Sometimes, it’s just a sparkle that flies. I was waiting for a ham friend (IW0HK) to visit me, after years of e-mail/Internet contacts. Initial plan was to reach a downtown’s eatery, and have a nice chat. Then, looking out of the window, and realizing the wx you can see in the featured image (and no, these aren’t chemist trails, but the evidence of a mild temperature, despite winter), I Read more →

…what you want, but if you try sometimes you might get what you need. And the need, for a change, is radio (even if Sir Mick Jagger was unaware of it when he wrote those lyrics). After many attempts, at 16.00 UTC of saturday 10th September, on 7185 kHz, yours truly and Robin, G0GNE, managed to hear eachother, and to score a nice ten minutes QSO. The interesting thing is that my correspondent was /P, using his PRC-320 (so, just 30 watts output, with a radio set that I own too and proudly display on my /P operations QSL, see above) and I was barefoot with 40-60 watts. Robin was engaged in a field day in Hookwood (Surrey, loc. IO91VE), and I was in my home station, at JN35pr. QRB says 820 km. Reception was not about super-signals, but pretty readable and clear, which to me is how ham radio has to work. You can laugh at us, but we were as emotioned as in a rare DX (hey, but isn't hamradio about being always emotioned like the first time you switched on a radio?), so Robin shot a short video on his side, with his iPhone, and I did an audio recording, close to the speaker of my radio. G0GNE, thanks to his sound skills, then syncronized the two sources, and uploaded the result on YouTube (after his clip ends, my recording goes on with dark screen). Considering we were both under 100 watts, and with very basic forms of antenna, this turns out a nice lesson about using the essential power: you don't need kilowatts to travel far on HF!
 

73,
Chris

Going through the files from last  /P day in Pila (see previous blog, on 20th July), yours truly found another video deserving to be shared. For a couple reasons, at least. Not only it's about crossing the Pond with just a 2.4 mt whip (and counterpoise), but it also allows to hear both stations engaged in QSO. It's not usual, especially on the 17 Meters band, to have a skip bringing you two areas quite far between them. So, here, at 13.50 UTC of 20th July 2011, in Pila (loc. JN35pr), we have M0BSV, from Peterborough in the UK, and W4UWC, in Knoxville, Tennessee, with thankings to Robin G0GNE for assisting in their identification. I have to say that receiving side of the PRC-320 surprised me once again, both for sensivity and audio quality. Judge for yourselves…
 

73,
Chris