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10m WSPR spots @ G4ILO 9 October 2012

Julian Moss, G4ILO, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from Cumbria, England. Contact him at [email protected].

The last few weeks here have been a couple of busy ones. As most of you know who read my blog the Elecraft KX3 arrived the other week. I have spent time putting the rig together as in good QRP spirit I ordered the kit and not the assembled unit. The assembly went very well....there were some bumps  I did encounter along the way. I made a 4 part video series giving updates of the KX3 assembly. This was another project that has kept me very busy and  keeping me away from the blog. Recording the video was the easy part the editing and getting it ready for the blog and YouTube was a long and drawn out process. The video series is very close to completion and it's really my first video series I have had to edit and play with so it's a little rough around the edges. I am planning to have the finished product up on my blog and YouTube this week.....well that is the plan anyway. Then there is the KX3 and my iMac computer...a new adventure for me in the Mac world. I ordered and paid for Macloggerdx, sure there are free programs out there but I opted to splurge for Macloggerdx.  This was but another learning curve for me, I have always used Windows for my rig control, logging and contesting so this is a new horizon for me. I have been "Macing" this week as well trying to get the KX3 to communicate with my Mac software (all is well in that dept now) also getting used to the Macloggerdx program. I am by far not a Mac geek at this point but I have been able to understand and use the KX3 in harmony with Mac!!! So with all this "stuff " that was going on in the shack I have not as of yet made one single contact on my new KX3!!!! Having said that I have not made any contacts with any of my rigs in the shack. I have been reading of band conditions that are up and down, I have heard of great 10m openings and then solar storms that has left a lot of the bands silent.
So this week my goals are....
1. To get the KX3 video up on my blog and YouTube.
2. Learn some more about the Macloggerdx program.
3. Go to the gym three times this week....(non related ham goal)
4. Oh and finally get on a radio and make contacts!!!!
Mike Weir, VE9KK, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from New Brunswick, Canada. Contact him at [email protected].

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you know how much I love Amateur Radio. Two of my “passions within a passion”  are operating QRP and taking QRP to the great outdoors and operating portable.

Larry Makoski, W2LJ, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from New Jersey, USA. Contact him at [email protected].

10m WSPR spots @ G4ILO 8 October 2012

Propagation is noticeably worse than on the preceding few days.

Julian Moss, G4ILO, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from Cumbria, England. Contact him at [email protected].

But during the past week, we had another family milestone event. The last of our parents, my mother-in-law, Nora Dunmyer, passed away last Monday.  The funeral was this past Friday. Needless to say, it was a hectic week – mostly for my wife Marianne and her brother, Tim.

Obviously, the photo above was taken on the day of our wedding (14 years ago, when I was much thinner and my hair had way less gray in it).  In the photo, my father-in-law, Joe is standing next to Marianne, and my mother-in-law, Nora is standing next to me.  She was a wonderful woman who was born in Donegal, Ireland into a large family.  Of all her brothers and sisters, only she and her brother Harry Gallagher came to the United States. As a young woman she earned a degree in teaching. She taught reading and English in the Catholic Schools system in New York City and in various communities in Northern New Jersey, for many, many years.

She was an inspiration to many of her young students, who have since grown up to lead responsible, productive lives.  And several of them contacted Marianne this past week, via Facebook, to let her know how important her mother, “Mrs. Dunmyer” was to them.  That has to be about the nicest tribute anyone can pay.  To touch lives in a significant way was her gift.  She will be missed.

On a side note, Marianne still has plenty of cousins and a few aunts and uncles still living in Ireland. One of her uncles was a Ham, although Marianne cannot recall his call sign.  From the times she has visited the Emerald Isle, though, she was able to tell me about the tower he had on the side of his house, and unfortunately, also about the time it was struck by lightning and how the house almost burned down as a result.

Needless to say, there was no radio activity of any kind this past week.  I had hoped to play in the 4 States QRP Group 4X4 Sprint yesterday, but that was not to be.  However, an e-mail today on QRP-L from Hank  N8XX reminded me that the QRP ARCI Fall QRP QSO Party is next weekend.  So while that is not a portable event by any stretch of the imagination (although there’s no reason it couldn’t be if you wanted) I hope to make a semi-significant effort if time allows. There’s no way in Heaven that I will be able to operate anywhere near the 24 hours out of 36 allowed.

A) I just have too much going on which precludes that possibility.
B) And even if “A” were not true, my butt would preclude the rest of my body from sitting in a chair that long.

So I will be happy if I manage to get 4 to 6, perhaps even 8 hours in of “giving out points”.  Hope to hear you  on the bands next weekend!

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP – When you care to send the very least!

Larry Makoski, W2LJ, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from New Jersey, USA. Contact him at [email protected].

I’ve been working on a review of the Wouxun KG-UV920 for Practical Wireless over the last week or two. All done now and you’ll hopefully see the review in around a month. With the Wouxun out of the car I’ve decided to have the FT-7900 in the car for a while rather than the FT-8900. The 8900 is now in the shack and working out quite well.

For example I can scan a bunch of repeater channels and monitor 145.500. A couple of contacts have resulted already. Interestingly, although the 8900 is on a triband collinear for 50/144/432MHz, on a couple of days when 29MHz has been open, I’ve heard stations quite well. I may turn the power down and see what can be worked!

In the car, I’ve replaced another magmount and am back on 28MHz mobile which is good. Heard an A4 on 29.600MHz FM yesterday. Keen to try and work some 29MHz AM as well!

I’ve been quite active on 28MHz JT65A over the last few days too with some nice QSOs into South America in the evening. I was excited to work A61BK this afternoon – and even more excited when Khalid posted a picture of the QSO on Twitter!

Tim Kirby, G4VXE, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from Oxfordshire, England. Contact him at [email protected].

10m WSPR spots @ G4ILO 7 October 2012

Julian Moss, G4ILO, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from Cumbria, England. Contact him at [email protected].