PA0O ham radio

 

 Again good tropo   and a long m.s. FT8  burst 1734km  to YO3YKT this burst was 1903Z and noticed by more local hams must have been a bigger meteor, that is the advantage of FT8 mode events like that will be noticed with so many observers at 144.174   Strange enough the 144.174 was overloaded with signals but no one went to FT4 or an alternative frequency as this is the procedure at 6m and HF. VHF UHF amateurs in general are old-fashioned  in operating technics .. Also rarely PC logging or LOTW  is used by VHF/UHF hams .. but FT8 yes most do .. Everybody likes doing  CW the real mode  but in real activity events ... not... best 2-way EW6FS 1334km   Red =6m pink 28MHz And at 432 MHz  SM0KAK FT8/ CW    SM3LBN  -6 did not hear my 25W / 23ele signal 40W -3dB cable estimated at 432 MHz   FT8 SP2WRH CW SP2HMR

   The CW band was buzzing during the Marconi CW, with excellent propagation. The N1MM bandmap was packed from 144.0 to 144.150, a rare sight in the FT8 era. It was my first time using the Flex6500 with the Ukraine UR3LMZ setup from my previous post, and it worked great with the Maestro as control. I stuck to S&P, no CQ runs, with wtKST on for skeds, cherry-picking plenty of stations. Ended up with an impressive 733 km average distance over 85 QSOs on 2m. My TX signal stayed clean, allowing me to get close to competitors without IMD or reciprocal noise. The Ukraine transverter is excellent, as long as its internal L.O. isn’t used, and the Flex has very low internal noise. I run an older SSB LNA near the 12-element dual-band Antenna & Amplifiers; it handles up to 400W with an NF around 1.7 at 144 MHz, and it really shines on 70 cm. The Flex Maestro’s bright 8" PAN view is detailed, though N1MM’s internal keyer lacks a sidetone, which is a drawback. Using a paddle with t...