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FT817ND QRP transceiver

I have owned an FT817 practically since it was first released in the UK back in 2000. The FT817ND was bought this spring as a second QRP rig along with a Z817 auto-ATU.  The transceivers are mostly used at home. They are ideal for digital modes.

In my view, the FT817ND is the very best rig available. My FT817ND was just under 500 pounds for cash, brand new with 2 yrs warranty. The nearest rig (about 5 times larger!) was the FT7 10W radio which did not cover WARC bands, much of 10m , 6m, 2m or 70cm.

The FT817ND could be further improved in several ways but if 5W (or less) is all you need, then this is an excellent radio. The KX3 is no doubt a better radio but is far more expensive (here in the UK) and is less suited for home use in my view. For the price of one fully loaded KX3 you can buy two FT817ND’s in the UK.

If you have never owned an FT817ND you don’t know what you’ve been missing.

As a plug for QRP, going from 100W to 5W is about 2-3 S-points. So if 100W would have been 59 you’d still be 56 at least with 5W. What’s all the fuss about high power? I have worked THE WORLD on SSB with just  2.5W to simple wire antennas (no beams!).

My FT817’s have been used on VLF,  LF and MF with home-brew transverters and on all HF and VHF bands working some impressive DX.

There is a myth that QRP is “hard”. Let me tell you that is rubbish. Sometimes power helps, but that is rare. Mostly QRP is just plain good fun – making the hobby all new again. The most I use these days is 5W, and more often far less. QRP is great fun.

Go for it!

1642z and CN8LI (2113km) has just spotted my 1W ERP again on 6m WSPR via Es. This is the teatime peak in Es – right on cue.

UPDATE 1736:  CN8LI has spotted me 5 times (so far) this teatime at up to -14dB S/N. That makes 7 times so far today. When the propagation is there, signals are often strong.  Doppler was -2Hz on his strongest report – moving Es clouds?  G8JNJ/A was spotting me (184km) at 1724z.

UPDATE 1940z:  CN8LI has been gone now since 1708z.  I think the Es has gone and just GDX currently. G0OQK is a new GDX spotter (I think) at 98km at 1846z. There have been so many GDX reports that I am forgetting which stations are new ones.

This was a question I was asked earlier today. Someone thought it was an exotic digital mode. It is not.

GDX means “best DX in the UK” , nothing more.

If you live in the UK it is probably a phrase you know. If you live outside the UK then it may be a phrase you’ve maybe never heard of before or were too embarrassed to ask.

In the same way ODX means “best overall DX”.

UPDATE 1545z:  Just 6m locals and GDX this afternoon. No Es here since CN8LI lunchtime.  May be more teatime?

CN8LI (2113km, Morocco) spotted my 1W ERP twice around 1200z today on 6m. This is the first real DX (Es presumably) today.

G4HBA (189km) is the best GDX so far today. He was spotted at -27dB S/N at 1138z when running 10W with 2Hz Doppler, so maybe some aircraft reflection?

Recent 6m WSPR spots today

Last night my new Win 8.1 Dell PC decided it needed to install updates. I chose to  switch off until restarting this morning. It said “Loading Windows updates. Do not switch off your computer”. Being a good boy, I obeyed and waited as it got to 81% complete …… and waited, and waited, had breakfast, went for a walk, had more breakfast and still it said 81%, please wait. In all it had now been 1 hr 40 minutes!

At this point I was about to ring up that nice Dell man in India when I decided to turn off the PC and try again. THIS time it sailed through 81% and reached 100% complete in no time. PC works fine! What the heck was going on?

Tuning around this morning, 50MHz hasn’t been massively open, but there have been some interesting signals popping up. First thing as I was drinking my first coffee, I worked IK6HIR from JN63 who came up quite nicely for a while. I6WJB was heard calling CQ DX, so I didn’t call him, but he was a decent signal.

Although I don’t use clusters much these days – especially on HF, this Es season I have been looking at dxheat.com which is a very nice web based cluster and allows me to filter everything except 50 and 70MHz spots. I noticed a 70MHz spot fly by of Martin GM6VXB on 70MHz meteor scatter. I tuned to the frequency in question and did get a short burst from him, but not enough for a QSO. Hardly surprising, given my vertical antenna.

Returning to 50MHz just before getting some chores done, I tuned around the CW end and SV5DKL (KM46) was coming through. With the small antenna, I don’t work SV, SV5 or SV9 very often from here, so dropped in a few calls. Signals were quite weak and then, in typical Es fashion peaked up to S7 or so and I was able to sneak a QSO in, which was very nice. The distance is just under 2900km, which I think is ok for the setup here (SV5DKL was doing all the work, of course)

As I frequently do, when I work someone, I tapped his callsign into Google and found that Efstathios has a very nice blog, with information about his operating and QSOs, particularly on 50MHz.

Series Seven Episode Twelve of the ICQ Amateur / Ham Radio Podcast has been released. The latest news, Martin (M1MRB & W9ICQ) and Colin (M6BOY) discuss RSGB teaching radio in UK schols, and Martin (M1MRB & W9ICQ) anf Colin (M6BOY) are joined by Ed Durrant (DD5LP) and Frank Howell (K4FMH) for an International Roundtable.

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