 92 |
| 2014-01-13 12:32 | G4ILO | 10.140206 | -26 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | DK6UG | JN49cm | 973 | 121 |
| 2014-01-13 12:54 | G4ILO | 10.140217 | -22 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | DC5EO | JO31ed | 760 | 117 |
| 2014-01-13 12:54 | G4ILO | 10.140210 | -18 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | G8CRB | JO02bf | 355 | 138 |
| 2014-01-13 13:18 | G4ILO | 10.140195 | -19 | 1 | IO84hp | 0.02 | G0GSJ | IO84jc | 61 | 170 |
| 2014-01-13 14:20 | G4ILO | 10.140199 | -19 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | G4ILR | JO02pp | 379 | 124 |
| 2014-01-13 14:20 | G4ILO | 10.140224 | -29 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | M0BLP | JO02ad | 359 | 139 |
| 2014-01-13 14:30 | G4ILO | 10.140210 | -20 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | OH8GKP | KP24rt | 1945 | 43 |
| 2014-01-13 14:30 | G4ILO | 10.140203 | -19 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | GM4SFW | IO77sn | 331 | 349 |
| 2014-01-13 14:30 | G4ILO | 10.140199 | -11 | 2 | IO84hp | 0.02 | OH3HTI | KP21ag | 1760 | 54 |
| 2014-01-13 14:30 | G4ILO | 10.140182 | -13 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | LA5GOA | JO29oi | 737 | 41 |
| 2014-01-13 14:38 | G4ILO | 10.140197 | -23 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | OZ7IT | JO65df | 1001 | 80 |
| 2014-01-13 14:38 | G4ILO | 10.140194 | -13 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | SA6BSS | JO68 | 1084 | 60 |
| 2014-01-13 14:48 | G4ILO | 10.140189 | -21 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | SM6WZI | JO67mp | 1067 | 65 |
| 2014-01-13 14:56 | G4ILO | 10.140208 | -21 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | DC8SE | JN48xi | 1155 | 122 |
| 2014-01-13 14:56 | G4ILO | 10.140180 | -7 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | ON7KB | JO21ei | 634 | 122 |
| 2014-01-13 15:04 | G4ILO | 10.140204 | -11 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | DK4TJ | JO31fc | 768 | 117 |
| 2014-01-13 15:04 | G4ILO | 10.140236 | -25 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | PA1GSJ | JO22da | 586 | 117 |
| 2014-01-13 15:14 | G4ILO | 10.140238 | -21 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | DL1WER | JN58dd | 1189 | 122 |
| 2014-01-13 15:24 | G4ILO | 10.140195 | -13 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | DL1KCQ | JO33uc | 746 | 99 |
| 2014-01-13 15:36 | G4ILO | 10.140188 | -25 | -1 | IO84hp | 0.02 | M5LMY | IO91oi | 405 | 154 |
| 2014-01-13 15:36 | G4ILO | 10.140197 | -12 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | PI4THT | JO32kf | 729 | 107 |
| 2014-01-13 15:36 | G4ILO | 10.140196 | -15 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | LA9JO | JP99gb | 1949 | 26 |
| 2014-01-13 15:36 | G4ILO | 10.140191 | -20 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | SM0FGT | JO89xg | 1384 | 60 |
| 2014-01-13 15:36 | G4ILO | 10.140182 | -12 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | LA5GOA/RX2 | JO29oi | 737 | 41 |
| 2014-01-13 15:46 | G4ILO | 10.140222 | -12 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | DC0DX | JO31lk | 776 | 113 |
| 2014-01-13 15:46 | G4ILO | 10.140215 | -17 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | DC4LC | JN48np | 1088 | 123 |
| 2014-01-13 16:22 | G4ILO | 10.140208 | -17 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | DK4LA | JO54ae | 868 | 88 |
| 2014-01-13 16:48 | G4ILO | 10.140196 | -23 | 0 | IO84hp | 0.02 | HB9FGQ | JN36kk | 1163 | 137 |
A warm day calls for mobile HF!
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| Setup in the car |
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| A shot from the car of the lake |
75% Chance of M-class Flares, 30% For X-class
Solar Flare Alert:
Active Sunspot Region 11944 has a 75% chance of producing an M-class flare, and a 30% chance of producing an X-class flare, in the next 24 hours. Smaller flares are also possible.
We are expecting a glancing blow from a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) sometime in the next 24 hours.
The Earth’s polar regions are under a proton event (Polar Cap Absorption, or PCA, event). This is degrading HF communications over polar regions.
(Live data and more info at https://Facebook.com/spacewx.hfradio or http://SunSpotWatch.com/ )
It’s now between two antennas……….and some last minute exciting news!!!!
The weather here has sure cooled down and had 20cm of snow on Saturday this will at least make the ground white. At the old place there is a pile of snow but here in the city not so much.....speaking of not so much that has been the progress with my antenna situation in the condo. I have not really had all that much time to try anymore idea out. My next plan of attack will be to place the Alexloop on the balcony in the horizontal position (in the cover of darkness of coarse) and see how that does for both receiving and transmitting. I have now narrowed my antenna selection down to two antennas, the MFJ 1788 loop or the MFJ 1780 fan box loop. I contacted MFJ and asked their opinion and was told the 1788 was a better construction and the 1780 was more portable but both are good antennas! Well that really didn't help much. I called the local ham dealer and they do not stock the fan box loop and the 1788 has been on back order since October!!
I am tending to lean towards the fan box loop as it looks nothing like an antenna as the last thing I want are the condo cops coming after me. This unit is not really made for rain and is "portable" meaning I will have to take it in and out when using it. As for the 1788 it sure is more money but it covers more bands and is built better and I am a firm believer in you get what you pay for! So my delema is which antenna to go for.......
The 1780 fan box
1. It is cheaper but that may not be a good thing
2. It looks nothing like an antenna.
3. Very portable so small footprint.
BUT
1. Only covers from 14-30 meters
2. Not good in bad weather due to housing construction.
3. Has to be taken in and out.
The 1788
1. Covers from 15-40 meters
2. Solid construction
3. Able to be left outdoors year around.
BUT
1. The cost is more.
2. It looks like an antenna
3. May be hard to hide and hiding it may affect it's preformance.
Some exciting news regarding my signal getting out in this concrete jungle!
I was able to get the loop out and in the horizontal position and it worked great! The receive was very good and I was able to finally get spotted on the RBN. This are only U.S spots but with 5 watts and up to this point batting ZERO in the spot dept I am thrilled to see that my signal is getting out. Now I just have to fine tune things. At this point I have not tried WSPR but now that the horizontal position seems to work that is my next step to see how I do using WSPR.
I am tending to lean towards the fan box loop as it looks nothing like an antenna as the last thing I want are the condo cops coming after me. This unit is not really made for rain and is "portable" meaning I will have to take it in and out when using it. As for the 1788 it sure is more money but it covers more bands and is built better and I am a firm believer in you get what you pay for! So my delema is which antenna to go for.......
The 1780 fan box
1. It is cheaper but that may not be a good thing
2. It looks nothing like an antenna.
3. Very portable so small footprint.
BUT
1. Only covers from 14-30 meters
2. Not good in bad weather due to housing construction.
3. Has to be taken in and out.
The 1788
1. Covers from 15-40 meters
2. Solid construction
3. Able to be left outdoors year around.
BUT
1. The cost is more.
2. It looks like an antenna
3. May be hard to hide and hiding it may affect it's preformance.
Some exciting news regarding my signal getting out in this concrete jungle!
I was able to get the loop out and in the horizontal position and it worked great! The receive was very good and I was able to finally get spotted on the RBN. This are only U.S spots but with 5 watts and up to this point batting ZERO in the spot dept I am thrilled to see that my signal is getting out. Now I just have to fine tune things. At this point I have not tried WSPR but now that the horizontal position seems to work that is my next step to see how I do using WSPR.
rows to show: showing spots for DX call: VE3WDM search spot by callsign | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| de | dx | freq | cq/dx | snr | speed | time |
| W8WWV |  VE3WDM | 7016.9 | CW CQ [LoTW] | 7 dB | 23 wpm | 2305z 13 Dec |
| NY3A | VE3WDM | 7016.9 | CW CQ [LoTW] | 9 dB | 23 wpm | 2305z 13 Dec |
| WZ7I | VE3WDM | 7016.9 | CW CQ [LoTW] | 10 dB | 23 wpm | 2304z 13 Dec |
| W2MKM | VE3WDM | 7016.9 | CW CQ [LoTW] | 11 dB | 23 wpm | 2304z 13 Dec |
| K1TTT | VE3WDM | 7016.9 | CW CQ [LoTW] | 10 dB | 23 wpm | 2304z 13 Dec |
| W3LPL | VE3WDM | 7031.9 | CW CQ [LoTW] | 1 dB | 23 wpm | 2255z 13 Dec |
| K1TTT | VE3WDM | 7032.0 | CW CQ [LoTW] | 8 dB | 23 wpm | 2255z 13 Dec |
| WZ7I | VE3WDM | 7031.9 | CW CQ [LoTW] | 8 dB | 23 wpm | 2255z 13 Dec |
| WE9V | VE3WDM | 7031.9 | CW CQ [LoTW] | 6 dB | 23 wpm | 2255z 13 Dec |
| W8WWV | VE3WDM | 7032.0 | CW CQ [LoTW] | 8 dB | 23 wpm | 2255z 13 Dec |
| W4KKN | VE3WDM | 7031.9 | CW CQ [LoTW] | 4 dB | 23 wpm | 2254z 13 Dec |
| NY3A | VE3WDM | 7031.9 | CW CQ [LoTW] | 9 dB | 23 wpm | 2254z 13 Dec |
New toys.
Its been some time since I bought myself any new toys but the two purchases I have made really are for when I am QRP with my go pack.
Firstly I have changed the rucksack I use. The previous pack was excellent initially but I quickly understood its limitations and when full of kit I realised that everything essentially falls down to the bottom and makes the pack really quite uncomfortable to carry.
After much research I noticed a few reviews of the 5.11 rush series. They have 3 packs designed and named the 12, 24 & 72. I decided to go for the 5.11 Rush 24 which has a capacity of 34 litres which is pretty much the same as the previous pack, but this one has may compartments and sections to store the kit.
One big advantage of this pack is the MOLLE (Modular Lightweight Load-carrying Equipment) strapping that the back pack has all over it. Meaning that you can purchase extra modular pouches, cases and attachments to the outside of the pack. So far I have managed to pack the water bottles, mast and VX8 hand-held radio to the outside of the pack with specifically designed pouches. This of course leaves the inside completely free to carry the essentials. Click here for more info on the 5.11 Rush 24
With the repacking and organising of the new case I did document (stock check I suppose) the contents of the pack so I know exactly what I am carrying – and can adjust with ease what I want to carry. I documented it in the form of a mind map, and I’m sure there are bits that I have missed off – feel free to comment.
As I was packing the case I also really decided it was time to change the battery power I have been carrying for some time to a new light weight alternative.
Weighing in at a quarter of the weight of the SLA, I have opted for a Lithium Polymer pack designed by Debam. Its not cheap but well worth the investment when it radically reduces the weight of the pack. The battery is 8Ah and comes with its own fuel gauge, choices of charging adaptors and comes in its own case.
The pack is also smaller than the old SLA, but 1 disadvantage is that I cannot use the Solar panel with this pack as I doesn’t being trickle charged. So the SLA pack complete with Watts Up meter will remain intact and live in the boot of the car. Click here for the details of the battery.
A mystery at the new QTH
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| Things are coming along |
My setup is a stealth operation and really can't put the Alexloop on the balcony but I am 6 stories up and back in the townhouse I did have the Alexloop inside and it did very well so at this point I am stumped.
