Conditions on 40m are totally flat this morning with a complete fade out across the CW part of the band at my QTH. 30m is slightly better but not much.
73
Roy G4SSH
North Yorkshire coast
In reply to G4SSH:
Don’t think it is totally flat (at least here) but signals on 40m seem to be suffering from wild fluctuations in QSB nothing to S9 and back to nothing. Managed to catch Lutz DL3SBA while he was 57 and then shortly after he disappeared but came back briefly a couple of times once at +20. An OE station earlier on was the same but never caught him on the up. Similar conditions on 60m with Bill G4WSB. I had an easy contact with what seemed like steady conditions but later he was in and out of QSB like a fiddlers elbow.
73 Steve GW7AAV
In reply to G4SSH:
Conditions on 40m are totally flat this morning with a complete fade
out across the CW part of the band at my QTH. 30m is slightly better
but not much.
All bands from 80m through to 6m are nearly dead here today. Doesn’t augur well for HF CW Field Day, which starts at 1500 UTC today and runs for 24 hours.
73,
Walt (G3NYY)
In reply to G3NYY:
The lower HF bands are in very poor shape, I only just managed to work Bill G4WSB this morning on 60m. Paul G0HNW who is usually one of the strongest signals on the band here dropped right down into the noise.
Typical summer conditions I think, with the higher bands benefitting from some good Es & occasional F2 openings.
I don’t usually work DX on 60m & I suppose it isn’t really DX in the true sense, but it was nice to work Portugal with ease late last night. Steve, GW7AAV was also very strong here so the band does open up for good NVIS propagation, the only problem is that it’s in the middle of the night!
A night-time activation just to take advantage of better conditions on 60m does seem a little bit like too much effort for me though 
73,
Mark G0VOF
To G4SSH,
Thanks Roy, I gathered from the spots that Phil is in contest from G/TW-004 but had been a little frustrated that I could not hear him on any band so far.
I had high hopes for 10m but I could find no trace of Phil there either.
Hopefully as we progress into the evening conditions lower down the spectrum will improve.
I will try again later 
Thanks for the updates!
73,
Mark G0VOF
In reply to G0VOF:
OK Mark. He gets double points for 10m so he will be remaining on 28 MHz until it fades out. Probably come down the bands and finish on 1.832 KHz before he closes down at dusk.
73 Roy
In reply to G4SSH:
Frequencies around 28.022 are very busy with some good distant stations quite readable here, & some very fast CW too, at least for me HI!
I think with a horizontal beam I may have had more luck, but with only a vertical we would be losing several dB before we start due to cross polarization.
With my very local QRM on 1.832 MHz I have to power down my LAN to use top band, but I will follow the spots & call Phil on any frequency I hear him on.
Thanks again & best 73,
Mark G0VOF
In reply to G4SSH:
Well Roy I agree 40 and 30m was not very good today. I am using the PFR-3 with no 10m capability. On 30 m no qso despite cq ing for 10 min. Also tried 14058 kc with no luck. then tuned down the band and heard E4X on 14024 kc qsx up 1kc . called for abt. 5 mins in the pile up and I “made it” ! Pity it was not F6ENO operating… 1hrs 30 min operating , 47 QSOs…
F/HB9AFI/p on F/AB-395
73 kurt
In reply to G4SSH:
Goodness me, it’s very busy in the CW portion of 80m tonight!
I can just about manage a contest style exchange (RST + serial number + locator) at 30wpm, but I am more used to VHF contests where there aren’t several stations calling within a few Hz of each other! Apart from the E4X DXpediton, which has generated quite significant pile-ups on 6m over the past few days.
I do have a good narrow Collins CW filter, & narrow DSP too, but my brain still has to do the proper work, & under these conditions it struggles a bit!
Quite a challenge for those with very rusty CW skills. HI!
Edited to add:
It is so nice to hear the original mode being used by so many, & so long after it’s mandatory requirement to operate on HF was scrapped
There seems to be more CW now than there was when I was first licensed, & a lot of it sent by those who would otherwise not be allowed to transmit below 30 MHz.
It must be that it’s advantages speak for themselves
Have fun & good DX,
73,
Mark G0VOF
In reply to G0VOF:
OK Mark. I was delighted to hear you make the QSO with Phil on 1839 KHz just after 2100z
73
Roy
In reply to G4SSH:
Thanks again Roy, I tried my best, but after a long day & a few beers, my CW was appalling, especially at that speed! As my only QSO in the contest was on top band CW with Phil I am very pleased
I hope it was good enough at Phil’s side. He was genuinley 559 here on my 80m loop.
The moment I powered down my LAN, the local noise vanished & as if by magic signals appeared out of nowhere.
I really must build a proper, clean power supply for it, as it’s current switched mode power supply blocks most of top band & throws out several sproggies on the rest of HF & also the lower VHF bands.
Definitely worth waiting for though, despite having worked G/TW-004 on both 2m & 60m before.
Top band is still something special
Thanks again & I hope you enjoy the rest of the weekend,
73,
Mark G0VOF
In reply to G4SSH:
Bit late to post this, I suppose. Conditions have certainly changed a lot in the last few days:
27th May on GW/SW-001 : 9 QSOs on 80M with several reports of QSB, and 16 on 40M (5 in the UK)
28th May on GW/SW-003 : 7 on 80M and 28 on 40M (20 in the UK)
31st May (Bank Holiday Monday) on GW/SW-005 : 7 on 80M with reports of QSB, and 33 on 40M (22 in the UK)
4th June on GW/NW-012 (dipole aligned N-S): 7 on 80M with deep QSB, 4 (!) on 40M (2 in UK) and as time available went up to 20M for 22 (2 in UK) including an RA1, 4X4JU and TF3ARI (bit off beam?)
All activations with 20W, ssb and a stepped dipole.
It seems to me that operators are attracted to a pile-up often without knowing what it’s about. Is that something other activators have noticed?
Now back to the garden before it rains again and the weeds really get going.
Regards, Dave, G6DTN