Having decided to give this blog a bit of a subject matter makeover to have less of an obvious amateur radio focus, for the benefit of any readers who aren’t amateur radio operators, let me explain.
9M8Z is the callsign of an amateur radio operator in East Malaysia.
WPX SSB is an amateur radio contest run annually at this time of year.
WPX stands for ‘worked prefixes’…but enough of that!
SSB stands for ‘single sideband’ which is a form of spoken communication used on shortwave bands.
The sum of which means that I, with my amateur radio station and personal callsign G0RIF, made contact with amateur radio station 9M8Z in East Malaysia this past weekend in the WPX SSB contest.
That’s a distance of some 7000 miles using only 100 watts of power (about the same as your average pre energy saving light bulb) and a simple wire antenna. This kind of thing impresses me. 
Dean Amateur Radio 9M8Z, SSB, WPX
Well, where to start? I’d hoped that I might be able to work a few new ones over the weekend as the bands were alive with CW stations taking part in the CQ WPX contest. I’d also hoped I might be able to work a few stations from those countries identified in an earlier post for which I need LoTW confirmations towards my CW DXCC (there are of course many more but I consider these to be potentially easier to work).
In addition to all of the CW activity there was also the small matter of the E4X operation from Palestine which I hoped to work for a new one. The CW pile-ups earlier in the week and been huge but as luck would have it they seemed to focus on SSB and RTTY over the weekend and I managed to snag them on 20m RTTY on Saturday evening as the pile-up thinned out. I also worked TL0A in Central Africa on Sunday evening (also 20m RTTY) for another all time new one (number 178).
The WPX CW contests didn’t offer up any new ones but I was pleased to work a few of those countries mentioned in that earlier post. I also worked a few CW new ones. Conditions weren’t great but they did seem to improve from Saturday to Sunday (with the sunspot number up to 45 on Sunday).
Highlights of the weekend were:-
- Working E4X on 20m RTTY for new one #177.
- Working TL0A on 20m RTTY for new one #178.
- Working Colombia and Bonaire for new ones on CW.
- Argentina, Belgium and Slovakia CW now confirmed at LoTW.
So not a bad weekend. Two all time new ones, 2 new ones on CW, 3 more CW countries confirmed at LoTW (and hopeful of a few more), 136 contacts in the WPX contest spread over 54 countries. And all of this on my bit of wet string!
Dean Amateur Radio CW, DXCC, E4X, RTTY, TL0A, WPX
This weekends WPX CW contests is fast approaching. As usual I’ll be hoping that there are a few new ones to work. This year though I also have another objective in mind.
I have been reviewing my Logbook of The World (LoTW) confirmations and in so doing I have drawn up a shortlist of 20 of those countries I have worked but where I still need a LoTW QSL. Many of these are countries I should have no trouble working and none of them are particularly rare.
Algeria, Argentina, Azores, Belgium, Ceuta & Melilla, Crete, Gibraltar, Greenland, Ireland, Japan, Jersey, Macedonia, Malta, Northern Ireland, Senegal, Slovakia, Svalbard, Tunisia, Turkey, Wales
Some of these would usually be overlooked as I tune the bands looking for more exotic DX. Not so this time - if I can snag 15 of those 20 I will have the required 100 LoTW confirmations to submit my CW DXCC application.
The trick now of course is to work as many stations as possible from each of those countries in the hope that at least one from each country uses LoTW.
Dean Amateur Radio contest, CW, DXCC, LoTW, WPX
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As mentioned back in February, when I wrote about the WPX RTTY contest, my 40m RTTY contact with PJ4R was the very first contact I made in 2010. It was a great start to what has been a pretty good year so far despite being QRT for the first 43 days.
As ever it’s always nice when you get the card for ‘a new one’ so it was good to receive this card from PJ4R this morning. Of the 124 countries worked on RTTY this is the 100th confirmed by card.
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PJ4R QSL card
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Dean Amateur Radio, Pictures PJ4R, QSL, RTTY, WPX
According to Spaceweather.com a ’sunspot is emerging’ although it has not yet been officially numbered. This looks like it might break the recent 12 day spotless streak. The sunspot number is currently 12.
If this is the start of a significant sunspot (and it doesn’t subside and amount to nothing) then I’m hoping it is the start of a little solar activity just in time for the CQ WW WPX Contest next weekend (29-30th May).
A little help from the sun would be nice and might just lead to some new ones being logged!
Dean Amateur Radio contest, CW, propagation, sunspots, WPX
A tip for you. Planning late is the same as not planning at all. It you want to do anything properly make sure all he planning is done well ahead of the event. Case in point, WPX SSB 2010 when I’d ‘planned’ to get out and operate G0RIF/p from Piggot’s Bottom.
I say ‘planned’. It’s probably more accurate to say I’d ‘intended’ getting out and stringing up a few temporary antennas amongst the trees at Piggot’s Bottom - there had been precious little actual planning. It was a busy weekend one way and another so time was limited but come Sunday afternoon I had a chance of 3 or 4 hours on the bands. Time to get out and work a few!
Read more…
Dean Amateur Radio, Life... antenna, portable, SSB, WPX
A little over a week ago I wrote that I was hoping to get on the bands for this contest. The only requirement was that I’d need to fix my wind damaged antenna. Well that was done and I did enjoy several hours giving away points seeing how many countries I could rack-up during a bit of casual operating.
Conditions (on the bands I used, 40/20/15m) seemed to me to be better than for the CQWW CW contest last November with 15m in particular showing increased activity (with only 1 contact there in the CW contest).
My 107 contacts yielded 46 DXCC entities which are shown in this table:-
WPX RTTY Feb. 2010. 46 countries worked (36 on 40m, 21 on 20m and 11 on 15m)
I adopted my usual (for now) contest approach of seeing how many countries I could work while giving away points to those who are looking to compile a competitive score. I reckon on 50 countries being a sensible target given my compromise antenna and to that end I am pleased with 46 countries worked in what amounted to some 5 or 6 hours operating over the 48 hour contest period.
Quite unexpectedly the highlight of my operating occurred within the first 5 minutes of my first stint early on Saturday morning. I’d popped outside to [quite literally] lash the far end of the antenna (which remember is a random length sloping end fed Zepp) to the back fence and then fired up the rig (Yaesu FT-950) on 40m, which just happened to be tuned around 7.080MHz, higher in the band than I’d usually go looking for RTTY signals, and there he was, PJ4R (Bonaire & Curacao) calling CQ WPX. I worked him within a few calls for one of the easier new ones of recent years. Having not been on the bands previously this year (due in part to the broken antenna) this was also the very first log entry of 2010. What a way to kick-start the year!
WPX RTTY Feb. 2010. Geographic spread of the 46 countries worked,.
Dean Amateur Radio antenna, contest, DXCC, FT-950, RTTY, WPX, Yaesu
This contest is almost upon us and it may well be the incentive I need to get my antenna fixed, it having suffered what I’m assuming is wind damage to the extent it’s been lying on the ground now for a week or more.
I had been contemplating a change to the antenna to move from my existing (but broken) end fed Zepp to a 40m OCF (off centre fed) Windom (with 14m and 7m legs) fed with coax via a 4:1 balun. That may now have to wait as time is short and I’d rather go with what I know at this late stage.
In time I will construct and test that 40m Windom and if it works I’ll see about installing it at home. For now though I’ll just be glad to get on the bands for a few hours regardless of what antenna I’m using.
Dean Amateur Radio antenna, contest, RTTY, Windom, WPX
…this time from a new country for me, Bermuda. This is for a CW (morse code) contact with Yuri (as VE3DZ/VP9) in the CQWW WPX CW contest back in May.
The colourful VE3DZ/VP9 QSL card
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Here you can see the nice colourful card showing a nice view of the island basking in the sun. I sent my card direct to Yuri’s postal address (a PO box) in the USA soon after the contest in May so by my reckoning it’s taken about 4 months for the return card to reach me. That’s pretty good.
I send many direct QSL cards, usually to stations that either don’t have a bureau facility or choose not to QSL via a bureau. It can take years to get a reply and anything within 6 months is pretty good!
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Dean Amateur Radio, Pictures Bermuda, contest, CW, morse code, QSL, WPX
Mindful of being out for much of the day it was an early start for day 2 of my contest effort. They say that the early bird catches the worm and it was oh so true on this occasion when I snagged KL7RA in Alaska for another all time new one at 06:33 UTC followed by KH6MB in Hawaii a few minutes later.
I managed about 4 hours in total, on and off through the day, finally shutting down around 21:30 UTC mindful of work the next morning. In total over the two days I logged 122 contacts in 52 countries with 3 all time new ones and 1 new US state (Idaho), not bad for a seriously compromised antenna and no more than 75 watts output.
the 52 countries worked - CQWW WPX (CW) 2009
Dean Amateur Radio contest, CW, morse code, WPX