[80m] Good Ole 80 Meter Years

[Gary Dixon]

Glad to see the 80 Meter Reflector Up and running.

As others have said in the last day or so 80 Meters is really the PITS now
and has been for several years. I've been actively operating 75/80 for well
over 30 years with 337 Countries worked and confirmed, but the last 2-3
years are the worse in 30 years in my opinion. I may never get the last 9
with such conditions.

I was able to achieve the first USA 5 Band WAZ in 1980 when there were no 4
SQ. antennas and 2 element Yagis or DX Packet Networks. I only used three
Quarter Wave Sloppers off a 56 ft. tower on 75/80 when I got my 5B WAZ.
Conditions were really great in the 70's and early 80's. Propagation seemed
to decline in the mid to late 80's with a reasonable surge in the early to
mid 90's and a steady decline since then.

With 75/80 in the PITS, I have also migrated to 6 Meters where I have had a
ball this year. Now 4 away from DXCC in about one year on 6 Meters.

I have used a Create 2 element rotary Yagi at 120 feet on 75 Meters for ten
years and I would go back to my quarter wave sloppers any day if we had the
1970 propagation again.

Do any of you propagation experts know when or if we will ever return to the
"Good Ole Days" of 75/80 Meter DXing. I hope I can live that long. Hi Hi

I commend the technical community for all the advances in antennas over the
past 10-15 years. Without having the edge through technology we would not be
working much of anything it seems with propagation the way it is.

73's, Gary, K4MQG (South Carolina)

ARRL DXAC Representative: Roanoke Division
ARRL Field QSL Checker

DXCC=369, 5 Band WAZ #1 USA,  8 Band WAZ,  8 Band DXCC

DXCC: 80M=337,  40M=343,  30M=325,  20M=365,  17M=326,  15M=355,  12M=319,
10M=343,  6M=96

QSL Mgr.for these old stations: KB6CZ, K4ERU/KB6, VK9MM, P29MM, MP4QBK,
MP4BHH, MP4MBB, 4S7JD, 9L1GQ, 9L2SL, C6AFR, JY9MQ, 5B4/K4MQG, FS/K4MQG,
XE3/K4MQG, VP9/K4MQG