Ham Radio Operator - M0YKS

Its almost the end of another busy academic year at College where I have been busier than ever getting all our learners through their welding and fabrication programs. The good news is as from this weekend I will be free to operate my ham radio equipment without too many distractions as I begin my annual summer leave and spend time enjoying life with the family. I plan to be active from the shack at home, the holiday cabin as well as the DX machine whilst camped up somewhere cool. I hope to catch some of you guys on the bands and maybe I will continue to enjoy more 10m band propagation which has been worth tying over the past few weeks giving some good DX as well as into EU openings. Evening DXing will also be on the cards over the next few weeks as we move into the mid summer nights so listen out for M0YKS, M0YKS/M, and maybe MM0YKS/P or MW0YKS/P. 73 thanks for the visit. catch you on the air - Simon M0YKS

Over the years I have received many emails and comments regarding Ham radio poems that Louise M3TLL wrote a few years ago. They have been very popular so here it is brand new for all who love poetry. An Ode To The Antenna Tower Written by Louise M3TLL. Your shining steel standing proud I hear your signals coming in loud Many countries, every nation Booming in to my humble station Shining brightly in the sun You help me enjoy hours of fun Hearing signals coming through Spending time calling cq Radiating across the land How great it is to see you stand So tall and proud in my backyard I hold you in such high regard While others prefer a tree or flower I have my antenna tower

I'm pleased enough with 3rd place low PWR England. I'll try harder this year!

Last March I was 50 so my YL bought me a RM KL405 from Moonraker (UK). The amp lasted about two weeks despite running low power, I was offered a replacement from Moonraker and was told that I would not be able to return the so called new replacement should it go faulty. With this in mind I made sure I took the greatest of care to minimise any possible risk of over powering the amplifier and have only run 5 to 10 w on SSB with a maximum output of 180w out. After using the amp for a couple of weeks the pre amp became stuck on which was annoying but it seemed to be working ok. Last week I was in my shack and heard an interesting station so I gave a shout out. I noticed straight away that the output was down thanks to my West Mountain Radio PWR Check. So I decided that I will have a look to see if anything was obvious in the way of a fault. The first thing I saw was the sticker and hand written note which seemed a bit strange for a so called new replacement. Then I noticed a resistor w...

It's been a while since I posted which has been mainly because of the poor propagation on the HF bands. I have made a few decent DX contacts on 15m and 17m which have been good on occasion. Otherwise nothing to spectacular has been happening here at the home of M0YKS. As usual during the winter months I enjoy listening lower down the HF bands especially on 80m and 40m. To do this I use a HUSTLER 6BTV vertical and also CAROLINA WINDOM antennas. I have had both in use for 8 years and the outcome is that the vertical is excellent and the WINDOM is good on transmit but far too noisy on receive to continue using it. With this in mind I altered the off centre antenna of 131 feet to a balanced equal legged 80m dipole by shortening one leg to 65 feet and adding 15 feet to the other leg to make a doublet of 130 feet which I soldered and clamped together. I didn't require another Multi banded wire as I have my Cushcraft MA5B, HUSTLER 6BTV and 20m Delta LOOP, I had decided to try a ...

I would like to wish everyone a very happy & healthy new year for 2018. 

Christmas Eve and all is well. Hope you have a lovely Christmas Everyone !