hello,
if you can work on the Top Band,
I give you a date, the 9th December from 16:00 utc until evening, some italian activators will try to activate two summits: one in I/LO and the other one in I\UM. we will try a s2s on 160mt.
enlong your ear and antennas.
73
Roberto
Hi Roberto,
If the weather is OK on Monday, I will try to be on a local summit for this Top Band fun!
I noticed that your alerts are for the same summit - are you still planning for two summits to be activated?
73
Adrian
Good news Adrian,
it is a pleasure that you will be operative for this event.
I hope in a good prop. and wx.
IK6BAK Eliseo is going to try from I/UM-xxx, I don’t know which summit he choosed, it will be in center of Italy.
he will soon put an alert
See you soon
73
Roberto
I will be listening and hoping that the local noise is not too punishing!
Finger crossed Brian, it would be a great coup contact you.
Simon, we will use a norcal with long legs or efhw 80mt. in each case we will use a tiny wire, single conductor awg 26.
73
I will try to be active on top band from I/MC-124 with a TS50, 50W, efhw (a wire of 80mtrs).
If no rain.
'73s
Great fun, thank you for the event Roberto, and for the S2S contacts with I/LO-222. FB.
I did listen also for IK6BAK Eliseo, but I couldn’t hear him - I think he went QRT soon after our sunset, and perhaps propagation had not developed by then.
I was using an FT817 plus a Xiegu XPA20 amplifier, producing about 20W. Antenna was a full length half wave dipole, about 3m high at the centre, and 1m high at the ends.
I set up along the path leading South from the trig point on Longmynd G/WB-005. I chose the down wind side of the path, so that any collapsing wire would blow away from the path - though unusually nobody passed by while I was there.
There was a chilly wind and light rain for most of the time setting up / operating / packing up, but I was only a few hundred metres from the car, so the walk in and out was pleasant enough!
Operating conditions - the LED display is the amplifier, FT817 underneath it…
Thanks to all who contacted me, and apologies to any that I missed. I worked everyone who I heard calling, and it was a bit too cold and wet to stay longer.
73
Adrian
G4AZS
Many thanks to you Adrian for the pacience, it was incredible!
we reached the top at 1500 utc, in about 30min we installed the antenna fixing on 2 fishing pole 10mt, one 7mt and uno 5 meter, it consisted in 10mt of twisted wire derived from ethernet cable; the two legs of dipole were long about 40mt each, for this parts i used a single conductor awg 26, weight abt 1 gram per meter. we used a tuner.
We have a kx3, ft857 yt100 automatic tuner and mfj manual tuner, two lipo battery and two lead battery 5hA, j-38 key and a metallic magnetic paddle, we worked mainly with 5-10watts, the last calls increased to 25w.
I called in 20ssb, i putted in the log some europen stations, after that I putted in a log 3 US stations in 15mt cw.
we qsy in 160mt, we swepped the band from 1800 to 1850, there were many signals; at 1830cw @IK6BAK was calling from I/MC-124, it was a first qso on the Top Band. we were cold but happy to work a s2s with a few watts. his signal was readible and stable. we didn’t work the same stations together because I’m accustomed to use a streight key, Luca @IW2OGY is a pro with a paddle.
we decided to alternate 15-20 minute of trasmision wich own key. we called near 1.833 1.835, the italian band plan start at 1.830 to 1.850.
The temperature was near 0°C. at the end of activation my fingers and feet were insensibile. i hit the key with the palm. when it was the turn of Luca. i walked back and forth for heating, At 18:15 utc the band was quiet, we decided to pass in qrt. the event it was a success. i didn’t think that the propagation on this band was soo good in the first hours after grey zone. the s2s with Adrian was difficulty, the Signal was alterning a few seconds readible and a few seconds later disappared into noise. Many thanks at All. see you the next time in 160mt for other s2s.
The log in 160mt:
Many thanks
73
Tnx adrian s2s very good sota night
73
Luca iw2ogy
Well done on another successful summit top, top band activation. It is quite a feat erecting a half wave dipole for 160m, single handed ,on a summit, in the dark.
I listened when I saw your spot but couldn’t make out any signals with my highly compromised antenna.
Thanks for trying Kevin!
To be fair, I was able to set up after sunset but before it was quite dark, which made it a bit easier this time.
I’m still learning, but so far I have chosen rocky ridge shaped summits which seems to allow me to get away with a low slung aerial. I’m not sure how well that would work over a peat bog.
Also, I like enough open space - or a linear path - to fit an 80m wire in a straight line, without scrub to trip over or snag the wire.
Looking forward to the next, not sure where or when yet…
73
Adrian
Thanks for the QSO and putting up with my rather feeble CW. I did consider doing a summit and measured out the antenna last year but looking at the thread from G0EVV (Managing the pileup) and what my nearest, easiest summit (G/NP-003) was like in daylight without trying to erect what seems like a mile of wire I think I might have made the right choice and operated from home… next time (but I said that last time when Ben was being mad on 160…). 73 Paul
