Before things start getting too heated and I have to start deleting posts and even closing down a thread - or even with extreme reluctance sending out private warnings, lets look at a few incontrovertible facts.
All other things being equal, a 100 watt transmitter has a 10 dB advantage over a 10 watt transmitter. Right? That is less than two S-points by the standard that one S-point increase equals 6 dB. Right again?
Again, all other things being equal, a one kW transmitter has an advantage of 20 dB over a 10 watt transmitter, and that is just over three S-points. Right again?
Of course, all other things are rarely equal: little things like antennas, ground conditions and the ionosphere tend to get in on the act, don’t they? Even a simple wire antenna like the G5RV has multiple lobes on the higher bands, and those lobes exhibit gain, a fact that an operator with nous can take advantage of.
Note that the question of power is secondary, anyway: in his opening post Roger highlighted splatter, and that is a symptom of a maladjusted transmitter rather than high power.
So, let us be calm and analytical or this thread will not survive.
73
Brian G8ADD (wearing his moderator hat - which has big horns sticking out!)
I often use my 703 with only 10 watts using my M0 call and sometimes my M6 call. I don’t have any beams just wires and verticals and I can honestly say 10 watts will do the job if calls are well timed and conditions allow. If you can hear the activator 9 times out of 10 you can make the contact on 10 watts. I am sure with your beams it will be 10 out of 10
What is more to the point is, why are some Foundation Licensees still Foundation Licensees after more than 10 years? The Foundation Licence was always supposed to be a “taster” and a stepping stone to a higher level of licence. Surely a decade is more than long enough for a person to advance to a higher level if they are genuinely interested in amateur radio.
As for power levels, these are clearly unenforceable. It would be much better if there were frequency restrictions applied to the different classes of licence - and I see the RSGB and Ofcom are looking at this option now, as part of their Amateur Licensing Review.
In reply to M6BLV:
As you say about the chaser table yes you are correct I have only put in the 12m contacts but what you are not aware of is the fact I stopped puting in chaser contacts some time ago and have only ever used SSB when chasing SOTA so therefore I do not climb the ladder so yes you will pass me very soon as will others.
Everbody get complaints to the council after nearly 30 years I still get them and the latest one is 3 yellow cable ties have been used and they should be black ones , so each time you get new residents move in they want to change the situation reguardless of how long any antennas have been there.
You mentioned better operator from MM0FMF comments well it was a while ago in one of his past replys about operators he said something else but I cant be bothered to search through all the past threads to find it.
So if you and others in the SOTA world see me as a bad operator then so be it there is more to this hobby and life than watching a computor screen all day,
You say that a lot of contacts are done on CW so while you are off work why not take the next levels and go for an M0 call lots do it.
An M3 friend of mine is one of the best operators that I know. He says that his M3 gives him everything that he needs in ham radio, so why upgrade? - and yes, I can confirm that he never runs more than 10 watts!
In reply to G3NYY:
I do not normally agree Walt but you are right in that years ago we all did a form of apprentership in passing the RAE and then using vhf and above and from memory it was only in the 1990’s that the old class B was allowed 4m and 6m again with only 10w or so.
If you wanted HF then you had to earn it by passing the CW now unfortunatly in some cases anyone can go HF without much experience and cause mayhem.
An M3 friend of mine is one of the best operators that I know. He says
that his M3 gives him everything that he needs in ham radio, so why
upgrade? - and yes, I can confirm that he never runs more than 10
watts!
That’s a bit like saying people should be allowed to drive for their whole life on a Provisional driving licence because they only want to ride a moped.
The only thing that time limits would do is lose people from the
hobby.
Arguably, we would only lose those who are not sufficiently interested or intelligent to progress. In both cases, no great loss. I have never subscribed to the view that amateur radio benefits from quantity of licensees, rather than quality.
In reply to G3NYY:
i can see your point walt ive been a m3 for 5 years and i would go to the next step if my nerves did not get the better of me every time,Restrictions im not really sure if they will be right surely ten watts is a restriction and im not really sure you could implement them to a m3 of say 10 years did not the early g series get nore than they should many years a go i only wish i had got into the hobby when i was a young lad and fit and not so busy working all the best and i wish this was a topic that had not raised its ugly head it gets a round on most forums and i thought sota activators and chasers a like where better than that Dave M3XIE
In reply to G8ADD:
There are many who get to a position of comfort and are happy to be at the level they achive and all within the licence conditions and power levels they are allowed , it is the bad apples that spoil it for others and SOTA is just another victim.
In reply to G3NYY:
Im interested but do struggle holding things in the grey matter i think that last comment should not have been put like that sorry you have your opinions and me mine.
I do not normally agree Walt but you are right in that years ago we
all did a form of apprentership in passing the RAE and then using vhf
^^^
Please get it right.
All did not do the RAE and then an apprenticeship on VHF before “upgrading”.
^^^
A huge number of us went straight in for an "A " license (one reason why we couldn’t care less if we can keep our multiple callsigns that we’ve never had!)
We were let loose on HF with the full legal power limit, like 10W on Top Band!
Pete
who’s actually failing to understand what this thread is about and why illegal power output is somehow related to splatter :-?
We have discussed this before, Tom. There is nothing to be gained from pursuing the matter further. I did both the Full RAE and The Morse test when I was 15 years old and studying for my O Levels.
This whole thread is off topic and should never have been started.
…and a very clear example of an obvious exceptional situation that the licence review will have to consider if it follows the time-limited approach. It’d be unreasonable to expect an 8 year old Foundation licence holder to progress through the licence levels in the same time-frame as might reasonably be expected of an adult.
That’s a bit like saying people should be allowed to drive for their whole life on a Provisional driving licence because they only want to ride a moped.
I can’t even see where you are coming from, Walt. A FL is a license issued as a result of passing the appropriate examination, covering the material deemed to be appropriate to the needs of the FL, who has to operate within certain restrictions. It is NOT a provisional license, and a provisional DR is a poor simile - though I am sure that you remember a time when there was no time limit on a vehicle provisional and you could indeed drive for your whole life on a moped with one! Incidentally, until a few years ago a FL did have certain frequency restrictions but Ofcom removed them.
As I see it there is a certain lack of logic in your position: if a new FL is OK to transmit within the restrictions of the license, surely he is ALWAYS going to be OK, the license doesn’t decay, and the knowledge that enabled him to pass the FL is more likely to increase rather than decay. Taken to its logical conclusion, your position would lead to the proposition that the Full License holders should be regularly tested to make sure that they are still fit to be on the air!
Gentlemen, I have deleted two posts. Keep it calm and polite, there is no excuse for getting ratty with each other. Note also that if I do close this thread, it will be on my own judgement and not as a result of urging.
I exercised my perogative and used the edit button. I will similarly remove any posts that violate the conditions, and there is no need to duel with nukes at twenty paces. Make your point without violating the conditions and it will be allowed to stand.
