Amateur Radio 80m Yachting Net anyone?

Turnbuckle

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With the burst of interest in HF and SSB, it seems there are a few of us Radio Amateurs around who are either yachties, boaties, or interested. So how about an 80m Yachting net? 80m seems to get fairly good UK coverage at present early am and late afternoon! PM me if you're interested, or shoot me down on here - happy to be a target!!

Yes, I know the RNARS is active (just left a QSO on the Stand-Easy net), but this suggestion is for Yachties/Boaties with an Amateur licence or as Short Wave Listeners, rather than service-oriented. Hoping to get HF on my Moody 30 once I can get to her for winter maintenance.

Well, it's a shot in the dark, anyway.

My call is G4JJP and I'm QTHR in QRZ.com.
 

john_morris_uk

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sounds great idea, HF bit dead in europe for yachties but a few around. ??
I’d give it a go but I plugged my HF transceiver in only the other day and the interference is S9++ on most bands here and I could hardly hear a thing. (It’s so depressingly bad I’ve given up and put the rig on eBay..!) I’ve still got HF on the boat though and when the boats launched I’ll happily join in /MM.

I suppose I could put HF in the Landrover and go /M.

G4BXS QTHR QRZ
 

Channel Sailor

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I too would be interested, to listen only at present. I am playing around with idea HF radio. For two reasons, first just for something to do and 2nd to occasionally pick up weather in English language or as images when sailing away from UK VHF and 2G/3G/4G. I was reading last night about Black Cat apps to help with the weather. I do occasionally miss my now busted NASA Navtext receiver box.
 

William_H

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I’d give it a go but I plugged my HF transceiver in only the other day and the interference is S9++ on most bands here and I could hardly hear a thing. (It’s so depressingly bad I’ve given up and put the rig on eBay..!) I’ve still got HF on the boat though and when the boats launched I’ll happily join in /MM.

I suppose I could put HF in the Landrover and go /M.

G4BXS QTHR QRZ
Almost certainly for you or at least from my experience Computers modem and in my case CCTV recorders all make HF a lost cause at my home. Try turning everything off if you are allowed and check interference. ol'will
 

Alicatt

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Almost certainly for you or at least from my experience Computers modem and in my case CCTV recorders all make HF a lost cause at my home. Try turning everything off if you are allowed and check interference. ol'will
I found the biggest culprits to be the wall wart powerline network adapters, I banned them in my house but still get it from the neighbours having the house wired 3phase means I get all the neighbours QRM

I usually fire up the rig on battery power as that cuts out some but not all the QRM

I'll have to dig out my 80m loading coil for my antenna and listen in
G6JWF QTHR
(currently ON/G6JWF)
Jolly Weary Feet signing off
 

AHoy2

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Also interested for both UK sailing net and /MM contact.
No 80m capability (Ae) at present otherwise all bands/modes, boat HF antenna w.i.p!

My call is M0HOC (also operate as MJ0HOC) QTHR QRZ.com.
 

Skylark

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Sounds like a great idea and I'd like to join in. Not used HF in many years but this thread is a catalyst to restart. I have a half-size G5RV aerial which only covers down to 40m. I hope to put power through it today, first time in 35 years, fingers crossed that everything works :) I've yet to figure out a solution for 80m. May just try a long wire, plus a band pass filter for the neigbours :)

G4PYH
 

Turnbuckle

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Sounds like a great idea and I'd like to join in. Not used HF in many years but this thread is a catalyst to restart. I have a half-size G5RV aerial which only covers down to 40m. I hope to put power through it today, first time in 35 years, fingers crossed that everything works :) I've yet to figure out a solution for 80m. May just try a long wire, plus a band pass filter for the neigbours :)

G4PYH
Excellent! Many people are re-joining nets and returning to Amateur Radio - with plenty of us enjoying yachting / boating.

I have a small garden, and struggled for ages with (a) not enough room for an 80m antenna, and (b) heavy QRM on 80. But one antenna solved both issues for me: an end-fed half wave for 40m, with a small choke coil and 3m extension taking it down to 80m. I built the 49:1 transformer myself - it's easy - and I now have a great 80m antenna with excellent reports and have almost eliminated the QRM.

The great advantage of the end-fed half wave is that you cut it for 40m, and the harmonics work on 20 and 10, without the need for an ATU (though a small tweak from your rig atu can bring it to 1:1). And you don't need radials (or really even an earth, though I do use one from the transformer to reduce QRM). If you then put a small choke coil on the end (c. 60-70 turns of 18/20 swg on a 2 inch former)and another 3 metres of wire, tune the short extension for the part of 80m band you want, and bingo. You have 80 through 10 and with little need for ATU. And magically, I found it also reduced QRM by 90%.

You can bend it, shape it, any way you want it. My wire goes vertical from the transformer for 8 meters up a squid pole, then across my postage stamp garden to another squid pole, slopes back down to the coil, then the 80m extension goes at right angles along a wooden fence and is tied off to a bush. No horrible coax or ladder line hanging down, and apart from the squid poles, almost invisible.

Here's some links:
End fed half wave:
OR
Transformer construction:
OR
Extending 40m antenna for 80m:
OR Ham Radio: 80M EFHW in a 40M EFHW Garden.

Of course, none of this is really suitable on a yacht / boat, and I can put some links up for HF/SW on yachts / boats if anyone is interested. The sea provides one of the best RF earths there is, and getting the installation right is relatively straightforward.
 

Skylark

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Thanks Turnbuckle, that antenna looks simple and about the right size for me to install and get me back on HF.
I agree but need a bit more thought about 80m. To buy a straight 80m version or the 40m with additional coils to extend to 80m. I'd have to fold the full version into all manner of shapes to make it fit in my garden. The coil loaded version is probably more appropriate for me.
I've made my first HF contact today in more than 30 years. 14MHz band was reasonably open, especially given my crude antenna arrangements (which my wife thinks is a skills test for the local squirrels).
Looking forward to this, thanks for starting the thread, Richard.
 

john_morris_uk

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I’m looking at the problem of getting an 80 metre antenna up too.

The thread has prompted me to dust off and start restoring a second hand home brew linear amp I picked up a few years ago. It’s been sitting in the shelf gathering dust. Do you think I’ll have enough power? HI


A797D7AE-09CC-486F-8E79-7C9992E73D18.jpeg

8A9848AD-5520-4F71-8E25-0803A4B961A2.jpeg
A pair of 813’s in grounded grid with 2400 volts on the anodes.
So far I’ve resurrected the power supply and sorted the relay switching out but my dummy load only takes 150 watts so I need to put a dipole up to accept the power! I’ve resprayed the cabinets but discovered both grid and anode meters are defunct. (I wondered for ages why there was no standing current through the valves but I eventually put my ancient AVO in the anode circuit and found it was working all the time. I’ve ordered new meters and 20 metres of RG213 to feed a dipole.
 
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