The F Layer and its affects

The F Layer and its affects with day and night.  Below is a night day map.

 Below is a training map I used to obtain my license.

 Below shows the layers in day and night.

2 Meters is way to quite

I am concerned that 2 meters is still so quite.  I know we have new tech’s out there and other HAMs home from work in Florida where we are right now and still the crews are quite. I pulled out my 2 and 11 meter radios to check traffic.  I even built a new 2 meter J Pole to boost my capabilities.

 Here you can see a CB (11) & 2 meter radio on the table and the 8 & 20 amp batteries for them.

Here is my new Home made J pole on a temp pole.  Till things get better I will use what I have to make things here no need to go to a store.  I did drive out a few miles to test the 2 meter back to a HT next to a tape recorder I know it works.  I just used the ruler duck mag mount on the ammo can and was heard over 1/3 a mile, I have a fire stick but am using that mag mount for my 80 meter.  HF 20 - 80 is alive and well just not the 2 meter bang.  Hope this changes soon.

Corona Virus Pandemic Plan Summary

Have our fuel tanks full, water full and keep our gray and black tanks empty here in Florida.  We have plenty of fuel to reach Kathy’s moms house with everything and my brothers if we just take our tow vehicle and the five gallon gas can.  Our goal is to stay in the campground till the end of our sessional rate ending 1 May then head back to Wyoming for our annual checkups.

Our hope is this passes in the next few weeks and starts to return to normal.  If it lasts longer I see people starting to stay home and not go to work.  If enough stay home it will impact our power, water and sewer grids.  If we lose power and water we have fuel to run our generator for a few weeks, if we conserve and we have enough water for maybe two weeks if we conserve a whole lot, if we resupply these two we have no limits.

However if the sewers start to back up we would be forced to disconnect and move to somewhere else.  Our onboard holding tanks possibly could hold a weeks worth of waste.

Food and water we have 3 to 4 weeks at best on board, without resupply.  Let’s hope it passes soon and that the actions our President is taking contains this and is enough to keep our people working to avoid futher deterioration.  I feel all will work out it may take longer then I plan but if people continue to work all will be well.

80 meter ham stick on a single mag mount

I added two radials sixty five feet long and had a totally usable 80 meter band for a General Class License.  This five pound single mag mount is only used when stationary.  Without the two radials the swr was all above three with radials the swr was all below two point five.

Above is a scan in process on SWR not the individual frequency SWRs.

This is the roof of our tow vehicle a Chevy spark.  When I took off the radials the SWR went off the chart.  I also found I still could use most frequencies with only one radial.

Biscuits and Gravy

Our favorite biscuit and gravy (store bought).  Kathy makes great homemade ones at home.  Lit the oven and getting ready to cook👍

Hamstick topical range

My hamsticks and radio typical range seems to be around 1000 miles give or take.  It is an ongoing learning curve on propagation issues.

Did contact WA2CCN at 1093 miles.

Hamsticks give me many bands

I can now transmit and receive on the following bands.  Local (CB am) to five hundred miles (10, 11 & 12 meters).  Please note SSB for these based on 11 meter contact last year.  When 10 opens up I hope SSB goes from 500 to thousands of miles.

I have had 20 and 40 meter hamsticks for some time and on a very good day made contacts up to 3000 miles, but most days it is between 500 - 1000 miles.  I now have a 75/80 meter hamstick on a single mag mount with two 65 foot radials.  I have made contacts up to 550 miles so far.

My goal now is to increase the range on these sticks with my 20 watt G90 (12 watts on CB SSB which is a Uniden bearcat).

Contact with Antilles today

Contact with PJ4/K4NHW 3/5/20 around 10am est.  He was in Bonire which is 1452 miles from wildwood Florida.  Ok my hamstick on14.242.

Campground Notice

The bottom one came out a week ago limiting a building to 9 people. Today all buildings are closed.

Antenna’s Compared

I dug out my old 10 meter antenna (Big Stick) that I bought as a Technician Ham for 10 meters an com paired it to my Ham Sticks.

The big stick is up front off the canopy with two ham sticks behind on the RV ladder.  The big stick was below 2.5SWR on 10 through 40 meters.  On 15 I could just make out a rag session going on.  On 20 and 40 I could hear conversations on many frequencies soft and some times muffled.  When I switched to my 20 & 40 meter ham sticks they were all clear in comparison. So longer is still better the big stick was all coil while the ham sticks are coils and 3-4 foot whips.

Florida Update

We have been here since mid October and it is great and all is well with the kids back home.  Kathy found an e-bike that fits her so we are starting to ride more now as well.

 We went to see the mermaids the other day and had a nice time there more to the place then I thought.  Just a quick update😎

75 Meter Hamstick

Bought a 75/80 meter hamstick at the Orlando Hamcation 2020.  Joined  the 10 10 International club and the ARRL all in one day😎. Right now plan to use pick up a 10 meter hamstick and use a 20 and 40 on the RV and a 10, 20, 75/80 portable with my Xiegu G90.

Please note I do not plan to drive with a hamstick in a single five inch mag mount.  I plan to only use when stationary.  One mag mount with these large hamsticks my come off at medium to high speed in my opinion.

Here is a better view of our tow car with the 80 meter and you can just make out the two radials on the ground and the coax cable going to my radio on the table behind me. Of course I put away this setup to drive, with it I now have 80 meters with a range around 500 mile so far🧐

Bands not great but still fun

It is 2/6/2020 in the am bands not great but still fun😎. I was thinking more power so I could talk to more distant countries, but then I remember what the radio preper  said in a video.  In a disaster many HAMs will be off the air within a few days do to lack of power.  My little 20 watt xiegu will still be working on SSB do to low battery draw.  Plus my little 14 and 50 watt solar panels can recharge my 7  watt SLA batteries and my 6 and 20 watt lithium batteries.  I also can recharge my AA batteries for my HT 2 meter radios by solar.

Bellow is a photo of my 14 watt panels charging the AAs.  Plus I still have my auto, e-bike batteries and the RV generator.  So I will stick with my 20 watts for now talking with mainland USA, Canada and the Gulf nation's is enough for now.