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SSB Contest and ask "Are you on the light bulb?" I went down to N6BT's QTH with the main purpose of trying to work as many countries as possible using the "Illuminator". Well, I banged my head against the wall for the better part of the contest, unable to work a single station with the light bulb. My best assessment is the high 10m activity produced so much splatter, that it was impossible to hear my (really) weak signal. Also, the pileups were so large, that it was difficult to find a lull where I could call. And finally, the threshold for working a station on SSB is much higher than on CW. Finally towards the end of the contest signals started to get really strong, and the pileups thinned out. The following people were worked on the Phased Illuminators: KH7R, PJ4G, LU1NF, 6D2X, and ZF2NT got a few letters, but no-go. This is a far cry from the 28 countries that Tom worked on the Illuminator during the ARRL CW contest... Yes, the antenna was REALLY phased lightbulbs! Three bulbs were arranged in a triangle (1/2 wavelength spacing on 10m), and a WX0B StackMatch was used to fire any two antennas, and thus aim the array. I was really surprised at the pattern of the phased lightbulbs. Many times there was a good 20 dB of rejection off the sides of the array. For the SSB contest, Tom had also upgraded to 300 watt bulbs, which made it possible to run the amplifier, as long as the syllables were kept short. Tom had made some EU and Pacific QSO's before the contest, so it was "working." His Illuminator country total is currently 31. So I wouldn't go completely crazy, on Sunday I used the C19 and 10 watts to see what I could work. I worked everything I called, and most on the first call. It was amazing to hear how many pileups I sliced through. Tom was listening to my QRP antics, and kept checking the power level since he couldn't believe how easy it was. The highlight was seeing Tom nearly burst from laughter after I broke the large pileup for an HL5. I called the HL for a while, and was about to give up. Then the HL worked a young lady (YL), and asked if there were other YL's on frequency. I immediately threw my call in using my best imitation YL voice, and the HL came right back! Tom was crying and turning red from laughing so hard. The pileup got crazy after my QSO, but through the din, I heard 2 other stations trying the same high-pitched-voice trick. I didn't stick around to see if it worked for them too. After a few hours of S&P, I had netted over 60 countries running 10w. I wish I had gone QRP from the start!! So what did we learn? After distilling the various aspects of all the combinations we ran over the weekend, plus our collective experience, we concluded that a really great station that will produce lots of enjoyment in radio is 100 watts to an efficient 2 element Yagi at around 30'. You can hear the majority of the activity (unlike the quiet Illuminator) and can make it to the DX stations, given some operating skill and persistence. During the weekend, I heard a lot of people calling stations and not even getting a QRZ from the station (much like me using the light bulbs). It makes me wonder how many antennas out there are not much more efficient than a light bulb :) 73, Kenny K2KW & Tom, N6BT -------------------------------------------- Force12Talk mailing list provided as a service by Force 12 Antennas, Inc. Force 12 Web site: http://www.qth.com/force12 Submissions: send to Force12Talk@qth.com To unsubscribe: send a blank e-mail to Force12Talk-leave@qth.com Force12Talk Message Archive: http://www.qth.com/force12/list/force12talk For problems with the list, contact force12@qth.com |
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