Back on for the day

Well, 4th of July weekend was good, and roommate was out of the house, so I tried a little PSK. Mostly Europe and the states today, but felt good to be back in action...

73!

Still Alive!

I am still active, just not on HF so much lately. I really need a better HF antenna. Even my 2M/440/6M vertical is starting to show signs of aging. I actually suspect water on the coax. It has been up now for over 5 years without being touched.... I need to tune the 6M side, and replace the coax with some good stuff... SWR is starting to rise on the lower end of 2M... Still acceptable, but up to about 1.8:1 or more. I think the coax has been rubbing against the concrete chimney and wearing through the jacket, allowing water to enter.

No one has complained about my signal on the local repeaters though, so it cannot be to bad I hope.

73 //

Gave JT65-HF a try...

Tried a bit of JT65-HF on 20M for about an hour.  I was running only 25 watts into the End-Fed. The antenna still needs a little more length, but it seems to be putting out OK.  I was heard and responded to by Hams in Minnesota, Iowa, and Florida. I received an Italian Station, but he did not respond to my calls. The mode is a lot of fun, but contacts can take up to 8 minutes to complete, The mode is very reliable, and the signals sometimes are unheard by your ears, but the computer decodes them just fine...Give the mode a shot if you are able...


73,

Bob
W2RWL

End Fed is back up again

I put the End Fed back up in the tree, but I need to do some tuning on it. I think it is too short at the moment. I need to add a bit of wire to it. Will let ya all know how it goes.


73,

W2RWL - Bob

Antenna is down again

Well, the high winds a few weeks back brought the end-fed down again. I need a warm day to put it back up. Will keep you informed. I really need a better antenna system...

73,

Alpha EZ-Millitary antenna

I have been thinking about getting this antenna. It gets a 4.9/5 on eham.com.

Alpha EZ-Millitary Antenna

 Whenever I can save up the money...

73,

Still Alive

I try to make PSK31 contacts when I have time and the conditions are good...Have not been on too often because of school work and other responsibilities.


73,