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My Station Has Grown!
Topic Started: Friday, 17. July 2009, 15:20 (1,386 Views)
Firetrap
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26CT100

What you think guys? I am getting a SSB superstar 3900 next week and i have 4 handhelds arriving on tuesday!

Gonna be up there with the big boys in no time lol

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VoG
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It's gruesome! :D (Gruesome : Grew-some? Geddit? Gedditt??? No? . . . Oh OK, I'll get my coat)

Definately looking a lot more "shack-like" mate, :clap: - but it's still WAAAY too tidy ;)

Hope you've got the Frequency Counter to go with the Superstar that's on its way: they're a pain to work on the triple-five without one as you're forever referring back to your Channels-vs-Frequencies list. But at least you've a good full list of Freqs in your DX Guide :whistle:

I'm really looking forward to seeing your reaction to SSB, and I think you're going to go nuts - Comparing DX on UK/EU FM to DX on 555USB is like comparing a Fiesta to a Ferrari.



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Firetrap
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26CT100

Too tidy? :blink:

I can see wires so im not 100% happy lol!

wish my commtel PSU had rear connections for wires!

Im deffo getting excited about SSB

*Runs off to by freq meter* :whistle:

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hi lee how many amps is the power supply !!
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Firetrap
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26CT100

porky.69
Jul 17 2009, 05:44 PM
hi lee how many amps is the power supply !!

Its just a small one, 3/5 amps!

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Cherokee
Jul 17 2009, 04:36 PM
It's gruesome! :D (Gruesome : Grew-some? Geddit? Gedditt??? No? . . . Oh OK, I'll get my coat)

Definately looking a lot more "shack-like" mate, :clap: - but it's still WAAAY too tidy ;)

Hope you've got the Frequency Counter to go with the Superstar that's on its way: they're a pain to work on the triple-five without one as you're forever referring back to your Channels-vs-Frequencies list. But at least you've a good full list of Freqs in your DX Guide :whistle:

I'm really looking forward to seeing your reaction to SSB, and I think you're going to go nuts - Comparing DX on UK/EU FM to DX on 555USB is like comparing a Fiesta to a Ferrari.

Whilst I agree with most thing said on here,I don't see the reason to class SSB DXing any better than FM,I've been there and worked 168 countrys comfirmed.Its like me or indeed anyone else licenced saying "If 11meters SSB is like a Ferrari , then 20 meters SSB is like a Bugatti Veyron.These comments seem odd to me.Also us old hands know about the legality of "Freebanding",does all the "newbies " to SSB on CB know its not legal and they can loose their radios if caught with a fine?????.I don't want to upset the apple cart, but some things need saying .Trust me I am 100% for any modes where ever,but due to spending lots of time sitting radio exams and spending 1000s on radio equipment ,I just darn't take the risk of Pirating one band,another naughty area is 6 megs,again get caught there......you'll get bummed...........LOL :ph43r:
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Firetrap
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26CT100

Oggy
Jul 17 2009, 08:23 PM
another naughty area is 6 megs,again get caught there......you'll get bummed...........LOL :ph43r:

Made me think twice lol but i will take the risk for some good copies! :whistle:

pray i dont get bummed :prey:

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Kingmoff
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26 Charlie Tango 108

Cherokee
Jul 17 2009, 04:36 PM
I'm really looking forward to seeing your reaction to SSB, and I think you're going to go nuts - Comparing DX on UK/EU FM to DX on 555USB is like comparing a Fiesta to a Ferrari.

SSB is in terms is alot better than FM. Takes up less bandwith, no irritating white noise, weaker contacts are easily heard etc...But 555 is at times no better than mid band FM because it becomes a noise with too many people calling on one frequency.

So although your reaction will be probably to go nuts Lee, at times 555 will probably drive you nuts.
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Firetrap
Jul 17 2009, 03:20 PM
What you think guys? I am getting a SSB superstar 3900 next week and i have 4 handhelds arriving on tuesday!

Gonna be up there with the big boys in no time lol


wow an ssb and 4 hand helds seems like a busy week for you mate.

i got one of them swr metres you got there, the one in the middle

used it first time last week. lucky the instructions were still in the box

i think it was from the 80s.
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Firetrap
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26CT100

yeah they are strange meters but very good lol, what is the square metal thing with 2 holes on the back for? and what is the matcher switch for? i tried to find a manual online but failed miserably lol

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Firetrap
Jul 17 2009, 09:30 PM
yeah they are strange meters but very good lol, what is the square metal thing with 2 holes on the back for? and what is the matcher switch for? i tried to find a manual online but failed miserably lol

FIRETRAP ONLY HELP I CAN GIVE IS THE LITTLE SQUARE WITH TWO HOLES IN IS FOR A TINY ARIAL.

IM SURE THERES BETTER QULIFIED GUYS ON HERE THAT CAN
HELP WITH THE MATCHER SWITCH.
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I bought the same swar meter back in 1983........still have it,the small antenna and block are for RF field strengh readings..put it into the mode on the meter fit the antenna with no patch leads, key the mic ,closer you get to your transmitter the meter rises.You can check the radiation pattern from each corner of your car ect.Buzby (DTI ,Ofcom) use high tech devices that do the same thing to track down Pirates and bad boys thats called DFing(direction finding).This is when they knock at your door!!! :( :whistle:
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You will have a good time with the Superstar. 11mtr SSB operation is nothing like CB. I personally get more of a kick out of it than I ever did when I operated the amateur bands (fully legal).

Yes you are not allowed to do it but.....................

No guts , no glory. Join in and enjoy. Catch you on .555. (Ch12-Hi).


73.

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VoG
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Oggy
Jul 17 2009, 09:23 PM
I don't see the reason to class SSB DXing any better than FM,I've been there and worked 168 countrys comfirmed.

Maybe it's down to location (as the Estate Agents say, "Location , location, location") or set-up, or something else, but I get very little DX on FM here. I know Offplanet (just over the Bristol Channel form me) gets a fair bit, but here there's not much at all. Maybe I just plain don't spend enough of my time clicking through the FM channels, but whenever I do look I'm usually disappointed. - - Being somewhat "hearing impaired" as well, I find FM is much harder to listen to if it's a marginal copy, Sideband allows me to tune it in for a significantly easier-to-hear audio.

To me, and it is my PERSONAL opinion, the comparison between FM and SSB is Fiesta/Ferrari. Maybe it's not to you. Fair enough, each to his own.



Oggy
Jul 17 2009, 09:23 PM
but due to spending lots of time  sitting  radio exams

As for the "sitting radio exams", good for you, I envy your success. I'd like to do that too and if there was a practical way to take the exams I'd be there like a shot. But what puts me right off is the having to spend two/three-hours every Thursday night (or whatever) in some grotty Sports and Social Club for a year or two (or more), with people that, generally, I''m not too keen on face-to-face. I've met a number of exceptions (and I hope you're one) but the hobby does seem to attract more than it's fair share of "anoraks in tank tops". If I could just attend courses, or even self-teach and then sit the exams, I'd be there but everything I have researched seems to indicate that the only way to sit the exams is within a club. One or two exceptions offer a weekend course to Foundation, but the nearest I can find is a 350 mile round-trip from my home.

One Ham (a really nice guiy himself) was trying to talk me into joining his home ARC and said, "it's great, it's not like a place of learning or anything, we sit around with glasses of Cranberry and Lemonade and talk about Contacts we've had". Oh please! One evening every week for years? It'd kill me, or I'd kill myself.

I've heard some truly awful Operators on 12, 10 and 20m whilst SWL and I've heard some Real Clowns / Cretins on both the FM and the "Triple-five" that (allegedly) have Intermediate or Advanced licences, so it;s not the licence that makes a difference, it;s the operaqtor using it. I've also met a number of Hams that are shutting down and selling all their kit due to "too many idiots with licences now" (their quote, not mine).



Oggy
Jul 17 2009, 09:23 PM
  and spending 1000s on radio equipment

And as for the "1000s on radio equipment", that's nice if you have it, and I guess we're back to the car analogy again. Maybe thousands of pounds worth of Ham gear is a Veyron. I can't afford one but I'd like a bit more performance than a Fiesta with a 50mph limiter on it, so I have maybe an old RS2000 or a Cossie. The one difference is that the Veyron driver is licenced to do 100mph, whereas my ilk in our RSs and so forth are risking a nicking to enjoy a little bit of a similar experience.

What I'd really like to see are some decent Hams promoting the hobby, encouraging CBers and "FreeBanders" to get a licence and have a go at 20m or 6m or whatever. But what I do see are quite a number of Hams and ex-Hams on 11m, having abandoned the "legit" frequencies, and quite a number of currently active Hams "knocking" the naughty CBers that have taken to Sideband on 11m. There still is, sadly, a preconception that a "CBer" goes around talking in a poor imitation of a Kris Kristofferson accent calling all his aquaintances "good buddy", whilst trying to avoid the "Smokeys" and the "Bears".




Sorry for the long post, but this is something I feel strongly about.
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I'm an ex ham. I ONLY do 11mtr SSB operation. I'm not an amateur station having a dabble on 11mtr's when the mood/band conditions take me and then reverting to full legal self righteous status once it's all over.

A lot of the reasons I stepped away from Amateur radio were to get away from all the"stuffiness". I hope you get my drift because I better not put it in any stronger words :o

To me 11mtr operation is still organised and stuctured with correct operating practises etc (generally) but at the same time easy going and non threatening. With a bit of luck you will find it the same.

You may feel that after a while with the 3900 you may wish to venture into Amateur radio. Thats your call and I for one would not talk you out of it but for me, here and now, 11mtr SSB is everything.

The other small consideration to make is, It's fun :D Get the radio, use it, enjoy it and then post the pictures. :clap:

These views and opinions are not intended to upset anybody. They are mine.

73.
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VoG
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A question Oggy, if I may?

Oggy
Jul 17 2009, 09:23 PM
I've been there and worked 168 countrys comfirmed.

I'm hugely impressed with your DX track record on FM. But I'd like to ask, if I may, were all those contacts on 4W and a standard vertical antenna? I know that on the few occasions that I hear non-UK DX stations on the FM I can very, very rarely get back to them.

More often than not, later listening to (one side of) the contact, I'd usually find out that the "foreign" station is using a beam and 100W or more. So it's been an assumption on my part that perhaps the UK stations they've been talking to were using similar. I know Offplanet has had a few non-UK DX successes on 4W and a CB antenna, so maybe I'm just plain completely wrong and perhaps my kit just doesn't do it, or maybe my accent scares the DX stations away ;)

If you've had 168 counties confirmed on 4W on a stock vertical, that's damn near half the world (345 Divisions in all)!! Wow! Then I'm triple, no Quadruple, impressed and I really want an antenna like your FM one (the Shakespeare?)!!


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Kingmoff
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26 Charlie Tango 108

Cherokee
Jul 18 2009, 12:05 PM
I've heard some truly awful Operators on 12, 10 and 20m whilst SWL and I've heard some Real Clowns / Cretins on both the FM and the "Triple-five" that (allegedly) have Intermediate or Advanced licences, so it;s not the licence that makes a difference, it;s the operaqtor using it. I've also met a number of Hams that are shutting down and selling all their kit due to "too many idiots with licences now" (their quote, not mine).


Well it goes back to the usual 'ham versus 11m' debate which really becomes tiring. At the end of the day it's each to their own as you say. There are idiots on any band illegal/legal. Always has been always will be.

As for your quote on lots of hams are leaving because of too many new licensees are causing problems is absolute rubbish. I have spoken to hundreds of hams here in the UK and not one has moaned about m3/m6's or whatever.

Like you and others you love 11m and if your happy stuck on one band with actually more idiots than i care to mention on 555 then that's your choice. I know what i'd rather be doing. But that's my opinion.
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Firetrap
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26CT100

I get plenty on non-UK copies just using 4W on FM, Mostly holland and germany but they always say im booming through, may be because im right on the east coast and the sea helps carry my signal?

4W does work well but if a channel is crammed with 20 people using 100w amps then chances of a qso are very small. :doh:

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Kingmoff
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26 Charlie Tango 108

4 watts is easily enough to work dx. I mean if the propagation is right and your antenna is good and setup right it's easy. Sporadic e conditions you can work with milliwatts. Want proof? Go to my Youtube page and check the video 'DK5OC on 10M' which i posted last night.

With a good antenna and excellent propagation power can be set to the bare minimum as you will see Dave's report on the video. The guy we spoke went to 1 watt and was signal 9 on peaks to me, i went to 5 watts as my 897 wouldn't go any lower and was still 5/9 simply because of conditions/antenna setup. The assumption you need vast amounts of power to work dx is nonsense. It's nice if you have the power to back you up if conditions are pretty poor but if the propagation is strong you will be suprised just what you can do.

Also on 10m you can listen to beacons and they are using power below 3 watts but sometimes easily show at 599 due to good conditions.
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I know were on a CB website,but this bullshit is what is killing Ham/CB Radio,I,m with KIngmoff on this..........yes were both "Hams" and yes i'm the Vice Chairman of The Brigg and District Amateur Radio Club where a good half are CBers and 11 meter operators too!!!.Check out "bdarclincolnshire.ning.com".we are a "Grass Roots" club with many members.We welcome all radio hobbyists.The reason we set the club up because we felt the "Next Gen" were shunned by a lot of the G3/4s .Not that there all like that one has a Harrier CBX and makes our nets!!.As to say we're Tank Top wearing types.....well that realy bugs me,I'm a 41 year old ,whos got a lovely wife,son and am a biker with Superbikes and a Lambretta scooter,I work bloody hard to enjoy my hobbies and love both ham and CB Radio.As for sitting months in a sports hall,a guy with your noose could pass a M6 licence in a couple of weeks.I'm no "Wizz Kid" and I wanted to pass the old City and Guilds licence (that the local club wasn't doing) so I booked a week of work, read,then read ,then read again the books,yes because it was a goal in life and some arseholes said it couldn't be done I pushed myself and I did it.Next one............My dad was one of the original CBers in 1977ish in the UK and was a keen SSB guy when Alto set in the ATs in 1978, so this was always the way forward for us.....the 168 countrys were worked on SSB and FM ,we alway run verticals and most were worked on a Hy-gain Silver Rod, we had a PDL 2 for a short time and yes some times linears were used others not needed.All my FM DX is worked on UK FM radios and Shakesphere antenna,I do have a small Zetagi like the one with the fan on it but 50 watts is hardly QRO in my books.Most of my videos are on 4 watts!!.I don't want to come across as a "Smart Arse" but I do understand radio and how it works (as i'm sure most on here do!!!!).If I didn't like CB/11 meters I wouldn't be members of 3 groups,come on here or indeed waste beer money buying them o so great 11 meter and CB radios (I own around 80 now)...........I hope this explains my feelings and I was only trying to point out to the "Newbies" about the legal aspects of SSB............Kind Regards DAVE
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