He apparently holds a Chilean novice ticket. The Chilean government has reportedly been informed recently that this causes problems because the callsigns issued to novices don't conform with ITU regs.

73, N4KZ

I've been operating JT-65 HF for a while now and really love its low-power, modest antenna capabilities. It's amazing. But for those folks not familiar with it, know that JT-65 is not a rag-chew mode. It's highly formatted and you can only exchange the minimal amount of information for a legitimate 2-way QSO: callsigns, signal report, grid squares and confirmation. Personally, that doesn't bother me because I do a lot of rag-chewing on other modes but some might be disappointed with this restriction. BTW, the mode was originally designed for VHF/UHF moonbounce and typically, out of necessity, EME contacts only exchange the barest of info, just enough for it to be a bona fide QSO. It's because of its VHF/UHF heritage that grid squares are used in the exchange. They are not required for legit QSOs.

JT-65 can dig out signals so weak that you sometimes cannot hear them by ear. But you can usually see them in the waterfall -- very faint little traces that just hint at the presence of a weak signal. I started using JT-65 when I had bronchitis and couldn't talk on SSB without getting into a bad coughing spell. So I began playing with it and loved it. No talking required -- just mouse clicks.

73, N4KZ

After more than 40 years of chasing DX, lots of good QSOs come to mind. But three really rise to the top:

--Being a 15-year-old newly minted general class op with a Yaesu FTdx-400 and 20 meter inverted vee up 30 feet in 1969 and calling CQ on 20-meter SSB. Who should answer me but 9N1MM, Father Marshall Moran. A huge thrill.

--Nailing a VK6 on 75 meter SSB via long path. For months, I could just barely tell he was in there every afternoon. But, finally, one day he was 5x5 and I got him on the first call. I proudly display his card on the shack wall.

--And more recently, Pierre, ZS8M from Marion Island. I worked really hard on that one because Pierre was using modest antennas and the propagation, at least initially, was working against me. Night after night I'd get up at 1 and 2 a.m. to get on 40-meter SSB but I couldn't hear a peep from Pierre while the West Coast guys enjoyed gray line propagation and were giving him S9 reports. After studying the propagation charts for a bit, I realized my best weapon was just to wait a few months and propagation would be more favorable to my area. A few months later it was and I nailed him on 40 meters and 20 meters in the same day.

73, N4KZ

As a former TS-2000 owner, I can say it's a nice rig that does a lot on many bands and modes. But its 2 meter sensitivity is a bit lacking - whether it's on FM or SSB. I always used an external preamp with mine when operating on 2 meter SSB and CW. There are mods on the Internet from people smarter than me who have figured out ways to increase its 2 meter sensitivity. But there could be other factors at play too. You didn't mention the mode used for these contacts and specifics on your antenna type and polarization - all of which could be factors in the feeling that you were heard better than you were receiving. Rather than modify my TS-2000, I chose to use an outboard preamp which I already had on hand. It worked fine. Just food for thought.

73, N4KZ

After 40-plus years of DXing, it's clear to me there's no such thing as a typical amount of time to wait for a card - whether it's sent direct, to a manager or through the bureau. Each situation is different. And no amount of hand wringing will change that. I've seen some very fast turnarounds. I sent a card direct to a fellow on Reunion Island. I figured a few months for a turnaround but was shocked when his card arrived back in my mailbox just 10 days after I sent mine out. Mega kudos for the French postal system. Ditto for Monk Apollo. I saw someone who indicated he had waited for months and still no reply. But I worked him on a Saturday morning on 20 meters and sent the card out on Monday. I had it back in about 2 weeks. Maybe the $5 green stamp helped a bit. On the other hand, I sent a card direct to a Russian QSL manager with at least $2 and waited and waited for a reply, which finally came through the bureau. I was hot about that one. He ripped me off. This was several years back when $2 should have been plenty for return postage. But the worst was the Czechoslovankian station operating portable from Mongolia that I worked in the 1970s when I lived in Michigan. He told me to send a card to his mother in OK-land and she would forward to him in Mongolia. I did and she did but the total turnaround on that deal was 4.5 years before I got my return card via the bureau.

Once you work'em, you're at their mercy for a return card. Patience, lots of patience.

73, N4KZ

My home has a concrete block foundation and basement. I rented a hammer drill and drilled out a 4 inch hole in the block in which to run PVC for cables. I thought drilling would be difficult but it was a snap.

73
N4KZ

I'm a cat guy from way back. Fascinating little animals. Two of our indoor cats, George and Gus, love to hang with me in the shack. Gus lays on the back of my operating chair while George loves to watch the Pro 3's band scope. My wife was anti-cat in the beginning but the furry critters won her over and now she is a very enthusiastic cat person.

73
N4KZ

I owned both of these rigs. While the FT450 is a good value as an entry-level rig, I found the FT-920 to have a much better receiver -- particularly after installing Inrad roofing filters.

73
N4KZ

I sure don't mean to add insult to injury, but police chiefs around Kentucky have been emphasizing lately that if people would just lock their vehicles, about 80 to 90 percent of thefts from vehicles could be eliminated.

Sorry you lost the clubs but you were lucky to get them back.

73,
N4KZ

True story. One afternoon I'm on 15 meter SSB and I called CQ with my beam toward the southwest. A young ham in Texas replies. We're chatting along and he asks, "How come you have a 4-callsign and you're in Kentucky?"

"Because Kentucky is part of the 4th call area," I replied.

"Are you sure?" he asks.

"Yes, I'm quite sure. Before World War II, Kentucky was in the 9th call area but that was charged in about 1946 or '47. We've been in 4-land since," I explained.

"Well, I thought for sure that Kentucky was someplace out west and that you'd have a 7-callsign," he said.

Please, educators, put geography back in our schools.

73, N4KZ

Yep, I, too, have made CQ recordings using a voice keyer. Saves on the voice. I have always enjoyed going on a supposedly dead band and calling CQ over and over until someone finally comes back - proving the bands are not as dead as we believe. And most of the time, I do eventually get an answer, too. The optional DVR for the Kenwood TS-590 works slick for calling CQ.

73, N4KZ

A 10 second CQ is too short, in my view. Try at least 30 seconds at a time. Listen for about 10 seconds and then try again. Sound pleasant and enthusiastic while calling. You might add your state if in a rare one. I always add my state to my CQs and it helps my reply rate. I hear some guys calling 10 second CQs and they are not productive. And repeat your call several times phoenetically. HF can be cruel to signals and repeating your call sign is almost always needed.

Keep calling CQ until you get a reply. No one will question that.

73, N4KZ

Any of us who have worked much CW all have our stories of trying to copy poorly sent CW from some chap who thinks he has a good fist but doesn't.

I recall a few years back calling CQ and having a fellow reply who was sending suspect CW. But as the QSO went on, he got very liberal with his dits. If a character had two dits in it, he threw in two or three more for good measure. Soon, nearly everything he sent became impossible to copy. He was an old timer and I cut him some slack, of course. But I got to the point where I had to sign clear because I was copying so little of what he was sending. But I wouldn't want to embarrass him or hurt his feelings.

More recently, I was tuning 40 CW up on the high end where slower ops tend to hang out. Heard a station calling NNQ instead of CQ. And to make matters even worse, his call began with KC and he was sending KNNxxxx. I answered his NNQ and he had a good QSO. Afterwards, I emailed him and very politely explained the difference between NN and C. I got a very positive email in reply thanking me for taking the time to explain it to him. I was glad the info was taken in the spirit in which it was meant -- to be helpful and not critical.

It's great to hear of so much continuing interest in CW even though it's no longer mandatory in the testing process. After tuning the ham bands for 40-plus years, I can say there's really no more bad CW heard now than years ago. It's always been with us and that's not likely to change. Most folks do a good job with it but there's the occasional person who apparently doesn't have an ear for sending good, clean, and accurate CW.

But no biggie. You deal with it and then log more CW QSOs!

73, N4KZ

Nothing on 6 meters, huh? The annual E-skip season is roughly from mid-May through the first of August on 6 meters. Many, many times during that period the band will be hopping with SSB from 50.1 up to 50.2 MHz, sometimes higher. CW is often found during openings a little above and below 50.1 MHz. With a modest station, I have worked 49 states, 74 countries and all continents. So, there's something go on, you just have to listen at the right time.

73, N4KZ

The Yahoo users group for the 7600 can put you in touch instantly with dozens of owners. Probably a better forum for such inquiries.

73, N4KZ