I am not sure if the activation by Gerd was valid. when I worked him
he was not signing /p, I asked him if he was /p and understood him to say no.
Could someone clarify pse
73 to all
Des G3HKO
In reply to G3HKO:
Hi Des
Gerd never uses /P to his call, I do not believe it is a requirement to do so.
With regard to the UK licence see page 14, Section 17, sub section 5(d) item II which says:-
" If the Licensee operates the Radio Equipment at a Temporary Location, the licensee MAY use the suffix “/P” with callsign ". It does not say MUST use "/P"
Therefore I think that it is not compulsory to use /P, but I, as do most operators,always use it when operating portable, Gerd obviously prefers not to.
73 Graham G3OHC
In reply to G3OHC:
OK, got it Graham. I was /p myself at the time and not using it
but that is so as not to get everyone excited because I was not
on a summit
73 om
Des
In reply to G3HKO:
Des,
it was previously required in Germany to use /p on portable operation, but now the use of /p is optional. I personally never use /p since it saves some time/battery that I can use for additional QSOs (I am working on small batteries that last for abt 40 CW QSOs).
WX here turned back to Indian summer, all the snow in DL/BE gone again. DL/BE-080 offers a nice 360° panoramic view on the BE and KW summits - sun and temp like back in August. I may have a look around some higher EW summits again these days (EW010?).
Big thanks to all the chasers that helped me to get throught the QSOs quickly - just made it down to the parking lot before sun set.
Regards,
Gerd.
In reply to DL4MFM:
Mario,
/m and /p were mandatory when I passed the license many years ago, this is the reason for Des (and occassionaly others) asking.
Laugh as you like, but many times I operate on SOTA summits until battery is empty and TRX switches off. Not using /p gives a few more QSOs, believe it or not.
Bad operation technique: when calling cq sota isn’t it obvious that I am portable? /p is redundant in this case.
I will stop here (new reflector conditions of use: this discussion is not about SOTA anymore…).
Regards,
Gerd.
In reply to DF9TS:
Keep it friendly, guys!
It does take a bit of getting used to changes in the license conditions - for instance some of my friends no longer keep logbooks but its an ingrained habit with me and I won’t change!
73
Brian G8ADD
In reply to DF9TS:
I personally never use /p since it saves some time/battery that I can use for
additional QSOs (I am working on small batteries that last for abt 40 CW
QSOs).
As a matter of interest: What’s the kind of battery and power we are talking about?
73 Norby (who will always sign /P if that’s the fact)
In reply to LX1NO:
Norby,
it’s the 1400mAh battery for the FT-817 (2A TX for approx. 5W HF output, 400mA-600mA Rx). Please consider capacity decrease at now lower temperatures. AA NiMh in the FT-817 prove unreliable (contact problems just when I need them…).
I have larger batts but would hate to have to carry them uphill on the sometimes long ways (2…4 hours one way) and I like the rucksack to be light (now 8kgs with food and clothes and the beer 
) which also helps when basic climbing is necessary.
Regards,
Gerd.
it’s the 1400mAh battery for the FT-817
ok, could be tight.
light (now 8kgs with food and clothes and the beer
) which also
Depends on your back muscles and fitness. My light-weight rucksack weighs roughly 8kg which includes a 8Ah battery/FT857 and an MP1. I don’t carry any unnecessary stuff (like beer, for instance), so can’t judge. Lasts for at least 2 summits at 45W and 40min of activity each.
73 Norby
It’s up to the individual. SOTA only requires that you operate in accordance with your licence conditions and the regulations of the host country. The vast majority of participants do sign /P, but this I think, is more because it is advantageous to do so, rather than a strict and faithful observance of previous regulation.
We all know, that if you sign /P, you attract attention. Even without mention of SOTA, a “CQ CQ this is M1EYP/P” always attracts considerably more attention then just “M1EYP”. That is mainly because /P has become synonymous with SOTA, and is you hear /P on 2m FM, it is almost certainly a SOTA activation.
So my view is that it is in the activator’s interest to sign /P - but there is no compulsion whatsoever to do so in the UK, and also DL it seems.
Interestingly, in the history of SOTA, “/P” was not how it all started (so I am told). The whole idea of SOTA was inspired, believe it or not, by the availability of small 2m handheld transceivers. That’s what gave John G3WGV the first idea if it. Hence I always maintain that my sometime 2m HH activations (less than 20% of my 678 activations to date) are in faithful deference to the original aims and inspirations of the programme!
Anyway, some of the first trial activations, were signed /M. Analysis of early results informed that more people would answer the calls if /P was used. And so it remains today.
Tom M1EYP
My rucksack has a zip pocket underneath the hood. I place my SLABs in here, therefor they sit right a the top of my pack right behind my head. The effect of the weight is therefore minimised, and I have no problem in carrying a 7Ah SLAB all day.
That said, OPP now do a 2.7Ah internal battery pack for the 817. This is the same weight as any other internal pack, and can use the radios own internal charging cycles. I use one of these, and fully charged there is actually no need to take a SLAB out with me, even for four hours plus of operating.
Tom M1EYP
In reply to LX1NO:
Norby,
On DL/BE-018 I got recently into some weather trouble (snow/fog/wind/cold) and since put emphasis (and in the rucksack) safety related equipment rather than ham stuff. Longterm I aim at the ham equipment weighting below 1kg - not a question of fitness.
The (symbolic) beer doesn’t weight more than the water I would have to carry instead. If you did high mountain activations you may remember the time/weather constraints and -at any level- sometimes difficult terrain and navigation. Some sort of comfort is nice then, whether it be a beer or a chewing gum…
I would like to close the subject here since Den’s question has been answered and ask the moderator/op to delete the whole threat it since it turned quite unpleasant for my taste (thanks, Mario).
Regards,
Gerd.
In reply to DF9TS:
Dear friends,
Since Gerd wants to close this thread, may be we could open a new one about
safety equipment.
I think it is important, and every one could give his opinion.
What do you think about security in mountains, and how could we improve it?
What are you carrying in your rucksack for security ?
73
Alain F6ENO
In reply to DL4MFM:
Mario,
kindly stop it, will you? Don’t show this behaviour on the reflector. You have my e-mail address so please attack me in private if you feel like.
SOTA is supposed to be a fun activity.
Gerd.
In reply to DL4MFM:
OK, I’m wearing my moderator hat now. This thread is closed. Any further posts and I will delete the whole thread even though it contains useful information.
73
Brian G8ADD