I haven’t been out walking much in the last month so instead of doing a big hill I elected to do a smaller one with less points and a shorter walk in. It was good to get out and get walking and with my huffing and puffing I was glad I’d opted to go for an easier route. I decided to use my Super Antenna as my primary aerial. I seemed to be unlucky today three or four of the freq’s I tried out very quickly have someone camp out on an adjacent freq that just went straight over me. One guy in the Netherlands, obviously unable to hear me, set up shop on the same freq right after I’d logged a spot. He couldn’t hear me but I was getting him booming in to me. I tried a couple of freqs with the SuperAntenna gaining an activation, tried the AX1, no joy, then setup the bandspringer which has never failed me and managed to get three more on 20m band. Only one of my contacts was in the UK, cheers Rod (M0JLA). A tad frustrated, at no one in particular, I packed up and had a good walk home. Now for some more exercises and get back up the higher hills trying to gain some bonus points whilst I can.
Hi Paul,
Thanks for the QSO today.
I chased various other activators in the UK at about the same time, band and mode of your activation and I found your signals significantly lower with stronger QSB compared to those of the other chased UK activators.
It’s now up to you to investigate and find out whether your output power and Super Antenna were comparable to those used by the other UK activators.
These other activators were @2E0BIA, @G5AIB, @2E0FWP, @M0XPO. All of them chased on 20m SSB.
I’ll be looking forward to chasing you again soon.
73,
Guru
Sounds like good exercise, a nice few hours on the hill but bad times on the radio. Two out of three ain’t bad. Onwards and upwards!
73, Fraser
Just to confuse things, I was using a Super Antenna and I got a 59 from Guru. It was cold on G/SP-004 so i wanted something I could put up quickly.
What radio were you using? I was on a Xiegu G90 on 10w. 47 QSOs with 12 S2S… i was out for an age though.
Martin
Sorry for the thread hijack. Thanks to @2E0BIA for the S2S on 2m and to @EA2IF for almost working me on 40m and then finding me on 20m. My frustration is how too many chasers don’t listen and end up obliterating a station I’m trying to work and then they are gone due to QSB or frustration.
I was using a Discovery Tx-500
Hi Paul,
if you want to increase the signal and the reception of your Super Antenna, you can:
- increase the size of the stick (MFJ is offering 3m and 5m sticks) - the frequency range will move - with the 3m stick 17m-40m, with the 5m stick 20m-60m. By reducing the length of the radiator you can move again to shorther wavelengths
- lower the antenna to a very small height (e.g. 10cm) by using a very small tripod
- use 4 grounded radials of about 0,1 * of the longest wavelength used
These hints apply also for the HF-P1. In addition you will need an adaptor for the stick to metric system.
A problem with these antennas in winter: if it is freezing cold, ice will build on the coil and stick detuning it.
Enjoy the vertical! Good for nice DXing!
73s
Ingo
It is a difficult one. Recently my goal has been Summit to Summits, so I am aware some activators (QRP) may get drowned out. The key is managing a pile up. Being a bossy lecturer might help LOL! I ask people to take a turn. If I get a wif of a S2S, I ask people to wait until I have worked them. If I hear a weaker station, I try to pick up part of their call sign and ask for that. For instance, ‘can the station ending in Oskar Charlie please respond’.
Take your time, firm but fair 
My problem is with CW contacts. It’s much harder to talk to the chasers in that way. I think the problem is that they can’t really hear me or other chasers well enough. If I send OC? only that station should respond but they just don’t do that.
Indeed, this situation is very common. However if you stick to OC? and insist you will get your reply. But in reality it could be OY… and OC will not lead to the expected response… or another time you would call OC? and the requested station would be already gone…
The world is not perfect… 
Yes, it’s essential sticking to what you think you heard and not giving the breakers any chance. Breakers often want to cheat and manipulate the activator in order to get their precious QSO. Don’t ever let them succeed with their bad intentionned strategy.
If, after a number of chances (2 or 3?) your requested OC? doesn’t show up, then it’s turn to start from scratch and call QRZ?
73,
Guru
Good morning Paul.
I too use a Discovery Tx-500 but with a linked dipole and the Elecraft AMU. On Thursday I made 27 contacts on 40m of which 12 were UK calls and there would have been more but I had already worked several regulars on 60m. Most were 59 one way and better than 55 the other. I was on a much more prominent hill (GW/SW-005) but using a short mast. Comparisons from one day to the next are frequently spurious because of changed conditions but I worked 13 summits from home (using the base station, not TX-500) on Friday (including yours) so I doubt conditions were very different. People often comment on my signal quality.
So:-
I think your setup is defective in some way. I suspect that your audio and filter settings for the TX-500 are not optimised. I spent some time investigating and tinkering before my first activation with the new radio and followed up the very unfavourable reports from the first hill with further changes. Can you test at home and record the output at Hack Green?
I have no experience at all of commercial aerials for HF. I always use a plain dipole for 60m and 40m so can only suggest trying that - simple and straightforward.
Hope you get better results next time.
73,
Rod
Cheers chum, I can only take it as a bad day probably fifth quarter of the moon, as all the other times I’ve been out I’ve had no issues. Just a tad frustrating especially my luck with stations pushing out a lot of power set up in adjacent freqs and just seem to obliterate me. Onwards and upwards. Take care chum.
It isn’t just you - I’ve had the same experience on 40 spotted and working on a frequency and someone else appeared calling CQ on top of me despite myself and a couple of chasers saying the frequency was in use. After originallty thinking it could be someone being deliberatly difficult I decided it was a station with a high noise floor that just could not hear me… After looking around a very busy 40m moved to 20 - which usually means no inter G but qualified and managed some S2S contacts too. I would agree with Vicky, dealing with stations chasing is a bit like being on playground duty and some staions are not very good at getting in line …
Paul
Hi Paul,
Your spot popped up about 20mins after me and I did retune into you to attempt a s2s but couldn’t hear you. Btw, I got a 59 from Guru and was using an EFHW in sloper config and running a FT817 on 4w. Will look out for you next time!
73, Lea M0XPO
Sorry to hear that you had a frustrating time! I’m sure we’ve all been there. I certainly have. When it happens to me I try to take philosophical approach and tell myself that it would be boring if every activation was an easy success. At least that’s what I try to do… 