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Excellent news @Cosimo, that's really good. November 2019 to March 2021 from novice to full.

WPX this weekend, I've worked a hundred or so but conditions don't seem too favourable, especially compared to the last week or so where they've been quite good.

I've picked up a few slots with A25RU this week. 20m CW and FT8, 17m FT8 and 15m CW. I was calling them on 30m FT8 and they disappeared into the noise so I stopped calling and switched off. An hour later, I looked at my phone and a friend who had been watching told me that they replied just as I switched off so that was a busted Q.
 
robfosters said:
but what happens if next door want to sell up? That could well put potential buyers off.
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I just happened to be reading through the first page and saw this which I thought was worth replying to.

Next door to us have recently moved out after being there for thirteen years. She had no problem selling and when I talked to her, she said the buyer hadn't even mentioned it.
 
I've been operating with a special event callsign for a couple of days and it does seem to have generated a bit of activity although conditions aren't especially good.
 
The Russians who were in Botswana have moved to Mozambique and I picked up a couple of slots this afternoon on 20m and 17m. I've worked Mozambique before but only a single slot on 12m back in 2013.
 
Most mornings when I get up, I fire the wireless up for half an hour or so - Today I was on 17m FT8 and it was heaving with signals. I called and worked ZS and BY then started calling CQ and worked JA after JA. There were plenty of other countries on but I just kept getting called by JAs, often two or three at a time.

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Signals weren't strong enough for CW or SSB so it was nice to have a little run like that.
 
It’s really very easy to use. Make sure you have the box ticked to lock your TX frequency though.

I worked Alaska at 23:30 last night on 20m, first Q with KL since 2013 and also picked up a couple of new toys yesterday.

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I did post them in the 'items you have purchased' thread but none of the savages there will have a clue :cry:

Here I am, part way through a session on 17m.

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Yup, I had an Acom 1000 which is a superb amplifier but I decided I wanted something with instant on and no manual retuning so this was the logical thing to go for. Second hand Expert 1Ks do come on the market quite regularly but I borrowed one and the fan noise/temperature control isn't very good on the older ones. The newer models are a lot better so it really was a no-brainer for me.

I've not got the 890 yet - I could have picked one up last week but I'm holding off until everything else gets sorted first. I was quite surprised when I had another play with one and just lifted the front to see how much it weighs. At nearly 16Kg, it's heavier than the amplifier :eek:
 
stigggeh said:
If you are wanting to donate your Acom 1000 to a worthy cause you know where I am :).
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I don't remember where you are actually - I'm sure you've told me your callsign before but I can't remember! I do remember that you bought a new SDR recently and that you've got a hexbeam though :D

The Acom has gone, sorry :(

I've never had any brand loyalty, I had an 847 before my original 590 and I'd have no problem buying a different brand wireless. I borrowed an Icom 7300 earlier this year for a few weeks and really didn't like the ergonomics very much, it was far too menu driven for my liking and switching between data and voice modes just seemed overly complicated. I had a long demo of a new 101 at Newark a couple of years ago and was stunned by how un-natural some of the controls were in that they worked in a way that one really wouldn't expect.

You're right, the FTDX10 does look a fantastic wireless on paper but if I were to consider one, I'd need to spend a couple of hours in front of one to see what I really think. Part of the reason I'm seriously considering the 890 is so that I can slave the 590 as a second receiver.

Did you get a chance to play FT8 this weekend?

Just today I worked Uruguay, Argentina, Curacao, Japan, China, Lebanon, Chile, Venezuela, Ecuador and Brazil on 17m FT8 without even trying very hard. Signals weren't up to SSB but they would have been workable on CW.

Talking of which, I just played for a few minutes at a time oner the weekend in CQ WPX CW and have put in a small entry on 15m (still my favourite band). 6m has been open as well but nothing more than single hop stuff.
 
stigggeh said:
I will definitely make it my mission to have a go at FT8 this week on my week off.

I would love love love an Expert amp but they sooooo expensive. Was it an upgrade? why do I have in my head you had a Acom previously - have I made that one up? The headset looks real sturdy quality, unlike my Heil which literally fell to bits recently (awaiting parts from USA), they have been fab sending the bits for postage only, but i'm still a bit grumpy about it breaking so easily.

Have you got the 890 on order yet?
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The Expert has gone back after popping the LDMOS. If you want to know more, have a read of my review on eham.

In its place, I took an 890 and have used the balance as a deposit for a new Acom 1500. The only problem is going to be space. Because the 890 is so much larger than the 590, I'm going to have to make some big changes in the shack to accommodate both items. I'll involve trimming one shelf down and fitting a new one.

I'm very impressed with the 890 so far although it's only been a few days.

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I thought the filtering on the 590 was good but the 890 just seems to take it to the next level. This weekend was the DL-DX-RTTY contest and I put in a six hour entry split over the two days and spent the time getting to know the radio.

This was yesterday afternoon, just half an hour into the contest and you can see where I'm tuned in the bandscope. Despite being that close to other stations, I was easily making contacts without any breakthrough from either side. Each vertical marker on the bandscope is 5kc.

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Just worked PY4BZ on 20m, genuine S9+20dB on the meter!

Shame conditions were poor over the weekend for the contest.
 
Chris Wilson said:
I can see why some amateur radio dealers have lumpy mattresses due to covid :) Many say it has had the direct result of record sales and profits.
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I can believe that - With the huge number of new licences issued in the last eighteen months, people have got to get their wirelesses from somewhere. I was told some months ago by one of the members of staff that Martin Lynch has pretty much retired now and doesn't go into the shop very often. I can't complain about that, I've known Martin for well over thirty five years and he's worked hard to get to where he has.
Covid is of course indirectly behind all the new stuff I've bought recently.

Chris Wilson said:
That's a nice setup you have there Feek, very nice indeed. I will take a gander at Eham to see what occured with the solid state amp. I have to say that at high power(ish) RF I think of semiconductors as expensive fuses :)
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Thanks.
That was my suspicion as well, a good friend of mine has replaced the output devices in his Expert 1K-FA but they're dirt cheap, not the £400 that a single LDMOS costs. It really shouldn't have failed but I'm grateful that it did it within the first thirty days.
 
TonyLewis said:
I am intrigued by all this, what would one have to purchase to dabble in the hobby and see if it is something they want to pursue? Maybe there is a handheld device that would give a taste of the hobby?
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There is, there's a very cheap type of handheld but they'll only give you a very small facet of the hobby, ie just locals talking through a repeater.

http://www.websdr.org

Pick one of those and see what you can hear. Look for 20m during the day and 40m/80m in the evenings (that's a huge generalisation).

/edit for clarification
20m - 14,000.000 kHz to 14,350.000 kHz
40m - 7,000.000 kHz to 7,200.000 kHz
80m - 3,500.000 kHz to 3,800.000 kHz
 
Out of those two, I'd definitely go for the sdrplay - Much more capable receiver.

For listening on HF, just throw out a long wire, that's all you need really and it'll get you started easily.
 
Do love a bit of grey line propagation. For the last two mornings, I've worked a whole bunch of VKs with a ZL thrown in for good measure. One after another, all long path on 20m FT8. They're not strong enough for SSB but conditions are moving in the right direction. SFI is 102 and SN is 99. Really hoping this bodes well for cycle 25.

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