Hi, Pete.
I saw your 5/19 CT beacon spot and had a listen. I heard DM13 and DM91 beacons.
No response to my CQs. The antenna was a 15 meter half square which only got a 2.6:1 match. I’ll have to pack a better Magic Band radiator next time. Any suggestions?
You were my second intercontinental S2S (missed by only 15 minutes!). Here’s hoping we can complete our first 6 meter OOS S2S.
72, David N6AN
Hi guys,
I have only got a couple of 6 meter SOTA QSOs the last few years. Last evening
around 0115 Z I worked Tennessee and Utah on SSB on 6. SO, things are looking
up. (SOMETHING besides FT8, which I do not use).
I have been working 6M DX the last two days into 4 land (FL) and 5 land from the home QTH, so things are looking up.
I use a big 7 element beam at home on 6M…I run a dipole from SOTA summits. It works pretty well from the peaks WHEN THE BAND IS OPEN. I do have a packable 6M Yagi… but very rarely deploy it.
An easy 6M antenna is a dipole made out of an old pair of TV Rabbit Ear telescoping antennas…u need 110 inches of length…just adjust the length to the lowest return loss! Small…light…works well!
I have made DX QSO’s into 17 different states from SOTA summits QRP, but ZERO s2s DX contacts out of state.
I would really like to make an out of state s2s contact on ES skip some day.
I will be out tomorrow (May 21st) on 3 or 4 peaks and I will be checking for 6M DX. If I hear beacons or stations on 6M I will spot it on SOTAwatch , and post what freq I am calling CQ on…
It may take a coordinated “6M EVENT” of some sort to make that first DX s2s 6M QSO happen.
Here’s a question for the keener 6 mtr ops - do we really need to loiter, waiting for the elusive sporadic E to appear these days? I’m not currently QRV on 6, but I had a go at some crude filters on the dxsummit data, and it would appear that we have had intercontinental DX just about every day for the past few months, presumably F2 mode. dxsummit does not tell me what gear they were using, of course, so perhaps it’s more than would comfortably fit in a backpack? I’ve worked Costa Rica and Peru with my 160 mtr dipole on 6 mtrs, so it cannot be TOO demanding!
Hi Pete, I have activated a number of summits on 6 metres. My most memorable one was probably Mt Bates (VK9/NO-001) where I had 9 contacts into VK1/2/3 on 6m using about 50W SSB into my 40m OCF dipole
I have also worked into ZL1 and ZL4 on 6m from one of my local summits (Yellow Rabbit Hill - VK1/AC-039), think I was using about 50W SSB into a flowerpot vertical IIRC, but unfortunately not S2S contacts. Have a number of interstate S2S contacts on 6m, but suspect that most of them were groundwave - although have worked chasers in VK1/2/3/4/5/7/8 (just missing VK6 and external territories) from summits in VK.
Having seen how well Andrew VK1AD’s 6m rectangular loop (as linked above by Andrew VK1DA)worked the other day, I think I might have to make one up for 6m use on the summits.
https://translate.google.com/?sl=de&tl=en&op=websites takes care of the language issue.
It looks like a very simple antenna to construct. I have not used 6m very much so maybe I’ll add this to my kit and make a special effort to use 6m from summits.
As a reformed 6m op I think the only thing to say about such contacts using hf antennas is that a lot of luck is involved and I think very likely, digital (FT8) modes. Even the keen 6m ops who run a radio in the background and listen with good beams all day every day, do not find such contacts happening in any predictable way.
While I was in Brunei (V85DA) from 88-91 I did operate on 6m with 5 el yagi and 60w. I made lots (thousands) of contacts into JA, the epicentre of 6m operators in Asia. Some unusual contacts were made, including the African country worked in July of 2019, then on the exact same date a year later. Never heard them on any other day. Only worked due to hearing a faint signal sending a CQ on I think 50.110 cw. Turned the beam around 180 degrees, there he was, still weak but workable. Another time I heard a KL7 and gave him a report, never got a QSL so presumed he worked a JA.
I don’t think I’ve ever had any dx S2S on 6m. Plenty of locals on a day of multiple activations. And a few JA home stations worked in a dx opening on SSB.
I chatted with Steve VK3OT/ZAZ at the WIA AGM last weekend, he talked about the work needed to make DXCC on 6m ssb/cw and how much easier it is with FT8, primarily due to being able to reach under the noise. But that is “progress”.
I have worked about 44 DX (Out of state) stations in 19 states on six meters. I run 5 watts to a dipole using ssb or cw, while on SOTA peaks.
I have also made hundreds of Arizona-to-Arizona 6M SOTA contacts from summits here in Arizona…many of them s2s contacts, but most are local home stations/chasers.
However…only two DX (out of state stations) were documented SOTA Chasers, and I have never worked an out of state SOTA Activator on Six Meters. So ZERO DX s2s contacts on Six Meters.
That is what I am looking for mostly…that first Six Meter DX s2s QSO.
Just yesterday I made a six meter 225 Mile QSO from my summit on CW…5 watt to a dipole at 12 feet…and the other guy was at home running a loop antenna of some sort (and some power I think…thanks KEN…K6HPX).
So that is the problem…how to get that first s2s 6M DX contact.
Pete,
There were some postings from the northwest “CN” grids to DM33, DM34, etc.
but it was skipping over me. Never heard a thing. I presume they were all base station
postings.
John K6YK
Been open most of today with this morning being scandinavia and baltics and moving round to southern europe through the afternoon. Same yesterday and i expect similar tommorow too.
Been testing some homebrew antennas. Oddly the best and most portable seems to have been a simple dipole attached to 3 bamboo canes at about 2m height. Might take it out next weekend weather permitting. Its even rotatable
There was plenty more going begging too. There was action to Scandinavia, Slovenia, France and Morocco but I didn’t manage to get anything of that - nor the D4 (Cape Verde) station that was a loud 59 for an hour or so this morning!
I finally got around and built this “Hentenna”. Not sure yet if it would preform better than a loop or pack easier, but I had a tent repair kit laying around and looked like it would be a fun project. Hardest part was getting it to resonance. Ended up trimming off more than what I thought would be needed, but finally got it to play on 50.313 quite nicely. Now just need to get it out and see how it will do on a Mtn top…Iffen I recall correctly (it’s been a few years back) I recall the loop needed a matching section of 75 ohm cable to bring it down to an acceptable range to load without a tuner ?? Been quite some time ago that I played around with it - think I recall using a short piece of 75ohm coax cable if memory serves…Anyway another antenna to experiment with here…I used a flag pole mount and some military fiber poles to get it up about 20 of so feet off the ground. Not sure if sitting on a mtn top with just the 18’ crappie pole would get it high enough ?? Put a 100 watts thru it too the other night and seemed to do ok…Later,
