In reply to 2E0YYY:
Neglect the 15m band at your peril
Looks like “round the world echoes” so propagation must be excellent 
Andy
MM0FMF
In reply to K6ILM:
Good to hear Jack GM4COX/P on 28.318MHz today, my first 10m SOTA contact:), sorry I could only give you a 31 report compared to my 59.
Thanks Jack:)
73,
Colin
M0XSD
In reply to K6ILM:
I don’t have 10 
In reply to K6ILM:
In reply to MM0FMF:
Today would have been the time for a hurredly lashed-up dipole on 10, Andy.
Well the job is done. I spent an hour in the garden with the current antenna for 20/17/15 playing with getting it to work on 12m or 10m. The top radiating element needs to be shorter for 12 and 10, I didn’t want to cut anything so I tried coiling up the top part of that antenna that sits above the 20m coil to see if that would be both viable and repeatable.
Looking at the original design I copied, the top section was much, much shorter for 12m. I folded the wire in half and coiled up one half, clipped that to the mast and with the counterpoise in its 15m position checked the match on my MFJ259b. 24.910MHz = 1.0:1 I guess that will do for 12m.
Playing with the counterpoise didn’t really help get a better match on 10m. I managed 1.5:1 at 29.000MHz but it was about 2:1 at 28.500MHz and rapidly getting worse. It worked OK as I had a quick test with the 817 and worked 4 or 5 US contest stations. I shortened the top section further and that enabled me to get it down to 1.3:1 at 28.100MHz. Sorted for 10m.
Repeatability is important. I set it back up for 15m, then 17m. Easy as there are markers on the counterpoise. Then back to 15m checking the match was OK. Then onto 12m (halving top length, easy) then shortening further for 10m. I looked for something I would have with me to measure the extra length to shorten the wire by and it seems the distance between my nipples is just right! I’m unlikely to forget to bring them with me either
So acceptable matches can be made for 20/17/15/12 & 10m. I had no difficulty working contest stations on 10m and was able to copy many 10m beacons. That suggests that it’s radiating as well as matching. Being able to copy beacons like KB1QZY which runs 4W to a vertical suggests it’s rxing OK. That signal from Maine was peaking 57 on the meter at times.
Now all I need is good propagation and good WX to try it tomorrow.
Andy
MM0FMF
distance between my nipples is just right!
.
Andy, don’t forget to remove the tassels and metal studs from your piercings.
.
Elliott, K6ILM
Chaser Clown
In reply to K6ILM:
I normally connect a wire to the left piercing via a 100k resistor and earth the other end. It’s used to bleed off any static build up.
Andy
MM0FMF
In reply to MM0FMF:
.
Thanks for the update…keep me abreast
.
Elliott, K6ILM
In reply to K6ILM:
In reply to MM0FMF:
.
Thanks for the update…keep me abreast
.
Elliott, K6ILM
Groan!!!
73
Brian G8ADD
In reply to M1EYP:
Europe is very loud into Idaho this morning Tom. Very good 10 meter conditions.
Update: 1715 WO6M / M1EYP = S2S!!! Well done!
The propagation info on QRZ.com and DXsummit.fi says conditions on 10 and 12 meters are “poor”, with solar flux down. Does an s2s between England and California sound poor? Methinks not, Buckwheat. The lesson is to check these bands notwithstanding what the experts are saying. It takes 30 seconds out of your life, but worth it. Are you listening Australia and Korea? Those bands can open from VK-land to the West Coast NA as early as 1945 UTC. What’s to lose…try it.
.
Elliott, K6ILM
Well, that turned out rather well! I had a couple of spare hours on Monday 29th October 2012, and after all the 10m band fun in the CQWW SSB contest, I thought I’d try a SOTA activation if the band was still open.
It was, so off to The Cloud G/SP-015 I went. This time I was armed with the MM10 (10m quarterwave vertical with groundplane) antenna, which I erected by the topograph on the summit. It was a cold late afternoon, but there were still plenty of walkers passing across, many of whom wanted to learn about my activity.
More or less as soon as I set up, some light drizzle came in, so into the bothy bag I went. I noted that the ingenious system that looks at the RBN skimmer and autospots an activation ‘got’ me, and soon I was hearng a very loud signal from Rich N4EX. Dennis WA2USA also made it into my 10m CW log, after a couple of G stations.
Things went quiet on CW, so I went onto SSB. Here I made four QSOs, ll G stations. Big signals could be heard all over the 10m SSB frequencies from North America and Europe, but none of them were calling me. A similar story followed on 10m FM, with three G stations, but nothing further afield.
Back onto 28MHz CW, and the RBNgate soon had me spotted again. This time I enjoyed a pleasing run of six USA stations, and mostly known SOTA participants as well. I was about to pack up and go home for my tea when I thought I would just check the SOTAwatch Spots first. I saw that WO6M had just been picked up on the RBNgate with his calls from Burn Benchmark W6/CT-136.
I listened on 28.061MHz CW and could hear him clear with a 559 signal. I tried sending my call whenever the opportunity arose, but was always beaten by a strong US station. But then I heard a very strong US station telling Dan WO6M (in CW) that he was being called for a S2S! (I think this may have been Rich N4EX - but whoever it was, thank you).
It was a bit nervy when WO6M was sending me back question marks, but then he got my callsign and we successfully exchanged signal reports and summit references. I was very pleased to have made an intercontinental ‘DX’ summit-to-summit, and had a spring in my stride as I descended back to the car. The perfect end to an enjoyable activation!
Tom M1EYP
In reply to M1EYP:
Over the pond S2S are nice thrills. thumbs up.
In reply to M1EYP:
Hi Tom,
Good to see you had some success on 10m, I did listen for you but nothing heard unfortunately:(
I was a bit confused as to your spot for FM 29.580MHz, since that is a repeater input frequency, I did listen on the output & input in case you were hearing and trying to use a repeater but nothing heard:(
73,
Colin
M0XSD.
Oops, that was a mistake on my part Colin. I thought I had remembered the 10m bandplan correctly, but it seems not. I was only QRV on that QRG for 5 minutes, but I will now remember to QSY a good deal lower next time!
Seems strange that the simplex calling channel is right in the middle of the repeater inputs and outputs, but then 10m is a strange band.
Tom M1EYP
In reply to M1EYP:
Good stuff Tom. 2x QRP radio QRP antenna is always a good way of making you smile. It persisted with rain all of yesterday so I never got out to test the new FMF-Papilla 10/12/15/17/20 antenna. Microwave round table next weekend so no chance then.
I’m not jealous at all. I’ll just have to see if I can do likewise when I go wandering near the Med in a week or so. 
Andy
MM0FMF
In reply to M1EYP:
Easy mistake to make, the 10m FM Bandplan is particularly a mess & I don’t think it is aligned across the Atlantic.
I must check again myself especially since the Region 1 2012 changes, I haven’t worried too much so far since until the last few weeks I haven’t made any FM contacts across the Atlantic (and that was via the New York repeater and why I know a little about repeaters Hi Hi).
73,
Colin
M0XSD.
In reply to M1EYP:
.
OK, Tom. Now please get the Aussies on 10 meters. You sent them over there, so it’s up to you to do the prodding…heh, heh.
.
Elliott, K6ILM
Chaser Clown
In reply to M1EYP:
It was a bit nervy when WO6M was sending me back question marks, but
then he got my callsign and we successfully exchanged signal reports
and summit references. I was very pleased to have made an
intercontinental ‘DX’ summit-to-summit, and had a spring in my stride
as I descended back to the car. The perfect end to an enjoyable
activation!Tom M1EYP
That was great Tom. I know the feeling. Last week when I had my S2S with Barry, N1EU, and much to the astonishment of nearby walkers, I punched the air and shouted “Yes” when he came back to my call.
I do wonder if VK is a S2S possibility…
Yes.
8th July 2012:
G0PEB/P on G/SE-008 to VK3WAM/P on VK3/VT-046
0557z on 14.061MHz CW
In reply to M1EYP:
It might be nice to have a ‘Honours’ listing of Continent/Country S2S’s. Though this looks outwith the SOTA database capability at the moment. Possibly SUMMITSBASE might like to consider it? (Though me thinks Mike BLH has enough on his plate at the moment - hi!)
Cheers
Jack (;>J
GM4COX