Amateur Radio 80m Yachting Net anyone?

[Skylark]

......................Will be on next week as usual.

Morning Richard,

Your signal was weak and barely readable, R2-3, S3-4., on the Hack Green SDR. Hard to hear above the noise. No other stations heard on 3.765 MHz.

80m seemed reasonably open at this time of the day. There was a strong signal QSO between Eastbourne, Wirral, Hull and Leicester. All stations 59.

 

[Turnbuckle]

How many made it? Up here in Edinburgh could just hear MX0WSX who made a contact with an unheard station but then dropped into the noise at about 08: 04. After that nothing heard.. I gave a CQ at 08:12 but nothing heard.

John GM4ZQH

Hello John. MX0WSX made contact with Geoff MM5AHO for a brief chat. Propagation isn't good at the moment and his signal was just above the noise (he did think this might be the case when we talked on Zoom), but we received a 5/9 report from Geoff which is excellent, given the conditions and my antenna. I did listen for you GM4ZQH and put a call out for others, but didn't copy your CQ. We ended at about 08.05.

However, we have proved the concept this morning. MX0WSX will continue to try the net at this frequency and time for a few more weeks yet, and hopefully conditions will improve a bit - they were great a couple of weeks ago! Always the way, eh?

Thanks for taking the time to call, and for visiting the Wessex Ham Lockdown Zoom. For any other prospective Yachties Net members, if you have Zoom then Wessex Ham is on from 11.00am to 12.00 noon every weekday. Call in using the following info:
Meeting ID: 921 5129 1606
Passcode: wessexham

 

[Turnbuckle]

Morning Richard,

Your signal was weak and barely readable, R2-3, S3-4., on the Hack Green SDR. Hard to hear above the noise. No other stations heard on 3.765 MHz.

80m seemed reasonably open at this time of the day. There was a strong signal QSO between Eastbourne, Wirral, Hull and Leicester. All stations 59.

Thanks for the report. See below for comments - propagation curious at present. 5/9 from near Falkirk, but I was monitoring Hack Green also, and could hardly hear my test signals. But proof of concept is showing it may well work - but we will have to monitor MUF and time of day. Will continue with this time and frequency for a few weeks. Meanwhile, monitor the Wessex Ham website - and sign up for our newsletter if you haven't already done so.

 

[Turnbuckle]

I regret that the new antenna isn’t up yet. I’ve rebuilt the ladder line and measured out the elements and got as far as laying it out on the grass but I haven’t climbed the tree yet!
I’ll try and listen in tomorrow on a bit of wet string.

This is the antenna I’ve built. 80m Antenna for small gardens | G7FEK Amateur Radio

Hello John. That's a great antenna. I used one of those at my last QTH and it worked exceptionally well. We managed to prove the concept this morning with a short QSO with MM5AHO - see above.

 

[john_morris_uk]

Came down to workshop at 0800 and threw a 66’ length of wire into a tree in the hope it would present some sort of half approachable VSWR pending me putting the ‘proper antenna up’ and then daughter arrived to drop off the new VHF antenna for her boat. Obviously she couldn’t come in or anywhere near us but stood in the drive way for a few moments chatting. By the time she’d gone it was 0830 and nothing heard on 3740 at this end. 80m is full of activity though...
The VSWR on 80m is not good but I put the rig on low power on 40 metres (low power because it was still bad VSWR!) and speculatively called CQ in CW. I just got 599 from EA1BIA in Aguilar in Spain. My first CW QSO in maybe 30 years. I’m a bit rusty but we got by. I’ll try and Zoom later.

 

[Black Sheep]

Nothing heard from SE London/NW Kent, but only a random long wire into a NASA HF3. And as the wire is aligned roughly SSW-NNE I'm guessing you'll be in the null zone. So I listened more in hope than expectation!

 

[Skylark]

..........My first CW QSO in maybe 30 years. I’m a bit rusty but we got by.

Until recently, my lapse was 34 years, at that time with an IK0 callsign Just like riding a bike, it comes back quite quickly and is very rewarding.

 

[Turnbuckle]

Great to hear John G4BXS this morning on the Yachties Net. Conditions were a little better this week - monitoring my signal on Hack Green SDR showed the improvement, but still QSB causing some difficulties. As the mornings get lighter, we may find this gets better, but I'm very happy to discuss other frequencies and/or times - but for now, we'll stick with the net at 0800 on Tuesday mornings 3.765.00 +/- QRM.

 

[Bilgediver]

I couldn t hear John But your voice was just rising out of the noise at times and I managed to copy Johns call sign when you signed off. There were a lot of voices down in the noise but up here the readable ones were from The Continent.

 

[MM5AHO]

Could not make it this morning, other matters in the way!

 

[Turnbuckle]

Put out a call for five minutes this morning at 08.00 on 3.765 for the Yachties net. Local propagation continues to improve as the grey line gets earlier each week! Nothing heard this morning, but will continue with the weekly call.

 

[Skylark]

I've been using 80m CW quite a lot over the last month but due to the orientation and limitation of the aerial not had a lot of success north and south of me (Manchester). East and west much better

 

[john_morris_uk]

Sorry, but I couldn’t make it this morning either. The battery is on the boat and with one vocal chord paralysed speaking is hard work. If I can find/make/borrow a PSU it will be easier. I’m due to see the specialist about my vocal chord next Monday.

 

[Bilgediver]

Put out a call for five minutes this morning at 08.00 on 3.765 for the Yachties net. Local propagation continues to improve as the grey line gets earlier each week! Nothing heard this morning, but will continue with the weekly call.

Just Static here on 3.765 but could hear a net on 3.770 and 3.775. Suggesting path from here to North Wales north West England however all stations readable in static.

 

[Turnbuckle]

Another call this morning, 3.765 mhz 0800 - 0805 but nothing heard. Antenna problems last week, but this week all find - Hack Green giving a good copy, also down in Falmouth. Looking forward to getting a response from yachties!!

 

[Bilgediver]

I Heard Richard M0WSX down in the static calling but my reply was unheard.It took a while to resolve the full cal sign but the x-ray was always clear in the static.

 

[john_morris_uk]

Another call this morning, 3.765 mhz 0800 - 0805 but nothing heard. Antenna problems last week, but this week all find - Hack Green giving a good copy, also down in Falmouth. Looking forward to getting a response from yachties!!

Apologies but I’m having another operation on next Monday to try and help my paralysed vocal cord. Two days when I have to be mute post op and hopefully I’ll be back on air two weeks today with a voice again.

 

[Turnbuckle]

I Heard Richard M0WSX down in the static calling but my reply was unheard.It took a while to resolve the full cal sign but the x-ray was always clear in the static.

Well, that's good news! Thanks for being there and for the response. A little more work on my antenna, I think. SWR is a little too high for an End Fed Half Wave on that frequency, so will re-do the wire and re-measure. Now that I have a NanoVNA hopefully I can fine-tune the antenna.

 

[Turnbuckle]

Apologies but I’m having another operation on next Monday to try and help my paralysed vocal cord. Two days when I have to be mute post op and hopefully I’ll be back in air two weeks today with a voice again.

Thanks for listening! Good luck with the operation next Monday, and hopefully chat on air in a couple of weeks.

 

[john_morris_uk]

PS I’m also trying to buy a PSU so I don’t have to borrow the battery from daughters boat in order to get on the air...