When I read the words "I hate..." it reminds me of a 3 year old throwng a temper tantrum.

What "I" want to do is more important,  so everybody else is wrong.
tsk tsk

This past summer, our local club, COOKEN, in central Ohio, pitched in to buy a K4KIO hexbeam for the contestors among us.  This generous  support has resulted in nearly 6000 qsos being made so far this year in various special events and contests.

For example, last weekends CQWW SSB DX Contest, using the hexbeam at 30 ft, a small amp (400w) loaned by a member, and four operators/loggers resulted in 731 QSOs and 777,337 points, with  all but 150 of those contacts made on 10-15-20m, and the remainder made on 160-80-40m.

What a blast! 

And what better way to get new ops introduced to  hf operating, members who dont have an hf yagi at home, and/or to  bring in contestors from the area for a little group fun.

Ive been a contestor for 35 years, and a ham for 55 years, but  group contesting is by far the most fun Ive had in that time. 

You want to perk up your club?  Then beg, borrow or buy a small  beam, find a member willing to  host a contest or two, and go to town.   You definitely DONT need a KW, 75 ft tower, and stacked arrays to do a great job on the air!

My IC7600 has gone back to the shop  three times for  loss of rf power output.  Twice ICOM blamed it on estat discharge taking out an integrated circuit chip in the rf board.

I have the existing protection: 
1. three bonded ground rods, one at the AC main breaker panel, one just outside the shack, and one at the  DX Engineering CC8 remote antenna switch  where all the coax enters the house ( coax runs along the ground  to the house.)
2. The DXE CC-8  relay box is itself directly grounded. Hence all coax outer braids are continuously grounded very near where they enter the house.
3. When not in use, I  deenergize  the DXE control unit, which grounds the center conductors.
4. a grounded arc plug arrestor  3 ft from the IC7600.
5.  surge protection on the IC7600 ac power line itself.
6. estat dissipation consisting of a 50k ohm 1 watt resistor on a tee connector, from center connector to ground, where the coax connects to the IC7600. This bleeds off rain/snow static I frequently experience, with noise levels of up to 20/9.

The only unprotected lines coming into the house are:
- a 25 ft run of coax from a 5 el yagi for 6m, just 15'  above ground, which connects to the unused coax connector ( rig has two coax  connectors)
-250 ft of wire feeding a dc relay on my 40m 2 el phased array, and running to an on-off switch in the shack..

One more thing. I live in a rural area prone to frequent power interruptions, mostly  just long enough to blink the lights. Maybe a dozen times a year we get to see either an extended outage, or  2-3  automatic reset attempts by the utility circuit breakers, when they trip out.

Any ideas or thoughts on whats happening would be appreciated.

You will have really  heavy QRM from all over Europe so spreading out between 3600 and 3800 is crucial.  In the past it was 3790-3800 but more and more I hear sigs all over. If your antenna  BW is narrow, you will be limited. and face more QRM. But at elast you can get some mults.

Good luck. 

PS If you hear WW8OH, our contest station on 160-10m, give us a call.  We're using a 160M horizontal loop at 70 ft for 160-40, and a hexxbeam on 20-15-10.

OSPOTA was  started five years ago by a ham club  in NE Ohio (Portage ARC) and has been gaining steam ever since. they might be able to answer your question better than I.

Last year, Indiana had their first Parks on the Air event, the same day as  this one.

And I hear Georgia is planning to do the same one day soon.

But its been growing, and a lot of fun to particpate in.  And it IS in conjunction with  the Ohio State Parks System.   Some guys drive RVs to state parks and set up.  Others rent cabins.  Others use tents or just go mobile.

This year something like 51 of our 75 state parks had amateurs operating in them for this event.

THANKS  to all who worked us on 80-40-20-15-10M. 

Our three  100w stations  used:
80m:  an NVIS  flat top at 15 ft high along the steel lakefront bulkhead, with a grounded reflector wire at grade level. (120 qsos )
40M: an 80M loop  30 ft up, supported by  three well-spaced trees  ( 255 qsos)
20-15-10: dipoles at 50 ft ( 110 qsos)

This year, 40M was THE BAND.  Hot almost from start to finish, with lots of NVIS skip around Ohio. Preliminary numbers were 50 Ohio State Parks.

OSPOTA is a five year old contest that keeps growing.  Other states, including Indiana have added their versions, with more on the way.  Just lets not all do it the same weekend, guys.

Our club uses N3FJP software.  He has a  general logging program as well as  numerous state QSO Party modules, FD, etc..

Ive used Logger 32  for  20+ years for my home logging software.   N1MM is another good popular one.

On Sat Sep 8, 2012, Buckeye Lake State Park will be activated by WW8OH (COOKEN A.R.C.)
from noon EDST until 8 pm (1600z-2400z)  operating 80-40-20-15-10 meters

Note: Contacts  are  valid once per band, regardless of mode. Hence, this is primarily a SSB contest, as no extra points are given for CW contacts. 

Our Category: Club station/Multi-Op: High Power ( >11watts) from BUCKEYE LAKE SP.

SSB Freqs: 3.825-7.200-14.250-21.300-28.450
CW Freqs:  3.545-7.045-14.045-21.045-28,045

There are 75 Ohio State Parks eligible  for this contest.

Scoring: total  unique call signs worked per BAND x total number of state parks worked.

 

Our exchange to you will be: WW8OH BKL (Buckeye Lake State Park)
Your exchange to us should be:  Your call + your Ohio State Park or your state or province.
DX stations give your call sig + "DX."

The troika of WW8OH stations covering 80-10M racked up  781 qsos in conditions that rivaled last year, or  were not even that good.

Our effort from Fairfield County is now history, and its time to prepare for the upcoming OSPOTA Contest on Sep 8th from Buckeye Lake State Park.

Thanks guys. What freqs do you make your contacts on? Any specific listening freqs?

Regarding  ssb and old fashioned  cw, what are the most highly monitored frequencies   to listen on?

I had some success on 50.125.  I also read that 50.260 is another MS freq for ssb/cw.
Are these equally  utilized or  is one more active than the other? Any other  listening freq's for ssb/ms MS?


And that 50.260-290 is used for the digital modes..k1jt etc. which Im now considering.

My first attempt:
-100w to a 5 el yagi pointing NE ( general direction of the Perseid meteor shower.)
-listened on 50.125 usb
- from 7 am EDST-10:30 am EDST.
Contacts: worked a 2 station in Albany NY (ssb) and a 1 station in MA.( cw)
Heard:  maybe a dozen other stations between 5x1 and 5x5, for periods of 20 seconds to 90 seconds. Most were  in 1 and 2 land.  I also heard a couple of loud 4 stations that I assumed were Es.

So what advice would a pro in MS propagation give to improve results.

Also which meteor showers besides the Perseids are worth the effort?

Any advice on antennas, polarization,  other tips to maximize a good experience?

Thanks to all 141 stations who took the time to work us on or around 7.190 ssb.  The logs will soon be uploaded to LOTW  and to the www.cooken.org website where you can download and print your own handsome certificate.

Lots of civil war buffs out there!

Brief History:
John Clem, the "drummer boy of Chickamauga, was born in Newark, Ohio  on Aug 13, 1851, When  President Lincoln made a call for volunteers to join the Union Army to fight in the Civil War, Johnny ran away from home at age nine and tried to join the newly formed 3rd Ohio Infantry, in 1861.  He was refused due to his young age, but he persisted and went to Michigan where he again tried to enlist , this time in the 22nd Michigan Infantry, where he was again refused.  But his determination   won over the officers who allowed him to join them as mascot and unofficial drummer boy. He was eventually allowed to enlist in 1863, at age 12.

Clem became famous for his actions at Chickamauga. For those actions, Clem was promoted to Sargent, and thus became the youngest NCO ever in the US Army history.

Clem went on to fight  at Perryville, Murfreesboro, Kennesaw,  and Atlanta, where he was wounded twice and was captured by the Conferate Army in 1863, reportedly with three bullet holes in his cap.  The Confederte newspapers made fun of his youth and small size, saying it showed how  depleted the Union Army was, for  sending such  a babe to fight.  Clem was  later exchanged  for a Confedrate soldier and returned to the Union Army.

Clem was discharged from the Army in 1864, at age 13,  and returned to school, graduating in 1870.  Clem then reenlisted, and was granted the commission of 2nd Lieutenant, by President U.S. Grant, recognizing his fame and notoriety.  Clem rose to the rank of Colonel, and Assistant Quartermaster General by 1906, and retired from the Army as  Brigadier General in 1915.

Clem died in Texas in 1937,  and is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

His home town of Newark, Ohio  mounted a 6 ft bronze statue depicting  the young Johnny Clem. Also a public school bears his name, and  a WW I troop transport ship was named The John. L. Clem.

Any MS success?

 so far from 0650 L to 0750L I worked  1 cw and 1 ssb MS contact on 50.125 beaming NE.

UPDATE:   The COOKEN CONTEST ANIMALS have  decided upon  FAIRFIELD COUNTY, OH as our  QTH for the OQP on Aug. 25th.

We will be operating three  100w. stations on:
1. 80/40 ssb with a horizontal 160M loop at 70 ft.
2. 80/40 cw  with an inverted L at 45 ft.
3. 20-15-10 ssb with our new hexbeam.

So we will not only be  hunting all 88 Ohio counties, but looking to give out contacts with Fairfield County with stations  all over the USA, and beyond.

See you then!

UPDATE:  Being a bunch of early birds, we will likely be on the air around 9am, about an hour earlier than  announced.  Better propagation too.

Look for W8TNX around 7.170  or 7.230 +- depending on QRM.