Here's Three Different Ways To Make QSO

Delta Loops and DX QSOs

There have been some signs of improvement with regular openings on HF most days here at My Q T H.
My home brew 20 meter delta Loop has been Performing well since I repositioned it in a Vertical configuration.
DX. Stations are becoming more regular on 20 M especially stateside and the Middle East. 40 M has provided some nice openings into South America as well as Canada. Ive been fairly active lately making the most of the good conditions making many interesting QSO

I’ve also been putting out some good Signals from the mobile making plenty
Of contacts on my favorite band 2OM.
It’s always a Pleasure to work new Stations and especially nice to be able to say a quick hello to a nice group of regular radio amateurs. Like Ivan LZ2LP. Mohamed 7X4AN and Gary EW1MM.

I got the illness us Hams get regularly which was the itch and urge to have a go at another home brew delta loop over the weekend. So with the Sun shining I rounded up some tools and wire which turned out to be 3mm plastic coated copper wire. I decided to have a go at making an antenna that might work on 137MHZ which I would use to receive Weather satellites such as NOOA Satellites which transmit imagery data signals on FM. I’ve had good results in the past using the 2M 7/8 wave vertical, with this in mind the resonant length of wire that I cut was for 2M and luckily the SWR was good across the whole of the 2M band.

I used a formulae I came across on the Internet which is very simple to use, it helps you to work out the total length of wire used to make a closed circuit delta Loop on any band.

Length (Feet ‘)

= 1005
frequency

Example for a 20M Delta Loop like the one that I use.

1005
14.200 MHZ = 70.77

+ the length of wire used to secure and connect to feeder and dipole/loop centre = near enough 71 feet. This should be reasonably resonant if fed with a ¼ wave length of 75ohm coax terminating to 50ohm coax. An ATU is required for other HF bands.


The length of wire I used to build the Delta Loop which was mentioned earlier, was only 6feet 9inches in length to provide a low SWR. I came to this result using the same formulae which again proved accurate

1005
145.000 MHZ = 6.93 = 6feet 9inches which worked out well across 2M as well as 137MHZ-WX-NOOA Signals.


Once I crimped some lug connectors on each end of the wire. I laid the wire out on the floor in a triangle with equal sides, then I positioned the feed point approximately 4inches from one of the bottom corners.

Using cable ties/tie raps I was able to connect each corner to a thin piece of rope. This made the delta loop simple to install in the vertical configuration in the near bye tree outside.

As I was putting the new Loop up I had the FT-857 on 2M SSB 145.200 when an Irish Station started to come through the speaker. Louise my YL and HAM (M3TLL) came rushing outside to tell me the news. I followed him and another Station that I was not receiving down to the frequency they were using.I was receiving the Irish Station S-2, Q-5. I headed outside again and installed the loop vertically in the tree using the rope and cable ties. The Irish Stations signal was now up to 5/7 so I was extremely surprised on how well it was working.

I have made a couple of contacts on 2M with reasonable results and I have managed some quality images of the earth via the NOOA Satellites that I’ve managed to receive. I am still in TEST mode for a while before I can really provide accurate feedback, but so far so good.

As far as HF goes the 20M Loop, the 6BTV Hustler and G5RV have received and transmitted some distant signals, with a new DX Country ‘JAMAICA’ added to the collection last Friday night on 40M. I had a lucky break when I got in early during the pile that was about to happen when 6Y1V was 5/9 both ways during the speedy contact we made-Very nice!
Last night was also good especially 20M as I was hearing Mexico and The Caribbean coming through 5/7+.

Hopefully the new cycle will bring even more rare and distant signals to be heard at The 2E0HTS Home or Mobile HAM Station.

73 all the best DX

De 2E0HTS Simon

Echolink via a Repeator-R or Link-L

Last night I was very happy to make my first QSO with Ham Radio blogger and fellow DXer Nash JN4VWH.

We have been in contact via the Internet for quite some time, so as you can imagine it was very exciting and pleasurable to finally make QSO using our radio equipment.

We have both tryed listening out for each other on HF for quite a while, but the bands have not yet been open when we have both found a mutual time that is convenient for us both to play radio.

With propagation not quite reliable enough to work JN4VWH the plan had to change, so we decided to use more Technology that is available to give us a helping hand. Using the Gb3YR repeater I was able to hear Nash JN4VWH coming through loud and clear via echolink through his local IRLP echolink link JE4YIZ-L.

It was a real pleasure to finaly be able to speak with Nash on his new Icom 7000 using my Yaesu Ft-847 and an echolink enabled repeater and Link in England and Japan. Truly great Ham radio Technology.

We had some interesting overs exchanging reports and information, which then lead on to making a second contact using our computers which are both running echolink software.

Once again a real pleasure to be making QSO with JN4VWH Nash.
I am hopeful of some good propagation soon and maybe hear Japan on 15M in the near future. Sayonara 73


Below is the Shack of JN4VWH Nash in Japan

Below is my Shack 2E0HTS Simon in England


Radio and Computers can work well together!!!

73 thanks for visiting Ham radio Blogspot. de 2E0HTS Simon Yorkshire N.ENGLAND

BBC Radio Leeds Broadcasts Live From The SkillWeld 2008 Contest At Park Lane College Keighley

SkillWeld 2008 is part of the World Skills Olympics and fortunately for myself I get the fantastic job of helping to arrange the regional final to be held at the College where I work. Thanks to a great team and the fact that we have just recently merged with Park Lane College Leeds, Park Lane College Keighley(PLCK) held a very competitive event 'SkillWeld 2008' at the fantastic state of the art Fabrication and Welding workshop based at Keighley.
The various welded joints were marked and examined by the judges to extremely high standards and there was quality competition from another college taking part at Keighley. But we still managed to deliver the goods with a victorious 1st, 2cnd and 3rd place finish. Well done P.L.C.K Lads!!!

The event involves using Metal Inert Gas(MIG),Manual Metal Arc(MMA) and Tungsten Inert Gas(TIG) welding processes on Mild Steel, Stainless Steel, Aluminium plate and pipe of various thicknesses. These skills also come in handy for constructing radio masts for us radio Hams.

The winner of this event has a chance to go through to the National final and then go on to the World Championship in Welding which will be held next year in Canada.

With such an important event representing the future of UK skills we were honoured to be Live on Air on BBC Radio Leeds with presenter Daragh at the controls.

As a radio Ham and ex radio DJ, you could guess that I was more than Happy to be talking with Daragh and teaching him how to put a MIG welded run on a piece of plate live on BBC Radio Leeds with 280,000 listeners. I got the chance to operate on the 3m band! hi.

Thanks to everyone involved for all your hard work and it was great to meet Daragh.

Here is Daragh in his mobile BBC Broadcasting VHF Station.


The inside of the BBC Broadcasting VHF Station

A very nice hydraulic mast.


Daragh's BBC Mobile VHF Station


Me and Daragh Live on Air Talking about SkillWeld


In Second Place here is JOE using the TIG welding process to weld a penetrating root run in a mild steel pipe.


The 2008 regional SkillWeld champion Craig Welding Pipe using the MMA process to cap the welded joint by using a weaving technique to create a nice looking welded bead/throat finish, as well as a flawless welded joint.


I am looking forward to what happens next in this high pressure welding skills event and very happy to be helping the lads to get on with the help from my Colleagues.

The next project for these guys might just have to be a tilt over mast.

Meanwhile Ham News for 2E0HTS. Conditions on the HF bands were great during the contest last weekend and I managed many Stateside QSOs on 20m, 40m and amazingly using split VFO I worked quite few USA stations on 80m.

73 de 2E0HTS

Do You know What The Word HAM Means?

The word HAM is often used by many as a shortcut for amateur radio “HAM RADIO”. As a radio operators we call ourselves “HAM” or “HAMS”.

The actual meaning of HAM is taken from the three pioneers that helped to make it possible for us all to become “HAMS”.

The letter H stands for Hertz (Heinrich Hertz) who helped to develop the theory of electromagnetic waves.

The letter A stands for Armstrong (Edwin Howard Armstrong) who was successful in inventing FM (Frequency Modulation).

The letter M as you may have guessed already stands for Marconi (Gugliemo Marconi) who was the first to transmit signals across the Atlantic.


H = HERTZ
A = Armstrong
M = Marconi

Antenna Maintenance

This time of the year here in the U.K certainly puts any outdoor antenna systems under a lot of strain from windy, wet, winter weather.

I decided to do some routine maintenance on my antennas. The first job was carried out on the reasonably recently erected delta loop cut for 20meters.

I took the loop down from the horizontal configuration, which also meant that the mast it was supported by which was also the fixing for my vhf vertical also had to come down.

This allowed access to both antennas, so I began with the loop by shortening the overall length of the loop, which involved cutting 500mm of each length. The shape being triangular meant removing a total of 1500mm (1.5 meters) of wire and then re measuring each side of the loop to ensure that it was still divided into 3 equal sides. Each side now measuring 6.2 meters in length, giving a total wire length of 18.6 meters.

Previously the swr had been at 5.0 on 14.200, the swr with the adjustment was now 2.0 a much more resonant length for this part of the band.
The antenna worked well before in the horizontal position however it did bring in a high noise level. So with this in mind and the adjustments of the length completed, I decided to erect it this time as vertically as the nearby tree that was to be used for support would allow me. I was fortunate to be able to configure the loop vertical, with a slight slope towards the bottom.

To my amazement once I switched the HF rig on (Yaesu FT-767 GX) the previous noise level was non existent and I was able to hear radio 5 audio with 0 signals coming through from DX stations. I commenced some tests and tuned the loop down to 1.0 swr reading using the auto antenna tuner (ATU) that was onboard the 767. The first station I worked was N2AO followed by WX3B, both were good signals in and out with the loop and when I switched to the vertical hustler the noise level was back and the signals were slightly down.

The loop was much better and it was also working very well on 17 meters as well. After a few days in test I am still getting much better results from the loop, however (and thankfully after spending money on the commercial hustler antenna) the vertical occasionally received bigger signal readings from some directions. The loop has definitely been the favourite for all round receive due to the nice sound of audio signals and the distinctive lack of noisy QRN that it doesn’t bring in. I am very happy with the home made loop antennas overall performance.

The small homebrew vhf vertical also got some attention when the mast was down, I cleaned the connections as well as the whip. I also checked over and repositioned the 3 ground plane radials that are fixed to the antenna's base. This had also surprised me once I began some tests, as local signals had become slightly stronger by a couple of S-points.

I made some contacts on 2meters and managed to get a 5/8 report from G1KDU who is approximately 200 miles south of my QTH. The Band has been in good shape with few good openings quite regularly recently, so a bit of maintenance on the antenna again paid off. I went on to 70cms and managed SSB contacts with a couple of reasonably distant located G-stations, that were operating during a contest. Once again I was quite pleased with the simple antenna's performance.

I guess it is quite advantageous to carry out regular maintenance on your antenna to help maintain good performance, especially where they are exposed to the elements like mine.

73 have a good weekend. de 2E0HTS

PSK Pleasure on 40 Meters

The Bands have been very unpredictable lately with frequent openings around late afternoon on HF. I was lucky enough to tune around 20m whilst driving home from work when I came across 9Y4W(Trinidad & Tobago). He was booming in 5/9, with a big pile up. I gave a couple of calls whilst on the move, and made the contact from the mobile. This was quite surprising in the middle of a pile up with only a simple mobile antenna. Later on during the weekend I worked LW9EOC(Argentina) on 15M using the FT-767, and Hustler Vertical from the QTH.

The past few days have been difficult conditions during the evening time due to excessive QRN that I seem to be suffering from every now again. The noise levels have been unusually high, probably down to the extreme wet winter weather we have been getting up here in the North Pennines. It’s been gale force at times with frequent weather warning bulletins given out. The wind has visited my QTH quite a few times recently as well as some snow and more rain. The last couple of days have been dryer with sunshine and temperatures of 6c. Hopefully things will settle down back to zero noise levels again and I will be able to hear the more distant weaker signals hopefully working a few of them.

With conditions been up and down and reoccurring high QRN, I decided to operate some PSK31. So I set my self up on 40m again on the FT-767, but this time using the G5RV. There were many stations showing on the waterfall so it wasn’t long before I made some contacts. I had some great QSOs into Europe and had the good fortune to work KP4DS(Puerto Rico) on 40M PSK31 running 35 watts. Today I received his eQSL which adds a new confirmed Country to my log. Thanks Luis KP4DS.

Here is Luis KP4DS eQSL to Me

New DX Contact 0n 12 Meters

Today I managed a nice QSO with Tom ZD7X who is located at St. Helena which is quite a distance away from my location. I managed to work Tom ZD7X with a 5/9 report operating my FT-767GX with my home brew 20m delta loop assisted with the MFJ-969 to tune the antenna with 50 watts on 12 meters. 12M is rarely open and I have only had a few QSOs on this band so I guess the new Cycle has begun at last!
Good DX de 2E0HTS 73

Latest Information On Solar Cycle 24

This information is courtesy of QRZ.Com, I thought Id share it with everyone especially those who might of missed it! QRZ.Com for those of you that don't know it is well worth a look.

QRZ.Com

SOHO: the new solar cycle starts with a ‘bang’

The European Space Agency (ESA) reports that the SOHO solar observation spacecraft witnessed the start of the new solar cycle.

The appearance of a very special solar spot on the sun surface a few days ago, signalled to scientists around the world that a new solar cycle had begun. This solar spot also produced two solar blasts.

Each solar cycle lasts an average of 11.1 years. The new solar cycle, called ‘Cycle 24’, started on 4 January this year, when SOHO observed an event scientists have been anticipating for about a year.

A fairly small and, at first sight, inconspicuous sunspot on the Sun’s northern hemisphere showed a reversed magnetic polarity compared to sunspots of previous years. A sunspot is an area of highly organised magnetic activity on the
surface of the Sun. This sunspot convinced scientists that a new solar cycle had begun. Later that day, this finding was made official when the sunspot was catalogued by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

SOHO was not only first in spotting this harbinger of the new solar cycle, it also observed two associated ‘EIT waves’, blast waves that spread out from active regions on the Sun like ripples from a pebble dropped into water. The new cycle started with a ‘bang’!

This is just the beginning, and scientists are now eagerly awaiting the activity to follow. Solar Cycle 24 is expected to build gradually, with the number of sunspots and solar storms reaching a maximum by 2011 or 2012, although intense solar activity can occur at any time.

The Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) celebrated the twelfth anniversary of its launch on 2 December 2007. The satellite has witnessed the Sun change through almost a complete solar cycle, from quiet to stormy, and back.

SOHO is a project of international collaboration between ESA and NASA.

A New Year Brings Hopefull Radio Propagation

Happy New Year to all!

The final few weeks of 2007 did not seem to bring any good propagation making DX openings few and far between. I was fortunate to work just one distant station during the festive season on the 27th of December, and using eQSL.cc I sent and gratefully received an eQSL card confirming QSO with ZP5MAL (Juan from Paraguay). This QSO was on the Yaesu FT-767GX with the hustler 6BTV operating on 20M exchanging 5/3 reports.

The Ft-767GX has also been working well for me on 7.038 mhz with the aid of my P.C and nomic rig blaster as I have had many successful QSOs using winPSK31se digital mode. The 40m band has been fairly flat for phone contacts just like 80m and 20m for most of the time.

Most of my radio talk time has been taking place on 2m running the FT-847 & FT-857. A distinctive increase of activity has been happening on 2m lately which has been welcomed locally. This is probably down to the many new recently licenced operators that have come into the hobby over the last month. Another influencing factor is the poor HF band conditions after the sun has gone down which is about 15.45 utc over here. This and of course the festive season has had a lively effect on 2m which has been very enjoyable. Welcome to all new Hams hope to work you all!

The picture above shows information on the high and lows of the solar cycle.
which for us radio hams that like to work DX, is a very important issue, thankfully 2007 was at the bottom of the solar cycle and was also the start of the upward sweep. Hopefully solar activity will increase and the band conditions will improve during this new year.

I have been fortunate to have been around long enough to have experienced good propagation. This year should bring some new Countries, prefixes and QSL cards to many stations and lets face it conditions can only improve as we have past the worst of the bands poor conditions in the last cycle! I sure am looking forward to hearing some big signals.

73 and good DX. de 2E0HTS Simon, Yorkshire, North England.

Congratulations to Chris and Welcome to Amateur Radio

Chris on the Right of the picture with his pass certificate who is a fellow work colleague at Park Lane College Keighley.

Chris is a lecturer in Electrical Installation and has been spending lunch times and the odd couple of spare hours with Louise and myself over the last two months.

Louise is a registered Examination officer for the Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB). I am RSGB registered as a Foundation Licence instructor.

Chris has been undergoing Foundation Licence training comprising of practical and theory lessons as well as self study.

On Friday the 15th of December Chris sat the Foundation Licence Exam successfully gaining a Pass result. Chris has now applied for his Licence and will be operating his Yaesu ft-847 in the next few days. I am looking forward to working him on some of the bands.

Well Done Chris!


(Non Amateurs)
If you are thinking about becoming a Licenced radio ham, there should be a local club or School/College that might be able to help. More info on this at RSGB Or ARRL or if you are in other Countries Google will tell you which radio organisation is for you. Good Luck.

Happy Christmas

Seasons Greetings to all from our Dog Dudley who is practicing his Reindeer pose,
He is ready to help Santa sniff out some chimneys

I might get him to try some Antenna Antlers next!.

Have a Happy Christmas from Louise (M3TLL) and Simon (2E0HTS)

2E0HTS MOBILE IN CUMBRIA

This week was my YL Louise's birthday, I had arranged a short break in Cumbria which we thoroughly enjoyed.

We were based at Barrow-In-Furness in the South West of Cumbria and we found the town very interesting with all of its engineering history, Submarines and historic Port.

The locals were very friendly and there were some interesting Islands that we visited where I got to make one or two nice QSOs.

Here is a video of some of the radio contacts I managed to make during our stay in Cumbria and the Lake District. I decided to do this as some of you guys have been asking me to make some new Youtube videos, so thanks for all the emails and I hope this is OK!

Regards and 73 Simon 2E0HTS

CQ100

CQ100 is a program for use exclusively by licenced radio amateurs and is a simple and effective

way to keep in touch with hams all over the globe 24 hours a day without any propagation.

If you are interested you can download a 3 month free trial if you follow this link

http://qsonet.com/programs.html

I have already heard many CQ calls through the CQ100 virtual radio and I will be listening out

for you all, and monitoring all the other bands at the same time on my real rigs!

73 C u agn

Simon

Homebrew 40/80 Trap Dipole Design

This Antenna design was one that I used about 4 years ago, it worked exceptionally well on 80m and 40m. The size of the antenna makes a Half wave length on 80 meters, and with the traps a half wave on 40m with a SWR (standing wave ratio) of 1:1-1.5 across both bands.

It worked well also on 20m with the use of an A.T.U (antenna tuning unit).

I made my version of this antenna using 3mm multi strand copper cable which I left covered by the PVC insulation.

The traps can either be home brewed using some 40mm diameter plastic drain pipe and winding wire around the pipe approximately 10 turns, then connected in line after the 10 metre lengths. Or the alternative is to purchase some commercially made 7.1 MHz traps, and fit them in line the same way.

The antenna can be fed with 50 ohm coax with a home brew balan or again a commercially purchased balan.

The wire lengths of the dipole are 2x 10 metres and 2x 6.7 metres as shown on the diagram above.

This antenna can be mounted quite low to the ground if you wish to produce a high angle of radiated signal which is good for distances of 0-1500 km.

For DX work a lower angle of radiated signal can be obtained by mounting the antenna 10 metres or more above the ground. The higher the better!

If you get chance to try this simple design, I am sure you will not be disappointed.

Good luck and hope to hear you on the bands.

de 2E0HTS 73