Simple Interfaces for FSK, PTT & CW Keying
http://www.aa5au.com/rttyinterface.html
Here is great page to visit if you need to build a rig interface.
RTTY Contesting
I have
been hearing people talk about the rttycontesting.com site for quite some time. I
had never really spent any time looking around the site until today.
I
have to say that it is a pretty darn good site. There is a lot of useful information
available. I liked that they share their “message” and “buffer” information for upcoming
contests. They also have keyboard templates which look much nicer than my masking
tape & marker templates. Much of information is tailored for Writelog users but
there is a lot of good information that applies to everyone.
It
is worth spending a few minutes visiting the site. (I am trying to get setup for ARRL
RTTY Round-up that is just around the corner.)
73
de NG0R
2004 ARRL 10m Contest
I started the contest with a couple of thoughts in mind for 2004:
- I would try to run on SSB with 500 watts into my small beam using
my Icom 746Pro - I would try CW Search & Pounce with 100 watts in a wire vertical
using my Icom 756 - Each station would have it's own computer and rig interface (Left
radio/computer left hand.... Right Radio/computer right hand.) - I would dedicate some serious time (BIC= Butt in chair) to trying
to operate given that I was pretty strong in last years contest.
Great plan but I ran into some problems:
- We had family over for dinner Friday night. It is hard to operate
a contest with people visiting the shack to figure out what the noise is. - It is hard to "Run" when my kids are in my office talking to me
in the middle of a QSO. (Callsigns become very challenging.) - Get up Saturday & Sunday morning and realize that someone
forgot to the pay the propagation bill for the weekend. SOL was not cooperating and
the only thing I could hear above my local noise floor was the Caribbean and
Minnesota stations.
I quit Saturday afternoon to go to a x-mas party at N0HRL's QTH. Sunday
I checked the bands and then decided to work on home remodelling projects.
I decided that my time would be better spent painting and get the house ready to sell
so that we can try to move into the country. Maybe in the country my noise floor will
lower so that I can actually hear people.
73 de NG0R
MULTIPLIER LIST
Worked NAM CW:
NJ GA FL SC TN
LA TX OK WY CO MN
Worked NAM PHONE:
AL GA FL SC TN LA
MS TX OK WI CO IA
KS MN SD
DX CW:
8P CX HI KP4
LU PJ2 PY V3 ZF
DX PHONE:
CE CM CX HI
HR KG4 KP2 KP4 LU
PJ2 PY TI VP2M XE
ZF ZP
Stinko Band Conditions on 10m
Of course the weekend of the ARRL 10m contest the band is in really poor shape. Grrrr........
Great Quotes
Here are 3 quotes from Steven Wright!
"I'd kill for a Nobel Peace Prize."
"Borrow money from pessimists -- they don't expect it back."
"I intend to live forever -- so far, so good."
Lifted from Stu at Sunbelt News 12/10/2004
2004 ARRL 160m Contest
My "smallish" trapped Inverted L seemed to work pretty well. I was able to work almost
everyone that I heard. The problem was that my local noise level in my neighborhood
is so high that I could not hear a lot of folks. I heard a lot of one-way QSOs from
my QTH.
1 hour Friday night
1.5 hours early Saturday night
1.5 hours early Sunday morning.
On a positive note... I almost doubled my score from last year. I think that the goal
for 2005 is to move out into the country. I found a house and property that I like
in Meeker County.
73 de NG0R
2004 CQWW CW Contest
Overall it was a pretty disappointing weekend. My TH3jrs beam has wet traps which
pretty much killed the beam. I ended up with a Search & Pounce weekend trying
to work new countries as time permitted. Not a very serious effort but I am trying
to put some Q's into the log.
Highlights: Working Guam and Japan with wire on 20m, working Niger on 10m, and working
New Zealand a couple of times.
CATEGORY: SINGLE-OP-ASSISTED ALL HIGH CW
80m
Summary
Zones
3 4 5 6 8 9 10
Countries
8P 9Y C6 HC8 K KP2 KP4 PJ2 VE VP2M
XE YV
40m Summary
Zones
3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 14 15 25 30 31 32 33
35
Countries
3D2 C6 CM CT3 D4 EA6 EA8 HB HC8 HI
I J7 JA K KH6 KP2 KP4
P4 PJ2
SM T9 V3 VE VK VP2M VP5 VP9 XE YN
ZK1/s ZL
20m Summary
Zones
3 4 5 7 8 9 10 11 13 15 16 25 31 33 35
Countries
4U1U 5U 8P 9Y CT3 CX D4 EA8 FM HA
HC8 HK HP JA K KH6 KP2 KP4 LU OH
P4 PJ2 PY TI UA V3 VE YV ZF
15m Summary
Zones
3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 14 15 25 27 31 32
33
Countries
4U1U 8R CM EA EA8 HC8 J7 JA K KH2
KH6 KP2 KP4 OA OH P4 PY TI V3 VE
VP5 XE ZL
10m Summary
Zones
3 4 5 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 32 35
Countries
5U 8P 9Y CE CP CX D4 FM HC8 HI
J7 K KP2 KP4 LU P4 PJ2 PY V3 VE
VP2M VP5 VP8 VP9 YV ZF ZL
