6 Metres here we come :)

Today 6 Metres had a reasonably good Es opening into Europe, I worked HB9, DL, I, S59, EA4, F and ON in an hour around 15:00 Z. (CW :wink:)

Hopefully this is just the beginning of this seasons activity.

73

Victor GI4ONL

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Victor.
Thanks for QSO - We were QRV on 6 meters ----> I did 2 QSO and listen SM7P.
73 Roger

My first QSO as a licenced ham was on 6m SSB. I had struggled through the RAE without knowing any hams apart from the course teacher. I was duly assigned my call of M1BUU in July 1997, well before I had Internet access.

My step father asked me what the next step after being licensed was, in truth, I didn’t really know! My step dad then said he had a friend that he’d known for years and that he was a radio ham and he lived in the next village! Doh! Why couldn’t I had been told that earlier?! Anyway a trip to G1SRA’s shack was quickly arranged and my first contact with my shiny M1 call was using Trevor’s FT690, possibly with 100w Microwaves Modules amp, into a small yagi. Back then, a lot of G1’s and G7’s were active on 6m as HF was off limits of course.

HF was a big carrot for me, so just over a year later, I took the Morse test, 6m has been a bit off the radar since. I do intend to get my FT817 fired up on 6m this year though for a nostalgic trip back to summer '97!

Colin M1BUU

I know what you mean Colin. So much to do, so little time!

I have used the band from a couple of summits, but didn’t really enjoy the experience. For me, a very large part of the fun is giving away points to chasers. Working Sporadic E on 6m can be highly selective and the chance of getting your signal across to chasers is quite random - like what it says on tin - Sporadic. Personally, I’d rather put my time and effort into other bands when on a summit and leave the 6m working for home operation.

73, Gerald G4OIG

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Yep, I have yet to try 6m at all. The likelihood is that my first contact will be from a summit. Having an FT817 and some wire on a hilltop during the 6m / 10m challenge will leave me with no excuse :wink:

Adrian
G4AZS

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Six is open right now.

Brian

i’m pretty sure most of you know the webpage already … but some might not:

martin
oe5reo

Six is open right now.

But it can’t be. Everyone knows it’s 70cm night in the UKACs.

You need an appropriate starter for a good main course!

Brian

Or:

Brian

It hasn’t made it this far West yet :angry:

Yes, I too rekindled my interest on 6m last night. Down came the 4m Vertical, up went the 3 ele OWL Innovantennas Yagi.

I was rather worried when I tuned across the band and heard nothing. I thought to myself “With the SWR being so low, have I just made myself a rotatable dummy load?”

The build quality of this item is superb IMHO, happily would use this company again. Stainless Steel nuts, Stainless Steel U Bolts and High Grade Aluminium. Plus the assembly is dead simple with no adjustment required on mine, what so ever!

Fed with RG-223 up to the choke, not ideal I know, but there is only about 6 metres of it and it goes through the window gaps easily enough! The shack is the window on the left.

25 mins later, Italy and Belgium coming in strongly, Happy Days a working 3 ele on 6m.

Look forward to activating and chasing when the challenge starts.

73 all

Matt G8XYJ

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It’s into EI, EI4DQ, 4KF and 7BMB all appear on the cluster spots. The trouble with six is that you can be hearing nothing while a guy a few miles away is filling his boots with DX!

Brian

They are all quite a bit further South from me and a bit more East also :unamused:

Wonder if its worth putting something together for this weekend ? if conditions remain reasonable, that is the weather and the band !
Thinking a simple rotary dipole, reckon the elements could be made out of some old wardrobe hangers with a simple coax feed.

Jonathan

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6 is open into Poland this morning :smile:

Aluminium greenhouse parts would be good too, I believe they help with propagation :smile:

Adrian

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I have one of these fashioned out of plastic conduit.
Can be quickly thrown together with what ever you have to hand.

Pete

Groan!

Brian

Yep I might just take up a bucket of magic soil as well…

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