Forward -phase 3

 It is necessary in these times to keep reminding ourselves, and those around us that we need to keep our mind thinking forward. Many of us may need  more than a daily dose of motivation, inspiration, and what  ever that 'thing' in the bottle is labeled as, just to get though today and go from week to week. In V4 land some of us are going through a second wave, even though no 'covid' is walking the streets, but since our ports are now opened from Halloween day. I have not been interacting in person with many amateur radio operators, but they are all very active on the ham radio bands, that we are allowed to use. I say allowed to use, because we have not been informed by the NTRC, the local authority for Telecommunications, that the amateur radio frequencies are now free of RF interference, generated by the electric company in Saint Kitts, since before 2018.

I was pleased to hear last month, October, that the NTRC now seem to be collecting real data and information that indicate that legal proceedings are now getting in the works. We just have to watch the movements and be vigilant. In small countries like ours, it is not unusual for big moves like these to appear to be made up front, but nothing actually happens. It is a matter of Fool who you can Fool, so I am  watching and waiting. I am optimistic, and hope that there will be no RF interference on our amateur radio frequencies by Christmas 2020, but covid is providing the reasons and excuses for people to do absolutely nothing. I am also a realist, and have bets out that nothing will happen before 2022, or legal action  is brought against the electric company by the NTRC, whichever is first. 

As we approach the end of this year, 2020, we must assess our amateur radio growth and development. Did we learn anything at all? Did we apply ourself to learning something new? Did we let the covid situation distract us from our amateur radio? I am not blaming anyone for being distracted in this season as covid was something new to all of us, we never saw it coming, or we could have prepared for it. Covid could be with us for another few years, maybe even for the rest of our life, so we have to deal with it, integrate our covid strategy into our lifestyle. Actually, it is easier than we may think. So where are going with our amateur radio?

The good thing about amateur radio is that we do not have to leave the privacy of our basement to talk to hundreds of people in a day. Nor do we have to cover our mouth and nose when we speak to anyone, nor maintain a social distance.  To be honest, I enjoy that measure of FREEDOM, talking to friends around the world, and making new friends. Many amateur radio operators that we talk to, want to exchange data on how the covid is impacting our country, and most time we need to be empathetic because we are aware of their statistics. Some amateur radio operators just get into the old time ham lingo. Over the last couple weeks I see a lot of movement by operators going on DX expeditions to countries where there are no amateur radio operators. Some of activities I post on my Facebook page at www.facebook.com/v44kf/ 

Prior to the covid protocols some local amateur radio operators talked about staging a DX expedition on land and over water. It would only be a fun exercise as there was no unique callsign that could be used. Low band exercises could be conducted from our beaches, which were flat and accessible, even in the City/Capital, so we would not have to go in remote rural areas requiring security and patrols. Talk and no action, then along comes covid and everything changes. Will we ever get to realize our low band DX expedition plans? Only time will tell. From now, let us keep our fingers crossed.

However, all is not lost, because we can make DX contacts from our home, wherever that is, all we need to have is the appropriate antenna for the frequency. In these times we need to think outside the box. If one has the funds to invest in an appropriate antenna system, by all means acquire it, and ensure that it is properly installed and weatherproofed. Ensure that you also have a proper maintenance plan for it. Many people do not include maintenance for an antenna in the sea blast environment that we live in. Those of us who do not have the means to acquire the ready-made antennas, or wish to be thrifty in these covid times will not be disappointed, because amateur radio was built on wire antennas and much experimentation.

I suspect that many operators would like to contact DX stations, that is where the fun is at, making contacts on the other side of the world. A bit of preparation goes into making these contacts on the other side of the world, but instructions are readily available. The easiest method is to find and join DX nets, observe and learn whatever you can from these operations. This is the season so catch the wave. The sunspot cycle is on the upswing, and band conditions are improving. All you need is to have the best DX antenna system that you can afford or build. From theory we know that vertical antennas provide the low angles for best DX transmission, compared to a horizontal dipole.

Dipole antenna systems are great, and effective too, but there are certain requirements that the amateur radio operator need to meet to get the most out of the dipole antenna system: 

[a] The antenna system must be 50-feet or more above ground. 

[b] the antenna should be horizontal, not drooping down in any way. 180-degrees straight. 

[c]  a feed point balun is essential. 

[d] the antenna should present a half wave at the desired operating frequency.

 The alternative to the horizontal dipole antenna is the vertical antenna. The vertical antenna uses radials, which are either on the ground or elevated. I prefer the vertical antenna with elevated radials.  Why elevated radials, because they are more convenient to install, and gives the best perform for less wire. Don't take my word for it, read, research and experiment.

https://forums.qrz.com/index.php?threads/elevated-radials-vs-ground-radials.651001/

The information below could prove useful when experimenting with elevated radials. Elevated radials need to be more than 5 feet above the ground to work well. 

http://www.zl2al.com/1934/tuning-elevated-radials/

There are all kinds of home made antennas which can send our DX signal around the world. Most, if not all of them are vertically polarization. Some old antenna designs are back, and the old handbooks and antenna manuals make them available to us, but the only problem we may have with some of these antennas, is that they require far more space that the simple quarter wave vertical antenna. For some of us living on City lots, that is a problem. Speaking of living in the City, we also have to ensure that our radio does not transmit any spurious signals, that can interfere with the neighbor's  devices. This City antenna space limitation is what cause many local amateur radio operators to become VHF only operators. There is no point investing in a good brand name HF radio, and to only listen to local stations around the Caribbean, a 100 bucks Chinese radio is more than adequate.  

As amateur radio operators get more serious about making DX contacts, that is on the far side of the planet, they will invest in reading more about antenna arrays that can help them to be better DX operators. Sometimes all it could take is investment in radio station accessories, like a pair of professional headphones, or a pro quality microphone, or a professional antenna tuner. I have found that it always pays to invest in the best affordable product. All headphones are not equal, neither are all microphones or tuners. Some are just plain rip off. Sad to say it, but it is true.

In this time given the covid,  the economics and looking forward, some people are still buying new radios and amateur radio equipment. It is just your personal outlook on life, and how you suspect the future will pan. If you think that you should go for it now, go for it. If you can't, but still want to try something, take your best shot. I see that the Chinese are putting low cost radio on the amateur radio market. Personally I would not invest in any of them, no matter how great or cheap they are. On the other hand I would prefer to take an investment chance on a Japanese made radio. This is just me, but take your shot and be at peace with your mind.

For some serious DX amateur radio operators, the Sherwood receiver test data table is the reference for their upgrade. The new radios are coming out fast and furious, but they are not tested and tabulated nearly as fast on the web page. .One ham I spoke to a couple weeks ago is seriously contemplating buying a TenTec gem as it would not be affected by an EMP. This might be an exception, but really is it? This opens a whole new topic that I don't want to explore or ventilate, in reference to our amateur radio. We just have to watch how this cookie is crumbling, and be ready to make the moves in our best interest. Let us keep our amateur radio looking forward, and going forward. See if a ham radio brother needs help with anything and offer that helping hand. Remember that what we do for someone today, someone will also do it for us tomorrow.

[to be continued]