CQ DX With A Fantastic View

Operating from Hardnotts pass in the Lake District

Many of us like to get out in the Countryside with Mother Nature.This Weekend i had a special treat courtesy of my loving YL Louise (M3TLL),Louise had booked us in to The Boot inn at Boot in the Lake District as part of my Birthday present and of course she insisted on me bringing a few Antenna's to try out my /mobile operations.
I had some great contacts on the HF bands and as you can see the scenery is spectacular!
Thanks Louise it was Brilliant

The Things We Hams Talk About

Last night i had a good solid 5/9 copy into U.S.A with Milt W3AEG on 20M from my home Station.I then decided to try some CQ calls on 80M for a change.My first contact was Steve M0EBJ who was located in Norfolk.We had a good rag chew and got on to the great subject of Motorcycles! I was glad to have met up with another Ham Radio Biker.I have been riding Motor Bikes since i was 13 and i am 40 on Monday so you could say I've been a biker for a while.This is the Motorcycle Steve M0EBJ is currently riding.






This is my Long time friend i had it for many years its a 1985 Kawasaki GPZ750(now 810)cc.Its a bit of a handful but roars and rides like thunder in a straight line h.i.

This is may Sports Tourer its a 98 Suzuki Bandit600cc,itsfast,reliable,good all rounder and very comfortable,



Maybe ill work /M from my Motorcycle some time? I try ed it with my old CB when i was a teenager it was ok.73 have a good weekend

DXing on 20M SSTV

After a days work i like to get in, turn the computer and radio's on and see whats happening on the bands
Tonight i herd W3GG calling cq on the SSTV 20M band.


I returned and sent my SSTV picture with his signal report and small image of his transmission.
This was his next transmission Which Acknowledged QSL of my transmission

And the final after a nice QSO 73

This image was a welcomed sight to my P.C monitor all the way from Venezuela

HF Band wide open

What a great weekend!many US Stations were worked during the ARRL Contest.The 20m and 15m band were in great shape this weekend from my home Station with excellent contacts up and down U.S.A.
One Station from Florida was impressed with my genuine 5/8 report on 15M using 50w from the FT847 into the Hustler 6BTV.I recently added 4 half wave lengths of 6mm copper wire to the Hustler vertical radials which seems to be helping out with its repeated good performance.

Last night was still active after the weekend contest i was pulling SSTV pictures from U.S.A and South America.

A friend who is local to me,Karl G1YPQ made a good contact on 17M into the U.S.A on his G5RV as i was listening on the side.Its good to hear everyone having fun and taking advantage of the Bands been open.
73 until the next post.

Working EA5CFM from the /Mobile

This picture is Paco EA5CFM in his shack

Whilst i was mobile this morning i heard 4Z5PG Station in Isreal calling CQ 20M,I responded from my mobile station and had a good QSO exchanging 5/8-5/9 reports with 4Z5PG.As i was in QSO a massive signal from Paco EC5CFM called in to me, so i QSY to another frequency and had another nice QSO.This was all on the way to work operating on the 20M band which was fairly quiet in comparison to last weeks DX that i worked.Its always a real pleasure making QSO with Stations all around the World from the mobile, and i thank all Stations that keep me company back and forth from my work QTH.
73 to all, have a good weekend

Fantastic results from my Mobile Station

Wow! who says the bands are dead! this morning i was on the same journey to work when i stumbled across ZL1BD-AL.He was signing off with a G station when i called in on my humble ft100 with 50watts through my mono band Maldol antenna and to his amazement and mine we managed a 10 min QSO whilst i was driving to work.He was 5/7 to 5/9 all the way and i returned with a 5/7,i was more than pleased with that and had a good rag chew with AL rather than a usual 5/9 73 which what usually happens H.I.
So anyone thinking about going mobile i can strongly recommend the Maldol HFC20 mobile antenna's.As far as the rig my FT100 is certainly proving to be a little gem,giving repeated regular fantastic results...


On Wednesday 21st i was tuning around the 20m band whilst driving to work and come across a strong VK station on my mobile ft100.To my delight i managed to sneak into the pile up with a 5/7 with VK9DNX which was quite a surprise with my 50watts and 1.2m long Maldol hfc20 mobile antenna.I herd other VK stations and also ZL stations were herd on my mobile station.this was between 8.00 and 8.30 am

See you on 20M between 8.00 and 8.30 from the mobile.73 good DX!!

SSTV on 80M

SSTV on 80M - 3.730 myself 2E0HTS in QSO with OH2BT from Finland.........

Girl GuideThinking Day On the Air at the Starcentre

A view of the Mars Landscape at the STARCENTRE


Today was Thinking Day on the Air,which is an annual event for Girl guides around the world.This year Keighley and Bradford Guides took part at the Starcentre and i had the pleasure of operating the Station and assisting them with Ham Radio qso's around Europe on HF,we worked many stations mainly on 20M and a few on 40M and 2M. Contacts were made with Germany,Hungary,Ukraine,Italy,Russia,Romania,Spain,Yugoslavia and England.

This is where the shack is located at the college's Starcentre,its the Communication Centre.A large plasma screen is connected to the P.C and allows others to see whats going on in the shack,in this picture it shows Satellite tracking and decoding.

Here you can see Girl Guides operating the FT1000mp and also logging worked Stations.

YL's seem to attract plenty of calls a total of 30 Guides took part in the Event and they all had a HF QSO some had many.They will all receive a communicator badge for their participation and efforts.

Yes its ME having a play on HF, luckily i work at College full time and get to operate the Station regular which is only fair as i set the Station up in the first place H.I!

The FT1000mp in SSTV mode this was a hit with the Guides as i took their photo's and sent them out across the airwaves via SSTV on 20M

The other end of the shack is mainly used for VHF operation,as you can see more P.C's this time used for weather Satellite tracking and receiving,also the Internet such as QRZ.COM,Eqsl etc. To the right is the PSU,FT2600m 2M rig,Azimuth/Elevation controller,VR5000 receiver,ATU and FT890 which was used to receive more stations which were logged towards the Communicator badge.

This is a close up of the VR5000 receiver which i got the College to buy so that when I was not around other members of staff who are not licenced radio Hams can use this receiver to aid their teaching sessions.Well that was the idea, however i feel that the other members of staff seem to be scared of the radio equipment in general and avoid using it! This is a shame as we Hams are only too happy to help people get their licence. The use of radio has been a great tool for me using Science, maths,electronics,geography and propagation to help young people learn something and have fun and a good time.

I'm pleased to report that the Girl Guides really took to radio and had a great time at the Starcentre,hopefully we may hear some of the Girl Guides in the up and coming future of Amateur Radio.

that's all for now 73 and thanks for visiting this web blog.

Cq Cq Looking For DX

This week has proved to be quite interesting and i am pleased to report good DX has been worked on my Humble Ham Station.
After adding some 1/4 wave radials for 20M to the Hustler 6btv i seem to be working Stateside even easier than before! with good QSO's with AB1AI, W5OU,N3PF,N3UEV,K4VV and the well known W2ONV.These contacts all took place early evening just as the Sun was setting,all on the 20M Band.

I went on to Work Cuba for the first time but more surprisingly was that it was on the 40M Band using a simple G5RV and 50 watts.The cuban station was CO8LY and 5/9 reports were exchanged. VO1CRM from Canada and FM5DN from Martinique were both worked on 40m late evening time. Two more new DXCC were added to my collection taking it to 111 Countries in total,the new DXCC worked were D44BS from Cape Verde Island, and YW0DX operating as a DXpedition group from Aves Island both rare DX Stations especially using the G5RV and also on 40M.

YW0DX is part of the 4M5DXgroup who are currently active throughout February on Aves Island which incidentally is only 2m above sea level. When any storms hit the Island it becomes fully submerged, you can get an idea of what its like on the picture that is posted on the Stations QRZ.COM look up page which you can see here.

I hope you enjoyed this post ill be listen/operating on 20M and 40M in the Evenings so if you hear me please say Hello. 73 and good DX to all, thanks for visiting this site.

Pictures/ images of rigs i own and use

Kenwood TH7E handheld TX145/430 rx 0-1300mhz

Yaesu Ft470 (my first 2m/70cm radio still going strong) Yaesu Ft767GX HF,6,2 and 70cm

Yaesu FT890 HF (my first HF rig)

Yaesu FT100 HF,6,2 & 70 (i use this every day operating mobile & have had Excellent results)

Yaesu FT857 HF,6,2 & 70 (i use this rig mainly on 2m,70cm and 6m.i also have it connected to my p.c and down load satellite images e.t.c)

Yaesu FT 847 Earth station HF,6,2 & 70cm

A view of the Mars Landscape at the Starcentre

44f Bradford Air Cadets pass Licence exam

Hello once again,i am pleased to report that 6 Air Cadets sat the foundation licence exam this monday evening and all six passed.

The Cadets have attended a 9 week course at the Starcentre which is part of Keighley College.
During the weekly sessions, louise M3TLL,and my self 2E0HTS have been training the Cadets both practical and theory regarding Radio and ham operation.

We were both delighted with their results and we are looking forward to working them on Air soon.

The Cadets are from the 44F squadron based at Bradford, now they are licenced they can operate the squadrons Ham radio station and hopefully some of the newly licenced Hams will aquire their own Station at their home QTH.

This is the second group of Air Training Corps Cadets we have had the pleasure of training for the foundation licence,and as an ex Air Cadet its great to be able to give something back to the Corps.I hope that we get the chance to teach many more in the future.

Well Done 44F Squadron!!!!!!

This is the press release from the College/Starcentre

Air Cadets from 44F Squadron Bradford are celebrating today following examination success.

The six air cadets aged between 13 and 19 completed a 9 week course at Keighley College through the Constructive Partnerships project to gain their Foundation Licence for amateur radio.

The course which took place using the College’s STAR Centre facility involves both practical and theory and students need to have a keen grasp of the fundamental physics involved.

The Foundation Licence enables the cadets to operate amateur radio equipment with a power limit of 10 watts, with this they will be able to communicate worldwide. They will also be able to use radio equipment they have at their Cadet base.

RSGB registered instructor Simon Davison 2E0HTS was extremely pleased with the results “The students have worked hard and deserved to pass. It will be good to hear some new voices entering the hobby.”

unfortunatly i am not permitted to show the group photo due to the child protection act as some of the cadets are under 18 years of age.


The Starcentre Radio Shack

Operating PSK on 40m band

This is a short film of my station as i operate on psk which involves the use of radio and computer interfaced and making a contact with other ham stations using digital modes. T94KC is the other station in the film which i manage a QSO,i hope you enjoy the film!!!!




Ive been on 40m using PSK mode this week with some good results.I worked LU5ENM from Argentina using 40 watts through a G5RV earlier in the week and managed 15 different DXCC in total.

The Rigblaster that i recently aquirred has been a good investment as i have had many hours of fun experimenting with SSTV and now PSK modes. I seem to have become quite addicted to these great DX Tools especialy when the bands drop off on phone, as these two modes continue to be working even with very weak signals.

Hope to catch you on Air 73 and thanks for visting this site.

Mobile qso with Mohammed 7X4AN

.
I regulary Work 7X4AN Mohammed on 20m from my Mobile Station which comprises of Yaesu's Field Commando the mighty FT100,50watts and the amazing Maldol 20m hfc whip.

I have worked 7X4AN at least 20 times from my mobile usually travelling back and forth on my work journey..Many thanks Mohammed I look forward to our next QSO
ma salam a 73

HF/VHF Propagation Brings New Year Lift on Bands

I hope the New year is going good for you all.The Bands have been much improved over the past several days or so,with good DX been worked on HF and VHF by my Humble self 2E0HTS.

It Started During the Christmas Break when the UK was suffering some terrible weather such as Fog,Gale Force Winds and Heavy Rain.

This was when the 2M Band was wide open.I worked many stations with 5/9 reports all over the UK on FM and SSB was active with some strong German stations blasting through.

I was using the FT857 and 50w into a X200 colineer on 2M FM when i was Rag chewing with 2 locals Barry G7OFR and Ron 2E0DOG/M.This was when I was Called by a Station from Newcastle Derrick G1XXF,then Dave G3VUS QTH Cumbria,M3VGK Brian QTH Derbyshire,M0FEW Bill QTH Somerset,G0VJI Robin QTH London and also 5/9, i also worked Tom M3AGS QTH Seaview ISLE OF WIGHT.

All worked on 2M FM with an excellent VHF lift which lasted a week or so with still some intermittent good conditions.

On HF the conditions proved to remain poor with no sign of improvement on any HF Bands.

so i continued to get used to operating on SSTV mode around about 14.230 mHZ with some good contacts into Europe until New Years Day when operating on FT857,HUSTLER 6BTV i nearly fell of my chair when i herd HI8HH Mike QTH Dominican Republic, i had success and we Exchanged 5/5 reports both ways.Good News at last a bit of propagation on HF.

I also worked some European stations and a few US Stations K3N,WX3B and Vince NT4I.It sure makes a change for a little noise and some familiar, and new voices to RX.


Radio propagation is what Radio Hams Love Best!!!

Radio propagation is a term used to explain how radio waves travel when they are transmitted, or ‘propagated’ from one point on the Earth to another. Some radio waves can be reflected by objects in their path, even by gases in a certain state.

Shortwave frequencies (high frequency signals) are capable of reaching the other side of the planet because they can be refracted by the ionosphere. Amateur radio operators use the ionosphere to reflect their shortwave radio signals around the globe.

Low frequency signals have the property of following the curvature of the earth, making them ideal for continuous, continental communications. Unlike shortwave radio, longwave signals do not reflect or refract using the ionosphere, so there are fewer interference-caused fadeouts.

Higher frequency waves are used for satellite communications as they pass through the Ionosphere