Amateur Radio

Sunday, May 20, 2012

May 21, 2012 – 01:27

I am really starting to enjoy CW a lot.  CW, for continuous wave, is radio-speak for using Morse code.  I’ve had the best contacts around 14.050 to 14.060 MHz and 7.055 to 7.060 MHz; those frequencies are meeting place for slow CW.  I’m looking forward to more CW this week.

Permalink | Comments Off
Amateur Radio

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

May 16, 2012 – 00:33

Enjoyed a few hours in the shack this afternoon.  Fifteen meters seemed more active today than it has been in a couple of weeks.  I worked three countries in Europe using PSK-31.  After those contacts I moved down to the CW portion of the band and called for a while and raised two stations in Nova Scotia and another in San Diego.

Tags , , | Permalink | Comments Off
Amateur Radio

Monday, May 14, 2012

May 14, 2012 – 10:44

This morning I uploaded to LOTW and eQSL.  Yesterday I made about 25 CW contacts during the SKCC Weekend Sprintathon.  Hams trying to learn CW, like me, should get involved with SKCC.  Even though it was a contest it did not have the same atmosphere as other contests.  Several times the operator on the other end of my contact would slow down so that I could copy them.  CW is quickly becoming one of my favorite modes.

This evening I called CW and had a great ragchew with W0CZ in Fargo, ND.

Tags , , , | Permalink | Comments Off
Amateur Radio

Saturday, May 12, 2012

May 14, 2012 – 10:37

I heard the beacon from RS-15, one of the many Russian amateur radio satellites, this morning on 10 meters.  The SKCC Weekend Sprintathon started at 7 PM local time and I was able to make a few CW contacts and I am hoping I can make a few more tomorrow.

Tags , , , | Permalink | Comments Off
Amateur Radio

Sunday, May 6, 2012

May 6, 2012 – 16:00

Updated the firmware on my Ten-Tec Orion II yesterday and it was easier than I had expected.  This firmware update added the SAF (Selective Audio Filtering) feature to my radio and it’s really useful for digital modes and CW.  I also cleared all of the memory settings and performed a master reset on the rig after the installation.  After viewing the rig’s settings before and after the clear/reset I would strongly advise any Orion II user to not use CAT for anything other than the most simple of chores, for example, frequency control.  Ten-Tec explains that sometimes CAT may cause unexpected results and that is correct.

Because there are so many settings on the rig it is sometimes hard for me to remember what settings I have changed and why.  I write a note in my shack notebook to detail the before and after settings and sometimes take a photograph of the screen with my cellphone.

The weekend was an active one radio-wise with the seventh call area, New England, and Indiana QSO parties.  I also checked into the OMISS Net on Sunday afternoon on 17 meters and made the two contacts that you need to apply for membership.

Permalink | Comments Off
Amateur Radio

National Weather Service Radiofax Charts

May 2, 2012 – 00:55

I recently tuned into NOAA station NMG in New Orleans on 4317.9 khz and received a radiofax chart (a weather map).  The schedule is posted at http://weather.noaa.gov/pub/fax/hfgulf.txt and a small portion of the chart is shown below.

Radiofax Chart

Tags , , , | Permalink | Comments Off
Amateur Radio

Saturday, April 14, 2012

April 15, 2012 – 12:07

Worked 6H6IARU and P487IARU special event stations on 18 and 15 meters, respectively. They were celebrating World Amateur Radio Day which happens on April 18, 2012. I also worked W6/M0HSW on Catalina Island and ZD7FT on Saint Helena; both on 18 meters. Later I uploaded to LOTW and noticed that I finally had over 100 DXCC entities confirmed there.

Tags , , , , , , , | Permalink | Comments Off
Amateur Radio

MFJ-264 Dummy Load

April 6, 2012 – 10:51

I just purchased the MFJ-264 dry dummy load and I’m quite pleased with it.  It has provided an SWR of 1:1 to 1.3:1 over the range of HF frequencies I have used it for so far and is more convenient than a paint can dummy load.  At $75 it is a good addition to my shack.

Tags , , | Permalink | Comments Off
Amateur Radio

Saturday, March 24, 2012

March 25, 2012 – 01:01

It is 7:45 PM local time and the first 24 hours of the CQ WW WPX contest is history. I worked into Europe and down into South America and a few stations in Asia with most of my contacts on 15 meters. Early this morning I worked a few stations on 160 meters by jumping my long wire that I normally use for receiving to the center conductor of the coax out of my transceiver.

Tags , , , , | Permalink | Comments Off
Amateur Radio

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

March 21, 2012 – 00:42

This morning I added the N0NBH Solar-Terrestrial Data widget to KE5PRL.com. It has a number of configuration options and the installation instructions were straightforward.  If you are running WordPress then don’t hesitate to try it.   Download it at the following URL:

http://ns6t.net/word/?page_id=88

Permalink | Comments Off

Next Page »

Next Page »