Author - Tim Beaumont

The Strumble Head DX and Contest Group, in Wales, will be gathering at their farm HQ this weekend to celebrate the wedding of MW0RLJ, Rob, and Jane.  The other team members (M0URX, Tim; MW0JZE, Ant; MW0JRX,
Oli; OM0AAO, Viliam; M0OXO, Charles; G4LDL, Tony; G3YBY, Ian; and G1VDP, Chris) wish the newly weds a happy future.  “They may, if Jane allows after all the chores, get on the air for some fun at some point to celebrate this occasion”, says G1VDP, Chris.  If so it will be with their MC0SHL call.  Details of the club and activities can be found at
MC0SHL Website.

The team finished the Flannan Isles operation this morning and safely boarded the boat that took them back to the Isle of Lewis early this afternoon.
On both Friday and Monday the window to get on and off Eilean Mor was very critical, Just a few hours either way and the landing and leaving would have not been possible due to the high sea swell making it too dangerous. I am sure we will hear much more about this trip soon.

In just two and a half days 8,100 log entries were made giving many the new IOTA for the log.
Well done to the team for a very professional operation!

VERY IMPORTANT: Please DO NOT send your QSL Via Bureau for this activity. It will NOT be collected or answered!
Don’t send it! Request It!

Marc OZ1MDX will be QRV from Liechtenstein as HB0/OU4U from 21st June – 27th June 2010.
QSL Direct Via M0URX or Bureau only by email Request

QSL DIRECT ONLY – Via M0URX & Bureau Via REQUEST FORM ONLY!!

VERY IMPORTANT: Please DO NOT send your QSL Via Bureau for this activity. It will NOT be collected or answered!
Don’t send it! Request It using the link above.

QSL Sponsored by United Radio QSL Bureau

1322 QSO’s uploaded to online log search. Last QSO at 23/06/2010 1309z (Does not include DIGI log)

I am very surprised that I have not heard anyone comment about how unreliable Spiderbeams are for DX’pedition use. I can’t understand WHY Spiderbeams are so widely used on DX’peditions.

Nearly every DX’pedition that takes a Spiderbeam reports of wind damage and broken Spiderbeams. The latest casualty is 3C0C. 

The problem is with Spiderbeams is the shape, they just can’t take any moderate wind. As well as being very cumbersome and awkward to erect. Unless you have them at a suitable working height you may as well be using string.

Am I the only one that hears DX’peditions using Spiderbeams and reporting almost every one failing in the wind?

Am I the only one that when a DX’pedition uses a Spiderbeam we really struggle to hear them? Probably because they are set up too low. 

There is always a joke amongst a few of us here when we see the equipment list with Spiderbeam in. “We won’t hear them then!” 

Or am I mistaken and Spiderbeams are these wonderful DX’pedition lightweight wonder antennas?
All I wonder is why they are so popular? 
 
While they may be a good antenna when installed on a sturdy mast / tower they are just not built for the quick portable installation.

Greetings from Tawau, Sabah…

John, 9M6XRO, and Steve 9M6DXX were unable to operate from Sebatik Island, OC-295, on this occasion, but we have been able to make arrangements for a 4-day DXpedition there in September. Further details to follow.

73, Steve, 9M6DXX

The UK Scout Contest Team were active in the CQ WPX CW Contest this weekend. Terry G4MKP using the new team’s contest call M9X was Single Op All Band High Power CW, and supported on the technical back room by James M0YOM and Callum M0MCX.

Here at our Latitudes Terry suffered heavily with the geo magnetic storm that affected the bands with a K5 index on Saturday. Terry reports making 2200 Qs and provisionally 3,400,000 points.

As M9X is a new call sign I will be designing and printing the new QSL card very soon for the UK Scout Contest Team.

Logs – Logs this week have been uploaded to the online log search for 9M6XRO, M9X and OY1OF.

John, 9M6XRO, and Steve, 9M6DXX, will be visiting Sebatik Island

(OC-295) from 3 to 5 June and may be active as 9M6XRO/P (CW) and 9M6DXX/P (SSB) using 100W to a simple wire antenna, although no operation is guaranteed on this occasion. The visit is in preparation for a possible DXpedition there later in the year with higher power and better antennas. OC-295 has only been activated once before, in July 2006, and remains high up the IOTA ‘Most Wanted’ list.
QSL both callsigns via M0URX, direct, or OQRS for Bureau or LoTW.

John and Steve tell me that this trip is very much a reconnaissance trip for a expedition possibly later in the year.

73, Steve, 9M6DXX

A Saturday morning off work is a rare thing for me so when I get the chance to be by the radio at sunrise you can bet on me being there with a cup of English tea to start the day.

The past few days had seen the SFI drop to 71 after 12 consecutive spotless SSN days so when I saw the SSN edge up to 12 and the SFI up to 73 it didn’t really fill me with enthusiasm of a DX-full weekend, just hopeful of maybe a new one somewhere! The morning started quite good, some friends in Sweden each year choose an IOTA to operate from and you can bet that they will always be professional and provide something good to chase, using the call sign 7S6W and operating from Vinga Island EU-043. Sporadic E season has not started to well here in Coventry so I was not expecting to hear them when I saw 7S6W on the cluster on 14.260 MHz, but they were a solid S9 one call and they were in my log, I wished the team well and let them carry on. I tuned down the band and heard AH6S Tiff calling CQ on 14.198 MHz over the pole, now normally Hawaii creates a huge European pile up so when I heard no one reply I fumbled quickly with the footswitch and put my cup of tea down and answered his call, Tiff came straight back, just brilliant! Working Hawaii always gives me a buzz, this is what I wanted to start my Saturday.

That was about as exciting as it got that day until the evening when 17m and 20m opened up to the Caribbean and South America. J88CF Kumar in St Vincent was a great signal and that would be an all time new one for me, but the pile up was just out of control, no respect whatsoever from many of the undisciplined European operators. I was not going to join this zoo, I would rather miss a new one than get involved in bad behaviour. So I changed bands to 17m where I worked FS/N4ECW/P on St Martin Island, I am chasing yearly DXCC and this was a new one for 2010 so I was pleased to be able to work Dennis tonight. Also logged was VP5/PY2WAS Turks & Caicos Is, CP6UA Bolivia and NP2KW on the US Virgin Islands. It was getting late 2320 local time so I went back to 20m and to 14.227 MHz where Kumar J88CF was still working the pile up, but wait, listen! The EU zoo had gone, propagation by this time was moving further West and had closed to my South and East, looks like I have a clear shot at this, I “Fire up the Acom” it finishes its warm up, and I call “Mike Zero Uniform Romeo X-ray” Kumar hears me “The Mike Zero again?” I reply again and Kumar gets my full call, bang in the log number 285 for my all time DXCC. Pleased and with a big grin I tune both 20m and 17m and work a few more before I call it a night.

Sunday, another day, not much DX around again today, but ZS8M Pierre is spotted on the cluster on 20m, I listen and listen hard but no matter how much I concentrate that ESP signal is NOT going to jump out of the speaker and give me Marion Island! Pierre is still using wires and with sunspots scarce I am going to have to accept this is one that will not be in my log for a while yet. In the afternoon I got back into the shack at 3pm and 6m was showing signs of something promising. ZC4VJ Andy has been banging out CW & SSB Qs all day, it looks like I will have quite a few QSL cards coming in later this week from Andy’s weekend activity. I wait patiently until I hear his signal out of the noise, this would be a new band slot on 6m, its 30c in the shack, I can’t stand this damn heat in here. I was on 50.115 MHz, Andy was there, yes! He says listening up 5, I call, nope not this time, I call again “Hey Tim M0URX great to hear you” Yeah “Andy you are 53 thanks for the new slot” I Skype my mate G1VDP Chris and tell Chris to get on 6m, Andy says that he will send me a log update in the morning after he has had a sleep. That will be great I have lots of QSL requests to get through.

Back on the cluster I am keeping an eye on A92IO Dave in Bahrain, Dave is on 50.205 MHz listening up 5 – 10. His signal is very much in and out of the noise with the Sporadic Es today but at 5,200 Km’s this would be a great one to log! After about an hour of waiting, listening and more listening and quite a lot of calling I finally get through and Dave’s signal lifted to 53. Another new one on 6m! It has been an enjoyable weekend, thanks for the chase its been a good one!

Not staying up late tonight, I have an airport run to do at 5am so catch you tomorrow guys!

I use Club Log to keep track of my yearly band slot totals and this is where M0URX stands 18/07/2010.

SSB 2010 League.

      
While the table below shows the total figure for the 2009 SSB League at 31/12/2009